Issue - meetings

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Governance and Partnerships and the Head of Children’s Services which was presented to provide an update in relation to the Bridging the Gap review on the Strategic Use of Grants with a focus on phase one of the Children and Communities Grant (CCG).

The Head of Governance & Partnerships spoke to the report and highlighted the main points contained therein, including details of specific work streams.

A Member enquired if extra funding would be available for parts of the borough not included in the Flying Start programme.  The Director of Social Services said that the Welsh Government Minister had confirmed that no extra funding would be available, however, a pilot project was to be carried out on a wider area and the findings would be presented to the Welsh Government to see if this could be rolled out across Blaenau Gwent.

A Member welcomed the £23m grant funding received but had concerns regarding the continuation of that funding after the Welsh Government elections in 2020/21.  He commented that Blaenau Gwent had pockets of deprivation not being covered.

With regard to Council Priorities, the Head of Governance and Partnerships said that the Council Priorities feed into the Corporate Plan and extensive work around the assessment of wellbeing had been undertaken to produce an overarching plan for the area.

In response to a Member’s question regarding grants, the Head of Governance and Partnerships said that the Integrated Care Fund had a big impact on Blaenau Gwent.  She explained that some grants were rigid and the criteria for the grant included levels of deprivation, monitoring of grant usage and value for money and were tied into what communities needed.  The Chair commented that it was important that grant funding was going to the right places.

The Committee AGREED to recommend that the report be accepted and endorse Option 1, namely that the Scrutiny Committee:-

•              Considered the progress made to date and the proposed next phases of the Strategic Use of Grants review;

•              Considered the progress made to date on the Children and Communities grant;

•              Receive further updates on the Strategic Use of Grants review and CCG as part of the Committee Forward Work Programme; and

•              The CCG Steering Group continues to oversee and implement the delivery programme and provides an annual report on progress to Scrutiny, Executive and the PSB.  Six monthly reporting will be made to the Corporate Leadership Team.