Transcript

[BLANK_AUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO] Okay, I would like to welcome Chart of Trustees, the press, and members of the public including some of those watching online to this meeting at the Pool Chart of Trustees. In order to ensure the meeting is managed effectively, please could everyone follow these ground rules for speaking. If you wish to speak, please raise your hand, physically to indicate. Where there appears to be consensus in the meeting room for a motion. I would ask there if there is any dissension. When the formal vote is required, this will be carried out by sheriff hands. As a courtesy, please do not talk amongst yourselves during the debates. Please note this meeting is being live streamed via the Council's YouTube channel, where recording will be available for a minimum of six months. Before we start, the business on the agenda, I would like to highlight that the Chart of Trustees is a non-political body. The primary objective being to maintain from the historic and similar traditions of Paul. I'm keen that we all work together to maintain this objective. Please may we have the apologies for absence. Thank you Mr. Mayor. I've got apologies from Councillor SRI. Can head, Councillor Philip Broadhead, Councillor David Brown, Councillor Richard Burton, Councillor Dudes, but Councillor John Chaloner, Councillor David Dorton Gibson, Councillor Emily Harmon, Councillor Brian Hitchcock, Councillor Rachel Madam, Councillor Sandra Moore, Councillor Karen Rempton, Councillor Pitt Sidway, Councillor Bicky Slade and Councillor Clare Waite. Are there any other apologies? Henry Clerk, can you report on any decorations of interest received? No, none have been received today, but if members do feel they have one that we don't provide a flat chart with the agenda, or please just let us know. Thank you Mr. Mayor, good afternoon Trustees. So there's three agenda items tonight. The final agenda item is the sign of the Annual Governance and Accountability return, which we've got to have statutorily signed off by the end of this month. There's two reports that feed into that a car, I'll refer to it as document. The first one is the internal audit report that was carried out by BCP Council staff. That's agenda one. I won't go over any of the details of the findings other than just a highlight, there was one high priority finding as part of that internal report, which was the asset verification check that we have to do every year. And that wasn't carried out in part because the elections and staff in and council has been on on hand to carry that verification out. I'm going to stop on that agenda item, but we'll be happy to take any questions on internal audit report. Thanks Mr. Mayor. Yeah, I'm slightly confused about that because I thought there'd been an asset verification check earlier on this year. And I remember volunteering but there were enough people to do that already. Something took place because members commented on some of the things they found, but I know I was asked to step in recently for redoing part of it, which I think was being delayed, but I can't understand why the asset verification check that was done earlier this year. It didn't count. Yeah, it just kind of slightly puzzles me that does. Yes, so Council, there was one, semi recently, but it wasn't completed. So it was partially completed, hence the order findings deeming it to be high risk as, because the application was not complete, the assets could not be deemed to be identified. I have now put in place, post election dates for the completion of those applications. Yep, that's so not yeah item. Suggesting relation to at the end there's discussion about the, the lack of performance management agreement. And that as a consequence that there's a danger that the council might be subsidizing pull chart trustees. I mean, I think that that from from I think what most of us who looked into this can see is that it's the other way around that the chart trustees are currently subsidizing the council. In terms of certainly the failure to provide a a mayoral office that is required by law, and that needs to be a priority in the coming year. And I'm surprised that the audit hasn't hit this up because we've been charged £15,000 a year. Bournemouth being charged 18,000 a year, but Bournemouth get a mayoral parlor. And we don't. So, you know, by just by regulation, five years of non provision that's £50,000 that the types of pool of paid to the council unnecessarily. And yeah, I really think that should be picked up in an audit report. Thank you. Now, can you answer any of that? Richard, can you please. Thank you, Mr Mayor. We've actually got a civic working group on Friday, scheduled for Friday, where we have a number of issues on there in relation to service provision. And I think it's that's probably the right place to have that in terms of the question, whereas I've been picked up previously on an audit report. I think it's going to carry out their reviews and, and, and have an identify that as a particular risk previously. Yeah, I mean, I think this may be, it seems to me a bit of a weakness in the process that councillors aren't invited by the order to, or trust trust trust trust these aren't invited by the order to, to submit comments in the advance of the audit, because otherwise, you know, the council's really auditing itself at the moment, which is never a great place for an organization to be admittedly to organization is, but really the same people marking their own homework. Thank you. So have a look at the process for interim audit them for this year is coming year. I think the working group is one doesn't need to pick up the location. You know, we've had different options looked at considered I think we're going to try and get to a solution about the accommodation I think that's the real priority for the trust trustees for next year. And does the audit fall short though, if what marks commenting on it is the audit secure. If these points aren't being picked up. The audit into an audit report is secure as it as far as it goes I think what you're identifying is an area in which you'd like to ask into an audit to look at. You know, this is not a comprehensive audit of everything it's the issues they picked up so there's no reason why we can't ask into an audit to look at that during next year. I think it's have a chat with Ruth Hodges afternoon, and she was a little uncertain I think I would say in terms of whether this item should have been covered by the financial regulations or not. It would seem strange to me that, you know, I think 50,000 pounds financial gap in that respect wouldn't be covered by the financial, you know, situation, but I, you know, I think in the context of, you know, this meeting and previous meetings that have not addressed this, you know, and then trust me from forwards. You know, perhaps we should just approve approve this but it doesn't need to be recognized or like it recorded in the minutes that, you know, this is an ongoing issue that I believe trustees are concerned about. So, this might sound kind of a naive question but the fact that we paid for what's it five years we paid all that money, and we haven't received any services. Was that just by an oversight and if we haven't received services and we paid that money is he is there is a chance to reclaim some of that back. We should try not to get in the detail now because actually for the first year the mayor did have a pilot in Paul Civic Center whilst we kept Paul Civic Center open so I think it is an issue to have a look at I don't think it's, it's not to be honest because the actual requirement is to provide sufficient accommodation for the proper discharge of the functions of the charge of trust, and you could argue that that has been met in its entirety. What hasn't been provided is a dedicated mayoral parlor for the last however long. I think we should look at it. I think we should look at it in terms of the finances as well. I think it's probably not sensible to try and exploit tonight off on the roof says helpful. The other come back in I mean that I heard that before. I mean it's it what what the council cannot do is it cannot be treating Bournemouth Charter Trustees differently from Paul Charter Trustees you know this was most most of us opposed the merger for the very reason that it was naturally things would become Bournemouth centric and you know a certain laziness with an empty creep in where where Bournemouth is automatically favoured over Paul and this is a classic example of where that is happening. You know that it downstairs. There's a glorious man's parlor. You know which bought Bournemouth Charter Trustees have had access uninhibited access to sort of query about another room as well which understands that that they previously but not using you know but it you know it's not it's just not good enough to say or even suggest I think was was being done there that we might not either the council might not need to provide a suitable the historic and you know grounds the wrong words but suitably appropriate parlor for the mayor to carry out the duties and it has been always consider them practice that the wood there is a mayor's parlor and the mayor's parlor has one of its purposes to entertain people into to accept small groups from schools etc. It's a key part of maintaining the civic function and you know it needs to be addressed this year. Yeah, thanks Mark I think I think you hit the nail on the head though I think the parlor is the core of the of the Charter Trustees I think that that's where we where we can be open honest and branch out to be without that is is totally wrong. I think people in this room have heard what we got to say and I think we've got to press on we cannot count as we are. So I think that's I think that's I think that's agreed by all which is that we're not doing anything. So I think it's about time that we we stepped up. And we have to press on now Mark. Everybody is on the agenda. Yeah. Okay, so we have got a working group on Friday. I'll be the working group is that's not actually through the Charter of Streets. Okay. Okay. So just a brief extension to you're happy to note that report please. Sure bands really all right. Cool. Yep. We now move to the supplemental report published as the gender might and five which I have agreed to be published in order to provide additional context to the gender item for I call again on that film responsible financial officer report to present this report. Thank you. Mr Mayor and apologies. This is a suffering item that came in quite late. Intritionally, we would have had this agenda item. It proceeded in the a guard. It's quite important that you see it before you sign off the a guy return. Just to inform the charge just ease that we under spent again the budget of just over 22,000. And that under spend is mostly driven by more of the variable areas of spend in terms of hospitality sort of the mayor events that the budgeted fourths part of the year. And that under spend has been added to the opening reserve balance, which we started the year of just over 134,000 and we end the year. Just over 136,000 and the reason why it hasn't got 20,000 is a large portion of the budget between 24 was to be supported by reserves. So it's just the difference between that. And that's set out in appendix A or the detail to that out there. So I'll stop there. Mr Mayor, be taking any questions. Yes, anybody want to ask any questions on that is a bit late coming in to anybody. Yes, sir. It's not actually a question, but I think that executive summary. On the front of this item, I assume this is the one we're talking about is totally misleading to say that $22,000 has been added to the reserves of 134 and it may sound 36. That means nonsense. It needs more. I mean, Mr Fulmer has now explained the reasoning, but on the face of it, that is absolutely mathematically nonsense. Yeah, I don't disagree with that. Yeah. No, that's quite all right. You do. Yeah, I thought you'd need to read the report and then look at appendix A to see the context of that movement. But yeah, I'd say on board, we could have been better explained. I think it's an accident to the interface between numbers and words, isn't it, which didn't go very well. I think we could have been clear. Okay, so happy with that. Happy with that report, everybody. Yes. Sorry, because it wasn't printed out. I've suddenly realized that the downturn is digital. So just having a run through. I remember when we last met a couple of times ago, we talked about the heads for staffing recharges. Can I just confirm if they've been included now. I don't know if you can come in on that. Just to clarify, previously it was salaries, pension and I, but we have spoken before, I think in a working group about any additional overheads, for example, use of our HR department. You know, those kinds of things that contribute towards start. Thank you. That's been baked into the 2425 budget, but it wasn't part of this 2324 budget so it hasn't been included as part of the charge that went through. Yes, Mark. Yeah, just to follow on from what really said that. I mean, it does say to say near the last item, the governance reports that the lack of the performance management agreement makes it difficult for anybody to determine, you know, what services we're getting for what price, you know, and these additional services. It's actually quite difficult when you're thinking about trying to put on an event. We don't know what support we're entitled to from the events team. You know, I, I only found out this week though actually we don't get any support from the comms team. And that we have to do our own press releases. So, yeah, there's a lot of processes that aren't really there or working properly. And that's, again, is something we need to push on within within the working group. Again, that's on the agenda for the working group Friday. I think there's an issue we need to determine it's it's all about what we budget for what we charge to the charge trustees and how much service we provide so we do need to get to that in some detail. I think expectations. Maybe haven't been met by the structures behind it. So we do need to decide whether we want to do that on. There's two other choices for the charge trustees in in how much support the charge trust buys. Yeah, everybody have for that. So I move on then to item four, the annual government statement 202324 and statement of accounts for 2324. I call upon that film of responsible financial officer to present this report. Thank you, Mr Mayor. So, after noting those two agenda items, they've affected being reflected in. The A call returned. So the first part of the paper return is the output of the internal report, but the internal report also has almost like a checklist for the requirements as part of the annual government statement. And again, that's been reflected in this form. And then lastly, all the actual accounts for the trust trustees, which reflects all the numbers that were put forward as part of the outcome report, other than the value of the fixed assets. Which stands the same as the last year, just shy 1.3 million, which is a reflection of the most recent insurance valuation. So I'll stop there, Mr Mayor, if you take any questions. Any questions in the room for Matt, please. So that concludes the meeting. So, I'll be happy to agree that report. So that concludes the meeting. I now formally declare this meeting closed. [BLANKAUDIO] [BLANKAUDIO]