Rob's Weekly Round-Up

30 June 2023

Dear colleagues,

This week started with a visit from the Minister for Local Government and Finance, Rebecca Evans MS, to Llantwit Major. The Minister came to see the excellent work being done in and around the town by our colleagues and partners.

First up was a visit to Crawshay Court and a tour of the new development of temporary accommodation for Ukrainian refugees at the nearby Eagleswell site. Colleagues from our Housing service spoke at length about the innovative development and our wider work to support Ukrainian families living the Vale. I know the Minister was particularly pleased to meet Shona Ure, our Refugee Support Team Leader, and Kristina Ivanashko and Kateryna Hudyma – two of our support workers who themselves left Ukraine last year. Plans for the new temporary homes and the construction site are of course eye-catching but Shona and the team did an excellent job of illustrating how much wider the support the Council offers goes.

After touring the construction site, the Ministerial team then went on to the CF61 centre in Llantwit where they were met by colleagues from our Policy team. The work to support families in Llantwit through the cost-of-living crisis that is underway at CF61 is a true partnership effort. Representatives from Glamorgan Voluntary Services (GVS), the Vale Foodbank, and Cardiff and Vale health board’s local public health team were also in attendance. As well as hearing from Tom Bowring and GVS Chief Executive Rachel Connor, the Minister spoke to our Policy Officer Jo Beynon about the Council’s plans to expand this provision in the future and I am told left the event telling colleagues that this was exactly the sort of original thinking that the Vale is renowned for.

Diolch yn fawr iawn to all of those colleagues who supported the visit. Events like this are hugely important in firstly making sure our colleagues get the recognition they deserve, but also in making sure that national decision makers know exactly where the best work in Wales is being done. I have no doubt that we’ll have the opportunity to work more closely with teams at Welsh Government and provide even better support to communities in the Vale as a result of the way our achievements were presented on Monday.

This week is Youth Work Week. On Wednesday night I was delighted to be invited and be able to attend the Vale Youth Awards, hosted by our Vale Youth Service, at Barry Town Football Club. The awards evening was a celebration of the achievements of the young people in the Vale of Glamorgan and those who help support them to achieve their potential.

Youth Work Week provides an opportunity to showcase and celebrate the impact and diversity of youth work in the Vale. It’s also a great way of helping those not actively involved in working with children and young people get a better understanding of youth work and the difference it makes to people lives. I’ve enjoyed following the Vale Youth Service social media accounts this week as they showcased all the wonderful opportunities available to young people in the Vale of Glamorgan and these are well worth a look if you’d like to know more.

At the event I presented the Young Volunteer Award which celebrates those young people who give their time and dedication to local projects on a voluntary basis. All of those shortlisted were hugely impressive but the winner, Ashleigh Watkins’ commitment to supporting others shone through. She’s an active member of the Vale Youth Council, Her Voice Wales project (an award-winning project) and our Rights Ambassadors group. Ashleigh is also a member of the UK Youth Parliament, and its steering group lead for Wales. She also volunteers with the health board and was instrumental in setting up a school council at Whitmore High. Talking about all of this with her gave me huge hope for the future and was a great reminder that often as a public organisation the best thing we can do is build services, just like the Vale Youth Service, that give people like Ashleigh the space and skills to make a difference.

Congratulations again to Ashleigh and the other young people who were winners on the night. The event of course put the young people centre stage but there were also awards for some of our colleagues. Tracy Mills was named VYS Youth Worker of the Year and Peter Williams picked up the VYS award for Staff Dedication

Tracy was nominated by nine separate young people which shows just what high regard she is held in. Tracy has helped many pupils at Whitmore High School and on Wednesday night’s evidence it is not an overstatement to say she helps change young people’s lives both in and out of learning. Tracy goes above and beyond what is expected of her and most importantly creates a safe environment that has made teenagers look forward to spending time with her – no mean feat.

Pete has been a part of the youth service for 15 years in which time he has shown his dedication and supported hundreds of young people. Pete has grown with the service starting as a volunteer, then becoming a youth worker, and now managing several projects and developing new opportunities for young people. In nominating him one colleague said “I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with such a supportive, kind and caring colleague. Pete will go above and beyond for all young people and staff, no matter what team they are on. Pete is a prime example of a team player.” This makes it clear the difference he makes both with those who use the service and to colleagues behind the scenes. I also understand he holds the unofficial post of YVS Spreadsheet Superhero!

Huge congratulations to Tracy and Pete. Their awards are hugely well deserved and it was great to be able to hear about their work. The other shortlisted VYS team members - Paige Harvey, Michaela O’Neill, Alex Thomas, and Kelly Hawkes – should also feel rightly proud of the impact their work has. It was wonderful to see the variety of projects and support that the Vale Youth Service offer young people and the positive impact that the team make. The work the team do really is phenomenal. What was perhaps most impressive was seeing the relationships between our staff and the young people they support. The mutual respect and sense of equity between people of different ages was remarkable. It was truly inspiring to be present at the event and thank you for allowing me to be part of the celebration.

Yesterday, I attended a site visit with some of our Cabinet Members to the Aberthaw power station site that has recently been acquired by the Cardiff Capital Region on behalf of the 10 local authorities that make up the region.  We had the benefit of a discussion about the key features of the site and potential future plans and a tour of the main elements of the site.  The site offers a fantastic opportunity for the Vale of the Glamorgan and the wider region, being connected to the electricity grid and having a rail link as well as being located within the arc that includes St Athan and Cardiff airport.  Thanks go to Christian, Nicola, Ynnir, Jack, Matt and Nigel who took time out of their busy morning to give us a tour. 

Looking ahead to next week the new improved #itsaboutme process will go live on 5 July. With the introduction of quarterly touch points, we are moving away from the single, once a year annual #itsaboutme meeting to shorter, more regular catch-ups between staff and managers. The change is based on feedback we’ve received from colleagues and the intention is that frequent and more timely feedback will help all of us. Progress can still be logged via iDev using an updated and simplified portal.

Finally, I’d like to say thanks to our Wellbeing Champions for organising yesterday’s Forest Fika session at Porthkerry Park. Being outdoors in nature is proven to improve our mental health and wellbeing so making use of our beautiful country park and taking a gentle, circular walk together is a great way for colleagues to spend a Thursday morning. While the scientific evidence for the benefits of coffee and cake may be less compelling, I am sure these elements went down very well too.

Our Wellbeing Champions are also recruiting colleagues to show their support for the Baton of Hope tour this weekend. The Baton of Hope is an Olympic torch-style relay around the UK. It started in Glasgow on Sunday and reaches Cardiff and the Vale on Saturday. The Baton is being carried by families who've lost loved ones to suicide, as well as suicide survivors, campaigners and local figures passionate about reducing stigma about mental health issues. The Council is a regional sponsor of the campaign and we will be showing our support across the weekend. Suicide is the biggest killer of people under 35 in the UK. By working together with campaigns like this we can reduce the stigma, and all get better at asking questions, listening, and directing people to the right help. Together we can save lives so please do spare the time to learn a little more about the campaign.

Thanks as always for all of your efforts this week. Diolch yn fawr i gyd.

Rob.