The Scrutiny Programme Committee met on Tuesday 19 November 2024, noting various reports and progress updates. Key discussions included the scrutiny of the Swansea Public Services Board, the annual corporate safeguarding report, and the final report from the Community Assets Scrutiny Inquiry Panel.

Scrutiny of Swansea Public Services Board

Councillor Andrea Lewis, Cabinet Member for Service Transformation and Joint Deputy Lead to Swansea Council, presented a positive outlook on the work of the Swansea Public Services Board (PSB). She highlighted improved focus on objectives and the wellbeing plan, with 170 people signed up to receive information about the PSB's work. Councillor Chris Holley OBE, Convener of the Scrutiny Performance Panel, inquired about partner attendance at board meetings, to which Councillor Lewis confirmed excellent attendance from all statutory partners, attributing this to their championing of steps within the wellbeing plan. Roger Thomas, Chief Fire Officer for Mid & West Wales Fire and Rescue Service and Vice Chair of the PSB, clarified that quorum is achieved with four statutory partners and that meetings have consistently had quorum. He also noted that while Natural Resources Wales covers all of Wales, they do make valuable contributions.

An engagement event held at the Swansea.com Stadium was described as a fantastic event by Councillor Lewis, bringing together organisations, stakeholders, and community groups. The event involved workshops focused on wellbeing plan steps, and positive feedback was received. Plans are in place for similar future events. Councillor Lyndon Jones MBE raised concerns about transforming early years services, describing it as a challenging area. Karen Stapleton, leading on this for the Swansea Bay University Health Board, provided a written statement indicating regional collaboration is effective, but strategic-level work and strong leadership are needed for transformational change. The PSB's early years workstream is focused on developing regional principles, with a workshop planned for December. Councillor Lewis agreed to provide a note with more detailed actions.

Regarding the Shaping Places for Wellbeing in Wales programme, it was explained that the programme supports PSBs in addressing health determinants, focusing on climate emergency, poverty, and inequalities. Jane Richmond from Swansea Council has been nominated to participate. Updates on indicators such as healthy life expectancy gap, lifestyle behaviours, and air quality were noted as moving in a positive direction, with Councillor Lewis suggesting the PSB is making a positive local impact.

Annual Report - Corporate Safeguarding 2023-24

Councillor Louise Gibbard, Cabinet Member for Care Services, presented the annual report on corporate safeguarding, emphasising that safeguarding is the council's top priority. The updated corporate safeguarding policy now focuses more on prevention and extends the duty to report safeguarding concerns to all public service officers. The policy covers six key safeguarding elements: governance and performance, employment, workforce, practice, voice, and partnerships. Strong governance structures are in place, including the Corporate Safeguarding Group and named safeguarding leads.

Amy Hawkins, Social Services Strategy and Performance Improvement Officer, provided figures on staff training completion. Approximately 59% of the non-school workforce had completed safeguarding training. She acknowledged that tracking training for school staff is a separate process and still a work in progress. Regarding suppliers and contractors, a new contract variation has been introduced to strengthen safeguarding provisions, with clear expectations for reporting and policies. The council monitors compliance through contract monitoring and when awarding contracts. Councillor Beth Allender, a primary school governor, inquired about introducing inset days for safeguarding training in other schools, and it was confirmed that bespoke sessions are offered and best practice is disseminated.

Final Report - Community Assets Scrutiny Inquiry Panel

Councillor Stuart Rice presented the final report of the Community Assets Scrutiny Inquiry Panel, highlighting five key principles for the future of Community Asset Transfer (CAT): strong and adequate procedures, adequate resourcing, genuine consultation with ward councillors and communities, a single point of contact, and ensuring community benefit beyond cost savings. The report's recommendations include a wider debate on the council's CAT strategy, improved transparency in decision-making by involving more than one cabinet member, developing a toolkit and webpage for the CAT policy, providing more detailed information on running costs and duty of care, and limiting leases to 25 years unless exceptional circumstances apply. The report also recommends that councillors and officers declare personal interests and that support for CAT post-transfer be enhanced, potentially through partnerships with organisations like Swansea Council for Voluntary Service (SCVS) and peer mentoring. A basic threshold for consultation and training for councillors and community councils were also recommended, alongside establishing an identifiable single point of contact for CAT. Finally, the report recommends developing processes to investigate and address negative impacts of council activities on transferred assets and to review the success of CATs based on whole community benefit.

Scrutiny Performance Panel Progress Report: Service Improvement, Regeneration & Finance

Councillor Chris Holley OBE, Convener of the Scrutiny Performance Panel, provided an update on the panel's work. He highlighted that the panel scrutinises service improvement, finance, and regeneration. For service improvement, he noted issues with data consistency year-on-year and the impact of COVID-19 on performance data. Regarding regeneration, he mentioned significant investment in city centre projects and infrastructure. Financial scrutiny involves six-monthly and quarterly reports, as well as pre-decision scrutiny of the budget. The panel has reviewed revenue and reserve accounts, noting that some departments have their own reserves, with social services facing financial difficulties. The panel has also reviewed projects such as the Palace Theatre, the Kingsway, Copper Bay, the arena, and the new car park, noting that much of this information is confidential. Future work includes reviewing the library service, the budget, and corporate priorities, as well as scrutinising Freedom Leisure.

Other Business

The committee noted that there were no changes to the membership of scrutiny panels and working groups. Councillor Peter Black CBE, Chair, highlighted that the next meeting on 10 December would be a heavy agenda, including discussions on tackling poverty, enabling communities, the Welsh Housing Quality Standard, and annual complaints and compliments reports. Scrutiny letters were also noted for information.

The minutes from the previous meeting were approved, and the annual report on corporate safeguarding was noted.