Have your say on county council’s five-year plan

* County Hall in Ruthin, headquarters of Denbighshire County Council.

Residents in Denbighshire are being invited to have their say on what the council’s draft objectives are for the next five years. 

The council has already heard from residents during consultations last summer and in early 2022.  

A set of nine draft themes has been drawn up and residents are asked for their final views before the objectives are agreed in October. 

The draft objectives are:

1. A Denbighshire of quality housing that meets people’s needs: Ensure sufficient good quality housing is available, particularly addressing the provision of what meets the needs of people in Denbighshire.
2. A prosperous Denbighshire: Support post-pandemic economic recovery, including identifying and capitalising on opportunities to upskill residents and enable them to access decent employment and income. We want to use economic growth as a driver to reduce inequality and poverty.
3. A healthier and happier, caring Denbighshire: Promote and support the safety, resilience and well-being of people of all ages, in partnership with strong community networks that enable people to live safely, happily, independently and receive good support when needed.
4. A learning and growing Denbighshire: Support provision of quality learning and training that enables people of all ages to fulfil their potential, both personally and professionally.
5. A better connected Denbighshire: Denbighshire will be a place with thriving, cohesive and connected communities, including good road infrastructure and transport links, better digital connectivity, and social infrastructure to support personal and community well-being.
6. A greener Denbighshire: Become a Net Zero Carbon organisation by 2030, and enhance, preserve and improve our natural assets. We must also mitigate - and work with communities to cope with - the impacts of climate change, which could be in relation to flooding, food provision, etc.
7. A fairer, more equal Denbighshire: Address the inequality and deprivation faced by our communities, reducing the well-being gap, and promoting diversity and community cohesion.
8. A Denbighshire of vibrant culture and thriving Welsh language: Be a county where the Welsh language is a living, thriving language. The county will also maximise its rich cultural heritage and natural assets to support economic prosperity, community cohesion, and instil pride in our communities.
9. A well-run, high performing Council: To be a council that is fair, transparent, performs well, represents value for money, and gives consistently good customer service. The council wants to be creative, brave, ambitious, outward-looking, and an excellent employer, backed by strong governance and assurance.

Councillor Julie Matthews, Cabinet Lead Member for Corporate Strategy, Policy and Equalities, said: “All councils in Wales are required to adopt well-being objectives that support the long term sustainability of their communities, for the benefit of future generations. 

“These objectives include the issues that people told us that are important to them and we have wanted those big issues affecting people to be reflected in how we work as an organisation over the next five years. Issues around the cost of living, responding to climate change and improving people’s well-being post Covid are some of the many issues of interest to our residents and we hope people agree that our objectives reflect the needs of communities right across Denbighshire. 

“This is a great opportunity to have your say as we finalise our Corporate Plan”.

The engagement has now been launched and will end on 31 August. Residents can complete an online survey: countyconversation.denbighshire.gov.uk/project/662

E-mail: strategicplanningteam@denbighshire.gov.uk with their comments or phone 01824 706291.

Forms have also been produced which can be filled in and posted to Strategic Planning Team, Denbighshire County Council, PO Box 62, Ruthin, LL15 9AZ.  Copies of the forms can be picked up at libraries and one stop shops, leisure centres and at Council office receptions at County Hall, Ruthin.