Budget progress, service innovations, and award-winning events

It’s not only the Chancellor Rachel Reeves who has been working on budgets this week. It’s been a busy week for us too, with Cabinet and CMT completing our initial budget review, taking into account the UK Government’s budget and the Welsh Government’s draft budget.

Overall, thanks to prudent financial management and solid in-year budget control across the Council, we are reasonably well-placed to weather the challenges we face.

Over the coming weeks we’ll be developing proposals for Cabinet and Council to consider in the New Year once we have a clearer idea of the funding we’ll receive from the Welsh Government. We’ll also be meeting with trade unions to outline our current position and assumptions, and there will be an opportunity for staff and the public to have their say before a final decision is made in March. My thanks to everyone who has helped us reach this important stage.

There’s a real sense of excitement as Y Storfa prepares to open its doors to the public on Monday. Staff are working hard on the finishing touches to the city centre hub that will be home to many of our customer-facing services. Apart from the Swansea Registry Office, the Civic Centre will close to the public later today.

Y Storfa is a new chapter in the history of the council, transforming the way we operate to offer our residents effective and efficient services. It will also be a boost to the city centre, helping to increase footfall and support retailers and other businesses for years to come. My thanks to all involved in this project – and there are a lot of you – and I wish you luck for Monday.

This week also sees the launch of our new Tension Monitoring Form, which gives staff a simple way to share concerns or observations that could point to rising tensions in our communities. Whether it’s rumours, hate incidents, or changes in public attitudes, spotting these early means we can work with partners to prevent problems and offer reassurance. If you notice anything, please use the form. Together, we can help keep Swansea a safe and welcoming place for everyone.

I’m delighted to share some fantastic news about our Falls Response Project, developed in partnership with Swansea Bay University Health Board. This initiative, led by Amy Jenkins from our adult services commissioning team and inspired by an original idea by one of our occupational therapists, Francesca Omand, has just won a prestigious health service improvement award.

By empowering carers to support people who have fallen at home, we’re reducing unnecessary ambulance callouts and hospital admissions, and making sure people get the right care at the right time. Congratulations to everyone involved. This is a brilliant example of council-inspired innovation making a real difference, so my thanks and well done to all involved.

We’re also proud of our ongoing commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, which is all about supporting serving personnel, veterans, and their families. The Forces in Mind Trust’s latest report highlights the positive impact of the Covenant by organisations like ours in making sure veterans and their families are treated fairly and not disadvantaged in their day-to-day lives. My thanks go to our Armed Forces Champion, Cllr Wendy Lewis, Spencer Martin and all our other teams who help make a difference for our veterans every day.

Finally, it’s brilliant to hear that the Christmas Parade has been named the best council-organised outdoor event in Britain at the National Outdoor Events Association Awards 2025. It’s something we have always believed, but it’s great to have an official endorsement from an organisation as prestigious as the NOEA.

We all know that it’s only been possible to achieve this award-winning success by sheer hard work, dedication and skilful delivery by our teams. And to prove the point, last Sunday’s parade was again a fantastic show and many residents were quick to say well done on social media to all involved. I’d like to add my thanks and congratulations to theirs.