Agenda item

This report summarises the status of work included in the 2023/24 Internal Audit Plan as at the end of February 2024.  Six audits have been finalised, two of which received a Substantial assurance opinion and four receiving Satisfactory assurance, with a further three audits at draft report stage.

Moira Mackie (Head of Internal Audit) presented the report which summarised the status of work included in the 2023/24 Internal Audit Plan as at the end of February 2024. The Committee noted that six audits had been finalised, two of which (Council Tax and Housing Benefit) received a Substantial assurance opinion and four (Digital: New Systems Acquisition, Randolph Beresford Nursery, Community Safety – Anti-Social Behaviour and Climate Change) received Satisfactory assurance, with a further three audits at draft report stage. She also briefed members on the finalised audits (Appendix 1) and the status of the remaining planned audits (Appendix 2).

The Chair noted that certain plan areas needed to be deferred for different reasons.  He was concerned whether the capacity of the audit team would be able to cope with the workload in dealing with these deferred audits in addition to the regular ones.

Moira Mackie remarked that the team took a risk-based approach to the audit plan. So, a plan area which was lower down on the priority list because of the risks at the time of assessment might be due for an audit later in the following year. For some which had been carried forward for more than one year and were not so significant or just a cyclical piece, some assurances could be obtained from other sources without comprising the plan. She was confident the allocated resources would be sufficient to meet the needs.

The Chair noted that some schools had requested to defer internal audits due to staff changes.  He asked how the new incumbents managed to prepare for the audit according to the accounting and audit practices.  Moira Mackie remarked that the in-house audit team would not arrange audits for schools having had some significant changes and give sufficient notice when they were ready. In undertaking an audit with these schools, the audit team, apart from liaising with the Council’s governance and finance teams, would reach out to the school and its finance team, and if necessary, provided close support to the new staff. 

Councillor Ashok Patel noted that to ensure the Annual Audit Plan 2023/24 being more responsive to changing risks and challenges, it had been developed as a ‘3 plus 9-month’ plan (page 381). He considered a 6+6-month plan might help avoid duplication of work.

David Hughes (Director of Audit, Fraud, Risk and Insurance) explained that the 3+9- month approach started during COVID having regard that the risks of plan areas in local governments were changing much quicker that that in the past.  As such, the annual plan set out in clear details the scope of work to be done in the next quarter while leaving more flexibility on the tasks to be undertaken in the remaining nine months. The plan was reviewed and updated every quarter.  In this way, team resources could be deployed effectively by focusing on the key risks identified by the service directors for the next quarter. 

Councillor Adrian Pascu-Tulbure sought information on the recommendations particularly high priority ones that had been identified during the audit process. Moira Mackie noted from her recent review that there were no significant recommendations found. However, the annual report to be presented in summer should involve a few pieces of more complicated work with outstanding issues highlighted for members’ reference.   David Hughes echoed that the more complicated cases usually took more time to complete. He suggested including in future reporting a section on follow up to prior recommendations to assure the Committee there was no risk.  The Committee agreed.

ACTION: David Hughes / Moira Mackie

RESOLVED

That the Committee noted the report.