Agenda and minutes

www.swansea.gov.uk/disclosuresofinterests

Councillors P N Bentu, J A Hale and M Jones declared a personal interest in Minute No.15 - Transformation.

Resolved that the minutes of the Organisational Transformation Corporate Development Committee held on 26 July, 2022 be approved and signed as a correct record.

The Interim Director of Corporate Services provided a presentation on ‘Transformation.’ Members noted that the Transformation Strategy and Programme goals were being reviewed in line with one of the Council’s first hundred days’ policy commitments. A report was scheduled to be presented to Cabinet in November which would include proposed transformation goals for 2023-27.

The Interim Director of Corporate Services sought members’ views on and their experience of the council’s previous transformation programme Sustainable Swansea (2015-2019) and the Achieving Better Together (2020-2022) Programme, in terms of what they thought they had achieved and what the priorities should be for the next programme.  In response to a Member question about the impact of previous programmes, she explained that a lessons’ learned review was currently being undertaken which would not be available until January 2023.  As such detailed information on what individual projects had achieved was not available to inform the Committee’s discussion.

Members raised the following as being potential priorities for any new transformation programme:

·         Workforce (including the need to cut agency costs and create substantive posts)

·         Co-production

·         Economic development opportunities (e.g., potential bid to become a Freeport)

The Interim Director of Corporate Services informed the Committee that funding had been secured from the Economic Recovery Fund to appoint the not for profit organisation Co-Production Network for Wales (Co Pro Lab) to help the council to improve its co-production capability. In response to a Member question, the Interim Director of Corporate Services agreed to provide details of the contract terms of reference. In response to a specific Member question, the Interim Director of Corporate Services agreed to provide the committee with a note on the council’s current position in relation to Welsh Government’s Freeport policy.

The Interim Director of Corporate Services then outlined a definition of transformation and explained why further transformation would be needed in the years ahead, particularly in the context of the public finance outlook and impact of inflation and energy costs on the council. She explained that the transformation strategy and goals would need to be developed in conjunction with the development of the new corporate plan (2023-27) and the Medium-Term Financial Plan covering the same period. This would process was ongoing. In the meantime, the Interim Director outlined six possible transformation goals on which she sought members’ views.

The Vice Chair the highlighted the importance of the sixth goal “To develop a motivated and committed workforce that is innovative, supported, skilled and customer- focused” and in particular the challenge for the workforce of managing impact of the current cost-of-living crisis on the council and themselves.

The Interim Director suggested the Committee have a second session on transformation in January 2023 when the report on lessons learned from previous transformation programmes would be available and further work would have been done on the corporate plan and MTFS. The committee agreed.

Resolved that:

1)        The Interim Director of Corporate Services provide Members with details of the contract terms of reference relating to co-production work that had been commissioned by the council.

2)        The Interim Director of Corporate Services provide Members with a note on the council’s current position in relation to Welsh Government’s Freeport policy.

3)        The Committee would have a further meeting on the topic of transformation in January 2023 to include consideration of the lessons learned report.

The Interim Director of Corporate Services introduced the Work Plan 2022-23.

Members discussed the detail of the items/timetabling and noted that should there be a requirement, special meetings could be convened. Furthermore, meetings were not subject to one-hour slots and could be extended (with prior notification provided to Members). It was agreed that co-production would be added to the forward work programme.

Resolved that:

1)      Co-production would be added to the forward work programme.

2)      The forward work programme would be confirmed up to January 2023 as follows: