Weekly Round-Up with Lance Carver

01 July 2022

Dear Colleagues,

With Rob on leave, I am writing the end of week message and I’d like to start by revisiting an issue that he has mentioned a number of times in recent weeks.  

From today, all colleagues on pay grades one and two will see their pay increase to £9.90 an hour, matching the nationally recognised real living wage rate. Hundreds of our colleagues will benefit from this, and many of those work within Social Services. 

The last two years have shown what those of us who work in the care sector have always known, that the work of those who care for the most vulnerable in our communities is sadly often undervalued.  

I started my career in a role like this. I know first-hand that yes, these jobs offer a great sense of satisfaction, but they are also incredibly hard work. It is work that at times can be both emotionally and physically hard.  

Its impact is huge. Thousands of people in the Vale of Glamorgan are able to live with dignity and independence thanks to the efforts of our staff and our partners. However, this also brings with it a significant responsibility and duty of care to those that we care for.  

I am proud that the Vale of Glamorgan Council has taken a lead in the sector in recognising this. Funding the care sector is an incredibly complex issue but I sincerely hope our move will prompt other employers to follow and help pull the wages of those working in care closer to what they deserve.  

I also know that increasing the pay for staff on grades one and two will leave some of those employed on the grades immediately above feeling as though they are carrying greater responsibility for little extra pay. This was an issue discussed at length at SLT and we are determined to do all we can to support colleagues across the Council. For now, I hope that those colleagues will understand that this is a work in progress and also that we needed to start with the lowest grades.   

All colleagues will have a chance to share their views on recognition, as well as several other important topics, during the Staff Survey 2022 which launched this week. This year’s survey is open to more colleagues than ever, including all those working in schools. It can be completed online using both corporate and personal devices and there will be sessions for frontline staff at buildings across the Vale during July and August. More details on these will be shared in the coming weeks. Please respond as we will use any feedback to try and make things better.  

Wellbeing will be a big theme within the survey and so it is apt that it has launched during wellbeing week. Our Wellbeing Champions have launched a series of new activities, with the first taking place at Cosmeston Country Park on July 7 between 10am and 12pm. I know these activities are really valued by those that can attend. 

This week has also seen the launch of the Summer of Fun 2022. I know the Family Information Service in Social Services has played a big role, alongside the Sport and Play team, in getting together a huge programme of sessions for children and young people in the Vale. It is a great example of how working together delivers a great service to citizens.  

In another fantastic example involving Social Services, I am very pleased to share that Keep Wales Tidy has approved an application we submitted with colleagues from Housing to build a community garden at Ty Dewi Sant in Penarth. Once completed this will provide a space for those living and working at our residential home to enjoy alongside the local community.  

I’d also like to highlight the efforts of colleagues in Corporate Resources who have this week been issuing the latest round of cost-of-living support payments. 15,800 letters were issued last Thursday to those eligible to apply and in the week since our teams have passed 7,470 for payment. A huge effort and one that means a total of 25,726 households have now received some much-needed support thanks to our colleagues, with that number going up every day.

Finally, Rob did ask me to pass on one message this week. He went along to the Barry Island Food festival on Saturday. He told me it was great to see the Big Fresh airstream trailer there along with a number of local businesses, and that staff were all smiles despite the heavy downpours, thunder and lighting. Rhys Jones deserves a special mention, the Council’s Youth Service Engagement Manager. He did a great job in making sure the event went ahead as planned after answering an emergency request to act as the event manager for the Council at short notice. Rhys, thank you from us all.   

And thanks to everyone else on behalf of SLT. It’s been great to have the opportunity to share these updates. Tom Bowring will be drafting the message next week.  

Thank you

Lance