Agenda and minutes

The Committee noted that the Co-Opted Members did not appear on the minutes as attendees. The Democratic Services Officer apologised for the administration error and would rectify the minutes so that accurate attendance is portrayed.

 

Cllr Steffan Ap Dafydd asked that his name be amended to be spelt correctly.

 

With the above amendments the Committee noted the minutes.

The Committee noted the Forward Work Programme.

The Committee chose to scrutinise the following Cabinet Board items:

 

3.1    Christmas and New Year Opening Times, Libraries, Theatres, Community Centres, Margam Country Park, Leisure Centres and Swimming Pools 2017-18.

 

Members received information relating to the Christmas and New

Year opening times as contained within the circulated report.

 

Members questioned the difference in opening times between the

different leisure facilities. Officers explained that the discrepancies

were due to the historical use of facilities over the festive period,

the number of direct debits associated with the facility and the size

of its membership.

 

Following scrutiny the Committee were supportive of the proposals

to be considered at Cabinet Board.

 

 

3.2    Financing Schools- Reviewing the Funding Formula to raise standards.

 

Members received information in relation to proposed changes to

the formula for funding primary sector schools as contained within

the circulated report.

 

The Committee noted that the school estate has changed

significantly since 2011 and the current funding formula no longer

reflects the balance between smaller and larger schools and that

the NPT Schools Forum had requested a review of the current

arrangements.

 

The Chairperson drew the Committee’s attention to the fact that

the recommendation before the Cabinet Board was to approve

consultation on the proposed formula review and that the

decision taken by the Cabinet Board would be for

immediate implementation. Members noted an error in the report

in that the results of the consultation would be presented back to 

the Committee in mid -January and not January 4^th 2018 as stated.

 

 

 

Officers explained in order to deliver education the total

amount of money to be distributed to schools is determined

by the current formula; this formula neither increases or

decreases the amount of money in the Individual Schools Budget

but is the mechanism by which the Budget is distributed amongst

individual schools and Officers explained in detail how the current

formula operates.

 

Members heard how the Review Group established had provided

professional advice on how the formula could deliver more

equitable funding to schools and comprised of Head Teachers

from large and small schools serving both rural and urban areas

and had examined the current primary sector formula line by line.

Officers explained in detail the review group’s proposal for the

proposed changes to the funding formula for primary sector

schools.

 

Members noted the proposal to limit the financial benefit resulting

from the revised formula for those schools with reserves in excess

of £75k and queried where this figure had come from. Officers

explained that the Welsh Government limit is £50k but this figure

has been derived from careful analysis of the data via a fair and

transparent process and they believe it is a fair, realistic and

manageable figure. Officers stated that there are currently 8

schools with this amount of reserves but at this stage the schools

who will benefit from the revised funding formula are unknown.

The Committee asked if compulsory redundancies were

anticipated as a result of this process. Officers stated that whilst

this was a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.