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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
AGREED to note the contents of the report.
AGREED that regular permanent Saturday opening should not be introduced.
AGREED to approve the release of £45,000 from reserves for the creation of a new Gwent Archives website.
AGREED to approve the release of £26,437 from reserves to extend the fixed-term Archivist contract to 31 March 2028.
1.1 The CA confirmed that the meeting was quorate.
Part of an issue followed across 4 meetings
2.1 Apologies were received from Co-opted Member John Evans.
3.1 There were no declarations of interest received.
4.1 Jeff Phillips and Rachael Lovering advised that they had attended the meeting but had not been recorded as present. 4.2 The minutes were confirmed as an accurate record, subject to the above changes.
5.1 Nigel Clubb advised that he had attended the meeting. Rachael Lovering asked that her apologies be recorded retrospectively. 5.2 The minutes were confirmed as an accurate record, subject to the above changes.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to note the contents of the report.
6.1 The CA presented the report and thanked the Gwent Archives team and volunteers for their contribution. She advised that some matters had progressed since the report was written and responded to questions as follows: • Members congratulated Claire Jeremy on achieving Registered Archivist status and Rhys Phillips on completing a Level 4 Diploma in Principles of Leadership and Management. The Joint Committee agreed that its congratulations and thanks should be conveyed to the staff concerned. • The CA highlighted support provided to museums and heritage partners, including advice on storage conditions and mould. Funding for Archives Alive, including Crowd Cymru, had been extended to the end of March 2027. Gwent Archives was leading the Behind the Curtain theatre collections project, supported by a grant of £200,000. Crowd Cymru had 132 volunteers and an international reach. • In relation to historic landlord service charges, the CA advised that transaction information was expected shortly. The information would be reviewed with finance colleagues and any queries raised with Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council. It was hoped that the outstanding position could be resolved by March 2027. • The CA advised that engagement with Welsh Government following the Senedd elections had been positive. The risk associated with political change may reduce, although it would remain under review pending the outcome of the consultation on the Culture and Sport Strategy. • The CGA reported that heating remained the principal building concern. Heat accumulated during the week in rooms containing air-handling units, particularly the research room and conservation studio. Two engineering visits had taken place, but Gwent Archives had not received the associated reports or a response regarding recommendations to replace damaged or faulty valves. • In response to questions from Councillor Gardner, the CGA confirmed that contractors had attended twice, that the date of the last correspondence from Technical Services was not immediately available and that Gwent Archives had not seen the engineering reports. Councillor Gardner agreed to seek copies of the reports, contact Technical Services regarding its forward work plan and assist with escalating the issue. • Nigel Clubb expressed concern about unresolved building matters and welcomed the involvement of Councillor Gardner. Officers advised that the other red-rated building issues shown in the report had since been resolved. • Jeff Phillips asked for future Past and Present walks to be publicised in advance. Officers agreed to provide information on planned walks. • In response to a question from Nigel Clubb, the CA explained that a collections analysis tool was being developed with external support to provide evidence of strengths and gaps in the collections. The work would inform the Collections Policy and would be reported to the Committee. Further detail would be included in the next activity report. • In response to a question from Councillor Drewett, the CA confirmed that collections development would need to take account of storage capacity and the ability to catalogue new deposits. Commercial storage arrangements would end when space was required and evidence on collection gaps would be gathered before targeted collecting activity was planned. 6.2 The Joint Committee AGREED to note the contents of the report.
Decision as recorded
AGREED that regular permanent Saturday opening should not be introduced.
7.1 The CA presented the report on the six-month trial of one Saturday opening per month between January and June 2026. Twenty signed-in visitors attended across six Saturdays, comprising 13 new users and seven existing users. Average attendance was 3.3 visitors per Saturday, with a maximum of six and a minimum of one. • Members noted that Saturday opening improved accessibility but that use had been lower than expected. Regular provision would create staffing difficulties, contractual implications, a requirement for formal consultation and uncertainty regarding reception and caretaking cover. • Members supported the recommendation and considered that outreach, online access, cataloguing and digitisation provided more sustainable ways to widen access. 7.2 The Joint Committee AGREED that regular permanent Saturday opening should not be introduced.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to approve the release of £45,000 from reserves for the creation of a new Gwent Archives website.
8.1 The SA-AE presented the report and requested the release of £45,000 from reserves for a replacement Gwent Archives website. The LFO confirmed that the reserve balance was healthy and could accommodate the expenditure. • In response to questions from Councillor Drewett, Officers advised that the Shared Resource Service provided technical support rather than website development. Its expertise would be used to finalise the technical brief and to advise on potential suppliers. User testing would involve Members, volunteers, regular users and wider contacts before launch. • In response to a question from Nigel Clubb, Officers advised that no platform had yet been selected. The likely approach was an established, supported and highly customisable product rather than a fully bespoke system. Officers would learn from archive organisations that had recently completed similar projects. • Karen Mackenzie supported the proposal and described difficulties using the current website and offered to assist with user testing. 8.2 The Joint Committee AGREED to approve the release of £45,000 from reserves for the creation of a new Gwent Archives website.
Decision as recorded
AGREED to approve the release of £26,437 from reserves to extend the fixed-term Archivist contract to 31 March 2028.
9.1 The CA presented the report and requested approximately £26,437 from reserves to extend the fixed-term Archivist post from 31 March 2027 to 31 March 2028. 9.2 The Joint Committee AGREED to approve the release of £26,437 from reserves to extend the fixed-term Archivist contract to 31 March 2028.
10.1 The CA updated Members on building works near the main staircase. Additional structural concerns had been identified and, following advice from structural engineers, the building had been closed on health and safety grounds on Monday. • The CA thanked the leadership team and staff for securing the archive areas and collections at short notice. Volunteers, placements and booked researchers had been contacted and staff worked remotely on Tuesday. • The building reopened on Wednesday after being made safe, although the first floor remained closed. Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council was liaising with Cadw regarding investigations and was considering insurance and grant funding. • Under the lease, Gwent Archives was responsible for one-third of costs relating to communal areas, although the eventual financial impact was not yet known. The CA would keep Members informed, including outside scheduled meetings where necessary. • Members thanked the leadership team and staff for responding efficiently.
11.1 The date of the next meeting was confirmed as Friday, 18 December 2026 at 10.00 am. 11.2 The meeting finished at 2.28pm.
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Declarations are read from the minutes once they are published.
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