Agenda item

To consider the Internal Audit work undertaken and the assurance given on the adequacy of internal controls operating in the systems audited.  

12.1           The report of the Chief Audit Executive (Head of Corporate Services) provided an overview of the internal audit work completed during the period.  Members were asked to consider the work undertaken and the assurance given on the adequacy of the internal controls operating in the systems audited.

12.2          The Head of Corporate Services advised that the full details of the work undertaken in the period were attached at Appendix 1 to the report and showed that one limited opinion had been issued in relation to sundry debtor recovery.  Only two recommendations had required follow-up during the quarter – one around project management had been implemented and the other in relation to fraud risk registers was outstanding and would be picked up in the following Agenda item.  In terms of work in progress, as set out at Paragraph 2.2 of the report, audits were currently being undertaken in relation to car parks, test and trace grant declaration and Winchcombe Tourist Information Centre banking procedures and those would be brought to the next Audit and Governance Committee meeting in September.

12.3          In terms of the audit in relation to the contain outbreak management fund, there was a requirement in the grant conditions that the Chief Executive and the Chief Internal Auditor make a declaration that the grant conditions had been complied with.  Tewkesbury Borough Council had been awarded funding of £109,658 and it was necessary to check that had been spent in accordance with those conditions.  The audit had confirmed the conditions had been adhered to and the money had been used for the provision of Community Protection/COVID Protection Officers and a COVID Compliance Events Officer.  The sundry debtors audit related to the process whereby the Council raised invoices for goods or services commissioned and was split across various risk factors.  A recommendation had been made around the findings of the audit being incorporated into the review of the Council’s corporate retention schedule.  The audit had found that invoices were being raised correctly and allocated to the appropriate cost centre.  Of those tested, 80% had been raised promptly; for the remaining 20% the delay in raising the invoice ranged from three to 24 months. This was primarily due to resources being limited or having been reallocated as a result of COVID duties.  Adjustments to debtor accounts were found to have been made with sufficient justification; however, in terms of adjustments where the debt was attributed to a contractually agreed price being reduced e.g. rent reduction during COVID, the appropriate level of authorisation had not been evidenced to Finance prior to the adjustment taking place and a recommendation had been made accordingly.  A limited opinion had been issued in relation to debt recovery due to a disconnect between when action was taken by Finance and when it was passed to services.  Members were advised that £217,934 of the debt currently outstanding had been owed for longer than one year with the majority relating to trade waste and licensing so recommendations had been made in relation to this. 

12.4           With regard to the homelessness prevention grant, Members were informed there was a requirement within the grant conditions to make a declaration to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities that the grant conditions had been complied with.  The Council had received a grant allocation of approximately £250,000 to support homelessness prevention and the Internal Audit team had given assurance that it had been spent in accordance with the conditions of the grant.  A recommendation had been made to ensure that case management records were appropriately retained.  It was noted that a formal report would be taken to the Executive Committee in relation to the projected homelessness prevention funding for 2022/23 to demonstrate how the money was planned to be spent and how that aligned with the Council’s priorities – it was essential there was a structured plan in place which could be audited against.  The Head of Corporate Services advised that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee received an annual report on complaints and assurance had been provided to the Committee that internal audit would be used to ensure that lessons learnt had actually been implemented; internal audit was satisfied that was the case.

12.5           A Member indicated that she had seen the Community Protection/COVID Protection Officers out in the community and met with them several times and she felt they had done a fantastic job.  In terms of the sundry debtors audit, she asked what percentage of debt was written-off.  In response, the Head of Finance and Asset Management advised that he did not know the percentage but provided assurance it was very low – writing-off debt was a last resort and it was intended that services would do everything necessary before that decision was made.  With regard to the homelessness prevention grant audit, a Member noted that excellent work had taken place during COVID to provide accommodation for anyone who wanted to be taken off the street and she asked what the level of homelessness was currently.  The Head of Corporate Services undertook to ask the Head of Community Services to provide this information following the meeting but it was noted that it was reported in the performance tracker which was considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on a quarterly basis.  Another Member drew attention to Page No. 127 of the report, conditions 3 and 4 in relation to the authority producing and agreeing a bed and breakfast elimination plan should there be more than five families in bed and breakfast accommodation for longer than six weeks, and she asked when this would be done.  In response, the Head of Corporate Services confirmed this was one of the grant conditions and was not relevant to Tewkesbury Borough Council as it did not have any families residing in bed and breakfast accommodation for longer than six weeks during the 2021/22 period.

12.6           It was

RESOLVED          That the internal audit monitoring report be NOTED.