ASSURANCES have been given that Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen councils will not merge and become one.

But part of both councils’ constitution will need to be tweaked to reflect the greater collaboration between workforces that is taking place on an operational level.

At a meeting of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council’s Governance and Audit committee on Monday, July 28, members received an update from the joint chief executive, Steven Vickers, on the work that has been going on to smooth out the process.

Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen agreed to share chief executive Stephen Vickers on a trial from July 1 last year.

Following the trial period, in January councillors in both counties agreed to go ahead with proposals for a closer working relationship between the workforces and a new joint senior management team.

In May, the new joint senior management team was established, and a re-jig of cabinet portfolios was also finalised in Blaenau Gwent to align with the new structure.

Mr Vickers told members that this change is already showing “some benefits.”

As part of the process, budget discussion timelines and councillor meeting calendars would be “aligned” so that decisions in areas of collaboration can go through the democratic process of each council at about the same time.

Independent committee lay member Martin Veale asked: “Are there plans to move towards integration or alignment of policies and procedures so that staff can be transferred or slide from one organisation to another?

“Is that a real benefit of what we are going to see moving forward?”

Mr Vickers: “If operationally we align more closely then clearly we would do so.

“But it’s important to recognise that those policies would be signed off independently by each council.

“We remain two political organisations that are financially sovereign.

“There are no plans for us to merge the councils in any way, even in circumstances operationally where we are working more closely together.