Cost of Living Support Icon

 

AUDIT COMMITTEE

 

Minutes of a meeting held on 19th September, 2018.

 

Present:  Councillor M.R. Wilson (Chairman); Councillor Mrs. P. Drake (Vice-Chairman); Councillors G.D.D. Carroll, V.P. Driscoll, Dr. I.J. Johnson, K.F. McCaffer and L.O. Rowlands; and Mr. P. Lewis (Lay Member).

 

Also present: S. Wyndham, A. Veale, Ms. S. Clements, Ms. S. Byrne and I. Phillips (WAO).

 

 

300     MINUTES –

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the minutes of the meeting held on 25th July, 2018 be approved as a correct record.

 

 

301     DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST – 

 

No declarations were received.

 

 

302     AUDIT OF THE 2017/18 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – REPORTING TO THOSE CHARGED WITH GOVERNANCE (MD) –

 

The Head of Finance presented the report, the purpose of which was to allow the Committee to consider the report of the Auditor General for Wales following the audit of the Council’s Financial Statements for 2017/18. 

 

The Council was responsible for the preparation of the Financial Statements that presented its financial position as at 31st March, 2018.  The Auditor General for Wales was responsible for reporting whether, in his opinion, this was a fair reflection.  The audit was undertaken by the Wales Audit Office (WAO) as the Council’s Engagement Lead, on behalf of the Appointed Auditor.  The Statement of Accounts for 2017/18 was prepared by 15th Jun, 2018, ahead of the statutory timeframe. 

 

With the audit of these Financial Statements now substantially complete, a report detailing the key matters arising from the audit must be reported by the Auditor General for Wales to those charged with governance, in accordance with the International Standards on Auditing (ISA 260) which was attached at Appendix B.  In line with its terms of reference, the Audit Committee represented the appropriate body to which this report must be communicated.

 

The latest 2017/18 Statement of Accounts incorporating all currently agreed amendments was attached at Appendix A.  The report of the Auditor General for Wales and the final Letter of Representation were attached at Appendix B. 

 

The provisional findings of the WAO on behalf of the Appointed Auditor on the audit of the Financial Statements were that: 

  • WAO had no concerns about the qualitative aspects of the Council's accounting practices and financial reporting.  They found the information provided by officers to be relevant, reliable, comparable, material and easy to understand.  The draft accounts submitted to WAO were found to be of good quality.  WAO concluded that accounting policies and estimates were appropriate and financial statement disclosures unbiased, fair and clear.
  • They did not encounter any significant difficulties during the audit.  WAO received information in a timely and helpful manner and were not restricted in their work.
  • There were no significant matters discussed and corresponded upon with management which need to be reported.
  • There were no other matters significant to the oversight of the financial reporting process that they needed to report on.
  • They did not identify any material weaknesses in the internal controls.
  • There were not any other matters specifically required by auditing standards to be communicated to those charged with governance. 

There was no non-material misstatement that remain uncorrected.

 

It was the intention of the Appointed Auditor to issue an unqualified audit report on the Financial Statements once the relevant Council Officers had provided a signed Final Letter of Representation.

 

The Chairman then invited Mr. S. Wyndham to comment on the WAO findings.  Mr. Wyndham stated that the review had now been completed and the report, once considered by the Audit Committee would be received by Full Council.  Mr. Wyndham referred to Appendix B and page 4 which outlined that the Appointed Auditor had issued an unqualified audit report on the Financial Statements.  Page 5 of the Audit Report provided details of any issues with the key aspect being that all issues had been corrected.  This was further summarised within Appendix 3.  Mr. Wyndham stated that none of the adjustments were material and the WAO had no other issues or recommendations to report.  Mr. Wyndham advised that Appendix 3 provided a summary of adjustments and corrections made with the overall impact of these corrections being a reduction in the Council’s usable reserves by £152k. 

 

A Member of the Committee commented on the summary of corrections, which had a total value of £3.6m.  The Member stated that for the public, this amount would be astounding.  He added that although in the scheme of things this was a relatively small amount, it was still important for the Committee to understand the reduction of the useable reserves by £152k. 

 

The Head of Finance advised that attached to the Statement of Accounts was the Annual Governance Statement.  This had been revised since the last meeting, with additional information incorporated around complaints and the Council’s Reshaping Services programme.

 

The Committee was also asked to consider future changes to the reporting deadlines.  This meant that for 2019 and 2020, the Statement of Accounts would need to be signed off by 19th September, and by 17th July during 2021.  The Chairman commented that the Council may need to consider holding meetings during August as some Local Authorities already did in order to fit in with the requirements of Regulators.  The scheduling of meetings was a matter for Cabinet and the Chairman asked if the Council could arrange its deadlines in tandem with neighbouring Local Authorities.  Mr. Veale of the WAO replied, stating that the new arrangements would require some consideration.  The deadline changes had come from legislation, which had been driven by Central Government.  Members noted that the Committee had also considered this during its previous meeting, with Members agreeing that the Statement of Accounts should still be agreed by Full Council. 

 

A Committee Member drew attention to Note 12 on page 39, Other Operating Expenditure, commenting on the difference and volatile nature of expenditure during 2017/18 compared to 2016/17.  In reply, Mr. Veale of the WAO stated that this included very complex technical areas such as assets, which were subject to re-evaluation.  It would therefore be helpful to provide context and some narrative to explain the differences. 

 

Having considered the report of the WAO, it was

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the report of the Appointed Auditor on the audit of the Council’s Financial Statements for 2017/18 be approved and the Financial Statements, including the Annual Governance Statement and Final Letter of Representation, be recommended for signature by those authorised.

 

Reason for decision

 

Following consideration by the Audit Committee of the results of the audit of the Council’s Financial Statements for 2017/18. 

 

 

303     AUDIT OF THE 2017/18 JOINT COMMITTEE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – REPORTING TO THOSE CHARGED WITH GOVERNANCE (MD) –

 

The Head of Finance stated that the purpose of the report was to advise the Committee of the report of the Auditor General for Wales, following the audit of the 2017/18 Financial Statements of the Shared Regulatory Service (SRS) and the Vale, Valleys and Cardiff Regional Adoption Service.

 

She advised that the Council was host to both Services and was responsible for the preparation of the Financial Statements.  She added that the draft Statements were considered by the Committee back in July, with the Wales Audit Office (WAO) having now completed its audit.  Members noted that the accounts for the SRS had been agreed by the Joint Committee, and accounts for the Adoption Service had been approved by its Management Board.

 

The report outlined that the Auditor General for Wales was responsible for reporting whether, in his opinion, this was indeed the case.  The audits were undertaken by the WAO as the Council's Engagement Lead, on behalf of the Appointed Auditor.

The Statement of Accounts for 2017/18 was prepared by 15th June, 2018, in advance of the statutory timeframe and on 25th July, 2018, unaudited copies were brought to this Committee.

 

The Vale, Valleys and Cardiff Regional Adoption Service accounts were not subject to a full external audit by WAO but an annual return had been completed by Accountancy and Internal Audit and the WAO undertook a limited assurance audit for the service.

 

With the audit of these Financial Statements now substantially complete, a report detailing the key matters arising from the audit must be reported by Auditor General for Wales in line with their terms of reference and the Financial Statements of the Shared Regulatory Service and the Vale, Valleys and Cardiff Regional Adoption Service must be approved by their respective Joint Committees and should be signed by their Chairs.

 

In relation to the Shared Regulatory Service, the latest 2017/18 Statement of Accounts incorporating all currently agreed amendments was attached at Appendix A to the report and the Audit of Financial Statements Report was attached at Appendix B.

 

The provisional findings of the WAO on behalf of the Appointed Auditor on the audit of the Financial Statements were that: 

  • WAO had no concerns about the qualitative aspects of your accounting practices and financial reporting.  They received the draft Statement of Accounts ahead of schedule and found the information provided to be relevant, reliable, comparable, material and easy to understand.  WAO concluded that accounting policies and estimates were appropriate and financial statement disclosures unbiased, fair and clear.
  • They did not encounter any significant difficulties during the audit.  WAO received information in a timely and helpful manner and were not restricted in their work.
  • There were no significant matters discussed and corresponded upon with management that they need to report on.
  • There were no other matters significant to the oversight of the financial reporting process that they needed to report on.
  • They did not identify any material weaknesses in the internal controls.
  • There were not any other matters specifically required by auditing standards to be communicated to those charged with governance. 

There were a number of small misstatements that had been corrected following discussion between the WAO and the Section 151 Officer and these were set out in Appendix 3 to Appendix B.

 

Mr. Veale of the WAO stated that it was the intention to issue an unqualified audit report on the financial statements once the relevant Council officers had provided a signed final Letter of Representation. 

 

In respect of the Vale, Valleys and Cardiff Regional Adoption Service, the Annual Report was included at Appendix C and was unchanged from the return brought to the Committee on 25th July, 2018. 

 

A Committee Member referred to one amendment requested by the Committee regarding the Shared Regulatory Service, which was shown under Note 11, Central Department and Managerial Support.  The Member stated that although the line by line figures were small, the extra information made it easier for readers to understand the volatile nature of this budget area.  The Member then queried Note 9 on page 30, Supplies and Services, and asked for an explanation about the fall in expenditure for Horse costs and Insurance.  In reply, the Principal Accountant stated that during 2017/18, the Shared Regulatory Service had not experienced any issues with the handling of horses, as there had been during 2016/17.  With regard to insurance, she advised that sometimes there had been a need to split the costs, so some years this figure would be small. 

 

Subsequently it was

 

RESOLVED –

 

(1)       T H A T the Financial Statements relating to the Shared Regulatory Service and the Vale, Valleys and Cardiff Regional Adoption Service be noted.

 

(2)       T H A T the report of the Appointed Auditor on the audit of the Shared Regulatory Service Financial Statements for 2017/18 be noted.

 

Reasons for decisions

 

(1)       To ensure that Members are aware of the results of the audit of the 2017/18 Financial Statements of the Shared Regulatory Service and the Vale, Valleys and Cardiff Regional Adoption Service.

 

(2)       To ensure that Members of the Audit Committee, as those charged with governance, have considered the results of the audit of the Shared Regulatory Service Financial Statements for 2017/18.

 

 

304     THE AUDITORS RESPONSIBILITIES RELATING TO FRAUD IN AN AUDIT OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (MD) –

 

Mr. Veale, from the Wales Audit Office (WAO), presented the report, the purpose of which was to provide the Audit Committee with a copy of the detailed submission of the Council’s response to the WAO acting as the Council’s External Auditor which related to the requirements as set out in the International Standard for Auditing (UK and Ireland) 240 (ISO 240) – the Auditor’s responsibilities relating to fraud in an audit of Financial Statements.

 

Under the ISO 240, the Council’s External Auditors were required to obtain an understanding of how the Council exercised oversight of management’s processes for identifying and responding to the risks of fraud and the internal controls established to mitigate them.  Attached at Appendix A was the Council’s response to the specific enquiries made by the External Auditor in order for them to obtain evidence of how management and those charges with governance were discharging their responsibilities. 

 

Subsequently, it was

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the contents of the report be noted.

 

Reason for decision

 

To ensure compliance with the requirements of the Internal Standard for Auditing.

 

 

305     AUDITOR GENERAL FOR WALES: VALE OF GLAMORGAN ANNUAL IMPROVEMENT REPORT 2018 (MD) –

 

Ms. Sara-Jane Byrne, of the Wales Audit Office (WAO), presented the report which summarised the audit work undertaken during the period 2017/18 and covered all work undertaken by other inspection and regulatory bodies such as Estyn and the Care Inspectorate Wales (CIW).  This was attached at Appendix 1. 

 

The WAO report findings were generally positive and concluded that overall the Council was meeting its statutory requirements in relation to continuous improvement.  Key highlights were: 

  • The Council complied with its responsibilities relating to financial reporting and use of resources;
  • The WAO was satisfied that the Council had appropriate arrangements in place to secure economy, efficiency and effectiveness in its use of resources;
  • The Council complied with its statutory improvement and reporting duties. 

Seven proposals for improvement were made specifically focusing on strengthening scrutiny arrangements within the Council to enable it to respond to future challenges and have greater impact.  Further strengthening our arrangements for Scrutiny remained a priority for the Council as identified in the Council’s Annual Self-Assessment and work was already underway with the Scrutiny Committee Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen Group to develop an action plan to address these proposals. The action plan would be reported to the Corporate Performance and Resources Scrutiny Committee in due course and incorporated within the Insight Board’s Tracker, which monitored progress on a monthly basis.

 

The Annual Improvement Report (AIR) also outlined a number of proposals for improvement relevant to local government, included in national reports published by the WAO, since publication of the last AIR.  These had been reviewed and relevant actions incorporated within the Council’s Insight Tracker for monitoring and would be reported to Scrutiny Committees and Audit Committee as work to address the proposals progressed.

 

In line with the Council’s performance monitoring arrangements, Members of the Audit Committee would continue to be informed of progress against all regulatory recommendations and improvement proposals via a six monthly (half-year) update report and this would be supplemented with the annual review of progress via the Council's Annual Self-Assessment.  Progress against these recommendations/ proposals for improvement would be monitored by the Council’s Insight Board and reported to Scrutiny Committees prior to reporting to the Audit Committee for final oversight.

 

It was recommended that the Audit Committee consider the content of the AIR and refer this report to the Corporate Performance and Resources Scrutiny Committee and Cabinet along with any comments of the Committee.

 

With regard to the report on the Scrutiny function, Ms. Byrne advised that she and her WAO colleagues had just come from a meeting of the Scrutiny Committee Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen Group.  This, she said, had been very positive which involved healthy discussion on how Scrutiny would operate in the future. 

 

The Chairman, in commenting on the WAO report on Scrutiny, stated that he was confident that the Council’s response would be positive, but one of the key considerations going forward was around the use of technology.  He stated that Welsh Government had encouraged Local Authorities to use modern technology to enhance the democratic process and to increase transparency.  The Chairman added that technology allowed the Council to consider more innovative forms of scrutiny, such as Doodle Polls that would improve public engagement.  In response Ms. Byrne stated that this was exactly the sort of discussion that had taken place with the Scrutiny Committee Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen Group, which had highlighted the pilot project around joint scrutiny of the Car Parking Strategy.  The other considerations would be to ensure that Scrutiny was considering Council priorities alongside discussions on the best methods of scrutiny.  A key element of this was not just around social media but also about engaging with all interested parties.  She advised that there was a lot around this within the Council’s response.

 

A Committee Member commented on holding the Cabinet Members to account, stating that not all Cabinet Members attended Scrutiny Committee meetings.  The Member stated that he felt strongly that Cabinet Members should regularly attend Scrutiny, not just to be held to account, but also to be fully aware of the depth of feeling of Members of the Committees.  In reply, Ms. Byrne stated that this was one of the key findings from the WAO review, with there being a varied picture between the five Scrutiny Committees.  She also advised that it was not just about having the same blanket approach and that Cabinet Members should only attend where they were required and where they could add value could.  For example, Ms. Byrne highlighted that Cabinet Members and not officers should be presenting performance reports. There had, once again, been healthy discussion at the Scrutiny Committee Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen Group meeting. 

 

The Chairman then raised a point around how reports were written, stating that more thought was needed around how accessible reports were and the use of plain language.  The Chairman felt that Welsh Government should introduce a “house style” across the whole of Wales which outlined the type of language that should be used.  In addition, reports needed to be more “neutral” and written from the third person’s perspective, with consideration of both sides, for and against.  This would help Scrutiny to consider the pros and cons and to look at possible options.  These views were echoed by a Committee Member who commented that reports should be written more for the lay person as it was not always easy to identify the relevant report sections.  He added that reports needed to avoid the use of jargon, with the more detailed parts of the report included in an appendix.  In reply to these comments, the Head of Performance and Development stated that a new style of report was currently being considered, which would include an executive summary and which needed to reflect the five ways of working.  This would lead to officers thinking differently about how reports were written.

 

A Member of the Committee stated that there was tension between the accessibility of reports and the amount of detail that was needed for Councillors to fully understand the relevant issues.  He added that an executive summary would not work if it did not provide the right information. 

 

Having considered the Annual Improvement Report 2018, it was

 

RESOLVED –

 

(1)       T H A T the contents of the report be noted.

 

(2)       T H A T the report be referred to the Corporate Performance and Resources Scrutiny Committee and Cabinet with any recommendations for such comments of the Audit Committee. 

 

Reason for decisions

 

(1&2)  To provide for scrutiny and review of the Auditor General’s Annual Improvement Report.

 

 

306     CORPORATE RISK REGISTER QUARTER 4 UPDATE (MD) –

 

The Head of Performance and Development provided an update on the Quarter 4 position (April 2017 – March 2018) of risks contained within the Corporate Risk Register, as outlined in the Corporate Risk Summary Report. 

 

Members were advised that there were currently 15 Corporate Risks on the Register, as outlined within Annex A of the Register.  Since the last update, no further risks had been removed or added to the Register.

 

Of the 15 Corporate Risks, in terms of status, one risk was scored high, one risk was scored medium / high, 11 risks scored medium and two risks scored medium / low.  These positions had largely remained unchanged when compared to the previous quarter, with the exception that the public Buildings Compliance Risk had now reduced from a medium / high to a medium / status.  In addition, during the period the Welsh Community Care Information System (WCCIS) risk had been elevated from a medium to a medium / high risk.

 

In terms of exceptions, the Head of Performance and Development outlined matters relating to the following subject areas: 

  • Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS)
  • Welsh Community Care Information System (WCCIS)
  • Safeguarding
  • Contract Management. 

Annex A contained a full Risk Register along with a Risk Summary Report outlining the position of all Corporate Risks.

 

A Committee Member, in commenting on the format of the Risk Register, stated that he would like to see an extra index page included in order to show where, within the Register, were actions and indicators with a Red RAG status.  The Member also commented on a perceived mismatch in the report around DoLS as the overall status was Red but actions were shown as Green.  In reply, the Head of Performance and Development stated that it was important for the Register to be consistent. 

 

With regard to workforce planning, the Chairman asked for an update around the recruitment to the post of Head of Human Resources.  In reply, the Head of Performance and Development stated that information presented related to the period up to March 2018, and so an update would be provided next time.

 

The Committee then discussed whether enough consideration was being given to exceptional reporting.  This related to the possible impact following new policies such as the introduction of the two black bag rule.  Members felt that it would be useful to include evidence of the impact of any such new policy.  Members also briefly discussed the timeliness of reports, and there was a general feeling that performance reports and the Risk Register should be reported sooner.  Members noted that prior to coming to Committees, reports were considered by a number of internal working groups, such as the Corporate Management Team, and so the Committee requested that the process behind reporting performance and risk should be looked into in order to make it smoother. 

 

Subsequently, it was

 

RESOLVED –

 

(1)       T H A T the end of year position of Corporate risks and the emerging risk these be noted and the associated recommendations made by the Corporate Management Team, as contained in the report, be endorsed.

 

(2)       T H A T this report be referred to Cabinet for its consideration and endorsement.

 

(3)       T H A T Cabinet considers the Committee’s request that a review be undertaken of the process behind how performance and risk reports are presented to Committees.

 

Reasons for decisions

 

(1)       Following consideration of the end of year position of corporate risks across the Council and also consideration of emerging risks and themes.

 

(2)       To ensure Cabinet received and end of year position on the Corporate Risk Register and endorses the recommendations contained within the report.

 

(3)       In order to review the internal process so that performance and risk reports can be considered by Committees in a more timely manner.

 

 

307     AUDIT COMMITTEE – FORWARD WORK PROGRAMME 2018/19 UPDATE (OM / HOA) –

 

Consideration was given to an updated Forward Work Programme for 2018/19 which had been previously approved by the Committee at its meeting held in May 2018. 

 

The Committee noted that a report on Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding (DoLS) had been referred by the Healthy Living and Social Care Scrutiny Committee, and would be considered at the Audit Committee meeting in November.  Also, Members noted that a report on procurement would be added to the Work Programme. 

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the updated Forward Work Programme for 2018/19 in regard to the Audit Committee be noted.

 

Reason for decision

 

In acknowledgement of the Committee’s responsibility for oversight of its Forward Work Programme.

 

 

308     HEALTHY ORGANISATION REVIEW 2017/18 (OMA / HOA) –

 

The Principal Auditor presented the report, the purpose of which was to present the audit report in respect of the Healthy Organisation Review which was undertaken by the South West Audit Partnership (SWAP) on behalf of the Council’s Internal Audit Shared Service (IASS) and which formed part of the Council’s 2017/18 audit plan.

 

The purpose of the Healthy Organisation Review was to provide an objective assessment of the management control framework or “health” of the Council.  The framework comprised eight corporate themes: Corporate Governance; Financial Management; Risk Management; Programme and Project Management; Commissioning and Procurement; Information Management; Programme and Project Management; and finally People and Asset Management.

 

Four of the eight themes were reviewed, these were: Risk Management; Commissioning and Procurement; Programme and Project Management and Information Management.

 

For each of the corporate themes, the strength of the management control framework in place was assessed against a benchmark model by identifying the presence or otherwise of key controls.  As the Healthy Organisation review was a high level corporate overview, it assisted with ensuring that there was a balanced view of the control framework in operation across the Council.

 

The assurance for each of the four themes referred to above had been reviewed indicating an overall High Assurance opinion.  The detailed report was attached at Appendix A to the report.  Information set out from pages 30 onwards detailed those areas where attention was needed and whilst these had already been recognised as such by services and work was either ongoing or planned to address them, further details had been provided as to the owner of the action and whether or not follow up would be required by Internal Audit during 2018/19.

 

The Healthy Organisation Review 2017/18 was reported to Insight Board on 21st June.  Following the meeting it was agreed that where high and medium risk had been identified follow up action was required by Internal Audit;  these actions would also be incorporated into the Insight Action Tracker (Appendix B provided an extract).  Some actions deemed as low risk had been identified as not requiring Internal Audit follow up work.  However, the Insight Board discussed the importance of individual officers completing these actions (detailed in Appendix C).  As a result, actions contained within the Insight tracker would be monitored as they were implemented, while actions identified in Appendix C would be progressed by identified officers.  An update on progress would be reported to Audit Committee in November 2018.

 

Members noted that progress on work around Information Management would be reported to the Committee.

 

Having considered the report, it was

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the content of the Healthy Organisation Review 2017/18 and the actions being taken to address those areas requiring attention be noted.

 

Reason for decision

 

To progress the actions requiring attention from the Review and to ensure that robust scrutiny of the Healthy Organisation Review takes place.

 

 

309     PROGRESS AGAINST THE AUDIT RISK BASED PLAN 2018/19 (OMA / HOA) –

 

The Principal Auditor provided Members with a position statement on progress being made against the audit work that was included and approved within the 2018/19 Internal Audit Annual Risk Based Plan. 

 

In accordance with the Public Sector Internal Audit Standards, the Head of Audit was responsible for developing a risk-based annual audit plan which took into account the Council's risk management framework.  Within the Standards there was also a requirement for the Head of Audit to review and adjust the Plan, as necessary, in response to changes in the Council's business, risks, operations, programs, systems, controls and resources.  The Head of Audit need to ensure that Internal Audit resources were appropriate, sufficient and effectively deployed to achieve the approved Plan.

 

The 2018/19 Internal Audit Plan was submitted to the Audit Committee for consideration and approval on 1st May, 2018.  The Plan outlined the assignments to be carried out and their respective priorities.

 

The Plan provided for a total of 1,350 audit days to cover the period April 2018 to March 2019.  These days were split into those reviews considered to be Priority One and those considered to be Priority Two with the aim of completing the whole Plan by the end of the financial year.

 

Actual progress against the 2018/19 Risk Based Plan was attached at Appendix A to the report and further information was attached at Appendix B which detailed those reviews which had not yet been allocated in the respective quarter and those reviews which had been brought forward from future quarters.

 

In order to assist with the effective monitoring of the Annual Risk Based Plan, further information was attached at Appendix C which detailed all those reviews which had been completed during the period and performance.

 

At present, the overall structure of the Section continued to be based on 14 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) employees.  As previously reported, the Section continued to carry vacant posts, however the recent recruitment campaign had proved to be extremely successful in so much as the Section has  managed to fill all but half a vacant post within the Auditors grade and recruited another Senior Auditor.  The Section has once again commissioned the services of the South West Audit Partnership in order to address in part some of the shortfall in days necessary to complete the plan; this is likely to continue during the first half of this Financial Year.

 

The Principal Auditor advised that in terms of unallocated work in Quarters 1 and 2, 150 total budget days were yet to be allocated.  This included 35 days for Priority 1 and 115 days for Priority 2.  She also advised that 50 working days had been brought forward for areas within Priority 1 and 25 days had been brought forward for audit areas within Priority 2. 

 

The Chairman asked for an update in relation to review work around the Leisure Contract.  The Principal Auditor stated a working group had been put together in order to consider the contract, and that a report for Cabinet would be presented next month.

 

With regard to the Welsh Community Care Information System, the Committee noted that this review worked had been allocated to the South West Audit Partnership and their findings would be reported back to the Committee.

 

A Committee Member commented that with regard to the audit of Building Services, this action area had not been allocated and had been deferred from 2017/18.  The Member queried the reason for this.  In reply, the Principal Auditor stated that this action was back in the Plan and that three or four years ago Building Services was heavily audited.  It was considered that as this was a complex undertaking, a Senior Auditor was required to undertake the review work.  It was therefore scheduled for this work to begin during September. 

 

Subsequently, it was

 

RESOLVED – T H A T the contents of the report and the progress made to date be noted.

 

Reason for decision

 

To keep the Audit Committee informed.