Rob's Weekly Round-Up

23 June 2023

Dear colleagues,

I make no apologies for this end of week message being longer than usual. A lot has happened during the week, and all of it really important, so here goes.

The First Minister, Mark Drakeford, was in the Vale this week to see the excellent work being done at Oak Field Primary in developing the school’s own woodland area. The work was undertaken thanks to funding from The Woodland Investment Grant (TWIG) and was being showcased by the National Forest of Wales and Climate Change Team at Welsh Government.

The Leader and Deputy Leader joined colleagues from the school and our Neighbourhood Services team on a tour of the site with the school’s ECO team. The First Minister spoke to pupils about their Woodland Project and a new national initiative to recognise woodlands across Wales, under which the school’s area will be one of the first to be recognised.

I know Mr Drakeford was hugely impressed not just with the work of our teams but the whole ethos of the school cluster and the Vale in general. Everyone involved should be hugely proud of their work and that it is being recognised by the country’s leader. It is yet another example of how we are leading the way in the Vale.

This week we have been marking two national campaigns - Armed Forces Week and Refugee Week.

Refugee Week 2023 felt particularly poignant considering the focus of many of our teams in providing much needed support to those fleeing conflict elsewhere in the world. It is also especially relevant considering our recent pledge to become a County of Sanctuary.

The Vale has been a place of sanctuary in the past, and over the course of the week I’ve been able to see first-hand what we are doing to ensure it is one today and will remain one in the future.

On Monday, the Leader and I visited the Gathering Place in St Athan where colleagues from our Communities for Work and Housing teams are working with partners to provide a Support Hub for refugees who have recently made the village their home. The service accommodates new families that have moved to the area and invites people from the wider community to showcase what is available locally and help them with their resettlement queries. You can read more about what we learned on Staffnet+. It was very moving to hear about the experiences of those there. One resident who had worked for the British Army in Afghanistan told me his family’s story of having to flee Kabul. It was at times harrowing but also uplifting to hear about their resilience and hopes for the future. All of those helping deliver the services on offer at the Support Hub are a part of this story and I would like to thank them all for their role in providing families who have experienced so much trauma with a chance to rebuild their lives here in the Vale.  Diolch yn fawr pawb.

Earlier the same day Cllr Rhiannon Birch, Cabinet Member for Education, Arts and the Welsh Language, and Paula Ham visited St Andrews Major Primary School to see a presentation by pupils at the school as part of their application to become a school of sanctuary. The empathy and compassion that was on display from pupils at the school, and that I know exists across the Vale, should fill us all with hope for the future. I’d like to thank the pupils for sharing their work and the headteacher Mrs Hallet for inviting us to come along.

Another initiative that colleagues have been working hard on to support refugees into work is the Language Passport – your ticket to work. This is a web-based platform that offers work-relevant information and phrases in English, Ukrainian, Arabic, Pashto and Dari, which are the two main languages spoken in Afghanistan. The project is currently in a pilot phase and partners are offering it as an additional tool to support refugees who are seeking work with limited English language skills. It has been a real team effort, involving close collaboration between Vale Communities for Work Plus and the Communications team. Diolch i chi gyd.

On Thursday we marked the 75th anniversary of Windrush Day, when over five hundred migrants came to Britain from the Caribbean on the Empire Windrush. These weren’t the first people of the Global Majority to come to Britain, but they heralded the generation of people who came from the Commonwealth to Britain in the 50s, 60s and 70s to answer the call of successive governments to help rebuild Britain after the Second World War. They created an invaluable legacy to all aspects of British life.

Here in the Vale we marked the occasion by raising the Windrush flag at the Civic Offices on Thursday morning before a number of colleagues and cabinet members visited Holton Road Primary School to see the pupils’ Windrush Project artwork and hear their poems. Thank you so much to all of the pupils and staff at Holton Road primary school for hosting us and to colleagues in our Equalities and Arts Development teams and the Diverse Network for helping to organise the event.

In March the Council passed a motion put forward by the Leader to become a County of Sanctuary. Being a County of Sanctuary is about giving a warm welcome to everyone, including refugees and asylum seekers. We want to provide a safe place for all people who are seeking sanctuary - and make them feel part of our community. The work we have been highlighting during Refugee Week shows how well embedded this already is as a way of working in the Vale. What has made me most proud when speaking to colleagues about their work this week is that our teams develop and deliver services that offer sanctuary quite simply because it is the right thing to do.

While the focus of this week has been on supporting those who have been welcomed to the Vale after being forced to flee their homes, our concept of sanctuary is wider than this. Earlier this week I received a message of thanks from a resident that demonstrated this in action.

Thank you to The Vale Council for providing warm spaces this winter. I personally used Cowbridge library on many occasions. As I am retired and live alone, not only did it provide a warm place which helped with heating costs but just as importantly a place to be around other people. I would also like to thank the library staff for their welcome and providing activities to keep us occupied.

Comments like this show the importance and impact of our work, and manner in which our fantastic staff undertake their roles. Diolch yn fawr to all those at Cowbridge Library who made such a difference to that resident and to all of those across the organisation who are doing equally impactful work.

This sense of compassion will run through the Sanctuary Strategy that is now being developed. The strategy will recognise the work we are already doing to create safe communities for everyone and set out some ambitious additional steps. I have no doubt that the way in which we work will see us officially recognised County of Sanctuary.

Supporting our armed forces and veterans is also an important aspect of our work and another which makes people who have moved from elsewhere to make the Vale home feel welcome. On Wednesday the Council’s officially marked Armed Forces Week with a flag raising ceremony, hosted by the Mayor Cllr Julie Aviet, at the Civic Offices on Thursday. I was unable to attend the ceremony so thanks to Tom Bowring for stepping in to represent staff in the ceremony. And thanks of course to colleagues in Democratic Services who as always did a fantastic job of organising the event and coordinating proceedings on the day. In case you missed it you can watch a recording of the ceremony, that was streamed live on on Facebook on the day.

I must also offer my congratulations to Abi Warburton, our Armed Forces Liaison Officer, who recently learned that we have been shortlisted as a finalist for the Welsh Veterans Awards. The Employer of the Year award is particularly meaningful because we have been nominated by veterans themselves. Best of luck to Abi who will be attending the awards event on 5 July.

So much has happened this week that Monday morning feels like a long time ago. I’d like to end this week’s message with thanks to colleagues for two uplifting events that kicked off my week.

I began Monday by joining the latest Welcome to the Vale induction session for some of our newest colleagues in the Dunraven Room at the Civic Offices. It is always great to meet new members of Team Vale and hear about what prompted them to join the Council and their enthusiasm for their new roles. During the session I was asked, along with the Leader, what we would do if we had £50m to fund new services with no strings attached and as well as being a great discussion starter at the session this has proved a reminder throughout the week to think about what could be possible. Thanks to everyone for making it such a great session and I’d like to once more welcome our new colleagues to the Vale.

And finally, thanks to everyone who supported the Cowbridge Pride flag raising which also took place on Monday morning. The event drew a big crowd and was another great celebration of unity for the Vale. It was made possible by our colleagues, Cowbridge Town Council, and a team of committed volunteers who together showed the very best of the local community. As always, the show was stolen by Cariad the Cow. I was so impressed by the rainbow heifer’s organisational skills that I pointed him towards our vacancies page and who knows perhaps he'll be giving the Leader and I a financial conundrum in the Dunraven Room some time soon.

Thanks again to everyone who supported the event on Monday and in advance to Cariad and colleagues who will be at the Cowbridge Pride parade tomorrow. It is going to be a great event. More volunteers are always welcome so you still have chance to be part of the day. The support team are meeting at Cowbridge Fire Station at 11:45. Get in touch with one of the GLAM team if you’d like any more information.

Thanks as always for all your efforts this week. Diolch yn fawr pawb.

Rob.