Agenda item

To present the report of the Head of Regulation and Economic Development.

Councillor Neville Evans, Portfolio Member for Leisure, Tourism and Maritime presented the report by the Head of Regulation and Economic Development incorporating the Môn Actif draft Strategic Plan for the period 2025 to 2029.

The Môn Actif Strategic Plan provides a clear direction and identifies key priority areas and vision for creating healthy communities over the next five year period. The five priority areas of the Plan link into the wider principles in the Council Plan 2023-28 and focus on Participation, Health and Wellbeing, Workforce Development, Facilities Management, Financial Sustainability and Collaboration. In developing the Plan, the Council’s financial situation has been considered including the decline in core and grant funding coupled with increasing demand for services. The Plan highlights the importance of attracting external funding and the need for appropriate and timely investment in the Council’s leisure centres. A variety of data sources were used to prepare the Plan and they provide strong evidence of the Island’s needs and they will be assessed on an ongoing basis during the five years to ensure the Council makes correct and informed decisions to help improve people’s health and promote being active within communities. Progress will be monitored by the Môn Actif Management Team and Mon Actif Subgroup.

The Head of Regulation and Economic Development and Leisure Manager were on hand to respond to questions by the committee. The main points of discussion were as follows:

• The reasons for preparing a strategic plan for Môn Actif and the ways in which the plan connects with the Council Plan
• The availability of local data to evidence that children on Anglesey are overweight/obese. It was noted that the strategic plan states that 11.2% of children aged 4 and 5 are obese and 14.5% are overweight. Questions were asked about the source of the information, the accuracy of the data and how obesity levels are determined and what follow up support/programmes are therefore available to help address the issue.
• Whether Mon Actif collaborates with schools to promote healthy eating.
• Whether the Council’s leisure centres and Mon Actif activities within and beyond them are sustainable
• The Council’s approach through Môn Actif to persuade more of the population to exercise and to become more active.
• Whether there are ways of extending Mon Actif activities to increase the number of children who participate in those activities and whether also the number all weather pitches on the Island can be increased
• The availability of Mon Actif supported evening activities within the community

In response to a request by a member, the Head of Housing Services gave a brief outline of the various means of support which Housing Services provide for the vulnerable especially over the Christmas period and confirmed in further response to the member that members are welcome to pay a visit/have a chat with the team about the provision if they so wish. It was agreed that information about the services available would be shared with members.

Officers responded to the points raised by the committee as follows:

·         Explained the aim of the strategic plan as being to create heathy communities it having been shown that being physically active has short and long-term health benefits for people. The Leisure Service Manager referred to the recommended levels of physical activity for children and adults in guidelines issued by the Chief Medical Officer for Wales and he highlighted the Mon Actif Strategic Plan as an important preventative strategy in this context. In drawing together other agencies, organisations and council services the strategy maximises the opportunities for participation in physical activity thereby reducing the pressures on the Health Board and helping to tackle age and obesity related issues. The strategy also provides a vehicle for essential investment in the leisure centres which host 500,000 visits annually. The Plan supports one of the aims of the Council Plan under its social care and wellbeing objective to deliver healthier, safer and fairer communities through a range of preventative, curative and supportive services.

·         Confirmed the availability of Anglesey specific data with regard to children aged 4 to 5 with 643 children having been measured under the Child Measurement Programme 2022/23, 91.2% of children aged between 4 and 5 from Anglesey with 25.7% having been found to be overweight.

·         While capacity issues means that Mon Actif does not work with schools on healthy eating initiatives the Pipyn Ynys Môn Programme is operating in fourteen areas across the Island and supports families with healthy eating choices to maintain healthy weight. The Director of Social Services highlighted the Mon Actif Strategic Plan as a plan which spans a range of services thereby adding value and able to draw on specific resources and skills within those services to engage with schools, families and communities on issues such as heathy eating.

·         The Chief Executive in confirming that the data regarding childhood obesity is derived from Public Health Wales emphasised the importance of health and wellbeing in enabling people to contribute and to achieve their full potential. Given the complexity of the subject and in order to do it justice, he suggested that it be included for discussion at a future member monthly briefing session with an invitation to Public Health Wales and/or Health Board partners to attend to clarify the data sources and explain the data collection process and availability of local programmes and interventions.

·         That given the challenges in managing the leisure provision in the current financial climate, the importance of maximising external funding opportunities is recognised with over £2.6m having been invested in the leisure provision since 2017. The objective is to ensure that the leisure centres are flexible, that they continue to meet the needs of customers and communities and that they remain popular and well used.

·         Confirmed that from April 2025 sports development plans will be replaced by a plan based on a play space approach which means using the data available to focus on children who do not participate in physical activities and to also increase the use of community facilities. Collaboration with partners is essential in ensuring that the right individuals are targeted. The Leisure Service Manager advised that this approach builds on the existing work to extend leisure provision/activity beyond the leisure centres and into community venues to increase accessibility and participation.

The Chief Executive advised that the Council reports to Welsh Government annually on its performance against a national performance indicator on the use of leisure centres. The KPI does not however include people who participate in leisure service activities within the community. He suggested that it might be appropriate for the committee to consider asking the Leader and Portfolio Member for Leisure, Tourism and Maritime to write to Welsh Government to request that consideration be given to extending the scope of the KPI to include individuals who access leisure service provision within the community thereby providing a fuller representation of all the work being undertaken in this area.

·         That the number of visits to leisure centres has remained consistent with 500,000 visits annually which is testament to their popularity and 12,000 children having taken part in school holiday activity this year. To increase activity and participation levels it is important that service quality and customer care are maintained and that the leisure provision keeps pace with industry developments and continues to evolve and modernise and remain responsive to customer needs. With regard to all weather provision the Leisure Service Manager advised that while there are a number of all weather (3G) facilities on the Island, the Service would look at extending the provision if funding and opportunities to do so arose.

·         That Mon Actif provision is currently focused on daytime activities. In this context the Director of Social Service referred to the weekly sessions for sufferers of dementia on the Island supported by collaboration between services and reflective of the range of work within the community. 

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Having scrutinised the Môn Actif draft Strategic Plan and received assurances with regard to the matters raised, the Corporate Scrutiny Committee resolved to accept the content of the Môn Actif draft Strategic Plan and to recommend the Plan to the Executive for approval.

Additional actions:

·         Anglesey child obesity data sources and data collection process to be included for discussion at a future member monthly briefing session. Public Health Wales and/or the Local Health Board be invited to attend.

·         The Leader and the Portfolio Member for Leisure, Tourism and Maritime be asked to write to Welsh Government to request that consideration be given to extending the scope of the national KPI on the use of leisure centres to include people who access leisure service activities within the community. 

·         Officers to provide members with information about the services and support available for the vulnerable over the Christmas period.