Cabinet

Cabinet considered an update on the financial position of the Council’s capital programme for 2022/23 as at 31st December 2022. The revised programme was budgeted at £93.37 million following the successful award of additional grants and the reprofiling of budgets between financial years. Actual spend amounted to £41.08 million, representing 44% of the total budget. RESOLVED that the report be noted.

Cabinet considered the performance report for the third quarter. For the 53 objectives were data had been provided, 36 (67%) were on track, 12 (22%) were slightly off track and 5 (9)% were off track. Of the 66 reportable measures, 49 (54%) met their target, 13 (14%) were slightly off target and 12 (13%) were off target. The report set out actions being taken in respect of those objectives which were off target. The report recommended the removal of two measures from the Health and Care section of the Corporate Improvement Plan. RESOLVED 1. That Cabinet approves the removal of measures 326 and 336 from future reporting of Vision 2025: Our Corporate Improvement Plan. 2. That Cabinet notes the contents of the report, which presents an overview of performance for the quarter against the objectives and measures published in Vision 2025: Our Corporate Improvement Plan. 3. That Cabinet notes that the report is retrospective and may not reflect the context of the emerging financial challenges that the Council is facing.

Cabinet considered the Strategic Risk Register for the second quarter. The report noted the creation of a nature emergency risk with a scheduled Senior Leadership Team session now taking place on 8 February. The report also noted the escalation of two risks to the Strategic Risk Register: LEAINF0001 Insufficient level of revenue maintenance and major improvement capital funding is likely to result in unsafe and unfit assets within the school property. SEM0003 School building stock deteriorates due to the insufficient level of revenue and major improvement capital funding required to maintain them so that they are safe and fit for purpose. RESOLVED that Cabinet notes the current Strategic Risk Register and is satisfied with progress against mitigating actions for quarter 2 and approves escalation of LEAINF0001 and SEM0003 to the Strategic Risk Register.

The Council had been paying the Real Living Wage (RLW) to all staff aged 18 and over for a number of years and Cabinet considered the steps required to become an accredited Living Wage Employer. The Cabinet wished to consolidate the payment of this to all staff from April 2023, to extend the RLW to apprentices under the age of 18, and for a plan to be put in place for paying the RLW to third party contracted staff, which would lead to the Council becoming an accredited Living Wage Employer. The proposal was welcomed by members of the Cabinet. RESOLVED that: 1. the Council continues to pay the RLW to all staff as a minimum, by applying the rate advised by the Foundation from the following April each year. 2. the 12 apprentices also be paid the RLW from 1st April 2023, and that services be required to plan for and pay the RLW to all future apprentices within their existing budgets. 3. the costs arising for this group of 12 apprentices to be funded by services from funded vacant posts. 4. a further report be brought to Cabinet in due course about the plan to pay the RLW to contractors, including the costs involved.

Cabinet considered the outcome of the schools’ catchment online consultation. The aim of the review was to support learners and their families by improving understanding and transparency of learner entitlement for school admissions and home to school transport. By setting clear catchment areas for each school, the Local Authority would be able to implement the online application system designed so that learners and their families could submit their home address and postcode to identify their nearest schools (including Welsh medium provision) and transport entitlement. This would allow for informed decisions by learners and their families before applying for a school place. A number of changes were proposed as a result of the consultation and these were set out in the report. The proposals had also been considered by the Learning and Skills Scrutiny Committee and the Committee’s recommendations were also set out in the report. The changes would not impact any current pupils but would be implemented from September 2024 for the new intake. Cabinet discussed the proposal to include the hamlet of Bwlch within the catchment area of Llangors Church in Wales Primary School rather than Llangynidr County Primary with Councillors Charlton and Cox expressing concerns. It was confirmed that if parents in Bwlch chose to send their children to Llangynidr County Primary or to Crickhowell High School this would qualify for free home to school transport because there was no safe walking route if Llangynidr CP and Crickhowell High School were their nearest school. The Cabinet Member for a Learning Powys offered to meet parents in Bwlch to explain this. He also planned to make a recording explaining how to access the maps to share with Members. RESOLVED to adopt the recommendations for Powys primary and secondary catchment maps as set out in sections 10.1 – 10.14 of the report.

Cabinet received the update from the Corporate Safeguarding Board and noted that the 137 safeguarding referrals received in November 2022 was the highest received. Cabinet was advised that there was a sustained high level of demand for support and that the decision to move to business critical activities in December had helped direct resources to where they were most needed. RESOLVED to receive the update from the Chair of the Corporate Safeguarding Board.

Cabinet noted the delegated decisions taken since the last meeting.

Cabinet noted the forward work programme.