Cyngor Gwynedd council held a Planning Committee meeting on the 2nd October, 2023.
It began with an announcement from the chair, Edgar Wyn Owen, that the monitoring officer, Iwan G D Evans, has resigned his position as solicitor for the planning committee. Miriam Evans is now responsible for any legal matters arising...
Councillors voted to approve one application contrary to the recommendation of the officers. The application by a former councillor was allowed. His son who sits on the committee had to leave the meeting during discussion and was not allowed to vote.
"Where are your principles", asked councillor Elwyn Edwards. The chair quickly moved the meeting on... The webcast can be found here - press english for the translated video - https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/812297
The committee has a history of voting contrary to its own planning policies...
Nine days later on the 11th October, Andrew Forgrave, wrote in the Daily Post - Cyngor Gwynedd Council was adjudged to have 'behaved unreasonably' over the issue The decision, by Planning and Environment Decisions Wales (PEDW), overturned previous rulings made Cyngor Gwynedd Council’s planning committee which went against officers’ recommendations. Welsh Government inspector Janine Townsley considered the local authority to have “behaved unreasonably”. https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/century-old-footpath-row-ends-27881162?int_source=nba
Perhaps the Cabinet Member could give an explanation? With a breakdown of the costs incurred by the appeal... How many more appeals against planning decisions are there?
Something is so very wrong within Gwynedd council...
Gwynedd's Care Scrutiny Committee met on the 21st September, 2024. The
Housing Allocation Policy And Housing Waiting List was discussed. It was reported that empty homes are not being refurbished as quickly as was hoped. For the translated feed press the english tab - https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/808714
One councillor asked about the social housing that would be built through the council tax premium. No social housing is to be built - the premium is for 'affordable' housing. Does affordable housing attract more grants? Can they then be rented out for higher/market rates?
Problems with the online application form was mentioned and issues with the data was raised. The cabinet member for housing, Craig ab Iago, challenged the officers with regard to outsiders being given a house and said he knew of an example where this happened. He asked for anyone with examples to contact the department and to also inform him. With regard to homelessness, the cabinet member mentioned a sticking plaster on cancer and what was needed was solutions...
Councillors wanted knowledge of who was moving in to their area and if there was a local connection. One councillor mentioned that refugees have been given a house while six local families are left waiting in one village and said that animosity will increase...
Councillors asked for the senior officers of the housing associations to attend a meeting. The report was accepted while asking for an update - in a years time.
On supported housing - one councillor expressed his disappointmrnt at the housing officers who had already left the meeting. A lack of accountability for these homes was also raised with the fear of abuse for those vulnerable residents. The Head of Adults SS, Aled Davies, said the quality assurance team responsible for services 'is not as strong as it should be'. In light of the recent embargo on care homes in Gwynedd could this be considered a high risk?
The Autism plan was discussed... A task and finish group is to be established. Concerns were raised with the wording of the report and what was highlighted. Vera Jones, the lead officer who was to present the report was absent but her colleague said it was a mistake and the whole plan should have been included in the brief.
The draft brief focuses on learning disabilities and there was a call for those in the autism field to be included in the autism plan. Councillor Gwynfor Owen who has a son receiving support said he was not allowed to be a member of the task and finish group after discussion with the monitoring officer.
The former chair of the care scrutiny committee stated that his wife received domiciliary services but this was not considered prejudicial by the monitoring officer - he simply declared an interest where money was discussed and left the meeting. Others did not think it an issue either. It was thought the councillor's knowledge of autism would be invaluable...
One officer suggested the autism plan may be too large for the task and finish group... It was agreed to consider the whole plan and not simply the two points highlighted in the report by the democratic services manager. The webcast then ended so the committee could have an informal meeting behind closed doors...
It must be remembered that the autism plan is separate from learning difficulties and the council has already received 'ringfenced' monies from government to create such services - since 2008 and the introduction of the autism SAP.
In other news, a member of a separate committee sits on a task and finish group that has been set up to investigate the county's smallholdings and rents in particular. This member has a smallhoding rented from the council...
Cyngor Gwynedd Education and Economy Scrutiny Committee met on the 14th September, 2023. The webcast can be found here - https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/805628
SEND provision was discussed - or the lack of it. For those children with complex needs the committee was told that though medical cares and technologies have evolved to keep certain children alive they do bring extra pressures on the sector...
Absences and exclusions from school was discussed - the figures are high... Gwynedd council's exclusion officer blamed the pandemic and praised the schools for being open with the figures. The officer was asked twice before informing the highest number of exclusions are in the Arfon area.
The former inclusion officer tried to ensure an education for all - including those with complex needs, autism, behavioural issues et al. What is the problem with the Arfon schools? Has policy changed?
Why have these children been excluded? More importantly, what are they doing now? The exclusion officer did comment that the youth clubs are to be 'reinvigorated'. Will these be the same youth services the council cut previously?
The meeting is notable more for what was not discussed...
Garem Jackson, the Head of Education at cyngor Gwynedd, quit his post shortly after the meeting...
For too many years, Cabinet members and other Gwynedd councillors have
turned a blind
eye to the behaviours and maladministration of senior officers but it is the CEO and leader of the council who are ultimately responsible
for the culture of their organisation...
Cyngor Gwynedd's executive officers have commented on the culture within the council. They give little detail - and any insights are hidden amongst word salads with no explanations given. The comments can be found amongst the Ffordd Gwynedd report - https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/documents/g4839/Public%20reports%20pack%2007th-Mar-2023%2013.00%20The%20Cabinet.pdf?T=10
The report by the leader of the council, Dyfrig Siencyn, and Geraint Owen, Corporate Director states - ...This is all rooted in a change of culture, behaviours and mind-set and its aim of realising the ambition across all parts of the Council's activities is acknowledged as a substantial challenge and one which requires a comprehensive programme of support...
The report starting at page 18 begins well enough with the present CEO stating - Building on the culture and way of working, which is based on the principle of providing the best possible services to the residents of our county, with every one of us supporting each other to achieve this, is central to the Council's vision. The aspiration to ensure continuous improvement can already be seen widely across the Council and the next step is to ensure that nothing prevents us from embedding that mindset further and aim to improve even further what is already being delivered" (Chief Executive)
But the leader and executive officer are more honest - ...in order to maintain the "way of working", the mindset must be changed above anything else. Doing the right things before making the things better" is the mantra. Unless we change the mindset before, or during, changing a process, we will certainly fail and the changes will not be sustained in the long-term.
The executive are adamant that they will focus on collaboration and developing appropriate leadership behaviours Also - Develop methods to nurture an environment where managers feel safe to declare that performance is not up to scratch.
But it is officers of a lesser paygrade and the public that do not feel safe. What methods have been developed by the executive to protect them? Recording all telephone calls to the council would be a start. Removing the senior safeguarding officer from his role as the senior complaints handling manager? Ensuring that cabinet members have the conviction to challenge the departments they have responsibility for? How are the exit interviews going?
Other nuggets from the executive incude - Each person working for the Council should have a job description setting out core expectations for their role, duties and way of working. Focus on appropriate 'Behaviours' Acting on the basis of evidence, rather than on the basis of what appears to be logical, is one of the cornerstones of the "way of working"and here there is an important function to ensure that managers and their teams use the information and data available to its full potential.
"Acting on the basis of evidence, rather than on the basis of what appears to be logical..." This admission is the most frightening. That senior officers have acted without evidence on the basis of their unconscious and conscious biases...? Which officers? Which cases? How many people harmed? What cost?
In other news, there is a bin strike in Gwynedd. This is another crisis of the council's own making. Relationships between the staff and senior officers have not recovered since the pandemic when a bonus was denied the essential workers. -
From the article by Gareth Williams, July,2020.- Sent to the authority’s leader and chief executive, the letter notes:
“In our view its totally unfair to expect us to work through this period
on standard pay while the majority of (council) staff have been sent
home on full pay or are working from home. https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/gwynedd-bin-collectors-call-front-18556569
Now there is a cost of living crisis and the council are again digging in their heels...
Also the Education and Economy scrutiny committee met on the 14th September 2023, Due to legal matters, scrutiny of the Education officer was presumably constrained. This meeting, like so many others, was plagued by technical difficulties during the live feed and following the dicussion became impossible. The translated feed has still not been uploaded to the council's website...
Many people will remember the banner protesting cyngor Gwynedd officers misuse of council vehicles, in 2021. It was attached to the railings outside Morrisons supermarket in Caernarfon before being swiftly taken down by council officers...
A council spokesman said - “We are aware that there are some instances where staff may not have
adhered to this policy, and we are working with our trade union partners
to address this matter and update our policy.
The picture is from the article written by Gareth Wyn Williams, in 2021 - https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/gwynedd-council-review-vehicle-policy-19777848
On the 13th April, 2023, Dafydd Meurig, Cabinet Member for the Environment reported - A letter and email
was sent to officers who had the right to take vehicles home as part of
their working terms, on 29/03/2023. The letter stated that the
consultation period has ended and that
no officer from the Waste and Recycling service is now exempt from the
new policy - 'Use of Council vehicles for commuting'. In accordance with
the procedure, a period of notice must be given to staff and the period
of 90 days has started on 31/03/2023 and
ends on 29/06/2023. So by the end of June the exercise of using the
council's vehicle for journeys between home and work will come to an
end. Does this mean that officers continued to misuse the publicly funded vehicles for nearly two and a half years? Perhaps councillor Meurig could give an explanation for the long delay?
The public and local politicians may presume that this directive applies to all departments. Where cyngor Gwynedd is concerned nothing should be presumed...
