ADULTS, HEALTH AND WELLBEING
2024 NEWSLETTER
APRIL
A Word from Aled.
The winter months and especially the period since the turn of the year have been as busy as ever, with pressure on services and staff having again been considerable Although very difficult at times, your hard work and perseverance has once again enabled us to maintain services and support individuals across the County. Thank you all.
And now, with spring ahead, it's a time of change and that change is happening at a national and local level
On the 1st of April, the National Office for Care and Support Wales was established. A title that's a bit of a mouthful and based down in South Wales but its establishment is a very important step in the Welsh Government's programme to strengthen and improve social care arrangements in Wales Early days, but I'm sure we'll start to see its influence over the next few months. Be prepared for a clear programme of work and priorities including raising momentum in the rebalancing of social care, the profit removal agenda and the emphasis on effective commissioning. The Chief Social Care Officer for Wales will be visiting us here in Gwynedd on the 15th of May
There are also changes underway locally within Gwynedd. In recent months Dylan, in his role as Director, has been reviewing the high-level structure of social services in Gwynedd The first steps of the programme of realising the changes will be taken in the coming weeks starting with moving the Business Service out of the Adult Department to report directly to the Director Work elements will also transfer out of the Children's Department with the Business Service in its new form being established to support both departments. Once this initial move is in place further work will take place to consider further restructuring options. I can assure you that arrangements will be made to engage with all teams and staff affected by any element of the changes.
In addition to the above changes, over the next 3 months, we hope that we will have been successful in acting on the recommendations of our review of care professional positions across Children and Adult services. There are a handful of issues related to this that continue to be addressed but we are confident that we can complete this work in a timely manner.
Of course, the big change affecting all of us is the new arrangements for hybrid working. The arrangements promote work-life balance amongst staff and use flexible working arrangements to positively impact staff motivation, wellbeing, performance and productivity The Hybrid Working Plan allows full-time officers to work up to 3 days a week from home where their jobs allow them to work hybridly, which means working a minimum of 2 days a week in the office (pro rata for part-time workers). In the care field, we are used to the need to work flexibly in seeking to provide support to County residents and the needs of those residents will continue to be a leading consideration in shaping our future work arrangements as teams and individuals.
Alongside this and the proposed restructuring of care services, over the coming months we will be making a number of adjustments to our arrangements within our offices In the first instance, this means there will be moves to be made for teams based at the Headquarters in Caernarfon. Our plan for 3rd floor office work locations is almost ready and we will be sharing the office layout and discussing them with all staff who will be affected soon.
Share your thoughts!
We are very eager to hear your thoughts on this newsletter, to get a better idea of how to improve its contents and reach more readers in the future.
Please click here to take part in the survey that will take no more than two minutes to complete. Thank you for taking part and we look forward to sharing the results with you in the next newsletter!
Welsh Tutor?
Bet Huws, Welsh Language Learning Development Officer, is holding a survey to see demand there is for a Welsh language tutor i Council that would be funded by Cymraeg Gwa
This is connected with Cyngor Gwynedd’s go encouraging the Welsh language and to improv ability to provide care services through the medi Welsh as part of our work to implement the More Just Words strategy.
Click here to take part in the survey.
New Jobs
Following Helen Fon Owen’s retirement last year following a long and successful career serving the people of Gwynedd, there were certainly big shoes to fill in the Learning Disabilities service.
In the last newsletter, we shared the news that Mari Wynne Jones had been named as our new Learning Disabilities Senior Manager.
By now, Mari has stepped into her new role and has certainly had a strong start We wish to extend our congratulations as a department to Mari once again as we wish her good luck and success in her new job.
As Mari’s movement to her new role is happening on a secondment basis, it became necessary to fill her job as Adult Services Senior Manager until the end of the secondment on the 31st of March 2025.
As you are sure to be aware, this role has by now been filled by Sian Edith Williams Jones who was previously the Area Leader in the Bangor Community Resource Team Ruth Evans has stepped in to take Sian’s place in this role
Congratulations to all three of them and we will all be cheering and supporting you as you start your new roles in a challenging yet exciting time for the social care sector.
Complaints Training
The Workforce Development Unit has completed their wo on the Social Services Statutory Complaints Procedure e learning modules Although it is not mandatory training, i recommended that you have a look at it as the Adults an Children’s departments have complaints procedures tha are seperate from the Corporate Complaints Policy, whi is used to deal with most of the other concerns faced by Council It will certainly be useful for every member of st to update their understanding of our department’s speci arrangements
Click here to complete it, it will take no more than 20 minutes.
PositiveBehaviourMentors
On the 31st of January, Eli Evans and Mathew Hopson took part in the North Wales Community of Practice in Conwy Business Centre, Llandudno. They gave a presentation on their work as Positive Behaviour and Active Support Mentors to staff who care for individuals with learning difficulties The staff had the opportunity to hear how Eli, Mathew and others work to improve service users ’ quality of life and to change the culture of services in order to ensure that they follow the Positive Behavioural Support Competence Framework (PBS)
PBS is a way of recognising and meeting individuals’ needs that centres them and emphasises sensitive and respectful treatment. This is especially important considering the fact that PBS tends to be used in situations where an individual is at risk of harming themselves or others, or in a dangerous situation generally PBS is a promising development within the field as it emphasises accepting an individual’s needs and working with them to meet them, as opposed to certain methods from the past that focused more on changing or ‘curing’ an individual in an unrealistic and unfair way.
Click here to see the Positive Behaviour Framework and for more information on PBS in general.
Homeshare’sSuccess
Two people have become Gwynedd’s first Homeshare match, providing a safe and affordable home in return for companionship and support
The Cyngor Gwynedd Rhannu Cartref/Homeshare scheme was launched last year and aims to match people who need a little extra help to live independently at home with others who find it difficult to find or afford their own home. With the Homeshare scheme, everybody wins.
Audrey and James have been housemates for the past two months and are keen to share their experiences so that others become aware of the immense benefits of sharing a home through the scheme
Audrey is a widow in her 80s and was finding it increasingly difficult to cope on her own. James has his own landscaping company and had been doing some work for Audrey when he found himself looking for somewhere to live following a change in circumstances. Homeshare seemed to be the obvious answer for both.
Audrey said: “The benefits of Homeshare are great for me and I think the scheme is fantastic. My children – one of whom doesn’t live locally and the other who has full time work – agree that it’s peace of mind, especially that I have someone living with me and can be there in case of an emergency. Having James here give me such peace of mind and companionship, especially during these long winter nights.”
The pair have known each other for the past five years and have always got along Taking the next step to becoming home sharers made sense for them both James helps out for 10 hours every week and the arrangement is flexible and fits in with his working life.
James said: “It’s really difficult to find somewhere permanent to live without having to move away from my community. Homeshare is really working out for me, I can’t believe how lucky I’ve been to find such a nice place to live. I look forward to cooking our dinner in the evening and putting the world to rights with Audrey.”
Dilwyn Morgan, Cyngor Gwynedd Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Wellbeing said: “I really welcome Homeshare in Gwynedd People are facing so many challenges in our communities, especially the elderly and young people This scheme offers practical and flexible solutions and mutual benefits, helping to tackle loneliness and isolation as well as affordable housing.”
Housesharers don’t pay rent, however they are expected to pay a small administrative fee to Rhannu Cartref Gwynedd Homeshare for ongoing costs. The matching process is carefully planned, and detailed background checks are arranged for both parties to ensure the scheme is safe and effective For more details about Rhannu Cartref Gwynedd Homeshare – as a Householder or as a Homesharer – please contact richardwynwilliams@gwynedd llyw cymru / tel 07388 859015 or visit the website www.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/homeshare
Hybrid Working Plan
The Hybrid Working Plan officially came into effect on the 8th of April, 2024 Althoug preparations have been underway for a while and many of us have made adjustments to our wor arrangements already, the plan still represents a substantial change for many. The latest version o the Hybrid Working Plan Newsletter is available here. It features further information on the plan and what to do if you are unsure about anything
What does this mean for our department?
Our way of working is changing - as a result of the decision to allow staff to continue to work from home up to 3 days a week (pro rata if part time), the council needs to reconsider its resources, meaning less space will be available in the future. Therefore, we must make more effective use of currently existing space and resources and be ready to change to desk sharing arrangements if this has not already happened
As a department, we will be losing over 300 square metres of space in our main offices in the Headquarters. New space is therefore calculated on the basis of 1 desk for every member of staff in the office full time, and 3 desks between 5 for those that work hybrid. Additionally, every department is receiving additional space for provision of quiet and meeting spaces. How we use this space is a matter for us as a department, and we will do that by looking at staff numbers in each service initially, as well as storage needs and so on.
Key Principles of the working plan
To make the space work for the future, we will all need to agree on a set of general principles:
Individuals will not have their own offices but everyone will have access to hot desks and provision of quiet/meeting spaces (and a booking system)
A clear desk policy will be in place
Any service which has not already committed to becoming paperless will need to do so Everyone will need to have an open mind in terms of sharing space with other teams and making the best use of it
Keeping offices clean and tidy is the responsibility of the team using them Cleaners will be hoovering the rooms once every 6 weeks but they are not responsible for cleaning desks and so on.
As Aled has noted in his introduction to the newsletter, the plans concerning the Adult department’s space on the 2nd and 3rd floor of the Headquarters have been under discussion recently. We hope to be able to share something with you very soon.
If you have any concerns about these arrangements, please contact your line manager in the first instance to discuss. If any enquiries persist, contact Cadi Morus Parry in the Workforce Support Team via cadimorusparry@gwynedd.llyw.cymru.
Thank you very much in advance for your co-operation
Disposing Files
A vigilant attitude to records and files is vitally important to the work of the Department and Council.
Following the pandemic period where many worked from home and difficulties arising regarding easily deleting records from WCCIS, it is very likely that we are now keeping information much longer than we legally should. It’s necessary that we now give this our attention as a department.
Additionally, the Hybrid Working Plan means that the council will be reconsidering its buildings and reducing the space available to us There is therefore pressure on us from a releasing space point of view as well, and disposal of paper files that do not need to be kept is a key part of this.
In one or two locations, our inability to dispose of paper files also disrupts other departments regarding projects that are in progress or regarding keeping their information safe
Members of your teams have been involved in a piece of work to update our retention periods recently and to assist you with this work, the current retention periods can be found here (it is mainly the Adult Social Services tab that applies to us)
We would like to highlight one of the main changes in the document - the instruction at the beginning which allows the handling of social work case files all with the same 10-year retention period following the date of death or closure of the file.
This is to rationalise work and reduce the need to weed through the files to check if there are safeguarding documents etc in them. Remember that a record of the date files are destroyed needs to be kept and that information needs to be saved securely on iGwynedd.
We ask that you prioritise this work starting with step 1 (paper files)– and we ask that you please complete this by the 3rd of May For advice on retention periods, disposal arrangements, or to discuss any concerns you may have about the work and schedule please contact Sophie Tyne Hughes at sophieannhughes@gwynedd gov cymru as soon as possible
Sickness Arrangements
Annual Leave
Changes to our sickness reporting arrangements will come into force on 10 June 2024 From this date, a new sickness module on Staff Self-Service will replace the system of sending monthly reports to the supportive team.
The system will support managers in knowing when to act in accordance with the absence management policy and feed into the department's sickness data
It is vital that managers understand the new system and to that end several training sessions have been organised. If you are responsible for members of staff, I would encourage you to take advantage of this training by following the link:
https://porthstaff gwynedd llyw cymru/en/M ods/Teitl/Manylion/11317
From the 1st of April 2023 onwards, all local government staff were given an additional day’s leave, as specified in the 2022/23 pay agreement.
As everyone ’ s leave year is different and based on the individual’s employment start date with the Council, those staff whose leave year begins between May and October are allocated an extra half day of leave; and staff whose leave year starts between November and April will get an extra full day of leave.
This information is relevant for leave years that started during the 12 months between the 1st of May 2022 and the 31st of April 2023. This means that after the 1st of April 2024, all members of staff will be in receipt of an extra day of normal leave for any leave year.
Please note, that an additional half-day or full day of regular annual leave should be added There is more information on how part-time staff should calculate exactly how much should be added on the staff Intranet (follow the link here or contact your Manager / Team Leader.
This additional day of annual leave is a permanent arrangement.
If you have any further questions, please contact your HR Officer / Adviser or send a message to gwasanaethymgynghorolAD@gwynedd llyw cymru
Please note:
Staff Self Service - For those who use the Holidays Calendar in Staff Self-Service the line manager will be required to make the adjustment to the current holiday total You can do this by following the 'How to adjust Holidays' instructions in Need Help? in Staff Self-Service.
From April 2024 onwards this additional holiday will be automatically included in your new Holiday total.
Weekly News
Do you receive our ‘weekly news ’ e-mail? If you do not, please contact Sian Pritchard, Public Relations and Communications Manager via e-mail: sianip@gwynedd.llyw.cymru.
SiopauGwyneddOpening Hours
As well as the new office and holiday arrangements, an update to the opening hours of siop Gwynedd will come into effect in April See below a message from Catrin Love, Assistant Head Corporate Support, explaining the change:
As part of the cuts package, you will be aware that a decision has been made to change Gwynedd Shops’ opening hours from the 1st of April onwards
To this end, the shops of Pwllheli, Dolgellau and Caernarfon will shut from 4pm from 1/4/24 and then following a year, will shut at 3pm from 1/4/25 This does not impede the Galw Gwynedd telephone line service that will continue to be open as usual until 5pm
As a result, the front doors of every Siop Gwynedd, including the reception and interview rooms, will close from 16:00 on the 1/4/24. We ask that you share this message with your teams and ask them not to arrange appointments after 15:30 from 1/4/24 onwards please due to the need to lock the door promptly at 16:00. This will also need to be considered concerning any visitors to the building at the end of the afternoon, as there will be no reception available to welcome them after 16:00
We will be arranging further discussions over the following weeks with the main users of the shops. If there is a specific element of your Department’s work that needs discussion, please contact.
Manon’s Half Marathon
Manon Elwyn, who works in the department as a Supporting Health and Wellbeing Manager, and her partner Ifan Owens, who also works for the Council in the Finance department, have decided to undertake the challenge of hiking a half marathon through Snowdonia, starting at the Faenol estate and finishing their journey near Llyn Ogwen.
They have decided to undertake this challenge, that will take place on the 25th of May, in order to raise money on behalf of the charity Macmillan, which is close to their hearts following the loss of Manon’s father to cancer last year.
If you would like to contribute to their journey, click this link: Heic Hanner Marathon Manon ac Ifan
Dewis Project
Back in February, our director Huw Dylan Owen sent you an e-mail detailing the work in progress concerning Dewis Cymru. The project, which is being led by Jess
Mullan, is working towards encouraging and expanding the use of Dewis, be it within the department, the council or the wider community. We believe that promoting Dewis will assist us as service users, or potential service users, will be able to access support and advice in different areas.
By now, the work of promoting Dewis is quickly gaining momentum, as Jess and others work towards planning how to get as many community and third sector resources as possible to join Dewis and how to ensure that they stay there
This project is vitally important to our goals as a Department and Council generally, as it perfectly represents the vigilant and preventative attitude we have committed to in order to tackle our county’s health and wellbeing problems
Through supporting Dewis to be a central point for all third sector or community information in our county, we believe the project will play an important part in the battle against loneliness,
isolation and the many problems resulting from them which then demand more of our scarce time and money
To visit Dewis, click here. If you are part of any community or third sector group, from after-school groups to mental health charities, please consider adding your resource to Dewis Cymru. For support or guidelines on how to do this, please contact jessicaionamullan@gwynedd.llyw.cymru or IwanHuwRoberts@gwynedd.llyw.cymru.
Autism Information Day
The Council’s Autism Practice Team has certainly been keeping very busy since its establishment.
They have gone from strength to strength in their efforts to fulfill the council’s goals of providing specialised and high quality services for autistic people and their families.
An information day was held on the 4th of March in Porthmadog, where the team had the opportunity to introduce themselves to the public and answer any questions.
The day was an extraordinarily successful one with much excitement and interest for the team’s work, so they certainly achieved their goal of raising awareness of autism in our community through letting people know what services are available to them
There was good representation of the services available for the people of Gwynedd on show in Porthmadog, with groups such as Derwen and the Carers Outreach Service also presennt Councillor (and mayor of Bangor) Elin Walker Jones, who specialises professionally in the field, visited the event, as well as Councillors Gwynfor Owen, Meryl Roberts and Dawn Lynne Jones Between all of this, it was certainly an encouraging day that highlighted all the hard work that is going into serving autistic people and others in our communities, be it within our outside the council
To mark Autism Awareness and Acceptance Week (April 2-8,) the team’s leader, Lucy Hemmings, was at work trying to increase the number of council staff that have completed autism training. We would be thankful if you would have a look at Autism Wales’ e-modules, namely ‘Understanding Autism’ that gives an overview of autism for all members of staff, and ‘Understanding Effective Communication and Autism’ which is ideal for staff who work directly with autistic individuals. Click here to see Autism Wales’ e-modules.
Lasting Power of Attorney
The department’s leadership would like to remind you of the Guidelines for Lasting Power of Attorney available from the office of the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales.
It is especially important for the Adult Teams to be aware of this information in order for them to encourage families to make arrangements if an individual has capacity, as it id much more difficult and costly when making applications after an individual has lost capacity
Click here to read the guidelines, and here to read Shirley’s story, an individual’s experience which conveys the importance of LPA
Celebrating Easter
See below pictures shared on the homes’ social media, showing some of our service users celebrating Easter recently We hope that you too had a wonderful Easter
Over on Frondeg’s Facebook page, you can see some of the service users busy creating artwork for Pool Street, Caernarfon
This work is part of the Canvas project, a new project under the leadership of Galeri Caernarfon Ltd. The idea behind the work is to create an opportunity for the community to record its identity through artwork.
According to the Galeri’s website; ‘The visual work for Pool Street was created by the designers Ann Catrin Evans and Lois Prys Their design was inspired by the strong historic relationship of Pool Street to hat, clothing, shoe, tailoring, rope and cord manufacturers, as well as the flow of the river Cadnant through the town centre It is great to be able to say that the Frondeg crew supported them in the work of creating it!’
We look forward to seeing it on Pool Street shortly.
Thank you Canvas Project
Thank you for reading the latest edition of the Adults, Health and Wellbeing Department’s Newsletter. If you have any news you wish to share with us, remember to be in touch. We would be happy to share it through the Newsletter or the ‘Weekly News’ story.
In the same spirit, we would love to hear any feedback, complaints or suggestions you may have concerning the Newsletter The Newsletter is created by and for you, so we welcome any comments
Contact Details
Phone number:
01286 679 223
E-mail:
sianip@gwynedd.llyw.cymru or IwanHuwRoberts@gwynedd llyw cymru
