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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Hybrid Meeting

Contact: Samantha Schanzer  Scrutiny Adviser

Media

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor P Bright

 

2.

Declarations of Interest

Additional documents:

Minutes:

None.

3.

Minutes of Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 111 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee noted there was a discrepancy with attendance recorded.

The minutes of meetings held 6th June 2023 were accepted as a true and accurate record.

 

4.

End of Year Report - Education Services 2022-23 pdf icon PDF 145 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee noted an error an error in the wording in the report that stated the report was 2023-23 rather than 2023-24.

·       The Chief Education Officer agreed that this should be rectified.

The Chief Education Officer and Deputy Chief Education Officer presented the report.

Questions:

The Committee asked for clarification on what the seven strategic priorities were compared to the seven dimensions in education mentioned in the report.

·       The Chief Education Officer noted the seven strategic priorities derive from the Corporate Plan which then feed into Education such as in attainment and employability.

·       The Deputy Chief Education Officer further highlighted the focus of between linking education to the overall work of the Council.

·       The Chief Education Officer acknowledged the confusion and assured Committee that it would be clarified in the report.

The Committee asked for further information regarding Millbrook School.

·       The Chief Education Officer highlighted that the move from Millbrook to Brynglas is only temporary and noted that a timeline can’t be given on the situation as options have to be considered.

·       The Chief Education Officer highlighted that this work was not established in the capital programme but did confirm that the site is being worked on.

·       The Chief Education Officer expressed understanding of the concerns of those impacted by the situation.

The Committee asked for clarification about the link between a new Welsh medium school and the Whitehead site.

·       The Assistant Head of Education – Resources informed the Committee that a new primary school is being built on the Whitehead site, with work initiating on 17.07.23.

·       The Assistant Head of Education- Resources further detailed that this site will then be used for students of Pilgwently with the Pilgwently school being used then as the Welsh Medium school.

The Committee asked how far along was Millbrook primary school from presenting options for consideration.

·       The Chief Education Officer was unable to provide any further update and confirmed that the students have not being impacted in terms of standards and quality of education. The Chief Education Officer confirmed that Officers are also in regular communication with the Governors and parents.

The Committee asked for clarification regarding the statistic that stated 3% of staff had advanced Welsh language skills and queried whether this included Welsh medium staff.

·       The Assistant Head of Education – Resources informed Committee this focused on central education staff members, not school employees.

The Committee asked about the number of Welsh language staff and the offer to improve the number of Welsh speaking staff.

·       The Deputy Chief Education Officer noted in that they are proactive in the recruitment of Welsh language staff as well as promoting the learning of Welsh language through mechanisms provided by HR.

·       The Deputy Chief Education Officer further noted it is a priority of promoting Welsh language uptake by education staff.

·       The Deputy Chief Education Officer noted that it would take a while to see changes in relation to this as the plan spans 10 years.

The Committee felt that the report needed to be supported  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

5.

Conclusions of Committee Reports

Following the completion of the Committee reports, the Committee will be asked to formalise its conclusions, recommendations and comments on previous items for actioning.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee were content with the report and thanked officers for the report and their continued hard work.

The Committee noted the date typing errors throughout the report and asked that these be rectified.

 

The Committee asked that the 7 Dimensions and 7 Strategic Priorities be clarified as being separate and distinct within the report.

 

The Committee wanted to forward its concerns regarding temporary accommodation arrangements at Millbrook School and asked that the issue be resolved at the earliest opportunity. The Committee asked for an update regarding Millbrook, its position and whether options have been presented/accepted by the end of the year.

           

The Committee recommended that school, parent and pupil feedback be included in the report.

 

6.

Scrutiny Adviser Reports pdf icon PDF 140 KB

a)      Actions Arising (Appendix 1)

b)      Forward Work Programme Update (Appendix 2)

 

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Scrutiny Advisor informed the Committee that the action table was now clear and all information had been provided.

The Scrutiny Advisor noted that no dates or items had changed in the Forward Work Programme.

The Scrutiny Advisor informed the Committee that the date of the next meeting was the 25th July 2023.

 

7.

Live Event

Additional documents:

Minutes: