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Cardiff Council Update: 19 February

Welcome to the last update of the week from Cardiff Council, covering: post-pandemic budget proposals; revised proposals for the rebuild of Willows High School; plans to buy city hostel considered; response to the ‘Wales Transport Strategy'; vaccination totals for Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan; and Cardiff's COVID-19 case and test numbers.

 

Stay home. Save lives. Protect the NHS. Together we'll #KeepCardiffSafe

For all the latest information on COVID-19 in Wales, go to

www.gov.wales/coronavirus

 

Post-pandemic budget proposals designed to ‘boost' Cardiff and safeguard vital services

A multi-million pounds, post-pandemic recovery budget for Cardiff - designed to help create new jobs, deliver new council homes, build better schools and safeguard vital public services - will go to the city's full council for approval in March.

Cardiff Council's Cabinet is bringing forward proposals that would see millions spent helping to get the city up and running again as it looks to recover from the effects of the pandemic.

The proposals are part of the 2021/22 budget report which will go to Cabinet for approval on Thursday, February 25. Once agreed, Full Council will vote on the budget at a meeting on March 4.

Cardiff Council Leader, Cllr Huw Thomas, said:  "This will be one of the most important budgets this council has set. COVID-19 has affected each and every one of us and it will affect our futures for many years to come. That said, our city has done a remarkable job, pulling together, to try to halt the spread of the virus. Right now we are battling the second wave, but hope is in sight as the vaccination programme continues to roll out. With that in mind, we are looking to the future, planning how we recover from the pandemic and how we prepare our city for the challenges ahead."

Cabinet member for Finance, Cllr Chris Weaver, said: "This council has always had high ambitions for our city. We always want the best for our residents and we are determined to ensure Cardiff makes a quick recovery from the effects of the pandemic.

"This will involve bringing together and supporting a broad range of measures designed to help renew Cardiff, delivering an economic landscape where jobs can be created as we recover after this incredibly difficult year. We believe our budget proposals set a clear route out of the pandemic which can benefit everyone who lives here."

Read more here:

https://www.cardiffnewsroom.co.uk/releases/c25/25891.html

 

Revised proposals for the rebuild of Willows High School

A report which recommends plans are progressed to relocate and rebuild a replacement Willows High School will go to Cardiff Council's Cabinet when it meets on Thursday 25, February.

The report outlines proposals which could see the new school relocated to Lewis Road, Splott.

It also requests that a non-statutory public engagement on the relocation of the school will take place in Spring, giving members of the public the opportunity to find out more about the proposals for the scheme.

In December 2017, the Cabinet approved plans to address those schools in poor condition. Willows High School was identified as a category ‘D' school, meaning it is nearing the end of its operational life with ‘unsuitable' learning environments and was prioritised for investment.

If progressed, the new school would be delivered under Cardiff Council and Welsh Government's Band B 21stCentury Schools programme and proposals would include:

 

  • building a new school on Lewis Road, Splott to serve the Adamsdown, Splott and Tremorfa areas
  • providing access to high quality local sports facilities
  • a community focussed school with facilities available for use by the whole community outside of core school hours.
  • enhanced pedestrian facilities to support active travel arrangements on the Lewis Road site
  • capacity for 900 places for learners aged 11 to 16, in line with the projected demand
  • pupils to remain at the existing Willows High School site until the new school build is complete to minimise the potential for disruption.

Read more here:

https://www.cardiffnewsroom.co.uk/releases/c25/25894.html

 

Plans to buy city hostel considered

Cardiff Council's ‘No Going Back' approach to the delivery of homelessness services in the city will take another stride forward next week if plans to buy a new facility are agreed.

At its next meeting on Thursday, February 25, Cabinet will consider a proposal to purchase the YHA hostel on East Tyndall Street, accommodation the Council has been using since last Spring when extra spaces were need to keep clients safe during the pandemic.

The facility provided 80 of the 182 additional units of supported accommodation that were established across a number of sites to address homelessness during the health crisis, and its good quality accommodation and on-site support services have played an integral role in achieving real change in vulnerable people's lives.

The number of people sleeping rough in the city is now consistently low - in single figures for the past few months, and more people than ever before are engaging with life-changing support services, such as therapeutic counselling, mental health support and substance misuse treatment.

Permanently acquiring the 80 bed hostel will ensure the continuity of accommodation and support for single homeless people, and together with other improved provision and changes to the way services are delivered, will further support the Council's new vision for homelessness services.

Read more here:

https://www.cardiffnewsroom.co.uk/releases/c25/25897.html

 

Cardiff Council's response to the ‘Wales Transport Strategy'

Cardiff Council's Cabinet will consider the council's response to the Wales Transport Strategy at its meeting on February 25th.

The council supports the vision, ambition and priorities that have been set out by Welsh Government - but with a number of caveats - to ensure that Cardiff retains control over our Local Transport Plan and receives adequate long-term funding to deliver the transport improvements required in the Welsh Capital.

The Council has set out a 10-year transport vision for the city in February 2020, which has been recognised as a UK-Wide exemplar of best practice, both in terms of delivery and development. The White Paper sets out how the council is going to tackle dangerous emissions from transport which contributes to climate change, reduce congestion, improve public transport and active travel routes, and improve the air quality in the city.

Read more here:

https://www.cardiffnewsroom.co.uk/releases/c25/25892.html

 

Cardiff & Vale University Health Board Vaccination Status Update - 19 February

The total number of vaccination doses given by the Cardiff & Vale University Health Board so far, in both local authority areas:120,629.

 

Priority Groups 5-7

65-69: 6,797

Underlying Health Conditions: 4,562

60-64: 5,461

 

Data provided by the CAVUHB

Please note that there may be minor amendments to data as it is validated over time

 

Cardiff Cases and Tests - 7 Days Data (08 February - 14 February)

Based on latest figures from Public Health Wales

 

Data correct as of:

18 February 2021, 09:00

 

Cases: 380

Cases per 100,000 population: 103.6 (Wales: 83.9 cases per 100,000 population)

Testing episodes: 3,853

Testing per 100,000 population: 1,050.1

Positive proportion: 9.9% (Wales: 7.9% positive proportion)