Agenda item

(a) That the Committee support Youth Services in liaising with Town and Community Councils around a three-year in principle funding cycle for community play provision;

(b) That the Committee endorse Youth Services to work with a range of partners, such as Adult Community Learning to offer an extensive training package for all Play Development team members to ensure quality Play Work delivery was of the highest standard;

(c) That the Committee endorse Youth Services to liaise with Town and Community Councils to opt for either three or six-week sites only, to allow for ease of recruitment, planning, business continuity and efficient use of recourses;

(d)  That the Committee endorse the 'Transition Programme' by Flintshire Play Development and Youth Services, in order to effectively prepare children for the next stage of their lives through play-based coping strategies, which had been shown successful in the past academic year; and

(e) That the Committee commit to supporting the Play Sufficiency Action Plan through advocacy, attending meetings, and attending local events which would help develop the PSA Action Group, champion inclusivity, attract additional external funding, increase community engagement and help create stronger networks which would have a positive impact on children’s health and wellbeing.

The Senior Manager (Flintshire Youth Services) introduced a report to provide feedback on the Flintshire County Summer Playscheme 2023. 

            The Lead Officer (Play Development) provided a detailed update on the Summer Playscheme 2023, reporting that Flintshire offered a total of 56 safe site locations for

playschemes, with the duration of these schemes spanning 3, 4, 5, or 6 weeks, depending on the specific requirements of the Town and Community Councils.  In total 3,681 children registered county-wide for Playschemes, resulting in a total daily registration count of 11,907. 1,200 play sessions were delivered, or 8,000 hours of contact time. 69 staff were employed on short term contracts for the Summer where they received 5 days of training prior to delivery.  In continuation with the commitment to fighting holiday hunger, 5,000 bottles of water and 3,000 snacks bars were provided.

This year's Summer Playschemes introduced Welsh language into play activities across all sites which aligned with Flintshire County Council's Welsh in Education Strategic Plan.  Additionally, at least one Welsh-speaking staff member was present at 10 sites which enabled a more extensive provision for Welsh-speaking children.  Also, during the summer of 2023, 32 children and young individuals enrolled in the Buddy Scheme, granting them access to their local community Playscheme. The Buddy Scheme supported inclusivity, accessibility, and engagement for all children, regardless of their abilities. The funding for the Buddy Scheme was secured through the Families First grant.

The Lead Officer (Play Development) reported that the Playschemes were supported by 30 Town and Community Councils with a variety of schemes provided.  As part of recommendation 3, outlined within the report, it was proposed to change this to either a 3- or 6-week scheme.  This would assist with the management and staffing of the sites, and it was explained how having two 3 weekly sites could benefit a community.  Currently it was difficult to grow the service and he referred to the recommendation that Town and Community Councils consider the possibility to commit in principle to a 3-year funding cycle which would enable long term objectives and provision in communities to be considered.

The Lead Officer (Play Development) also reported that the Flintshire Play Development was planning an innovative and sustainable future to the delivery and commitment to children in Flintshire. Using the successful summer holiday provision as a blueprint, the aim was to provide holiday provisions during all school holidays.  The benefits of this commitment were outlined within the report.

            Councillor Ryan McKeown asked how many children who attended the summer playschemes in 2023 received free school meals, how this compared to previous years and was there comparable data on children receiving school meals across Flintshire.  He referred to the 25 schemes which ran 4- or 5-week schemes across the summer of 2023 and asked whether officers envisaged these schemes increasing to 6 weeks or reducing to 3, as proposed in recommendation 3.  He also asked when contact would be made with Town and Community Council’s around proposed changes for the Summer Playscheme 2024. 

            The Lead Officer (Play Development) clarified that the service did not hold information on children attending the scheme who were eligible for free school meals but information they did hold could be shared with the relevant officers for an analysis to be made.  With regard to the 25 lead sites, he said the increase to a 6-week provision would not have a significant financial impact.  He also confirmed that letters to Town and Community Councils were currently being drafted. 

            Councillor McKeown clarified that the information on the number of children eligible for free school meals attending the playscheme would be helpful and he felt this could be considered as part of the work of the School Meal Working Group.   The Senior Manager (Flintshire Youth Services) said that this was something that they would support and that the service had been involved with the delivery of the fun food and fitness and tackling holiday hunger programmes.  He outlined the complexities in delivering food to sites which were run for a small number of hours a day, but he said the service would support involvement from a play and youth prospective.

            Councillor Dave Mackie referred to the Leeswood Transition Club, details of which had been provided at Appendix 6 of the report and suggested that the Committee receive a fuller report on the success of the scheme at a future meeting.  The Lead Officer (Play Development) confirmed that he would be happy to provide a further report to the Committee. 

            Councillor Mackie asked if consideration was given to the different populations within each of the Town and Community Councils, with the smallest having 278 properties and half of the Town and Community Council’s holding budgets of less than £50,000 per year.  He felt that it could be difficult for some to provide additional funding to move towards an increased 6-week scheme and an all-year school holiday scheme.  In response, the Lead Officer (Play Development) understood the financial challenges faced and said that work was being undertaken collectively to assess whether additional funding streams were available.  He clarified that those Town and Community Councils who funded 4 weeks schemes could drop to 3 weeks providing a financial saving but if a Town or Community Council was funding two 4-week sites then these could continue as a 6-week one with the community benefitting from a whole summer provision rather than a shorter scheme at the beginning of the summer holidays.

            Councillor Andrew Parkhurst raised concern around the glitches with the IT system which had not allowed parents to enrol their children a few days before the schemes were due to start and that the advertising literature hadn’t been available until a few days before which meant that some parents were unaware the provision was running.  In response, the Lead Officer (Play Development) confirmed that they had been made aware of the IT glitches and that they had been resolved in a timely manner.  He agreed that advertising literature had been late and confirmed that work was being undertaken now in readiness for the promotional campaign next year to ensure that this did not happen again.

            Councillor Glyn Banks referred to the 5,000 bottles of water provided and suggested that re-usable bottles be provided on the first day of the scheme which children could re-fill themselves and bring with them to the remaining days of the scheme.  He said that this would assist with the reduction in use of plastic and also provide a financial benefit which could be used for prizes/certificates to children in promoting recycling.  The Lead Officer (Play Development) supported this suggestion from Councillor Banks. 

            Councillor Banks also provided information on the two schemes supported within his ward which covered a high number of villages.  He referred to the proposal for Town and Community Councils to commit to a three-year funding cycle and asked if certainty could be provided that there would be no financial increase during the three-year period.  In response, the Lead Officer (Play Development) reported that discussions would be held with Town and Community Councils, and he reported on the work being undertaken with regard to next year’s sites.  Referring to the three-year funding he said the predicted costs would be provided with the intention of not shifting from this unless there was a significant change.  For those Town or Community Councils who provided their own schemes he fully supported this and reported that training was offered to their staff at no cost to ensure that all play provision in Flintshire was being carried out in the same way. 

            Councillor Banks sought clarification on recommendation 1, as outlined in the report and the Leader of the Council confirmed that the Committee was being asked to support the proposal to speak to Town and Community Councils on a three-year funding cycle.  The Facilitator suggested that, following the comments from Councillor Banks, recommendation 1 be amended to “that the Committee support Youth Services in liaising with Town and Community Councils around a three-year in principle funding cycle for community play provision.;

            The Chair thanked officers for the report and was pleased to see the information on the number of sites provided, children participating and that the buddy scheme was still in operation.  He was also pleased to see that this was supported by the 3 Ukrainian and 10 Welsh speaking team members and that the Welsh language was being promoted.

The first recommendation, as amended, and remaining recommendations, as outlined in the report, were moved by Councillor Glyn Banks and seconded by Councillor Dave Mackie.

RESOLVED:

(a) That the Committee support Youth Services in liaising with Town and Community Councils around a three-year in principle funding cycle for community play provision;

(b) That the Committee endorse Youth Services to work with a range of partners, such as Adult Community Learning to offer an extensive training package for all Play Development team members to ensure quality Play Work delivery was of the highest standard;

(c) That the Committee endorse Youth Services to liaise with Town and Community Councils to opt for either three or six-week sites only, to allow for ease of recruitment, planning, business continuity and efficient use of recourses;

(d)  That the Committee endorse the 'Transition Programme' by Flintshire Play Development and Youth Services, in order to effectively prepare children for the next stage of their lives through play-based coping strategies, which had been shown successful in the past academic year; and

(e) That the Committee commit to supporting the Play Sufficiency Action Plan through advocacy, attending meetings, and attending local events which would help develop the PSA Action Group, champion inclusivity, attract additional external funding, increase community engagement and help create stronger networks which would have a positive impact on children’s health and wellbeing.