Eastleigh Borough Council Audit and Resources Committee Meeting

There was no public participation on this occasion.

There were no declarations of interest in relation to items of business on the agenda.

RESOLVED –

That the Minutes of the meeting held on 23 May 2022 be confirmed and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

The Senior Manager at Ernst and Young (EY), Simon Mathers, introduced and outlined the purpose of the report. The Financial Statements were summarised, and the risks were explained. ‘Accounting for Nitrate Credits’ was a new risk which was added to the report.

RESOLVED –

That the report be noted.

The Senior Internal Auditor introduced the report.

Councillor Broomfield spoke on this item and asked if the final draft of the Partnership Agreement was on track on be completed by the end of July. It was confirmed that the final draft was on track to be completed by the target date. 

RESOLVED –

That consideration was given to:

(1)  the Chief Internal Auditor (Acting)’s Annual Opinion for 2021/22; and

(2)  the performance of the Internal Audit Section against planned outturn for quarter 4 of 2021/22.

The Executive Head of Governance introduced the report and explained that the document has been reviewed and updated.

RESOLVED –

It was agreed that:

(1)  the Annual Governance Statement 2021/22 be approved, and;

(2)  The Code of Corporate Governance 2022/23 be adopted.

The Corporate Project Manager presented the report and explained that a procedure element would be extracted to make the information more digestible for Officers who use the equipment. This would be addressed prior to sending the document to Cabinet for approval.

RESOLVED –

It was agreed that:

(1)  Audit and Resources Committee considers the ‘Corporate Policy and Procedures for the use of Body Worn Video Devices’, which sets out the statutory framework and procedures which permit the Council’s lawful use of this overt surveillance technique to assist staff in carrying out their duties.

(2)  Audit and Resources Committee recommends the ‘Corporate Policy and Procedures for the use of Body Worn Video Devices’ for Cabinet approval.

The Facilities Manager presented the report, explained its purpose and the work that had been undertaken in the past twelve months along with what was hoped to be achieved over the next twelve months.

A discussion took place with regards to showing a breakdown of the injuries occurred and cost of repairs over previous years.

RESOLVED –

It was agreed that the Audit and Resources Committee:

(1)   Note the corporate responsibilities for the management of health and safety, familiarising themselves with the corporate health and safety resources and priorities;

(2)  Supported the ongoing change and continual improvement of the safety culture of the organisation through the implementation of a Staff Safety Forum and appropriate safety training;

(3)  Note the incident data (appendix 1);

(4)  Note the Action Plan (appendix 2) for the next 12 months.

The Lead Asset Manager introduced the report and explained that the biannual report provides an update on the Council’s Property Portfolio including a summary of the current position of payment plans relating to Covid-19 rent arrears.

Councillor Broomfield spoke on this item and asked the process that is followed if a tenant goes into administration.

Councillor Tidridge requested further information with regards to Appendix A-how many properties and for how long are void. The Lead Asset Manager agreed to email the information to Members when it was available.

RESOLVED –

That the Audit and Resources Committee considered this report detailing performance relating to the Council’s Property (non-housing)

Portfolio;

The Committee made the following appointments to Procurement Management Group (PEG), Strategic Risk Management Group (SRMG) and the Housing Working Group:

RESOLVED –

(1)  That Councillor W Irish and Councillor T Park be appointed to the Procurement Executive Group for 2022/23;

(2)  That Councillor S Holes be appointed to the Strategic Risk Management Group for 2022/23; and

(3)  That Councillor W Irish and Councillor T Park be appointed to the Housing Working Group for 2022/23.

(a)  Strategic Risk Management Group (SRMG)

The Executive Head of Governance reported that SRMG met on 23 June 2022. The Group reviewed the Corporate Risk Register and discussed some changes.

There was a presentation from One Horton Heath Risk Register which looked at emerging risks and talked about interest rates. The impact of increased construction costs was discussed.

The Facilities Manager provided the Group with a Health and Safety update. A report had been taken to Corporate Leadership Board with a number of recommendations. The improvement of safety training was highlighted, and a safety forum set up to improve collaborative working and a place that people could raise concerns/address safety concerns in.

The corporate business continuity plan was being updated and would be completed by the end of July, and then a review of all 10 plans would be undertaken in the light of cyber security issues as well.

The next meeting is on 5 September 2022.

(b)  Procurement Executive Group (PEG)

Councillor Irish reported that PEG met on 28 June 2022. The Group welcomed Councillor Park to her first meeting and extended their thanks to Councillor Grajewski for all her hard work and participation.

The Executive Head of Assets provided the team with an update on Dynamic Purchasing Systems. This is a procurement tool similar to a framework agreement available for contracts for works, services and goods.

The Executive Head of Governance presented the Procurement Action Plan and Draft Annual Report 2021/22, both of which were noted. The Group reviewed and discussed the Procurement Performance Indicators. There was nothing that required further escalation or investigation.

An update was provided on the Sustainable Procurement Policy and discussed the 10 day and 30 day payment pledges. Councillor Park suggested that the Performance Indicators be tweaked to show average time taken to pay an invoice alongside the current 10 day and 30 days payment indicators.

The Group reviewed the summary of waivers table and the forward programme of agenda items for PEG. The next meeting is on 6 September 2022.

(c)  Housing

The Housing Working Group had not met since March. One is likely to be arranged shortly.  

The Committee considered the Action List, which set out the recent decisions and subsequent actions arising from the Committee.

The Internal Audit Charter External Assessment had been completed and the final report will come to the meeting in September.

It was AGREED -

That the Action List be noted.

The Committee considered the current Forward Plan of Key Decisions.

It was AGREED -

That the current Forward Plan be noted.

The Committee considered its current Work Programme.

It was AGREED -

That the Work Programme be noted.

RESOLVED -

(1)  That, in pursuance of Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they are likely to involve the disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act; and

(2)  That, in pursuance of the public interest test, the public interest in disclosing the information contained in the following item of business was outweighed by the public interest in maintaining the exemption.

The Counter Fraud Report was deferred to the next Audit & Resources meeting which will take place on 6 September 2022 due to an access error with the ModGov system.