This meeting was scheduled to receive reports on a range of topics including the Ceredigion Coroner Service, staff sickness absence, the council's Gender Pay Gap and workforce equality, a six monthly update on complaints, compliments and Freedom of Information requests, and proposed policies on digital technology, information security and the use of Artificial Intelligence.

Ceredigion Coroner Service

This report was scheduled to provide information about deaths reported to the Coroner. This report was a follow-up to a previous report presented to the committee on 16 July 2024. The July report outlined national statistics from the Coroner, and noted that figures for Ceredigion were not yet available. This report noted that figures for Ceredigion in 2023 are still not available. The report also noted that 26 inquests had taken place between 26 June 2024 and 1 December 2024. It stated that 7 of these inquests were public, and 19 were inquests in writing . The report noted that there were two inquests scheduled for future dates: 2 December 2024 and 5 February 2025. The report also noted a rise in the number of toxicology cases in recent years, providing figures for each year since 2019. Finally, the report noted changes to staffing arrangements for the Coroner Service. The report stated that Elin Prysor, Corporate Lead Officer for Legal & Governance, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.

Sickness Absence

This report was scheduled to provide information about staff sickness absence. The report stated that levels of sickness absence are measured by the number of working days lost per full time equivalent employee (FTE ). The report provided a table showing the number of days lost per FTE between 2017 and 2024, noting that in 2017-18, at 13.6 days per FTE, the council had the highest number of days lost per FTE in Wales. The report noted that since then the figure has consistently been below the Welsh average, reaching a low of 7.9 days per FTE in 2020-21, before rising to 9.6 in 2022-23. The report notes that provisional figures for 2023-24 showed a rise to 11.1 days lost per FTE. The report compared Ceredigion's figures with those for all Welsh local authorities in 2022-23, and noted that, at 9.6 days per FTE, Ceredigion's figures placed it in the lower quartile. The report noted that no figures are yet available for all Welsh local authorities in 2023-24, but a provisional table for 2023-24 was provided. The report provided a breakdown of the reasons given for sickness absence in Ceredigion in 2023-24, noting that Anxiety/Stress/Depression/Other Psychiatric Illnesses accounted for the highest number of days lost. This accounted for 28.1% of all working days lost to sickness absence, of which 8.8% were recorded as being work related. The report also provided a breakdown of days lost to sickness absence by workstyle category . This separated corporate employees into three categories:

• Fixed - A role where the employee's place of work is determined by their role
• Hybrid - A role which can be undertaken as effectively remotely as in the workplace but due to certain responsibilities/client demand the employee will be required to visit Council buildings or schools on a regular basis with little notice
• Remote - A role which can be undertaken as effectively remotely as in the workplace The report noted that, while employees with fixed roles account for 41% of the corporate workforce, this category accounts for 60% of total absence. The report noted a range of measures implemented by the council with a view to improving the health and wellbeing of employees and to reduce the impact of sickness absence. The report stated that Geraint Edwards, Corporate Lead Officer - People & Organisation, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.

Gender Pay and Workforce Equality

This report was scheduled to provide information about the council's gender pay gap and the composition of its workforce. It noted that Ceredigion Council is required to carry out gender pay gap reporting by the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017, and to publish information about its workforce by the Public Sector Equality Duty 2011. The report provided the following figures on the gender pay gap:

• Mean gender pay gap - 7.0%
• Median gender pay gap - 6.6% It also noted that these figures represent a decrease on the figures from 2023, which were:
• Mean gender pay gap - 7.8%
• Median gender pay gap - 10.4% The report also provided a breakdown of the council workforce, separating employees into quartiles by pay, and showing the proportion of men and women in each quartile. The report stated that the council's gender pay gap is due to there being fewer women in senior roles at the council than men. The report also provided a breakdown of the council's workforce by age, disability, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, contract type and working pattern. The report stated that the information presented relates to the council's corporate workforce, and does not include teaching or support staff employed by school governing bodies. The report concluded by outlining the steps that the council is taking to reduce the gender pay gap. The report stated that Geraint Edwards, Corporate Lead Officer - People & Organisation, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.

Six Monthly Update on Compliments, Complaints and Freedom of Information

This report was scheduled to provide information about complaints, compliments and freedom of information requests made to the council. The report provided the following figures on the number of complaints, compliments and freedom of information requests received by the council in the first six months of the financial year (1 April to 30 September):

• Compliments - 124
• Stage 1 Complaints - 137
• Stage 2 Complaints - 39
• Ombudsman Referrals - 16
• Enquiries - 134
• Freedom of Information (FOI) and Environmental Information Regulation (EIR) requests - 556 The report noted that the number of complaints received represents a significant rise compared with the same period in the previous year. The report stated that this rise was likely to be due to operational difficulties faced by the council's waste collection service. The report noted that the majority of complaints were resolved at stage 1 of the complaints process, suggesting that the council was taking appropriate steps to address them. The report noted that the Ombudsman had received 16 complaints about the council, though no formal investigations had been started. 7 cases were closed after initial consideration, 2 were deemed to be outside of the Ombudsman's jurisdiction, 1 was deemed to be premature and referred back to the council, and 1 was withdrawn. 2 cases remained open at the time of the meeting, and 3 early resolution agreements had been reached, meaning that the council had resolved the complaint to the Ombudsman's satisfaction. The report concluded by highlighting that the council's Complaints and FOI team had faced challenges in responding to the volume of requests received. The report stated that Marie-Neige Hadfield, Complaints and Freedom of Information Manager, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.

Digital Strategy

This report was scheduled to update the committee on the outcome of the public consultation on the council's proposed Digital Strategy. The report noted that a public consultation on the strategy took place between 6 May and 9 July 2024. 29 responses were received, and the report noted that many of the suggestions made by respondents had been incorporated into the final version of the strategy. The report stated that the strategy was ready to be considered by the full council. The report stated that Alan Morris, Corporate Lead Officer, Customer Contact, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.

Information Security Policy

This report was scheduled to present a revised Information Security Policy to the committee. The report noted that the revised policy aims to modernise existing guidance and to bring it in line with best practice. The report stated that the policy contained minor updates and amendments to the existing policy, and was a routine 5-year review. The report stated that Alan Morris, Corporate Lead Officer, Customer Contact, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.

Policy on the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI)

This report was scheduled to present a draft policy on the use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI ) to the committee. The report noted that there was no existing policy on this topic. The report stated that the purpose of the policy was to provide a framework for the ethical and safe use of GenAI tools, such as ChatGPT, Bard, Bing and CoPilot. The report stated that Alan Morris, Corporate Lead Officer, Customer Contact, would be the contact for the committee on this topic.