10/03/23

Cardiff Council has published its latest Corporate Plan (Agenda Item7)- a blueprint outlining its vision of how the city will develop over the next three years and beyond.

The plan commits the Council to a wide-ranging programme of work across all areas and sets out in detail how it will improve the lives of all its residents, setting measurable targets by which its performance can be judged.

It was discussed initially by the Council's Scrutiny committees, before being agreed by Cabinet. The plan was debated and voted through at yesterday's meeting of full Council.

Council leader Cllr Huw Thomas said: "The report contains seven clear well-being objectives which demonstrate what public services in Cardiff want to achieve and reflect our shared aspirations and the common understanding of the challenges facing the city.

"This plan sets out how we will make Cardiff a stronger, fairer, greener capital city.  We have made good progress since my administration was elected in 2017, and even though we are dealing with the cost-of-living crisis and the legacy of the pandemic which are hitting our services and our communities, we are confident we can deliver on our commitments in the months and years ahead."

THE WELL-BEING OBJECTIVES

1. Cardiff is a great place to grow up

"Supporting vulnerable young children and young people remains the Council's first duty," said Cllr Thomas. "The needs and requirements of children are growing in scale and complexity and a number of projects will focus on improving the well-being of children and young people."

Among the proposals in this area are:

• Achieving UNICEF Child-Friendly City status by Summer 2023;
• Closing the achievement gap for the most vulnerable learners and improving outcomes for children and young people with additional learning needs;
• Deliver a continued programme of investment in new and existing school buildings;
• Develop the in-house Fostering Service to meet demand for placements and ensure that foster carers have the skills to care for children and young people with complex needs.

2. Cardiff is a great place to grow older

"The Council is committed to ensuring people in the city can live and age well," said Cllr Thomas. "Ensuring that older people and their carers feel valued and have access to the right care and support to enhance their health and well-being represent important parts of this agenda."

Proposals in this area include:

• Work with a wide range of partners to deliver the commitment to be an Age-Friendly and Dementia-Friendly City;
• Encourage employment and prevent discrimination against older people in the job market;
• Provide the right help at the right time to help people stay independent at home;
• Listen to unpaid carers and families to ensure they get the help they need.

3. Supporting people out of poverty

"We remain committed to closing the gap between rich and poor and supporting those who have been hardest hit by the cost-of-living crisis," said Cllr Thomas. "The Council will continue to promote the real Living Wage and tackle homelessness and work to end rough sleeping."

Its plans include:

• Supporting people into work by continuing to fill current, and deliver new, apprenticeships and trainee opportunities within the Council;
• Improve access to the private rented sector and phasing out accommodation that no longer meets required standards;
• Prevent youth homelessness and ensure that young people leaving care are supported.

4. Safe, confident and empowered communities

"Our Council and affordable house-building programme, already the largest in Wales, will develop further to provide more than 4,000 new homes," said Cllr Thomas. "We will also invest in our parks and green spaces with a focus on improving those in our most deprived communities."

To this end, the Council has plans including:

• Ensuring Cardiff Living (the current Council house building programme) delivers at least 1,000 new homes by the end of 2023;
• Tackling long-term empty properties by considering the application of a 300% Council tax premium;
• Delivering future Community, Youth and Wellbeing hubs, including a city centre Youth Hub by Summer 2023;
• Ensuring that all people, however vulnerable, retain a voice in their care, and improve the support available to people with mental health issues.

5. A capital city that works for Wales

"Cardiff's economy is central to creating jobs and attracting investment into Wales," said Cllr Thomas, "so we must continue to play a leading role in the Welsh economy, not just for the people of Cardiff but for the people of Wales.

"The Council will continue to progress its capital programme of major projects, including Central Square, Central Quay, Canal Quarter and the Indoor Arena."

Plans in this area include:

• Working with partners to develop the Graving Docks area, and establish a new Metro route linking Cardiff Central to the Bay;
• Supporting the completion of Cardiff Parkway station as part of an industrial strategy for the east of Cardiff;
• Work with partners to support the retail and hospitality sectors in successfully emerging from lockdown;
• Develop an annual international music festival in the city by 2024, and work with partners to attract sporting events such as the Euro 2028 football championships.

6. One Planet Cardiff

"The Council has set out a pathway to become a net zero carbon city by 2030," said Cllr Thomas. "Transforming how people move about the city remains central to decarbonising the city, requiring a major programme of improvement to the public transport and active travel network.

"Furthermore, a focus will continue to be placed on improving the Council's recycling performance."

Among the proposals to achieve this goals are:

• Set out an electric vehicle infrastructure road map by March 2024 to provide a strategy for public and private sector investment;
• Promote healthy, local and low carbon food;
• Design and deliver a Cardiff and Regional Metro (Tram) network, and continue to invest in a segregated cycle network, including a full city-wide network by 2030;
• Continue to deliver the programme to replace all 24,000 residential lighting to low-energy LED lighting by December 2023.

7. Modernising and integrating our public services

"In response to rising demand and reducing budgets, the Council is pursuing a programme of modernisation and service improvements to improve efficiency, better support delivery and support social and environmental change," said Cllr Thomas.

"Looking ahead, the Council faces significant challenges to its financial resilience that will require developing an approach that brings together assets, technology and the workforce to unlock further efficiency savings, as well as achieve environmental gains and deliver an improved service."

Among the proposed plans are:

• Delivering leaner and greener Council buildings, implementing the hybrid working model and disposing of land and property;
• Supporting residents to make the switch to digital services;
• Establishing a city-wide ‘Equality and Diversity' network to encourage good practice and collaboration, and ensuring the Council's workforce is representative and inclusive of its communities;
• Supporting career progression routes for ethnic minority employees.

The full report is available to view here. It was discussed by the Council's Scrutiny Committees. Recordings of the meetings are available to watch here

The report was debated and voted through by full Council on March 9 (visit here to watch a recording of the meeting)