Agenda, decisions and minutes

None received.

To receive any declaration of interest by any Member or Officer in respect of any item of business.

Councillor Alun Roberts declared a personal interest in Item 5 on the basis of voluntary work he had undertaken during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown period.

To submit, for confirmation, the minutes of the previous meeting of the Partnership and Regeneration Committee held on 11 March, 2020.

The minutes of the previous meeting of the Partnership and Regeneration Scrutiny Committee held on 11 March, 2020 were confirmed as correct.

To submit a report by the Programme Manager, Gwynedd and Anglesey Public Services Board.

Submitted – a report by the Programme Manager, Gwynedd and Anglesey Public Services Board.

The Programme Manager, Gwynedd and Anglesey Public Services Board reported that the report is structured to refer to the progress of the work of the established Sub-Groups of the Public Services Board.  The Board has four Sub-Groups as follows:-

·      Climate Change Sub-Group

The Sub-Group has been established to encourage collaboration between the public bodies and local communities on how to deal with the threat to communities from future changes to the climate.  It was noted that a series of workshops had been arranged but due to the Covid-19 pandemic these have not been able to take place.  The Sub-Groups identified that regional work is being undertaken as regards to climate change and the sub-group is conscious that duplication of work needs to be avoided and an opportunity to learn from each other.

·      The Welsh language Sub-Group

The Sub-Group has mainly focused on collaboration to increase the use of the Welsh language within public bodies in Gwynedd and Anglesey.  This specifically relates to the Welsh language as a language of choice for internal communication in public bodies, and for communication with the public.  The established project ‘Arfer’ which was led by Bangor University as regards to understanding the habits of speakers who are not as confident or comfortable in using Welsh at work.  The Public Services Board across the region received a grant from Welsh Government annually. Discussions were held regarding using the grant to fund a study that would explore how to use the public organisations’ reception areas to encourage and promote the use of the Welsh language by more people. Unfortunately due to the Covid-19 pandemic the grant has been withdrawn.

·      Homes for Local People Sub-Group

The work of the Sub-Group has continued during the Covid-19 pandemic and its next proposed steps will be to fully evaluate the financial viability of the developments in relation to these sites, before confirming how best to finance the developments and the initial timetable for commencing work.  The Sub-Group has been discussing its plans with the Welsh Government to ensure that its work is in accordance with the Government’s vision for innovative and affordable housing.  A progress report will be submitted to the next meeting of the Public Service Board.

·      Health and Care Sub-Group

The Sub-Group’s responsibility is to oversee the work streams/projects of: Adults, Children, Learning Disabilities, Mental Health and Community Transformation.  These work streams are in accordance with the Regional Partnership Board’s priority areas for integration.  It was reported that a meeting of the Sub-Group was held on 7^th July.  The purpose of the meeting was to revise the terms of reference of the group, following the Covid-19 outbreak and it was agreed that the sub-group’s priorities in the recovery from the pandemic have changed as a result.  A workshop was held by the Health and Care Sub-Group on 16^th September to address the West Winter Plan and the work streams arising from the regional  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

To submit a report by the Chief Executive.

Submitted – a report by the Chief Executive in relation to the Council’s response to date to the Covid-19 pandemic in accordance with its responsibilities under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 in relation to emergency preparation and response co-ordination at local level.

The Chief Executive reported that the response to the pandemic is still ongoing and   uncertain and challenging times for all concerned will be experienced. Although the Council has been primarily focused on responding to the Covid-19 emergency it has in recent weeks planned for a programme of recovery and a gradual opening of public services. The Chief Executive referred to the excellent work undertaken by the staff, elected members and partner’s organisation within the communities.

The Deputy Chief Executive gave a detailed report in respect of the Council’s response to the pandemic and the joint working with the third sector.  He refer specifically to :-

·           Governance Arrangements – emergency planning governance arrangements were put in place nationally, regionally and locally to lead the response to the pandemic. On a regional level, this has been lead and co-ordinated by the Local Resilience Forum (where the public sector works collaboratively) through the emergency Strategic Co-ordination Group (SCG).  The Council has fully contributed to work of specific thematic sub-groups reporting to the SCG on Health and Social Care, Excess deaths, Media and PPE. 

·           Key Risk Areas – a specific emergency risk register was created at the outset and has been reviewed and updated weekly. The key risks have been prioritised in terms of time and effort and these have included care homes, contact tracing and testing, personal protective equipment, dealing with outbreaks, supporting vulnerable families, the impact on the Council’s finances and the impact on the Council’s workforce.

·           Outputs of the Community Workstream (including inputs from Medrwn Môn and Menter Môn

All services within the County Council have worked well together to meet the needs of the residents of Anglesey during the pandemic; however, the needs of residents have varied throughout the pandemic.  The co-working between key services has been outstanding during this period and this has included creative and different service delivery. On Anglesey, a partnership was established to provide support for vulnerable persons in the communities within the first weeks of the pandemic. 

The Council set up a dedicated emergency response phone line and was open 7 days a week.  Information, advice and assistance within the local communities was available via a Single Point of Access in the community facilitated by Medrwn Môn and support from Local Asset Co-ordinators (community agents who connect individuals to community assets and services).  During the lockdown period two pop up foodbanks were established on the Island, one in Llangefni and the other in Menai Bridge through the food work stream which included Housing Services, Anglesey Food Bank and CAB.  The additional foodbanks worked in conjunction with the established foodbanks operating at Holyhead and Amlwch.  During the lockdown period and up to the 28^th of July a total of 742 food packages were  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

To submit a report by the Scrutiny Officer.

Submitted – the report of the Scrutiny Officer.

It was RESOLVED to note the Work Programme from October – December, 2020.