MS, Cabinet Secretary for
Housing and Local Government: I wish to congratulate Blaenau
Gwent and Torfaen County Borough Councils on agreeing to appoint
a permanent Joint Chief Executive for both councils.
The appointment follows a 7 month ‘discovery phase' during which
both councils agreed to share the Chief Executive role, while
exploratory work took place to evaluate the impact of closer
working.
The review from Local Partnerships, which has now concluded,
identified several benefits to this approach. There are
opportunities to gain financial efficiencies, create a culture of
improving services for residents, and drive collaboration and
knowledge-sharing. The discovery phase has seen evidence of
benefits from increased scale of delivery, stronger strategic
planning, and better staff development within the councils.
Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen County Borough Councils have undertaken
this exciting project as a federation of two councils of equal
status, seeking mutual benefits and exploring new ways of
working. They have engaged and built trust among leaders and
elected members across councils, building on shared aims to
benefit their residents. They have taken a social partnership
approach, involving the trades unions throughout. These are clear
signs of a healthy curiosity, a commitment to innovation and the
maturity of partners across the councils.
This is an exciting and innovative approach, and one which
supports long-term sustainability whilst also retaining the
financial and democratic sovereignty of both councils. I applaud
their innovation to be proactive in facing current and future
demands. There are a number of opportunities for shared learning
stemming from this work.
Officials will continue to work closely with partners in the WLGA
to support Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent County Borough Councils and
I look forward to seeing the outcomes and learning from their
next phase.
