Agenda item

Internal Audit Update Report

Report of the Head of Audit and Risk Management.

Minutes:

Members agreed to vary the order of items on the agenda so that the update report of the Head of Audit and Risk Management regarding Internal Audit was considered next. The following points were made.

 

·         In response to a question, the Head of Audit and Risk Management confirmed that the Internal Audit Team had budgeted for a total of 195 days of activity including contingency.

 

·         A Member expressed her hope that straightforward recommendations such as the retention of documentation had been implemented without delay.

 

·         The Head of Authority Finance noted that he felt more assured regarding headline issued highlighted by previous Internal Audit work.

 

·         In response to a question regarding the internal audit of the Police Accommodation Programme and the Fleet Street Estate Programme, the Head of XXXX noted that the audit had noted there had been issues around how the Force had provided an appropriate level of challenge of options arising in the Police Accommodation Strategy Programme. He added that the recommendations arising on the Fleet Street Programme were more for the Authority than for the Force.

 

·         In response to a comment from a Member, the Commander (Operations) noted that the Commissioner now chaired the Programme Board, and that key lessons had been learned that could only be demonstrated by the Force through ongoing practice. As well as new governance processes, the Force was also under a degree of natural scrutiny from its own staff given that they were obliged to work within the buildings overseen by the Police Accommodation Strategy. The Commander concluded by noting that the Authority had formed its Capital Buildings Committee which was a new Member-level body responsible for scrutinising high-level projects, and that the Committee was an appropriate forum for officers from the Force to highlight Force requirements.

 

·         The Chairman noted his agreement with these comments, noting that there had been a noticeable step-change in Police Accommodation Strategy governance within the last 12 months, which included the Police Authority Board’s Police Accommodation Working Party.

 

·         A Member expressed concern that, given the issues highlighted by the report, there was no major Corporate Risk identified for strategic project management. Members agreed that this point should be highlighted with the Police Authority Board with a view to a resolution being made to the Audit and Risk Management Committee to that effect.

 

RESOLVED,

 

·         that the report be received.

 

·         that the Police Authority Board be asked to consider submitting a resolution to the Audit and Risk Management Committee regarding the potential for the City of London Corporation to adopt a new Corporate Risk regarding the organisation’s capacity to deliver Strategic Project Management.

 

Supporting documents: