To consider the Internal Audit work undertaken and the assurance given on the adequacy of internal controls operating in the systems audited for the period December 2013 to February 2014.

44.1           The report of the Policy and Performance Group Manager, circulated at Pages No. 51-67, summarised the work undertaken by the Internal Audit team for the period December 2013 to February 2014.  Members were asked to consider the audit work completed and the assurance given on the adequacy of internal controls operating in the systems audited.

44.2           Members were advised that full details of the work undertaken during the period were attached at Appendix 1 to the report and it was estimated that 92-96% of audits would be completed by 31 March 2014.  The Policy and Performance Group Manager indicated that he intended to attach a document setting out the status of each audit as an appendix to the report in future.  There had been some sickness absence within the team which was being mitigated by a combination of overtime; a reciprocal working arrangement with a neighbouring authority which had been brought forward from March 2014; and the appointment of an agency contractor between mid-February and the end of March. 

44.3           Appendix 1 provided a summary of the activity audited, the control objectives for each activity and the audit opinion for each control objective.  Members were advised that the audit on data quality in relation to the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Quarter 2 2013/14 which were reported via the performance management framework had been found to be satisfactory.  Human Resources had been audited to ensure that salary adjustments sent to the Payroll Officer were accurate, supported with appropriate documentation and processed in accordance with the Council’s policies and procedures and this had been found to be satisfactory.  The licensing audit had focused on licensing fees, the checking of licenses and supporting documentation and the issuing of the licences once the correct fee had been received.  Whilst some recommendations had been made, the overall level of assurance had been good or satisfactory.  There was nothing significant to report in respect of the key financial systems in relation to Business Rates.  The creditors audit had sought to ensure that there was adequate control over the placement of orders and receipt of goods.  It had been found that three invoices were not supported with official purchase orders; these were small in value and two related to the same service area.  The invoice details in relation to the payments made for the storage of personal belongings for homeless persons could not be verified e.g. it was unclear what items were being stored, how many items were being stored etc. thereby providing only limited assurance for that activity.  Recommendations had therefore been made to enhance the process for monitoring this expenditure.  With regard to the audit of tree inspections, Members were advised that the Grounds Maintenance Team had completed the inspections of high risk sites and it would now be important to implement the second phase of the project which was to establish and maintain a database of trees in order to monitor re-inspections.  With regard to the follow-up audits completed, Members were reminded that the Asset Manager had attended the last meeting of the Committee to provide an update on the progress in relation to playgrounds.  The follow-up audit had been very positive with ownership having been verified and independent inspections being carried out by trained Officers.  The Policy and Performance Group Manager felt that a potentially significant health and safety issue had now been mitigated.  In terms of the corporate improvement work, the work on procurement had been completed and submitted to the Procurement Group and the review of customer services across all services would help to inform the refresh of the Customer Services Strategy.

44.4           Appendix 2 to the report set out the ‘essential’ audit recommendations that had been identified through the undertaking of follow-up audits but had not yet been implemented.  Members were advised that there were currently four service areas where recommendations were outstanding.  It was intended that a table of all recommendations would be brought to future meetings to allow Members to keep track of what recommendations had been made and how they had been implemented.

44.5           With regard to the creditors audit and the limited assurance in relation to the payments made for the storage of personal belongings for homeless persons, a Member queried where the items were stored and was advised that the storage company was located at Gloucester Business Park.  She raised concern that items could easily go missing from storage containers and this could be particularly devastating for a homeless person who may have no other belongings.  The Policy and Performance Group Manager provided assurance that the issues identified could be resolved relatively easily e.g. through obtaining an inventory, establishing liability for loss and damage to such items etc. and a follow-up audit would be undertaken to ensure that the recommendations were implemented.

44.6           A Member noted that the Landscape Officer had left the authority to take a six month sabbatical and she questioned whether this would have an impact on tree inspections. She raised concern that a Tree Preservation Order application which had been submitted two weeks earlier had not yet been acknowledged.  A Member indicated that he had a similar issue having submitted a request to trim or fell a tree on 12 December 2013 which had not been validated for 69 days.  He had not been provided with an explanation for this delay despite having made a complaint.  The Deputy Chief Executive apologised that the Member had not received a response to his complaint; however, she indicated that the Landscape Officer had only left the authority the previous week so these issues were not related to her absence.  She explained that it was intended to use flexible resources to cover the position and she provided assurance that this would be kept under a watching brief.  The Policy and Performance Group Manager clarified that the tree inspections did not form part of the Landscape Officer role and were carried out by the Grounds Maintenance Team which was based at the depot.  With regard to the implementation of the database, a Member suggested that, as new ways of working were explored, there might be an opportunity to update the database directly from the field in future.

44.7           Having considered the information provided it was

RESOLVED          That the Internal Audit Plan Monitoring Report be NOTED.