Issue - meetings

Councillors M. Moore and G. Paulsen declared an interest in the following item and remained in the meeting.

Consideration was given to the report of the Chief Executive Officer, GAVO.

The Deputy Chief Executive Officer GAVO advised that the report presented a progress update regarding the PSB’s Age-Friendly Communities programme and highlighted the work being undertaken with the Council’s Engagement Team to develop this programme.  She reported that there had been delays due to the impact of Covid on communities, however, work was now starting to progress.  A Steering Group was now operating and the Community Development Manager from GAVO was supporting the 50+ Forum to revise and strengthen their governance documents.  A third sector Engagement Officer from GAVO had been appointed shared between Blaenau Gwent and Caerphilly County Borough Councils to provide additional staffing to support the work moving forward.

A Member commented that the one positive aspect from Covid was that it had brought communities together to support each other.  Tenants and residents in Tredegar and other areas had been helping to deliver food parcels in conjunction with Social Services and had established links with hard to reach groups such as the elderly and most vulnerable people and he hoped these links would continue post-Covid.  The Deputy CEO agreed there had been a magnificent response from the community right across the county.  There had been a wider range of age groups supporting the community, and the organisation were considering some intergenerational work with those younger people that had experienced volunteering, perhaps for the first time on a community level, to retain that volunteering role to continue that community spirit.  She felt this would support the age friendly communities work and the understanding between generations.

The Policy Officer commented that all the information gathered through the community groups providing services in response to the pandemic, the Council’s locality response teams, the volunteers they work with and the Integrated Wellbeing Networks programme, could be brought together and built into the Age-friendly Communities programme.

A Member referred to paragraph 2.4 virtual events and activities, the Deputy CEO said that in order to retain some virtual activities there would need to be a blended approach, for instance if support could be provided to those people who were housebound to learn new technologies this would widen their opportunities to be involved. Community centres were not fully open as there were still restrictions in place and as such there was a need to look at different ways to provide services whilst recognising there were individuals who still did not have links to digital technologies.

A Member referred to CHAD a disabilities group who refurbish computers bespoke to the individual’s disability. The Deputy CEO was aware of this group and other similar groups such as Digital Cymru, the Wales Co-op initiative who loan out equipment and other initiatives whereby tablets and laptops were provided to Care Homes for residents to communicate with their families and would look at how to build on these initiatives in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6