Purpose

Summary

In June 2023, a Local Government Peer (LGA)
Challenge of Barnet Council took place, with a ‘progress
review’ taking place 6-9 months after the initial visit.
With a focus on governance, system and
financial management the Peer Challenge is an important part of the
local government sector assurance framework, and as such, all
councils are strongly encouraged to undertake a review (at 5-year
intervals).
This was the first time the Council has
participated. The next review is not due until 2028.
This report covers actions taken to respond to
the feedback from the peer review team following both visits and
recommends that the action plan is “closed” with
activities contained therein being delivered through business as
usual activities and/or through other activities.   
The peer review team (made up of local
government officers and Councillors) carried out a series of
interviews with staff, councillors and partners to identify areas
of refinement and improvement across governance, system and
financial management.
The initial report made ten-key
recommendations (Appendix A), which have formed the basis of an
Action Plan for delivery (Appendix B) Following the Progress Review
(February 2024); although the Peer Review team was very pleased
with the progress the Council had made considering unprecedented
financial challenges it faced, further recommendations were made,
which have also been included in the Action Plan. 
The LGA Progress Review report has been
attached as Appendix C but further detail will be outlined
below.

Decisions

That the Leader of the Council,
Cabinet Member for Strategic Partnerships, Economy and Effective
Council notes the progress made on the Corporate Peer Challenge
recommendations and agrees that the action plan is closed down,
with the ongoing activities delivered through business as usual
activities and/or through other activities. Progress of these
actions will be reported through the corporate performance
reporting cycle.

That the Leader of the Council
delegates authority to the Interim Chief Executive to monitor
performance against the recommendations in the Peer Challenge and
make necessary changes to actions as necessary.