CRAFFU : GWASANAETHAU CYMDOGOL, CHEFN GWLAD A CYNLLUNIO

4.00 pm DYDD LLUN, 26AIN MEHEFIN, 2023 CYFARFOD X XXXX - TIMAU MICROSOFT

Cynhelir Cyfarfod Cyn y Cyfarfod cyn y cyfarfod hwn ac anfonir gwahoddiad ar wahân gan Swyddogion Cymorth Craffu at Aelodau'r Pwyllgor yn unig

Noder bod cyfarfod heddiw’n cael ei recordio

Gellir y recordiad hwn ddarlledu ei ar fewnrwyd yr Awdurdod

Bydd pawb sy'n bresennol yn weladwy i'r camera a, thrwy xxxx mynychu yn cydsynio i xxxx xxxx ffilmio ac i'r posibilrwydd o yr awdurdod ddefnyddio'r delweddau a recordiadau xxxx hynny fel y soniwyd uchod.

Cafodd yr Agenda hwn ei baratoi gan yr Adran Gwasanaethau Democrataidd. Dylai unrhyw aelod o’r cyhoedd xxxx xxxxx gwybodaeth gysylltu â’r adran ar (01685 725284) neu e-bostio xxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx.xx .

Gellir dod o hyd i unrhyw ddogfennau cyfeirio, y cyfeirir atynt ond nad ydynt yn cael eu cyhoeddi fel rhan o’r agenda hwn ar wefan neu mewnrwyd y Cyngor, o xxx Papurau Cefndir

AGENDA

1. Ymddiheuriadau am absenoldeb

2. Datgan buddiant (yn cynnwys datganiadau chwipio)

Atgoffir Aelodau o'u cyfrifoldeb personol i ddatgan unrhyw fuddiant personol a niweidiol mewn

perthynas â materion sydd wedi'u cynnwys yn yr agenda hon yn unol â darpariaethau Deddf Llywodraeth Leol a Cyllid 1992 sy'n ymwneud â Treth Cyngor, Deddf Llywodraeth Leol 2000, Cyfansoddiad y Cyngor a Chod Ymddygiad Aelodau.

Nodyn:

(a) Mae Aelodau yn cael eu hatgoffa bod rhaid iddynt nodi rhif eitem a’r mater xxx drafodaeth, a bod rhaid iddynt nodi natur y buddiant personol; a

(b) Lle mae aelod yn ymneilltuo o gyfarfod o ganlyniad i ddatgelu buddiant sy'n rhagfarnu rhaid hysbysu'r Cadeirydd pan fyddant yn gadael.

Rhaglenni Gwaith

3. Rhaglen Gwaith Cychwynnol 2023/24
I ystyried yr adroddiad amgaeëdig	5 - 18

Reports

4. Cyfansoddiad Gwastraff Merthyr Tudful, yr Heriau Presennol a Syniadau am u Dyfodol I Gyflawni Targedau Llywodraeth Cymru
I ystyried yr adroddiad amgaeëdig	19 - 26

5. Argymhellion yr Adroddiad

Ydyn ni wedi xxxxx â’r argymhellion ymhob adroddiad a sut yr ychwanegwyd gwerth atynt?

Myfyrdodau

6. Ailgyfeiriadau Craffu

7. Adborth ar Graffu Weithrediadau

Unrhyw weithrediadau heb eu cwblhau? Adborth gan weithdai/grwpiau cyflawni a chwblhau tasgau/diwrnodau ymchwilio

8. Adborth ar y Gweithdy: Adroddiad Hunanwerthuso
I ystyried yr adroddiad amgaeëdig	27 - 126

9. Unrhyw fater arall y mae'r Cadeirydd yn ei ystyried yn bwysig

CYFANSODDIAD:

Cynghorwyr X Xxxxx (Cadeirydd)

P Xxxxxx (Is-gadeirydd)

Cynghorwyr M Xxxxxxx, X Xxxxxx, X X Xxxxx a X X Xxxxx

Aelodau cyfetholedig X XxXxxxxx, P Star x X Xxxxxx

ynghyd â swyddogion priodol

Os byddai’n well gennych xxxx o’r agenda hwn mewn Iaith arall, cysylltwch a xxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx.xx neu ffoniwch 01685 725284

Xxxxxx y dudalen hon yn wag yn fwriadol

Agenda

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Civic Centre, Castle Street, Merthyr Tydfil CF47 8AN

Main Tel: 00000 000000 xxx.xxxxxxx.xxx.xx

SCRUTINY COMMITTEE REPORT

Date Written	7th June 2023
Report Author	Councillor Xxxxx Xxxxx – Chair of Neighbourhood Services, Planning and Countryside Scrutiny Committee
Service Area	Scrutiny
Exempt/Non-Exempt	Non-Exempt
Committee Date	26th June 2023

To: Chair, Ladies and Gentlemen

Forward Work Programme 2023/24

1.0 SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

1.1. To provide Scrutiny Members with the proposed Scrutiny Forward Work Programme (FWP) (Appendix 1) for consideration to agree its work programme and to use it to prepare in advance of future scrutiny meetings.

1.2. To remind Scrutiny Members that they need to consider the requirements of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 in all aspects of scrutiny work.

2.0 RECOMMENDATION(S)

2.1 Scrutiny Members agree the items set out in the Scrutiny Forward Work Programme (Appendix 1)

3.0 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

3.1. Scrutiny Members will be aware of the work programme report presented to the Neighbourhood Services, Planning and Countryside Scrutiny meeting on the 26th June 2023. This provided Scrutiny Members with the four principles of scrutiny (as set out by the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny) are listed below:

• Provides constructive, critical friend challenge to executive policymakers and

decision-takers

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• Amplifies and enables the voice and concerns of the public and its communities

• Led and owned by independent minded Councillors on behalf of the public

• Drives improvement in public services

3.2. Building on this, we have used the ‘4R’s’ model (which sets out how good scrutiny should work).

3.3. Xxxxxxxx is required to prepare and keep under review a programme for their work. By reviewing and prioritising issues, Members are able to ensure that the work programmes deliver a member-led agenda and add value to delivery of outcomes for our residents.

3.4. The scrutiny FWP (appendix 1) identifies the topics for consideration at scrutiny. These were discussed and developed following a series of scrutiny work planning sessions held with the Chair, Scrutiny Members, the Director and supported by officers from the Policy and Improvement Section. The Chair engaged with Xxxxxxxx Members who were also given the opportunity to feed into the FWP. The items for consideration were subsequently agreed in readiness for the future Scrutiny meetings. Subsequent planning sessions will aim to develop the FWP further ahead of the next Scrutiny.

3.5. The Scrutiny FWP sets out the items for consideration by scrutiny; however, the Scrutiny FWP is subject to change when the Cabinet Forward Work Programme is produced. This will allow Scrutiny Members the opportunity to undertake pre-decision scrutiny, i.e., prior to items being presented to Cabinet for approval.

3.6. Quarterly technical meetings with the Chair, Cabinet Member and Director will also enable scrutiny to build in items for pre-decision. The technical meetings will also ensure that the Scrutiny FWP captures public voice through member engagement with their constituents. Other key considerations such as Corporate Risk and strategic priorities can also be considered.

3.7. It is important that the Scrutiny FWP remains flexible enough that we can add value and ensure we are still scrutinising the things we should. For example, task and finish groups are likely to be developed from the items in the Scrutiny FWP.

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BACKGROUND PAPERS
Title of Document(s)	Document(s) Date	Document Location
Statement of Well-being and the Corporate Well- being Plan	April 2023	Council Website
Does the report contain any issue that may impact the Council’s Constitution?			No

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Xxxxxx y dudalen hon yn wag yn fwriadol

Scrutiny Forward Work Programme 2023-24

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Neighbourhood Services, Planning & Countryside Scrutiny

Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?
26th June 2023	Scrutiny Forward Work Programme	Link to Well-being objectives, priorities for improvement: • An Aspirational Merthyr Tydfil Focused on Learning • A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil	Chair of Neighbourhood Services, Planning & Countryside Scrutiny	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Adding value through critical friend challenge and ensuring a robust work programme is in place. This will adhere to the 4 principles of scrutiny and 4R’s model.
26th June 2023	Scrutiny Forward Work Programme			Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting
		Tackling Poverty Agenda. Ensuring public voice. Drive improvement
	Recycling Composition Analysis	Link to Well-being objectives, priorities for improvement: • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Scrutiny seeks to review the outcome of the recent recycling composition analysis undertaken, allowing greater

• A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil

Potential links to Decarbonisation and Welsh Government strategies such as Beyond Recycling

Director of Neighbourhood Services

Waste Services Manager

Other Waste Services Officers/Representatives

Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting

understanding of the current situation and challenges in waste/recycling collection. Outline of future ideas/plans to address issues and how to meet statutory Welsh Government targets.

Scrutiny to add value through critical friend challenge, supporting continuous improvement and if appropriate, provide

any recommendations.

Feedback on Workshop: Self-Evaluation Report

Link to Well-being objectives and priority for improvement:

• An Aspirational Merthyr Tydfil Focused on Learning

• A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil

• A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil

• A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil

Tackling Poverty Agenda.

Chair of Neighbourhood Services, Planning & Countryside Scrutiny

Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)

The corporate self- evaluation process is a key element of the Council’s Governance Framework.

improvement.

Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting

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					Opportunity to reflect on the outcomes of the workshop including whether it met its purpose. Reflect on whether any proposals or recommendations during the workshop were considered by officers and how they may be addressed.
Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?
25th September 2023	Scrutiny Forward Work Programme	Link to Well-being objectives, priorities for improvement: • An Aspirational Merthyr Tydfil Focused on Learning • A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil Tackling Poverty Agenda. Ensuring public voice. Drive improvement	Chair of Neighbourhood Services, Planning & Countryside Scrutiny	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Adding value through critical friend challenge and ensuring a robust work programme is in place. This will adhere to the 4 principles of scrutiny and 4R’s model.
25th September 2023	Scrutiny Forward Work Programme			Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting

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	HWRCs Van Permit & Trade Waste Progress Report	Link to Well-being objectives and priorities for improvement: • A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services Director of Neighbourhood Services Waste Services Manager Other Waste Services Officers/Representatives	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Following on from Scrutiny report on previous cycle, Xxxxxxxx seeks a progress report of the changes since they have been implemented, detailing any benefits and challenges which have been faced. Members will examine the information and offer critical friend challenge and where appropriate, provide recommendations with aim of continuous improvement.
				Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting
	Highways and Road Maintenance	Link to Well-being objectives, priorities for improvement: • A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil Ensuring public voice	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services Director of Neighbourhood Services Highways/Engineering Managers	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Scrutiny seeks a report which will allow critical friend challenge to take place of the current position relating to highways and road maintenance. Xxxxxxxx aims to explore any current good practice and issues/challenges faced such as financial and environmental impacts. Aims to add value by ensuring voice of the public and where appropriate, offer any recommendations.
				Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting
Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?

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13th November 2023	Local Development Plan Annual Monitoring Report	Link to Well-being Objectives and priorities for improvement: • An Aspirational Merthyr Tydfil Focused on Learning • A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil Under the provisions of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, all Councils have a duty to produce an LDP Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) which must be submitted to the Welsh Government.	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services Director of Neighbourhood Services Principal Planning Officer	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Will allow critical friend challenge of our approaches to deliver the LDP and to Executive Policy and Decision Makers. Separate workshops will allow greater understanding of the overarching item and will allow Members to consider policies identified in the monitoring framework and whether they are being developed, potentially inputting to future plans and to consider whether the plan as a whole is working successfully. Findings and suggestions are to be reported back to Scrutiny.
				Scrutiny Type: Committee Style Meeting
Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?
18th December 2023	Litter Bins within the County Borough	Link to Well-being objectives and priorities for improvement: • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services Director of Neighbourhood Services Street Scene Manager	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Scrutiny to explore the current position concerning litter bins within the County Borough, providing critical friend challenge to current practices and issues. Workshop prior to this Scrutiny will allow opportunity to review appropriateness of current
				Scrutiny Type: Potential for workshop followed by

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				Committee style meeting	location of litter bins and how we could improve the efficiency of the service by agreeing better numbers/locations. Outcomes of workshop may help develop a new policy on bins which is to be presented before Scrutiny.
Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?
29th January 2024	Fleet Management and Electric Vehicles	Link to Well-being Objectives and priorities for improvement: • A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil • A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil Includes links to Decarbonisation	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services Director of Neighbourhood Services Fleet Manager	Venue: Council Chamber/MS Teams (Hybrid)	Scrutiny seeks a report outlining the fleet of vehicles being updated/ replaced. Xxxxxxxx will use the findings of the report to explore the updated plans in relation to fleet management and the impacts of switching to electrical vehicles. Xxxxxxxx will also consider the cost implications and value for money for the new fleet programme. May include input from other services such as waste so viewpoint of service users impacted the programme are considered.
29th January 2024	Fleet Management and Electric Vehicles			Scrutiny Type: Site visit to be followed by Committee style meeting

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					Potential to hold site visit prior to Scrutiny with meeting to follow immediately after (as part of Scrutiny improvement programme)
Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?
11th March 2024				Venue:
11th March 2024				Scrutiny Type:
Date / Timing	Overarching Item/Issue	Why is this on the work programme?	Cabinet Member & Officer	How will this be scrutinised?	Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?
TBC	Self- Evaluation Report (Workshop)	Link to Well-being objectives – • An Aspirational Merthyr Tydfil focusing on Learning	Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services, Planning & Countryside	Venue: Committee Room	The corporate self- evaluation process is a key element of the Council’s Governance Framework. The process requires all Chief Officers to annually

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• A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil

• A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil

• A Clean and Green Merthyr Tydfil

Director of Neighbourhood Services

Various Heads of Services/Managers and other officers within Neighbourhood Services

Scrutiny Type:

Workshop

review the current position for all services in relation to Outcomes, Provision and Service Delivery and Leadership and Management. Through completion of the process, they will identify areas where good practice has been noted; along with any areas of development and, more specifically, explicitly note their priorities for improvement. Scrutiny will review the summary findings report and review the validity of the judgements made by the Chief Officer to secure assurance that these are robust and appropriately evidenced. As part of the above, a critical friend challenge will be provided to self-evaluation, process and indicators. Evidence of explanations will be provided during workshops. Outcomes for Scrutiny will feed into the Self-

Evaluation report and Self- Assessment process.

Date / Timing

Overarching Item/Issue

Why is this on the work programme?

Cabinet Member & Officer

How will this be scrutinised?

Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?

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29th April 2024

Feedback on Workshop: Self-Evaluation Report -

Neighbourhood Services

Workshop to be held on full report

Link to Well-being objectives and priority for improvement:

• An Aspirational Merthyr Tydfil Focused on Learning

• A Safe & Prosperous Merthyr Tydfil

• A Healthier Merthyr Tydfil

• A Clean & Green Merthyr Tydfil

Tackling Poverty Agenda. Public voice.

Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Services

Director of Neighbourhood Services

Various Managers

Venue: Council Chamber

The corporate self- evaluation process is a key element of the Council’s Governance Framework.

The process requires all Chief Officers to annually review the current position for all services in relation to Outcomes, Provision and Service Delivery and Leadership and Management. Through completion of the process, they will identify areas where good practice has been noted; along with any areas of development and, more specifically, explicitly note their priorities for improvement. Scrutiny will review the summary findings report and review the validity of the judgements made by the Chief Officer to secure assurance that these are robust and appropriately evidenced. As part of the above, a critical friend challenge will be provided to self-evaluation, process and indicators. Evidence of explanations will be provided during workshops.

Outcomes for Scrutiny will

Scrutiny Type: Potential workshop followed by Committee style meeting

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feed into the Self- Evaluation report and Self- Assessment process.

Additional Items for Consideration

• Nappy/Absorbent Hygiene Products Recycling

• Waste/Recycling Equipment

• Smart Litter Bin Trial/Litter Bins

• Biodiversity

• Progress report relating to Street Lighting changes (Alloy system) – developed from Scrutiny on 16th May 2023

• Traffic Management within the County Borough – developed from Scrutiny on 16th May 2023

Potential workshop/task & finish group/site visits items for consideration

• Site visit to Unit 5/Unit 20 to view works done in relation to fleet management programme

• Workshops in build up to LDP item

• Biodiversity/Green Space visits (carried over from previous cycle)

• Playground visits (carried over from previous cycle)

• Site visit to street lighting control room (developed from conversation during Scrutiny on 15th May 2023)

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Agenda

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Civic Centre, Castle Street, Merthyr Tydfil CF47 8AN

Main Tel: 00000 000000 xxx.xxxxxxx.xxx.xx

SCRUTINY COMMITTEE REPORT

Date Written	24/5/23
Report Author	Xxxx Xxxxxx/Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Service Area	Waste Services
Committee Date	26/6/23

To: Chair, Ladies and Gentlemen

MERTHYR TYDFIL`S WASTE COMPOSITION, CURRENT CHALLENGES AND FUTURE IDEAS TO ACHIEVE THE WELSH GOVERNMENT TARGETS.

1.0 SUMMARY OF THE REPORT

1.1 This report summarises the key elements of the recent Welsh Government`s compositional analysis of Merthyr`s waste streams and contextualises this in certain areas with the all Wales average results.

1.2 The report also highlights challenges to achieving the Welsh Government recovery targets and identifies future ideas to overcome these challenges.

2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS

2.1 That the scrutiny committee discusses and comments on the issues set out in the report.

3.0 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

3.1 In 2022 Welsh Government commissioned an analysis of waste/recycling generated across all Authorities in Wales. The analysis was carried out by Resource Futures in partnership with WRAP Cymru.

3.2 The analysis identified the composition of waste and recycling in all 22 individual Authorities as well as giving an all Wales average. The exercise was carried out in 2 phases throughout the year. Phase 1 was implemented in March/April 2022 and

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phase 2 was implemented in October/November 2022 in order to illustrate potential seasonal differences in the composition.

3.3 The service areas analysed were:

• Kerbside residual collections (sample areas)

• Kerbside dry recycling collections (sample areas)

• Kerbside food waste collections (sample areas)

• Kerbside garden waste collections (sample areas)

• Trade residual waste collections (sample commercial customers)

• Trade recycling collections (sample commercial customers)

• Household Waste & recycling Centre (HWRC) residual waste

• HWRC bulky waste

3.4 A report was produced by Resource Futures on both phases of the analysis and passed to each of the Welsh Authorities in March 2023 illustrating the composition of waste/recycling in Wales and the individual Authority.

3.5 The reasoning behind this project being commissioned by Welsh Government was to provide Authorities with an accurate breakdown of their waste/recycling composition to inform them of areas of their service that could be focused upon to improve recovery rates and help towards them meeting WG targets.

4.0 WHERE WE WERE

4.1 Since 2015/16 we have continued to achieve the Welsh Government targets each year up to 2021/22.

4.2 A compositional analysis for all Wales and individual Authorities was commissioned by Welsh Government in 2016. This analysis along with waste benchmarking data and feedback from physical bin inspections carried out daily by the waste & recycling Wardens gave Waste services a good idea of the composition of our waste streams, helping to inform decisions on service changes and projects that were implemented to achieve the recovery targets.

5.0 WHERE WE ARE NOW

5.1 A confirmed recovery rate for 2022/23 hasn`t yet been provided but provisionally the rate stands at approximately 65%.

5.2 The 2022/23 compositional analysis was provided to the Authority in March 2023 which was evaluated and summarised to extract key data that will help inform the future direction of service requirements to achieve the Welsh Government targets. The summary is highlighted below:

5.3 Kerbside residual waste

There were less kerbside dry recyclables in the wheeled bin than the Welsh average apart from non-ferrous cans and glass, although these differences were small. Over these material types the percentages available for recovery are between 0.6%

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(Ferrous cans) and 4.2% (Textiles). In total 18% of the wheeled bins contents are dry recyclables. 9.4% of the wheeled bin consists of nappy and other AHP waste. 3.3% higher than the Welsh average. SWEEE (Small electrical and electronic equipment) and batteries make up 1% of the bins components, almost half that of all Wales. 8.7% of the bin is recyclable plastic film.

We have 1.2% garden waste in the bin. 1% lower than all Wales.

The largest recyclable material in the bin is food at 30.3%. Although this is an all Wales issue we have 5.5% more than the Wales average.

5.4 Dry Recycling

Capture rates of targeted materials is higher than the Welsh average for cans and plastic containers. It is lower for textiles, paper, card and glass. There are less non- targeted materials than Wales as a whole demonstrating a cleaner material stream.

5.5 Food Waste

The composition of the food waste is almost identical to all Wales. There is a 0.4% contamination rate which is plastic film.

5.6 HWRC Recycling

5.7 HWRC Residual

For all recyclable material types in the residual we had far less materials in the residual skip than all Wales. We had a greater amount of other combustibles in the bin but these items tend to be non-recyclable. With so few recyclables in the bin we would expect the proportion of non-recyclables to be high (61%).

5.8 Kerbside Garden Waste

A high proportion of the garden waste was the required material (99.3%) which was 1% higher than the Welsh average.

5.9 Bulky Waste

There were no plastics, textiles, glass or ferrous metals on the bulky vehicle which was less than the Welsh average. The skip itself wasn`t analysed. The assessment was from the collection vehicle. There was a similar amount of non-combustible waste in the skip to the Welsh average. These include rubble, plasterboard, ceramics and litter. There is only 7% of the skip containing these materials but this could be improved. We have 10% more WEEE collected via our bulky service than all Wales but as this is diverted into the WEEE container it is a positive result.

5.10 Trade Recycling

The quality of the trade recycling is extremely clean. Most of the recycling streams are 99% uncontaminated. The exception to this is our cans and plastics which contained 12.2% non-targeted materials the majority of which are non-recyclable paper and liquids. Tudalen 21

5.11 Trade Residual

We had slightly less recyclable paper and card in the trade residual bins than all Wales. However, we had significantly more black bin bags, nappies, drinks cartons, and garden waste than the Wales average. There was also almost 3 times as much combustible non-packaging waste (mainly non-recyclable wipes foam products and Covid PPE) in our bins.

5.12 Conclusion

Approximately 50% of the residual bin is made up of dry recyclables, green waste and food waste that could be diverted for recycling via the kerbside services. In terms of tonnages still available for diversion to the recycling streams it equates to; Dry recycling – 1,592t/annum, Food – 2,680 t/pa and green waste – 106 t/pa. If we include recyclable items that can be recycled at the HWRCs then approximately 70% of the bin`s contents are recyclable.

8.7% of the bin`s content is made up of recyclable plastic film (769t/pa). We should commence capture of this on the upcoming film collection trial.

The quality of both kerbside dry recycling, food waste and green waste is good and predominantly better than the Wales average. However, as can be seen above there is a lot of scope to increase the amount of all materials collected, particularly food waste.

The HWRC recycling was not analysed. A snapshot of 5 Local Authorities was taken using data from some of those 5. Merthyr was not one of them. Accurate data is available from benchmarking reports and the quarterly site returns. It has been identified from a number of reports that our HWRCs are some of the better performing in Wales. Although there is always room for improvement.

For all recyclable material types in the HWRC residual we had far less materials in the residual skip than all Wales. We had a greater amount of other combustibles in the bin but these items tend to be non-recyclable. With so few recyclables in the bin we would expect the proportion of non-recyclables to be high (61%). There is always room to improve the recovery rate and reduce the 1,154 t/pa of residual waste generated at the HWRCs.

The bulky skip was not analysed but the vehicles were, for two full days of the analysis period. There is not much scope to improve this service area as separation of recyclables is operated on the HWRC site following diversion of re-useable items prior to arrival at site.

9.3% of trade residual bins content is recyclable paper and card, equating to 63.5 t/pa available to divert for recycling. There is 7.9% (53 t/pa) of green waste in the trade bins which should be diverted for recycling. There is a small percentage of trade, 5.3%, of glass and metal cans in the residual bin.

There are small amounts of available recyclables in the HWRC and trade residual streams for capture which we need to focus on obtaining. However, given the recycling data above contained in the domestic residual bins the big gains will be achieved by diverting the dry recyclables and food from the wheeled bins into the

recycling streams. Food waste being the priority factor.

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5.13 Projects developed and implemented in 2023 to help achieve targets

• In January 2023 all commercial premises within the County Borough (existing trade customers and non-trade customers) were offered the opportunity to deposit certain recyclable items at the Dowlais Household Waste & recycling Centre. To date 167 local businesses have signed up to the trial scheme.

• In February 2023 a participation monitoring exercise to gauge the amount of households that take part in the kerbside collection services was introduced. The waste & recycling Wardens spend a couple of hours per day gathering this information. For households identified as not participating in the service the warden’s door knock the properties the following week to engage and encourage them to take part and offer advice and/or containers if required. Encouraging food waste recycling is the key message delivered during these engagements.

• In February/March 2023 over 260 additional capacity bins that were deemed to be no longer required by residents, following a monitoring exercise, were exchanged for the standard 140l bin. In April there was a drop in residual waste collected of 16 tonnes. Although there may be other factors to consider it is reasonable to assume that this reduction in available capacity contributes to this.

• A series of events have been planned for the year either organised by the waste team or attending other organiser’s events. A promotional gazebo and additional giveaways have been purchased to support the delivery of these and impart behavioural change messages. The events list is a working document and will continue to be added to, particularly through the summer months. The main events attended to date include; Trefechan and Galon Uchaf Community recycling days, Real Nappy promotions in Fir Tree drive and the Town Centre and the Chilli & Chocolate Festival.

5.14 Challenges to achieving the targets

• Public levels of participation in the kerbside recycling services is not as high as it should be. A combined participation rate for food and dry recycling is approximately 75%. For households taking part in food waste collections only approximately 50% are doing so.

• For some residents that utilise the recycling services not all recyclable materials are made available for collection. Capture of certain materials is poor. This is not exclusively but predominantly food and paper.

• These low levels of participation and capture are evident in the quantities of recyclables remaining in the bin as highlighted in the compositional analysis.

• Stricter quality protocols on certain recyclable materials applied by WG and Natural Resources Wales (NRW) mean that the levels of recycling obtained from these materials is diminished. This applies to a lot of the materials that we collect but particularly wood, mattresses, carpets and more recently food. As these recycling streams generate high tonnages the impact is greater than if applied to minor streams.

• Capacity on the kerbside sort lanes vehicles for collection of textiles and small electrical items and batteries is insufficient for the quantities available to us. Increasing production of vaping products will compound this.

• Available capacity still remaining in most resident`s bins, apart from households producing additional non-recyclable waste such as nappies and other absorbent hygiene products (AHPs) is not conducive to increasing recycling participation as it allows an easier, alternative way of disposing of it.

6.0 WHERE WE WANT TO BE

6.1 The Authority need to improve the amount of recyclables currently contained within the residual waste wheeled bins significantly in order to achieve the increased Welsh Government recovery target of 70% by 2024/25 and subsequent targets up to zero waste by 2050.

6.2 According to WRAP Cymru diverting 300 tonnes from the residual bin into the recycling streams will give an increase in the recovery rate of 1%. As can be seen from the figures above there is more than sufficient tonnages available to us to achieve the 5% increase required.

7.0 WHAT WE NEED TO DO NEXT

7.1 The list below highlights some projects that have commenced this year and will continue or are proposed to commence in 2023.

• To submit a funding application in partnership with ‘Waste Savers’ Charitable Trust for the implementation of a Town Centre Repair Café and Reuse shop.

• Working in partnership with WRAP Cymru and Local Partnerships to trial kerbside collection of plastic film with a proposed commencement timeframe of June 2023. Date TBC. As no progress has been made with the partnership project Waste services have begun to plan for this trial to be carried out without support from Welsh Government.

• Working in partnership with WRAP Cymru to carry out a scoping survey on potential residual waste reduction options. The exercise will conclude in June 2023. A decision to implement any of the options will be made based on the outcome of that survey.

• To introduce behaviour changes to residents to deal with their waste in a more sustainable manner, via a dedicated Behavioural Change Officer. This will include engagement with Voluntary sector groups and schools as well as directly with residents using a face to face approach supported by a communications campaign. A list of events that will be attended throughout 2023 has been compiled and continues to grow as the year progresses. A number of events have already been attended as in section 5.13.

• We have re-aligning the roles of our Waste & Recycling Wardens to increase face-to-face engagement with residents to encourage participation in the kerbside recycling services andTimudpraolveenca2p4ture rates of materials particularly food waste.

• To implement a collection service for commercial cartons, un-used WEEE and un-used textile in readiness for the forthcoming business, public and third sector recycling regulations (April 2024). The Authority already collects other source separated commercial waste. This will include an exercise to improve trade recycling from Council offices and schools.

• To monitor and improve the way the Authority`s difficult access properties deal with their waste to ensure compliance.

• To investigate the potential to expand the recently introduced scheme where traders can take cost neutral materials to the HWRCs to include a possible chargeable service for other recyclable materials.

• Funding was obtained in May to work in partnership with a company called Material Focus, by employing a temporary Officer (for 4 months) whose role will be to raise awareness of the proper disposal of electrical items. The funding will also provide containers for the collection of electrical items at Council buildings such as Community Centres and Libraries. The project is planned to commence in July this year.

8.0 CONTRIBUTION TO WELLBEING OBJECTIVES

8.1 The Waste Services Department contributes to the Council`s Environmental wellbeing objective EW1: communities protect, enhance and promote our environment and countryside.

Xxxxxx Xxxxx

Director of Neighbourhood Services

Councillor Xxxxx Xxxxxx Portfolio Member for Neighbourhood

Services

BACKGROUND PAPERS
Title of Document(s)	Document(s) Date	Document Location
Welsh Government`s Waste strategy, Beyond Recycling Data set for Merthyr Tydfil`s compositional analysis Wales National Composition Results	March 2021 March 2022 March 2022	xxxxx://xxx.xxx.xxxxx/xxxxxx- recycling 5483 Wales WCA Merthyr Tydfil 2022 5483 WALES NATIONAL WASTE C
Does the report contain any issue that may impact the Council’s Constitution?			No

Xxxxxx y dudalen hon yn wag yn fwriadol

Eitem Agenda 8

Neighbourhood Services, Countryside & Planning Scrutiny

Feedback on Workshop: Self-Evaluation Report 2022-23

Date Written	30th May 2023
Report Author	Cllr Xxxxx Xxxxx – Chair of Neighbourhood Services, Countryside & Planning Scrutiny
Committee Date	26th June 2023

Background & Purpose

Self-Evaluation is a rigorous process that is undertaken annually and enables Directors, Heads of Service and officers to be critically reflective of their service areas. The Self-Evaluation Report (SER) focuses on three key questions –

1) Outcomes

2) Provision and Service Delivery

3) Leadership and Management

The key purpose of the process is to identify areas of good practice, areas for development and to recognise key priorities for improvement for the coming year, with the aim of strengthening the service and to meet the needs of our communities.

The SER was developed by Heads of Service which sit under the Neighbourhood Services umbrella, which covers the following services –

• Highways & Engineering

• Planning & Building Control

• Street Cleansing & Bereavement Services

• Parks & Countryside

• Waste Services

Within the development stage of the report, continuous collaboration took place between the report authors, Director and Support Officer to ensure that appropriate progress on the report continued to be made and deadlines were met.

As part of the self-evaluation process and to add value to the Scrutiny function, the completed questions were presented before the Neighbourhood Services, Countryside & Planning Scrutiny in a workshop setting, allowing Members to scrutinise the information contained within the report. This provided Members an opportunity to review details of the services, to outline positive practice and achievements whilst providing a platform to develop discussions around any challenges faced and areas for development identified. A key aspect of the workshop would be to secure feedback from Members which could then be considered/used as part of future planning on how identified priorities would be progressed. It allowed a detailed conversation on the service with the aim of building relationships with officers and improve the outcomes of the service.

• Provide critical friend challenge of the self-evaluation report and process.

• Allow Members to scrutinise the self-evaluation report and agree with the judgements.

• Allow opportunity to review details of services.

• Outline positive practice and achievements.

• Discuss challenges faced and areas for development.

• Consider and review priorities identified and how services/scrutiny could progress with these.

• Identify any appropriate actions moving forward.

Scrutiny Focus – What are we trying to achieve?

Outcomes of workshop and how did Scrutiny add value?

Prior to the workshop, the Scrutiny Members were provided a copy of the SER in order to prepare accordingly and to prepare pertinent lines of questioning or challenge. Officers presented the three key questions and Members proceeded to ask probing questions and challenge to the judgements put forward. The workshop and the scope of the challenge allowed conversations to develop and provided Members with a greater understanding of the key points and issues of the report and the process undertaken to develop the SER.

The workshop also allowed both officers and Members to share areas of good practice and areas for development, and gave the opportunity for an open and honest discussion around the challenges ahead.

There was general agreement between Members that there was sufficient evidence provided within the SER and the discussions in the workshop to support the rationale and therefore, Members supported the overall judgements made. Members were also satisfied that the priorities identified would support improvement within the service, and that officers provided relevant assurances that Self-Evaluation is aligned to strategic planning across the council as this helps to ensure that there is a golden thread which links the priorities and performance objectives to deliver against the outcomes.

Members noted and supported the following overall judgements made within the SER for each of the questions:

Overall Judgements
Q1	Outcomes	Adequate
Q2	Provision and Service Delivery	Adequate
Q3	Leadership and Management	Adequate

A number of actions were recorded as a result of the conversations held during the workshop with the aim of improving the service and allowing Members to have a greater understanding of service. These have been recorded below for reference.

Neighbourhood Services, Countryside & Planning Scrutiny
Action	Comments
Insurance claims for previous years to be shared amongst Members	Information to be provided by DC and shared amongst Members.
Work on a communication video to raise awareness on recycling for the people in the County Borough	To discuss further with Chair and waste services.

‘MaTkiungdaadleiffnere2n8ce together’

Neighbourhood Services, Countryside & Planning Scrutiny

Feedback on Workshop: Self-Evaluation Report 2022-23

Potential to develop separate meeting/workshop with Street Scene officers to discuss aspects of

their report

To be discussed between Chair and Director.

Mark grit bins with specific messages such as ‘no fly-tipping’

and ‘no litter bin’ warnings

Update on this to be requested from DC.

Policy relating to highway maintenance (potholes) to be

circulated

Policy to be provided by DC and shared amongst Members.

As already touched upon, the workshop added value by allowing an open and honest conversation giving a greater understanding of current status of the services and the challenges which are currently being faced and those for the future. Members were well prepared and the lines of questioning and challenge were pertinent and allowed conversations to develop.

Many areas of good practice were identified, and some of the challenges were openly discussed. This included, but not limited to, key discussions on the Welsh Government targets set for Waste Services, increasing resources and potential staff development in service areas, work on biodiversity and housing targets within the planning sector.

The fluidity of the workshop and of the Chair meant the focused activity didn’t take place, but this allowed a greater emphasis on the report itself and generated a deeper meaningful conversation, including on what needs to be done moving forward and how the Scrutiny function could help improve outcomes.

The Chair asked Scrutiny Members to consider any issues or ideas for our Scrutiny Forward Work Programme which develop specifically from the SER and the discussions in the workshop, and to forward these ideas to the Support Officer. In addition to this, the Chair stated that if Members feel there are any priorities which should be a key focus over the next 12 months, to also identify them to the Support Officer for further discussion with Director/Heads of Services.

Members did not challenge the rationales or judgements in the report and were in general agreement that many of the aspects were indeed better than average and were good, but appreciated there are some features of the services that still need development. However, all Members thanked the officers for the effort and work which their services undertook.

Xxxxxx y dudalen hon yn wag yn fwriadol

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council

Self-Evaluation Report Response Pack

2022-2023

Page 1 of 81

Directorate Name: Neighbourhood Services

For Performance & Scrutiny Team use only:
Form completed & received	24/04/2023
Internal challenge session	28/04/2023
	13/03/2023
Reviewed by Scrutiny	26/05/2023
Tudalen 31

MTCBC Corporate Self Evaluation

Reintroduced during 2019-2020; the corporate self-evaluation process provides officers across the Council with a platform that supports them to review their services current status; to highlight any areas where good practice is noted and to reflect on areas for development which will enable them to identify priorities for improvement for the coming year, further strengthening their ability to meet community need.

Self-Evaluation Response Pack 2022-2023

This self-evaluation pack contains all relevant paperwork to complete the three core questions making up

MTCBC’s Corporate Self-Evaluation:

• SECTION 1: The template for completion of Key Question 1 (Outcomes);

• SECTION 2: The template for completion of Key Question 2 (Provision and Service Delivery);

• SECTION 3: The template for completion of Key Question 3 (Leadership and Management); and

• SECTION 4: Position (summary) Statement

The Process

We understand that there are multiple demands on officers’ time, particularly when considering the Council’s requirement to respond to community needs in relation to the ongoing pandemic. As a result; we have introduced a number of different ways that officers can complete the process. You can:

• Complete the process on a ‘question by question’ basis, submitting completed questions to the Performance & Scrutiny Team for review; or

• Receive all of the questions at the same time; systematically working through the question pack and submitting the fully completed response pack to the Performance & Scrutiny Team.

If you’re unsure how you want to start work on completing this process, feel free to contact any member of the Performance and Scrutiny Team who’ll be happy to advise and support you.

Scrutiny

Following the positive feedback received from Scrutiny Committees last year, the change introduced in relation to the reports being taken to scrutiny for discussion and agreement will remain in place. Whether you chose to complete the process question by question or you prefer to tackle it all in one go; you will be required to attend scrutiny to discuss the findings.

When your report is reviewed and scrutinised by Committee Members, it will contain content covering all three completed questions. Lessons learned last year showed that on occasion, it was challenging to look at the key question areas in isolation so by presenting the content inclusive of findings against all three questions; it will also support Committee Members to see the connections across your services and that of the partners/stakeholders with whom you work.

Tips to support Completion

We thought it would be useful if we reflected back on things we learned when undertaking self-evaluation last year as these might support you to complete this year’s process. We’ve themed these up under some key finding headings:

Tip:

Remember to look back at the reports you produced last year – these will be a

really helpful reminder of where you were and enable you to think about what’s

different this year. When reviewing this information; ask yourself some questions:

• What are the major things which have changed?

• Have you worked with the same stakeholders or have you begun to work with different partners?

• Are there any new projects or programmes which you’re involved in this year that you were not working on last year? Has this led to any new ways of working/innovation?

• Did you make progress against your priorities for improvement?

Feedback received suggests that working with others in your team/service area to complete the questions can be really helpful.

Colleagues will often remember things which you may have forgotten as they happened months ago – these missing pieces can help identify things that have gone really well or not so well; and might support you to begin to explore these things so you can identify whether they’re priorities for improvements or good practice (two of the key things you need to consider)

Tip:

Think about the discussions with Scrutiny Committee members when you discussed your self-evaluation with them last year:

• What feedback did you receive from Committee Members?

• Did Committee Members raise anything which helped you to develop your thinking when it came to your areas for development or priorities for improvement?

Remember, if you are claiming an outcome or identifying areas of good practice; you must ensure that you offer details/evidence of why you have come to this conclusion. Sources of evidence used can include items such as your SOAPs; reports; photographs; video evidence and must be available should Scrutiny Committee request to see it.

Tip:

The Council has been required to change how it operates in response to the ongoing pandemic. Consider how your services have had to change to ensure communities continue to receive the services they require. Evaluate whether the necessary changes have impacted on outcomes; have they been positive etc.

Applying Judgements

Remember; when considering what judgement you are going to place on your forms; there should be sufficient evidence to support this. The framework for judgements is as follows:

Descriptor for each status

EXCELLENT	Very strong, sustained performance and practice
GOOD	Strong features, although minor aspects may require improvement
ADEQUATE and needs improvement	Strengths outweigh weaknesses, but important aspects require improvement
UNSATISFACTORY and needs urgent improvement	Important weaknesses outweigh strengths

Remember: your judgements will be reviewed and challenged as the report goes to your chosen Board; and again at the relevant scrutiny committee meeting.

FINALLY, PLEASE REMEMBER:

When completing your form, please be evaluative rather than descriptive; focus on the impact and outcomes for people and the environment

(e.g.)

Descriptive: We changed the way we worked to make sure we could carry on delivering our services despite the restrictions placed upon our ways of working as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic

Evaluative: Meetings continue to be held virtually, some now take place face to face where required.

In some cases, changing the way we work has led to challenges (e.g.) we had to rethink our approach to consulting with service users and this made meeting deadlines a real challenge. Discussion showed we must extend the deadlines as it was critical to involve those affected by the proposed changes during development to ensure their views were considered as planning began. Though this took much longer; the outcome shows we have a much wider understanding of what we plan to do, have a higher level of buy-in from key stakeholders, and the resulting plan is much more community informed.

SECTION 1:

Focus on: Outcomes

GOVERNANCE – Performance & Scrutiny Team only

Question
1.1	Adequate	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
1.2	Adequate	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate

Key

Highways/Engineering

Street Cleansing & Bereavement Services Waste Services

Planning & Building Control Parks & Countryside

Overall Directorate Judgement: Adequate

QUESTION 1: OUTCOMES

JUDGEMENT

Question 1.1: How good are outcomes for the community?

< Adequate>

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• Progress made against corporate well-being objectives;

• Current performance, comparable data, trends – what impact has Covid-19 had on outcomes?

• Historic results, benchmark data

• Does the service helps tackle poverty?

• How has the service managed its financial performance

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

HIGHWAYS

Highways maintains 340km of adopted highways, 11,500 gullies and 7,500 Street Lights. To manage the network, it has meant that the resource management has had to become more efficient through working smarter and the sharing resources between Neighbourhood Services.

During 2021.22 the Highways Service has continued to provide a normal service through COVID-19 with office staff working agile from home while operational staff continued working from their operational depot. The Service used extra vehicles to reduce the risk of staff catching COVID while travelling to jobs and the extended lead times on orders of materials and equipment.

Highways achieved safe passage for highways users by effective implementation of the Highways Act 1980 legislation which include regular safety inspections of the adopted highways. By ensuring a safe passage for the highway users it enabled

Merthyr communities to access daily activities and to have active and healthy lifestyles, which meets one of Merthyr’s 4 objectives, that is “Sustainable transport that attracts people to live, work and play”.

• During 2021.22, a total of 2,603 highways inspections were undertaken of the adopted highway, an increase of 29 inspections when compared to 2020.21, this is due to the increase of adopted highways in 2021.22. All 20221.22 inspections were completed within service standard timescales, as were 2020.21. This is Failure to complete the Highways Inspections within the relevant timescales would lead to the Council paying out third party claims.

In 2021.22 the Highways operational team completed a total of 2,621 works-orders, of which:

• 100% of 354 Priority Emergency works-orders were completed on time, the same as 2020.21 (264)

• 48% of the 1,666 Priority 1 works-orders were completed on time, a decline of 9% when compared to 2020.21.

• 81% of the 534 Priority 2 works-orders were completed on time, an improvement of 31% compared to 2020.21.

• 75% of the 74 Priority 3 works-orders were completed on time, an improvement of 24% compared to 2020.21.

• Overall, 55% of the 2,621 works-orders were completed on time, compared to 66% in 2020.21. Although, there is a 11% decline in works orders being completed on time, an additional 800 works orders were completed in 2021.22 compared to 2020.21. Additional funding was given to clear a backlog of work orders which impacted on the time in which they were completed.

Failure to comply with relevant legislation could make the Council liable to Corporate Manslaughter if repairs of safety defects are not carried which could lead to death or serious injury to the road user.

Of 2621 works orders that were completed in 2021/22,

• 13% were Priority E 2021.22 - 2% less Priority E raised than in 2020.21

• 63% were Priority 1 2021.22 – 8% less Priority 1 raised than in 2020.21

• 20% were Priority 2 2021.22 – 9% more Priority 2 raised than in 2020.21

• 3% were Priority 3 2021.22 – same as 2020.21

As part of MTCBC maintenance programme the gullies throughout the County Borough are cleansed by our in-house team on a yearly cycle, the details of which itemised below.

• 9470 of 10,000 Gullies were cleansed during 2021.22, which helps to meet one of Xxxxxxx’x 7 goals of a “Healthier Wales” and one of Merthyr’s 4 objectives to protect, enhance and promote the environment for communities and reduce drainage issues, such as flooding.

• As one of MTCBC five ways of working objectives, Highways is currently working in collaboration with Caerphilly CBC

whereby Xxxxxxx’x gully waste gets recycled through Caerphilly’s reedbed system. In addition, as one of Merthyr 4

objectives “environmental wellbeing” all gully waste gets recycled which is not only cost effective but contributes towards

the MTCBC and Neighbourhood Services recycling targets.

Winter Maintenance is also managed by highways to ensure safe passage for the highways user.

• 50 gritting runs were completed in 2021.22 enabling safer access to main arteries within communities, including town centres, hospitals, and other essential services. Again, this links in with one of Xxxxxxx’x 4 objectives for “lifestyles health and vulnerability and economy infrastructure”.

• 497 tonnes of rock salt were used to grit the roads in 2021.22, making adopted highways safer for service users.

Highways is responsible for fulfilling the Council’s statutory duty of maintaining the streetlights that are installed within the County Borough, to help create an enriching and safer environment for local communities. Helping to reduce crime and enhancing night-time ambience and quality of life. This links in with one of Xxxxxxx’x 4 objectives to “promote safe, confident, strong, and thriving communities”.

• 215 street lighting failures were repaired in 2021.22, helping to provide a safer environment for highway users.

• 99.9% of the lighting was on at any time, the same compared to 2020.21

• On average, in 2021.22 street lights are restored within the same day, compared to the 1 day in 2020.21.

The data above links in with one of Xxxxxxx’x 4 objectives of “supporting a strong sustainable diverse and successful environment”.

The information provided by annual scanner and scrim testing of our adopted A,B,C, highways network provides Highways with a list of carriageways within the County Borough that require surfacing works that helps provide a safe and sustainable highway network. Other eco-friendly practices include the use of low carbon tarmacadam, Micro Asphalt and recycled sub-base when carrying out highway maintenance work. Also, highways provide a strong sustainable environment which is one MTCBC 4 objectives in political priorities.

• The 2021.22 THS/12 indicator showed that the percentage of A, B, and C roads that were in a poor condition.

• 2.3% A class roads are in a poor condition, which is an improvement on 2020.21 of 0.4%.

• 6.0% B class roads are in a poor condition, which is an improvement on 2020.21 of 1.2%.

• 3.10% C class roads are in a poor condition, which is an improvement on 2020.21 of 0.2%.

Resurfacing & Footway reconstruction

Highways sub-contracted traditional resurfacing works to be carried out, which involved scarifying the existing surface and replacing with a new layer of asphalt. Tarmac is procured through an all-Wales tender with labour and plant being procured through an annual quote.

• 3.3 km of resurfacing works completed at a value of £440,596 in 2021.22.

• Micro-asphalt is surface preservation method used as a cost-effective alternative to a traditional inlay. Micro- asphalt can improve the profile of roads, ride quality and texture.

• 1.7 km of surface preservation works completed at a value of £119,000 in 2021.22.

• Footway reconstruction is carried out by the Highways Department’s in-house team, this work includes the renewal of xxxxx, tarmac, and paving footways.

• 4.1km of footways at a value of £335,374were renewed in 2021.22.

Streetworks – New Roads & Street Works Act, 1991 (N.R.S.W.A)

The New Roads & Street Works Act, 1991, clearly defines the responsibilities of the Council to co-ordinate and control all road openings within the County Borough. Public utilities are legal undertakers by whom a statutory right to execute street works is exercised.

• 477 sample inspections completed on utilities. This is an agreed inspection fee, which generated £17,755 income.

• 357 reinstatements of utility companies sampled through the coring program, of which 70.2% failed which generated

£31,873 income.

• 52 Fixed Penalties Notices (FPN) issued i.e., late notification of works to the utility companies generating £5,200 income

• 6 S74 overrun charges to the utility companies generating £3,750

• 825 skip permits issued generating £29,835.00

• 144 Scaffolding permits issued generating £5,490.00

Highways Drainage

A program of works was put together from records collated from routine gully machine cleansing, Highways Inspectors, or complaints to unblock gullies and upgrade drainage lines. These works will then be carried out from Capital or WG funding.

• XX xxxxx of £1.6 million MTCBC Highways managed to complete the upgrade of 24 highway drainage schemes within the County Borough for 2021.22

Storm Xxxxxx xxxxx and behalf of Engineering, Highways managed to complete the upgrade of 16 drainage schemes within the County Borough for 2021.22

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

The planning system is a statutory process and must be carried out in accordance with the principles of sustainable development as defined in the Well-being of Future Generations Act. Consideration of all the ‘Five Ways of Working’, established by the Well- being of Future Generations Act, is an intrinsic part of the planning process. Therefore, planning has a pivotal role in delivering the Councils Shared Vision, the Public Service Board Wellbeing Plan and the political priorities of Merthyr Tydfil. The Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council Replacement Local Development Plan (LDP) 2016 – 2031 was adopted in January 2020 and forms the statutory land use plan for the County Borough, excluding the area that lies within Brecon Beacons National Park. The Replacement LDP was one the first to be adopted in Wales and is currently the only replacement plan in place in South East Wales. The five ways of working, alongside both national and local wellbeing goals are embedded within the strategy of the LDP.

Nevertheless, in 2022/23 (first 3 quarters) 100% of applications were determined in 8 weeks. In this period, the average time taken to determine applications was 54 days. This efficiency in determining applications helps all sections of the community to either realise their personal aspirations or take advantage of the benefits arising from other types of development. The quicker applications are determined the faster developments can be constructed. The process of determining applications, which includes making decisions in accordance with the Merthyr Tydfil Local Development Plan; taking into consideration other legislation (e.g. the Environment Act); comments from the general public and responses from other external bodies and customers is therefore fundamental in achieving the Councils Shared Vision.

Effective communication between Officers, Members and other internal departments continues to be essential to fulfilling this overarching vision. Specific areas of planning (e.g. Major residential/other developments, Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMO), care homes and house conversions to flats) continue to raise concerns for Councillors. It has therefore been necessary to provide guidance to all Members on such ‘hot topics’. Such advice/guidance will continue as it has had benefits from two different perspectives: improving Councillors knowledge on these topics so they can make better informed decisions in future, and enabling officers to understand what the political priorities are in relation to these issues.

New procedures and processes continue to be amended/introduced to ensure the continued smooth and consistent operation of service delivery.

Building Control

Page 8 of 81

The section comprises of 2 Building Control Officers; 1 Technical admin officer and a Group Leader (who also has a case workload). The department also includes a Building Control apprentice who has a 2-year contract that runs until September 2023.

As a section we contribute to the Public Service Board (PSB) Wellbeing Plan (Community Resilience and Wellbeing) and the Focus on the Future Plan (Working Life and Living Well theme) as we ensure the safety and protection of the community by ensuring that new and altered buildings comply with current Building Regulations and existing buildings do not become structurally dangerous. In addition to this, we contribute to the Environmental Wellbeing objective (promoting and supporting the use of renewable and low carbon energy) as the department through Part L of the building Regulations (conservation of fuel and power) promotes and ensures compliance of renewable and lowering carbon based energy. The department also contributes to the Living Well Wellbeing objective (Services that provide people with the ability to live in their own home) through the implementation of Part M of the Building Regulations (Assess to and the use of buildings) this ensures all new dwellings have provisions helping towards lifetime homes.

The section also contributes towards the Wellbeing Goals, in particular a prosperous Wales, through ensuring that buildings that are built and altered, meet requirements for carbon reduction and help act on climate change. The goal of a Wales of cohesive communities is also worked towards through ensuring buildings and structures within the community are safe to live in, visit work and use.

We are also developing our approach to the Sustainable Development Principles (the 5 ways of working) as the department provide specialist support to internal departments, particularly Planning, Property, Regeneration and Estates (Involvement, Collaboration and integration). We also have close working and shared resources links with other Welsh Local Authority Building Control departments, sharing specialisms such as fire engineering and participate in a partnership scheme with all other Local Authorities in England and Wales.

During 2022/23 to date the Building Control Department has received:

• 385 Building Regulation applications. An increase of 11%

• 34 contraventions were registered that required further action and applications. Down 19%

• 76 dangerous structures were reported investigated and enforcement action taken. Down 8%

STREET SCENE encompassing Street Cleansing, Bereavement Services, Grounds Maintenance, Parks & Countryside elements

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

Overview

• The quality of the local environment is important to the community. Local environmental quality has several dimensions. These include:

- how places look and are perceived;

- how safe and happy people feel about living in an area; and

- how attractive areas are to workers, visitors and existing and new business investors.

• A depleted natural environment blighted by fly tipping and litter impacts not only on our long-term health and well-being, but also on our ability to grow our economy. It can affect both the tourism and inward investment potential of an area, as well as the value of its homes.

• The percentage of highways inspected of a high or acceptable standard of cleanliness is a Public Accountability Measure (XXX) that measures the ‘High or acceptable standard of cleanliness’ is defined as achieving Grades A, B+ or B of the Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse (2007), namely:

- Grade A - No litter or refuse

- Grade B+ - No more than 3 small pieces of litter

- Grade B - Predominately free of litter and refuse apart from some small items.

Current status:

• The percentage of highways inspected of a high or acceptable standard of cleanliness is 94%. This is below the Welsh average of 96%.

• Street Cleansing has been heavily affected by government cuts. Whilst 5 years ago all streets throughout wards were litter picked weekly it is now the case of once every 10-14 days and potentially longer if graffiti, needle complaints or dog fouling clearance is prioritised. (Long-term - to consider introduction of apprenticeship schemes).

• Weekend hot spot areas have increased in such a way it is not always possible to attend all hot spots within local time restraints and some areas are having to be dealt with first thing Monday morning.

• In 2021/2022 the local authority received 1001 street cleansing related inquires. (To date this year its 1348) (Long term - not sustainable, continuous improvement will not be achieved with reduced resources).

• Due to Councillor and public demand approx. 40 extra litter and dog fouling bins have been installed throughout the county borough and this is proving resource intensive to empty as and when required. (long-term - not sustainable to continue adding bins without the required resources).

• There are 60 community and volunteer groups within the county borough (collaboration & Integration) and in collaboration with Keep Wales Tidy, street cleansing assist with collections of litter which is also recycled at source (prevention) as all cans, cardboard, glass and plastics collected are recycled.

• Street cleansing currently has 2 SLAs working in collaboration with the Leisure Trust and Multi storey car park to sweep and litter pick in their respective areas thereby ensuring the environment is kept safe, clean and free from needle sticks (PSB wellbeing plan).

• Collect needle sticks, dead animals and remove graffiti in collaboration with Community Safety, the Police and Xxxxx.

• Staff also carry two sets of bags when litter picking to ensure we recycle as much as possible, 1 clear bag non-recyclable and 1 green bag recyclable (long term, sustainability).

• Environmental cleansing & Bereavement Services manager also attends Caru Cymru forums, Community safety meetings along with ASD meetings and weekly managerial neighbourhood service meetings (Integration).

• Legislation in street cleansing is largely controlled using the Environmental protection act 1990.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

Neighbourhood frontline services provide the ‘visible’ services which our communities interact with on a daily basis. Whilst the last ten years have been difficult due to efficiency savings, we have managed to keep service provision at reasonably good levels. It is not often realised that the whole of the council’s front-line services only cost around 8% of the overall budget.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that members of the public do not realise this and are often surprised when told.

Our parks facilities and open spaces are all accessible regardless of the user’s ability to pay. This contributes in in a small way

to the council’s tackling poverty agenda.

Despite the Covid pandemic parks and cemeteries remained open providing our communities places where they could enjoy exercise when many other alternatives were not open to them. Public appreciation of our parks and open spaces grew during the pandemic with many more people using them.

Now that pandemic restrictions are over many more meetings are now undertaken in person rather than relying on computer- based communication. Most of frontline staff (including office-based staff) continued to come to their place of work rather than work from home.

Our biodiversity section has continued to work well with community groups on tree planting, bulb planting, and woodland management which has improved some of our open spaces whilst encouraging people to get involved in their surrounding environment.

Our main parks, Cyfarthfa, Taff Bargoed and Thomastown have retained their Green Flag status which demonstrates they are well managed and welcoming to their users.

Our assistance with community led events such as Christmas trees erected in Thomastown park, the town centre and Cefn Coed which provided focus for events around the Christmas period.

The Provision of an externally funded open space at the site adjacent to Xxxxxx Xxxxxxx hospital has created an area for the public to walk and enjoy the environment from an area that was rarely used and neglected.

Community benefits include: -

1. Physical health: Parks and open spaces offer opportunities for physical exercise and outdoor activities such as walking, jogging, cycling, and sports. Regular physical activity can reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.

2. Mental health: Parks and open spaces provide a space for relaxation, stress relief, and social interaction. Spending time in nature has been shown to improve mood, reduce stress, and boost cognitive function.

3. Environmental benefits: Parks and open spaces help to improve air quality, reduce urban heat island effects, and mitigate the impacts of climate change. They also provide habitat for wildlife, which can help to promote biodiversity.

4. Community building: Parks and open spaces are places where people can come together to socialize, engage in

activities, and build a sense of community. They also provide opportunities for cultural events and celebrations.

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5. Economic benefits: Parks and open spaces can contribute to local economies by attracting tourists, increasing property values, and providing opportunities for outdoor recreation businesses.

Overall, parks and open spaces play an important role in creating healthy, vibrant, and sustainable communities.

WASTE SERVICES

Introduction.

• Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council`s Waste services functions are governed by UK and Welsh Government legislation along with the Welsh Government strategy (Towards Zero Waste). Functions provided by the Waste services department are:

o Residual waste Collections and Treatment (Domestic and trade).

o Recycling Collections and Treatment (Domestic and trade).

o Food waste collections (Domestic and trade).

o Garden waste Collections (Domestic and trade).

o Bulky waste Collections (Domestic and trade).

o Clinical waste Collections.

o Household Waste & Recycling Centres.

o Waste transfer Station.

o Behaviour Change (Enforcement and Education)

o Waste Data recording and reporting.

o Re-use shop Key legislation:

o Environmental Protection Act 1990

o Environment (Wales) Act 2016.

o Controlled Waste Regulations (England and Wales) 2010

o Waste (Wales) measures 2010

o Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) 2010

o Health and safety at work act 1974

• Key drivers for the Waste services department are:

Welsh Government`s recovery rates for the Recycling, composting and preparation for re-use that are set out in the Waste (Wales) measures 2010. In 2019/20 the target increased from 58% to 64%. We achieved this with a recovery rate of 65%. In 2024/25 the target increases to 70% and aims to achieve zero waste by 2050. Since 2016/17 we have continued to achieve the annual targets. Our recovery rate for 21/22 was 66.82% and for the first three quarters of 2022/23 our rate is 65.03%.

• Waste Services has 2 Performance Indicators of:

o The amount of waste recycled, composted or prepared for re-use.

o The amount of residual waste (kg) generated per person per year.

• In 2015 Merthyr Tydfil CBC adopted the Welsh Government`s collections blueprint and Collaborative Change Programme.

Residual Collections and Treatment (Domestic and trade).

• Since April 2016, we have been in contract, as part of a hub of authorities (Xxxxxxx Xxxxx Xxx, Blaenau Gwent and Xxxxxxx) led by Xxxxxxx Xxxxx Taf with Viridor Waste Management LTD to dispose of our residual waste through Energy from Waste (EFW). This is a 25 year contract that expires in March 2041.

• MTCBC has landfilled less than 7% of its waste each year since the commencement of the EFW contract, achieving its landfill allowance Performance Indicator considerably.

• In 2018/19 Welsh authorities were given a new PI of kg/person/year. Each authority was required to set their own PI ensuring that there was a reduction in residual waste generated per person each year. We set our PI to correspond to the annual tonnages projected in the EFW contract. These tonnages decrease each year until 2021 where they plateaued.

• Residents are provided with 140 litre wheeled bins which is collected fortnightly. This is collected by 3 RCV, s and a bespoke Farms vehicle. There is an admin and delivery charge for all new and replacement bins.

• Assisted collections are provided to householders who are unable to take their refuse to the kerbside for recycling.

• Exceptions to the above would be householders who produce excess non-recyclable waste (AHPs or Pet waste). These residents can be provided with a 240 litre bin based on a successful application process. A bi-annual audit is carried out on

all additional capacity bins to evaluate whether they are still needed by the residents.

• Trade refuse is collected by one RCV on an individual business contractual schedule. Businesses are provided with various size wheeled bins depending on cost and service needs.

• The residual from HWRCs, Street cleansing and Parks also forms part of the Viridor contract.

• In April 2019 Merthyr County Borough Council introduced a charge for new/replacement bins to cover admin and delivery costs.

Recycling Collections and Treatment (Domestic and trade).

• We currently have contracts for six kerbside collected materials such as: (Glass, Paper, Cardboard, Steel, Aluminium and HDPE and PET plastic containers). These are collected weekly by eight bespoke Romaquip & Turberg kerbside vehicles (driver +2). The materials are brought back to our Transfer Station (unit 20) where they are treated, bulked and then baled ready collection by our contracted re – processors.

• Householders are provided with 90 litre blue reusable bags (cans and plastics), 55 litre black recycling box for (Card and Glass and an additional box for Paper). Through Welsh Government funding certain areas of the borough have been provided with trolley boxes for their recycling. Through Welsh Government funding flats and residential premises have been provided with bespoke recycling frames for residential complexes. WG`s CEF funding for additional recycling boxes in 2020 has provided containers for the separate collection of glass and card.

• A bespoke vehicle Farms vehicle has been purchased by Welsh Government funding which now collects kerbside recycling from farms and outlining properties.

• Trade recycling is collected by one RCV/pod vehicle on an individual business contractual schedule. Businesses are provided with various size containers depending on cost and service needs. The material streams collected are as the same as the domestic kerbside recycling.

• Small Electrical Items and Textiles are collected on the kerbside also by the farms vehicle and the eight romaquips weekly.

• Assisted collections are provided to householders who are unable to take their recycling to the kerbside for collection. This is provided based on a successful application process.

Food waste collections (Domestic and trade).

• Since June 2015, we have been in contract, as part of a hub of authorities (Xxxxxxx Xxxxx Xxx and Newport) lead by Xxxxxxx Xxxxx Taf with Biogen LTD to treat our food waste through anaerobic digestion to produce electricity, gas and soil improver. This is a 15-year contract that expires in March 2031.

• Food waste is collected weekly via our eight Romaquip kerbside vehicles.

• Householders are provided with 5 litre and 23 litre blue food caddies to put out for their kerbside collections weekly. All residents are also provided with food bags.

• Trade food is collected by one RCV/pod vehicle on an individual business contractual schedule. Businesses are provided with various size containers depending on cost and service needs.

Garden waste Collections (Domestic and trade).

• Since April 2015, we have been in contract with Bryn composting for all our garden waste. A new three-year contract was entered into with Bryn Recycling in 2021 for 3 years. Garden waste is collected seasonally from the months of April 01st – November 30th.

• Trade garden waste is collected by our hiab vehicle on an individual business contractual schedule.

Bulky waste Collections (Domestic and trade).

• Bulky household waste item are collected on a chargeable request basis from households within the County Borough. The charge is based on the collection of up to 3 items.

• Items that are deemed to be recyclable are taken to the Re-use shop (New Lease of Life) for re-sale. Items that are not deemed re-useable are taken to the Household Waste & Recycling Centres.

Clinical waste Collections.

• Clinical waste (sharps and dialysis) is collected by MTCBC from local residents who require the service, on behalf of the Cwmtaff Health Board.

Household Waste & Recycling Centres.

• Following the natural termination of the private organisation that managed MTCBCs household waste and recycling centres (HWRCs) Merthyr Council have been managing their own HWRCs since 01st September 2018.

• We have now built two sorting stations at Dowlais and one at Aberfan to carry out a black bag checking operation on both

sites to ensure we maximise our recycling. Resident’s bags are checked before they are allowed to deposit them in the

residual bin.

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• The bespoke Environmental Permits is for Aberfan and Dowlais sites now in MTCBC’s control.

• We allow 3rd party organisations such as Merthyr Valleys Homes to use the HWRCs to deposit recyclable material such as TVs/monitors, cold units, fluorescent tubes, LDA and SDA.

• We run a paint reuse scheme on site whereas Members of the public can collect paint free of charge.

• The HWRCs are also used for internal services such as cleansing, Parks and Fly tipping to dispose of their waste through our current contractual arrangements.

• We operate a van permit scheme on site where non-trade waste brought onto site in vans etc. have to have a permit.

• We are currently collecting Re-usable items on both sites for the re-sale in the New Lease of Life Reuse shop.

Waste transfer Station.

• Since June 2015 when the recycling service changed from a co-mingled collection to a source separated recycling service MTCBC have managed and operated our own permitted waste transfer station at Units 3 & 4 on the Merthyr Ind Est in Pentrebach. In March 2019 a new permitted site at Unit 20 Merthyr Ind Est was developed and operated to treat recycling collected at the kerbside. The site provides additional space to manage the recycling in a more efficient manner.

• Treatment of recyclable materials at the site include the sorting of cans from plastic containers and the additional separation of aluminium from steel cans.

• As the site treats more than 1,000 tonnes of packaging per annum plastics containers and cans are sampled, to determine quality, at regular intervals as required by the MRF regulations 2014. Quarterly reports are sent to the NRW.

Behaviour Change (Enforcement and Education) Enforcement

• In October 2022 we seconded our Recycling Projects Officer into the Behavioural Change position for a trial period of 6 months. There will be a review of the position after that period.

• The BC Officer will be responsible for engaging with schools, the Voluntary sector and householders to change the behaviours of residents of the County Borough who are not dealing with their waste in a sustainable manner using a variety of interventions.

• Ongoing enforcement of the Council`s No side waste policy has continued over the year.

• 3 Waste & Recycling Wardens monitor the 3 refuse collection rounds daily to identify households that place side waste or top-hatted bins out for collection. Where a household is identified the Wardens follow the enforcement policy process.

• 2 Waste & recycling officers monitor bins for recyclable items (KUWTJs)

Education

• The Waste & Recycling Wardens carry out audits of refuse bins when a resident applies for an additional capacity bin.

• Educational visits are provided by waste officers and Wardens, on request and if the resource is available, to local schools, voluntary and community groups.

• Events are attended by officers and Wardens to promote our waste/recycling services along with the national sustainable waste management messages.

• Competitions are held within schools and council buildings to improve the quantities of materials collected for recycling as well as raising awareness to those engaged. These include WEEE, card and batteries.

• Promotional giveaways are provided to schools and community groups on request and if available.

• Press releases to promote service change and disruption are utilised.

• Promotional messages are placed on the refuse and recycling vehicles.

• Social media posts/tweets have become the favoured method of promoting the sustainable waste management messages.

• The council website is continually updated with information related to specific projects or service changes and improvements.

• Relevant and current waste services articles are included in the quarterly council Contact magazine.

• Letter drops and door knocks are carried out as required to promote or enforce in relevant areas of the County Borough.

Waste Data recording and reporting.

• All material contracts that are in place have special terms and conditions in them which enforce our re processors to hand over all waste/recycling data in a strict time frame to allow us to process.

• All Waste data is collected for all the kerbside, trade and refuse and recycling/reuse and entered into the main waste spreadsheet for recording. HWRC site manager collates all HWRC data and enters into a daily and monthly spreadsheet. This is then sent through to the technical assistant to be entered into main spreadsheet on a monthly basis.

• All waste data is entered onto Waste Data Flow on a quarterly basis for reporting to Welsh government.

• Site Manager records HWRC data and reports this also through the HWRCs quarterly returns.

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Re-use shop

• In September 2020 MTCBC entered into a partnership arrangement with Waste Savers Charitable trust to provide a re-use shop where residents of the County Borough could donate and purchase affordable re-useable furniture and household items.

• The Re-use shop opened in April 2021 (post Covid restrictions) with the official opening, by the Mayor Xxxx Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxx, taking place in May 2021.

• The shop is continually stocked with donations from the public, items from the HWRCs and from the authority’s bulky item

collection service.

• The shop is well used by Merthyr`s residents and has a steady footfall throughout each day.

• A delivery service for larger items such as sofas and cabinets commenced in September 2022 for local residents.

• In August, the Re-use shop became a collection and distribution hub for school uniforms. The pre-loved uniforms were available for residents to collect free of charge during the Summer holidays. Going forward, free school uniforms will be available to collect from the shop during every school holiday.

• The table below illustrates the continual increase in the sale of re-useable items for the first three quarters of 2022/23.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Highways have several processes and procedures that reflect good practice that improve Service outcomes, including the following:

• Take part in a number of focused workshop sessions to support the review and refocus of the corporate Wellbeing Plan, enabling reflection on progress made and lessons learned.

• The Service has a well-established Highways Network Plan that provide clear guidelines that demonstrates accountability for why and how the Council carries out its highways maintenance provision and helps to defend third party claims.

• The effective implementation of the Winter Maintenance Plan that details explicit processes for dealing with adverse weather conditions.

• The use of the YOTTA/Mayrise Database system that enables the effective management of technical administrative processes, as it generates highways inspection timetables monthly inspections, outstanding and completed works orders for highways and street lighting. The system also stores complaints and accepts opening and closing permits from utilities to enable compliance and monitoring.

• The use of LED lanterns in street lighting is reducing lighting failures, more cost-effective for the Council and better on the environment. This links in with one of Xxxxxxx’x 4 objectives – a strong sustainable, diverse environment.

• The implementation of eco-friendly materials and methods, including:

- The use of Finagrip and Micro surface dressing on A, B or C category carriageways, which not only improves the skid resistance, surface preservation and seals the existing carriageway from water ingress but also uses a low carbon material bitumen.

- The use of traditional resurfacing 40mm Inlay that involves scarifying the existing surface and replacing with a new layer of asphalt or low carbon asphalt dependant on carriageway –the benefit of this safe infrastructure and encouraging healthy lifestyles. This links in with one of Xxxxxxx’x 4 objectives – a strong sustainable, diverse environment.

• Gully waste is dispensed at the Caerphilly County Borough Council’s xxxx bed filtration facility which filters the waste to produce recycled clean water that is used again in the gully. The remaining solid waste is also recycled. This links in with one of Xxxxxxx’x 4 objectives – a strong sustainable, diverse environment.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• The determination of major applications within statutory timescales and to the satisfaction of the applicant/agent.

Apr-22	May-22	Jun-22	Qtr 1	Jul-22	Aug-22	Sep-22	Qtr 2
5.67	8.3	7.1	21.07	7.79	10.18	8.57	26.54
Oct-22	Nov-22	Dec-22	Qtr 3	Jan-23	Feb-23	Mar-23	Qtr 4	Total
9.42	9.1	9.48	28				0	75.61

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• Agile working practices, including minimal printing of plans/documents/applications continue to save time and money.

• Having an up-to-date adopted LDP in place.

Building Control

• The department aims to, and in 91% of cases during 2022/23, determine all applications within the statutory period of 8 weeks, and dangerous structures within 48hrs. Same day inspection if possible and all dangerous structures within 48 hrs.

• Applicants/agents can pay for applications online.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• The service is now recycling at source which is positively benefiting the Authorities recycling targets and therefore providing recycling income. Evidence can be obtained via waste services. (Integration).

• Collecting recycled waste from community groups and volunteers. Cans, glass, cardboard, plastic & glass. (Focus on the future, Collaboration)

• Partnership working with Keep Wales Tidy carrying out various community environmental projects, i.e. Goitre Lane working

with 3G’s etc. regular LEQ projects with councillors. (Involvement)

• Assist rights of way department with cleansing of Taff & Trevethick Trails. (integration).

• Assist councillors with community litter picks/clean-up projects. (LEQ projects).

• Before and after pictures of clean-ups are shared on social media. Good feedback from social media.

• Council policy is to remove any needle sticks within 24 hours, dead animals and dog fouling within 72 hours and all litter complaints within 5 working days.

• Working collaboratively with Waste services, waste amnesty days.

• Green flag management plan in place for Aberfan cemetery, awarded 2023.

• Working closely with probation in cemeteries.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• We actively pursue grant funding for our biodiversity enhancements.

• We carry out regular inspections of our facilities to ensure our parks and open spaces remain safe for our communities.

• Our playground refurbishment programme has started and will continue for the next few years. This will upgrade our aging playground stock and will benefit our communities.

• Training has been given to staff and councillors to raise awareness of why grass cutting priorities have changed.

• Green flag management plans in place for Cyfarthfa, Taff Bargoed and Thomastown parks. These are independently judged against the following criteria: - Welcoming place, Healthy safe and secure, Well maintained and clean, Environmental management, Biodiversity, landscape and heritage, Community involvement. Marketing and communication,

Management. (Some of the criteria match up with the Welsh Governments Well Being Goals and the council’s focus on the

future. (Collaboration, involvement, Long-term)

• Supported external groups such as the Georgetown Boys and Girls Club seeking asset transfer of the Mountain Hare pitches and changing room, Red Lion FC to improve council changing facilities. (Involvement, Collaboration)

• Park Taff Bargoed Warden organises and takes groups of children on biodiversity walks/talks. E.g. Clearing the education pond at Taff Bargoed Park (Involvement, Collaboration)

• Work alongside highways on the winter maintenance plan. New equipment purchased to ensure we can offer a safe and efficient service and assist our highways department to keep the roads open in the event of a heavy snow fall.

• Volunteer collaboration such as the ‘Merthyr Common’ and the ‘British tip’ clean up

WASTE SERVICES

• Robust contracts are in place to maximise recycling, composting and preparation for reuse.

• Achieving high levels of recycling, composting and preparation for reuse in line with Welsh Government recycling targets.

• Educational visits are carried out throughout schools and community groups to promote sustainable waste management.

• Provide a weekly recycling service for the residents of Merthyr Tydfil.

• Provide a fortnightly refuse collection for the residents of Merthyr Tydfil ensuring that we maximise recycling.

• Provide a seasonal free of charge fortnightly garden waste collection for the residents of Merthyr Tydfil.

• Provision of Two bespoke Household waste and Recycling Centres which allow residents of the county borough to recycle all of their bulky waste.

• Provision of a Re use shop at our unit 20 Depot in Pentrebach where residents can donate or purchase re-usable items at affordable prices.

• Information and advice is available to residents on sustainable waste management through various channels such as Events, Door knocking campaigns, Website, Social media and enforcement.

• Provide a kerbside bulky collection service to the residents of Merthyr Tydfil at a reasonable charge.

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• Provision of a free clinical waste collection.

• Allowing the private sector partners such as Merthyr Valleys Homes and the voluntary sector to dispose of their bulky recycling through the HWRCs. Also allow volunteer groups to dispose of their separated litter picked materials at the HWRCs.

• Additional capacity bins are provided to residents of the county borough who need them based on a successful application.

• Assisted collections are provided to residents of the County Borough who require them based on a successful application.

• In multiple regional contracts for some materials bringing best value for money utilising economies of scale.

• Providing extra material streams at the HWRCs (plastic film and toner cartridges) to maximise our recycling efforts.

• Having our own Waste transfer station allows us to treat material and sustain the best possible market price for our recycling. It also allows us to store high volumes of tonnages so in instances of haulage failure it does not impact on the residents of Merthyr County Borough residents. We have also been recognised nationally by receiving an award for our baled aluminium cans.

• We offer a free food bag service which can be delivered or collected from multiple Authority buildings throughout the county borough.

• Free replacement recycling boxes/containers delivered if or when needed.

• Input current and new projects into the EW Recovery plan to focus progression towards successful implementation.

• Recent successes in obtaining WG funding through the Circular Economy Fund to implement sustainable waste management and carbon reduction schemes.

• Implementation of a performance managers group to maximise recycling from Council departments.

• Partnership working with BGCBC on the KUWTJs project.

• Partnership working with Newport Waste Savers to operate a Re-use shop.

• In December 2022 local traders have been allowed to take certain recyclable materials to the HWRCs free of charge.

• Free battery bags are made available to the public and collected on the kerbside vehicles.

• The department provides services to its residents of a standard suitable for them to sustainably deal with their waste, meeting the EW1 wellbeing goal.

NEW FOR 2022/2023 – Change to Recording of Evidence

In provious years; officers have been asked to provide a list of the evidence to support their completed self-evaluation after every sub-question. However, feedback has shown this element was time consuming and required a lot of repetition.

Learning from this; we have now included an evidence table that will be completed when all three key questions have been completed; reducing the need to duplicate effort and better co-ordinating the evidence centrally. You will find the evidence table at the end of Section 3 of this question booklet.

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AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• Highways need to share information around the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act and the 5 ways of working with all levels of staff working within the Section, and third parties, to improve their understanding and better meet Corporate and Council objectives.

• Continue to undertake succession planning of staff within Highways, to ensure continuity and efficiency of service.

• Review and replace unsuitable highways vehicles to ensure that they are fit for the Highways service to remain efficient.

• Secure an increase in highways revenue budget that would help to reduce the outstanding work-orders as they would be completed within the working day at a lower priority and still comply with section 41 of Highways Act 1980 which helps defend any potential third-party claims.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Refine virtual/hybrid planning committees and associated processes.

• Continue to raise awareness of the LDP with both internal and external stakeholders.

Building Control

• Ensure apprentice BCO is appropriately trained and monitored.

• Continue to develop electronic delivery, and in particular, on-site electronic capability.

• Staff training - Fire Safety and competency requirements.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Set up an internal working group to develop a co-ordinated approach to tackle issues of fly tipping and litter.

• Employ a street cleansing/business co-ordinator role via SPF in town centre, communicate with businesses regarding their waste, offering advice and enforcing EPA 1990.

• Employ deep cleansing teams via SPF grant funding to ensure project work is carried out as required throughout County Borough and town centre.

• Develop needle stick app in collaboration with Community Safety.

• Look at improvements to the report it page which will allow more information to be provided. Also look at standard reporting procedures to ensure officers are not contacted direct ensuring accuracy of data recordings.

• Review road sweeping routes to become more efficient and react to the needs of the public.

• Engage more frequently with Keep Wales Tidy and community groups.

• Working collaboratively with Waste Wardens to enhance ‘behavioural change within schools and the general public.

• Earlier intervention with Regen/planning to ensure maintenance costs & resources are appropriate for future requirements.

• Recycling bin waste.

• Succession planning.

• Memorial testing, GPS plan integrated into Caudex system.

• Continue to assess land situation in cemeteries.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• More community engagement

• Better communications via all media on what we do best.

• Improve internal operational communications to enable complaints to be dealt with more quickly.

WASTE SERVICES

• Retrieving more recycling from the wheeled bin

• Increase participation, set out and capture rate for kerbside dry and food recycling.

• 3 weekly refuse collections

• Collect plastic film off the kerbside

• Reduce trade residual customer base

• Increase internal recycling

• Increase recycling rates at HWRCs to 90%

• Extend garden waste collections to all year around

• Expand roll out of more suitable recycling containers such as recycling frames in flats and complexes owned by RSLs

• Decrease the impact of the EFW outage

• Improve communication to residents of the County Borough

• Reduce the amount of missed collection complaints

• Divert re-usable bulky items from residual to re-use

• Increase trade recycling customer base

• Implement trade marketing strategy

• Accept certain types of trade recycling at the HWRCs with a charging system in place

• Change litter bins to recycle on the Go bins across the County Borough

• Provide in-cab technology in collection vehicles

• Barriers to achieving the recovery target

o Natural Resources Wales (Waste data Flow`s regulatory body) have put stricter reporting systems in place to ensure that only materials or components of items that have robust reporting mechanisms in place to enable counting towards our recovery rate. This impacts on the amount of valid recycling that can be counted into WDF. Materials impacted by this are wood, carpets and mattresses primarily.

o To address this issue we went to tender for the HWRC materials in October 2022 with one of the primary objectives being higher recovery rates for these difficult to recycle materials.

o One of the main recovery markets for carpets has been equestrian tracks where we received a recovery rate of 100% from. This practice has now been deemed as not to be re-use and so new markets have to be sought. Our new HWRC contractor has identified a valid outlet but the recovery rate is only 50%.

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

These are the priority areas that need immediate improvement in order to have an impact on outcomes. Consider the judgements- this should be about moving from unsatisfactory to adequate, or from adequate to good.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

HIGHWAYS

• To effectively communicate relevant information around the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act and the Council’s 5 ways

of working with staff across Highways, and with key stakeholders.

• Continue to focus on workforce succession planning for the Highways operation team and help reduce sickness and a potential loss of skills and local knowledge which could impact on reaction times during weather events such as flooding.

• Upgrade of Mayrise to ALLOY (Service Management System) – this provides performance information such as Highways customer care, Highways Inspection, Works orders

No legislation has changed since the 1980’s Highways Act

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Continued Councillor training and regular Committee Member training on specific planning topics.

Building Control

• Train officers in management systems and responsibilities to allow for succession planning and a more sustainable future.

• Officers need additional training to ensure the correct competency level is achieved and maintained.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Street cleansing has an ageing workforce, introduce apprenticeships within this area would benefit long term sustainability. Apprentices to be taken on moving forward but will integrate into Neighbourhood services.

• Collaborative working with waste wardens to improve recycling rates and educate the next generation through behavioural change ie. prevention/enforcement.

• Work collaboratively with Keep Wales Tidy to involve community groups and introduce community champions.

• Work collaboratively with probation in cemeteries.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• More Community involvement, especially following recruitment of SPF funded roles

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• Better information on our website

• Improvements to our priority open spaces as highlighted in the council’s open spaces strategy.

WASTE SERVICES

• Reduce Trade residual customer base – In order to lower our residual and increase our recycling percentages we are looking at outsourcing school residuals to a private contractor. This potentially will lower our residual and increase our recycling/recovery percentages overall as an Authority.

• Increase HWRC recycling rates – In order to improve our Recycling rates on the HWRCs we have introduced black bag sorting on site as well as checking ID of site users to ensure that they are from the County Borough. However, there is still scope to improve in this area to achieve 90% recycling at our HWRCs. From December 2022 local traders have been allowed to deposit certain recyclable materials at the HWRC in Dowlais.

• Improving communications – we are looking into other and more sustainable ways to communicate information to residents of the county borough quickly and more efficiently. Working with the Corporate Communications department this area continues to improve, particularly with the speed information can be communicated through social media. Continuous improvement is still required.

• Keeping up with the Joneses campaign - In order to extract as much recyclable material from the wheeled bins the Council have adopted WRAP`s Keeping up with the Joneses campaign which has already been implemented by some North Wales authorities. Contact numbers have been increased from 300 to 500 daily.

• A Behavioural Change Officer has been in post since October 2022. – The Officer will develop and implement engagement methods to schools and voluntary groups to increase materials for recovery and reduce waste to EfW. As quantifying the effectiveness of the campaign is difficult to do in terms of tonnage increases the quantity of engagements should provide a subjective idea of impacts.

• Food waste recycling - Public participation remains low for the kerbside recycling services, especially food waste. In March 2022 the waste & recycling wardens embarked on a door knocking campaign to identify households not participating and to engage with those residents to encourage them to take part.

QUESTION 1: OUTCOMES

Question 1.2: Is there evidence of continuous improvement or excellence in customer results?

JUDGEMENT

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• Trends over time;

• Different community groups;

• Outcomes for individuals and families;

• Contextual information

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

MTCBC Highways is committed to providing continuous improvement and this is evidenced through our Mayrise/YOTTA system which provides reports on our performance from highways customer care, works order for Street lighting and Highways. This enables us to generate reports that provide evidence of the section delivering our statutory obligations of the Council in respect of Highways maintenance.

Being responsive to the needs of our customers, providing effective management of the highway network asset, supporting highway network management strategy and integrated transport objectives, and supporting and adding value where possible to wider Council policy objectives.

• In 2021.22, 86% of the 2,193 highways customer care complaints/request were completed on time (5 working days), an improvement of 4% compared to 2020.21.

• 2,603 highways inspections were undertaken in 2021.22, an increase 29 inspections compared to 2020.21, as explained above.

• Overall, 2,621 Highways works-orders were completed on time, compared to 1857 in 2020.21.

• 99.9% of the lighting was on at any time, which remains the same as 2020.21.

• Over the last 4 years there has been an improvement of 1.2% on A roads a 0.9% improvement on B roads and a 0.7% improvement on C roads in poor condition.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

Due to the lack of WG comparison data, it is difficult to provide evidence of continual improvement or excellence in customer results. However, determination rates of planning applications against statutory timescales remain high. A duty planning officer continues to be available even with agile working in place, and previous customer surveys have indicated that this is seen as a characteristic of a good planning service.

An Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) is produced each year in relation to the performance of the LDP and is presented to Scrutiny committee. The latest AMR (October 2022) indicates that the LDP is working well overall, however housing delivery is starting to fall behind the level required. The AMR is a key tool in assessing whether development is being delivered in the right amount and in the right places, and also how effectively policies are being applied by planning officers in relation to individual planning application (eg ensuring that certain criteria are met if an application proposes the loss of a community facility)

Building Control

The department has continued to deliver its service to high standard with statutory timescales being met. The department has

also met its obligations to self-finance on the Building Regulation account. An officer is always available for site inspections and

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to provide advice and guidance. The department has also retained its market share of Building Regulation applications with only 10% of applications lost to the private sector. This level of retention consistently places MTCBC in the top 3 Building Control departments in Wales in terms of retention of work.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• The percentage of highways inspected of a high or acceptable standard of cleanliness is 94%. This is below the Welsh average of 96% and currently ranks Merthyr Tydfil 19th in Wales. We have been as high as 8th, 12th last year, however this year we’ve dropped to 19th. Few issues include we changed personal inspecting and we’ve experienced a lot of recycling on streets due to weather and no lids/shower caps. The KWT inspections is also random and scoring occurred during waste collection days.

• Over the past 5 years community groups, litter hubs and volunteer participation has increased year on year. There were approximately 8 in 2015, this has now increased to 60. This has resulted in more recycling collected and cleaner areas in various wards. Some community groups have achieved green flag status.

• By introducing timescales for removal of drug paraphernalia, dog fouling, dead animals and graffiti streets are safer and cleaner thereby creating a safe infrastructure making Merthyr Tydfil an attractive destination.

• Due to recycling out of litter bins recycling tonnage has increased. Waste has figures to evidence.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• There are currently no national indicators of KPIs in relation to parks work. However, the Green Flag award is an independent body that assesses the parks and awards the accreditation based on their judging criteria. These facilities are judged annually to ensure standards are maintained.

• We have improved our automated response to customer complaints with better outcomes for the public.

• We have developed several applications in house such as the litter bin recording and the memorial testing application. This will change the way in which we manage our cemeteries with potential for making this information open to the public in future. Other local authorities have shown interest in what we have done and have asked for more information on how we have achieved this. This will make record keeping and retrieval much more efficient in the future and the risk of losing hard copy data is greatly reduced.

• Regular meetings with user groups take place to continually gauge satisfaction levels and try to place resources where the public need is greatest. Meetings take place with Merthyr Football league, Friends of Cyfarthfa, Friends of Taff Bargoed, Penygarn community group. Also, regular meetings with portfolio member and monthly councillor updates now take place with a link to photographic evidence. We endeavour to respond to queries or suggestions made in these meetings to improve the service.

• The majority of complaints and requests are dealt with via the council’s Tascomi system. Councillor’s requests sometimes come via email and we endeavour to deal with these promptly although response times are not monitored on these as they are not recorded within the system.

• Social media sites are monitored corporately although direct responses are not always given.

• Staff integration across neighbourhood services has improved and resources are utilised based on need such as when recent storms caused recycling materials to be blown around the streets, parks staff were diverted to help out. This influences how the public perceive our services and residents appreciated the quick response to the problem.

WASTE SERVICES

• Educational visits are carried out throughout schools and community groups to promote sustainable waste management. This encourages future generations to deal with their waste sustainably.

• Provide a seasonal free of charge fortnightly garden waste collection for the residents of Merthyr borough. Numerous other Local Authorities currently charge for this service.

• Free food bags for the residents of the county borough where as some Local authorities charge for this service.

• Provision of Two bespoke Household waste and Recycling Centres

• Provision of a Re use shop at our unit 00 Xxxxx xx Xxxxxxxxxx where residents can donate or purchase re-usable items at a reasonable charge.

• Information and advice is available to residents on sustainable waste management through various channels such as Events, Door knocking campaigns, Website, Social media and enforcement.

• Additional capacity bins are provided to residents of the County Borough who need them based on a successful application. This provides residents who require additional capacity the peace of mind that that they have the correct size container to manage their residual waste.

• Assisted collections are provided to residents of the County Borough who require them based on a successful application. Free replacement recycling boxes/containers delivered if or when needed.

• Additional boxes for card and glass.

• Enforcement of residual side waste and recyclables in the wheeled bin continues.

• The WG recovery target has again been met in 2022/23 for the 7th consecutive year.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Highways have several practices that reflect good practice that focuses on service improvement, including the following:

• Take part in several focused workshop sessions to support the review and refocus of the corporate Wellbeing Plan, enabling reflection on progress made and lessons learned.

• The use of the YOTTA/Mayrise Database system that enables the effective management of technical administrative processes, as it generates highways inspection timetables monthly inspections, outstanding and completed works orders for highways and street lighting. The system also collects, issues and stores complaints and accepts opening and closing permits from utilities to enable compliance and monitoring.

• The use of LED lanterns in street lighting is reducing lighting failures, more cost-effective for the Council and better on the environment.

• Gully waste is dispensed at the Caerphilly County Borough Council’s xxxx bed filtration facility which filters the waste to

produce recycled clean water that is used again in the gully. The remaining solid waste is also recycled.

• Machine footway resurfacing is carried out when renewing tarmac and paving footways, using low carbon tarmac and plastic xxxxx.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

Customer surveys for previous years highlight that the availability to talk to a duty planner before you submit an application; easy access to the case officer; and the ability to amend an application before it is determined are all seen as characteristics of a good planning service by its customers. The practices and processes remain in place within the Development Control team.

Building Control

Officers are always available with same day inspections regularly undertaken. Dangerous structures are inspected within 48hrs or sooner. Self-financing is achieved on the Building Regulation account and 90% of Building Regulation applications are retained.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Internal service area (Parks) carry out bi-monthly cleansing inspections where a score is generated in conjunction with external scoring carried out by Keep Wales Tidy (integration).

• Improved communication with the public through social media posts which includes the introduction of monthly meetings with corporate communications (involvement).

• All litter and bin waste is now recycled.

• Amnesty days working in collaboration with waste services.

• Good feedback provided by Councillors regarding LEQ projects.

• Marked improvement regarding grounds maintenance in Cefn cemetery, due to integrated working with probation team.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Increased integration of neighbourhood services departments

• Regular meetings taking place with user groups and portfolio member.

• The department is represented on the Green Space Wales forum where discussions on best practice and benchmarking take place.

• Maintaining adequate standards with less resources and staff.

• Officers attend relevant seminars on various topics such as Treatment of Japanese Knotweed, Ash Dieback disease, new developments in maintenance machinery etc. This helps keep the service up to date with best practice and changes in legislation.

WASTE SERVICES

• Educational visits are carried out throughout schools and community groups to promote sustainable waste management. This encourages future generations to deal with their waste sustainably.

• Provide a seasonal free of charge fortnightly garden waste collection for the residents of Merthyr borough. Numerous other Local Authorities currently charger for this service.

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• Free food bags for the residents of the County Borough where as some Local authorities charge for this service.

• Provision of Two bespoke Household waste and Recycling Centres which allow residents of the county borough to recycle all of their bulky waste.

• Provision of a Re use shop at our unit 00 Xxxxx xx Xxxxxxxxxx where residents can donate or purchase re-usable items at a very low charge.

• Information and advice is available to residents on sustainable waste management through various channels such as Events, Door knocking campaigns, Website, Social media and enforcement.

• Additional capacity bins are provided to residents of the county borough who need them based on a successful application.

• Assisted collections are provided to residents of the County Borough who require them based on a successful application.

• In multiple regional contracts for some materials bringing best value for money utilising economies of scale.

• Free replacement recycling boxes/containers delivered if or when needed.

• Provision of additional recycling boxes to promote further source separation of materials.

• Between December 2022 and January 2023 traders have been allowed to take certain recyclable items to the Dowlais site free of charge.

• Since October 2022 an arrangement with Merthyr Valley Homes has been in place for them to deposit recyclable materials at the Dowlais HWRC at a charge. Although we cannot quantify weights deposited there are between 3 and 5 vehicle loads deposited each week.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

HIGHWAYS

• To improve how we share information around the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act and the 5 ways of working with officers we regularly work with to links are identified with Corporate and Council objectives.

• Continued succession planning and restructuring of the Highways service as part of service improvement.

• Review and replace unsuitable highways vehicles to ensure continuous improvement, including:

• Look a renewing contract for the best price.

• Review new technologies for the most suitable vehicle.

• Look replacing vehicles with electric if suitable.

• Secure an increase in highways revenue budget would help to reduce the backlog of outstanding works orders this would also help reduce complaints.

• Review Skip & scaffolding permit scheme, more in line with online 21st century working practices.

• Continue to improve internal recycling systems within Highways/Neighbourhood services.

• To test and implement a revised system to prioritise the condition of unclassified roads.

• To ensure a robust system is implemented to record and prioritise the footway condition surveys.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

The use of Teams meetings with agents/applicants is now being utilised more efficiently to aid the speed of determination of applications and quality of decisions. Building on this move towards more agile/digital working practices will be important moving forward.

Building Control

Onsite electronic delivery needs to be explored further. The development of the apprentice is essential for long term succession planning and with the expected legislation changes, training will be essential.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• To ensure a sustainable workforce, apprenticeships should be introduced to the team as street cleansing has an ageing workforce.

• Create a specific educational business officer post (SPF grant funded) that would be responsible for promoting behavioural change and looking at income generation (potential sponsors i.e. Mc Donalds), this could then be used to purchase more bins and signs throughout the county borough, hence raising awareness.

• More ROTG (recycling on the go) bins have been distributed throughout the county borough due to a grant from WG. All future replacement bins will be ROTG bins, ensuring we capture a s much recycling as possible.

• Due to above an extra person has been employed to ensure these bins are emptied constantly and more waste is recycled.

• Probation has integrated with cemetery staff and removed all green waste from xxxxxx improving the aesthetics of Cefn cemetery and increasing recycling rates as all green waste is taken to HWRC sites to be recycled.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Continue staff training programme, update staff training audit to establish if staff can work across departmental boundaries.

• Continue to update staff on new ways of working relating to our biodiversity obligations.

• Using the self-evaluation process target areas for development and filter down to staff via one-to-one meetings and performance management procedures.

• Investigate better ways to integrate with the public via social media.

WASTE SERVICES

• Improvement on recycling containers

• Retrieving more recycling from the wheeled bin. In partnership with WRAP Cymru during February – June 2023 consultants are modelling a three weekly refuse collection service and will provide a number of options for consideration.

• Collect plastic film off the kerbside. Planned trial for June.

• Increase material streams at HWRCs such as polystyrene.

• Extend garden waste collections to all year around.

• Expand roll out of recycling frames in flats working with RSLs.

• Improve communication to residents of the County Borough

• Divert re-usable bulky items from residual to re-use.

• Increase trade recycling customer base.

• Implement trade marketing strategy.

• Provide more recycle on the Go bins.

• Provide an educational programme to schools.

• Improve internal recycling systems within Neighbourhood services and throughout the Council.

• Allow additional trade recyclable materials to be deposited at the HWRCs under a charging mechanism.

• To investigate options for residual waste restrictions

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

These are the priority areas that need immediate improvement in order to have an impact on outcomes. Consider the judgements - this should be about moving from unsatisfactory to adequate, or from adequate to good.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

HIGHWAYS

• To improve the monitoring of customer care performance to influence outcomes.

• To test and implement a revised system to prioritise the condition of unclassified roads.

• To ensure a robust system is implemented to record and prioritise the footway condition surveys. This will help us identify works that are required and provide evidence for future Capital funding.

• To continue the highways succession plan to help mitigate the potential loss of knowledge and skills to ensure the service to strive continuously improve.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Agile working has enabled procedures to become leaner (through better use of technology) with the result being more efficient determination of applications and quicker and effective responses to customers. This drive needs to continue to enable more efficiencies.

Building Control

• Develop business case and application for an assistant post to allow succession planning and provide the department with a more robust future.

• Train officers in management systems and responsibilities to allow for succession planning and a more sustainable future.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Re-introduce internal/external Enforcement Officers to reduce litter and dog fouling.

• Liaise with waste services to consider better ways to capture recycling. Storms are creating a massive problem when recycling bins are left out with no shower caps or lids, waste is blowing all around the streets.

• Small electric sweeper push along purchased via various grants to assist with cleansing shop fronts etc in town centre.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Better integrated training across neighbourhood services.

• Better use of technology on the front line.

WASTE SERVICES

• Improving communications – we are looking into other and more sustainable ways to communicate information to residents of the county borough quickly and more efficiently. Linking with National and partner organisation campaigns throughout 2022/23.

• Keeping up with the Joneses campaign – To continue the campaign.

• Plastic film – To trial collections of plastic film from the kerbside. A trial is planned to commence in June this year in partnership with WRAP Cymru and Local Partnerships to collect plastic film at the kerbside across the County Borough.

• Internal Recycling – To improve the way we operate internal recycling services to maximise their effectiveness.

• Recycle on the go – To locate more source separated recycling bins to replace litter bins throughout the County Borough.

• Flats recycling – To work with RSLs to improve recycling at their properties.

• The Waste & Recycling Wardens - commenced a participation monitoring and engagement exercise in March 2022 to encourage households not recycling at the kerbside to do so.

• Identify possible options to restrict residual - waste in the wheeled bins and divert more recyclables into the relevant services collections.

QUESTION 1: OUTCOMES

Question 1.3: How has the service improved the wellbeing and attitudes towards learning of children and young people?

JUDGEMENT

(ESTYN focussed – only Education to answer)

< Choose a judgement >

EVALUATION: When answering this question, consider the ESTYN guidance 1.3 – wellbeing and attitudes to learning

CURRENT STATUS

•

GOOD PRACTICE

•

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

•

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

•

SECTION 2:

Focus on: Provision & Service Delivery

GOVERNANCE – Performance & Scrutiny Team only

Question
2.1	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
2.2	Adequate	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
2.3
Long-term	1	2	1	1	1
Preventative	1	1.5	1	1	1
Involvement	1	1	1.5	1	1
Collaboration	1.5	1.5	1	1	1
Integration	1.5	1	1	1	1

Key

Highways/Engineering Development Control/Building Control Street Cleansing & Bereavement Services Parks & Countryside

Waste Services

Overall Directorate Judgement: Adequate

QUESTION 2: PROVISION & SERVICE DELIVERY

JUDGEMENT

Question 2.1: How well does the service engage with corporate support services to help improve service provision and delivery?

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• The quality and frequency of contact with support services;

• Whether the support received enabled the service to improve provision and delivery

CURRENT POSITION
HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING
	Service	Judgement	Rationale supporting Judgement
	Accountancy & Finance	Good	Highways have monthly meetings with the service Accountants to monitor both revenue and capital budgets. The support received from accountants ensures that Highways remains financially viable and manages its accounts efficiently.
	Business Change	Mixed	Highways have worked with Business Change on numerous occasions, as and when required, in preparing business cases e.g. restructuring and relocating of the highways service, sub-contracting of street lighting and Gully machine operations. The support and guidance received from Business Change is a helpful resource which helped Highways to make efficiency savings.
	Business Support (Xxxx Xxxxxx’ Team)	Good	Highways have daily contact with Service Support to ensure invoices are paid on time and mail is sent and received.
	Customer Services (One Stop Shop)	Mixed	Highways have a daily contact with the Council’s Customer Contact Centre, as they forward complaints and requests from the public and requests to us. Although Highways receive an adequate service from the Customer Contact Centre there are a number of complaints or requests that should be directed to other services and not to Highways. If customer contact staff received extra training, they could provide a more efficient service and get customers issues dealt with more quickly.
	Corporate Communications	Good	Highways have regular contact with Corporate Communication Team, with regards to emergency road closures, weather events and winter maintenance e.g. gritting. This is especially so in the winter where the Team updates the Council’s social media with the information Highways provide them with. Highways has a good working relationship with the Corporate Communications Team and ensures that we present information professionally.
	Democratic Services	Good	The Democratic Services Team regularly works with Highways in relation to arranging scrutiny & Council Meetings for highways to attend.
	Equalities & Welsh Language	Good	Highways have regular contact with the Welsh language Team who assist in updating our regular letters and correspondence
	HR and Organisational Development	Good	Highways engage with HR at least twice a week to help provide the necessary processes for recruitment and selection, succession planning, health and safety, industrial relations, personal wellbeing, job

			evaluation and learning and development. The advice and guidance that we receive from HR ensures that we operate within Council policy and treat staff fairly and is a good support service to the Department.
	ICT & Print	Mixed	Highways have regular contact with ICT & Print regarding the purchase and upgrading of new computers, mobile telephones, and software systems. Highways is reliant on the ICT Team, in the setting up and maintenance of its ICT equipment. Although I feel that ICT provide good support, I think this service would be more efficient if they were to keep a stock of computers due to the long lead-time on receiving new computers.
	Legal & Information Governance	Good	Highways seek advice and approval for the issuing of legal notice from the Council’s Legal Department about twice a month regarding compliancy with highway legislation and complaints. We also engage with the Insurance Department about twice a week, in relation to specific queries or technicalities of third-party insurance claims. This service provide reassurance in decision-making and is a valuable resource for Highways.
	Performance & Scrutiny	Good	The Performance & Scrutiny Team regularly works with Highways in relation to preparing plans and scrutiny reports, as part of the Council’s performance framework procedures and Scrutiny arrangements. Being challenged by the Performance Team helps Highways to produce better quality plans and reports.
	Procurement/ Commercial	Mixed	Highways have regular contact with Procurement regarding the purchasing and procuring of services, including industrial products, materials and vehicles to ensure highways are compliant in running the service. Highways have a very good service from the Procurement team. The Highways Manager has regular contact with Executive Support Team as they provide a range of executive support and administrative services to facilitate the delivery of business operations and to support Senior and Corporate officers achieve the organisational objectives.
	Revs; Bens & Financial Assistance	Limited Contact
	Risk Management	Limited Contact
PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL
	Service	Judgement	Rationale supporting Judgement
	Accountancy & Finance	Good	Regular contact and monthly Budget Monitoring Meetings are held with the department’s accountant. Particularly important for Development Control and Building Control given levels of income. The accountants are available for advice or queries and the quality of the service is good.
	Business Change	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	Business Support (Xxxx Xxxxxx’ Team)	Good	Support is given in terms of scanning plans related to planning and building control applications.
	Customer Services (One Stop Shop)	Mixed	Phone calls are also passed on by the call centre, although calls are sometimes received which are not related to the functions of the department. Planning and Building Control would much prefer that a telephone number is provided which enables a direct line to the support service officers
	Corporate Communications	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	Democratic Services	Good	The department has a positive working relationship with this team. A Planning Committee report is produced each month which is emailed to

			Democratic Services for publication. This team also provides good support in terms of Member Fact Finding Site Visits.
	Equalities & Welsh Language	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	HR and Organisational Development	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	ICT & Print	Good	The support of the ICT department and the suitability and functionality of electronic equipment is now more important than ever as the department without this would fail in service delivery. Functional, stable and equipment and software is important not only for officers but others who use the system most importantly our customers. The ongoing area of concern is the reliance on a single part-time IT officer who specialises in UNIFORM (the main planning/building control database).
	Legal & Information Governance	Good	This department provides support in terms of checking planning committee reports, enforcement and other notices and drafting section 106 agreements. The Solicitor also represents the department at the Magistrates Court and/or Crown Court with respect to Enforcement matters. There are inconsistencies with regard to enforcement matters, notably one Solicitor scrutinises enforcement and other notices and another represents the department (on the same case) in court. The quality of section 106 drafts and the speed in completing them is often a concern. Given the quality of responses, the preference is often to employ a Barrister rather than deal with the legal planning issues in house. This often results in further cost to the department.
	Performance & Scrutiny	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	Procurement/ Commercial	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	Revs; Bens & Financial Assistance	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
	Risk Management	Limited Contact	Limited contact with the service
STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES
	Service	Judgement	Rationale supporting Judgement
	Accountancy & Finance	Good	We liaise with Finance and Accountancy on a regular basis to monitor the budget. Ad hoc meetings also take place to work on business cases or to carry out financial analysis of income generation on cemeteries for example.
	Business Change	Limited Contact	Limited work colleagues within Business Change on projects that include mapping processes to try and make the department more efficient and improve work systems. Business Change also support with efficiency reports.
	Business Support (Xxxx Xxxxxx’ Team)	Limited Contact	We work closely with Business Services for any queries we have in relation to the Council’s complaints system, Tascomi. They provide support for any password changes, address issues and also forward any complaints that have been received via their team. Business Services also keep a central record of our needle database. This area also assists with invoicing.
	Customer Services (One Stop Shop)	Mixed	The Contact Centre field all calls and are a point of contact for our customers.
	Corporate Communications	Limited Contact	Corporate Communications contact us when they receive queries via their social media pages in relation to environmental offences and queries from local MP/AM. Also, any cemetery issues.
	Democratic Services	Limited Contact	We do not have much engagement with Democratic Services as Cllrs come directly to us with any complaints or queries they may have.

	Equalities & Welsh Language	Limited Contact	Any written correspondence that is sent out by our team must be sent out bilingually, therefore we send any written documents to the team to translate to Welsh in order to comply with the Welsh Language Act.
	HR and Organisational Development	Mixed	HR have assisted us in discrepancies with job descriptions within the last 12 months. HR Admin also assist us regarding leave queries and they communicate bulletins regularly to inform staff on job opportunities. HR have also provided training to staff.
	ICT & Print	Good	We have recently developed a GPS system with ICT enabling us to record all memorial tests. ICT are also assisting us regularly with our caudex system and online forms and web/intranet pages. Print services also assist regularly with signs and leaflets.
	Legal & Information Governance	Limited Contact	No longer responsible for Enforcement. Limited involvement from Legal with Street Cleansing & Bereavement Services.
	Performance & Scrutiny	Limited Contact	Performance/Scrutiny/Partnerships assist us by providing templates for Scrutiny Reports and ensure we are meeting our objectives in relation to the five ways of working. However, more work could be done to better understand what is required to comply with the five ways of working. Help is also given when reports are required for performance indicators.
	Procurement/ Commercial	Mixed	Procurement have assisted us when we are required to go out to Tender for contracts. They also help with any P2P queries and give regular updates on changes of suppliers regularly used.
	Revs; Bens & Financial Assistance	Limited Contact	Limited contact but are helping with issues of service users not paying invoices.
	Risk Management	Limited Contact
PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE
	Service	Judgement	Rationale supporting Judgement
	Accountancy & Finance	Good	Regular meetings with accountants help to keep budget on track and helps spot trends in spending.
	Business Change	Limited Contact	Very little department involvement
	Business Support (Xxxx Xxxxxx’ Team)	Good	Regular billing and invoicing.
	Customer Services (One Stop Shop)	Limited Contact	Not much involvement
	Corporate Communications	Limited Contact	Occasional assistance with online communication
	Democratic Services	Limited Contact	Not much involvement
	Equalities & Welsh Language	Limited Contact	Not much involvement
	HR and Organisational Development	Good	Regular involvement and assistance with disciplinaries, employment law advice etc
	ICT & Print	Good	Regular involvement on PC issues, upgrades, telephones etc.
	Legal & Information Governance	Good	Regular involvement especially recently with legal cases relating to Japanese Knotweed claims.
	Performance & Scrutiny	Mixed	Occasional involvement prior to scrutiny meetings and annual performance reviews.
	Procurement/ Commercial	Good	Intermittent involvement as and when needed. Invaluable advice on contracting law and best value.

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	Revs; Bens & Financial Assistance	Limited Contact	Not much involvement
	Risk Management	Limited Contact	Not much involvement
WASTE SERVICES
	Service	Judgement	Rationale supporting Judgement
	Accountancy & Finance	Good	There is regular contact between ourselves and accountancy and Insurance in relation to budgets, benchmarking data, service change, projects and insurance claims for vehicles and operational sites.
	Business Change	Mixed	Business Change is consulted with on project updates, service changes and system improvements.
	Business Support (Xxxx Xxxxxx’ Team)	Mixed	The service area is consulted with and provide input to us when planning service changes.
	Customer Services (One Stop Shop)	Mixed	The Customer Contact Centre is kept informed of any service changes or communications sent out.
	Corporate Communications	Good	Corporate Communications are consulted with prior to any communications being sent out via Social media, website, or any other form of media. Monthly meetings are in place to discuss relevant projects and Communication plans.
	Democratic Services	Limited Contact	Democratic Services provide support occasionally through sharing electoral roll information so that a targeted approach to communication campaigns can be implemented.
	Equalities & Welsh Language	Good	This service area and the requirements are factored into all of our service areas and adhered to.
	HR and Organisational Development	Good	HR is consulted with on all service changes where there are staff implications. The Keeping up with the Joneses campaign is an example of this as the project required additional staff that were redeployed and seconded to the waste dept. Regular contact has been a recent requirement in relation to staff discipline and Occupational Health support for some staff members.
	ICT & Print	Good	Waste Services has a close working relationship with ICT and Print Services through design and printing of a variety of communications materials such as posters, leaflets, van permits, calling cards etc which enable us to provide information on our services to stakeholders.
	Legal & Information Governance	Good	There is an ongoing arrangement with the Legal department for the prosecution of non-payment of FPNs for breach of our Side Waste policy. This has now been expanded to cover the Recyclable in the wheeled bin legal process. This support from the Legal dept helps us to continue to improve the way we deliver this process.
	Performance & Scrutiny	Good	Liaison between Performance and Risk and us is ongoing and serves to keep a focus on the WG targets, PIs and ongoing departmental work and initiatives.
	Procurement/ Commercial	Good	The Procurement dept are involved with all of our Contract tenders, material purchases and contract management. Advice and support from Procurement has been beneficial.
	Revs; Bens & Financial Assistance	Good	Revenues and benefits provide a quick response to our enforcement requests for information regarding people and properties so that our procedures can be implemented efficiently. Due to the almost daily stream of invoices and purchases for processing received by the department there is a clear and defined process that works effectively for us.

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Risk Management

Good

There is regular but in frequent working with Risk management. Our risk register is updated annually or in the event of changes that pose a risk to the Council or service area.

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GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

There are several core support services that Highways meet with on regular a basis, as stated above. The main ones that Highways relies on for their support and input are Human Resources (HR) who guides the service to operate within Council Policy and legislation. Regularly monthly meetings with my accountant ensures that the Department runs within the projected budgets and prevents overspend. The Department is currently engaging regularly with Business Change who provides advice and support in the completion of business cases and managing changes effectively. Finally, the Performance and Scrutiny Team assists Highway on the completion of Self-Evaluation and Scrutiny Reports. All of these services helps Highways to run efficiently and effectively and add value to the Highways.

Highways works collaboratively with HR as part of the succession planning for the service. Highways also works collaboratively with the Service Accountant who contributes with development of the capital-funding plan. Also, the accountant helps to works out cost savings for longer term investments when looking at major projects which incorporate more sustainable and preventative ways of working, that have a positive impact on the environment and reduces future spend e.g. third party claims, less complaints and safer roads.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

Specific deadlines are set to enable the Planning Committee Report to be published on time each month. The preparation process and electronic submission to Democratic Services, enables them to publish and distribute the report with minimal input.

Building Control

Monthly meetings with Accountancy ensure proper financial management and governance, which allows for income streams to be assessed and ensure targets are met and expenditure to be managed.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Building good working relationships with our colleagues in other departments is essential. Recently insurance claims have meant that collaboration with our legal team has been invaluable to defend claims against the authority on issues relating to Japanese knotweed.

• Regular meetings with HR. and their inclusion into ASD meetings. Helps drive down sickness rates within the authority. Helps to promote initiatives such as speed reduction within neighbourhood services.

• All departments within neighbourhood Services now have regular meetings about our recycling targets and all contribute to the overall figure.

• Good working relationship with the Health and Safety section, involving them throughout the health and safety life cycle not just when an accident occurs. E.g. Vehicle accident when cleansing the trunk road, systems put in place to make the working environment safer.

WASTE SERVICES

• In order to implement behavioural change interventions to our customers Corporate Communications are consulted with on a regular basis to ensure that the communication is as effective as possible. This includes ongoing dialogue on a weekly basis to provide information and jointly develop an effective approach.

• Monthly meetings are arranged between us and Corporate Communications to monitor previous projects and develop future ones.

• Business Change and Service Support had an input on providing the most efficient way of issuing the HWRC van permits when the decision to amend the Covid restrictions was decided.

• For any changes to our services we have recognised the need to involve and consult with core support services as early as possible. These departments are included in the project planning discussions as soon as a service change is decided.

• Financial planning is key to delivering efficient/cost effective services. When identifying service improvements, a business case may be developed through which an investment option/s will be investigated. Implementing the Re-use shop project are examples of this investing to save principle.

• The Keeping up with the Joneses campaign to increase the amount of recycling we can extract from the wheeled bin has involved a number of Support Service departments such as; HR, Service Support, Corporate Communications, Legal and ICT and Print.

• The support of the Legal department is critical to the successful application of our s46 process. The legal advice and guidance over the years has been excellent and helped us to make this area as efficient and effective as possible.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• The only core support service that I feel could help be efficient is of Customer Contact Centre, who could improve the filtering of customer complaints and public requests in relation to Highways Services. Having to deal with inappropriate complaints and queries is time-consuming for the Service and causes frustration for the public, who get annoyed from being passed-on to different departments. This does not help the Council’s reputation and generates more complaints. If the Customer Contact Team were to be trained in developing a better understanding of departments, they would not only help services by saving them time, enabling them in being more productive, they would also be presenting the Council in being more efficient.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Explore the possibility of the same Solicitor scrutinising all enforcement notices and then undertaking any subsequent court cases.

• Explore the possibility of scanning being carried out by planning support service officers.

Building Control

• Further develop IT hardware and software to allow onsite access to systems.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Involve team leaders in some meetings to ensure good working relationships between departments continue into the future.

WASTE SERVICES

• Improvements to our data recording/reporting continue to be supported by Business Change.

• Behavioural change projects to increase recycling and reduce residual waste are communicated through Corporate Communications.

• Behavioural change projects that have been implemented recently are being supported by service Support

• Continued support from the legal section with s46 procedures

• A better two way communications system could be developed so that information can be passed to and from the Service Support Section.

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• To provide more training for Customer Contact Centre staff, for them to become more efficient in directing complaints and request to relevant departments.

• Extra Corporate support cover for the 1 Highways Administration. This will allow extra flexibility to cover leave and allow the daily admin tasks to be completed. Preventing a backlog of task when they return from leave.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Explore the possibility of the same Solicitor scrutinising all enforcement notices and then undertaking any subsequent court cases.

• Explore the possibility of scanning being carried out by planning support service officers.

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Building Control

• Further develop IT hardware and software to allow onsite access to systems.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Make more use of our corps comms section to promote the good work we do.

WASTE SERVICES

• Behavioural change projects require the help of support services. There has been significant change in this area recently with the implementation of the Keeping up with the Joneses campaign and a structured Communications campaign.

• In order to achieve good outcomes in this area with limited resources we need to explore more effective and innovative ways of working, utilising the skills and knowledge of Corporate Communications and Service Support.

• Improvements to the way in which we communicated our requirements to residents can continually improve.

• Improvements to the way we distributed food bags and battery bags is required.

• Complaint reporting mechanisms could be improved by Service Support to ensure that these are diverted to relevant officers through the proper channels.

• All of the areas for development above would benefit from a more collaborative way of working that would prevent problems rather than react to them.

QUESTION 2: PROVISION & SERVICE DELIVERY

JUDGEMENT

Question 2.2: How well does the service understand and take advantage of opportunities for collaboration and partnership working?

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• Contribution to existing strategic partnership plans

• Joint outcomes with other services

• Existing regional collaborations

• Partnership with the private or third sectors

• Partnership with public agencies

• Support for school improvement (ESTYN focussed – only Education to consider)

• Support for vulnerable learners (ESTYN focussed – only Education to consider)

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Highways work in partnership with Neighbourhood Services Waste, Cleansing, Fly Tipping, Parks, and Cemeteries staff to help cover Highways standby functions such as winter maintenance and flooding. Through sharing staff across Neighbourhood Services, it provides a more cost effective and efficient way to run the service. This also links into Corporate and Wellbeing objectives of being able to deliver a sustainable service.

Highways also work closely with Engineering in delivering a number of drainage schemes that reduces the risk of flooding within the County Borough. Also, Highways attend Scrutiny collaboration and workshops which helps identify areas of the service that require improvement.

Highways works in collaboration with Caerphilly County Borough Council by tipping our gully waster at their xxxx bed recycling facility helping the Council save money on disposal costs and meeting our environmental and sustainability targets.

Highways also work in collaboration with RCTCBC who provides and administer the Highways traffic light maintenance SLA contract and scanner and scrim surveys. The purpose of this partnership is to employ industry specialists to enable the Council to standardise traffic light systems and to be an efficient and cost-effective service.

Highways are also a part of a national County Surveys Society Wales (C.S.S.W.) Group, made up of all 22 Welsh Unitary Councils who meet quarterly to discuss new developments within the civil engineering field and share best practice, such as, developing standardised asset management procedures. Joint power sharing will help Highways to implement more robust third-party insurance processes that should be more efficient and help the Council save money in the future.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

Officers are well aware of the need for efficiencies and of the benefits that arise from knowledge sharing, best practice, collaborative working, and shared services. The Planning Department has a Service Level Agreement with Carmarthen CBC which enables a minerals planning officer from this LPA to determine minerals applications; provide advice on such matters; and have input into the minerals policies included in the LDP. The cost of employing an officer to deal with these issues would be considerably more than the sum being paid as part of the SLA.

A number of mechanisms also exist where practitioners are able to meet and discuss current issues on a regular basis. These mechanisms include strategic interest groups and common interest groups such as the South East Wales (and wider)

Development Management Managers Group; Planning Officers Society for Wales (POSW); and the South East Wales Strategic

Planning Group (SEWSPG) – which we currently chair. These groups enable MTCBC to ensure that its voice is heard on regional/national planning issues, with POSW successfully lobbying for amendments to national planning policy (in relation to flood risk) during the past year that should have positive consequences in terms of the potential redevelopment of Merthyr town centre.

Collaboration also take place between local planning authorities and specific organisations with respect to major development proposals (e.g. The South Wales Metro Project (SWMP) and the duelling of the A465)

Collaboration with a number of internal departments is critical in delivering various projects and strategic priorities such as:

• Regeneration (e.g. Dragon Parc, St. Tydfil’s Hospital, The Cyfarthfa Plan, The Town Centre Master Plan etc).

• Estates to consider potential developments on land owned by the Council.

• Corporate Property and Education to deliver new schools.

• Social Services and Housing regarding the provision of affordable housing, housing for the homeless and accommodation for children who require care and support.

• Drainage Engineers in setting up and being part of the Sustainable Drainage Approval Body (SAB).

Building Control

The Building Control Department not only operates in a business environment with the Building Regulation function in direct competition with the private sector but also has an enforcement duty and therefore cooperation and collaboration with internal and external stakeholders is essential to ensure an efficient and effective department.

The BC department is a member of Local Authority Building Control (LABC) which consists of all Local Authorities in Wales and England. LABC operate a partnership scheme where an application can be made to any of the members, the vetting Authority and accepted by the inspecting authority. This allows retention of work and provides a consistent approach. There are also agreements where BC departments can approach each other to seek out specialist help if it’s not available in that LA, examples are Fire Engineering, Acoustics, structural and energy. This is probably one of the largest formal partnerships in the country.

There are also close working ties with other organisations such as South Wales Fire and Rescue, and Dwr Cymru Welsh Water where legislation crosses over and consultation and joint inspections are required. Enforcement and inspections are also carried out jointly.

Internally there is close working and collaboration with the Authorities drainage department who are responsible for implementing the new SAB legislation. The technical aspects of the SAB legislation cross over with Building Regulations. There are further close working relationships with the Authority’s Property, Estates, Regeneration, Trading Standards and Environmental Health departments. There is a variety of cooperation and collaboration between the departments such as:

• Technical advice and training to Property officers

• Support to Estates officers on Council owned property,

• Technical and other support to Regeneration,

• Specialist technical advice and knowledge to support Trading Standards.

• Joint visits and technical advice to Environmental Health.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Regular meetings with Regen in relation to strategic town centre plans.

• Monthly meetings with Caru Cymru regional officer to discuss LEQ projects.

• Weekly collection of recycled waste collected from community groups.

• Represented on Bid Board.

• Regular meetings with Xxxxxxx to discuss sweepers.

• Attend community group meetings when required.

• Share drug litter intelligence with Xxxxx.

• Liaise with SWTRA to arrange trunk road cleansing.

• Bereavement Services forum - Legal updates from ICCM (Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium management).

• Working with External organisations ie. Welsh Government - collaboration on the implementation of free child burials; work on provision of the Cefn Cemetery extension project.

• Regular meetings with probation services.

• Regular meetings with Kick start representatives.

• Regular meetings with waste – develop ROTG infrastructure.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

Existing partnerships: -

Between Neighbouring local authorities.

An active participation in the Greenspace Wales forum whereby best practice is shared. We share training opportunities and information on studies such as Japanese Knotweed eradication or wildflower development and pollinator action plan.

Combined work on the INNS (Invasive Non-Native Species) forum has led to a coordinated approach to how insurance claims relating to Japanese Knotweed are dealt with as well as its effective treatment.

Probation services

A service level agreement with the Probation Services has seen a service hub set up and provide a base for the probation services staff at Cefn cemetery.

Merthyr Valley Homes, Wales and West Housing association.

Collaboration on clean up events such as the Goitre lane clean up and the new playground at Twyn Carmel. The works include inspection and arboricultural work to their tree stock.

Greenspace Wales Forum

Collaboration with our neighbouring authorities on all issues relating to grounds maintenance and public open space.

Bereavement Services forum.

Collaboration with our neighbouring authorities on issues relating to bereavement services. Sharing of best practice, particularly during the Covid period where legislation was changing frequently because of the changing restrictions due to the pandemic.

Merthyr angling

Partnership working to ensure best use of the Lake at Cyfarthfa Park. Mutually beneficial projects such as cray fish trapping and weed clearance are a small sample of the benefits of this collaboration.

Environmental Wellbeing EW 1 Communities protect, enhance, and promote our natural environment and countryside. Welsh water to develop a broader SLA with the council. Carrying out tree inspections along their land along the Taff Trail.

WASTE SERVICES

• The waste Services dept has worked collaboratively with numerous partners for a number of years and will continue to do so wherever the opportunity arises.

• Since April 2016, we have been in contract, as part of a hub of authorities (Xxxxxxx Xxxxx Xxx, Blaenau Gwent and Xxxxxxx) lead by Xxxxxxx Xxxxx Taf with Viridor Waste Management LTD to dispose of our residual waste through Energy from Waste (EFW). This is a 25 year contract that expires in March 2041

• We are currently in 2 SE Wales Regional contracts for textiles and WEEE.

• We are collaborating with RSLs on Community Recycling events and improved recycling services for their tenants.

• In partnership with BGCBC and WRAP we have implemented the keeping up with the Joneses campaign to increase the amount of recycling that residents put out for collection using education and enforcement processes.

• Collaborative working and sharing good practice is a remit of the CLAIRE group that is fully supported by us.

• The All Wales and trade benchmarking groups are vehicles that promote collaborative working and documenting the outcomes.

• Projects to maximise recycling from Council sources involving numerous departments have recently been implemented.

• There is a close working partnership with WRAP Cymru who have provided support and continue to do so in order to help achieve WG targets.

• To date, all of the above have or are proving to be successful examples of collaborative working.

• There is a close working relationship with ourselves, Legal and Benefits and Revenues on our s46 enforcement and Keeping Up With The Joneses campaigns that ensures that the service area operates efficiently.

• We are a member Authority of the CLAIRE group that identifies and promotes collaborative working.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Highways updated their new Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose and Subject strategy in line with two of MTCBC 4

objectives, in contributing to ‘Environmental Wellbeing’ as the Service is helping to reduce greenhouse gases by reducing the carbon from streetlights by converting to LED, and recycling waste from landfill. Also, Highways contributes to the ‘Working Life’ objective by collaborating with RCTCBC, Caerphilly Councils in carrying out a statutory duty of maintaining the highway network to provide a safe infrastructure for people living and working in Merthyr Tydfil. This also links to ‘Economy and

Infrastructure’ objective by providing a well-maintained highway to accommodate a strong, local and sustainable transport structure.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• As a result of collaboration with Estates, a number of sites have been sold and have either gained planning permission or applications are currently being considered.

• Early in house collaboration (e.g. with housing, regeneration, estates etc.) to ensure the smooth and efficient determination of applications.

• Partnership working to ensure, as far as possible, there is consistency across the region in terms of development control and planning policy issues.

Building Control

• LABC Partnership scheme bring together all Local Authorities in Wales and England

• Regular LABC managers’ meetings ensure consistency and enable discussions on legislation and policies

• Regular meetings with South Wales Fire officers to ensure consistency of approach and enforcement.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• We have built good working relationships with numerous partners and other local authorities over the past few years. From KWT, Probation and Kick start to external bodies such as Dawsons, helping hands and various community groups. This has meant that we have been able to work on new initiatives as well as try and establish a more consistent approach.

• Working with Probation services in Cefn cemetery has seen the cemetery flourish over the past year, grounds and xxxxxx have become more presentable and the local authority has received a number of compliments from members of the public.

• As and when requested we have met with MVH and assisted with litter, fly tipping removals and amnesty days along with joint working on councillor projects.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Continued work with groups wishing to take asset transfer of their facilities.

• Good links with our regeneration team to advise on projects relating to open space and play areas.

• Regular attendance in meetings with our neighbouring authorities.

WASTE SERVICES

• Collection of recyclable waste from community groups.

• Holistic approach to maximise council recycling involving Neighbourhood services managers.

• Working with RSLs to improve recycling services to their tenants

• KUWTJs in partnership with WRAP and BG

• Partnership working with WRAP on improvements to services to achieve the WG targets on projects such as a plastic film trial, options for a potential three weekly residual waste collection and promotion of local and National communications.

• Working with local traders to capture more recyclable items at the Dowlais HWRC.

• Working with MVH to capture more recyclable items at the Dowlais HWRC.

• Regular ASD meetings to address shared workforce needs.

• Working with other Neighbourhood and Property services departments to maximise recycling throughout the Council

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

By working closer with Engineering, we can share our knowledge and resources which will provide more efficient service. As stated below in priorities.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Greater collaboration with the Councils Housing department, Members, developers and Housing Associations to ensure the delivery of affordable and other housing in the correct locations.

• Ensuring involvement with other departments takes place as early as possible and is then carried on throughout a project.

Building Control

• Explore more regional working to allow a greater flexibility and efficient use of staff, expertise and resources.

• Greater sharing of information between departments on access to GIS maps and information already held to avoid duplication of work and costs.

• These areas for development for both Planning and BC will help the department to work more effectively in terms of

involvement and integration, improving the score against these “ways of working” in question 2.3

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Create street/xxxx champions in conjunction with KWT;

• Create closer working links with third parties i.e. MVH, Merthyr housing etc.

• Integrate probation services throughout all county borough cemeteries.

• In collaboration with waste services discuss issues with recycling waste escaping from receptacles.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• With the new SPF funding opportunities for additional community involvement should be sought and developed.

WASTE SERVICES

• The service does understand the importance of collaborative working and takes advantage of this at any given opportunity.

• All service changes are implemented with some degree of collaboration whether with Welsh Government, Welsh Government supported organisations, contractors, other Third sector or private organisations or internal departments.

• Waste Services service provision, quality and cost are benchmarked through the All Wales Benchmarking and All Wales Commercial Recycling and Residual Waste Benchmarking groups. This sharing of this data can provide relevant information on potential collaborative working for service provision and procurement.

• There is always room for improvement in the way we collaboratively work with our partners. Each project is continually monitored and where necessary and practicable any lessons learned are implemented.

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

To continue to monitor the Councils and wider agenda relating to shared services and regional working, which would enable future cost savings through shared resources and expertise. Joint working would also enable a more responsive service as pooled resources provides more flexibility and sustainable services.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Ensuring involvement with other departments takes place as early as possible and is then carried on throughout a project.

Building Control

• Greater sharing of information between departments on access to GIS maps and information already held to avoid duplication of work and costs.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Create better links with SWTRA to utilise as many planned road closures as possible.

• Liaise more with RSLs to ensure areas are getting litter picked together to improve overall cleanliness.

• Town centre – Arrange monthly meetings with Regen to progress improvement action plan.

• Employ Cleansing team leader. Business co-ordinator to liaise with business regarding waste.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• SPF funded roles integrated into the service to achieve corporate outcomes.

WASTE SERVICES

• Improvements in communication with residents are required in order to achieve our desired outcomes. This involves a better understanding of their needs and priorities as well as about us delivering the most effective means of communication as possible. Understanding certain behaviours and changing where necessary to ensure everyone has the same level of service is key to the success of service changes and continued support.

• To engage more effectively with households to ensure we capture as much recycling and reduce residual waste as possible, through door knocking campaigns using Behavioural Change techniques.

QUESTION 2: PROVISION & SERVICE DELIVERY

Question 2.3: How well does the service understand and use sustainable development (the five ways of working)?

Ensure that you place a score in each of the 5 boxes: 0 = no evidence; 0.5 = some evidence but much to do;

1.0 = good evidence but with development needs; 1.5 = good evidence and embedded practice; or 2.0 = evidence of being an exemplar for others in this regard.

Question 2.3						Holistic Judgement (rounded)
Long-term	1	2	1	1	1	6/5=1
Preventative	1	1.5	1	1	1	5.5/5=1
Involvement	1	1	1.5	1	1	5.5/5=1
Collaboration	1.5	1.5	1	1	1	6/5=1
Integration	1.5	1	1	1	1	5.5/5= 1

JUDGEMENT:

Once you have assigned a score for each of the 5 ways of working RELEVANT to the Wellbeing objective that the service is accountable for, use the performance key below to provide a judgement. For example, Long Term is scored 1.5 in the matrix the judgement is GOOD.

Ways of working	Judgement
Long term	1 - Adequate
Prevention	1 - Adequate
Involvement	1 - Adequate
Collaboration	1 - Adequate
Integration	1 - Adequate

SCORE	JUDGEMENT
2	EXCELLENT
1.5	GOOD
1	ADEQUATE and needs improvement
0-0.5	UNSATISFACTORY and needs urgent improvement

Remember to complete the evidence log to be sure we capture your evidence for Key Question 2

SECTION 3:

Focus on: Leadership & Management

GOVERNANCE – Performance & Scrutiny Team only

Question
3.1	Adequate	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
3.2	Adequate	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
3.3	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
3.4	Adequate	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate
3.5	Good	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate	Adequate

Key

Highways/Engineering

Street Cleansing & Bereavement Services Waste Services

Development Control/Building Control Parks & Countryside

Overall Directorate Judgement: Adequate

QUESTION 3: LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

JUDGEMENT

Question 3.1: How effective is leadership of the service?

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• How the service will look in 5 years’ time

• Head of service and senior managers’ personal objectives linked to service outcomes

• Successful delivery of personal objectives

• Elected Members influence on the work of the service

• Members and senior managers provide a clear direction and culture of open communication, continuous learning and accountability

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

The Highways service will require a changeover of staff into some of its key roles within the next 5 years due to staff retirement. These changes are currently being considered as part of succession planning.

Service objectives set for 2021.22:

• The implementation of xxxxxx software system Korec that provides asset information that provides the number and location of gullies cleansed. It also records blocked gullies or drainage lines to inform future work programmes.

• To change the current Highways management system from Mayrise to Alloy software system, as Mayrise support is due to cease shortly. Also, Alloy will provide more intelligent information to improve service planning. The street lighting part of the system should go live from the 1st of April 2023. The Highways part of the system to be implemented before the end of 2023.

The above two objectives enable Highways to operate in a more efficient and customer focused way. Cabinet provided extra funding for Highways to clear some of the backlog of potholes for 2021.22.

All staff are provided with relevant training to ensure they can carry out their roles competently and are accountable for the decisions they make. The Highways Management Team are encouraged to undertake continuous learning, improve creativity and innovation to enable more efficient and effective ways of working. To lead and manage Highways effectively I regularly hold management meetings, hold discussion groups and briefings, as well as undertaking regular training to develop my knowledge and skills.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

The Planning service has a clear focus in the medium term. The aim being to continue delivering an efficient service with quality outcomes. It is appreciated that the input of other stakeholders and/or other Council services is essential to achieve the required outcomes and improve the built and countryside environment of Merthyr Tydfil. The adopted Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council Replacement Local Development Plan provides certainty in terms of both the location of development and protection of the countryside and ecology.

There is an adequate working relationship with the Chair of the Planning, Regulatory and Licensing Committee and ad hoc relationships with other members of the Committee. Elected Members have a significant influence on the workload of the

department with many reporting breaches of planning control and requesting further information and advice on submitted

applications. The Leader and cabinet are aware of the importance of the planning process both strategically and at a local level, however the importance of the LDP can sometimes need to be re-emphasised. They have regular contact with the department with lead officers often called to meetings to provide direction and advice. The Members of the Planning Committee and all Councillors will continue to have in house training relating to certain topic areas of planning.

There is a clear sense of direction from the Director of Neighbourhood Services that is disseminated via a culture of regular 1:1's, team meetings and performance management (Focus on Performance). The 1:1's, team meetings and performance management process also facilitate and encourage continuous learning and clearly indicate that officers are accountable for their own applications/decisions and how they portray themselves to all customers. The Leadership of the service is good and operates as effectively as possible within the resource available, helped by an open-door policy from managers.

The three managers within Planning and Building Control all directly report to the Director of Neighbourhood Services. This close working relationship enables the service area to be more aware of strategic/corporate priorities and projects, allowing the service to deliver its functions in an efficient manner. However, the lack of a Head of Service/service manager can sometimes result in tension in regard to workload and priorities for both the three managers within the service, and the Director of Neighbourhood Services.

Building Control

The service manager has delegated authority in almost all areas of the service and therefore there is less Councillor interaction and requirements to present reports to committees than other departments. The service is in direct competition with the private sector for its Building Regulation work. There is a requirement for the Building Regulation part of the service to be self-financing. In order to do so the service sets its own fees and looks to reduce expenditure to minimum but while providing an excellent service. Therefore, all officers have a good understanding of budgets and costs. There is a good working relationship with Councillors who appear to understand the scope and function of the service. The service encourages interaction with Councillors and senior officers.

Team meetings are held weekly and 1:1’s are held with all team members monthly, The Director of Neighbourhood Services holds regular 1:1s with the Group Leader which allows efficient dissemination of information. There is also good communication between the Building Control Group Leaders and other mangers.

The service manager is part of a wider network LABC Cymru representing all Local Authority Building Control Departments in Wales. Regular manager meetings are held with South Wales managers, which reports to Welsh management group, which in turn has representatives on the National management group. LABC is the largest Building Control Body in the country and representatives sit upon government working groups etc. The service participates in the national LABC partnership scheme, which allows LABC departments to share resources and to collaborate with national companies to compete with the private sector.

Within the next 5 years it is highly likely that 2 of the 3 Building Control professional officers may have retired resulting in a reduction in experience and expertise. Changes in legislation due to the Xxxxxxxx disaster and the resultant introduction of competencies will have a large impact upon the service and individual officers.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• The Street Cleansing department currently has 1 Manager, 1 Team Leader and 21 operational staff.

• Pre 2017 the department lost 33% of its workforce and 50% of its machinery although with effective leadership cleansing scores (LEAMS) have been maintained.

• The department is a statutory function and staff work within the parameters of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

• Due to the global pandemic most meetings are now held via Teams. Some staff are still experiencing issues with Covid 19.

• We have 2 SLA’s currently in place, MSCP car park and the Merthyr leisure village.

• We work closely with KWT, Caru Cymru and carry out various activities through local environmental quality projects (LEQs). This team works with community groups and internal service areas i.e. Bio-diversity section, rights of way and parks.

• Caru Cymru assist with councillor requests and community clearances on a weekly basis.

• The bereavement services section is managed by a bereavement services and street cleansing manager acting under the street scene manager. The manager reports directly to the Chief Officer of Neighbourhood Services.

• Caru Cymru funding is set to expire end of March 2023.

• The manager sits on a collaborative ‘Bereavement Services Forum’ comprising of Bereavement Services Managers from

other authorities, sharing good practice and ideas. These ideas are brought back and discussed at a local level and if

worthy can be implemented into the council’s working practices.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Manager and team leader trained to minimum ILM level 5 or equivalent.

• An “Open Door” Policy exists for staff to discuss concerns with manager (culture of open communication, continuous

learning and accountability).

• The current departmental structure hasn’t changed in some time apart from the addition of a deputy team leader. This has proved to be a positive change and is working well. Additional training has been given to staff due to the emphasis on section 6 improvements. This will mean a different skill set in future and the department will have a different focus.

• Medium term changes will be required to the structure to enable it to meet its obligations under The Environment (Wales) Act 2016

• Regular meetings (weekly) take place to discuss general operational matters as well as more strategic change management issues.

• Communication has now returned to mostly face to face meetings for operational staff meetings. Some management meetings continue to be Microsoft Teams which can reduce travelling time etc. since Covid pandemic), one to ones, emails and through the use of SOAPS, Council policies and procedures. - (Manager’s objectives linked to service outcomes).

• The department’s strategy on a page is linked to the wider neighbourhood services SOAP and to the council’s goals.

• A good working relationship exists between the service portfolio member as well as the other elected members. Monthly meetings with the portfolio member take place and monthly updates are circulated to councillors.

• The manager sits on the ‘Green Space Wales’ forum and bereavement services forum comprising managers from other authorities sharing good practice and ideas. These ideas are brought back and discussed at a local level and if worthy can be implemented into the council’s working practices.

WASTE SERVICES

All Welsh Local Authorities Waste departments have been set clear long-term targets, which are set out in Zero Waste 2050 Strategy. Welsh Government have also set an interim target of 70% recycling for 2025. In order to achieve the targets Merthyr Tydfil Council Borough Council have developed its 10 year Waste Strategic Plan, which was introduced in 2015. This plan was developed in collaboration with Welsh Government/WRAP this followed the Welsh Government blueprint in its entirety.

There are proposed legislative changes proposed for 2023, and subsequent years that will enforce source separated waste collections for trade collections, reduce reliance on single use plastic production and put the responsibility on producers of packaging waste to deal with it sustainably and at their cost.

There will be further recovery rate targets after the 2024/25 70% target up until the zero waste target of 2050.

Within Waste service I manage 73 permanent members of staff on a daily basis this could be as many as 90 members of staff with agency staff who cover holidays, sickness and vacant posts. I am responsible for 35 HGV vehicles and a number of smaller vans and collection vehicles.

There is a full understanding of the service requirements by senior management and a transparent two-way communications system to ensure that the direction of the department is adhered to.

The service collects from more than 40,000 properties on a weekly basis.

We operate 3 NRW permitted waste site this consists of 1 transfer station with over 2 million pounds of machinery and 2

HWRC’s. On the 3 sites with environmental permits involved we have to comply with the permit conditions this is governed and inspected by the Natural Recourses Wales (NRW) failure to comply would result in the authority not being able to collect waste from the residents of the Borough.

Since 2015/16 the Authority has achieved the Welsh Government`s recovery (Prepared for Re-use, Recycled or Composted) target of 58% of total waste arising’s. The Welsh Government target for 2019/20 has increased to 64%. We are currently working towards Welsh Government target of 70% for 2025 and zero waste 2050. In 2021/22 a recovery rate of 66.8% was achieved. For the first 3 quarters of 2022/23 is 65.03%

• The authority waste strategy plan which was introduced in 2015 is a ten year plan this plan helps the authority achieve the Welsh Government blueprint.

• All over above has enabled us to achieve our currently recovery rate of 65.03% for the year to date. There is a decrease on previous years rates.

• We are exploring every avenue to capture as much recycling and possible and diverting waste from landfill

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• We undertake monthly Alternative Services Delivery (ASD) meeting whereby all of the Neighbourhood Services managers and Chief Officer attends along with a HR advisor for staffing issues and advice.

• Personal objective is to continue to gain the WAMITAB qualification to remain the permit holder for the authority

• Waste contributes to the focus on the future (environmental wellbeing and living well themes) waste also contributes to the PSB plan (community resilience and resilience) and the political priorities.

• Within the past year we have undertaken plastic film collection trails in partnership with wrap where a team was chosen to trial extra collection systems. Their involvement and feedback was critical going forward in devising the work new process.

• It was decided that as the services has over 50 staff 1-1’s on that scale would not be feasible, therefore regular team

meetings take place instead.

• Conventional means of communication to the majority of staff in the waste department (e.g. email, intranet etc.) is not practical as they are not office based and do not have access to the corporate networking computers. Therefore, communication (to non-office based staff) is mostly via, notice board, memo’s and verbally in team meetings. Office based staff are communicated through weekly/monthly meetings, emails and 1-1’s.

• Every member of staff within waste management knows the authorities objective and targets.

• It is stated to all staff at team meetings that my door is always open for any member of staff

• I hold monthly HR meeting with a HR advisor covering staffing concerns, policy compliance and general human resource issues for the whole department.

• I hold monthly health and safety meeting with H+S officer and insurance officer this enables us to look in detail at any issue which could arise as a result of our operation.

• We have been working very closely with Xxxxxxx Gwent council with regards to “keeping up with the Xxxxx’x) this is a

Welsh Government initiative for local Authorities.

• We are engaging and working on a major project with Waste Savers Charitable Trust to open a repair Café in the Town Centre. I am the lead officer on both the aforementioned projects. This project will not only contribute to our recovery rate but also provide low cost household items to residents within the County Borough. This service will allow our residents access to affordable items, particularly relevant in the current economic climate.

• We engage with the NRW for returns, record keeping and permit compliance.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

As the Highways & Fleet Manager, I have regular meetings with both my senior managers whereby I provide clear direction of the Councils vision and its supported objectives. At these meetings, we discuss the latest services updates and I receive feedback on my performance through staff appraisals. I also form part of the County Survey Society Wales C.S.S.W. management group, which is a wider collaborative management group, made up of 22 Unitary Councils that meet to identify and share best practice, which I bring back to MTCBC. Where necessary, I disseminate information through team briefings to all relevant Highways staff. The leadership within Highways is good because of the regular sharing of communication, effective managing of resources and a clear understanding of service demands.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

During 2022/23, performance in terms of the speed of determining planning and other applications, was very good (i.e. 52 days). Comparison with other local planning authorities is not possible because the data has not been published for these quarters. However, when compared to previous years, we would be well within the top quartile with this current performance.

Building Control

• The service actively participates in a national partnership scheme, which consist of all Local Authority Building Regulation departments in England and Wales. The scheme is a formal collaboration between Authorities and seeks to retain work from the private sector.

• Supports internal departments when construction expertise is need or to help facilitate work or deliver services.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Weekly meetings held with the Team Leaders.

• Monthly meetings held with Keep Wales Tidy.

• Regular on-site meetings with various councillors linked with community groups.

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• Monthly ASD meetings with director.

• Monthly meetings with portfolio member.

• Annual focus on performance and mid-year reviews.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Weekly operational meetings usually take place with managers and team leaders which keep people informed of goals and progress on projects. Regular communication with staff via meetings and presentations (e.g. informing staff of the benefits of reduced frequency grass cutting to provide more biodiversity benefits. This meets the requirements of the council’s Nature Recovery Plan) - (Joint outcome with Countryside section).

• The council’s focus on performance policy is implemented and regular meetings take place to review objectives set. This also forms part of the individual’s personal development plans which has positive effects on staff moral and boosts peoples feeling of self-worth and team working.

WASTE SERVICES

• I hold a weekly / fortnightly and monthly waste management meeting with different departments and stakeholders enabling me to strategize the waste management plan this is effective use of time for all staff and managers.

• Since 2015 we have followed Welsh Governments blueprint for kerbside recycling.

• I have engaged through regional meetings with all neighbouring authorities to choose best practices.

• I have been working with WRAP Cymru to maximise recycling from all service areas and departments.

• I attend waste benchmarking meeting and share good practice from them and to them.

• Staff are encouraged to take part in NVQs.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• To develop staff through management training and to support the Street Works Manager to complete L3 ILM in Management.

• To encourage other staff members to undertake management training.

• The need of additional resource to cover management structure as part of contingency planning to cover planned and unplan leave.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Development Control

• Additional in-house training opportunities for Planning Committee Members and all Councillors.

• Assess the impact that an unfilled Conservation Officer post is having on the historic environment and performance.

• Assess and monitor the impact of the increase and complexity of applications and action accordingly (i.e. recruit/employ necessary expertise).

Building Control

• Further develop succession planning for officers by addressing the issue of aging demographics in the section. For instance, by developing the apprentice towards a more senior role.

• Set up regular meetings with legal team to strengthen enforcement.

• Set up a procedure to deal with SAB approved schemes both at plan stage and at inspection to avoid conflict between the Building Regulations and the Flood and Water Management Act (SAB regulations)

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Continue to improve communication via Social Media channels.

• Introduce regular xxxx meetings with Councillors.

• Set-up quarterly meetings with Chief Officer and Portfolio Member so updates etc can be given and priorities/issues identified.

• Up-skill staff and introduce apprenticeship scheme.

• Probation teams to be set up county borough wide in all cemeteries.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Succession planning has been difficult in recent years as efficiency savings have hollowed out the service making it more difficult to train and mentor people within the service for the future. Structures have become so thin that single points of dependency have been developed.

• Look at ways to boost new recruitment opportunities.

WASTE SERVICES

• To fill any vacant posts within the recycling collection service. This would result in continuity with collection crew and an ownership of the collection areas.

• With more capacity we would benefit from more frequent team meetings.

• For succession planning the department would benefit from ILM training courses but this is difficult to achieve due to capacity issues.

• Greater training for frontline service providers

• To continue to manage the team to ensure that we comply with all current legislation and strategies, be prepared for future legislative changes and achieve the goals and targets set be WG.

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• To recruit a deputy supervisor to cover and assist the current Highways Supervisor and provide cover for leave and sickness.

• To employ an apprentice electrician to replace current officer who is to retire in two years’ time.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Building Control

• Develop business plan for apprentice to progress to assistant.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Reintroduce internal Enforcement Officers for littering offences.

• Request more signage in problematic areas throughout the County Borough.

• Replace 6 cleansing vans this year with electric vans.

• Road Safety Closures – working with Councillors where requests are made for roads with 50mph limits and no pavements need more regular cleansing.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Implement a training programme for suitable existing staff to enable them to progress.

• Continue to request apprentices and new recruits to allow a gradual change in the age profile of the department

• Continuation of the discretionary early retirement scheme to allow front line staff to be replaced on a gradual basis.

WASTE SERVICES

• All sickness absences are dealt with in accordance with the corporate sickness policy.

• It was decided that as the services has over 50 staff 1-1’s on that scale would not be feasible, therefore regular team

meetings.

• Performance appraisals are carried out in accordance with the strategy and any training needs sourced. Any reasonable requests for training will be considered and where possible accommodated.

• Any poor performing areas are investigated, and solutions found.

• There is an over reliance on certain staff within the department with a number of SPODs identified.

• Staff are motivated by inclusion in team and project meetings, regular updates from management, and an allowance to take ownership of their roles working to timely deadlines. Due to efficiencies front line operational staff are harder to motivate but keeping them informed of any changes and any developments helps their motivation.

• I have a close working relationship with occupational health and provide staff and approve medical treatment when required.

• We have an extensive training matrix which we use to develop staff for progression.

• To fill any vacant posts within the recycling collection service. This would result in continuity with collection crew and an ownership of the collection areas.

QUESTION 3: LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

JUDGEMENT

Question 3.2: How effective is people management in the service?

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• Sickness absence management

• Performance appraisals

• Management of poor performance

• Staff perception of management

• Motivation of staff

• Service resilience and over-reliance on key officers

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Sickness absence management

Highways sickness is generally very low, however, any sickness issue we have is addressed by working with HR. Currently, there are no staff members on long-term sickness. Highways effectively manages sickness absence through MTCBC policies and the support of our HR department.

Performance appraisals

Highway office staff have regular performance appraisals, and any issues are addressed through dialogue, assessment of training needs and/or implementing revised or new working processes and procedures.

The Highways Management Team monitors operational staff performance, through staff appraisals and analysing the performance data from the Mayrise System. The Highways Supervisor through the application of the MTCBC capability and performance policy deals with any concerning issues or poor performance (already says – manages it the capability & performance policy). Actions for improvement are recorded and monitored and reviewed on a quarterly basis.

Staff perception of management

Senior management staff feedback currently demonstrates that staff are mostly content in the way they are managed and is presented positively in staff appraisals. Operational staff views on the way they are currently managed can differ across individuals, and any issues are normally dealt with directly through joint meetings or flexible arrangements e.g., change of working hours.

Motivation of staff

Staff within the Service are given opportunities to develop their skills through being offered regular training, both on how to carry out a role or develop new skills to expand their knowledge and experience for future job enhancements/roles. Also, staff are given new work responsibilities to boost morale and increase confidence to become more productive, improve career prospect and encourage job satisfaction. Any opportunities are shared equally and fairly amongst staff.

Service resilience and over-reliance on key officers

There is still an over reliance on key officers within the Service so to manage this Highways have developed a succession plan, which includes the recruitment of staff and the introduction of training to buddy and the mentoring of supervisors and highways inspectors.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

The speed of determination of applications has improved significantly since 2013 and is now consistently excellent. Officers within Development Control and Policy develop their skills through regular 1:1’s and team meetings where a variety of types of applications and policy issues are discussed.

The performance of individuals and the wider Development Control team is discussed during monthly 1:1, weekly team meetings and performance management. Officers are not only aware of their own individual performance (and if it needs to be improved) but also the performance of the team as a whole. They are aware of all performance indicators and how the section is performing when compared to other authorities. The team approach is extremely important and is evident in the way that officers are keen to help each other. Officers knowledge and experience is also gained through attending relevant courses (budget depending).

It is inevitable that, in a relatively small team with single individual unique posts, there is a reliance on key officers, however it is now considered that the service is fairly resilient in terms of the dependence on key officers. This has been achieved through the delegation of some responsibilities/tasks from managers to officers and. However, it has proved difficult to recruit quality planning officers and, as previously highlighted, local authorities have immense difficulties in employing SPODs such as Conservation Officers and Ecologists.

Sickness absence levels within the service are generally very low. Building Control

There are significant changes expected this year to both Part B (Fire) to reflect the failings identified since the Xxxxxxxx disaster

and also Part L (conservation of fuel and power) to meet Governments targets for carbon reduction. This has and will increase workload and require additional training and expertise. However, determination rates and inspections remain constant, and workloads are continually assessed.

Daily discussions take place regarding applications and legislation; this is in addition to more formal weekly team meetings etc and ensures consistency in the interpretation and enforcement of legislation. It also allows for workload to be monitored, application types to be distributed evenly, and development of officers to be continual.

Staff are rarely sick with only one member of staff having a short period (3 days) sickness within the last 12months.

There is an element of over-reliance on the officers within a small team, however the recruitment of an apprentice is one of the first steps in making the service more resilient. This over-reliance is also exacerbated by the demographics of the officers, with two out of three aged over 55, and another aged over 50. There is also an increased dependency on the section from other internal departments for specialist knowledge and support as budget reductions have had an impact on staff recruitment.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Sickness levels below 3%.

• Performance Appraisals carried out in team meetings.

• Appraisals ongoing. I meet the team leader and he disseminates council priorities.

• Kick start implemented and training being undertake.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• The manager appreciates the value of Personal development Plans (PDPs) and one to one meetings. Staff have a chance to have their say in this two-way process.

• Continued career development for managers and staff to attend training courses and seminars in their field of expertise is encouraged and supported.

• The manager has a good knowledge of all staff by name and takes interest in their interests inside and outside of work.

• Good record of conflict resolution.

• A clear vision of the service in the future is relayed to staff. E.g., recent training on biodiversity and the future.

• All staff are treated with respect, and they know that issues raised will be dealt with professionally and confidentially. Management are approachable and support staff.

• A positive, can-do attitude is relayed in team meetings.

• Good connections exist between managers and team leaders.

• Motivation of staff has been difficult in the last 10 years due to efficiency savings cutting front line numbers, however

remaining staff are loyal and dependable with sickness levels usually below the council’s target of 5%.

• Regular communication on relevant issues disseminated to all levels.

WASTE SERVICES

• Every member of staff is interviewed and supported during sickness absence

• Regular meetings are held with staff to inform them of any changes.

• Staff are offered training for personal development.

• Staff are aware of all relevant risk assessments and SSOW.

• Staff ideas are always listened to.

• 1:1s are carried out regularly supporting staff where necessary

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Succession planning enables Highways to manage the strain on key officer’s workloads through training and skilling up additional staff to share workloads and build resilience within the Service.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Ability, during the Covid pandemic, to main a robust and efficient development control service which maintains excellent performance.

• Regular 1:1s and team meetings.

• All officers involved in consultation responses to Welsh Government.

• Open door policy of all senior officers.

Building Control

• Regular team meetings and 1:1s

• Informal daily discussions and sharing of knowledge.

• Open door policy

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Weekly meetings held.

• Open door policy adopted.

• Engage/consult staff when proposing to implement change.

• Recent staff meetings undertaken to ensure black bag splitting is carried out.

• Staff met to discuss bin waste; all staff bought into new system.

• All staff undertaken focus on performance, operational staff received toolbox talk.

• Cemetery staff undertaken relevant training.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Manager’s open-door policy.

• Good negotiation skills and conflict resolution.

• Work is delegated appropriately.

• Team are always aware of the task in hand.

• Encourages people to take pride in shared objectives and goals.

• Provides clear instruction/direction.

• Microsoft Teams meetings have led to more frequent meetings such as ASD, has reduced travelling time and expense when visiting out of town meetings and has generally improved communications between council officers.

WASTE SERVICES

• Minutes are held of staff meetings.

• Sickness absence meetings are recorded and any support evidenced.

• Performance appraisals are filed and reviewed.

• HR21 records

• Occupational health records and any medical needs.

• 360 performance appraisals.

• 1:1s carried out regularly.

• Monthly team meetings are held.

• Staff are encouraged to provide ideas and engage with Supervisors and myself.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

To ensure new staff have appropriate training to become competent and confident in their job role, and ensure a smooth transition into their new roles.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Continue to develop skills of planning officers, in terms of dealing with more complex applications.

• Develop the skills of officers in terms of dealing with listed building applications and other historic asset queries.

Building Control

• Keep supporting officers generally and mentoring of more complex applications and management procedures to help develop succession planning.

• Develop business plan for apprentice to progress an assistant’s post.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Improve ‘direct’ communication with frontline staff.

• Identify training requirements of staff.

• Introduce a training programme and apprenticeship scheme.

• Training and face to face meetings has been difficult due to Covid 19 implications, however where possible this has been undertaken.

• More third-party involvement i.e. probation working within as many depts as possible.

• Communication with visitors to the cemetery needs to improve. I intend looking at setting up meetings with friends of.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Continued career development for managers and staff to attend training courses and seminars in their field of expertise.

WASTE SERVICES

• Encourage staff to participate in discussions on service changes and projects.

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• Continuous reviewing and updating of staffing structure and succession planning to ensure the Service remains efficient in achieving its outcomes.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Continue to develop skills of planning officers, in terms of dealing with more complex applications.

• Develop the skills of officers in terms of dealing with listed building applications and other historic asset queries.

Building Control

• Develop business plan for apprentice to progress an assistant’s post.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Succession planning – underway.

• Review waste issues i.e. receptacle issues with storms.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Regular communication on relevant issues disseminated to all levels.

• Continued career development for managers and staff to attend training courses and seminars in their field of expertise. This will be required to enable succession planning to take place in the future.

WASTE SERVICES

• Encourage staff to participate in discussions on service changes and projects.

QUESTION 3: LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

JUDGEMENT

Question 3.3: How effective is resource management in the service?

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• Value for money

• Budget management

• Delivery of planned efficiency savings

• Aligning resources to deliver service and corporate outcomes

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

Value for money

Highways provide good value for money as staff costs are shared across Neighbourhood Services, keeping each Service running efficiently and aligning resources to deliver service and corporate outcomes.

• Highways have trained Parks, Cleansing, Cemeteries and Waste Departments drivers so that they can be utilised for precautionary gritting and adverse weather.

• Highways also share plant with other services, for example, JCB’s with cemeteries when xxxxxx need to be excavated or

using the Hiab lorry when fly tipping needs to be picked up.

• In addition, Highways uses the Parks Department to cut back and remove any dangerous trees that impinge on the highways.

• All Neighbourhood Service drivers have been trained to drive waste and recycling vehicles, which provides extra capacity to cover when required.

• Highways generate income by carrying out works for other Departments and recharging them.

Budget Management

I have regular meetings with our accountants to ensure costs stay within budget and spent appropriately. This can be very difficult when having to prioritising work programmes but is this is managed through prioritising statutory and less urgent works and through workforce planning.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

There is a lack of information, relating to value for money in service delivery, which enables accurate comparisons between LPA Development Control sections. Even if such information was available no two departments are the same and therefore it would be difficult to arrive at any useful conclusions. Indeed, value for money is difficult to gage if there is no charge for a particular service. For example, the section provides a duty rota service which enables all customers to obtain advice from officers and support staff at any time (office hours) of the week. Previous customer surveys have found that this element of the service is viewed as extremely important in Merthyr Tydfil.

Budget management is extremely tricky because there is no control when (or how many applications) will be submitted. There is also no control over the types of applications submitted (e.g. major application command significant fees whereas xxxxxxxxxxx application fees are extremely low). The Planning Policy section does not have any significant amounts of income, so budget management can therefore be more straightforward. However, this can give the impression that the Policy team doesn’t provide as much value for money as other sections.

In an attempt to enhance income, planning performance agreements (PPA) are encouraged. These are basically an agreement between the applicant and the LPA that give certainty to the level of service provided and the speed in which applications are determined. The current cost of a PPA is based on 17% - 20% of the application fee.

Building Control

The Building Regulation function of the Building Control service is in direct competition with the private sector, this is the fee earing part of the service. There is also a duty for that part of the service to be cost neutral. Unfortunately, many of the costs attributed to the section costs i.e. CEC’s are out of the control of the section and relate mostly to on costs, there is no mechanism for challenge to these costs and sufficient information is not provided to enable challenge or any alternative to provide value for money. These costs add to the overall cost to the section and these costs form part of the cost recovery, which places an added burden to bring in fees.

Due to the above, there is no information available to compare Local Authorities as each LA has different fee structures and costs to cover. Performance indicators are no longer required by WG so there is no comparison data available.

The Section however does currently achieve cost recovery on its Building Regulation function, CIPFA regulations does not permit the Building Regulation fees to cover any other part of the service to ensure a fair and level playing field with the private sector.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Department lost 33% of the workforce and 50% of its machinery pre 2017.

• Reduction in resources (pre 2017) has impacted PIs

• Town centre cleansing – Cleansing schedule required to improve area and new bus stop.

• In line with regen requirements, create town centre supervisor role. Ongoing, SPF grant funded.

• Kick start assisted massively with resource requirements during Covid, however this finished after 12 months.

• Extra bin emptier post approved 2021.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• The manager is responsible for the departments spend and income generation. Regular monthly meetings take place with the accountant to ensure spending is on track and to adjust projections on a regular basis.

• Longer term planning and projections via the MTFP are discussed and worked on to achieve projected efficiencies.

• When efficiency savings are required (such as late 2022 early 2023) the manager has to make judgements on where cuts can be made with the minimal disruption to the service. This can only take place if the manager has a good understanding of the resources and the implications of proposed changes. The efficiency savings chosen were then put forward as a business case

• The department manages its budget effectively with no overspend in recent years despite additional budgetary pressure. Income generation has been challenging since the pandemic and income has been affected. With the relaxation of restrictions income generation should return to pre covid levels.

• Large purchases such as equipment or vehicles are carried out with the aid of the council’s procurement section to ensure compliance.

• Smaller purchases via the council’s electronic system ‘P2P’ are monitored for spend and authorised by the manager.

Credit card purchases are authorised electronically with hard copy receipts checked.

• Man and equipment resources are monitored to ensure they meet the requirements of the departments and council’s strategic aims. An example of this is changing the size and type of tractor mounted grass cutting equipment to enable us to meet the requirements of the council’s Nature Recovery Plan. Grant funding has allowed the purchase of cut and collect equipment to help increase the success of wildflower areas designated for this purpose by the council

• A recent audit of the departments vehicles has taken place with some savings being made by changing vehicles and reducing the fleet number where possible.

• All the department machinery-based assets are recorded on a database. Essential information such as machine age, vibration level etc. is kept to ensure safe working practices. The system is also used to ensure a regular turnover of machinery to ensure efficiency and safety levels of maintenance are adhered to. Machinery no longer required is auctioned and these sale prices are monitored to ensure the best disposal route has been chosen.

WASTE SERVICES

• Our current material recycling contracts have recently been procured using a competitive tender process.

• All waste operational staff are trained on both residential and commercial waste collections and there are also additional collection staff that have Light Goods Vehicle (LGV) in order for greater efficiency and flexibility across the services area.

• Within the Neighbourhood Services there are many examples of shared resources. For example, waste staff helping out when in inclement weather (white-out), LGV trained staff from other areas driving for Waste Management when required, and shared enforcement officers.

• A lot of resources are provided with external funding. There are strict requirements associated with these grants to accurately monitor spend and ensure effective management of the resources.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• Sharing of Neighbourhood Service resources saves on costs and provide additional cover for business continuity.

• Regular Joint Neighbourhood Service meetings ensure communication is passed to relevant services and improves joint up working and outcomes.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Introduction of PPA.

• Enhanced pre-application enquiry process that includes meetings and comprehensive responses which goes further than what is required statutorily.

Building Control

• Cost recovery on the Building Regulation Function.

• Minimum cost expenditure.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Working more effectively with other departments.

• Working more closely with community groups.

• LEQs in place with other organisations (ie. KWT).

• New machinery obtained in town centre.

• Green flag status maintained for 1 cemetery - management is scrutinised during the judging process.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Good working relationship with the procurement department.

• Aligning spend and new purchases to council priorities e.g. cut and collect machines for biodiversity.

• Restructuring the department to align it with new priorities for the future.

• Keeping spend within the budget.

WASTE SERVICES

• Efficient project planning

• Efficient collection rounds

• Effective monitoring processes in place to ensure resources are used efficiently

• As a member of the South East Wales waste Management Group we form a part of a couple of regional waste material contracts, being the lead Authority on one of them. This allows us through economies of scale to provide the best value for money and the ability to manage budgets in the most efficient way, using staff effectively.

• Due to the resignation of our Behavioural Change Officer, an opportunity arose to second an existing staff member into that post. This had a knock on effect of other secondments into that officers post and subsequent Waste & recycling warden`s post. This has resulted in three staff members having the opportunity to gain knowledge within the service and to progress.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• Update the data management software system, as the support element of the current system is due to cease soon.

• Look for other opportunities to generate income.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Encourage more PPA’s.

Building Control

• Additional information on costs attributed to the Building Control function (CEC’s)

• Mechanism to scrutinise and challenge CEC’s

• Involve staff more in budget monitoring and staff development.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Up-skill staff to undertake work of current SPODs during times of absence.

• Introduce apprenticeship scheme.

• Engage more with community groups to improve closer working links.

• Integrate with 3rd parties i.e. Probation services.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Seeking grant funding where possible.

• Continue to look for income generation sources.

WASTE SERVICES

• More effective sharing of resources between departments to align priority services

• Ensure that relevant training is provided where required.

• Continue to improve collection rounds to ensure efficiency

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• To plan the implementation of the transfer of information over to the new data management system.

• To plan the collection of footway survey data to identify the current condition of footpath throughout the borough and prioritise a programme of works to repair or replace them.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Encourage more PPA’s.

Building Control

• Involve staff more as part of succession planning in budget monitoring.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Introduce closer links with RSLs and community groups.

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• Recognise good work currently being undertaken by third parties ie. community groups.

• Staff are becoming more versatile i.e. flooding, mass testing assistance. ASD.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• The department’s succession plan for the future.

• Look at future prospect of changing to electric vehicles and tools.

WASTE SERVICES

• More effective sharing of resources between departments to align priority services this could involve staff sharing etc.

QUESTION 3: LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

JUDGEMENT

Question 3.4: Does the service set the right priorities? How well does the service engage with feedback from stakeholders and address issues they identify?

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: When answering the question, consider the following:

• how the service understand the needs of the community

• how the service address the needs of the community (support for service improvement)

• how well the service aligns its activities to the councils wellbeing objectives

• the quality and frequency of service contact with all relevant stakeholders

• How responses to engagement activity (e.g. customer surveys, focus groups, pubic events etc.) are used to support service review and refocus

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

All Councils set out their priorities from the law, Highways Act 1980 guidance document called “Well Managed Highways

Infrastructure”, which enables them to provide a safe highway infrastructure which helps them to achieve their shared vision

to improve the lifestyles, economy and build community resilience.

MTCBC Highways have a Highways Network Plan that details the priorities and stipulates the actions required to ensure highways are maintained adequately for its communities.

Highways undertake a scanner survey of all A, B & C roads within the Borough this identifies the condition of the network and prioritise them using a RAG status. Highways then prioritise the red areas and use Capital monies to resurface these areas, again ensuring highways are kept accessible and safe for its communities.

Highways also undertake inspections of all adopted highways. Safety defects and customer complaints are identified and then prioritised and works carried out by our in-house operations team. Priorities are identified in one of 4 categories;

Emergency Works

• These are repairs that are required as a matter of urgency to prevent damage to life or limb. We aim to remove any identified danger within 24 hours.

Priority 1 Works

• These repairs are usually minor in nature but need to be executed as soon as the necessary resources permit. The target repair time for Priority 1 Works is 20 working days.

Priority 2 Works

• Are repairs that will take longer than a single day to complete or do not yet meet the established criteria and consequently need to be programmed into the Operation Team workload. Priority 2 Works have a target repair time of 30 working days.

Priority 3 Works

• Are minor schemes and have no set time for completion except to say that the work should be completed within a timescale (less than 6 months) agreed with the originator of the repair.

The Highways service engages with stakeholders through monthly meetings, team briefings, contact magazine, memo’s, scrutiny reports, cabinet reports, local press, corporate communications & social media, letters or emails and telephones conversations. Complaint responses and feedback is provided within 5 working days.

The above priorities link in with our PSB wellbeing plan for Economy & Infrastructure for a strong local economy with sustainable transport.

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PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

The Replacement Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council Local Development Plan (LDP) was subject to a statutory consultation process with the community. The community would have had an opportunity to respond to the consultations and influence land use planning in their area. Planning plays a significant contribution to the improvement of well-being in all of its aspects. As Planning Policy Wales (PPW) points out planning ‘The primary objective of PPW is to ensure that the planning system contributes towards the delivery of sustainable development and improves the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of Wales, as required by the Planning (Wales) Act 2015, the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 and other key legislation and resultant duties such as the Socio-economic Duty. A well functioning planning system is fundamental for sustainable development and achieving sustainable places’. The Councils wellbeing objectives underpin the vision and policies in the LDP with each planning application being determined in accordance with this Development Plan.

This list is not exhaustive but there is also collaboration with:

• Regeneration (e.g. Dragon Parc, St. Tydfil’s Hospital, The Cyfarthfa Plan, The Town Centre Master Plan etc).

• Estates to consider potential developments on land owned by the Council.

• Corporate Property and Education to deliver new schools.

• Social Services and Housing regarding the provision of affordable housing, housing for the homeless and accommodation for children who require care and support.

• Drainage Engineers in setting up and being part of the Sustainable Drainage Approval Body (SAB).

Building Control

The service ensures the appropriate priority is provided to each request or report and in any event, all are dealt with within 24- 48hrs. Further to this, as Building Regulation applications are subject to fees it is essential even though it is a statutory provision that a level of service is provided to the applicants. This ensures that not only inspections are carried out timely but also allows for early intervention of any contraventions found.

Any request for Building Regulation inspections are dealt with within 24hrs and 90% of dangerous structures and possible contraventions are investigated within 48 hrs.

The section also offers support and advice to other departments such as environmental health and trading standards etc when requested. This provides for a more joined up approach to issues that can and do affect more than one department especially when dealing with enforcement. The section also works closely with Planning and Planning enforcement officers on numerous applications and enforcement issues. This helps provides a better service from the Planning Department as a whole.

The Group Leader meets regularly with other Building Control managers through LABC manager meetings this allows for ideas and issues to be brought to wider audience of Building Control professionals and a forum to discuss issues or interpretation of the Regulations. The Building Control team also interact on a daily basis with professional agents, this provides a steady stream of dialog, improving professional relationships, leading to a better, more robust level of compliance with the building regulations.

The department also collaborates with all Local Authorities through the partnership scheme and also works closely with South Wales Fire and Rescue on Fire related matters.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Consultation events held with the public to set corporate priorities.

• Environmental Wellbeing is a Council wellbeing objective.

• Work in conjunction with third parties ie. KWT/community groups.

• Close links set up with local councillors – community groups.

• Councillors assisting community group projects and in turn liaising with cleansing teams.

• Local authority has good working relationships with community groups and volunteers, collecting rubbish/recycling on a weekly basis.

• Liaise with xxxx councillors via PACT meetings.

• Liaise with community group leaders.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Regular portfolio meetings take place which are helpful to provide feedback on some of the work we are carrying out or planning.

• Regular meetings take place with stake holders.

• Currently changing the emphasis on how grass land management is undertaken to ensure the service aligns with the

council’s well being objectives as well as section 6 of the Environment (Wales) Act 2016.

WASTE SERVICES

• We engage with the community on a regular basis through questionnaires, surveys and social media.

• We evaluate feedback from the above point and implement any feasible changes.

• In all service delivery waste services aligns all activities to the five ways of working, wellbeing objectives in particular the Authorities EW1 goals. We apply this to all service changes, projects and funding applications.

• Partnership working with services such as street cleansing, parks and fly tipping to sustainably manage their waste through relevant legislation to ensure best value, efficiency of services and best value of service for our customers. We also engage with support services such as HR, Legal, procurement and one stop shop.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• One of our objectives is recycle more as part of Neighbourhood Services we have done this by working together and sharing resources, to recycle highways trees and highways concrete debris. This also links in with the Environmental Well Being Act.

• Highways Network Plan

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• As a result of collaboration with Estates a number of sites have been sold and have either gained planning permission or applications are currently being considered.

• Early in house collaboration to ensure the smooth and efficient determination of applications.

• Partnership working to ensure, as far as possible, there is consistency across the region in terms of planning and other decisions.

Building Control

• Close working links with internal and external departments and organisations

• Established professional links with local agents, providing advice support to ensure better quality of applications and fewer contraventions.

• Member of the SAB drainage board

• Participant in the LABC partnership scheme

• Close working links with boarding Building Control Authorities

• Investigation of all dangerous structures and complaints within 48hrs

• Same day inspection of Building Regulation requests.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Weekly collections agreed with community groups.

• Good working relationship with internal departments.

• Good working relationship with neighbouring authorities and external organisations/public bodies.

• Amnesty days held with Waste Services.

• Our goal is a clean environment – this is achieved through collaborative working with community groups.

• Attendance at public meetings (e.g. public group wanting to open and close cemetery gates) although this has been curtailed. We now have a contractor opening/closing cemetery gates as approved by Council. I meet groups i.e. BID as and when requested.

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PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Departmental priorities are aligned to corporate priorities (protection and enhancement of biodiversity) as indicated by the neighbourhood Services SOAP and feedback from elected members. Meetings have taken place with all xxxx members to discuss grass cutting priorities, but other issues and concerns were discussed too.

• Statutory functions are prioritised, but community needs are taken into account. (E.g., eradication of Japanese Knotweed)

• Customer and community needs are important to us and complaints and requests come via the council’s central hub and are put on to the council’s Tascomi complaints database. Where applicable and if requested, complainants are contacted and in the vast majority of cases the customer is usually satisfied with the end results.

• The majority of complaints which come via the one stop shop are recorded on the Tascomi system which allows further analysis of trends, hotspots or subjects which have been raised by the community. Managers and officers can be contacted individually and will deal with all complaints and queries in a professional manner. However, some of the important data is not recorded if these avenues are used.

• The manager and team leaders are often requested to attend site meetings sometimes with councillors and/or members of the public who have issues that need addressing. In the majority of cases these issues can be solved, and a positive outcome can be reached.

• The manager attends various stakeholder meetings such as The Merthyr Football League, friends of groups and community groups to assist in implementing their requirements if possible.

WASTE SERVICES

• In 2021/22 it was identified via queries and complaints to the Authority that there was a need for suitable containers at our Cemeteries for residents to dispose of their waste sustainably when visiting them. In 2022/23 we installed Recycle on the Go bins so that users of the Cemeteries could place plastics & cans, glass and non-recyclable waste into separate compartments in the bin. As well as ensuring that our residents have the facility to recycle on the go we have diverted recyclable items from energy from waste and made available for recycling. To complement this service the cages used at the Cemeteries previously for all waste were adapted with the provision of lids for the collection of green waste, predominantly flowers. These are now composted along with other green waste collected by the Authority.

• All projects, funding applications and service changes operated by waste services adhere to five ways of working and the wellbeing objectives in particular EW1.

• A questionnaire has been developed to ascertain residents opinions of the waste and recycling services provided.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• The need to provide skip and scaffolding permits online to streamline application process and free up administrative support.

• To identify the condition of the unclassified roads through scanner survey.

• To identify the condition of the adopted footway networks through visual survey.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning

• Greater collaboration with the Councils Housing department, Members, developers and Housing Associations to ensure the delivery of affordable and other housing in the correct locations.

Building Control

• More structured interaction with agents through an agent forum.

• Customer feedback forms.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Liaise more closely with the Police.

• Look at prevention.

• Improve communication via Comms.

• Community champions.

• Trunk road network - litter picked and monitored monthly. All waste off trunk roads is now recycled at source.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• To fulfil our obligations within the Environment (Wales) Act 2016 and also the Council’s nature recovery plan, the public’s expectations around grass cutting frequencies must be addressed. The way grassland management has been carried out over recent years is no longer viable. This is due to reduced resources but also and more importantly to meet our requirements to enhance and protect our biodiversity. There is also a mismatch between what can now be achieved and the public’s expectations. Raising awareness of these issues will be important in the coming years.

WASTE SERVICES

• Improve communications.

• Improve channels of working to obtain feedback from residents.

• Increase frequency of dry recycling and food waste participation monitoring.

• Survey residents to obtain feedback on barriers to recycling WEEE.

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• To identify the condition of the unclassified roads using the scanner survey vehicle. This information will help to identify the condition of the unclassified network in a RAG status. Provide evidence for future Capital funding and help prioritise future Capital works for resurfacing and micro asphalt. Being able to improve unclassified highway network would provide communities with better roads to travel on, reduce complaints and potentially reduce third party claims.

• To identify the condition of the adopted footway networks through undertaking visual surveys. This information will help to identify the condition of the footway network in a RAG status. Provide evidence for future Capital funding and help prioritise future Capital works for footway works such as tarmac or paving. Improving footpaths will benefits communities through providing safer, more accessible pathways that again feed into the Councils shared vision of providing better community assets that encourage healthy living and improve wellbeing.

• Future organisational aims and staff developments to be communicated to ensure all employees are kept informed of performance and Service direction.

• Highways shall obtain regular customer feedback in order to continuously improve, and all employees are encouraged to identify problems and make suggestions via the available systems to improve all aspects of working practices. These will be considered by senior management and appropriate actions taken and communicated.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• More consultation required with members of the public to educate/reinforce their responsibilities in relation to waste.

• Introduce more preventative signage throughout the County Borough ie. trunk roads/litter bins etc.

• Work more closely with CCTV to gather more information/evidence.

• Enforcement officers required to reduce litter, cigarette nips and dog fouling.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Further consultation and public awareness on the issue of biodiversity and the reduction in grass cutting frequency.

WASTE SERVICES

• Increase the frequency and range of questionnaires.

• Provide suggestion boxes at council locations for public opinions.

• Consult with public on service changes.

• Improve waste services web pages to allow customer feedback.

• To ensure that following customer feedback assessment is communicated back to the customer.

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QUESTION 3: LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

Question 3.5: How does the service fulfil its’ statutory responsibility

relating to safeguarding?

JUDGEMENT

< Adequate >

EVALUATION: • Does the service work to support vulnerable children and/or adults?

• What policies/procedures does the service use to ensure staff safety?

When answering the question, consider the ESTYN guidance 3.4 – safeguarding

CURRENT STATUS

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

HIGHWAYS

To ensure Highways staff are safe within their working environment all staff undertake relevant Health & Safety training and provided with PPE appropriate to their job roles.

• Traffic management H&S - ensures safety to workers and the general public.

• Risk Assessments – ensure control measures are place – ensures safety to workers and the general public.

• Safe Systems of Work – process of tasks to carry out the item of work.

• PPE – personal protective equipment for the worker.

• Daily vehicles check – ensure the vehicle is safe to drive.

• Vehicles with appropriate colour & chapter 8 markings – ensure others can see the vehicle.

• Vehicle tracker – identifies driver, vehicle and location.

• HAV’S – monitor hand arm vibration of tools staff use.

• Lone workers within Highways are made aware of the lone worker policy and are equipped to recognise risk and are made aware that support is available and are encouraged to report any adverse incidents.

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

Planning and Building Control

All officers have Personal Protective Equipment to ensure safety while out on site. The department are aware and operate within the GDPR regulations.

A lone working procedure is in place where officers display their site visit locations on a white board and times they leave and are due to return to the office. All officers use their own personal phones for work purposes. A buddy system is in place that ensures officers telephone the office when they have finished on site and are going straight home.

The team complete all required modules of Bobs Business to renew and further develop our awareness of corporate requirements.

Building Control Officers have attended scaffolding courses and safe ladder courses.

All members of staff have completed the required “Level 1-Safeguarding” e-learning.

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• The department is a statutory function and staff work within the parameters of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

• All complaints received are investigated and appropriate action taken.

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• All areas of littering are dealt with via our Tascomi database and complaints are actioned within 5 working days, needles within 24 hours, dog fouling within 3 days.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Manager attends safeguarding and parenting group.

• Disseminates any corporate information relating to safeguarding issues.

WASTE SERVICES

• Risk assessments and SSOW are developed for all service provision.

• All services work within the criteria of the Equalities Act

• The department provides the following services to support vulnerable adults and children:

• Assisted collections for residents who cannot bring their containers to the collection point.

• A sharps and dialysis collection.

• Additional capacity bins for residents that produce excess waste due to children in nappies or incontinence waste produced at the property.

GOOD PRACTICE

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• MTCBC Highways Network Plan

• MTCBC Winter Maintenance Plan

• MTCBC Street Lighting Plan

PLANNING & BUILDING CONTROL

• Bobs Business training records

• Health & Safety and Work policy

• Lone Working procedure

• PPE equipment

• Safety Course attended

STREET CLEANSING & BEREAVEMENT SERVICES

• Liaise with xxxx councillors via PACT meetings.

• Liaise with community group leaders.

• Online report it page.

• Coloured bags used for community groups ensuring the correct waste is bagged appropriately.

PARKS & COUNTRYSIDE

• Corporate staff training undertaken by all staff.

• New recruits assessed to establish the need for Criminal Record Bureau (CRB) checks

WASTE SERVICES

• When engaging with children and vulnerable adults set processes and procedures are implemented.

• Staff are trained on lone working.

AREAS FOR DEVELOPMENT

In light of the evidence given above, identify areas that the service would like to develop in order to do better.

HIGHWAYS/ENGINEERING

• Update the MTCBC Highways Network Plan

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CRAFFU : GWASANAETHAU CYMDOGOL, CHEFN GWLAD A CYNLLUNIO

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