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The Education, Youth and Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee meets on 22 October 2026 to consider four items. The items are the forward work programme, the Youth Justice Plan 2026-2029, the role of school governors and the training available to them, and the 2027/28 budget at its second stage. No minutes have been published yet, so this summary records what is proposed, not what was decided.
The committee will consider a call-in of the Cabinet's decision of 6 October 2026 on proposals to merge Catholic schools in Flintshire into a new 3-18 school. A call-in lets scrutiny members review a decision before it takes effect. No minutes have been published yet, so no outcome is recorded.
The Committee will consider Estyn's inspection report on the Council's education and youth services, a report on school reserves, and the joint archive project with Denbighshire. It will also consider the Corporate Risk Register, the Annual Performance Report 2025/26 and its forward work programme. No decisions are recorded because the minutes have not yet been published.
The Education, Youth and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee is asked to consider two proposals from the Council's school modernisation programme. One would close Saltney Ferry and Saltney Wood Memorial primary schools and open a single 3-11 school. The other would close St Anthony's Catholic Primary School and merge three other Catholic schools into one 3-18 school. No minute has been published, so this summary sets out what is proposed, not what was decided.
The Committee considered an update on the Belonging Strategy and the year-end performance report on the Council Plan 2025/26 for education-related objectives. It agreed to write to all schools backing the Belonging Strategy, approved its forward work programme as amended, and noted feedback on the performance report. Councillors also resolved to exclude the press and public for part of the meeting, and the minutes of those confidential items are not in the papers provided.
The Committee met on 18 June 2026. It approved its Forward Work Programme, as amended, and noted progress on the Denbighshire and Flintshire joint archive project. It also noted the annual report on Young Flintshire, a group that gives young people a say in council decisions, and was updated on health and wellbeing work in schools and pre-schools.
On 3 June 2026 this committee reviewed two Cabinet decisions of 13 May 2026, which councillors had called in for scrutiny before they take effect. For the audit reports on two notices of motion about school reorganisation, it was satisfied with the explanation, so the Cabinet decision can be implemented. For the proposal to close four Catholic schools and open a 3-18 school, it was also satisfied with the explanation, so that Cabinet decision can be implemented too.
The Education, Youth and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee, a council committee that checks the council's work, met on 19 May 2026 to review reports on education. It noted reports on learner exam results, school attendance and exclusions, and climate change work in schools. It deferred two items: the internal audit reports on notices of motion about school reorganisation, and the report on school governors.
The Committee considered five reports at its meeting on 26 March 2026: the Youth Services self-evaluation, school admission arrangements for 2027/28, Adult Community Learning, NEWydd school meals, and learner outcomes. It endorsed the Youth Services self-evaluation, supported the 2027/28 admission arrangements, commended the Estyn inspection of Adult Community Learning, and noted the NEWydd update. The report on learner outcomes was deferred.
The Committee considered two school reorganisation proposals under the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme: the amalgamation of Saltney Ferry and Saltney Wood Memorial primary schools, and the reorganisation of Catholic schools in Flintshire. On both, the Committee noted the objection reports and agreed to send its observations to Cabinet, which makes the final decision. On the Catholic proposal, it also asked Cabinet to reconsider closing St Anthony's Catholic School or to delay its closure by one academic year.
The minutes record declarations of interest by three councillors and that the press and public were excluded for one item, which the council judged exempt from public access under local government law. The minutes provided do not name that item or record any decision on a substantive matter.
Call-in is the process by which councillors ask a scrutiny committee (a committee that checks council decisions) to examine a decision before it takes effect. The committee indicated that it was satisfied with the explanation it received, so the Cabinet decision can be implemented.
The committee considered education budget options for 2026/27, a report on pupil numbers and school places, and a report on Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks in schools. It recommended that any benefit from a lower final teacher pay award go to schools in deficit, meaning schools that spend more than they receive, and asked all school governors to have enhanced DBS checks. It also approved its work programme, as amended, and invited the Bishop of Wrexham to a special meeting on 13 February 2026.
The Education & Youth Overview and Scrutiny Committee, which checks the work of the Cabinet, reviewed the Education Portfolio's annual self-evaluation report for 2024-25. The report concludes that Flintshire's education services are strong and good value for money. The committee commented on the report and recommended that the Education Services budget for 2026/27 should not be reduced, following a proposal from Councillor Carolyn Preece.
The committee considered budget cost pressures for education and schools, sickness absence in schools, the recommissioning of the Families First grant, and a report on play in primary schools. It asked that school budgets are not top sliced in the final 2026/27 budget and agreed that the Chair should write to Welsh Government about funding. It also approved its forward work programme, as amended.
A call-in asks a scrutiny committee to re-examine a decision before it takes effect; five councillors had called this one in, saying the consultation and the educational case were not adequate. The committee voted to accept the explanation given but not to endorse the decision, and rejected a motion to refer it to full Council.
The committee met on 23 October 2025 to consider its work programme and reports on several topics. It approved its forward work programme, as amended, and agreed that the Chair write to Welsh Government and to ministers about funding for Welsh language and youth justice duties. It also noted reports on school exclusions and play services, and agreed to support the 2025-2028 Play Sufficiency Action Plan.
The Education, Youth and Culture scrutiny committee, which reviews council plans, considered two school proposals on 8 October 2025. On Saltney primary schools, it noted the consultation outcome and agreed that its observations would go to Cabinet. On Catholic schools, it asked Cabinet not to proceed to a Statutory Notice and to seek an alternative with the Diocese.
The Education, Youth and Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee met on 25 September 2025. It approved its forward work programme, as amended, and noted that school reserves fell to £0.454m at 31 March 2025.
The committee considered school funding, school improvement, school performance monitoring and the Young Flintshire youth participation model. It agreed to write to the joint headteacher union for clarification and to seek advice on inviting it to a special meeting, and it noted reports on the new school improvement service and Young Flintshire. A Panel Performance Assessment report was also presented, but the minute records no decision on it.
The committee considered reports on school parking, school transport, holiday hunger, the Council Plan and performance. It backed a protocol and priority matrix for parking outside schools, a task and finish group on discretionary school transport, and Option 3 for holiday hunger, which keeps a summer payment of £50 per eligible child while sustainable food options are developed.
The Committee noted its Forward Work Programme and asked for the option of using £1.205m of Welsh Government funding for the Additional Learning Team to be investigated. It also noted the financial pressures on Additional Learning Needs provision and agreed to use the vision in the Belonging Strategy as a reference point when setting priorities.
The Committee noted Councillor Teresa Carberry as its Chair and appointed Councillor Gina Maddison as Vice Chair. It also approved its Forward Work Programme with changes, and considered a report on school attendance and exclusions, asking for further reports and a risk strategy from Cabinet.
The Committee considered its forward work programme, progress on school modernisation and the Council's corporate risk register. It approved the work programme as amended and asked Internal Audit to add direct award contracts to its audit programme. It noted the school modernisation report and reviewed risk REY01, on the financial viability of schools.
The Committee considered its forward work programme and the progress of actions from earlier meetings. It approved the programme with three changes: a future report on school meal portion sizes, a future item on direct award contracts, and an invitation to schools to give presentations before meetings.
The Committee met on 9 January 2025 to consider a presentation from pupils at Castell Alun High School, Flintshire Youth Service's progress, the Corporate Risk Register and the Council Plan mid-year performance report. It noted the Forward Work Programme and supported the Youth Service's plans, including a digital strategy and an application for a Quality Mark Silver award in 2025. It also noted the risk that some schools may not be financially viable, and said it was assured by the arrangements to manage that risk.
It was satisfied with NEWydd's progress on school meals and asked for an annual report on the service. It noted developments at Theatr Clwyd, was assured of its work with young people, and agreed to write to Welsh Government about multi-year funding for the national music service.
The committee's agenda had only two procedural items: declarations of interest, and members of the press and public in attendance. The minute records no declarations of interest and no decisions on substantive business.
The minutes are published. No summary has been written yet.
The minutes are published. No summary has been written yet.