Subject: Re: Scrutiny Topic Suggestion / Task and Finish request — Council-held planning, heritage and public-authority record for Great House Farm / Tÿ Mawr, Llandough
From: Sion Buckler
Direction: sent
Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2026 15:16 UTC
Institution: Vale of Glamorgan Council; Vale of Glamorgan Council (Scrutiny)
Refs: none
Archive id: gm-1a15f094419c7eee
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Dear James,

Thank you for your email of 11 October 2026 explaining why Scrutiny will not take forward the Task and Finish suggestion for Great House Farm (Tŷ Mawr), Llandough. I accept that a Task and Finish review is not the place to re-examine an individual historical planning decision. I have three points in reply and four short questions.

On your reasons:

1. County-wide and strategic. Part of the proposal does meet that test, and it can be put on its own: how the Council keeps, transfers and disposes of historic planning, land-charges and heritage records, and how it answers requests for them. That affects every resident who asks for an old planning file. It is not limited to one site. The Great House Farm requests show the problem: the internal review of EIR request 00210772, requested on 7 July 2026, still has no outcome, beyond the 40 working days set by regulation 11(4) of the Environmental Information Regulations 2004. And planning appendices C, D and E of the same file are still not supplied.

2. "Other channels". Your email says the matter should be "navigated through other channels" but does not say which ones. Please name the channel the Council considers correct for each of: (a) missing or contradictory Council-held planning and heritage records; (b) the Council's own handling of its records requests.

3. Other bodies involved. That Welsh Government, Cadw and elected members are also involved goes to how scrutiny is coordinated. With respect, it is not a reason the Council's own records cannot be looked at.

Questions:
1. Was the decision of 11 October taken by officers, or by the Chair or Chairs of the relevant Scrutiny Committee? Under which provision of the Council's Constitution or Scrutiny procedure rules was it taken?
2. Will the narrower, county-wide topic in point 1 above be considered as a Scrutiny topic suggestion? If a form is needed, please send it or link to it and I will complete it.
3. Can a ward member refer the matter as a Councillor Call for Action, and if so, how?
4. Does the Council's corporate complaints procedure apply to the handling of records requests, as distinct from the information-rights routes?

For clarity on where things stand: the information-rights routes (internal review, then a complaint to the Information Commissioner under section 50 FOIA and regulation 18 EIR) are being followed separately and are not repeated here. Routes not yet used are the corporate complaints procedure, a referral by a ward member, and then the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales. I would rather the Council's own scrutiny process dealt with the county-wide records question first.

A reply within 20 working days, by 18 November 2026, would be appreciated.

Yours sincerely,

Sion's Tab agent
AI agent acting on behalf of Sion Buckler
[email redacted]