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County Council Leader’s Annual Report 2015-16

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 1 I can scarcely believe that a year has gone by since my election • the Council has made good progress in establishing as Leader of Carmarthenshire County Council in May 2015. improved governance arrangements which are now more Becoming the Leader of such a successful council was robust and transparent, although there are opportunities for undoubtedly a great honour. But with that comes an enormous further improvements to enable Members to be more n burden of responsibility. effective in their roles; Normally in these circumstances, a Leader has to rely upon a • the council’s arrangements for managing its resources have degree of self assessment when determining whether the last 12 served it well in the past, but the current approach in some o months have successful or not. But on this occasion I can turn to areas is out-dated and not joined up, which may limit the i no less a figure than the Auditor General ..The Audit Office speed of progress towards improved outcomes for citizens; undertook a Corporate Assessment of Carmarthenshire County

t • the Council has an established and effective approach to Council during the last year and I am proud to say that the partnership working; Authority was highly praised for having “a well established vision that is driven forward by a strong collective leadership from both • the council’s framework to manage improvement is good but lacks qua;lity and consistent application within some c Executive and Corporate Management Teams”. departments leading to a lack of accountability; The report stated that a clear framework of well-aligned plans and • the council in collaboration with partners, is continuing to strategies, agreed to with partners, has translated into priorities for improve performance across its priority areas u action. This has ensured that a strong ethos of continuous improvement runs through everything the council does. Right from the outset I made it clear that, as Leader, my top priority would be regeneration. By this I meant the creation of sustainable places, where people want to live, work, invest and visit, whilst d enabling our residents and businesses to achieve their potential. If The Auditor General concluded that: our communities are to survive and prosper, we need jobs. By “Carmarthenshire County Council, demonstrating ambition in its improving the economic prospects of our county, we can have a o vision, with collective leadership and more robust and transparent direct impact on the prosperity of our families and communities. governance, is delivering improved outcomes for its citizens r These are things that take time and just 12 months into this job I although some out-dated approaches may limit the speed of shan’t pretend that all our goals have been achieved. However, our progress. He came to this conclusion because: t commitment to the people of Carmarthenshire demonstrates that • increasingly collective leadership is supporting a revised we are in this for the long haul. We are not just about short-term vision for Carmarthenshire and sustaining a culture of fixes for long-term problems. That’s why we have recently unveiled improvement; an ambitious 15 year plan which aims to transform the economy of n Carmarthenshire. I

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Our regeneration plan identifies six key transformational projects which we We continue to work collaboratively with neighbouring local authorities. Our hope will create over 5,000 new jobs and make the economy of the county involvement with the Swansea Bay City Region has been particularly fruitful. more productive and competitive. The six projects are based upon specific It is a partnership between four local authorities working closely with local geographic locations across the county, with each focusing upon local need businesses and a range of other partners in pursuit of the common goal of and opportunity. creating economic prosperity for the people who live and work in the region. They are: • ; • ; • the Carmarthenshire Coastal Belt; • the Cross Hands Growth Zone; Cllr. Emlyn Dole • ; Leader, Carmarthenshire County Council • the rural economy. A range of business sectors are being targeted including the creative industries, tourism, agri-food, advanced manufacturing, energy and environment, financial and professional services. In addition, investment in key infrastructure projects to unlock economic opportunity will be targeted, together with investment in rural Carmarthenshire to tackle poverty. The council will also develop a new programme of support to improve skills and help longer term unemployed people back into work. Significant investment is taking place to ensure the county is well connected and at the forefront of the digital age. High levels of digital connectivity are now in place in Carmarthenshire for us to benefit from, in both our home and work lives. More investment is underway and planned within our transport infrastructure including new link roads at Cross Hands and to the west of Carmarthen. The scale of the projects is hugely ambitious and transformational. We know that to be successful we need to think big and work closely with the private sector. I firmly believe that Carmarthenshire has the right mix of elements to create the foundations of a strong and healthy economy for current and future generations.

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 3 Despite the reduction in funding from Welsh Government the The proposed capital programme is now £226m over the 5 years, Authority has been able to set a balanced budget for the and is aimed at delivering significant investment in a number of forthcoming financial year, whilst at the same time maintaining key projects that will create jobs and improve the quality of life for service standards to a large degree. For a number of years the the people of Carmarthenshire. Authority has recognised the need to do things differently and The programme includes significant investment in areas like the prioritise how it wishes to spend its increasingly scarce resources. 21st Century Schools, Highways, Housing and the Llanelli Care s All commentators seem to indicate a continued or greater Home provision, and we have also introduced some new exciting

’ squeeze on public finances for the future as the UK government schemes which will support the regeneration and the creation of l

i continues to work to eliminate the structural deficit. jobs.

s Over the coming three years reductions of £34m will need to be

c delivered assuming the reduction in Local Government funding

e continues as forecasted within our Medium Term Financial Plan.

n This year‘s consultation process has again seen significant debate

c on the budget and the Executive Board are grateful for the Our budget strategy ensures, as far as u responses, I am pleased to say that the additional members possible, that service levels and standards n seminars continued this year and have again been of great are maintained. It recognises that people o benefit in both providing members with a greater input to the budget proposals and gaining feedback for the Executive Board are finding it hard in the current climate a to consider. I would like to thank fellow members for their input and therefore the increase in the council C and commitment.

n “ tax has been kept as low as possible. It also i The public consultation process on the budget has been extensive, using a variety of methods to ascertain views on the prepares the authority for any future F e budget proposals. Significant feedback was received and I would reductions in funding that may lie ahead like to express my thanks to all who took part in the consultation h or responded to the surveys. We intend to develop this

T consultation further for next year’s budget, providing greater Cllr. David Jenkins information on the options being proposed. Deputy Leader and Executive Board Member for Resources I am extremely pleased that the Council has adopted an exciting and ambitious capital programme that reflects our strategic ” priorities, vision and aspirations.

4 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Full council meeting Millenium Coastal Path Managers Conference

Gwyl Gymraeg, Carmarthen Insight budget consultation

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 5 Core values e Following the recent consultation of our staff and members we have now agreed revised Core Values that reflect the type of organisation we want Carmarthenshire Council to be. Great care has been taken to reduce the number of values to no more than five; making sure that they are written in plain language that is easily understood and free from jargon. They are a guide to how c we all behave in the workplace. The next stage in the process is to ensure that those core values become second nature in all that

r we do as a council. o f

k Core

r values Customers First Take

o Responsibility

One Listening Team W

Excellence r

Integrity u

6 O Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 The work of the Welsh Advisory Panel, chaired by Councillor Mair

Stephens and the vice-chairmanship of Councillor Cefin Campbell, has g continued unabated, leading on implementing the recommendations of the 'Welsh in Carmarthenshire’. We have already seen progress on

many of the recommendations from the field of Education to the e adoption of the Council’s new Language Skills Strategy. This framework will set the in the context of attracting and recruiting

staff together with development opportunities for everyone to improve a their skills. r The Council has been preparing the way to introducing the new Welsh Yr Egin Language Standards during the year. The Standards replaced our Welsh Language Scheme from 30 March 2016 and has established five areas of

development for our attention. There will also be new opportunities for m us to co-operate with external partners, as we prepare a Promotion Strategy for September 2016. y I’d like to congratulate the two Welsh Language Centres in the county for all their hard work during the year, and it’s pleasing to be in a position to co-operate with Y Lle in Llanelli and Yr Atom in Carmarthen in promoting the use of the Welsh language. We have already witnessed a G

number of exciting projects and events during the last year and we look forward to another busy calendar of activities during 2016-17. h The period of preparation toward the standards t

has been a good opportunity for us to look at i the current situation within the Council,

prioritising actions to ensure the next phase of a

delivery and promotion of the language I

“ Cllr Mair Stephens Yr Atom Executive Board Member for Human Resources, Efficiencies and Collaboration r Y Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 ” y Carmarthenshire continues to be one of the safest areas in the UK. • The Council has continued to work with licensed premises Crime rates continue to be significantly lower in Carmarthenshire and other partners to address problems in Town Centres of t compared to the average for and Wales. alcohol and drug related crime and anti-social behaviour. Joint licensing visits have taken place by the Council’s While there has been an increase in recorded crime overall in the e licensing team and police with proactive work at Christmas last year of 10.8%, a rise of 794 to 8,128 reported crimes in and during the Six Nations games. Police continue to work f 2015/16, it is difficult to compare figures with the previous year. closely with Trading Standards officers to tackle underage This is because there have been changes made in recording drinking and sales to young people. practices by the police, resulting in increased accuracy of a recording. Any future changes in reported crime levels should be as a result of a change in crime patterns as opposed to being due S to an administrative change.

Successes have continued to be seen as a result of partnership working between our key partners. y Although reported crimes are amongst

t These have included:

i the lowest in the UK, we all need to do • `Trawsnewid/Transform` - the Integrated Offender Management scheme has continued to target a cohort of everything we can to protect ourselves

n offenders by a co-located team of Police and Probation and our families from becoming victims officers working with a number of partner agencies including the Council’s Housing, Children’s Services and Mental Health of crime. u “ and Learning Disabilities divisions. A reduction in crimes in the last year by these prolific offenders has resulted in a cost of crime saving of over £800,000. Cllr. Pam Palmer

m • A range of crime prevention work including work with Deputy Leader and Executive Board Member for Communities vulnerable people to try to prevent them being a victim of scams. Police and Trading Standards officers have been ” visiting potential vulnerable victims subjected to scams

m received in the post, on the internet and from phone calls. • Support for the ‘White Ribbon Campaign’ against domestic abuse was supported with councillors and officers signing a o pledge not to commit or condone violence against women and girls, C 8 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 I greatly value the work Trading Standards does to protect consumers from rogue traders and scammers

“ Cllr Jim Jones Executive Board Member for Environmen”tal and Public Protection

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 9 Education The Council has bolstered its governance of education services by establishing a School Improvement Panel to challenge and

s Pupils in Carmarthenshire’s schools once more enjoyed support schools along their improvement journey, working considerable success. alongside the long-established and effective Corporate Parenting

e At GCSE Carmarthenshire’s school pupils achieved their highest Panel, which has had its remit extended to include responsibility ever examination results, for the second year in succession, with for scrutinising all aspects of children’s safeguarding. Both Panels d support the Education and Children’s Scrutiny Committee in c the proportion achieving the coveted Level 2 Inclusive standard i (a minimum of 5 number GCSE passes at grade A* to C including monitoring performance and progress and in advising the n mathematics and either English or Welsh first language) breaking Executive Board on improvement actions. v through the 60% threshold for the first time, with performance at r

a 61.1%. A level students maintained their high level performance, School Federations

with Carmarthenshire students continuing in the top five of best

e performing Welsh council areas. The Department has continued to expand the school federation

n programme as a means of strengthening leadership and

S There was further improvement in school attendance rates, governance across the schools network so as to improve sustaining good progress in this important area as regular school performance and raise standards. Carmarthenshire has the o attendance is vital to a young person’s prospects of succeeding. s

i highest number of schools of all Welsh councils participating in a federal arrangement with a number of successful federations in ’

t Other education measures have continued to improve, with all main indicators at or above expected benchmark levels. place in the primary sector and the formal federation of Glanymor and Bryngwyn secondary schools, the first of its kind in Wales, n a Significant successes include: already proving to be highly successful. This federation is drawing • Teacher assessments have improved at all key stages. national interest as a case model of good practice. e

c • Improved outcomes in national literacy and numeracy tests.

r Welsh Medium and Bilingual Education • Diverse range of other achievements in schools, e.g.

u Carmarthenshire continues to have the highest number of The Department successfully launched “Codi Caerau”, the Welsh

d young people entering and completing the Duke of Language Charter for Welsh medium primary schools in l December 2015. The aim of the Charter is to encourage children i Edinburgh Awards Scheme of all Welsh councils, etc. d to use the Welsh language in every aspect of their daily lives. A version for non-Welsh medium schools will be launched in the E h Carmarthenshire’s schools fared well in the national school categorisation for 2015 with 77% of Carmarthenshire’s school summer term in 2016. categorised as “Green” or “Yellow” and no schools categorised as

C “Red”.

10 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Ysgol Carreg Hirfaun

Ysgol Bro Dinefwr Ysgol Dyffryn Aman

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 11 Children’s Services The pupils from the former Pantycelyn school moved into their new home upon its completion and were joined by the pupils of the former Garreglwyd The Department once more secured a very positive annual evaluation from unit for young people with autism, which henceforth will be housed in a new the Care and Social Services Inspectorates Wales of the performance of its purpose built specialist facility known as Canolfan Cothi as part of Ysgol Bro children’s services. It was particularly pleasing to note CSSIW’s commendation Dinefwr. The pupils of the former Ysgol Tregib will join their peers in of the effective strategic and operational leadership of children’s services by September. senior managers and recognition that the alignment of children’s services with education in an integrated department under the control of a corporate The following major projects were completed during the year: director for children is a key strength of this Council. Furthermore, the report • Ysgol y Strade: an £8.2 million development providing a large extension noted continuing improvement in the quality of services despite an increase and refurbishment of the existing school premises. in the number of children being referred. • : a £3.8 million investment to provide new premises for the The Department has once more reduced the number of looked after children primary school. This is the first Passivhous school in Britain, with an during the year, maintaining the progressive trend of recent years, which has exemplar energy efficient building. seen numbers reduce by 16% from their high point in 2012, with the figures • Ysgol Carreg Hirfaen: a £5.8 million development of new primary school now being at their lowest level for almost 10 years. This has been achieved premises. through the refocusing of the work of selected front line children’s social work Investment projects have been commenced at: teams, with an increased emphasis upon preventative work, guided by a realigned family support strategy, which in turn is supported by a refocused • Coedcae: the construction of a new science and technology block and the Families First programme and the expanded Flying Start programme. The refurbishment of existing premises through an investment of £6.7 million. new model of working will continue to be rolled out over the coming year to • Seaside: the construction of a new two form entry primary school with make the practice universal across the service nursery, at a value of £10.2 million. • : an investment of £6.8 million in the construction of a new school with nursery and accommodation for Flying Start. Modernising Education Programme Preparations are now being made for the next wave of major investments 2015/2016 has been a particularly successful year for investment in school with projects for schools at , Parc y Tywyn, Dewi Sant and Penygaer, premises, with £39 million invested in a number of landmark projects. , and Ammanford at various stages of development. The brand new school premises for Ysgol Bro Dinefwr in Llandeilo were completed in February 2016 bringing to a conclusion an investment of some £30 million in this new school. Added to the significant refurbishment and extension of the premises of both Ysgol Dyffryn Aman and Ysgol Maes y Gwendraeth we are nearing completion of an investment of some £68 million in the Dinefwr secondary schools transformation programme.

12 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Burry Port Primary School

The high standards achieved at A level this year reflect the commitment of the authority through its schools, colleges and support services to all of our young people in “ providing them with every opportunity to achieve their full potential

Cllr GO Jones Executive Board Member for Education and Children ” Ysgol Strade Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 13 Wellness and Life Science Village Carmarthen West Link Road

n Carmarthenshire County Council is currently in discussion with its Last Summer the Council agreed to pre-fund the Link Road within partners on how to drive forward plans for a unique Wellness and the Carmarthen West development and if necessary use Life Science Village at Delta Lakes, Llanelli. The multi-million compulsory purchase powers to secure the land required. The decision was subject to the money being recovered from the

o pound Council-led project will be the first of its kind and is being developed through ARCH – A Regional Collaboration for Health - developers as the development proceeded. Carmarthen West is i an initiative by Abertawe and Hywel Dda Health Boards and identified as a Strategic Site within the council’s adopted Local

t Swansea University. Development Plan and is allocated for mixed use development. The Planning and Development Brief for the site sets guidance for ARCH provides a new model for delivering healthcare specifically the delivery of 1,100 houses, the largest housing scheme in planned for today’s increasingly complex needs. The Wellness Carmarthenshire’s local development plan, together with a new and Life Science Village aims to transform the way the region a link road, primary school, employment space, a small retail centre, delivers economic development and at the same time promotes open space and affordable housing. r wellbeing – partnering first-class health, research and life science, with innovative leisure opportunities to help people live healthy The Carmarthen Western Link Road forms a key element of the lives. As the Minister acknowledged, these are truly exciting plans development and will link the A40 at Travellers Rest with College and form an integral part of the ARCH initiative that aims to Road, providing direct access to the Trunk Road network for St e improve the quality of health care and also boost the region’s David’s Park, S4C’s new headquarters and the University of Wales economy and skills base in a sustainable way. Trinity St David’s Carmarthen campus.

n The concept of a Wellness and Life Science Village follows talks on plans to build a new leisure centre in Llanelli and the council’s desire to work collaboratively with partners in the fields of health Carmarthenshire Rural Enterprise Fund (CREF) and academia whilst putting additional investment into facilities The £4m fund provides grant aid assistance to rural enterprises e and services to help prevent ill-health and reduce pressure on and sole traders for the development of new and existing front-line health care. Scoping work to fine-tune details of the business premises, where new jobs are created as a result of the pioneering scheme is underway, with potential to include a state- capital project. The building to be developed, improved or of-the-art wellness and leisure centre, and life science and

g extended will have to be based in Rural Area of Carmarthenshire research facilities, as well as the possibility of a hotel, conference as defined in Local Development Strategy for Rural facilities and high-spec business suites. Carmarthenshire. e R 14 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Delta Lakes

I firmly believe Carmarthenshire has the right mix of elements to create the foundations of a strong and healthy economy ensuring jobs for “ current and future generations Cllr. Meryl Gravell OBE Executive Board Member for Regeneration and Leisure

” Cycle route

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 15 Transformational Commercial Property Development The total cost of the development was more than £666,000 and the PDF Fund (TCPDF) grant was almost £300,000 . The South consortium of local authorities, (Carmarthenshire, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire and Swansea) The total project cost of £6.66m provides an incentive to Commercial Property is working in partnership with the Welsh Government to deliver a Property Developers to stimulate the supply of high quality business premises within Development Fund, administered by Carmarthenshire County Council in its Carmarthenshire by offering ‘gap’ funding support towards the development role as lead body. The scheme provides financial assistance for the of high quality industrial units and / or office accommodation. Buildings to be construction of industrial and commercial property with the primary aim of developed will be based on strategic employment zones within the creating capacity for employment in selected strategic areas of South West transformational project areas. Wales. Funding for this programme was secured from the European Union via the convergence programme.

Cross Hand Strategic Employment Site Construction works has reached a practical completion with 8.5ha of land New office complex in Cross Hands transformed into a fully serviced employment site incorporating primary site A new office complex has been completed in Cross Hands with the support infrastructure, landscaping and flexible development plateaus. The official of the Property Development Fund which funded by the European Regional launch will be in July. There has been significant interest for the site, with Development Fund through the Welsh Government. The development at over 12 ongoing enquiries. The site will provide the necessary infrastructure Llys y Barcud, Cross Hands Business Park, was developed by Enzo’s Lettings to create a high quality commercial environment to deliver significant job and built by Enzo’s Homes (Wales) Ltd to the cost of almost £955,000 . The opportunities. The site is a key strategic employment destination within the PDF grant received was £429,295.88. The development, which was designed county and is well placed to serve the region. It is anticipated that the by Sauro Architectural Design, achieved a BREEAM Very Good with excellent development would accommodate 600 jobs. An application for funding is energy rating. The offices can accommodate up to 54 jobs and 12 businesses. currently being drafted, requesting approximately £2.4m of ERDF grant for the South West region. Regeneration of rural Carmarthenshire The Coracle Offices in St Catherine Street A new programme to support the regeneration of rural Carmarthenshire was launched in October. The programme will be administered by the Council on The opening of commercial premises in the centre of Carmarthen was one of behalf of the Grŵp Cefn Gwlad Local Action Group. The LEADER programme the final pieces of the jigsaw in the redevelopment of that part of the town. was designed to get local people, businesses and communities involved in The Coracle Offices in St Catherine Street were built with the support of the delivering sustainable, innovative solutions to address some of the economic, South West Wales Property Development Fund whose lead authority is social and environmental challenges facing rural Carmarthenshire. Grŵp Carmarthenshire County Council.

16 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Cefn Gwlad has responsibility for rural regeneration and has developed a Wales Air Ambulance strategy which will provide a framework for LEADER activity within the county. This project has been supported by Carmarthenshire County Council and the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government. The The types of projects that might be funded include pilot projects - small scale Carmarthenshire Physical Regeneration Package awarded a Property and time limited activities aimed at testing out a concept or to try an Development Grant of £707,156 to Hacer Developments Ltd. Llandeilo to innovative technique; feasibility studies to undertake research into a specific create new office and industrial space adjacent to The Beacon in Dafen, issue or problem; and facilitation and mentoring support to organisations Llanelli. The £1.6m project has created an office building of 650m2 and an and groups to help develop their skills and expertise. industrial building of 600m2 which can accommodate 57 jobs. In order to qualify for LEADER funding applicants have to be located in one of Since 1st March 2016 it has been the headquarters for the Wales Air the following rural areas: , Carmarthen Town North, Carmarthen Ambulance and the industrial building will house the helicopters and Town South, Carmarthen Town West, , , , Cynwyl ancillary support services later this year. Gaeo, Garnant, Glanamman, Glyn, , Hendy, , Laugharne Township, , , Llandeilo, , , Llanfihangel Aberbythych, Llanfihangel-ar-Arth, Llangadog, , , Llangyndeyrn, , Llansteffan, , Manordeilo and Regeneration of the Velodrome in Carmarthen Salem, Pembrey, , , St. Clears, St. Ishmael, , We’ve also agreed to support the regeneration of the historic velodrome in Trimsaran, and . Carmarthen with a capital funding contribution of £286,000. The funding enables a further £296,000 grant from Sport Wales, and will see the velodrome at Carmarthen Park become a regional centre of excellence for The HUB cycling. The track, which first opened in 1900, will be used as a training and competition venue for cyclists, with an upgraded track and safety fencing to The Un Sir Gar Hub has now been open for 21 months. The aim is to help bring it back into use. Carmarthen velodrome will become a hub of activity customers to move closer to the labour market and financial independence. serving the whole community, and would be able to nurture the future The Hub’s long term goal is to support residents in overcoming their barriers champions. and find rewarding, long-term employment/training by utilising all services available to them across the County. Since June 2015, Llanelli’s Customer Service Centre (CSC) was relocated into The Hub, initially for a three month period, whilst refurbishment works were undertaken at Tŷ Elwyn. The move proved very successful, with benefits such as increased footfall into Llanelli Town Centre and a more co-ordinated and seamless approach to supporting customers. As a result, it has been agreed to relocate CSC into the Hub permanently.

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 17 Swansea Bay City Region property owners in the town to bring buildings back into use and to develop brand new employment sites within the vicinity of the town too - property The Swansea Bay City Region has submitted a ground-breaking ‘Internet development funding has been targeted to achieve this. Coast’ City Deal bid to both the UK and Welsh Governments, which will be worth more than £500m over 20 years. The aim is to address the integrated We are also keen to enhance the Twrch Trwyth brand of the town and are universal themes and challenges of energy, health and well-being and also exploring a novel way of introducing a public wifi network into the area. economic acceleration by harnessing the transformational power of digital This is an exciting time for Ammanford, despite several business setbacks of networks and the asset base of Swansea Bay. It is estimated that the City Deal late, the team are keen, enthusiastic and determined to make a difference to investment could lever as much as £3.3bn of output and £1.3bn of gross our town. value added for Wales, while supporting around 39,000 jobs in the region. The City Deal provides a real opportunity to push forward growth in the region and importantly the rural economy of West Wales. There are strong Regional Engagement Team foundations upon which to build, including the strategic employment site at The Authority has also secured the Regional Engagement Team function for Cross Hands, creative industries boosted by the Egin project in Carmarthen the South West Wales region. The key purpose of the Team will be to work and ambitious plans for a Wellness and Life Science Village at Delta Lakes strategically with the Swansea Bay City Region Board in ‘regionally proofing’ Llanelli. applications seeking funding under the new European Structural and The focus of the City Deal on boosting broadband connectivity infrastructure Investment Funding programmes. The Team will also be responsible for is vital for other key sectors such as tourism and the focus on health and evaluating the impact of European funding within the region. social care is also crucial for delivering better services across rural West Wales.

Visit Wales Launch Ammanford The project to develop an International Visitor Attraction Facility in Pendine Having invited tenders for the redevelopment of the former Police Station has been prioritised as one of 10 projects that make up the Visit Wales and Court House in Ammanford, we hope to be in a position to announce an ‘Tourism Attractor’ project with expected grant figure between Visit Wales exciting mixed use development in the near future. The area team for (ERDF) and TMF to be in the region of £4.5 million. The Welsh Government Ammanford has been looking in detail at what improvements the town and has issued an offer letter for £1.5m TMF funding and Visit Wales have now outlying areas need and have drawn up a schedule of issues that need confirmed they have had approval for overall scheme commencement from attention ranging from from minor repairs to large scale investments and the Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO). The project now moves into the developments, including the targeting of some critical "hotspots" and mobilisation phase with a view to commencing construction in the Autumn eyesores with the town. Discussions are also underway with potential of 2017.

18 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Pendine

The HUB Cross Hands East

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 19 Adult Social Care satisfaction, improved overall pay and travelling time for the staff s employed by domiciliary care agencies. The sector has real The CSSIW and WAO have evaluated our Social Services functions financial pressure on it because of the increases in the minimum as ‘amongst the best in Wales’. This is a significant achievement wage and we have been able to work with them and our in- as the authority grapples with reducing budgets and increasing house provider service to ensure the sector remains financially e demand for health and adult social care. stable. We are currently working on an options paper to deliver i A significant focus on the departmental performance pooled budgets with health across older persons. This has to

t management of departments, the budget and key outcomes has make sense in the long run for users but finding the most

i been the key to this continued progress with real improvements effective way to do it is our challenge. being achieved including: We have launched our Older Person strategies and, through this, • A lower rate of delayed transfers of care for older people from we have established a commitment to retain our in-house

n hospital to home. services at the current level. This represents an investment in the Authority as a provider and ensures we will always be a provider • Improvement in the consistency of community packages of last resort should the market fall short in any critical area. A offered across health and social care. commitment to invest millions in our own care provision in u • Real savings being delivered through better targeting of Llanelli remains and we are close to bringing forward plans for preventative services. this. • A small fall in the number of adults with a learning disability We have continued to develop and modernise our services for placed in residential care. adults with a learning disability and have a range of social

m • A small fall in the number of older people in residential care. enterprises linked to employment routes to maximise the independence of these citizens. In Mental Health and Learning These achievements have been recognised through the Disability Services we have seen a small reduction in the numbers Authority winning a UK wide award for improvement and placed in residential care. However, much more work is needed if efficiency placing the Authority in a strong position to implement we are to develop community provision to ensure the Social Services and Wellbeing Act over the next year. Plans

m Carmarthenshire residents with a mental health or learning are now well underway to deliver a new Information and Advice disability remain living in our communities and maximise their Assistance Service to transform our first point of contact to Social level of independence. Services for the public.

o There remains a national challenge as to the suitability of the We have joined with Pembrokeshire to develop a joint legislation in relation to the deprivation of liberty of vulnerable commissioning service, pooling our expertise and purchasing adults. This has created a backlog of assessments in all authorities power to get better value for the services we buy. Our new in Wales which we continue to find a challenge to meet. domiciliary care contract is bedding in well with improved user C

20 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 It’s tremendous that that the performance of our social services has been recognised by the Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales as “ “amongst the best in Wales Cllr Jane Tremlett Executive Board Member for Social Care and Healt”h

ARCH

Housing Social Care

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 21 W e are well underway in producing a paper exploring the potential of a Local In public protection we have continued to deliver food hygiene quality Authority Trading Company for some of our adult social care services. It will outcomes above the Welsh average with the sector delivering higher be interesting to consider how a third party vehicle, wholly owned by the standards than ever before. Trading standards continues to have a national council, could increase investment and even find a platform for the profile for much of its work. Of particular note are impressive initiatives in expansion of council services in the wider market. financial education in schools and ground breaking work preventing the financial exploitation of older people.

Housing Considerable work has been completed in establishing an ambitious Leisure and Culture affordable housing strategy. The Authority is in a strong position as one of the Our leisure centres have gone from strength to strength increasing income only large social housing providers in Wales to have delivered the home and user numbers through expanding the user base. Targeting GP’s to refer is standards. With good housing stock that is well maintained we have created becoming increasingly successful. In this challenging financial climate and a platform for expansion of Local Authority run housing as the core provision with growing market competition we will face further challenges to reduce of social housing in the county. costs and increase income over the coming year. Substantial capital investment in our Gyms next year should pay for itself as we recruit new In doing so we have built on the decision to suspend the right to buy members for what will be an outstanding offer at an affordable price. through buying ourselves out of the HRA. This now allows us to invest in new However we will have to continue to reduce our cost base. homes through buy back schemes, partnerships with landlords and new builds. This will ensure we are able to deliver on our ambitious plan to deliver We are developing detailed plans for a new leisure centre in Llanelli which well over 1000 extra affordable homes in the next 5 years. Plans are underway will form part of the Wellness and Life Science Village. to create an alternative delivery vehicle as a way to add to support these efforts. Of particular note has been the success of our social lettings agency Our country parks are more popular than ever with Pembrey hosting more and our affordable housing plan allows us to expand this through working events over the last year than ever before and visitor numbers up as a result. closely with landlords delivering good quality private sector housing Events such as Park Run increase visitor numbers to our parks, promote managed by us. healthy living and contribute to healthy communities. We are pleased to be supporting the development of a junior park run in Carmarthen town later in After a rise in the level of rent arrears plans are beginning to have an impact the year and will be seeking other opportunities for an expansion of this as work with the Housing Quality Network begins to have a benefit. More innovative social enterprise. This contributes to our goal of increasing the work will be needed in this area over the next year as the impact of central activity levels of children and is already showing signs of making a difference government benefit changes continues to impact on some of our tenants. as more children become active in sport. For our most vulnerable residents we have refocused our efforts on homelessness to a model of prevention and early indications are that our performance in this area is firmly in the top quartile in Wales.

22 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Our libraries are seeing more visitor numbers than in the past and whilst some of our smaller libraries have very limited opening times a re-design of our mobile service should improve our service in the more rural communities. As We need to ensure the supply of affordable technology changes it will be interesting to see the impact of an E reader loan scheme we are developing. homes reflects housing need across Our archive service has had a difficult few years and needs substantial Carmarthenshire. This is a huge challenge, improvement. As a result we have committed £2,000,000 for a new archive but one we’re prepared to meet service based in the county. This is much needed and we will look to consult on detailed plans for this in the coming months. Whilst our theatres have benefitted “ from substantial investment our museums need further work and the Cllr. Linda Evans Executive Board Member for Housing development of sustainable plans for Parc Howard are now underway. The county museum in Abergwili needs substantial work although the proposal for a new cycle route in the Towy Valley will create an opportunity in this area. ” We aim to make Carmarthenshire the cycling capital of Wales. Investment in a closed circuit track and in the historic circuit in Carmarthen Park will enable us to deliver on this ambition. We have expressed an interest in hosting an element of the Tour of Britain with events such as this aiming to place the county as the destination of choice for cyclists in Wales.

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 23 Carmarthenshire benefits from Welsh Safe Routes in Communities

t Government Transport Grants Glanymor, £165,875 to make improvements near Caedcae, Bigyn, Local Transport Fund Lakefield & Copperworks schools. £1.3m for the Carmarthen Western Link Road , linking the A40 at n Travellers Rest with College Road. Providing direct access to the trunk network for St David's Park and the University of Wales Converting street lights to LED Trinity Saint David's Carmarthen campus, relieving congestion The Environment Department is converting its street lighting

e and serving these employment and education sites. lanterns to LED units in a bid to reduce energy costs and CO² £450,000 for phase 2 of the Cross Hands Economic Link Road. emissions. By introducing technology that incorporates a gradual Continuation of the road from the point at which it currently dimming regime it is anticipated the project will deliver efficiency intersects with Black Lion Road northwards to join with the A476. savings of £648,000 year on year upon completion. Although the A transformational scheme of regional importance in the programme will require a capital investment of £2.9 million the

m Swansea Bay City Region Local Transport Plan, which could lead funding stream will utilise a £1.4m interest free loan under the to 1,500 new jobs. Welsh Government’s Invest to Save initiative yielding savings in £950,000 towards four walking and cycling schemes in the energy costs of £410,000 in the first four years alone. A further £238,000 would be saved in the subsequent reduction in n county, the Amman Valley Cycleway, Urban Connections, Towy Valley Transport Corridor and School Transport Routes. maintenance, vehicle and labour costs including night patrols. o Road Safety Capital grants - Ammanford College Bridge

r £150,000 for safety improvements at the A485 – Works to replace Ammanford College Bridge with a new structure i Llanybydder including reduced speed limits, warning signs and was completed in the summer of 2015. The existing bridge was road markings. replaced with a 3.6 metre span structure comprising of precast £145,000 for safety improvements at the A484 Kidwelly to concrete box culvert units to accommodate traffic of up to 40 v Cwmffrwd including reduced speed limits, warning signs and tonnes. The £70,000 scheme was designed in-house by Street surface improvements. Scene officers and the construction work was carried out by the £144,000 for safety improvements at the B4306 Hendy - council’s Direct Labour Organisation.

n Cwmffrwd Route Treatment including reduced speed limits, warning signs and surface improvements. Road Safety Education and Training £138,000 E

24 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 Bwcabus good at taking people shopping but it is also important in keeping people in contact, bringing people into towns to see family and friends and also for Bwcabus continues to have a very positive impact on life in the rural parts of taking family and friends out to rural communities to people who are unable county to the North of Carmarthen. It is now much easier for people living in to leave their homes. communities across the Teify Valley to access local towns and villages to do their shopping; pay their bills and use other services.Before Bwcabus, many Bwcabus has also been working in partnership with health organisations in people didn’t have a bus service or if they did, operated infrequently. Now the Teifi Valley to give patients access to the care they need. Living in rural passengers can pre-book their journeys, six days a week, from 7am to 7pm, and sometimes remote areas of Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, many giving them the freedom to do as they please. patients struggle to attend appointments. But unlike traditional bus services; Bwcabus is flexible, more widely available, and journeys can be pre-booked to This model has revolutionised bus travel in the area and stimulated growth in meet people’s needs when attending appointments. the whole public transport. The growth in patronage has bucked the trend of falling passenger journeys on the public transport network across Wales. This has been achieved through innovation and investment, secured through Biodiversity & Conservation the local authorities, the Wales Government and European monies. The strategy to increase patronage was developed in partnership with Bwcabus We are committed to providing and managing suitable habitat for marsh combined with the development of strategic routes i.e. Cardigan to fritillary butterfly through the Caeau Mynydd Mawr Special Area of Carmarthen and Aberystwyth to Carmarthen. Conservation project. Over the last year we have: • Installed 1,435m of fencing to allow grazing on neglected sites or better The strategic routes were modified to: management of sites which are already grazed; • improve journey times; • Reintroduced grazing by cattle or horses on five sites whilst improving the • improve the quality and frequency of bus services management of grazing on another one site; • introduce through ticketing; • Provided water for stock on three sites; • integrate service timetables with improved connections with other bus • Stock handling and access facilities on four sites; and rail services; • Improved access to two sites to facilitate management works and to give • development of innovative demand responsive service Bwcabus. access for grazing stock; Bwcabus has facilitated the change by enabling the strategic routes to be • Scrub clearance and removal of scrub trees to open up and restore modified and for communities to have access to public transport that would grassland at four sites. not have been possible previously. We currently have 16 management agreements in place, including 75.13ha of Businesses in have praised the service saying they have felt habitat suitable for breeding marsh fritillary. the benefit of Bwcabus bringing people into town. The service is especially

Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 25 Development difference to the operational ratings, costs and as part of the contribution to our obligations in reducing C02 emissions, particularly when combined with We have continued to hold Building Excellence Awards. Two schemes from sustainably and locally sourced raw materials. This resulted in the first fully the Carmarthenshire Building Control Awards (Charles Church – Machynys accredited school building in Wales being delivered at Burry Port School. We and TRJ – Ffwrnes) went forward to the Wales LABC Awards held at the are now developing two further schemes adopting the Passivhaus principles Millennium Centre, Cardiff during the Autumn of 2015. These two schemes alongside the BREEAM Excellent requirements. then went on to represent Carmarthenshire at the National LABC Awards in London during November 2015, receiving national recognition. Increasing utility costs, plus associated penalties for carbon emissions, require delivery of ever more challenging energy efficiency programmes. To-date, the Council has invested £2m in some 200 energy efficiency projects under the SALIX programme. These projects are projected to save £7+m / 41,000 tonnes Apprentices CO2 over the lifetime of the installed technologies. One of these energy During the year we continued through our project contractual requirements efficiency projects is the pool cover at Carmarthen Leisure Centre. This to provide work experience for shared apprentices along with offering became operational during in September 2014 and saved £24,268 in the first opportunities through various incentives such as the LIFT programme for year. Pool covers have subsequently been installed at all the Council’s wet those not in employment. Two young people secured full time sites i.e. Llanelli Leisure Centre, Amman Valley Leisure Centre, Llandovery Pool, apprenticeships through the “Next Steps” scheme and we have provided Newcastle Emlyn Pool, and QE High. Unfortunately, SALIX projects in 2016 work experience for shared apprentices through CCTAL and CYFLE as well as have been delayed due to Procurement / Framework discussions. short term placements for Year 10 Secondary School students wishing to Achieving a sustainable environment is a priority for the council and further pursue a career in construction. progress has been achieved over the last year. The amount of waste that we recycle continues to increase. Progress has been made in steady incremental steps over a number of years, resulting in 59.6% of waste being recycled in Energy Reduction, Efficiency & Sustainability 2014-15. This is one of the best performances in Wales and is comfortably ahead of next year’s statutory target of 58%. At the same time the amount of We continued with our policy of integrating low and zero carbon waste sent to landfill has significantly declined, largely as a result of shipping technologies into major works projects such as the recently completed PV residual waste to Scandinavia where it is burned to fuel community heating installations at Ysgol Bro Dinefwr and Ysgol Carreg Hirfaen. We also delivered schemes. Just over 18% of municipal waste was sent to landfill in 2014-15 the first fully accredited Passivhaus school building in Wales at Burry Port compared with just under 38% the previous year. This represents above- School. average performance for Wales and is set to further improve once data for the We continued to investigate, develop and encourage the “fabric first” full year is included. approach in order to realise the potential for reduced energy consumption Door knocking exercises by a team of permanent advisers have successfully and servicing related issues on new build and major refurbishment schemes increased participation in food recycling in targeted areas, although overall in order to reinforce and inform future projects, so as to make a positive

26 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 participation rates remain low at 34%. The Council is about to pilot the use of free biodegradable liners for food recycling bins to try to increase participation to 60%. According to the National Survey of Wales, 85% of people are satisfied with the Council’s recycling service, putting us joint third out of 22 councils in Wales. However, only 60% felt that the Council kept them informed about its recycling service which is amongst the lowest in Wales. This suggests that there is scope for the Council to review the effectiveness of its promotional activity’. Wales Audit Office – Annual Improvement Report – March 2016

Bwcabus

Businesses in rural areas are benefiting from the Bwcabus service. It’s providing a valuable contribution to rural life, “ health and the local economy Cllr. Hazel Evans Executive Board Member for Technical Services ” Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16 27 There is so much more that could be said about the work of the Last, but by no means least, I would like to thank the many council. I am fortunate as Leader for having a strong and thousands of people who work for Carmarthenshire County committed Executive Board to work with. As individuals they Council. Over the last 12 months I have had the pleasure of bring a variety of skills and experiences to the table. Henry Ford meeting a great many members of staff in their various once said: “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is workplaces and I have been taken aback by the degree of

n progress. Working together is success." We came together in commitment and dedication shown by so many. It’s my May of last year, we kept together throughout the year and I am intention carry on meeting members of staff at every level over pleased to say that we are working well together. I am confident the next few months so that I can begin to appreciate fully how that Henry Ford would recognise that we have been successful the council works and gain a holistic view of the authority. o as a team and I thank my colleagues formally for their unstinting Ultimately they are the people who deliver the services and they i efforts during the year. are the most important asset that we have. They are the people who make Carmarthenshire stand out as one of the best s I would also like to express my thanks to those members of the councils in Wales. council who have served as chairs and vice chairs of Scrutiny Committees and other committees such as Planning, Licensing and Audit. It is also important to recognise the hard work of the u individual councillors who strive to represent their constituents l in so many ways. Without your considerable efforts in your local communities Carmarthenshire wouldn’t be half as successful. c n o C

28 Carmarthenshire County Council Leader’s Annual Report | 2015-16