Venue: Parkside, Station Approach, Burton Street, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire LE13 1GH
Contact: Democratic Services 01664 502579
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Apologies for Absence Minutes: There were no apologies for absence. Councillor Bains was not present at the meeting. |
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To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 30 November 2021. Minutes: The minutes of the meeting held on 30 November were confirmed. |
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Declarations of Interest PDF 85 KB Members to declare any interest as appropriate, in respect of items to be considered at this meeting. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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Internal Audit Progress Report PDF 201 KB The Head of Internal Audit to submit a report to
update Members on the progress made in delivering the 2021/22
Internal Audit Plan and key findings arising from audit assignments completed. Additional documents: Minutes: Rachel Ashley-Caunt, Head of
Internal Audit introduced the report, the purpose of which was to update
Members on the progress made in delivering the 2021/22 Internal Audit Plan and
key findings arising from audit assignments completed. Ms. Ashley-Caunt highlighted key
sections of the report, advising that a full copy of the report was at Appendix
A: ·
All Internal Audit assignments (including current status/outcomes) for the financial year were set out
at Appendix 1. There had been 1 further
audit (on Asset Management Leases) finalised since the last Committee meeting
(on 30 November 2021) and the key findings were summarised at section 2.5 of
the report. The Council’s portfolio of
properties generated over £300k income per annum (excluding the Cattle Market,
which had been considered separately in previous years) and the audit had
reviewed arrangements relating to managing the portfolio, ensuring leases were
in place and that tenant relationships were managed effectively. There were known inconsistencies in some of
the procedures and an Action Plan had been implemented to deliver against the
areas required. This was a ‘work in
progress’ at the time of the audit.
There were a number of leases which needed to
be updated and plans were in place to address this. Internal Audit had made recommendations to
strengthen some of the controls such as holding a central record for tenancies
and to improve the Council's Key Performance Indicators to ensure effective
income recovery monitoring. Internal
Audit had issued a satisfactory assurance opinion and minor organisational risk
based on the work being undertaken. ·
There was 1 amendment to the Internal Audit Plan
in relation to the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business Plan (detailed at
section 2.7 of the report), which had been discussed at a previous meeting of
the Committee. This audit would be
deferred to 2022/23 and that Internal Audit review the Council’s recharges for
mobile phone fees, which had been highlighted as an area of financial
pressure/risk. ·
An update on the implementation of audit
recommendations was detailed at Appendix 3.
There were 25 overdue actions, 4 of which were high priority and
detailed at Appendix 4. During discussion, the following points were noted: ·
Members noted that it was usual practice to
undertake rent review processes alongside lease renewals. Ms. Ashley-Caunt
confirmed that this work was now being undertaken as part of recovery of
income, in line with the latest (out of date) agreements, even though these
were no longer valid. Income had been
recovered but perhaps not at the full market rate applicable had rent reviews
been undertaken. · Landlord's Health and Safety 2019/20 had been an overdue high priority action for some time. Asbestos management was an important strand of the Council’s responsibilities as a landlord. There had been a review of approximately 400 historic asbestos surveys, which confirmed that they complied with requirements. The Council had undertaken 30 new surveys and had identified a need for a further 100 surveys. Improvements to the Council’s Housing Asset Management systems would facilitate ... view the full minutes text for item 110. |
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2019/20 Housing Benefit Subsidy Claim PDF 197 KB The Director for Housing and Communities to submit a report providing Members with a summary of the 2019/20 Housing Benefit Audit. Minutes: Michelle Howard, Director for Housing and Communities
introduced the report, the purpose of which was to provide Members with a
summary of the 2019/20 Housing Benefit Audit. Mrs. Howard highlighted that this external audit enabled the
Council to check the robustness of the processes in place to ensure that
eligible households were supported to receive appropriate payments towards
their rental costs and that any risks of error were minimised. Any errors identified during sample testing
in the subsidy claim made to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
resulted in a more thorough investigation.
The report detailed the findings of the assessment and its financial
impacts. The overall impact was
negligible and there was no retrospective change to be made to the claim. Nick Sach, Revenues and Benefits Manager advised that the
total amount for the Council’s subsidy claim to the DWP for certification was
£5,393,360. The amount identified as
being overpaid was £9,011 and the amount identified as being underpaid was
£9,105, resulting in an increased payment of £94 for September 2021. The audit process involved sample testing of top level expenditure cells and if errors were identified as
part of this initial testing, further 40 plus testing was then undertaken to
review further cases. The Chair commented that the findings represented positive
progress made since 2019. Dawn Garton, Director for Corporate Services advised that
there had been a steady improvement. The
errors were small and reducing year on year.
There needed to be at least 2 error free years before Auditors ended the
extended testing. During discussion the following
points were noted: ·
Mr. Sach clarified that as part of sample
testing, External Audit identified an error that resulted in the Council
overpaying by £9,011 and as part of the same testing it was also identified
that the Council underpaid by £9,105.
These errors were offset with the exception of
£94 (resulting in the increased payment for September 2021). RESOLVED that the Committee NOTED the findings of the 2019/20 Housing Benefits Audit and action being taken in response to the audit findings. |
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Counter Fraud Update Report PDF 174 KB The Head of Internal Audit to submit a report providing Members with a six monthly update on counter fraud activity. Minutes: Rachel Ashley-Caunt, Head of
Internal Audit introduced the report, the purpose of which was to provide
Members with a 6 monthly update on counter fraud activity. Ms. Ashley-Caunt confirmed: ·
The Council’s counter fraud risk was monitored
through its Risk Register. ·
There was planned work on local taxation fraud,
which would give some assurance around compliance areas. ·
Internal Audit would support the Monitoring
Officer in reviewing, updating and promoting the
Whistleblowing Policy. ·
Internal Audit provided support and assistance
for pre and post payment checks for Covid-19 business
grants (prepayment checks were in progress for the latest tranche of grants). ·
The Council had updated its website and created
a new webpage to provide a clear mechanism for the public to report frauds. The Chair advised that he was reviewing detailed risk
information, which he had received from Ms. Ashley-Caunt. The Council would publicise and provide
information on fraud during the next financial year. RESOLVED that the Committee NOTED the latest counter fraud activity. |
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Provision of Internal Audit Services PDF 142 KB The Director for Corporate Services to submit a report advising Members on the Internal Audit Service Level Agreement. Additional documents:
Minutes: Dawn Garton, Director for Corporate Services introduced the
report, the purpose of which was to advise Members on the Internal Audit
Service Specification. Mrs. Garton apologised that Members had not been issued the
exempt paper (Appendix A – Service Specification) with their hard copy agenda
packs. Electronic copies of the exempt
paper had been provided, copies had been emailed to Members earlier in the day
and hard copies were before Members at the meeting. Mrs. Garton advised that a report on the continued
delegation of the Internal Audit service was considered by the Committee at its
last meeting (on 30 November 2021) and Members requested sight of the
underlying Service Specification (as detailed at Appendix A). The document set out managing and monitoring
the delivery of the service and sits underneath a delegation agreement, which
would be shared with the Chair before being signed. The Chair highlighted that review of the Service
Specification formed part of the Committee fulfilling its responsibility for
managing the Internal Audit service. He
would ensure that the necessary control was in place and would provide Members
with assurance on this. EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC RESOLVED that
the Public be excluded during the consideration of the following item of
business in accordance with Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act
1972 (Access to Information : Exempt Information)
under paragraph 1. There was a brief discussion on Appendix A
and this is set out in the exempt minutes. RESOLVED that the Committee APPROVED the Service Specification for the provision of Internal Audit services. |
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Urgent Business To consider any other items that the Chair considers urgent. Minutes: There was no urgent business. |