The Governance & Assurance Committee of Redbridge Council is scheduled to convene on Monday 7 September 2026. The meeting's agenda includes a review of the Monitoring Officer's annual report, an update on the action plan for the 2024/25 Annual Audit Results Report, and a review of the council's Anti-Fraud and Corruption Strategy and Policies.

Annual Report of the Monitoring Officer 2025/26

The committee is scheduled to consider the Annual Report of the Monitoring Officer for the municipal year 2025/26. This report is intended to provide an overview of how the Monitoring Officer has discharged their statutory responsibilities, alongside the operation of ethical standards and governance arrangements within the council. The report aims to support the Governance & Assurance Committee's role in overseeing the council's governance framework, upholding high standards of conduct, and ensuring lawful, transparent, and accountable decision-making processes. It will summarise key activities from the past year and outline areas of focus for the upcoming year. Pervinder Sandhu, the Director of Assurance and Monitoring Officer, is listed as the contact for this report.

Annual Audit Results Report 2024/25 - Action Plan Update

An update on the action plan stemming from the 2024/25 Annual Audit Results Report is scheduled for discussion. This report follows on from the Audit Results Report presented to the committee on 23 February 2026, which included management's responses to recommendations made by EY, the council's external auditor. Some of these recommendations, along with a new one concerning the timing of final accounts sign-off and the Annual Governance Statement, were subsequently converted into statutory recommendations by EY. These were then considered by Full Council on 18 June 2026, which delegated the monitoring of these recommendations to the Governance & Assurance Committee. This report will provide a further update on the progress made in addressing these recommendations. Ian Ambrose, Director of Finance and Deputy S151 Officer, is the contact for this report.

Review of Anti-Fraud and Corruption Strategy and Policies 2026

The committee is set to review the council's Anti-Fraud and Corruption Strategy and Policies for 2026. An interim review process has identified that while the core of the current Whistleblowing Policy remains sound, updates are beneficial to clarify certain aspects, provide more detail, and enhance supporting activities. These updates are not intended to substantively alter the council's approach to whistleblowing or other reporting of concerns. The review also assessed the council's arrangements in light of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, specifically the new offence of failure to prevent fraud which came into effect on 1 September 2025. The report will detail the council's existing counter-fraud measures in line with the Act's requirements for reasonable prevention measures. Greg Mortimer, Head of Internal Audit and Counter Fraud, is the contact for this report. The updated Whistleblowing Policy is attached as Appendix A to this report.