Agenda item

Members were given a presentation on the Neath Port Talbot Public Services Board consultation on the Draft Well-Being Plan.

Members were provided with a summary of duties that arise from the Well-Being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. The Act places a duty on the Public Services Board to prepare and publish an assessment of the well-being it its area and then prepare and publish a local well-being plan setting out its local objectives to improve the well-being in the area and the steps it proposes to take to meet them. This is now the second well-being plan that the PSB is consulting on.

The PSB is required to work in accordance with the sustainable development principle. Working in this way gives organisations the opportunity to be more innovative. The PSB have used the data gathered from the Let’s Talk campaign that ran last summer to assist with informing the well-being assessment.

Key themes have been drawn from the well-being assessment, which have been translated into the draft plan. There is a duty on the PSB to publicly consult on the plan for a minimum of 12 weeks. The Cabinet Scrutiny Committee is a statutory consultee and the committee has a duty to scrutinise the work of the PSB. Once the plan is published, the PSB will produce annual reports which will be brought before the scrutiny committee.

As part of producing the plan, the PSB have to propose a series of steps that the Board will take to help them achieve their objectives. Officers outlined the objectives and steps set out.

The PSB set out their intention to work with Neath Port Talbot partners to support future investments that are being made in the Borough and maximise the benefits for local people.

Members queried why the quotes used within the report were from valley communities and not other areas. It was confirmed the quotes used were from the Let’s Talk Campaign final reports.  The summary of the Well-being Assessment was produced by Swansea University. There are quotes from other areas within Neath Port Talbot and these will be input into the draft plan.

Members noted that the report refers to improving the provision of green spaces within urban areas, but there is no detail of the work to be undertaken to improve the provision. Further, the report does not refer to allotments, and their possible benefits for wellbeing. Members queried if there was any scope to include them within the plan? Officers confirmed that there is still a lot of detail to be developed around what will happen moving forward and this will be reported back to members.

Members were advised of the information contained within the online well-being assessment and a link would be circulated for members to access it. Since the assessment was undertaken, the Council commissioned a Heritage & Cultural Strategy. This has encompassed engagement with various community groups. The PSB are being encouraged to contribute to this strategy as opposed to set up their own separate piece of work.

Members were informed of the budget constraints in relation to the PSB.

Members queried information presented in the assessment in relation to the housing stock and decarbonisation objectives. Members asked, that once further detail has been agreed with regards to how the objectives are going to be achieved, that this is brought back before the committee for scrutiny.

Members discussed COVID and the effect on the communities. Members also raised how the Welsh language was being supported.

With regards to the cost of living, officers advised that they are asking each organisation involved to bring their own sets of data so that the PSB can analyse it and determine who is finding themselves in greatest hardship.

Following scrutiny members agreed to:

·        Note the Neath Port Talbot Public Services Board draft Well-being Plan as statutory consultee (as listed under Section 43 (1) of the Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015) and provide their comments/feedback that has been raised at todays meeting be included within the consultation.

·        That the Chair of the Scrutiny Committee write to the Chair of the PSB,  inviting the partners of the PSB to a future meeting of the scrutiny committee to consider the PSB Well-being Plan in further detail.