Agenda item

That the Committee has confidence that steps are in place to have a plan ready by the statutory deadline, subject to:

• Substituting ‘Holywell’ for the reference ‘Holway’;
• That the references on the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) website be challenged at Monday’s Compact meeting to give Members assurance that BCUHB acknowledges the benefits to the whole county, with a report back in due course;
• The provision of the papers for the forthcoming Compact meeting are made available to Members, as requested;
• Thanking the Chief Executive for his explanation and assurance that the fit between the Council Plan and Well-being Plan does not pose any risk to the Council’s decision-making.

The Chief Executive introduced an overview of the work of the Flintshire Public Services Board (PSB) and development of the Well-being Plan.

The Corporate Business & Communications Executive Officer circulated information on the five themes of the Well-being Plan which had been selected as those where the PSB could add most value.  Extensive consultation on the outline Plan was shortly due to commence leading to adoption of the final version by the Council in the New Year.

Councillor Jones raised concerns that the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) website link referred to specific areas of the county which may infer that other areas would not benefit from the Plan.  The Chief Executive gave assurance that the themes supported the whole County and cited Single Point of Access under ‘Well-being and Independent Living’ as an example.  The Corporate Business & Communications Executive Officer agreed to raise the matter at the forthcoming Voluntary Sector Compact meeting to ensure that the aims of the Plan were not being mis-represented on the BCUHB website.

In response to a query from Councillor Johnson, the Chief Executive said that it was yet not possible to evaluate the impact of Brexit and other issues outside the Council’s control.  Actions under each theme would be tracked against specific targets which had been set.  He reminded Members of the forthcoming workshop on the North Wales Economic Growth Deal and said that the regional approach would strengthen the Council’s position on future funding access and powers.  Reference to Holway on the piloting of new ways of working in communities under ‘Resilient Communities’ reflected the Community Asset Transfers in the area.  Officers agreed to change this to Holywell for consistency with the other towns mentioned.

Councillor Woolley commented on the mix of references to ‘priorities’ and ‘themes’ which could confuse readers.  It was explained that priorities applied to the former Local Service Board and that steps had been taken to simplify language under the five themes of the new Plan.

Councillor Heesom highlighted the importance of ensuring equitable distribution of resources across the county and asked that a response to the point raised by Councillor Jones be shared.  He also requested that the agenda for the Compact meeting be shared with the Committee.  In response to comments about the contributions of the PSB, the Chief Executive explained that the PSB was not a formal decision-making body and he illustrated the fit between the Well-being Plan and the Council Plan.  He also provided details of the PSB membership which had been extended beyond the statutory partners.

During discussion on the report’s recommendations, the Democratic Services Manager was asked to summarise the comments and points which had been raised.  These were supported by the Committee as resolutions.

RESOLVED:

That the Committee has confidence that steps are in place to have a plan ready by the statutory deadline, subject to:

• Substituting ‘Holywell’ for the reference ‘Holway’;
• That the references on the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) website be challenged at Monday’s Compact meeting to give Members assurance that BCUHB acknowledges the benefits to the whole county, with a report back in due course;
• The provision of the papers for the forthcoming Compact meeting are made available to Members, as requested;
• Thanking the Chief Executive for his explanation and assurance that the fit between the Council Plan and Well-being Plan does not pose any risk to the Council’s decision-making.