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Council shakes up scrutiny committees

Wednesday, 30 April 2025 at 09:08

By Gareth Joy X @lookoutwales2

The number of scrutiny committees at Vale of Glamorgan Council has been cut from five to four.

A shake-up of the local authority's committee scructure will see the new groups meet bi-monthly instead of every month to analyse decisions.

Councillors voted through the changes at a meeting on Monday night.

Last autumn, a move to scrap in-person committee meetings was attacked by oppositon parties, who accused the council of an "erosion of democracy".

The council says, under the new setup, the four groups will meet as a joint committee twice a year to assess its overall performance.

The separate committees will be known as Start Well, Live Well, Place and Resources, named after the local authority's wellbeing objectves.

New task-and-finish groups to examine specific issues will be created, including councillors, council officers, partners and other stakeholders - with the aim of allowing residents to be more "closely involved" in decisions.

The task-and-finish meetings will not be held in public, while regular briefing sessions will also be held for councillors.

Council leader Lis Burnett insisted the shake-up would "improve local democracy" by encouraging more public participation.

She said: "We want to work in partnership with residents to improve the place we all call home. It is also hoped this move will create closer, more focused scrutiny of council decisions, allowing councillors to better represent the people that elected them and improve decision making."

"It follows a recommendation from the council’s panel performance assessment last year, a comprehensive review carried out by independent people from outside the organisation."

"It also reflects feedback from our Let’s Talk About Life in the Vale survey that indicated residents wanted a more direct route to influence decisions."

“Though there will be a reduction in formal scrutiny committee meetings, there will likely be an increase in scrutiny activity as these changes mean councillors can undertake investigative scrutiny on a more regular basis through the Task and Finish groups."

“This should lead to more detailed recommendations to the council’s cabinet, create a focus on quality not quantity as far as output is concerned and ensure we are working to achieve positive outcomes."

“Although the Task and Finish groups will not be public meetings, members of the wider public can contribute to this work giving them a more involved role. We look forward to sharing details of this in due course."

"Any final recommendations from Task and Finish work will be shared formally with scrutiny committees, Cabinet and the wider public. Any councillor can also ask for a decision to be considered by scrutiny committee if they believe it needs further attention.”

A Vale of Glamorgan Council spokesperson said elected members had been extensively engaged with on the proposals in a range of settings - including committees.

They were then agreed by Cabinet beforre being voted through by a majority at Monday's full council meeting.

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