Chief Exec's Blog

Our city centre’s reputation is continuing to grow. A lot is going on with new developments, both public and private sector, making good progress. I visited the Palace Theatre yesterday with the Leader to discuss plans with Tramshed, the operators we’ve appointed to look after the building. Formal handover from our contractors to Tramshed is taking place soon, so I’ll keep you posted, but the transformation continues to impress. Also this week I took a tour of the new biophilic building in the city centre and nearby Princess Quarter. Both these developments are being delivered by the private sector and the millions of pounds of investment they are injecting into the local economy is testimony to the growing confidence there is in the future of the city centre and Swansea. Coming on top of our continuing work at Y Storfa and the recently unveiled proposals for the city centre public sector hub, things are looking up.

The staff survey closed on Wednesday and in the coming weeks we’ll analyse the results and come back to you about the actions we’ll be taking. I know that thousands of you participated in the survey individually and, for the first time, as part of the team. Thank you all for your support and ideas. Your views will make a difference and I’ll feedback as soon as I can.

While our reputation is impacted by our performance on what some might call the big ticket items, it’s pleasing to know that the day-to-day effort by our teams to keep services going and in great shape is positively praised by the public as well. This week we had some very complimentary feedback about our Cleansing team and team leader Stuart Willingale in particular. His work in dealing with issues ranging from litter to vandalism in public spaces was described as awesome, proactive and professional by a resident. Well done to Stuart and the team for their efforts and for going the extra mile. If your teams or individuals are being praised for their work by members of the public do let me know and I’ll share it in the blog.

Congratulations to our Parks team for securing Green Flag status, recognising the vital role they play in boosting residents’ wellbeing and improving the natural environment. Simon Lydiard, Team Leader for Parks and his team spend considerable time preparing for the independent inspections and hosting the judges, it is also Simon’s 40^th anniversary with the council next week, congratulations Simon.

Next month our climate change team and our external partners are launching a series of workshops to generate public interest and ideas in the next stage of our work to tackle climate change and support nature recovery. It’s called Resilient Swansea and you can find out more about them here and sign up to attend a workshop. This issue is one of our top priorities and it already affects our work as we continue to aim to be a net zero council by the start of the next decade.

Congratulations to six members of our housing team who have just completed professional qualifications through Gower College Swansea. You can find out more about them here. Their continuing commitment to professional development reflects our own ambition to drive transformation at the council by investing in the skills of our teams. Find out more about learning and development with us here.

Farewell to Kath Thomas in our taxi licensing team and housing rents team leader Peter Morris who are retiring after giving a combined 84 years of service to our communities. Thank you both for your commitment over the years and we all wish you well in your next chapter.

Like many of you, I’m taking a couple of weeks leave, so the blog will return in a fortnight. Do keep your emails, ideas and news for the blog coming, ready for when I get back.

Time is running out to have your say in this year’s staff survey. You and your teams have only until July 31 to complete the survey. It doesn’t take long to complete and it will make a difference to the way we work in the months and years ahead. It’s good to hear that many of you have already participated, either individually or – for the first time – as part of your team. We’ve been making great strides to ensure engagement with you is effective and consistent, but I know there’s more we can do and the survey findings will help point us in the right direction. So, if you’ve not yet had your say, please do it now.

On Wednesday our Cabinet and heads of service met to discuss our approach to governance and financial management to ensure that we continue to have robust and effective systems in place. We were fortunate to be joined by a guest speaker Max Caller, who is the lead commissioner at Birmingham Council and he was able to share his experience and wisdom. He was very complimentary about how we are currently managing the organisation regarding governance, which was good to hear.

On Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending two Swansea University graduation ceremonies at Swansea Arena. It was great to see the arena used for these kinds of things, promoting the city to visitors from across the UK. In addition, part of our regeneration strategy is to ensure that as many of our graduates continue to stay and work in Swansea to boost our economy and job creation opportunities.

Details are being announced early next week on how people can give feedback on proposals for a new public sector hub in the city centre, so please look out for it. The hub would be a workplace for some of us, including non public-facing staff currently based at Civic Centre. The hub would also accommodate workers from other public sector organisations too. There will be no changes for staff in the near future as construction would not start before the middle of next year. I’ll keep you updated.

Our reputation as a well-run organisation which focuses on the needs of the communities we serve always benefits when we get independent recognition from our peers. That’s why I’m pleased to see our Community Engagement team shortlisted for a second year running for an APSE award in the Best Health and Wellbeing Initiative category. Our team has transformed its ageing well work, using a more informal approach, and developing daily engagement activities like walking, movie afternoons and social cuppa catch-ups to name just a few. Well done to the team and good luck in the finals later in the year.

Another example of an independent endorsement is the Bronze award achieved by our Evolve Youth Services for the quality and impact of their work in schools and youth clubs under the Welsh Government’s Quality Mark for Youth Work in Wales. Evolve helps young people change their lives for the better, so my thanks to all those involved for their commitment.

Finally, congratulations to Judith Porch for being elected a Fellow of the Society of Scribes and Illuminators. Judith works for our lifelong learning service and she’s famous for designing all of our Freedom of the City scrolls over the last 35 years, including people like Catherine Zeta Jones and Alun Wyn Jones. If, like me, you’ve seen them up close you’ll know what great works of art they are.

We all know safeguarding is the council’s top priority and it is everyone’s responsibility. Of course that goes especially for our social services teams, and is why the latest CIW (Care Inspectorate Wales) in-depth review of our adult services is a reassuring one. Inspections of this kind are very challenging – as they should be – so it was good to see CIW recognising so many examples of positive practice and commitment by our staff. I was able to hear first-hand the initial feedback from the Inspectors who have said they could see benefits emerging from the adult services’ transformation plan that focuses on prevention, early help, enabling independence and prioritising resources. As always, there are important learning points arising from the report, and these are already being addressed by our teams. My thanks to Dave Howes, Amy Hawkins, Helen St John and all the teams in adult services for going the extra mile every day for the people they support. Your work enhances the council’s reputation in our communities and also demonstrates the importance of effective transformation programmes. Well done to everyone.

One part of my appraisal is about supporting regeneration, job creation and employment. So I was pleased to catch up with colleagues in the Swansea Skills Partnership group earlier this week. Supporting skills, vocational opportunities and apprenticeships among young people so they can benefit from all the regeneration and wider employment opportunities going on in Swansea has always been of particular interest to me. It was a really good session and it was great to see the progress we’re making alongside our partners, including the two universities, the Careers Service and Gower College Swansea. On the subject of appraisals, don’t forget they’re mandatory and everyone should have had one by now. If you’ve not had yours, please speak to your manager right away.

On Tuesday I went on a visit to meet the trust that looks after Penllergare Valley Woods with joint deputy leader Andrea Lewis to hear about their plans and see the progress on their current project of bringing back into use the historic walled garden. It’s a popular attraction and well worth a visit. On our visit, we were told the trust is really grateful for support from our teams in areas like technical advice, tourism, highways and parks to improve the look and feel of the place and natural environment. It’s a good example of how your work enables groups to deliver on our nature and climate change priorities that benefit all our communities. Thank you to all those involved.

Another great example of joint working that supports our priorities in areas like safeguarding, enabling communities and education was the Teddy Bear’s Picnic at the National Waterfront Museum on Wednesday. It’s a collaboration between the museum and our Early Years, Early Help team and other community organisations. Around 1,000 local children and their families came along to pick up ideas and advice while also having a grand day out. My thanks to the teams involved– the energy and enthusiasm among your young guests was great to see.

Consultation has opened on our regional transport plan, a collaboration with our neighbouring councils, looking at bus, rail and road transport in our area as well as improvements for walking and cycling routes. It will affect all our futures, so please take the opportunity to have your say here.

Thank you again to our Special Events team, highways, our cleansing teams and everyone else involved for a fantastic effort at last weekend’s Ironman 70.3 event, just a week after the airshow. Yesterday, tonight and tomorrow they’re busy again supporting some great nights of music at Singleton Park. These occasions put Swansea on the map, generate millions of pounds for businesses, support jobs and continue to promote the council’s reputation for brilliant event management.

I was fortunate last weekend to witness what a brilliant job was done by our staff at this year’s Wales Airshow. It is a showcase for the city, its businesses, communities and our reputation as a council delivering results for all. A big thank-you to the special events team and the wider cultural services department for organising the event. But also well done to the highways team, our litter teams and all those others working behind the scenes too. It is a brilliant example of one council working together for the people we serve. This Sunday we’ll be hosting Ironman 70.3, the third year in succession we’ve hosted an event officially regarded as the best of its kind in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. My thanks in advance to all who are involved in making sure it goes well. These events matter because it’s estimated that together with last month’s World Triathlon Para Series, Ironman attracts more than 20,000 visitors generating £2m a year for local businesses.

Our armed forces have a special place in Swansea communities and this year we were proud to host Wales Armed Forces Day and a special Veterans Village at the airshow. The day included a signing ceremony for the Armed Forces Covenant, renewing our commitment to the armed forces family. On Wednesday the Lord Mayor hosted a unique gathering of some of the last living veterans who served in World War II. Nine local veterans with a combined age of over 900 years attended the informal tea along with their families and carers. It was an opportunity for the council to thank them for their service. The day was a great success, appreciated by those who attended. I’m grateful to all involved for organising it.

At the start of this week it was great to attend the opening of new sports and community facilities at Cefn Hengoed Community School and Leisure Centre. It has been a long and complex project with our teams in education, building and cultural services working closely with a range of funding partners to deliver this £7.5m investment. Pupils and staff are delighted with the outcome and leisure centre membership has risen by 300% since the work was completed.

Economic development is one of our top priorities. On Wednesday the Leader and I met with the Republic of Ireland’s Consul General for Wales, Denise McQuade. We had a wide-ranging discussion about a range of themes including skills, renewables, transport and regional development and agreed on a commitment to work together to further enhance our economic links. I’ll keep you posted on developments. Also this week the Leader and I were pleased to be asked to present to Swansea University’s board to showcase the latest news on the City Deal, regeneration and projects including Blue Eden. The university is a key partner in achieving our City Deal aspirations and, alongside its students, it contributes tens of millions of pounds every year to the Swansea economy, particularly in the city centre.

Well done to our award-winning indoor market’s staff this week for helping transform the job prospects of local teenager Bobby Taylor. Bobby joined them for three months of work experience and he says it’s helped him learn new skills that will stand him in good stead for his future career. We’re a learning organisation and I’m proud of the hundreds of young people we’ve supported into work experience, apprenticeships and jobs over the years, of which Bobby is the latest example. We all wish Bobby well in the world of work.  

We’ve woken up this morning (some of us a bit later than others!) to a new Government in Westminster. Locally, we elected two MPs – Torsten Bell in Swansea West and Tonia Antoniazzi in Gower. Carolyn Harris was elected in the new Neath and Swansea East seat, which was counted in Neath Port Talbot due to recent boundary changes. Congratulations to all three and I look forward to working closely with all of them. It’s really important we have positive links with our local MPs, Members of the Senedd and Ministers in both Cardiff and Westminster to ensure we push forward the city’s case. Our count in the Guildhall went really well, despite finishing as expected in the early hours of this morning. It’s a long day for many staff and there’s always added pressure to avoid any hitches. There’s a huge amount of work that goes into preparing for an election, and in fact election planning begins well before the election is called, and it paid-off in terms of how well it went with postal votes and at the polling stations yesterday. Thank you to all those involved in the planning, working at polling stations and the count for all your efforts.

This weekend we’re once again hosting the Wales Airshow when tens of thousands of people will gather on the seafront and across the city to watch some fantastic displays above. This is another huge logistical effort from our staff who plan this event months in advance. This year the airshow takes place close to Armed Forces Week and we’ll be celebrating the contributions made to the UK by those who serve and have served in the forces. I’m delighted to be attending this event on Saturday. Thank you to all the staff involved in the planning and working over the weekend. It’s a brilliant event and does a huge amount to boost the council’s and city’s reputation.

CMT this week met with heads of service from our corporate services to highlight the good work going on and to discuss some of the challenges they face. We rightly place a great onus on the services we provide to the public, but our corporate services play a vital role in helping the wider council meet public expectations. As such its important that we are all clear on our internal service standards and turnaround times so some of the issues discussed were staff recruitment, sickness management and occupational health support, digital services, legal support and our call centres. It was a good opportunity to understand better what’s going on and to discuss options to help address some issues and clarify expectations. Thank you to the heads of service who came along and to all the staff in those areas for their efforts.