Agenda item

The Director of Corporate Services presented the report.  The Authority was required to publish an Annual Governance Statement along with the Authority’s financial statements, following a review of the effectiveness of the internal controls in place. The report and the statement set out the key elements of the Authority’s governance framework, how these had been evaluated, the outcome of the assessment of effectiveness and any areas for improvement.

The Audit Committee had previously approved a Code of Corporate Governance, in line with guidance produced jointly by CIPFA (Chartered Institute of Public Finance Accountants) and SOLACE (Society of Local Authority Chief Executives). The Code defined corporate governance as the way an authority ensured that it was doing the right things, in the right way, for the right people, in a timely, inclusive, open, honest and accountable manner.

In order to assess the effectiveness of the Authority’s current arrangements a self-assessment had been undertaken by the Executive Board who had considered the various sources of assurance that supported the core principles outlined in the report and the outcome of this was considered by Members under appendix 1 as now presented.  One of the key elements of this was external assurance of the systems, and this was provided by internal and external auditors, both of whom provided positive reports, and by the HMICFRS Inspection which rated the Service as Good.

The assessment also considered recommendations made as part of last year’s Annual Governance Statement i) to continue to develop and embed a new assurance monitoring system app to collate information and intelligence from multiple sources as well as linking to national learning; ii) to performance manage the completion of appraisals and introduce new tools to improve the appraisal conversation; iii) produce Community Risk Management Plan covering 2022/27; iv) publish and act on the outcome of the Staff Survey; v) commence a project to replace the existing performance management system; vi) implement an upgraded finance system, including review and implementation of improvements to the monthly budget monitoring process, making greater use of additional functionality provided; and vii) develop business cases where required to ensure that value for money is evidenced.

An update on the position in respect of these was considered by Members.  It was noted that some outstanding actions in respect of recommendations from last year’s Annual Governance Statement had been delayed due to capacity issues.

It was noted that as a result of various reviews the following area had been identified for further improvement: -

·      Embed the Core Code of Ethics into corporate policy, and the recruitment and promotion process.

As part of the review, the Service was required to identify and disclose any significant internal control issues, of which there had been none, hence the overall conclusion was that the system of internal controls was adequate.

The Director of Corporate Services advised that the outcome of the last HMICFRS inspection was awaited and the Governance Statement would be updated once the result was known.

RESOLVED: - That the Committee noted and endorsed the self-assessment and the Annual Governance Statement based on this and recommended that the Chairman of the Authority sign the Statement.