Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any Declarations and advise Members accordingly.

No declarations were received.

No declarations were received.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meetings held on the 14 September 2023 and 19 October 2023.

That the minutes of the meetings held on 14 September and 19 October 2023 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

14 September 2023

The minutes of the meeting held on the 14 September 2023 were presented for approval.

The minutes of the meeting were approved, as moved and seconded by Councillors Bill Crease and Carolyn Preece.

19 October 2023

The minutes of the meeting held on the 19 October 2023 were presented for approval.

The minutes of the meeting were approved, as moved and seconded by Councillor Dave Mackie and Mrs Lynne Bartlett.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meetings held on 14 September and 19 October 2023 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

(a)      That the Forward Work Programme be noted;

(b)      That the Facilitator, in consultation with the Chair of the Committee, be authorised to vary the Forward Work Programme between meetings, as the need arises; and

(c)     That the progress made in completing the outstanding actions be noted.

In presenting the report, the Overview & Scrutiny Facilitator outlined the items listed on the Forward Work Programme which was attached at Appendix 1 and referred to the Youth Justice Peer Review which had been moved to the February meeting.

Referring to the Action Tracking report at Appendix 2 it was confirmed that the majority of the actions from the last meeting were completed.  The Out of County report had been included on the Forward Work Programme for the Social & Health Care Overview & Scrutiny Committee with a request for a Workshop on Out of County Placements for new Members passed to the Democratic Services Manager.  An update was provided on the request for a report on Retention and Recruitment.

            The Chief Officer (Education & Youth) suggested that the purpose for the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal Wales Act item listed for the Joint Scrutiny meeting on 27 June be amended to reflect a whole overview of pre and post 16 Education.

            Councillor Andrew Parkhurst asked why the “Tackling the Impact of Inequality on Education Outcomes” was still listed as an item to be scheduled.  The Overview & Scrutiny Facilitator agreed to take this as an action from the meeting to ensure that it was allocated to a meeting date.

            Councillor David Mackie referred to his request at the last meeting for a list of professional learning courses offered by GwE and to the document which he had received saying that it was difficult to understand. The information that he had requested had been around:-

•    What training was being offered to teachers in Flintshire;

•    What training was being devised;

•    What was the purpose of the training;

•    How many people were expected to attend the training.

            Councillor Mackie referred to the training information provided by GwE and felt that it would be helpful if more detail was included around what courses and training opportunities were made available for schools.  He believed that a better understanding could then be made if an analysis of training in Flintshire schools could be compared with other Counties.  

            The Chief Officer (Education & Youth) advised that the appendix that the Senior Manager (School Improvement) had sent Councillor Mackie was provided by GwE and outlined all of the professional training and support provided to Flintshire schools.  It was also confirmed that a meeting had been arranged between Councillor Mackie, the Senior Manager (School Improvement) and Officers from GwE to enable a better understanding of the information that was being requested.

            Councillor Mackie referred to the action from the last meeting which related to a report on demography and asked why it was not showing in the items to be scheduled.  The Chief Officer explained that the information on the impacts of pupil demography would be included in budget reports however if Members required more information on this then a workshop could be arranged.  Councillor Mackie wondered if a regular update report could be provided, similar to the information provided around school balances, as he felt it would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 36.

That the progress of the Sustainable Communities for Learning programme be noted.

The Chief Officer (Education & Youth) introduced Jennie Williams, the Senior Manager, (School Planning and Provision) to committee and outlined the areas of work which she covered.

            In presenting the report the Senior Manager (School Planning and Provision) highlighted the progress which had been made with regard to the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme, previously referred to as the School Modernisation Programme.  The last update was presented to committee in February 2022 and this report highlighted the progress made in a number of areas and included information on the challenges and pressures which were being faced.   The Senior Manager provided information on the grant funding which had been made available and the small team which were tasked to deliver this.  She then highlighted some key points within the report and provided an update on the Childcare Programme and the Ysgol Croes Atti site which would be the second net zero carbon school and first new build Welsh Medium school.  An update on the 3 to 16 Campus at Mynydd Isa was provided which included information on the excellent social value team and the impacts it was making within the community and wider school network.   The Senior Manager confirmed that the portfolio had executed the statutory proposals to increase capacity in Drury and Penyffordd which were completed in December 2022 and that the next stage of extensions and refurbishment had commenced.  Information was then provided on the engagement process for the Saltney and Broughton Area Review which had been completed and would be presented to Cabinet.  The Senior Manager then provided an update on the Universal Primary Free School Meals Grant which was progressing well and this had enabled some resource and refurbishment changes to be made in primary schools.  Referring to Additional Learning Needs (ALN), the Senior Manager confirmed that capital grant funding of £2m had been received and it was confirmed that some money had been directed to the shared Hydro Pool used by the Special Schools and other learners.  Work was being undertaken to increase the capacity for learners who required ALN support.  The Senior Manager confirmed that the service had accessed the Community Facility Grant and Sports Wales Grants which had enabled works to be undertaken on school sites to support community access of those facilities.

            Councillor Bill Crease referred to the Saltney Broughton Area Review and St David’s High School and raised a number of questions around the public consultation, the condition survey and funding for maintenance at the school.  He also asked if any Senior Officers or Members had attended the school this year to see what was happening there.

            In response, the Senior Manager recognised that this review had taken some time to progress as there were complex circumstances around the school site and flooding in this area.  An update would be provided to Cabinet and the Committee with regard to the outcomes of the engagement process.  She explained that she and other officers had visited the school as there had been some significant repairs  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

There were no members of the press in attendance.