The Audit Committee of Milton Keynes Council was scheduled to meet on 25 September 2025 to discuss internal audit progress, risk management, and the external auditor's value for money opinion. Councillor Hannah O'Neill, Chair of the Audit Committee was scheduled to welcome committee members, officers, external witnesses, and the public to the meeting. The committee was also scheduled to review the minutes of the previous meeting held on 24 July 2025.

Internal Audit Progress and Counter Fraud Update

The committee was scheduled to consider a report on internal audit progress and counter fraud work.

The report included updates on:

• Progress against the 2025-26 Audit plan, as detailed in Annex A - Plan Progress.
• Counter Fraud activities and outcomes, as detailed in Annex B - Counter Fraud Update.
• The progress status of Internal Audit recommendations, as detailed in the Annex C - Actions Tracker.

According to the Internal Audit Progress Counter Fraud Update report, of the 116 audits in the year's plan, 18 were at the draft or final report stage, and 23 were at various stages of field work. One audit, the Community Alarm Service, received a limited assurance opinion on compliance with controls process.

The report also noted that the council had received a high number of referrals of potential frauds, concentrated within housing allocations, tenancy management and council tax discount claims.

Risk Management Update

The committee was scheduled to review and provide feedback on the updated strategic risk register, as detailed in Annex A - Strategic Risk Register Aug 2025. The committee was also scheduled to determine which of the strategic or directorate risks they would want to undertake a detailed review later in the year.

According to the Risk Management Update report, Internal Audit and the Corporate Governance and Risk Group had independently reviewed the strategic risk register in June 2025. The Corporate Governance and Risk Group challenged the scoring of raw risks for some of the risks on the register, which resulted in the scores being updated. The group also recommended the removal of three risks from the register:

• SR12 Outbreak of Infectious Disease
• SR14 Procurement and Contract Management
• SR18 Shared Services Arrangement

2024/25 External Auditors Value For Money Opinion

The committee was scheduled to receive and comment on the draft 2024/25 Value for Money Risk Assessment from KPMG, the council's external auditors. According to the Draft Value for Money Risk Assessment 2024-25 report, KPMG evaluated the design of controls in place for a number of the council's systems, reviewed reports from external organisations and internal audit, and performed inquiries of management. Based on these procedures, KPMG had not identified any significant risks at this stage.

The assessment considered whether the council had sufficient arrangements in place for the following criteria, as defined by the Code of Audit Practice:

• Financial sustainability: How the council plans and manages its resources to ensure it can continue to deliver its services.
• Governance: How the council ensures that it makes informed decisions and properly manages its risks.
• Improving economy, efficiency and effectiveness: How the council uses information about its costs and performance to improve the way it manages and delivers its services.

Audit Update on 2024/25 Statement of Accounts

The committee was scheduled to receive a verbal update from the council's external auditors on the 2024/25 Statement of Accounts.