To receive declarations of personal and prejudicial interest (if any) from Members/Officers in accordance with the provisions of the Members Code of Conduct adopted by Council from 1 September 2008 (including whipping declarations)

Cllr T Beedle declared a personal interest in this item for the following reasons:

• LEA Governor at Cwmfelin Primary School
• LEA Governor at Maesteg Comprehensive School
• Chair of Bridgend Governors Association.

Cllr A Williams declared a personal interest in this item because he was an LEA Governor at Pencoed Comprehensive School.

Cllr JP Blundell declared a personal interest in this item because he was a

Community Governor at Cefn Glas Infants School.

Cllr R Collins declared a personal interest in this item for the following reasons:

• LEA Governor at Plasnewydd Junior School
• Maesteg Town Council Governor at St Mary’s & St Patrick’s Roman Catholic School.

Cllr R Stirman declared a personal interest in this item because she was an LEA Governor at Bettws and Blaengarw Federated.

L Morris, Registered Representative, Secondary Schools Sector declared a personal interest in this item because she was a Parent Governor at Maesteg Comprehensive School.

Cllr J Gebbie declared a personal interest in this item for the following reasons:

• LEA Governor at Mynydd Cynffig Primary School
• LEA Governor at Pil Primary School.

Cllr T Giffard declared a personal interest in this item because he was an LEA Governor of Tremains Primary School.

To receive for approval the minutes of the meeting of 21/01/2020 and 03/02/2020

RESOLVED:                      That the Minutes of a meeting of Subject Overview and Scrutiny Committee 1 dated 21 January and 3 February 2020 be approved as a true and accurate record subject to the correct attendees being reflected.

The Senior Democratic Services Officer – Scrutiny presented the Forward Work Programme Update to Members. She explained that it had been some time since the Subject Overview and Scrutiny Committees (SOSC) had met due to the postponement of the March meeting due to the pandemic.  She referred to the purpose of the report in section 1, which was to present proposed initial items for the Committee’s Forward Work Programme (FWP), request any information to be included in the item for the next meeting and request any further items for consideration for the FWP for the remainder of the calendar of meetings. 

The Senior Democratic Services Officer – Scrutiny referred to Section 3 of the report advising that whilst the committee had been postponed there had been the establishment of a Recovery Panel with the aim of shaping, informing and advising Cabinet on the Council’s recovery planning to form the basis of the recovery phase of the pandemic. The Panel had met 6 times and heard from 5 sets of invitees, between 4th and 25th August 2020, and produced recommendations to COSC on the 7th September 2020, which were further reported to Cabinet on 15th September, with a formal response from Cabinet expected imminently. The Recovery Panel was now awaiting the Public Service Board’s Community Impact Assessment to consider the findings, before selecting the next area of focus to be examined in greater detail in the next phase.

She advised that the Combined Meeting of SOSC1 and 2 had been postponed and rearranged in July for the Committees to consider the proposals for Post 16 Education and Learner Travel and make recommendations to Cabinet, and the decisions were taken by Cabinet in July and September. 

She reported that planning and preparations for this year’s cycle of Budget Research and Evaluation Panel (BREP) meetings commenced well ahead of the first meeting on 24th July 2020, with 3 meetings being supported to date, and arrangements underway for the fourth meeting, and recognised  that there were Members of this  Committee  on the  BREP and the Cross-Party Recovery Panel.

The Senior Democratic Services Officer – Scrutiny explained that the Schedule of Meetings for the remaining municipal year had been agreed at Annual Council on 30th September 2020. As the Recovery Panel had now been established, it was recognised that, moving forward, meetings of SOSCs needed to be focused and strategic to avoid a duplication of work. Under the terms of the Council’s Constitution, each Overview and Scrutiny Committee must publish a FWP as far as it is known.  An effective FWP would identify the issues that the Committee wished to focus on during the year and provide a clear rationale.  The FWPs would remain flexible and be revisited at each COSC meeting with input from each SOSC.

The current position following Annual Council on 30th September was the scheduling of standing statutory reports to Scrutiny Committees upon: the Medium Term Financial Strategy, Performance, the Corporate Plan, Budget Monitoring and the Scrutiny Annual Report had been  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

The Chief Officer – Legal, HR & Regulatory Services submitted a report, the purpose of which was to request the Committee to nominate one Member as its Corporate Parenting Champion to represent the Committee as an invitee to meetings of the Cabinet Committee Corporate Parenting.

The Chairperson invited nominations from the floor, following which it was

RESOLVED:                        That Councillor J Gebbie be nominated to represent Subject Overview and Scrutiny Committee 1 as an Invitee to meetings of the Cabinet Committee Corporate Parenting.

The Chief Officer – Legal, HR & Regulatory Services submitted a report, the purpose of which was to request the Committee to nominate one Member to sit on the Public Service Board Scrutiny Panel.

The Chairperson invited nominations from the floor, following which it was

RESOLVED:                      That Councillor K Watts be nominated as the representative of Subject Overview and Scrutiny Committee 1 to sit as a Member of the Public Service Board Scrutiny Panel.

To consider any item(s) of business in respect of which notice has been given in

accordance with Part 4 (paragraph 4) of the Council Procedure Rules and which the person presiding at the meeting is of the opinion should by reason of special circumstances be transacted at the meeting as a matter of urgency.

None.