Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors P.E.M. Jones and J. Williams as well as Canon B. Witt. Apologies were also received from Councillor G.O. Jones (Executive Board Member for Education & Children).

There were no declarations of party whips.

No public questions were received.

The Committee UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the items to be considered at its next meeting, scheduled for Thursday 22nd September 2016, be noted.

The Committee considered a report outlining the findings of the Carmarthenshire 11-19 Curriculum Review. Members were informed that the Local Authority and Coleg Sir Gâr had jointly commissioned the review as both organisations considered that a shared strategic approach was needed to deliver 11-19 education and training in Carmarthenshire in the future. The recommendations contained within the report set out the actions required to implement the new curriculum and ensure that young people were both well-educated and suitably prepared for the next phase in their lives.

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

Reference was made to the ESTYN Annual Report in 2015 which highlighted the role of schools, colleges and local authorities in working together to develop a curriculum relevant both to learners and the key sectors of the local economy and it was asked what the timescale for this joint working was likely to be. The Director also informed the Committee that it was envisaged that this would be in place by 2021, tying in with the introduction of the new national curriculum. 

It was also suggested that many secondary schools were uneasy at the prospect of losing pupils to Coleg Sir Gâr and it was asked how these proposals could be implemented without creating competition between providers and whether the courses offered by the College would be available through the medium of Welsh? The Learning Transformation Manager informed the Committee both the Local Authority and Coleg Sir Gâr viewed post-16 education in Carmarthenshire as a mixed-economy provision. The Committee was also informed that further education colleges were under more pressure from the Welsh Government to deliver more courses through the medium of Welsh and that Coleg Sir Gâr were working towards this. The Director of Education & Children’s Services noted that the aim of this review and the resulting recommendations was to get rid of any sense of competition between providers and ensure that young people were offered the best provision. He acknowledged the valid concerns of schools but stressed that there was an excellent relationship between the Authority and Coleg Sir Gâr in respect of post-16 provision. However, he noted that no one college or secondary school would be able to offer every possible subject or combination of subjects in the future and therefore, partnership working was essential.

Members welcomed the report and the context and whilst the list of all the relevant strategies past and present, was also appreciated, it was felt that the inclusion of more data on young people’s destinations after compulsory full-time education would have been beneficial (e.g. those going on to university, further education colleges or those becoming NEET). The Learning Transformation Manager welcomed the comments and stated that such data was readily available and that he would be happy to present such information to members at a future meeting.

Disappointment was expressed that whilst the report emphasised the importance of economic and social matters, there was no clear mention or focus on the Welsh language and no reference  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Committee considered a report outlining the end of year financial position for the revenue and capital expenditure in relation to the remit of the Education & Children Scrutiny Committee, in respect of the 2015/16 financial year. The Committee was informed that this was the final end of year position and not the ‘near actual’ financial position as stated on the report cover sheet. The Committee noted that the Education & Children Department’s revenue budget was reporting a net overspend of £735,000 for the year whilst the capital programme showed a variance of -£6,154,000 against the 2015/16 approved budget. There were also no departmental reserves left for the 2016/17 year.

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

Members expressed concern at the costs associated with school-based early voluntary retirement and redundancies and as these were likely to continue and increase, it was asked whether the Department was able to predict what the financial impact was likely to be over the next twelve months and if there was dialogue between the Authority and schools on this matter. The Group Accountant stated that based on the business cases already received, the Department was anticipating an overspend of approximately £500,000 for 2016/17. The Committee was informed that changes to the process were being made to ensure that the system was clearer and that the Authority worked with schools from the onset to plan retirement applications and make use of redeployment opportunities for staff facing redundancy.  

In light of the on-going financial pressure faced by schools, the Chair suggested that the Executive Board be asked to consider allocating more funding for the Education & Children Department to help alleviate the financial pressures currently being experienced. The Committee agreed to the proposal.

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that:

7.1       The report be received.

7.2       The Executive Board be asked to consider allocating more funding for the Education & Children Department to help alleviate the financial pressures currently being experienced. 

The Committee considered the 2015 update of the Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP) which was originally approved by the Welsh Government in September 2014. The Committee was reminded that local authorities were required to prepare and submit a Welsh in Education Strategic Plan (WESP) for approval or modification by Welsh Ministers and that these were to be reviewed on an annual basis. Members noted that there had not been any changes to the original seven outcomes other than to integrate the needs of the local economy into the Plan. 

The Committee was informed that in complying with the requirement of the Welsh in Education Strategic Plans and Assessing Demand for Welsh-medium Education (Wales) Regulations 2013 to review its Plan annually (i.e. a review of progress against the targets set out in the Plan), there had been some confusion in respect to the requirement to consult on the revised WESP. Welsh Government officials had subsequently advised that the revised Plan was also required to be subject to consultation and therefore, the Authority undertook a period of consultation between the 29th March and 12th May 2016. A total of 16 responses were received and analysis was included in the attached report.

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the revised Plan:

Progress in relation to meeting the targets outlined in the original Plan was welcomed but in light of the many challenging targets and tight timescales, it was asked how much further progress could be achieved. The Director of Education & Children’s Services welcomed the comment and acknowledged that the targets were indeed challenging and often influenced by other factors. For instance, changing school language categories required the Authority to adhere to statutory processes and these often took place over a longer period of time. He also added that there were 10 dual-stream schools in Carmarthenshire and not 6 as outlined in the Action Plan (Section 2).

It was suggested that in general, WESP progress across Wales had been quite disappointing and that the requirement for another strategy and the WESP’s format might have contributed to the slow response by other local authorities in developing their own plans. It was proposed that the Executive Board Member (Education & Children) lobby the newly established Welsh Government and request that WESPs be incorporated into local authorities’ existing corporate strategies, rather than being considered as stand-alone documents. The Committee agreed to this proposal.    

Reference was made to the Authority’s Language Centres and that during the Committee’s school visits earlier that week, a head teacher had suggested to members that this service was not sufficient to support learners. It was also suggested that the language stations project should ensure that not only was Welsh history taught but that learners were also taught about the struggle that the Welsh language had faced over the years. The Challenge Advisor informed the Committee that officers were continuing to consider other models used in other counties by modifying the Carmarthenshire set-up to be more flexible and adaptable to local challenges.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

Councillor P. Hughes-Griffiths had earlier declared that he is a governor at Ysgol Bro Myrddin and that whilst he could take part and vote, he would not be contributing to discussions during consideration of this item.

The Committee considered the proposal to change the language category of Ysgol Bro Myrddin from Bilingual (2A) to Welsh-medium (WM) following the approval of the County Council in March 2016, for the publication of the Statutory Notice. The notice had provided objectors with 28 days in which to forward their objections in writing to the Council. The Statutory Notice period ended on 10th May 2016 and a total of 2 objections were received.

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the proposal:

Disappointment was expressed that the processes that were required to be followed in order to enable schools to change their language categories, appeared to be a hindrance rather than helpful. It was suggested that whilst the Welsh Government appeared to support the principle of allowing schools to progress along the language continuum, their own processes were actually designed to frustrate the process at the same time. It was suggested that the County Council, via the Executive Board, be asked to lobby the Welsh Government and request that it simplify the process required for changing school language categories, thus making it easier for schools to move along the Welsh language continuum. The Committee agreed to the proposal.

The Committee UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that:

9.1       The report be received.

9.2       It be recommended to the Executive Board that it proceeds with the proposal to change the language category of Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Bro Myrddin from Bilingual 2A to Welsh-medium and implement the proposal as detailed in the Statutory Notice, as from 1st September 2016.

9.3       The Executive Board be asked to recommend to County Council that it lobby the Welsh Government and request it to simplify the process required for changing school language categories, thus making it easier for schools to move along the Welsh language continuum and to change their language categories to Welsh-medium.

The Committee considered the First Year’s progress report on the Council’s Corporate Strategy 2015-20 as well as the Council’s Annual Report (2015/16) and Improvement Plan (2016/17). The Committee noted that annual reporting was one of the prime opportunities for review, monitoring and reflection and an opportunity for the authority to capture its on-going activity around meeting its general and specific duties. It also noted that the Council was required by law to publish an Improvement Plan as soon as it was reasonably practicable after the start of the financial year (i.e. April 1st) and also publish an Annual Report on past performance by the end of October each year.

The Committee UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED to endorse the Council’s draft Annual Report 2015/16 and Improvement Plan 2016/17.

The Committee received, for consideration, the End of Year Performance Management Report for the services within its remit, for the period 1st April 2015 to 31st March 2016. The report included:

·         Heads of Service Overview of Performance

·         Improvement Plan Monitoring – Actions and Performance Measures

·         Complaints and Compliments Monitoring

The following issues were discussed during consideration of the report:

In response to a question regarding the ERW (Education through Regional Working) Consortium, the Head of Learner Programmes informed the Committee that it was currently being inspected by ESTYN, as had the other three Welsh education consortiums in South, East and North Wales. 

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the report be received.

The Committee considered a report detailing progress in relation to actions, requests or referrals emerging from previous scrutiny meetings.

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the report be noted.