Well-being plan for Pembrokeshire

Project Plan: Reducing Poverty and Inequalities

Project background

The project originated from a Local Authority group that initially focused on Child Poverty, due to Pembrokeshire’s Child Poverty rate being amongst the top five highest rates in Wales.

It was determined that the best approach to developing a response to the issue was on a PSB basis. In January 2022, the PSB agreed to take on that responsibility. Following initial meetings to scope the work of the group, in April 2022 the Board agreed to widen the remit of the work to poverty more broadly and an officer working group including representatives from all PSB partner organisations, and wider partners such as Citizens Advice, was established.

Since the group was set up, the developing cost of living crisis has compelled them to develop more immediate, short-term actions to mitigate the effects of the situation, as well as working to develop a medium to long-term strategy. The findings from the short-term funded activity will feed into the development of the Poverty Strategy.

 

On this page:

Headline actions and sub-actions, including timescale for delivery

Outputs (what will be delivered?)

Outcomes (What will be achieved? What will change?

Which of the PSB’s Well-being Objectives does this work contribute to and how?

Which of the following Well-being Goals and Well-being areas does this project contribute to? 

How does this project align with the five ways of working?

 



Headline actions and sub-actions, including timescale for delivery

Headline action: Utilise short term funding to respond to the cost of living crisis

Sub-action/s:

• Develop local schemes to deliver cost of living support scheme discretionary elements
• Undertake research to gain insights into people’s lived experience of poverty

Timescale: Short term (6 months to 2 years)

 

Headline action: Develop a poverty strategy to effect lasting change, informed by local and national data and the experiences of those in poverty in Pembrokeshire and based on a preventative approach

Sub-actions;

• Look at best practice strategy examples
• Consider research around what works to help people in financial difficulty
• Analyse data and trends to understand the levels of poverty in Pembrokeshire
• Identify appropriate actions to sit within the strategy and delivery arrangements
• Utilise responses from local work led by PAVS to research the lived experience of people in poverty in Pembrokeshire

Timescale: Medium Term (1 - 5 years)

 



Outputs (what will be delivered?)

• A short-term programme of schemes and initiatives to respond to the cost of living crisis, utilising WG and local funds
• A medium to long term poverty strategy to effect more lasting change, informed by local and national data und understanding of best practice, and by the lived experience of people in poverty in the County
• Recommendations to PSB partners on actions they can take to contribute to the strategy

 



Outcomes (What will be achieved? What will change?

• Oversight and coordination of the immediate collective response to the cost of living crisis
• A strategy (covering 5 years initially) for the PSB’s response to poverty in the County, for sign-off around April 2023. 
• Gaps in activity will be noted and actions identified to address any areas of significant deficiency

 



Which of the PSB’s Well-being Objectives does this work contribute to and how?

 

Well-being Objective 1

Support growth, jobs and prosperity and enable the transition to a more sustainable and greener economy

• Work to develop initiatives which support those in poverty may remove some of the barriers to work and support growth towards a more sustainable and green economy.

Well-being Objective 2 

Work with our communities to reduce inequalities and improve well-being

• The project will involve working with communities to reduce inequalities caused by being in poverty. We will make best use of local data and research to inform how we work with people, and the strategies we will put in place to support them.

Well-being Objective 4

Enable safe, connected, resourceful and diverse communities

• By working with people to reduce inequalities the project will aim to reduce the impact of disadvantage on our communities and provide them with tools to support themselves, enabling them to be more connected and resourceful.

 



Which of the following Well-being Goals and Well-being areas does this project contribute to? 

 

Well-being areas 

• Economic
• Social

Well-being goals

 A prosperous Wales

 A resilient Wales

 a healthier Wales

 a more equal Wales

 a Wales of cohesive communities

 



How does this project align with the five ways of working?

 

Long Term: The importance of balancing short-term needs with the needs to safeguard the ability to also meet long-term needs

• The project will focus on the needs of people in the ‘here and now’ as the cost of living crisis impacts on the most disadvantaged in our communities, as well as looking ahead to develop a strategy that aims to reduce the impacts of disadvantage in the longer term.

 

Prevention: How acting to prevent problems occurring or getting worse may help public bodies meet their objectives

• The project is divided into short and longer-term actions, which aim to prevent the disadvantages associated with poverty from impacting on the social and economic well-being of people in Pembrokeshire.

Integration: Considering how the public body’s well-being objectives may impact upon each of the well-being goals, on their objectives, or on the objectives of other public bodies

• This project contributes to meeting three of our Well-being Objectives and five of the Well-being Goals and the actions will integrate across multiple public services

Collaboration: Acting in collaboration with any other person (or different parts of the body itself) that could help the body to meet its well-being objectives

• A multi-agency delivery group has been established which will work together to deliver the project.

Involvement: The importance of involving people with an interest in achieving the well-being goals, and ensuring that those people reflect the diversity of the area which the body serves

• Part of the research that will contribute to delivering this project involves speaking to people to capture their lived experiences of financial hardship/poverty and their ideas for making things better in future.