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Audit and Risk Committee - Monday, 24th March, 2025 7.00 pm

March 24, 2025 View on council website Watch video of meeting
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Summary

The Audit and Risk Committee convened to discuss the council's financial position, review and approve the draft annual internal audit plan for 2025-26, and set the scope for future deep dives into areas of potential risk. The committee approved the Internal Audit Strategy, the Internal Audit Charter, and the Draft 2025/26 Annual Internal Audit Plan.

Financial Update

The committee received a verbal update on the council's financial position from Paul, who is now the acting corporate director for resources. He reported that the council is projecting a net budget overspend of just over £3 million on the general fund, which can be offset by the £5 million general contingency, and so they expect to see a minor amount go into reserves at the end of the year.

One significant movement in the budget was a £1 million shortfall in parking income, due to an assumption that infrastructure companies would pay for parking suspensions while they installed increased connectivity in the borough. He also noted that temporary accommodation pressures, which had been a major concern, had stabilised since the third quarter.

He also noted that there had been a worsening in resources from roughly breaking even to being about a million adrift, and that this was predominantly around the costs of servicing the legal requirements for children's services. He explained that he was working to ensure that the appropriate budget is transferred over from Children's Services, which is in a fairly healthy position. Councillor Paul Convery, Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee and the Pensions Committee, asked whether it made sense for legal services to be fully recharged to children's services in these circumstances. Paul responded:

So it does, but what we didn't want to obviously disincentivise people accessing legal advice when they need to. And equally, there is the kind of professional oversight and the accountability from someone accessing legal advice. If the person accessing it doesn't have the levers to kind of ration access, then you end up without spend controls, essentially, if that makes sense.

Draft Annual Internal Audit Plan 2025-26

Nazarene, welcomed to her last meeting, presented the draft annual internal audit plan for 2025-26, and asked the committee to approve the strategy, the charter, and the plan itself. She explained that the plan was drafted based on a mapping exercise of the principal risks to assurance activity, discussions with directorate management teams and the corporate management team, and collaboration with colleagues across London.

The committee discussed whether there were sufficient resources to deliver the plan, given the upcoming demerger of the shared service arrangements for the internal audit and investigations service between Islington Council and Camden Council1, and the flux and change built in. Paul explained that the council was working with a partner to recruit a replacement for Nazarene, and that they expected a recruitment decision very early in May. He added that if that didn't work out, the plan B would be to cover the leadership role by essentially the team managers being a direct report of the director of finance.

Nazarene added that the team was comfortable that they had sufficient resources to deliver the plan, and that they had a certain budget to use on a contractor, which they hadn't fully utilised this year.

Councillor Caroline Russell, Business Manager, Independent and Green Group, asked about the essential conditions for the Audit and Risk Committee, and whether they all happen through the work of the committee. Nazarene responded that some of the requirements would come into play when things go wrong, for example, if internal orders unrestricted actors. She offered to provide a table for Lee in terms of how the responsibility is discharged, to make it clearer.

Councillor Sara Hyde, Chair of Standards Committee, raised concerns about the pace and prioritisation of the plan, given the context of big new national legislation and the decoupling from Camden. Nazarene responded that the team is stable, and that the audit manager was hired before they knew the demerger was taking place. She added that the team collaborates with the London Audit Group and the Cross Council Assurance Services, which helps them stay abreast of external forces.

Councillor Nick Wayne, Chair of Corporate Resources and Economy Scrutiny Committee, asked what the key priorities were, and what the main challenges for internal audit would be over the next six months. Nazarene responded that the corporate management team had given feedback around the quarters, and that there was a very clear directive from the chief executive and the corporate management team to kick off the plan quickly. She added that the two extended follow-ups on the new build program and affordable workspace would be taking place in Q1.

Alan Begg asked about the assurance map in Appendix 4, and whether it implied that they were revisiting areas that haven't had complete audit clearance. Nazarene responded that they look at what assurance activity had taken place over the last four years, and then what was the assurance outcome, and then that informs whether they put it on the current year's plan.

Alan Begg also asked about risk management assurance mapping, and whether there was a correlation between that and fraud risks. Nazarene responded that the cross-cutting section of the audit plan includes any audit activity that they will be undertaking, and that the risk management assurance mapping is actually undertaking that exercise in Appendix 4.

Councillor Russell asked about the cost of energy on page 39, and whether that's been revisited since the change of administration in the White House and the kind of global uncertainty. Nazarene responded that they had amended climate, and put it in for 25-26, and that if the committee does want something around energy, it's either a new order, or they consider that when they're scoping climate. Councillor Convery added that the issue probably is where the council takes a fresh look at the sort of collective purchasing arrangements, and see whether that is purchasing forward prices have worked sufficiently smartly to be able to hedge some of these risks.

The committee approved the Internal Audit Strategy, the Internal Audit Charter, and the Draft 2025/26 Annual Internal Audit Plan.

Work Plan and Action Sheets

The committee discussed the work plan and action sheets, and Councillor Convery distributed a couple of notes to members, setting out the scope of certain deep dives more clearly. He suggested deep dives on the vulnerability of financial risk associated with following school roles, a look at the governance on the way in which they're dealing with the emerging difficulties of recruiting some senior staff roles, and a further assessment on the risk associated with recycling rates remaining broadly unchanged.

He also suggested a look at the matter of indemnification of councillors insurance, and another look at this year's experience on estimating the income costs on the parking income account. The committee agreed to these deep dives.


  1. The demerger of the shared service arrangements for the internal audit and investigations service between Islington Council and Camden Council was discussed at the previous meeting of the Audit and Risk Committee on 18 February 2025. 

Attendees

Profile image for CouncillorPaul Convery
Councillor Paul Convery  Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee and the Pensions Committee •  Labour Party •  Caledonian
Profile image for Councillor Sara Hyde
Councillor Sara Hyde  Chair of Standards Committee •  Labour Party •  Caledonian
Profile image for Councillor Janet Burgess MBE
Councillor Janet Burgess MBE  Carers Champion •  Labour Party •  Junction
Profile image for CouncillorCaroline Russell
Councillor Caroline Russell  Business Manager, Independent and Green Group •  Green Party •  Highbury
Profile image for Councillor Nick Wayne
Councillor Nick Wayne  Chair of Corporate Resources and Economy Scrutiny Committee •  Labour Party •  Canonbury
Alan Begg