Council launches Vale 2030 – a new Corporate Plan
The Vale of Glamorgan Council has launched Vale 2030, its new Corporate Plan, setting out a vision of how the organisation will operate over the next five years and beyond.
Vale 2030 is a wide-ranging document that comes into effect today, having been agreed by the Council’s Cabinet last month.
It has been shaped by extensive consultation with residents through the Let’s Talk about Life in the Vale survey, feedback from the Authority’s recent Panel Performance Assessment (PPA), input from Elected Members and engagement with partners.
Offering a blueprint of how the Council will operate in the future, the plan is based around five new Wellbeing Objectives to:
- Create great places to live, work and visit
- Respect and celebrate the environment
- Give everyone a good start in life
- Support and protect those who need us
- Be the best Council we can be
Although there are obstacles ahead, Vale 2030 sets out the bold ambition to continue delivering for residents by creating Strong Communities with a Bright Future.
Cllr Lis Burnett, Leader of the Vale of Glamorgan Council said: “There has been much talk about the financial challenges facing Local Authorities, and while it is a fact that budgets have decreased dramatically over an extended period, it is important to focus on what we can do, rather than what we cannot.
“Vale 2030 is cause for real hope, it gives us reason to look forward with optimism and enthusiasm.
“A changing environment means we must do things differently, but that does not prevent us from continuing to deliver for our residents.
“In keeping with the innovative approach this Council has adopted, one that has been so successful, we will embrace new ways of working and partner more closely with community groups, empowering them to create thriving localities with excellent facilities and plentiful opportunities.
“Though this Council has celebrated many successes, we must not be complacent and stand still, but instead concentrate on improving to better support the citizens we serve.”
Over the last five years, the Council has:
- Provided financial support to over 35,000 residents through Cost-of-Living Support payments
- Rolled out free school meals to all pupils from reception to year six ahead of the Welsh Government target
- Helped 577 individuals into employment through the Communities for Work programme
- Secured over £55 million in funding for regeneration
- Built 253 new council homes and ensured all council housing stock meets Welsh Housing Quality Standards
- Reduced the average time it takes to arrange in-home care services for people who need assistance with daily activities
- Opened South Point Primary School as the first net-zero carbon school in Wales
- Supported residents to increase the County’s recycling rate to 70.4 per cent
Looking forward, three key challenges have been identified for attention in Vale 2030 as the Council looks to tackle poverty, the climate and nature emergencies, and inequalities.
As life experiences are not the same across the county, the target is to ensure that everyone can afford the essentials and a decent standard of living.
Work is already underway to address poverty through housing, benefits advice, employment and education services, but within Vale 2030 is a commitment to do more.
The Council declared a climate emergency in 2019 and a nature emergency two years later, recognising the urgent need for action. Through its Project Zero commitment, the Authority aims to reduce its carbon emissions to net-zero by 2030 and work toward a net-zero Vale by 2050.
With a growing older population and residents who have different life experiences based on age, sex, disability, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation, the Vale of Glamorgan is becoming more diverse.
Against that backdrop, there is a commitment to make sure services are fair and accessible to everyone and that the Welsh language is supported.
Vale 2030 contains fresh pledges around partnership working and delivering for communities.
There will be greater collaboration with voluntary organisations, community groups, town and community councils, social enterprises, public bodies and businesses.
This is a fundamental shift as the Council moves to facilitate the provision of services at a local level – supporting partners to make a real difference within their specific locations.
Every spring, yearly plans that focus on the most pressing work will be shared, helping to meet long-term goals.
These plans will set out the steps taken in that year to deliver on Vale 2030 objectives, with systems in place to track progress, improve services, and manage risks.