Agenda item

Natalie Jerams presented a report which provided an overview of:

·         the current status of live internal audit reports;

·         an update on progress against the annual audit plan;

·         a summary of internal audit performance, planning and resourcing issues; and

·         a summary of significant issues that impact on the Chief Internal Auditors annual opinion.

The subsequent discussion on this report included reference to the following issues:

·         It was confirmed that the Business Continuity and Emergency Planning audit reviews had previously been scheduled for Quarter 4 and scoping meetings were staggered throughout the quarter to allow for adequate resourcing for both SIAP and the Council.  It was still expected that the audit would be completed by year end;

·         In respect of the adjustment to the internal audit plan, it was confirmed that the Main Accounting item was being moved for capacity issues within the Finance Team whilst roles and responsibilities were being realigned;

·         It was mentioned by the Chair that he had provisionally agreed the amendment to the internal audit plan following a referral by the Interim Chief Finance Officer.  The Chair had since been made aware that this may have constituted a significant change and therefore should have been referred to the Committee to agree.  The recommendation to the Committee would be amended accordingly.

·         It was noted that the Chief Internal Auditor had a duty to inform of any significant changes to the Audit Plan but there was no requirement for the Committee to approve all variations.  It was agreed that a definition of ‘significant’ would be included in the Internal Audit Charter to aid future referrals for adjustments to the Internal Audit Plan.

·         The Chief Executive stated that resourcing issues would be addressed as part of restructure of the Senior Management Team as part of the Future Tandridge Programme.  It was also noted that outstanding internal audit actions were being discussed weekly by the Management Team.

·         The reference to grant certification in the rolling work programme referred to an internal audit check to confirm that money distributed under the LGCS and the Compliance & Enforcement Grant had been spent in line with the relevant scheme/grant conditions.

·         In respect of the Outstanding Management Actions document, it was noted that the audit actions for the HR Policies and Procedures were now contained within the Future Tandridge Programme and should be completed by 31 March.

·         It was the view of the Chief Internal Auditor that there had not been any significant change in the number of audit items becoming overdue but there was a hope that the ongoing transformation programmes would help to address a number of the outstanding audit concerns.  It was noted that true and realistic completion dates should be included in the Outstanding Management Actions document.

R E S O L V E D – that the Internal Audit Progress Report for February 2022 is noted and approves the plan variation as set out in section 8 of report.

A C T I O N S –