Agenda and draft minutes

Simon Smith - Chief Fire Officer and Chief Executive

Helen Wilkinson - Denbighshire Voluntary Services Council

Councillor Hugh Evans - Leader of Denbighshire County Council

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 18 September 2018 (copy enclosed).

The minutes of the Conwy and Denbighshire Public Service Board (PSB) held on the 18 September 2018 were submitted for approval.

Matters Arising –

The amount of funding for the growth bid announced by the UK government was £120 million and the Welsh Government had indicated it would match the UK Government funding. That total of £240 million was less than had been anticipated. The growth bid would be included in the Board’s forward work programme when more about the project was known.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Conwy and Denbighshire PSB meeting held on the 18 September 2018 be approved as a correct record.

a.    Update on PSB joint scrutiny arrangements

b.    Conwy & Denbighshire PSB Healthy Boards workshop – session outline

9:30am – 9:40am

a)    Update on PSB joint scrutiny arrangements

It was confirmed that both Councils had agreed to establish a PSB joint scrutiny committee comprising of eight councillors from each council. The process of appointing the members was underway and the board was informed that the first meeting of the PSB joint scrutiny committee could be held before the end of the current financial year.

b)   Conwy and Denbighshire PSB Healthy Boards workshop - session outline

No issues were raised in respect of the workshop.

To receive a presentation on the Brexit update and EU funding implications.

9.40am – 10.10am

Peter York (DCC) and Barbara Burchell (Conwy CBC) presented the implications of Brexit on both Denbighshire and Conwy Councils.

Members were informed that the presentation was based on a ‘no deal’ Brexit scenario, which highlighted potential key issues that could affect both DCC and CCBC.

The UK government had given assurances that a Shared Prosperity fund would be created to take the place of EU funding. However the lack of clarity in respect of the proposed funding made future preparations difficult.

Concerns were raised about the possibility of public disorder and hate crime, such as those reported after the referendum on membership of the EU. The Board was assured that these matters were closely monitored by North Wales Police.

The number of EU nationals that currently resided within both Counties was raised as a concern, as approximately 3,000 EU nationals were employed across Conwy and Denbighshire.  This would impact several sectors in the region, especially in the Care Sector.  Officers were currently contacting local employers to provide information on the EU Settlement scheme and encourage EU Nationals to apply.  This would allow successful applicants to continue living and working in the UK after 30 June 2021.    

The next steps for Conwy CBC would include identifying lead officers for each service affected (e.g. HR, legal etc) and taking a project team approach to Brexit.  Intelligence would continue to be gathered and regular information updates would be provided. Denbighshire CC planned to mirror this approach.  The Board was also informed that the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) had produced a Brexit preparedness toolkit to support local authorities.

Sioned Rees (WG) provided an update from a national perspective, informing the Board that Wales could lose 9% of its GDP from exiting the EU on a ‘no deal’ scenario. Such a reduction would have an adverse impact on local government finances.

The Board was informed that the WG and NHS were working on a risk assessment for Brexit. The effect on importing was as yet unknown, resulting in health boards stockpiling both medication and food supplies.

Welsh Government were also hiring 200 officers to assist with Brexit and the Board enquired if there was an opportunity to share this resource to support other public sector organisations.

RESOLVED –

i.          That the information be noted.

ii.         That Sioned Rees discuss with WG colleagues the potential to share Brexit resources to support other public sector organisations.

a.    People – Mental Well-being (Sian Williams)

b.    Community – Community Empowerment (Judith Greenhalgh)

c.    Place – Environment Resilience (Teresa Owen)

10:10am – 11:00am

Nicola Kneale (DCC) informed the Board that a mapping exercise had been undertaken to ensure the themes from the original 6 priorities were not missing or omitted from the revised 3 priorities.  The mapping results could be found in item 5 of the reports pack, where the majority of themes had been included.

a)    People – Mental Well-being

A well-attended and positively received workshop was held in Llanrwst at the end of November. A report would be produced from the workshop for circulation in January.

The workshop indicated there was already lots of work ongoing in this area to map the current services and initiatives for mental well-being and to identify any duplication or gaps. It was suggested that the Local Implementation Teams could potentially be utilised to steer or deliver the action plans for this priority. 

The Board noted that the demand for mental health care in the region was increasing rapidly, and more resources were required at a time of increasing financial austerity for local authorities.

The Board agreed to scrutinise the report when it was published in January in order to prioritise work to address the areas that could make the largest impact.

b)   Community – Community Empowerment

The Board was guided to the opportunities section of the social prescribing report (item 5b) – which was developed following conversations between Nina Ruddle (Glyndwr University), Dr Glynne Roberts (Public Health Wales), Mefty Haider (NRW) and Nicola Kneale (DCC).

The Board focused on where the PSB could add value in this area, as there was a lot of work already happening with social prescribing in North Wales.  A discussion ensued, where –

• The Board felt there was potential for the PSB to explore social prescribing in terms of weight management (opportunity B).
• Members agreed it would be useful to pursue opportunity C (developing spatial health data at LSOA level).  This would link in with the well-being assessment and also fit with place planning.  The Board discussed the possibility of focusing on deprived areas initially (potentially both a rural and coastal community across both counties).
• Social prescribing should be viewed as an approach and used to support all 3 priorities rather than an action.

Debbie Neale (DVSC) informed the Board that DVSC would lead on the Dementia element of the priority as they have received Intermediate Care Funding (ICF) to raise awareness and deliver dementia training across Conwy and Denbighshire.  The Board welcomed the update and requested a report be tabled at a future meeting.

Conwy CBC confirmed they were in the early stages of becoming a dementia friendly organisation.

c)    Place – Environmental Resilience

An update on this priority was provided as follows –

•      Working groups have been established to progress work with environment officers from across PSB partners.

•      There would be two versions for the green pledges, one for communities and businesses and another for individuals.   

•      A guide would be developed to support communities to meet the pledge, which would contain information on the availability of further resources and potential funding.

•      For the common environmental policy work, information was currently being gathered on specific aspects (e.g. waste, flooding, biodiversity, carbon and energy etc). This information would be used to develop a framework all partners could work towards at their own pace.

•      Recognised that partnership working needed to be developed further, and proposing to establish virtual networks for the different environmental aspects.

Sian Williams (NRW) informed the Board that Natural Resources Wales were planning to examine the themes from each PSB in terms of the environment and determine where they could add support.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

To receive a verbal report on a regional climate change proposal.

11:00 am – 11:15am

Following the discussion during the PSB priorities updates the Board was satisfied for the Chair and key officers to discuss the proposal regionally and report back to the PSB.

RESOLVED – That the Board receive a future update on the development of the climate change proposal.

To receive a presentation on Conwy Council's Corporate Plan

11:15am – 11:30am

Iwan Davies (CCBC) gave a presentation on the Corporate Plan and highlighted its key areas. The corporate plan was outlined as being ambitious but realistic in times of financial difficulties. The Corporate Plan would run alongside the election period of local government from 2017-2022.

The eight priorities were as followed –

Ø  Education and Skills CCBC wanted to be recognised as offering excellent education and a focus on improving education and performance across the whole school system so that young people had the skills to take advantage of job opportunities.

Ø  Safe - Ensuring that the residents of CCBC were safe and felt safe within the County, and also ensure that venerable people were safeguarded.

Ø  Housing - People in Conwy have access to affordable, appropriate, good quality accommodation that enhanced the quality of their lives.

Ø  Health - Promoting healthy choices and lifestyles and in turn, reducing the demand on public services.  CCBC would strengthen partnership working between Health and Social Care services to provide simple and seamless access to Health and Social Care when they were needed. 

Ø  Economy – To have a confident economy that was resilient and sustainable.  To encourage new ideas and work proactively with businesses to promote conditions in which they could grow.

Ø  Environment - Communities to be resilient and ready to adapt to the environmental challenges the world faced. A focus on improving flood defence, increasing recycling and investing in renewable energy.

Ø  Culture - Focus on celebrating culture, the Welsh Language and using the arts to maximise well-being.

Ø  Voice - Focus on reviewing how the Council engaged, communicated and worked with communities and to change the way the Council operated to be more progressive, modern and efficient.

Following the presentation on the corporate plan, the Cabinet priorities were also shown –

1. 21st Century Council, Resilient and Sustainable in the longer term
2. Strong, Empowered and Resilient Communities Stepping Up
3. Effective Schools, Focussed on Delivery Standards
4. Affordable Housing, Accelerated Delivery
5. Economic Growth, Discretionary and Underfunded but Key to Prosperity

The modernisation programme of Conwy CBC was considered.  A key part of the programme was the new Coed Pella offices in Colwyn Bay, which had recently opened. The building would regenerate Colwyn Bay and improve access to services for residents and service users.

The challenges facing Conwy were also raised during the presentation -

•      Demand for housing support and preventing homelessness was increasing

•      Pressures on Social Services and the sustainability of the care sector

•      Educational attainment and key curriculum changes

•      Review of service provision and collaboration with town and community councils

The Board thanked the Chief Executive for the informative presentation and noted the plan’s similarities with DCC’s corporate plan.

RESOLVED – That the update on CCBC’s Corporate Plan be noted.

To receive a verbal update on the Part 9 Governance Board paper and the response from the Chief Executive Group meeting.

11:30am – 11:45am

Judith Greenhalgh, Chief Executive of DCC, updated the Board on the part 9 Governance Board paper. The papers had been circulating prior to her appointment as DCC’s Chief Executive.

There were clear lines of accountability and partnership and development of work areas between the PSB and the Regional Partnership Board. The final Governance Board paper would be considered at a future Regional Partnership Board meeting.

The Board queried issues in respect of cooperation between the PSB and other bodies and discussed whether work could be undertaken to evaluate the structure below the PSB to support delivery of their work.

The Board was informed that a report on the National Assembly’s Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee’s inquiry into PSBs would be published soon. The inquiry’s aims originally included examining how PSBs were targeting improvements to deprived communities however they have since been amended to focus on the operation and effectiveness of PSBs.

RESOLVED – That the information be noted.

To receive a report on 80 Simple Changes – Report from Future Generations Commissioner (copy enclosed).

11:45am – 11.55am

Nicola Kneale (DCC) presented a report (previously circulated) on the future Generations Commissioner’s office document The Art of the Possible: Simple Changes, which set out 80 changes that public bodies should make to help them to maximise their contribution to the seven well-being goals.

It was emphasised that the changes were primarily for public bodies, however the table within section 4.1 of the report highlighted the areas where the PSB could collaborate.  The Board felt there were some good ideas in the document and acknowledged that organisations were already using some of them, but also recognised that there was some areas that could be improved upon. The Board agreed that creating an additional tier of work to implement these changes wasn’t an available option.

Members of the Board felt there was more they could do collaboratively to improve secondment opportunities.  The work identified in the PSB priority areas could potentially be developed as a mini project and delivered through secondment opportunities.

CCBC’s Chief Executive (ID) would take the document to a CCBC senior management meeting and report to the Board on conclusions drawn at the meeting.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

RESOLVED that the Press and Public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that it would involve the likely disclosure of exempt information.

(At this juncture the Board agreed to change the order of reports to accommodate guest speakers).

To receive a confidential presentation on the Old Colwyn Sea defences and flood risk.

12:10pm – 12.25pm

The Board was shown a presentation from Dyfed Rowlands (Flood Risk and Infrastructure Manager) highlighting the concerns with the sea defences on the Old Colwyn promenade.

The Sea Defence issue had been identified as an A1 risk on the risk register which was a critical risk. A 10 year plan for the sea defences was identified in 2010 to address the concerns.

The Board was informed that the current sea defences were from the Victorian era and were not now suitable. The Seawall was built upon sand and gravel, which could be dragged out during storms. This could cause spaces behind the wall, which would weaken the road running adjacent to the seawall.

The sea defences were in close proximity to the Holyhead to Chester Rail Line and the A55 Expressway. If the defences were to fail these could be drastically affected. A Welsh Water sewerage pipe also ran underneath the road beside the Seawall.

The ongoing maintenance costs for the Seawall were a cause for concern. In the latest financial year £300k was spent to repair damage to the Seawall and the surroundings. Welsh Water contributed 50% of the cost to the latest repairs. The lack of investment by other stakeholders had caused concern especially in these times of austerity. Welsh Government’s CRMP funding would be a funding stream which could be sourced by CCBC to protect the frontage.

The board suggested an in-depth risk and impact assessment be carried out, to consider the impact on infrastructure and wider social issues. It was agreed that Conwy CBC lead on the assessment and gather information to have a clearer image on the possible impact on Conwy and North Wales. Judith Greenhalgh (DCC) offered DCC resources to help with gathering information for an impact assessment as the failure of the Seawall would also impact upon Denbighshire.

RESOLVED – That

1. the Board acknowledges the sea defences risk, and
2. CCBC collate information on the in-depth risk and impact assessment.

To receive a confidential report on the Development of PSB risk register and leadership challenges (copy enclosed).

11:55am – 12:10pm

The Chair suggested that this item be discussed in greater detail at a future PSB meeting. The Board was informed that officers had started to map the key corporate risks of partners, which could be circulated to the Board members. The Board suggested that risks be discussed at the PSB workshop in January, before bringing it back to the next PSB meeting in March 2019

RESOLVED – That the risk register and leadership challenges be considered at the next PSB workshop and the PSB’s meeting in March 2019.

The Chair will lead on this item.

12:25pm – 12:30pm

The PSB’s Forward Work Programme (previously circulated) was submitted for consideration. Members confirmed the agenda and reports due at the next PSB meeting in March 2019 as follows:

• PSB Annual Report
• Conwy and Denbighshire voluntary services councils – follow up on what support PSB can offer.
• Future Scenario Planning
• Local Development Plans for Conwy and Denbighshire – First Stage Consultation
• Communities First – Legacy projects
• PSB’s Risk Register and Leadership Challenges

The Board suggested the Growth Bid could be added to the forward work programme with Jane Richardson (CCBC) and Graham Boase (DDC) identified as the key officers to approach for this item

RESOLVED - that the forward work programme be approved.