PAPER G
Purpose
: For review
Committee : AUDIT COMMITTEE
Date : 16 MARCH 2006
Title : STATEMENT ON INTERNAL
CONTROL – PROGRESS REPORT
REPORT OF THE PROGRAMME
LEAD FOR PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
SUMMARY/PURPOSE
- The Committee will recall that in its review of the Council’s
approach to the Statement on Internal Control (SIC) the Audit Commission recommended that :
‘Responsibility for
tracking progress on the delivery of action plans should be assigned to the
Audit Committee’.
This report provides the Committee with an
update of actions which were identified in last year’s SIC (see Appendix A)
BACKGROUND
2.
The annual SIC process
which is now a mandatory requirement, requires the Council to assess the
standard of its internal control procedures. In doing that, managers are
required to make an ‘assurance declaration’ on a range of control issues. Using
those declarations, the Council compiles and publishes its statement and is
obliged to highlight any significant control weaknesses. Weaknesses declared in
the statement for 2004-05 (which was examined by this Committee at its meeting
of 22 September 2005) are set out in Appendix A.
3.
Appendix A also gives
members an update of progress in addressing those weaknesses. At the time of
issuing this report, only two of required responses have not been received. I
hope to be in a position to update the Committee at their meeting about the
remaining issues.
OUTCOME OF CONSULTATIONS
4.
Consultation has been
unnecessary, although all those identified as responsible have been asked to
provide their assessment of progress. Unfortunately not all responses have been
received by the time this report is dispatched to members , and it is hoped
that a more comprehensive version will be available at the meeting
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
5.
There are no financial
implications which stem from the report
LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
6.
There are no legal
implications arising from the report.
RECOMMENDATIONS
7.
Members are requested to review progress and to make recommendations
for further action if considered necessary. |