Brexit

Turbulent Times

September 6, 2019 by Martin 2 Comments

I’ve always had a keen interest in politics but can’t remember a week quite like this one. Nor can I remember an issue so divisive as Brexit. I’ve previously commented that leaving the EU without a deal was predicted to have a number of unpleasant consequences for the economy, let alone unanswered questions about trade in medicines, foodstuffs and numerous other commodities. Our Brexit Steering Group has continued to grapple with the issues throughout.

The prospect of a possible October election has meant that our electoral services team have had to prepare for every eventuality. Thanks to the team but also to the staff from across the Council who have helped out given that we’re in the middle of the Annual Canvass process and that the need to ensure the electoral register is up to date is of paramount importance.

Amongst the staff drafted in to assist were two of our apprentices; Cally Blake (3rd year Multi trade apprentice) and Alex Eades (2nd year Carpentry apprentice). Thanks to all of you for your help.

Many commentators believe we’re heading for a general election on October 15 but this changes daily as a result of the twists and turns of the political fracas.

At CMT I described the events at Westminster earlier this week as being akin to an episode of the Borgias and as Parliament reconvened this Tuesday the political temperature was at an all-time high. So on Tuesday it was with some trepidation that the Leader and I weaved our way through the chaotic crowds outside the Houses of Parliament to attend and give evidence to the Welsh Affairs Committee Inquiry into regional growth deals. The inquiry session was productive and we were able to reassure the committee about progress on the City Deal as well as raise the issues of the tidal lagoon and proposals for a South Wales rail metro. I’m encouraged by the current heightened level of interest in the tidal lagoon in Westminster and the Leader and I will be discussing how best to capitalise on this opportunity.

However, the continuing uncertainty over the future of our economy caused by Brexit needs to be resolved quickly. The task of regeneration is hard enough for our councillors and officers to deliver without additional risks for developers and investors.

It’s also fair to say the continuing uncertainty also confuses our budget preparations. Over the next fortnight CMT will be sharing with the Cabinet our best understanding of the assumptions that underlie the settlement for 2020/21 along with some initial suggestions on how to balance the budget. Recent pledges of financial injections into the public sector would provide some welcome relief from continued austerity but at this point in time the implications for this for local councils in Wales are impossible to evaluate. Given the need for us to take continued remedial action on this year’s budget through spending restrictions my guess is that we’ll be facing another £28 million gap next year. We will continue to press home to the Government this is an unsustainable situation and that essential services are under threat here in Swansea and across Wales.

Appointments Committee

Yesterday the Appointments Committee met to determine the appointment of a permanent Deputy Chief Finance Officer. The Committee agreed the appointment of Jeff Dong, who has been undertaking the duties on an interim basis so congratulations to Jeff.

Swansea 50 years a City

Congratulations to Karen MacKinnon at the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery for some excellent coverage of the forthcoming opening of the exhibition to celebrate 50 years of Swansea receiving City status. I was particularly impressed by the Papier-mâché statue of Diego Maradona made by children in Penlan School in 1986 which was far superior to the ghastly version unveiled back in 2017. I’ll leave you form your own judgement.

The exhibition opens on Thursday September 26th and I hope many of you will find the time to visit it. And a great effort from our Comms team to get such coverage for this.

Congratulations

Well done to all.our officers involved in opening a new changing places facility at Caswell Bay. This will improve access for all at one of Wales’ best-loved beaches.

It was great to see 15 new apprentices start with us this week. We have a proud record of working with trainees and I wish the latest group all the best for a long and successful career.

Well done to Ben Thomas in our facilities team who was recently crowned Welsh singles bowls champion.

There’s been a great start to the new school year for two of our primaries who’ve received very good Estyn inspection reports.

Crwys Primary is rated excellent for wellbeing and attitudes to learning and good in all other inspection areas.

Portmead Primary is rated good across the board. This achievement is all the more impressive given it has more than double the Welsh average of pupils eligible for free school meals.

Sad news

This week I learned that we had lost two colleagues.

Councillor Byron Owen was a committed and hardworking member of our Council. As a Cabinet Member he oversaw some of the most important projects of the time, including of course the Liberty Stadium build. I worked with him in his capacity as ward councillor on numerous housing and regeneration schemes in Clase and his support at difficult times was invaluable to me.

Councillor John Hague passed away this week. John was one of life’s original characters. His irascible style did not always make him the easiest person to work with but this was just a reflection of how committed he was to his ward and his work. As deputy leader and cabinet member there was rarely a dull moment when John was around and he too leaves an impressive legacy, not least of which is his beloved bowls hall. On the rare occasions we fell out with each other his peace offering would usually be a pork pie and a cup of tea.

I will miss both these colleagues who have made a massive contribution to the City and the Council.

It’s goodbye from me….

May 31, 2019 by Jack Leave a Comment

Goodbye really does mean goodbye this time, after this blog I hand back the reins to Phil Roberts who is returning to work on a phased basis from next week. I am delighted that he is ready to return as I am sure you all will be.

The last few weeks have been dominated by the EU elections. Our team did a fantastic job and all went smoothly. I must say a special thanks to Alison O’Hara who led the efforts in the final days and did a superb job. I have always enjoyed working with the team, it is a classic example of the strength of teamwork with all prepared to do whatever is needed, including providing massive quantities of sausage rolls and pasties to keep us going! (Thanks Sian).

Last week I was delighted to see the annual launch of the High 5 Awards take place at St Helen’s Primary school. The awards are in their eighth year and again are a testament to teamwork. Siany from Mumbles Pier was joined by our new ambassador James King from Ospreys, Cyril The Swan again created mayhem. These awards have recognised some incredible young people over the years and you can help by nominating, please visit this link. The awards are not just about recognition, important though that is, they have also helped to inspire other young people to push on with their personal goals.

Continuing with young people I am delighted to see that Clase Primary has been ranked Good and Excellent in an inspection published today. Congratulations to the staff and pupils. Colgate are running a competition where schools can win a playground made of recycled materials. Two of our schools, St David’s and Waunarlwydd are in the running. You can vote for them by going to this link.

In the distant past I was responsible for producing the Authority’s annual accounts and would struggle to get them completed by September. Ben Smith and the Finance team have worked with staff across the Council and completed the task by the end of May! This has been achieved with fewer resources and more complexity, well done to all. The accounts may be a mystery to most but they are an important aspect of corporate performance and a feature of financial control which is vital in delivering all of our services.

This week I attended my first (and last) meeting of the City Deal Joint Committee that brings together Leaders from the four local authorities and partners. There has been much controversy as a result of issues at Swansea University and in relation to a life sciences project in Llanelli, widely covered in the press. This meeting was to get matters back on track and to this end agreement was reached on new governance arrangements that will see each Authority contributing to the task rather than the (criticised) concentration of activity in Carmarthenshire. A crucial next step is Government approval (and money) for the early projects including Swansea City Centre. This is currently expected in the next two weeks. I hope so.

An element of this meeting was consideration of the revised proposal for the Tidal Lagoon. This has caused much hilarity in some quarters as the press focussed on the prospect of a floating village etc. The reality is that the project will only proceed if the basic technology of the lagoon can be afforded and funded and if public sector bodies agree to purchase the electricity. If that works then what floats where is an entirely different matter! The next phase is to seek to procure a partner with the skills and resources to deliver, funded by Welsh Government.

Finally a few words regarding my experience on returning. I have enjoyed it, and largely been made very welcome. Things have changed over the three years I was away. The challenges are much the same, though the scale and intensity have increased markedly.

It has been a pleasure to be reminded how many of you, provide excellent service whatever the circumstances and I wish you all well.

Phil to return… and other news

May 24, 2019 by Jack Leave a Comment

I’ll start with the good news that Phil Roberts is planning to return to work on June 3 and is expected to be back in full work mode from June 10. I’ll say more about my departure next week but clearly I’m delighted Phil will be back, which releases me back to my garden just in time for summer!

I know many are bored of it, but the European elections are taking place this weekend and our staff, not just the elections team, have been working hard to ensure it’s conducted properly. Polling staff were out all day yesterday and we carried out the verification after polling closed to ensure all the votes cast were properly accounted for. Staff will return on Sunday to count the votes with the result due to be announced at 10pm. This is to coincide with the Europe-wide arrangements.

Many of our services are under severe pressure not just because of finance but also public demand and expectations. One example is domiciliary care where we struggle sometimes to provide sufficient capacity to meet the needs of people which can result in delayed transfers from hospital. A key contributor is the occasional failure of external providers which means we have to reallocate work and funding to deal with the problem. This puts extra pressure on our staff who work at the sharp end and I’m grateful for their efforts. It’s a problem in Swansea, but also in the social care system across the UK and unfortunately the UK Government’s focus on Brexit for the past three years has delayed radical proposals being discussed. Proposals that are going to have to change the way that health and social care is both funded and provided if the impact of demography is to be managed.

CMT this week considered a draft scrutiny report on equalities and although more work is needed we’ll have to agree an action to ensure we continue to meet legal requirements. The scrutiny function is important because it carries out a detailed examination of practice highlighting strengths and challenges.

I’ve mentioned a few times our regional arrangements for the City Deal, ERW and the like. This week the WLGA has commented on the Local Government Minister’s proposals for driving this agenda forward. The current proposals appear to promote the idea of statutory joint committees that take on both the legal and potentially employment role for a range of areas such as education improvement and regional planning. I can see this type of proposal would give greater authority to regional arrangements to deliver their agenda. But on the flipside, it places question marks over the democratic accountability of these bodies because the joint committees will be made up of a small number of councillors, leaving the majority potentially having even less say.

At the moment we’re looking at all our land ownership across the city to see whether sites can be released for development to improve the city and in some cases to generate income. The latest seafront proposals have inevitably led to a significant reaction. We need to be clear that we’re only seeking expressions of interest at this stage. If there is any interest, we’d need to take into account a whole range of issues including any environmental and visual impacts. Public consultation is under way and it is interesting to see we are receiving ideas as well as objections.

Lynsey Davies, one of our apprentices, has been named Wales’ best in the Federation of Master Builders’ Master Builder Awards. Lynsey will now be entered into the National FMB awards in September. Judges described her as ‘a shining example of how commitment, dedication and determination can achieve results’. Well done Lynsey, this is a brilliant achievement.

Finally, congratulations to Steve Williams who retires with 40 years’ service. Steve has worked as a driver in social services and our integrated transport unit. I along with his colleagues wish Steve all the very best in his retirement.

All change for Lord Mayor

May 17, 2019 by Jack Leave a Comment

The Lord Mayor of Swansea is appointed at a Ceremonial Council annually and the changeover occurred this week. Tradition has it that the longest serving Member who has not already held the office is appointed. Councillor David Phillips has done an excellent job this year and will be succeeded by Councillor Peter Black and I wish him well in what will be a very busy year.

Whenever I mention money in this blog it seems to have negative connotations as we continually strive to meet ever more challenging savings targets. So it’s great this week to have some positive financial outcomes! Cabinet approved the award of two key contracts – one for local bus services and one for park and ride buses. In both cases not only were services maintained or improved but significant savings were achieved. It was great to hear Cabinet Members praise the officers involved not only in terms of the outcome but also the hard work that goes into such tasks.

Personally, I was also pleased to see Cabinet adopt a policy on “Pupil Development Grant”, formerly known as “Pupil Deprivation Grant”. This money is allocated to schools on the basis of the number of pupils in receipt of free school meals (FSM). Whilst we can be rightly proud of our schools relative performance it remains the case that FSM pupils do not perform as well as others in general, the position being worse for boys. This Policy requires us to monitor the effectiveness of the use of the grant, learn from best practice and undertake research to drive up achievement. A continued focus on FSM pupil attainment is a key priority for us.

It is also good to see that this week a clear policy promoting the rights of people with learning disabilities and mental health issues to live supported in the community was endorsed. Supported living has been very successful in Swansea for many years, the issue here is that this policy binds officers and councillors together in advocating for this important provision.

At CMT we discussed the staff survey again. Each Head of Service is tasked with addressing issues in their area of responsibility. It is for CMT to drive forward change in a small number of key issues that are identified across the Council, three were selected. Firstly, bullying and harassment. The policies relating to staff are being reviewed and updated assisted by specific feedback from some individuals. The issue that is very worrying is the increasing trend in allegations relating to members of the public.

Secondly, Safeguarding. This has been our number one priority for many years and much positive work has been done. It is very concerning therefore that the survey returns low result on, for example, people’s awareness of the key lead. The third issue related to staff reporting lack of knowledge in terms of their work area and plans for change. This raises yet again challenges in relation to staff engagement.

All three issues have arisen previously so clearly CMT is not only going to have to refresh what has been done previously but also come up with some new approaches to affect these key issues.

Three years after we launched our specialist mental health resource centre Crest in the former Cwmbwrla Day Centre the service is about to take the next exciting step in developing the services we provide.Working with partners it is to become a Recovery College providing formal education programmes as a route to recovery for people with a lived experience of mental distress. Crest will continue to provide the employment and day services it already offers but this addition will enhance the work and educational opportunities available at the centre.

Many of our schools have been working closely with the Show Racism The Red Card for a number of years now and they were very well represented at the charity’s creative competition awards. Winners came from St Helen’s, Cwm Glas and Terrace Road Primaries as well as YGG Llwynderw and Olchfa Comprehensive.

A word of thanks to the Emergency Management Team who were called out late last night to support the fire service to evacuate local residents due to the wildfire on Kilvey Hill. All the residents found temporary accommodation with friends, but this is another example of the great work being done by our teams to support local communities.

A whole blog without mention of Brexit or the EU election? Well, not quite. Staff have been dealing with postal votes this week and making preparations for polling day. Much of my next week will be taken up with the election so the blog would be more boring than usual!

Finally, colleagues may wish to be aware of two forthcoming funerals:

Dave Gill, Monday, 20^th May – 2:30 p.m. Siloam Baptist Chapel, Goetre Fach Road, Killay, Swansea. SA2 7AL and then 4:00 p.m. Llanelli Crematorium.

Jamie Parsons, Thursday 23^rd May – 2:00p.m. at Morriston Crematorium – if you are attending, the family would like you to wear something colourful.

Good news about Phil and Nick

April 26, 2019 by Jack Leave a Comment

I’m delighted to give you some positive news on both Phil Roberts and our Education Director, Nick Williams.

Nick has been on sickness absence for a number of months and he’s now in a position to return to work on a phased basis in early May. I’m grateful to the staff in education who’ve helped cover for Nick during that period, particularly Mark Sheridan who’s been acting Director.

I met Phil earlier this week to check on his progress and recovery. Typically, Phil insisted on getting an update on a range of work issues rather than talk about his own situation. But, again, I’m delighted to say Phil is making good progress and whilst his return is some weeks away, we obviously look forward to him returning as soon as possible.

Our Pupil Referral Unit has had a positive inspection report from Estyn. The report said the PRU is a caring and inclusive community where nearly all young people who attend make good progress and nearly all of them go on to college once they leave. This is an extremely important part of our education provision in an area that requires strong leadership, and this pleasing report is a big step along our improvement journey. Congratulations to headteacher Amanda Taylor and her team for all their efforts.

Pentrehafod Comprehensive, recently refurbished

CMT this week discussed the next phase of school building improvements totalling £150m. There’s a strong link between investment in school buildings and educational outcomes, and some of those schools that have recently benefited from investment have seen better outcomes and behaviours. In the past few years we’ve prioritised investment in additional learning needs (ALN) and education other than at school. The latest Band B proposals include investment in a new special school which continues this commitment. I’ve been impressed by the generally good performance of Swansea schools, but it remains the case that pupils receiving free school meals and those with special education needs and ALN perform less well than others so we need to continue prioritising investment in this way.

CMT also discussed a potential restructure to our ALN service to ensure it’s fit for purpose for the next 3-5 years. The plan is subject to consultation with affected staff but it’s designed to help the service meet the changing needs of young people. I look forward to the consultation having clear outcomes so that we can put the restructure in place.

Given our budget pressures the council has been trying to maximise its return from land it owns or holds. We’ve adopted various approaches and a recent report to Cabinet identified a number of sites where we can go to the market to test whether developers are interested. It has to be a balance between getting the right development and getting the best possible financial deal, and it’ll be interesting to see if our approach can achieve this. Of these sites, Home Farm has attracted greatest attention in the media and on social media. It’s a council depot adjacent to Singleton Park, and although it’s caused a public reaction they’ll have an opportunity to give views if a developer comes forward with a planning application. The proposal does not encroach on the parkland which is a very important point.

Another issue making headlines is High Street which the Daily Mail so generously labelled the worst in the UK! This kind of story affects the community, business and the reputation of our city – so thanks a lot Daily Mail. That isn’t to say the area doesn’t have problems, of course it does. Our Deputy Leader, Clive Lloyd, will be leading work across the council and partners to see how we can work together to improve the street environment and make sure vulnerable people and their needs are taken into account.

Thank you again to all those staff who worked over the untypically glorious bank holiday. Many of our vulnerable citizens would not be able to cope without your support and I really appreciate your hard work.

Finally, continuing the theme of Brexit and parallel universes, I was astounded this week that 21 of the 22 chief executives in Wales spent time discussing whether to fly the EU flag on Europe Day on May 9. The worry is that by flying the flag during the current European election period it could be seen as seeking to influence the outcome of the vote. I expect the regional returning officers will determine it won’t be flown on this occasion. But it’s not something I can get too excited about. I feel I’m in a Monty Python sketch at times!