The Audit and Performance Committee will receive reports on a variety of topics, including the Council's finances, progress with its internal audit plan, its Treasury Management strategy and the latest updates on how the Council is performing against targets. A review of the Council’s anti-fraud policies is also included for discussion.

Temporary Accommodation

The Committee is scheduled to receive a report on the challenges and costs of providing Temporary Accommodation (TA) in Westminster. The report highlights the “unprecedented increase” in the number of people presenting to the Council as at risk of homelessness. It says the Council has commissioned independent consultants 31Ten to analyse how the Council currently spends money on Temporary Accommodation and produce recommendations on where its efforts should be focused. The report states that the Council is working on a longer-term plan to ensure there is a sustainable supply of TA and is considering a range of options, including joint commissioning proposals and bulk TA purchasing.

Complaints

The Committee is scheduled to receive the annual complaints report for discussion. The report pack notes a 27% increase in Stage 2 complaints and particular concern over the number of complaints received about the Housing Service.

The Committee was assured that the Service understand the issues and is working hard to improve, and was extremely pleased to note that in September, the response times for Stage 1 complaints were up to 87 percent, Stage 2 complaint response times were up to 72 percent and the number of complaints has reduced by 45 percent since April 2024.

The report pack also notes that complaints to the Environment and Communities directorate have also “consistently missed targets.”

Accounts

The Committee is scheduled to review the audited accounts for the Council and the Pension Fund for 2023/24. The report pack notes that “several changes to the accounts related to valuations” were made and includes a recommendation that the Committee receive an update on the valuation process, to provide assurance that the “process is correct and the data issues have been resolved.”

Quarter 2 Performance

The report pack contains a report on the Council’s performance in Quarter 2 of 2024/25 (July to September 2024). The report says that the Council is performing well against the targets set at the beginning of the financial year and provides a more reliable forecast of where performance levels will be at year end. It shows that:

• 68 (64%) of the Council’s Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are on track to meet targets
• 26 (25%) are missing targets by a small margin
• 5 (5%) are off track to meet targets
• 7 (6%) have no target where RAG assessment is not applicable.

The report also says that KPIs that are assessed as “at risk” of missing their annual target are reviewed by the Council’s Executive Leadership Team to ensure that all appropriate mitigation to improve performance is in place. The report also provides an update on the Council’s strategic risks, which are also reviewed by the Executive Leadership Team to ensure that the Council is prepared for and mitigating potential challenges.

Quarter 2 Financial Monitor

The Committee is scheduled to discuss a report on the Council's finances for the second quarter of the 2024/25 financial year. The report projects a General Fund overspend of £14.857m (7.2% of the net budget of £205.545m), which it says is an increase against the projected overspend of £3.314m reported at quarter 1. The report identifies the main reason for the increase as “homelessness and increased costs of temporary accommodation (TA)” and proposes that the forecast overspend in relation to TA is funded from the Council’s earmarked risk reserves at year end.

Treasury Management Strategy Mid-Year Review

The report pack contains a mid-year review of the Council’s Treasury Management Strategy for 2024/25. It sets out the Council’s borrowing and investment activity for the year to date.

The report notes that:

The Council has complied with all elements of the Treasury Management Strategy Statement (TMSS).

It also explains that:

The Council’s policy objective is the prudent investment of balances to achieve optimum returns on investments, subject to maintaining adequate security of capital and a level of liquidity appropriate to the Council’s projected need for funds over time.

The report includes details of the Council’s success in applying for a credit rating from Moody’s, a global credit rating agency, for the first time. It says that on 22 July 2024, Moody’s issued the council with a credit profile rating of Aa3, stable. The report explains that this credit profile reflects the Council's:

exceptional economic status and diversity, considerable financial strength and income generating power, moderate debt levels and low risk debt structure, and strong governance and prudent financial planning.

Internal Audit

The Committee is scheduled to receive a report on the progress made against its Internal Audit Plan to the end of October 2024. The report explains that four audits previously reported to the Committee in draft form (July 2024) have now been finalised. It also says that five draft reports have been issued. They are:

• St Vincent de Paul Primary School (2023/24)
• St Peter’s Eaton Square, Primary School
• Cyber Incident Management
• Tree Maintenance Contract
• Markets & Street Trading

The report summarises the outcomes of the Housing Complaints & Members’ Enquiries audit which it says was given a “Limited Assurance” opinion. The report explains that two high and three medium priority recommendations were made in respect of the delays in responding to complaints and enquiries, communication about delays, multiple members of the Team working on a single case with confusion as to who was responsible for completing tasks, feedback from departments and residents not being used to inform changes for service improvement and lack of evidence that KPIs were being used to encourage service improvement.

The report explains that since the audit fieldwork was completed in January 2024, the service has introduced a number of improvements. This included rolling out a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system from April 2024, a new Lessons Learnt Framework, the production of a quarterly complaints report, and the establishment of a task and finish group. It also notes that new KPIs have been agreed for 2024/25. The report says that the impact of these changes “is currently being reviewed as part of the internal audit follow up process.”

Anti-fraud

The Committee is scheduled to receive an update on work undertaken by the Corporate Anti-Fraud Service (CAFS) since 1 April 2024. The report notes that CAFS:

remains a shared service providing Westminster City Council with a complete, professional counter-fraud and investigation service for fraud attempted or committed against the authority.

It shows that CAFS had 55 successful interventions with a total notional value of £411,513 between 1 April 2024 to 30 September 2024. It also says that CAFS successfully recovered 16 misused properties, which it says have now been allocated or made available to those in genuine need of housing. The report also provides an update on CAFS’s work to tackle blue badge misuse and resident parking permit fraud, noting that CAFS:

continues to investigate the misuse of disabled parking badges and fraudulently claimed residents' parking permits.

It also describes CAFS’s work to recover funds from the owner of a property in Harrow Road through the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA).

The report provides a detailed overview of how the work of CAFS aligns with the themes set out in the Council’s Anti-Fraud and Corruption Strategy 2024-2027. It also reports that CAFS recently delivered fraud awareness training to School Governors, Headteachers and School Business Managers across Westminster City Council.

The report pack includes three revised anti-fraud policies for discussion by the Committee. The policies are:

• Fraud Response Plan
• Anti-Bribery Policy
• Anti-Money Laundering Policy