Issue - meetings

To consider progress in quarter 2 against delivery of the 2019/20 internal audit plan.

The Chair welcomed Neil Pitman and Natalie Jerams from Southern Internal Audit Partnership (SIAP) to the meeting. The auditors gave Members an overview of progress on the Internal Audit 2019/20 report in quarter 2. SIAP confirmed that the Council’s internal audit plan was on track with 35 per cent of planned work completed.

In summary, six audits had been concluded so far this year. Two service areas had received a ‘Substantial’ assurance opinion (the best rating) – Corporate Plan and Decision Making and Accountability. Four had received an ‘Adequate’ assurance opinion (a good rating) – Human Resources and Organisational Development, Income collection, Investments, and Refuse, Recycling and Street Cleansing. There were no ‘Limited’ or ‘No Assurance’ opinions, ratings which would detail significant weaknesses. None of the live audits had management actions that were overdue. There were three high priority management actions which were completed at the time of the final report.

Members commented and asked questions about the following areas:

·         ‘Adequate’ rating – Members asked if this was the best phrase to describe a service area performing well. Could a service area be rated ‘good’ or ‘satisfactory’ instead as this would be more reassuring for residents. They felt the quarterly report understated the detailed work that had been carried out which sat beneath the ratings that were given.

·         Areas for improvement ­– Members asked if the report could include not just areas for action but also areas for improvements. For example, could there be more detail about the Refuse, Recycling and Street Cleansing audit in the auditors’ quarterly report. This could set out the types of problems that auditors had highlighted such as an ad hoc record of litter picking and where improvements had then been made.

In response to these observations, it was noted that ‘Adequate’ was an industry standard auditing term that was used across local authorities and other organisations. The reports in the eMembers website showed the detailed management actions that had been taken. One reason why Members did not see greater detail in the quarterly report was because auditors had found that services were performing well which was to the Council’s credit. The auditors offered to forward a link to a report where actions had to be taken by an organisation to show the greater detail set out when significant weaknesses were identified.

Overall, Members were impressed with the degree to which the auditors had investigated service areas. Members were reassured that they could ask the auditors for further information when required.

Chief Executive, John Jory, thanked the auditors for attending the meeting and the robust challenge they were bringing in their audits. The second quarter reports highlighted that the Borough Council was a well-run organisation with good governance processes.

RESOLVED – that the Internal Audit 2019/20 Quarter 2 Progress Report against delivery of the 2019/20 Internal Audit plan be noted.