Council ask for your thoughts on six proposed priorities for the next three years

Members of the public are being invited to have their say on Wrexham Council’s main priorities and vision for the county borough.

The draft Council Plan (which can be viewed in full here) outlines the six “priority areas” that the local authority will focus on between now and 2023.

These include:-

Developing the economy

This would include creating a Master Plan for a smaller town centre with a mix of retail, residential and entertainment, the North Wales Growth deal, developing an an Innovation & Entrepreneurial Loan Fund to support entrepreneurship; Capitalise on the economic impact of football on the county borough and lobbying the Welsh Government to secure improvements to A483 trunk road, lobby Transport for Wales to secure improvements in facilities and services through Wrexham’s railway stations.

Ensuring a modern and resilient council

This would include “modern ways of working” due to the council facing “the issue of doing more with less.”

Proposals include reviewing the council’s office accommodation requirements to ensure they are fit for purpose, developing a new ICT and digital strategy, ensuring key services are sustainable; organisational development, ensuring the development of the Welsh language in the council and investing in new ICT infrastructure and complete the delivery of the new data centre and disaster recovery sites

Ensuring everyone is safe

The consultation states that this would focus on improving community safety by working with partners to focus on “reducing harm caused by alcohol, protecting the most vulnerable and making people feel safer”. Along with “supporting vulnerable people to prevent them from becoming victims, and repeat victims, of crime.”

This would also include reducing homelessness, investing in housing standards and services by increasing the council’s social housing stock with our new-build schemes in Plas Madoc and Nant Silyn, completing the Welsh Housing Quality Standard and refurbishing void properties and improving private sector housing standards.

Improving secondary education

Wrexham Council say that during “the period 2020-23, the priority will be to improve secondary school outcomes and to address the recommendations of the Estyn inspection.

“This priority directly supports many of Wales’ well-being goals – supporting our learners and creating the right conditions for a skilled and well-educated workforce, able to fulfil their potential no matter what their background or circumstances, and directly supports a more equal, prosperous, resilient and healthier Wales, with a vibrant culture and thriving Welsh language.”

Improving the environment

To help play a part in being a “globally responsible Wales”, the local authority is proposing to focus on adopting new technology and digital solutions to improve the responsiveness, efficiency and resilience of its environmental services, developing a Decarbonisation Plan, increasing recycling, being proactive in reducing and removing litter and fly tipping across the County Borough and reviewing and investing in its waste collection services.

Promoting good health and well-being.

This would include achieving improvements in children’s social care, achieving a reduction in the number of looked after children by focussing on prevention and early help services, increasing the number of foster carers and creating a well-being centre in Wrexham town centre.

Throughout the consultation participants are asked how much they agree with the priorities and what they think should be included going forward.

Once this consultation closes, the results will be analysed and the findings used to finalise the Council Plan 2020 – 2023 which will be presented to Council in May 2020 for approval.

The consultation can be completed on the YourVoiceWrexham website until Tuesday March 17th.