The report of the Head of Policy and Governance is attached.

Contact: Barry Hanson 07990 086409

The Head of Policy & Governance presented the Internal Audit Performance Report, which provided an update on the audit work undertaken in the final quarter of the 2025-26 financial year. The report detailed that fifteen audit reports had been issued between January and March, with assurance ratings and service areas listed. Eleven draft reports were awaiting management responses and would be included in the next performance report. Work had also been completed on external clients and financial statements for several voluntary funds.

Of the reports issued, ten provided good or reasonable assurance, accounting for 67% of opinions delivered. In total, 117 recommendations were made across the 15 audit reports. No fundamental recommendations or unsatisfactory assurance opinions had been delivered during the final quarter, indicating a step change in assurance levels. Unplanned projects and advisory work not included in the original plan were also detailed.

Members expressed confusion regarding the debt recovery audit, noting that the report showed a negative direction of travel and sought clarification on the issues causing this decline. The Internal Audit Manager explained that the control objectives listed in Table 1 were those not achieved in the audit. The scope of the audit sets a number of control objectives, and those achieved are not included in the table. Members were reminded that they have access to all internal audit reports via the Committee member website, where individual recommendations could be reviewed. It was clarified that the direction of travel was negative because the previous audit had been assessed as reasonable, but the current audit was limited, indicating a breakdown in controls that were previously operating satisfactorily.

It was suggested that a manager responsible for debt recovery should attend a future meeting to explain what improvements had been made in response to the audit findings, as this was a fundamental role for the Audit Committee. The Section 151 Officer suggested providing a thorough written response to the Committee’s questions and reserving a slot at the next meeting for a manager to attend and provide a detailed update. He noted that debt recovery was a complex area, covering council tax, business rates, elderly care, and parking enforcement, and that the written response would clarify which categories were being discussed and why the direction of travel was negative. Members clarified that the Committee’s role was to receive a management response to the audit report and to question managers regarding improvements made, rather than to receive a general overview of debt recovery. The Chair agreed, stating that the Committee’s role was to audit and ensure processes were in place to address the downward trajectory in debt recovery, rather than to discuss broader financial policy.

It was commented that from an external perspective, it would be concerning if the Council was making improvements in asset disposal while the number of debtors was increasing, as this would send a worrying message.

RESOLVED:

to endorse the Internal Audit Performance Report and to request that a management update report be bought back to the Committee identifying actions being taken to address the issues in the Debt Recovery audit.