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Assembly Committee seeks public views on Local Service Boards

Assembly Committee seeks public views on Local Service Boards

9 Jul 2008

The Health, Wellbeing and Local Government Committee has agreed to undertake an inquiry into the progress of the six Local Service Boards (LSB) pilots in Wales and how LSBs might develop in future and is calling for those with an interest or expertise in this area to submit written evidence.

The Report of the Beecham Review, Beyond Boundaries: Citizen-Centred Local Services for Wales, made a range of recommendations for the Welsh Assembly Government and other Welsh bodies. The Assembly Government announced the establishment of Local Service Boards (LSBs) in 2007-08.  Their role is to pursue joint action where it will mean better outcomes for citizens, based on ambitious joint planning and integrated delivery of services.  Six projects were subsequently announced in Caerphilly, Cardiff, Carmarthenshire, Gwynedd, Neath Port Talbot and Wrexham.

The Committee has agreed to examine the early progress of the six Local Service Board (LSB) pilots in Wales and to make recommendations in respect of the future development of Local Service Boards, with reference to:-

  • The process of putting together "local leadership teams" in the pilot areas and the effectiveness of collaboration between core bodies and stakeholders.
  • The monitoring and evaluation of progress in setting up Local Service Boards (LSBs) to date and the "action learning" process in their development.
  • The agreement of Local Delivery Agreements (LDAs) in the pilot areas, including the extent to which local citizens have been involved.
  • The relationship between LSBs and existing partnership structures, in particular the community strategy partnerships and sub-regional structures such as the WLGA Regional Boards.
  • The scrutiny and accountability of LSBs.
  • How partners that cover several unitary authorities engage with multiple LSBs.
  • The role of Local Authorities in relation to LSBs.
  • The role of Assembly Government officials in respect of LSBs.
  • The role of "Spatial Plan" Ministers to LSBs in their area.
  • The extent to which Local Public Service Boards and Local Area Agreements in England have informed the development of the Welsh model.