Improvements at Pembrokeshire County Council have been made but “it is not all good news” say the Minister for Education and Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services.

Following a critical report last year of the joint investigation by CSSIW and Estyn into the handling and management of allegations of professional abuse in the county, a Ministerial Advisory Board (MAB) was parachuted in by the Welsh Government.

Leighton Andrews and Gwenda Thomas issued a statement on the ongoing work of the Pembrokeshire Ministerial Board (PMB), appointed to support and challenge, last week which highlighted areas of improvement as well as the work yet to be done.

The need to improve democracy and scrutiny thorough the revision of council constitution was identified and then accelerated by a challenge from the PMB so that now “elected members have now generally accepted the need to move from a dominant officer culture where scrutiny and open debate are largely absent.”

It adds: “But it is not all good news. The PMB disagrees with the authority’s assertion that officers are no longer resistant to change. While the PMB was greatly impressed by the enthusiasm and commitment of front line staff, the culture at the most senior level continues to give cause for concern. We note that the Auditor General also concluded in his report that the Council tended to be too complacent and informal, with inadequate senior and political oversight of key services.

“There is a tendency to ask for advice about pressing issues which the authority should itself be resolving quickly and decisively; an inability to distinguish between information that should be shared and that which it is inappropriate, or even damaging, to share; and the continued failure to effectively address the serious concerns raised by a report into the Pupil Referral Unit (PRU).”

Areas already improved include greater transparency, provision of information and greater engagement of the chief executive with elected members.

“The PMB has clearly been a positive force for change. It is evident, however, that there is still a long way to go and it is vital that we keep our foot on the pedal. We are particularly concerned to keep up momentum during the election period when elected members’ capacity for holding officers to account may be compromised,” the statement adds.

Pembrokeshire County Council leader Cllr John Davies said that improvements are being made and will continue to be made following the election of the new council.

“We found the Ministerial Advisory Board to provide good support and robust challenge and that has been useful.

“It [the statement] recognises there is more to do and I’m glad it recognises the democratic side of things, things are moving forward. There is more to do and it’s a matter of embracing that with the new councillors,” he added.