One of the most interesting responses to come out of last autumn’s staff survey was your feedback about where you get your information about the work we’re doing at the council. It was pleasing to see that more than 70% of respondents said that my blog was one of those places – please continue reading, and make suggestions for items for me to include. I think it’s really important that I try and cover topics that interest you as well as the ones I think you need to be aware of.
As you will recall, we have a very high response rate and as such all of our Leadership Group is determined to act on what you’ve said. You can find the latest update on actions we’ve taken so far here, and I’ll continue to keep you updated in the months ahead. In the meantime, one of the Leadership team’s commitments following the staff survey was to be more visible. I’ve already done a number of staff visits over the last few months, and if you’d like me to come and see you to listen to your ideas or attend any events you are arranging, please get in touch. Heads of service and directors are also arranging visits so again, get in touch with them also.
In June, we’ll be welcoming a Panel Performance Assessment (PPA) team to Swansea to review the way we operate on things like effective use of resources, governance and meeting statutory and strategic goals. It’s a legal requirement that all councils do once every five years, and team members will want to meet some of you to find out directly from the front line how things are going. Among the areas we’ll be asking them to pay special attention to are digital services and AI, as well as workforce development improvements, including recruitment and retention. I’ll keep you posted.
This week, I had one of my regular catch-ups with the Swansea Business Improvement District board. We saw a presentation of our emerging Placemaking Strategy for the city centre. It’s a hugely important document because it sets out how we want the area to look and feel in the years ahead, building on the great success we’ve achieved so far. Our ambition includes creating more and better green spaces and more play, heritage and event opportunities to help reinforce a thriving retail and leisure destination. So, watch this space. My thanks to Gail Evans and the team for the work on the strategy so far.
As all our budget holders will know, the 2024/25 financial year has ended. In a large and complex organisation like ours, getting the accounts sorted is not just a legal requirement, but a challenging exercise. So, I’m really pleased to report that Accounts Receivable (AR) has balanced its accounts to the penny for 2024/25. When you consider the team handled £106,383,946.32. and more than 6,000 invoices, you can see that theirs is a significant and important achievement. My thanks to all involved for their commitment.
Well done to our parks and cultural services teams for preparing our parks for the summer season, starting with the Easter Holidays this weekend. It’s a year-round effort that really pays off this time of year in places like Clyne Park and Singleton Park, where this week four dinosaurs have taken up residence. Their arrival, also aided by corporate building services, has met with acclaim from the public, so good news for our reputation too. Pop along to the Singleton Park boating lake – they really are unmissable. My thanks to all involved.
Some sad news today for the many people who knew the regeneration team’s Gareth Hughes, who passed away recently after a long battle with cancer. My condolences to Gareth’s husband, David and to all his colleagues and friends at this difficult time. Gareth was a popular and much-loved figure among the team and in the wider council community. He was our eyes and ears among city centre businesses and a great ambassador for the council, working on a number of key projects, including personally helping me when we delivered the DIY SOS Surfability project in Caswell during Covid. Gareth’s professionalism, patience, and charm helped us see through some of the projects that are making a difference in today’s city centre. He is missed.
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