Issue - meetings

(a)          That the requirements of the Socio-economic Duty be noted; and

(b)          That the Committee is assured of the Council’s preparedness in meeting the new duty.

The Strategic Policy Advisorand Benefits Manager gave a joint presentation on the Council’s preparations for the commencement of the Socio-Economic Duty.  This was a statutory requirement upon relevant public bodies to have due regard to the need to reduce inequalities of outcomes resulting from socio-economic disadvantage.

The presentation covering the following:

·         What is the Socio-economic Duty and what does it do?

·         Key terms

·         Inequalities of outcomes

·         Examples of poverty

·         Demonstrating due regard - audit trail

·         Meeting the duty - what we are doing

·         Better outcomes

·         Case study

·         Applying the Duty

·         After the Duty

The presentation highlighted the broader examples of poverty which linked to one of the priorities within the Council Plan.  The report was being shared with all Overview & Scrutiny Committees to raise awareness of the new obligations.  Amongst the actions, the inclusion of Integrated Impact Assessment outcomes on committee reports would help to demonstrate consideration of potential impacts of poverty in strategic decision-making.

The Chair asked what the Council was doing about children who received free school meals that were having to self-isolate due to a member of their pod testing positive sometimes on multiple occasions.  The Benefits Manager confirmed that due to all the work undertaken during lockdown last year on direct payments to families and championing with Welsh Government, the need to pay the free school meal allowance during the school holidays had enabled them to make direct payments to the families when a child had to self-isolate.

In response to a comment Councillor Marion Bateman raised on digital poverty, the Strategic Policy Advisorsaid that as part of the Council Plan they were looking at developing Champions who would go with devices and support people getting online.  The Benefits Manager added that in the interim, Connects staff were able to scan and email documents and also complete forms electronically on their behalf.

The recommendations in the report were moved by Councillor Marion Bateman and seconded by Councillor Cunningham.

RESOLVED:

(a)          That the requirements of the Socio-economic Duty be noted; and

(b)          That the Committee is assured of the Council’s preparedness in meeting the new duty.