Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any declarations of interest from any Member or Officer in respect of any item of business.

No declaration of interest was received.

No urgent matters at the time of dispatch of this agenda.

None to report.

To submit for confirmation, the draft minutes of the meeting of the Executive held on 30 May 2023.

The minutes of the previous meeting of the Executive held on 25 April, 2023 were presented for confirmation.

It was resolved that the minutes of the previous meeting of the Executive held on 30 May, 2023 be confirmed as correct subject to amending the reference under item 1 in the Welsh version to reflect that only Councillor Robin Williams’s wife is employed by Anglesey Good Food and not the Councillor himself.

To submit a report by the Head of Democracy.

The report of the Head of Democracy incorporating the Executive’s Forward Work Programme for the period from July, 2023 to February 2024 was presented for confirmation.

The Head of Democracy updated the Executive regarding changes to the Forward Work Programme and the following were noted –

• Items 11 and 12 (Highways Asset Management Plan and Fleet Vehicles Transformation Plan respectively) as delegated decisions for the Portfolio Member for Highways, Waste and Property for September, 2023.

• Item 19 (Public Participation Strategy 2023-28) as a new item for the Executive’s 26 September, 2023 meeting.
• Item 21 (Compulsory Land Purchase – Employment land in Llangefni) as a new item for the Executive’s 26 September, 2023 meeting.
• Item 28 (Empty Homes Strategy 2023-2028) as a new item for the Executive’s 28 November, 2023 meeting.
• Item 32 (Capital Strategy) subject to confirmation a new item for the Executive’s 23 January, 2024 meeting.
• Items 34 to 36 (Q3 Financial Monitoring reports) as new items for the Executive’s 20 February, 2024 meeting.
• Item 37 (Tenants’ Participation Strategy) as a new item for the Executive’s 20 February, 2024 meeting.
• Item 38 (Asset Management Strategy (Housing Services) as a new item for the Executive’s 20 February, 2024 meeting.
• Item 39 (Local Housing Market Assessment) as a new item for the Executive’s 20 February, 2024 meeting.

Items not on the published Work Programme to be added to the Executive’s 18 July, 2023 meeting –

·         Risk Management Policy and Strategy

·         Free School Meals Provision – Ysgol Bodffordd,

·         Improving Resilience and Reliability across the Menai

It was resolved to confirm the Executive’s updated Forward Work Programme for the period June, 2023 to January, 2024 with the changes outlined at the meeting.

To submit a report by the Head of Profession - HR and Transformation.

The report of the Head of Profession (HR) and Transformation incorporating the Corporate Scorecard for Quarter 4 2022/23 was presented for the Committee’s consideration. The scorecard report portrayed the Council’s end of year position against matters relating to customer service, people and financial management and performance management.

The report was presented by Councillor Carwyn Jones, Portfolio Member for Corporate Business and Customer Experience who provided a summary of the contents confirming that 91% of indicators were performing to, or within 5% of target. The report highlighted a number of positive performance stories in relation to homelessness prevention, Adults’ Services, timeliness of planning decision-making, improvements in road condition, street cleanliness, the number of empty homes brought back into use and the recovery of visitor numbers to leisure centres to pre- pandemic levels. The contribution made by the Council’s staff to this positive performance over the year is recognised and commended. Where performance remains off target, those areas, specifically the percentage of FOI requests dealt with within timescale, average number of days taken to deliver Disabled Facilities Grant and percentage of planning appeals dismissed are being investigated and monitored by the Leadership Team to secure improvements into the future. Equally important going forward into the new Council year is monitoring trends and the direction of travel of performance against indicators be they rated Green or Yellow especially in view of the ongoing challenges around funding and expenditure, staff recruitment and capacity. Keeping an eye on trends will help maintain the current level of good performance and contribute to continuous improvement over time. In closing remarks Councillor Carwyn Jones said that he hoped the report provides assurance that performance is important to the Council, that it is being managed robustly and is being given due attention both politically and operationally.

Due to connection issues being experienced by the Chair of the Corporate Scrutiny Committee at this juncture, the Head of Democracy stepped in to report from the Corporate Scrutiny Committee’s meeting on 20 June where the Quarter 4 2022/23 Corporate Scorecard was considered and debated in detail. Several issues were raised and discussed including the arrangements for raising awareness of the positive performance, customer service in relation to telephone call monitoring and quality of responses, the delivery of Disabled Facilities grants and adaptations, management of children on the Child Protection Register (CPR) – specifically performance against Indicator 23 and how this can be reported to give a more meaningful account of performance with it being agreed that the indicator be examined by the Social Services Scrutiny Panel. The projected underspend on the 2022/23 budget was considered in terms of how it might help the Council in address expected additional service pressures in 2023/24. Questions about how actions to tackle underperforming areas/indicators are monitored to ensure they are meeting performance aims and objectives were also raised. Having considered these matters and the response to them, the Committee had resolved to recommend the Q4 Scorecard report and mitigation measures therein, to the Executive.

The Executive’s  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

To submit a report by the Head of Profession - HR and Transformation.

The report of the Head of Profession (HR) and Transformation incorporating the Annual Delivery Document for 2023/24 was presented for the Executive’s consideration and approval.

The Annual Delivery Document was presented by Councillor Carwyn Jones, Portfolio Member for Corporate Business and Customer Experience as an outline of the Council’s annual work programmes for 2023/24 which are designed to deliver the expectations of the Council Plan. He thanked the Programme, Business Planning and Performance Manager for an informative document, concisely and clearly presented. The Delivery Plan sets out the key actions to be undertaken by the Council in 2023/24 to support delivery of the strategic objectives in the Council Plan 2023-28 and reflects the aspirations of the Council for the year. The document has been developed in collaboration with services across the Council and the work programmes it sets out have been fully costed and will be delivered within the resources determined as part of the budget set for 2023/24. The work will be undertaken alongside the day to day running of the Council and its statutory obligations. All front line and support staff will be integral to the document’s successful delivery.

The Programme, Business Planning and Performance Manager advised that quarterly updates on activity progress will be provided to ensure that that Council is meeting its expectations for the year.

Councillor Douglas Fowlie, Chair of the Corporate Scrutiny Committee provided feedback from the Committee’s 20 June meeting where the Delivery Document 2023/24 was scrutinised. He reported that the issues raised by the Committee included the challenges and risks in seeking to realise the priorities set for 2023/24, the arrangements put in place to monitor the progress in delivering the work programmes as outlined, the extent to which the Plan complies with the Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 and ensuring that staff are fully engaged in its delivery. Having discussed these matters and having considered the response provided, the committee had resolved to recommend the Annual Delivery Document for 2023/24 to the Executive.

The Executive’s members acknowledged the vision which the Document projected and they looked forward to the implementation of the activities for their respective portfolio responsibility.  The Chair commented that although the six strategic objectives are specific, the work programmes under each are intertwined e.g. the development of new housing not only provides homes for people but helps support the construction industry and brings economic benefits. The presentation of the Annual Delivery Document for 2023/24 also coincides with the public launch of the Council Plan 2023-28 and shows from the outset that the Council is committed to delivering its ambitions for the five-year plan.

 It was resolved to adopt the Annual Delivery Document for the purpose of delivery during 2023/24.

To submit a report by the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer setting out the financial performance of the Council’s services at the end of Quarter 4, 31 March 2023 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

Councillor Robin Williams, Portfolio Member for Finance presented the report and provided some context saying that the Council set a net budget for 2022/23 with net service expenditure of £158.365m to be funded from Council Tax income, NDR and general grants. This included a total for general and other contingencies amounting to £3.110m. The budget for the Council Tax Premium was increased by £0.436m to £1.950m. A balanced budget was set with an agreed Council Tax rise of 2%. As for the previous year services were not required to make savings. The increase of 9.2% in funding from Welsh Government was a welcome increase but did require the Council to commit to budget increases in a number of areas including social care and homelessness. Welsh Government support for Covid related expenditure also ended. The overall financial position for 2022/23 including Corporate Finance and the Council Tax Fund is a projected underspend of £1.212m which is 0.76% of the Council’s net budget for 2022/23.

Councillor Robin Williams said that although the outcome at year end is positive and improves the Council’s financial position it has been helped by a number of one-off items that have contributed to the underspend. These include non-recurring Welsh Government grants, better than budgeted for income levels, the use of earmarked reserves and a high level of staff vacancies without which the position would have been very different with an overspend of £2.867m being reported which would have created a significant gap in the budget going into 2023/24. Most of the financial advantages which have bolstered the Council’s financial position at the end of 2022/23 will not re-occur to the same extent in 2023/24 meaning the Council will still be facing financial pressure in 2023/24 and beyond. Councillor Williams reiterated that as Portfolio Member for Finance he had always taken a prudent approach to the budget taking a long-term view, maintaining reserves, and not rushing decisions in the face of calls to not raise Council Tax. He highlighted that Anglesey remains one of the lowest charging authorities in Wales for Council Tax and is the lowest in North Wales. Increasing the Council Tax is done to balance the budget from one year to the next and not for the sake of it.

The Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer referred to continuing uncertainties in relation to the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years. Although the underspend means that the position of the Council’s balances at £10.2m moving forward, is £1.4m above the minimum recommended value of 5% of the net revenue budget for 2023/24 having taken account also of the £3.8m committed as funding of the 2023/24 budget, there remain unresolved issues around staff pay increases with non-teaching unions having rejected the pay offer for 2023/24 and teachers pay having been settled to August  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To submit a report by the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer setting out the financial performance of the capital budget for the 2022/23 financial year (subject to audit) was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

Councillor Robin Williams, Portfolio Member for Finance provided an overview of the Capital Budget for 2022/23 and expenditure as summarised in the table at paragraph 1.2 of the report. When slippage from 2021/22, additional schemes since budget setting and adjustments to the Housing Revenue Account Budget have been taken into account, the total capital budget for 2023/24 was £54.564m. Total expenditure for the year ending 31 March, 2023 was £40.690m leaving an underspend of £13.874m. Most of the underspending relates to large projects (Sustainable Communities for Learning programmes, infrastructure, and flood scheme projects as well as HRA expenditure) which can be influenced by a number of factors. In all cases the funding for the projects has been secured and will be carried forward into 2023/24 with no loss of resources for the Council.

The Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer referred to the importance of grant funding in the Council’s capital programme with 40% of the budget and 56% of the actual expenditure being funded from capital grants. Of the £11.110m of additional schemes added to the capital programme since the original budget was set, £9.9m is made of grant funding, (Appendix C refers). Although the Council receives some grants as part of an all-Wales allocation, many are only awarded after a competitive process with Council staff having to bid for grants. While pressures on the Council’s revenue expenditure have been highlighted the capital budget is also becoming increasingly tight with the capital funding which the Council receives from Welsh Government in the form of the General Capital Grant and supported borrowing having remained largely static in recent years and now barely covering the cost of maintaining existing assets. New investment projects are therefore increasingly reliant on grant funding for their delivery.

The Executive’s Members although they acknowledged the importance of grant funding for the delivery of the Council’s capital programme which they welcomed,  highlighted the difficulties created when grant awards are not confirmed in time to be planned for and included in the annual capital programme at the beginning of the year with some grants being awarded late in the financial year for schemes that may not be a local priority for the Council.

The Chief Executive said that the Council has a good track record of attracting grant funding and of delivering schemes within budget and timescale. However, estimating capital costs has become increasingly challenging thereby creating more risk for the Council and while it is important that the Council continues to compete for grant funding, it needs to do so without becoming overly exposed to additional risks. The issue with grants that are announced during or late in the year is that they create extra work and divert resources away from planned activity to responding to the grant opportunity. Projects which the Council  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

To submit a report by the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer setting out the financial performance of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) for the year from April, 2022 to March, 2023 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

Councillor Robin Williams, Portfolio Member for Finance presented the report with an overview of the HRA’s end of year position. The report shows the revenue budget with a budgeted surplus of £6,218k. The capital budget for 2022/23 was £15,024k and was initially expected to be funded in part (£2,688k) by grants. The combination of both the revenue and adjusted capital budget gave a planned budget deficit of £6,128k which would be funded from the HRA reserve. The HRA is ringfenced and its reserves cannot be transferred to the General Fund nor can General Fund reserves be used to fund the HRA. The actual deficit combining both revenue and capital was £225k at out-turn, this compares to a forecasted deficit of £2,187k in Quarter 3 with the movement as a result of the reasons detailed in section 4 of the report.

The Director of Function (Resource)/Section 151 Officer explained that HRA resources are derived from rental income, grant funding and HRA reserves. The opening balance of the HRA stood at £12,333k. The revised budget allowed for the use of £6,128k of this balance. However the outturn position shows that only £225k will be required from the HRA reserve in 2022/23 leaving a reserve balance of £12,108k which is available to fund future HRA expenditure only. The balance will be utilised during 2023/24 to fund capital expenditure including the continued development of new properties. The HRA balance will be reduced to in the region of £1m which is the minimum level set out in the HRA Business Plan. Once the minimum level is reached, further investment will be funded from the revenue surplus generated and through external borrowing the cost of which will be met by HRA income. Appendix C provides a list of new development in progress in 2022/2023 as well as schemes against which there was no planned expenditure in 2022/23 which will take shape in 2023/24 comprising of over 100 new units.

The Executive’s Members highlighted that the new housing developments listed in Appendix C are part of fulfilling the vision of the Council Plan that “everyone should have somewhere to call home” and sit alongside the important ongoing investment in the Council’s existing housing stock.

It was resolved to note the position set out in respect of the financial performance of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) 2022/23.

To submit a report by the Director of Social Services.

The report of the Director of Social Services incorporating the Childcare Sufficiency Assessment and Action Plan 2022 along with a progress report 2023 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

Councillor Gary Prichard, Portfolio Member for Children, Youth and Housing presented the Childcare Sufficiency Assessment as a statutory requirement which sets out the key objectives which will help support the growth and retention of childcare providers on the Island thereby ensuring a sustainable childcare sector offering foundational development opportunities for children whilst supporting parents/carers to work. The 2016 statutory Childcare Sufficiency Assessment Guidance requires local authorities in Wales to submit the Assessment document and Action Plan to Welsh Government. The Childcare Sufficiency Plan is included in the Council’s Constitution as a matter reserved for Full Council approval under the Policy Framework.

The Director of Social Services advised that the Assessment document has been prepared collaboratively with the Service’s partners involved with childcare provision on Anglesey. The assessment evaluates childcare provision on the Island and work is continuing with Flying Start and other partners in the sector to address gaps and develop and ensure sufficient provision. 

The Executive’s Members welcomed the report as a comprehensive evaluation of the position and thanked the Early Years Manager for the information. Questions were asked about the provision in Holyhead which appeared low for a populous area, how the assessment supports opportunities for Welsh language use and whether there were any concerns regarding barriers to childcare provision particularly around costs given that this is the most frequently stated reason why parents/carers are not accessing support with childcare.

The Early Year Manager acknowledged the need for more childcare provision in Holyhead especially after school provision and advised that the delivery of an all-day care provision is planned on-site at Ysgol Llanfawr and will hopefully be available by September. Regarding   the Welsh language, the service is leading with the Taith i Iaith programme which involves supporting providers to reach a silver and/or gold standard in Welsh and this will also apply to the provision at Ysgol Llanfawr which as a recipient of a Welsh language grant will be expected to offer a Welsh language provision. The Welsh language provision and standard in early years provision has improved in recent years. Childcare costs are a concern across Wales and have been raised with Welsh Government. Factors relating to qualifications, progress and pay are also issues in the sector.

The Chief Executive commented that travelling, work trends, personal choice, the absence of family nearby all influence how and where parents and carers access childcare and are factors which are difficult to respond to and plan for. While the Authority can plan provision mapping these trends is more challenging but important as many such decisions are made on the basis of what fits in with the working day.

It was resolved to accept the Childcare Sufficiency Assessment document 2022, the Childcare Sufficiency Action Plan and the accompanying annual progress report for submission to full Council for approval as part of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

To consider adopting the following:-

“Under Section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, to exclude the press and public from the meeting during the discussion on the following item on the grounds that it may involve the disclosure of exempt information as defined in Schedule 12A of the said Act and in the attached Public Interest Test.”

It was resolved under Section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972 to exclude the press and public from the meeting during the discussion on the following item on the grounds that it involved the disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 12 and 13 of Schedule 12A to the said Act and in the Public Interest Test presented.

To submit a report by the Head of Housing Services.

The report of the Head of Housing Services which sought the Executive’s approval for the Housing Service to move on to buy 10 new houses in Stad Parc y Coed, Llangefni was presented for consideration. The properties would be available for local residents to rent based on the Housing Service’s intermediate renting terms as affordable homes in response to the local housing challenge.

The Head of Housing Service provided background information about the Parc y Coed Estate which is a private housing development that includes over 100 new homes a third of which have already been built and bought. Under the terms of the planning consent for the development, a Section 106 condition required that a percentage of the development include affordable housing. The Council has already bought 12 affordable homes on the estate with phase 4 of the development soon to commence which will include 10 extra affordable homes which have been offered to the Council. Subject to the Executive’s approval, the Council will need to enter into an agreement with the developer to build the 10 properties the intention being that they be made available for rent on an intermediate basis as affordable homes it being considered that as most social rent houses in Llangefni are currently being built by housing associations offering other forms of tenancies to local residents would be the best way of meeting the local housing need. The scheme is considered viable having been assessed against the financial model adopted by the Council for assessing the financial viability of new housing developments and it complies with the Council’s guidelines for developing new houses.

The Executive’s members in considering the proposal asked that all such reports include information about the housing mix so that there is clarity about the type of units being purchased as well as confirmation that the houses will be built to the Council’s low carbon/energy efficiency standards.

It was resolved to approve giving the Housing Service the right to move on to buy 10 new houses in Stad Parc y Coed, Llangefni on the terms specified within the report which will be available for local residents to rent, based on the Housing Service’s intermediate renting terms as affordable homes in response to the local housing challenge.