The Cornwall Council Cabinet met to discuss the Council Performance Report for Quarter 2 of 2025/26, the Draft Council Priorities Plan 2026-30, and several strategies and commissioning plans. The cabinet approved the draft Council Priorities 2026-2030 for public consultation, and also approved the Home Based Prevention and Intermediate Care Business Case, and to commence a procurement process for Sexual and Reproductive Health Services. They also formally adopted the 'Our Customer Philosophy 2025-2030' and the 'CornwALL Connected Digital Inclusion Strategy 2025-2030'.

Draft Council Priorities Plan 2026-30

The cabinet approved the draft Council Priorities Plan 2026-30 as the basis for a period of public consultation running from 14 November 2025 to 18 January 2026. The plan sets out six priorities:

• Strong, safe, vibrant communities with more decent and affordable housing
• A clean, green Cornwall with healthy rivers and seas
• A resilient economy creating good growth and jobs
• A caring place for families where children can build a bright future
• Supporting people to live healthy and dignified lives
• Connected, safe and reliable roads and transport

Councillor Leigh Frost, Leader of the Council, stated that the priorities were based on what residents had said were their priorities for Cornwall, and reflected what residents had told the council through surveys.

During a discussion, a member raised concerns about the recent decisions taken by the Portfolio Holder for Economic Regeneration and Investment, Councillor Tim Dwelly, to sell several farmhouses from the Council Farms Estate, arguing that farmhouses were integral to working farms and therefore should not be sold. It was confirmed that the Council Farms Estate covered only 3.5% of Cornwall's farmland and, therefore, did not have a significant impact on food security.

General Home Based Prevention and Intermediate Care

The Cabinet approved the Home Based Prevention and Intermediate Care Business Case, which sets out the future strategic direction for the integrated commissioning of voluntary sector, reablement¹ and clinical support to prevent people needing admission to hospital or adult social care services, and to support safe and timely discharges from hospital. The council will assume the lead commissioning role for service areas 1, 2, 3 and 5.

Councillor Jim McKenna, Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care and Health Partnerships, stated that the integration of intermediate care services in Cornwall would support faster recovery from illness and crisis, avoid unnecessary hospital admissions and promote independence.

The approach also recommends new investment into reablement services to ensure everyone who accessed adult social care services could benefit from a period of reablement as part of their assessment to ensure they had reached their potential for independence before they accessed long term care services.

The business case included a contingency plan for separate commissioning should the council or the NHS Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board take the decision not to proceed with the recommended integration option.

The benefits of the proposal included the potential to achieve a return on investment of £6.63 for every £1 spent on prevention and home-based intermediate care, which was £112m value from £17m investment.

Sexual and Reproductive Health Commissioning

The Cabinet approved the commencement of a procurement process for the delivery of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services for a maximum ten-year period (seven plus three-year basis).

Councillor Thalia Marrington, Portfolio Holder for Community Safety and Public Health, stated that access to sexual and reproductive health services was a crucial part of promoting sexual and reproductive health for people as they helped prevent and treat sexually transmitted infections (STIs), manage fertility and contraception and provided information and support regarding safe sex practices, healthy relationships and sexual well-being.

The vision for the new strategy was to ensure everyone across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly had the opportunity to experience good sexual and reproductive health, through the provision of high-quality services and the promotion of safe and pleasurable sexual experiences that were free from coercion, discrimination and violence.

CornwALL Connected - Digital Inclusion Strategy 2025-2030

The Cabinet approved the refreshed CornwALL Connected: Digital Inclusion Strategy 2025–2030 and agreed to schedule a summit focusing on connectivity, infrastructure and inclusivity.

Councillor Sarah Preece, Portfolio Holder for Tourism, Localism and Planning, stated that digital exclusion was when a person, household, group or community experienced one or more barriers to accessing the internet and engaging online, such as a lack of skills, not having access to a smartphone or computer, or not being able to afford an internet connection.

The strategy's ambition is that, by 2030, everyone in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly will have the opportunity, confidence and support to be digitally included, with access to the right tools, skills and connections to thrive in life, work and community.

Our Customer Philosophy 2025-2030

The Cabinet formally adopted the Our Customer Philosophy 2025-2030 , which sets out the council's approach to customer services and experience.

Councillor Leigh Frost stated that the philosophy struck a balance by embracing digital technology and innovation while, at the same time, making sure council services remained personal and accessible to everyone.

The philosophy sets out six clear principles that will guide the council's work:

• Reliable: the council will do what it says, on time and get it right first time.
• Ease of use: services and information will be simple to find and understand.
• Accessible: everyone will be able to access services in a way that suits them.
• Community-focused: the council will work with local organisations and residents to design services that meet real needs.
• Caring: the council will treat people as individuals and provide the right support when needed most.
• Trustworthy: the council will act fairly, honestly and transparently and provide value for money.

Cornwall Council's Climate and Nature Response

The Cabinet agreed to adopt the revised long-term ambitions and near-term targets for climate and nature across the three levels of council action, as set out in section 2 of the Cornwall Council's Climate and Nature Response report.

Councillor Loic Rich, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Climate Change, stated that the report reaffirmed the council's commitment to action and recommended that the council continued to lead by example and build on the great strides made over the previous six years in embedding climate and nature responses across the council's operations.

The report recommended that the council maintained its commitment to 30% of land, rivers and seas to be well managed for nature by 2030 and deliver a 70% reduction in its operational emissions by 2030 and, importantly, prioritised continued emissions reduction over offsetting, aiming for a 90% reduction by 2040.

Council Performance Report 2025/26 (Q2)

The Cabinet acknowledged and considered the Council Performance Report for Quarter 2 of 2025/26, which covered performance from July to September 2025.

Councillor Adam Paynter, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Resources, introduced the report and stated that the council had seen strong delivery on some of its strategic programmes. However, cost pressures on the council's revenue budget persisted, with a forecasted overspend of £7.9m. Despite endeavours to maintain and reduce the number of children in care, costs continued to rise rapidly due to increased prices from providers for new placements, with the overspend in Children's Social Care forecast to be over £15m.

Question from the Public

Mr J Carley of Chacewater asked a question regarding the Local Area Energy Plan (LAEP):

Could you please give us a definitive start date for the round of public engagement on the implementation. There is a great deal public of interest in the Local Area Energy Plan, and many are keen to engage. What will be the feedback mechanism?

Councillor Loic Rich responded that Cornwall Council was working closely with the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Climate Commission, which had been established to challenge, catalyse and convene system-wide action on climate change. The commission is coordinating a programme of public engagement to raise awareness and understanding of the LAEP.