VOLUNTARY SECTOR JOINT LIAISON COMMITTEE
Minutes of a meeting held on 29th
April, 2009.
Present: Councillor Mrs. M. Kelly
Owen (Chairman); Councillor J. Clifford (Vice-Chairman);
Councillors Mrs. S.M. Bagstaff, R.F. Curtis, Ms. P. Drake, C.P.J.
Elmore, J. F. Fraser, Mrs. D.M. Turner and Miss. S.J.C.
Williams.
Representatives of the Voluntary Sector and
Health Service - Ms. Teresa Burris (Age Concern), Ms. R. Connor
(Vale Centre for Voluntary Services), Ms. N. Evans (Cardiff and
Vale NHS Trust) and Mr. J. Thompson (Vale of Glamorgan Local Health
Board).
1056 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE -
These were received from Ms. Jane Weeks (NCH
Cymru) and Ms. Alison Steere (Vale Volunteer Bureau).
1057 MINUTES -
Carys Lord, Head of Service for Business
Management and Innovation provided an update on the Welsh Assembly
Government Grant, Promoting Independence and Wellbeing. It
was confirmed all grant would be spent and this funding had helped
to provide resources to reduce bed blocking and promote ways to use
technology to aid elderly people stay in their own homes
longer. Some of the grant would fund the appointment of an
Occupational Health Worker and enable support to address the
problems associated with falls and trips of the elderly in their
own homes.
AGREED - T H A T the minutes of the meeting of
14th January, 2009 be accepted.
1058 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
-
No declarations of interest were received.
1059 VOLUNTARY SECTOR PARTNERSHIP
AGREEMENT AND ACTION PLAN - ACTION PLAN PROGRESS REPORT (DFICTP)
-
The Action Plan and Monitoring Report were
made in accordance with the provisions of the Compact with the
Voluntary Sector and Health Service. Progress in respect of
the Action Plan for 2008/10 was considered.
An event was held on 17th March,
2009 at Arts Central to relaunch the Compact and included Voluntary
Action Scheme and other policy grant presentations. This had
been a very successful event and was well attended.
A very successful work shop had been held
between the Council and the Voluntary Sector in June 2008 with
regard to commissioning. Another workshop had been held with
the Voluntary Sector in February 2009 with regard to Day Service
Review. The Voluntary Sector asked whether feedback could be
provided on these events and it was
AGREED - T H A T the Head of Service for
Business Management and Innovation provide a further report to the
Committee in due course on the workshops held with the Voluntary
Sector in 2008.
1060 VOLUNTARY ACTION SCHEME
PRIORITIES FOR FUNDING 2010/11 (DFICTP) -
The Committee considered the arrangements and
priorities for funding in respect of the Council's Voluntary Action
Scheme for 2010/11. Relevant Council partnerships had been
requested to review their priorities for funding and the report
detailed the revised priorities for consideration by Members.
Concern was expressed that the priorities should include ‘projects
that target and reduce crime’ and ‘projects that encourage the
conservation, reuse and recycling of resources’.
AGREED - T H A T Cabinet be requested to
consider the adoption of the revised Priorities for Funding for the
Voluntary Action Scheme for 2010/11 as set out below:
·
“Safer Vale” (Community Safety), projects that
(i) Target
and reduce crime.
(ii) Reduce
substance misuse (including alcohol).
(iii) Reduce
domestic abuse.
(iv) Reduce
anti-social behaviour.
(v) Create a
safer environment for the community.
Partnership Co-ordinator: Deborah Maurer –
01446 709835
·
Health and Well Being, projects that
(i) Help
people to live independently in their own homes.
(ii) Support people in the
greatest need in a way, and at a time, which will make the most
positive difference to their lives.
(iii) Keep
people fit and healthy.
Partnership Co-ordinator: James Crinion –
01446 704767
· Lifelong Learning
(Vale Learning Network), projects that:
(i) Promote continuous
improvement in educational attainment and achievement for children
and young people of school age and beyond.
(ii) Promote continuous
development of a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum for all
children and young people.
(iii) Promote improved
outcomes for all vulnerable groups of children and young
people.
(iv) Promote continuous
development of the educational infra-structure.
(v) Promote the
development of a highly skilled workforce, including the
development of essential skills, upskilling and re-skilling, Welsh,
sector specific skills, and wider employment considerations.
(vi) Promote preparation for
employment for the economically inactive;
(vii) Promote “learning for
life”, including Adult Community Education, community focused
schools and volunteering.
Partnership Co-ordinator: David Giles – 01446
725075
· Children
and Young People, projects that
(i) Improve the
transitional arrangements at key points in the lives of children
and young people
(ii) Provide focused
services for clearly identifiable groups of children and young
people in greatest need
(iii) Ensure children and
young people have the best possible emotional and mental health
(iv) Focus
on specific groups of children and young people who are
disadvantaged in terms of physical activity, play and
culture
(v) Promote inclusion and
cultural bilingual diversity
Partnership Co-ordinator Valerie Lewis – 01446
734276
· Economic &
Environmental,
(i) Projects that
encourage the conservation, reuse and recycling of resources.
(ii) Sustainable community led
improvements to rundown or derelict sites or buildings for the
benefit of the community.
Partnership Co-ordinator: Bob Guy – 01446
704623
1061 ECONOMIC VALUE OF
VOLUNTEERING WITHIN THE VALE OF GLAMORGAN (VOLUNTARY SECTOR) -
Each year the Voluntary Sector provided an
annual report on the economic value of volunteering within the Vale
of Glamorgan and this also included information on
demographics. The Vale Volunteer Bureau first audited
voluntary activity in 2000 when the monetary value of volunteering
was calculated to be £8,207,136. By 2008 the figure had risen
to £20,721,144. In 2009 the exercise to monitor voluntary
activity was repeated by the Vale Volunteer Bureau.
Questionnaires were sent out to all recruiting organisations based
in the Vale and registered with the Vale Volunteer Bureau.
Additional information was requested from recruiting organisations
to include the gender, age, employment status and ethnic category
of the volunteers. For the purposes of ascertaining the
monetary value of volunteering these averages were then applied to
the 238 voluntary organisations registered with the Vale Volunteer
Bureau and based in the Vale of Glamorgan. The information
received from the returned questionnaires provided the average
number of active volunteers per organisation and the average number
of hours worked by those volunteers each week. In accord with
the National Statistics New Earnings Survey 2003, a figure of
£10.42 was recommended as the hourly rate for volunteering. A
calculation based on this hourly rate and the information received
from the voluntary organisation was undertaking by the Vale
Volunteer Bureau. In comparison with the previous year, the
amount had risen from £20,721,144 to £24,080, 411. This was
an increase of £3,359,267. A notional ‘cheque’ for this
amount would be presented to the Mayor of the Vale of Glamorgan
Council to mark Volunteers Week.
The rise in value could be attributed to the
increase in the number of volunteers recruited through the Vale
Volunteer Bureau and outreach service. It was mentioned that
this was an average figure and only provided a snap shot of the
voluntary activity in the Vale of Glamorgan undertaken on a formal
basis. The statistics were based on the 1364 returned
questionnaires and included information from 855 female and 175
male volunteers. The most popular age group to volunteer were
those aged 65+ followed by those aged 35-44. Retired people
were most likely to be involved in volunteering with unemployed
persons forming the next highest group. In relation to
ethnicity more people volunteered who were white/British followed
by those who were white/Welsh.
The Vale of Glamorgan Council provided
£719,000 to the Voluntary Sector by way of grant assistance.
The Voluntary Sector indicated that it was evident that this
investment provided a staggering return in voluntary activity
within the Vale of Glamorgan.
AGREED -
(1) T H A
T the information within the report be noted and the thirty-four
fold return on the Council's investment through voluntary activity
alone be acknowledged.
(2) T H A
T the report be referred to the Cabinet and other Members of the
Council for information.
1062 CODE OF PRACTICE FOR FUNDING
THE THIRD SECTOR (VOLUNTARY SECTOR) -
The Voluntary Sector had submitted the report
to draw attention to the Assembly Government's revised Code of
Practice for Funding the Third Sector and to reinforce the
principles of collaborative working particularly under the spirit
of the Code. The Welsh Assembly Government's Voluntary Sector
Scheme was the foundation of its relationship with the Third Sector
in Wales and had paved the way for the Assembly Government's long
term working relationship with the Sector. Under the
Voluntary Sector Scheme a Code of Practice for funding the Third
Sector had been developed. This set out the key principles
which underpinned Assembly Government funding for the Sector, to
ensure that best practice was applied in the administration of its
Grant schemes and those of agencies who managed funds on its
behalf.
An increasing proportion of public services
were being delivered by partners outside of the public sector and
the Voluntary Sector thought it was vitally important that best
practice was followed in terms of the commissioning and funding of
services and projects. The Code influenced the Local
Authority Good Practice Guide 'A Future Together' jointly produced
by the WLGA, WCVA and the Welsh Assembly Government. 'A
Future Together' provided guidelines for the local Codes of
Practice for Funding in the spirit of the Assembly Government's
Code to be adopted within local compacts.
The Assembly Government's Code had recently
been revised to take into account best practice guidance on
procurement and full cost recovery, amongst other changes. It
aimed to deliver an effective and sustainable funding framework
based on 12 key principles:
Delivery of strategic policy
objectives - acknowledgement of the role the sector can
play in delivering these.
Respect for the sector's
independence - recognition that the sector can often reach
groups that the Assembly Government cannot and provides
innovation.
Early and constructive
dialogue - opportunities to discuss proposals well in
advance of the formal application deadline and early in the budget
planning cycle.
Timely decisions -
notification of grant approvals for each financial year by 31
December of the preceding year unless, in exceptional
circumstances, notice has already been given of an alternative
timescale.
Security of funding - longer
term commitments, subject to performance to support a sustainable
approach to funding: up to 5-7 years for strategic core funding and
commitment for the life of any specific projects which are funded,
providing firm year one funding and clear baselines for subsequent
years.
Fair funding levels - Levels
of funding for the sector should be determined no differently than
for other sectors of agencies where increases for inflation and
growth at least equal to inflation uplifts for public sectors can
be built into bids.
Full Cost Recovery - Levels
of grant funding will be based on and reflect the principles of
Full Cost Recovery.
Fair procurement -
procurement funding will be based on price, not cost, and will
follow the good practice guidance set out by Value Wales in
Procurement and the Third Sector: Guidance for the Public
Sector in Wales.
Payment in advance -
provision for advance payment of grant, where a clear financial
need is established, including those schemes provided by Assembly
Government Sponsored Bodies and European funding provided through
the Wales European Funding Office.
Fair and reasonable treatment
- prior discussion and reasonable notice before any policy changes
or decisions which would lead to withdrawal or significant
reduction of grants.
Joint approach to monitoring and
evaluation - the simplest procedures consistent with
ensuring proper use of public funds.
Who does what best -
commitment to identifying where the Third Sector might take the
lead in or contribute to the implementation of new policies, and
ensuring that there are the appropriate funding mechanisms in
place.
Representatives of the Voluntary Sector
indicated that they had brought the report to the Voluntary Sector
Joint Liaison Committee with a recommendation that Cabinet be asked
to consider and adopt the 12 key principles. Members
indicated that it would not be possible to sign up to certain of
the key principles. In particular the security of funding and
the longer term commitment from the local authority to the
Voluntary Sector of up to 7 years. It was not thought
possible for a local authority to sign up to this timescale when
funding from the Welsh Assembly Government was only received on an
annual basis.
Representatives of the Health Sector echoed
the concerns about the key principle ‘Security of funding’ as they
would also have difficulty in working to this type of
timescale. In addition, the Health Service did not give
grants and worked on Service Level Agreements with its partner
organisations. Health representatives queried where this Code
of Practice tied into the Commissioning Code as there seemed to be
some overlap with the Commissioning Framework and whilst there was
some synergy there were also differences.
Members agreed that they did not think the
Council could sign up to the Code which appeared too restrictive
and were concerned that the Welsh Assembly Government did not
appear to follow its own Code. It was suggested that a
Working Group could be formed to see what points within the Code
could be possible to sign up to and officers thought perhaps it
could be done via a Compact review.
Voluntary Sector representatives indicated
that the Council already complied with some of the principles and
the intention was that the Council could work toward the
others.
Health Service representatives indicated that
the Health Service was going through a major review and from
1st June a shadow authority would be in place and it was
not until 1st October, 2009 that the new structure would
be operational. The Health Service could only look at the
issues contained in the Code of Practice after this time.
Prior to October it was possible that the Code of Practice could be
considered by the Planning and Partnership Streams and this would
certainly be logged as an issue for their consideration.
AGREED - T H A T the report be noted and its
contents be further considered as part of the next review of the
Compact.