Issue - meetings

That the Audit Committee’s Annual Report for 2019/20 be approved.

The Chief Officer (Governance) introduced the Audit Committee’s Annual Report for 2019/20 which provided the Council with the necessary information to meet the CIPFA’s best practice ‘Audit Committees – a Practical Guidance for Local Authorities 2018’, and the requirement for the Audit Committee to be held to account by the Council for the work they undertook.

The Audit Committee’s Annual Report was designed to provide assurance to the Council in holding the Committee to account.  In particular:

1.    Supporting the Council’s accountability to the public and stakeholders

-       Each Audit Committee meeting was held in the public domain with all Committee papers available on the Council’s website

2.    Supporting accountability within the Council

-       Through the review of the reports received by Audit Committee, the Committee holds to account those responsible for the implementation of recommendations and action plans.  In addition to that, the Committee oversaw the process for evaluating and improving governance, risk, financial management and control

3.    Holding the Audit Committee to account

-       The Committee had fulfilled its agreed Terms of Reference and adopted the recommended best practice;

-       Members of the Audit Committee had assessed their own development needs and taken the opportunity to attend briefing and training sessions;

-       The Committee had assessed its own effectiveness, developed an action plan and monitored progress; and

-       The Committee demonstrated they had a positive impact on the improvement of governance, risk, financial management and control within the Council.

A report would be submitted to County Council in January outlining proposed changes to Audit Committees in Wales.

The recommendation in the report was moved by Councillor Chris Dolphin and seconded by Councillor Paul Johnson.

Councillor Chris Dolphin gave an overview of the Annual Report, and confirmed there were no areas of concern to report to Council.  Councillor Paul Johnson thanked Councillor Dolphin for the chairmanship of the Committee and his thorough nature. 

Councillor Roberts also expressed his thanks to the Chair of the Audit Committee, the Members and also the co-opted members for their valuable contributions. 

RESOLVED:

That the Audit Committee’s Annual Report for 2019/20 be approved.