Agenda item

To consider a report by the Strategic Planning and Performance Team Leader (copy attached) which presents the Council’s draft Annual Performance Review for 2018-19 prior to its presentation to County Council, and seeks the Committee to determine whether any further actions are required to respond to any performance related issues highlighted within the report

12.15pm – 12.45pm

The Cabinet Lead Member for Finance, Performance and Strategic Assets introduced the Strategic Planning and Performance Team Leader’s report (previously circulated) which presented the Committee with information in relation to the Council’s progress in delivering its Corporate Plan outcomes at the end of Quarter 4 2018-19.  To comply with the requirements of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2009 the report also detailed the Corporate Plan projects listed for delivery during the 2019-20 year.  During his introduction the Lead Member informed the Committee that the report was being presented to members slightly earlier than in previous years, this was because councils were not constrained this year by the need to await the publication of Local Government Data Unit statistics.  The Strategic Planning Team Leader advised members that incorporated into the report was the annual delivery document, the results of the residents survey, update on programme and projects’ delivery, along with sustainable development references, diversity and equality information progress and case studies.

In response to members’ questions the Lead Member, Chief Executive, Strategic Planning Team Leader and Strategic Planning and Performance Team Leader;

•        advised that the graphs in Appendix 3 had been reproduced from the Verto Performance Management System and were not therefore easy to follow or read in printed format;

•        agreed that the data on broadband connectivity, particularly in relation to the Clwyd West constituency was not encouraging, hence the reason the Council had designated as one of its corporate priorities that communities were connected and had access to goods and services locally, online and through good transport links.  All North Wales local authorities had concerns in relation to broadband connectivity and its potential impact on economic growth, a fact which the WG had also acknowledged.  For that reason it had been identified as the top priority under the North Wales Economic Ambition Board’s North Wales Growth Deal.  Lead Member and officers acknowledged that broadband connectivity and speeds, particularly in rural areas were of great concern as a number of small businesses were located in these areas whose viability was reliant on having digital and wireless connectivity;

•        undertook to provide information to members on how the County’s libraries would be able to support residents, particularly older and vulnerable people, to apply for blue disabled parking badges, government and other services digitally. They also agreed to provide information to the Committee on the Digital Isolation project.

•        confirmed that whilst the Project Register was showing the ‘Remodelling Waste Service Operations’ as an amber, this was because it entailed capital works to be undertaken on the depots.  Officers were confident that this project would be delivered; and

•        advised that the Council had a clear policy in relation to school absenteeism and the issuing of fixed penalty notices for unauthorised absences. Nevertheless, different schools applied the policy in different ways. Education and Children’s Services monitored this situation closely.

The Chair congratulated the Strategic Planning Team on compiling a well-written document which was easy to read and extremely informative. He also requested that as the winner of schools competition to design a logo for the County’s Bee Friendly Status had recently been announced, the logo be used in the final document ahead of its publication.

At the conclusion of the discussion the Committee:

RESOLVED: - subject to the above observations and provisions of the requested information, to receive and endorse the Council’s performance in delivering its priorities and associated duties as detailed in the annual performance review 2018-19.