Agenda and decisions

Divisions/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: To seek Cabinet’s endorsement of the Local Development Plan (LDP) Draft Review Report, with a view to issuing for consultation purposes. 

The consultation responses will be fed into the final Review Report and will help to determine if and how the LDP should be revised going forwards.  The final Review Report and decision on revising the LDP will be subject to separate political reporting in early 2018.

Author: Mark Hand (Head of Planning, Housing and Place-Shaping); Rachel Lewis (Planning Policy Manager)

Contact Details: markhand@monmouthshire.gov.uk; rachellewis@monmouthshire.gov.uk

To endorse the LDP Draft Review Report to enable stakeholder consultation to commence. This consultation will help inform the extent to which stakeholders consider that the current LDP is operating well, and any changes or revisions they think are necessary with appropriate evidence and reasons.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: To evaluate the progress of Monmouthshire County Council’s key safeguarding priorities, in the period April – October 2017, using identified measures to highlight progress, identify risks and set out clear improvement actions and priorities for further development.

To inform Cabinet Members about the effectiveness of safeguarding in Monmouthshire and the work that is in progress to support the Council’s aims in protecting children and adults at risk from harm and abuse. 

To inform Cabinet members about the progress made towards meeting the standards in the Council’s Corporate Safeguarding Policy approved by Council in July 2017. 

Author: Whole Authority Safeguarding Group

Contact Details: cathsheen@monmouthshire.gov.uk

To note the key safeguarding risks and approve the priority improvement actions as set out at Appendix 2 to this report.

To endorse the evaluation of safeguarding progress set out in Appendix 5 to this report.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: This report presents the initial case for the development of a new residential home to replace the current services provided at Severn View Residential Home in Chepstow.  This development is a unique opportunity for Monmouthshire to lead within the county and nationally on a new model of residential care based on bespoke building design and a bespoke staffing model that supports the highest possible quality of life for people needing 24 hour care who are living with dementia.  The report explains the reasons that underpin the need for this development, the options available but specifically seeks approval for the commencement of the next phase of the project.

Author: Colin Richings – Integrated Services Manager [Abergavenny] & Direct Care Services Lead

Contact Details: colinrichings@monmouthshire.gov.uk

That Cabinet give approval for the formal commencement of the second phase of the project. Phase one explored the feasibility of the project and the development of initial designs and associated costs. Phase two will see the development of a formal business case.

To approve, in principal, the decision to re-provide Severn View Care Home on the Crick Road site subject to subsequent approval of the detailed business case.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: The purpose of this report is to provide a case for the realignment of the Team Around the Family service within the wider structure of family support services to better meet the needs of the local population and to contribute to Monmouthshire’s delivery of the Social Services and Well-being Wales Act (2014) (SSW-bWA)

Author: Charlotte Drury

Contact Details: charlottedrury@monmouthshire.gov.uk

To realign the activity of the existing TAF Team which currently facilitates the TAF process and undertakes only limited direct work, into a team that predominantly delivers programmes of early intervention family support and undertakes a smaller amount of facilitation of the TAF process.

To reconfigure the existing Co-ordinator post into a team-leader post using the anticipated cost saving to provide the necessary capacity to administrate an Early Intervention and Prevention Referral and Intervention Pathway (see Appendix 1).

To locate the service within the Face to Face Therapeutic Service.

To move the Face to Face Therapeutic Service to within the Children’s Services management structure to bring increased coherency to the ‘windscreen’ pathway of family support and intervention.

To create a multi-agency Early Intervention and Prevention Referral and

Intervention Pathway to manage referral and allocation of children and families seeking pre-statutory services family support (see Appendix 1).

To develop a step-up/step-down protocol and referral pathway which enables vulnerable families accessing support at both a pre-statutory threshold level and a post--statutory threshold level to have their needs appropriately met and ultimately reduce the numbers of children requiring statutory support and in particular the need to be Looked After.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: To provide details of a proposed re-alignment of Monmouthshire Children’s Services delivery model specifically in regards to the Placement and Support Team (PAST).

To highlight progress against the targets identified within the initial business case previously endorsed by Cabinet including an outline of next steps.

Author: Rhian Evans

Contact Details: Rhianevans@monmouthshire.gov.uk

To approve the proposed deletion of 1 assessing social worker posts from the establishment within the PAST.

To approve the transfer of resource released from this post into the creation of a social worker post within the Family Support and Protection Team or Early Help Duty and Assessment Team (as per recommendation 2.3.2 of the Workforce report).

That the staffing budget for 1 further assessing social worker post remains flexible either to retain as a part-time or full-time employee or to use the equivalent funds into a spot-purchasing budget to procure independent assessments as and when required. This will depend on the outcomes of recent recruitment campaigns, as well as the current staff movements within the service.

To progress with reviewing 3 other posts also created within the initial business case i) Psychologist ii) Special Guardianship Worker and iii) Placements and Contracts Officer Post.

To transfer the Contact Team from the line management of the PAST to the Service Manager Early Help and Assessment as part of the realignment of Family Support and Edge of Care services

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: To provide Cabinet with a summary of the workforce proposals for the next phase of the ‘Delivering Excellence in Children’s Services’ Programme.

To present the evidence base and business cases to support the proposals.

Author: Jane Rodgers

Contact Details: janerodgers@monmouthshire.gov.uk

Early Help Duty and Assessment Team

To convert one Social Worker post into a Senior Practitioner post.

To make the temporary Support Worker post into a permanent role within the team.

To convert one temporary agency worker assignment into a permanent Social Work post (or 60 hours of Support Worker hours).

Family Support and Protection Team

To convert three temporary agency worker assignments into three permanent Social Worker posts.

To convert of one temporary agency worker assignment into one permanent Senior Practitioner post.

Placement and Support Contact Team

To increase the contact team by one Contact Support Worker on a six month temporary contract. The purpose of this is to reduce the current costs of spot-purchasing contact worker sessions from independent providers (whilst the second phase of family support review work is undertaken).

To implement the full recommendations contained within the review of the Placement and Support Team including i) the formal consultation regarding the deletion of 1 assessing social worker post from the establishment within the Placement & Support Team and ii) to transfer the resource released from this post into the creation of a Social Worker post within the Family Support & Protection Team iii) to create a flexible budget around 1 social post.

Business Support.

To amalgamate unutilised Business Support hours within the establishment into a permanent business support post.

To review and revise the Business Support Manager job description, to provide a key role of supporting the Children’s Services with all aspects of workforce planning including staff recruitment and retention.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: To agree the Council Tax base figure for submission to Welsh Government, together with the collection rate to be applied for 2018/19 and to make other necessary related statutory decisions.

Author: Sue Deacy – Revenues Manager; Ruth Donovan – Assistant Head of Finance, Revenues, Systems and Exchequer

Contact Details: suedeacy@monmouthshire.gov.uk; ruthdonovan@monmouthshire.gov.uk

That in accord with the Local Authorities (Calculation of Tax Base) (Wales) Regulations 1995, the amount calculated by the Council as its Tax Base for 2018/19 shall be notified as £45,887.85 and the Collection Rate set at 99.0%.

That no Special Resolution declaring Drainage Rates as Special Expenses be made.

That any expenses incurred by the Council in performing in part of its area a function performed elsewhere in its area by a Community Council shall not be treated as a special expense for the purpose of Section 35 of the Local Govt. Finance Act 1992.

That Council Tax setting continues to be a function of full Council.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: The purpose of this report is to make recommendations to Cabinet on the Schedule of Applications for the Welsh Church Fund Working Group meeting 4 of the 2017/18 financial year held on the 9^th November 2017.

Author: David Jarrett – Senior Accountant – Central Finance Business Support

Contact Details: davejarrett@monmouthshire.gov.uk

That grants be awarded as per the schedule of applications.

Division/Wards Affected: All

Purpose: To consider the proposed disposal of the Crick Road development site to Melin Homes.

Author: Debra Hill-Howells - Head of Commercial and Integrated Landlord Services

Contact Details: debrahill-howells@monmouthshire.gov.uk

That Cabinet agrees to dispose of the land at Crick Road, as illustrated on the attached plan and the financial detail included in the exempt appendix, to Melin Homes.

That Cabinet agrees to the acquisition of 2.29 acres of the Crick Road site from the third party land owner to enable the construction of a residential care facility, if the Business Case is subsequently approved by Cabinet.

That the Head of Commercial and Integrated Landlord Services be authorised to conclude the negotiations in consultation with the Cabinet Member, Resources and the Chief Officer, Resources.