This Act became law on 29th April 2015 and became a requirement on public bodies in Wales from 1st April 2016. Welsh Government has issued guidance on the Act. It has also produced an animation that explains the impact the Act is intended to have. A diagram that sets out the ‘architecture’ of the Act on one page has also been issued while another one displays the seven goals and five ways of working that are required, as follows:
- take an Integrated approach that considered the potential to make a contribution across all the goals
- involve Collaboration with others to find shared solutions
- look to the Long term with the needs of future generations in mind
- Involve local residents in ways that reflect the diversity of the population
- Understand and tackle root causes of issues to Prevent them wherever possible
One way of remembering these ways of working is to use the acronym ‘ICLIP’.
The Act also established a Commissioner for Future Generations. The Commissioner has the power to conduct reviews into how public bodies are safeguarding the ability of future generations to meet their needs. The Commissioner is Derek Walker.
Full details of the Act are available on the Welsh Government website.