Agenda item

To receive Southern Internal Audit Partnership’s (SIAP) Report No. SIAP27/01 (copy attached), which sets out the independent annual audit opinion for 2025/26.

The Chairman welcomed Neil Pitman, Head of Southern Internal Audit Partnership (SIAP), the Council’s internal auditors, who joined the meeting remotely via Microsoft Teams.

The Committee considered Southern Internal Audit Partnership’s (SIAP) Report No. SIAP27/01, which set out the Chief Internal Auditor’s independent annual audit conclusion for 2025/26 on the adequacy and effectiveness of the Council’s framework of governance, risk management and control.

The Committee noted that assurance levels had been provided for each of these areas in order to provide a clear assessment:

·       Governance - It was noted that, based on the work completed during the year and observations through attendance at a variety of management and governance meetings, in SIAP’s opinion, the governance frameworks in place across the Council were robust, fit for purpose and subject to regular review. There was also appropriate reporting to the Audit & Governance Committee to provide the opportunity for independent consideration and challenge including review of the Annual Governance Statement.

·       Risk Management – During the year an internal audit review of risk management had been undertaken concluding with a ‘reasonable assurance’ opinion. One of the key observations was the requirement for more regular report of risk management updates to the Audit and Governance Committee. The risk register was a key document that was considered during the development of the risk based internal audit plan. Additionally, information from the risk register was taken into account when scoping each review in detail to ensure that SIAP’s work was appropriately aligned.

·       Control – It was noted that, in general, internal audit work found there had been a sound control environment in place across the majority of review areas included in the 2025-26 plan and these were working effectively to support the delivery of corporate objectives. Officers and staff were found to be aware of the importance of effective control frameworks, and open to SIAP’s suggestion for improvements or enhancements, where needed.

The Committee were informed that the Internal Auditor was satisfied that sufficient assurance and advisory work had been carried out to enable a conclusion to be formed on the adequacy and effectiveness of the internal control environment. It was reported that the framework of governance, risk management and control had been assessed as ‘reasonable’, and that audit testing had demonstrated that controls were operating effectively. It was further noted that, where weaknesses had been identified through internal audit reviews, appropriate corrective actions and timescales for improvement had been agreed with management.

During discussion, questions were raised regarding acronyms within the report, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Pay360. Regarding a question about Disabled Facility Grants (DFGs), Members requested that an update be provided by the Council.

ACTIONS:

RESOLVED: That the Internal Audit Annual Conclusion 2025/26, be noted.