The Audit Committee of Bristol City Council met to discuss a range of topics, including the annual treasury management report, risk management, and internal audit priorities. The committee was also scheduled to consider the terms of reference for the Harbour Committee, and reports from the audit, risk and assurance committees of the council's trading companies.

Trading Companies' Audit, Risk and Assurance

The committee was scheduled to note reports relating to the audit, risk and assurance functions within the Bristol Holding Group, Bristol Waste Company (BWC) and Goram Homes.

A summary report from the Interim Shareholder Liaison Manager, reporting to the Director of Legal and Democratic Services, provided a high-level overview of the audit, risk and assurance functions within the Bristol Holding Group.

The annual reports of the Audit, Risk and Assurance Committees of Bristol Waste Company and Goram Homes were also scheduled to be noted.

The Bristol Holding Annual Audit and Assurance Summary Report noted that Bristol Waste and Goram had primary responsibility for risk reporting, oversight, and assurance, with each company having their own Audit and Risk Assurance Committees, and an agreed protocol for risk escalation to the council.

The Goram Homes Annual Report of the Audit, Risk and Assurance Committee stated that the committee operated in accordance with the provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code (2024), acting independently from any company, providing a key assurance role for the Goram Board, and the Shareholder, by reviewing and monitoring:

• the integrity of the financial information provided to Board
• Goram's systems for internal controls and risk management
• the internal and external audit process and auditors, and
• the process for compliance with laws, regulations and ethical codes of practice.

The Bristol Waste Company Annual Report of the Audit, Risk and Assurance Committee stated that the committee's opinion of the adequacy and effectiveness of Bristol Waste Company's risk management, control and governance arrangements were in operation to deliver on corporate objectives through the implementation of robust governance arrangements.

Housing Consumer Standards

The committee was scheduled to note a report on the deep dive into risk CRR60, concerning housing statutory compliance and consumer standards.

The report summarised the key points of the risk, including that the risk materialised into an issue on 9 July 2024 when the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) issued a Regulatory Judgement confirming a C3 rating. The report stated that in the regulatory judgment the RSH:

..concluded that there are serious failings in the landlord delivering the outcomes of the Safety and Quality Standard and significant improvement is needed .

The report also noted that the Regulatory Judgement highlighted weaknesses in; electrical safety, smoke and carbon monoxide detection, asbestos safety, fire safety, the management of response repairs including damp and mould, up-to-date stock condition surveys and data quality / data management.

The report stated that the Housing Consumer Standards Strategy sets out three objectives that will be achieved before March 2027:

• All homes will be compliant with regulatory requirements around safety and quality.
• Changes will be embedded into existing systems within services so that improvements are sustainable for the long-term.
• The council will meet and maintain the consumer standards and achieve a C1 grading by the Regulator of Social Housing, showing that a good service is provided to all residents.

The report also referred to Awaab's Law, and stated that the report set out actions put in place to prepare for the regulations coming in to force. Awaab's Law refers to the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) Regulations 2025 the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023¹.

Internal Audit

The committee was scheduled to note an internal audit exceptions report, which provided summary reports in respect of three areas for which internal audit work had recently been completed, and for which a 'limited assurance' opinion was concluded:

• Emergency Planning
• Preparedness for Severe Weather
• Procurement Compliance

For each of these three areas, the report listed the main issues identified during the audit, together with the remedial actions agreed with management.

Debt

The committee was scheduled to note a report summarising the debt owed to the council, the amounts written off, and information about actions taken and planned to improve debt collection. The report included contributions from each service area responsible for managing the relevant income streams.

The report stated that the Corporate Debt Management Policy:

• sets out consistent principles and standards for invoicing and recovery processes
• seeks to prevent debt by ensuring appropriate support and advice is available to all, and
• supports people who are in difficulty or having a problem servicing their debt.

The report included tables showing the balance payable by income type, accounts receivable, direct debit payments, and housing benefit recoveries.

Internal Audit Priorities

The committee was scheduled to review and approve the proposed Quarter 3 priorities for 2025/26. The draft Q3 plan included a programme of work in relation to schools' governance, grant compliance, management actions verification, change and transformation, fraud prevention, and tenancy fraud.

The committee was also scheduled to consider a list of areas that may require assurance in future quarters, including adult social care, capital project portfolio management, data privacy, and cyber security.

Treasury Management

The committee was scheduled to note the Annual Treasury Management Report for 2024/25, which included details of the council's borrowing and investment activity, compliance with treasury limits, and performance indicators.

The report stated that the Council had complied with treasury management legislative and regulatory requirements during the period and all transactions were in accordance with the approved Treasury Management Strategy.

The report also noted that the 2024–2029 Treasury Strategy identified a medium term net borrowing requirement of £996m to support the existing and future Capital Programme.

Risk Management

The committee was scheduled to note the Risk Management Annual Report 2024/25, which summarised risk management activities during the year and progress being made against improving the risk management maturity of the organisation.

The report stated that embedding and improving Risk Management practices across an organisation takes time to implement, and that the 2024/25 annual internal audit of risk management gave limited assurance over the Council's risk management processes.

The report also noted that progress had been made in the utilisation of the Ideagen risk system, with all risks being recorded in one central repository, and that regular DMT risk reviews had been introduced during the year.

The committee was also scheduled to review and comment on the Q2 2025/26 Corporate Risk Report Update, which presented the Corporate Risk Report as of 5 September 2025.

Harbour Committee Terms of Reference

The committee was scheduled to consider matters relating to the voting arrangements for the Harbour Committee and to recommend the Terms of Reference for the Harbour Committee to Full Council for approval.

The report stated that public consultation on the Harbour Revision Order demonstrates support for the Harbour Committee becoming a decision-making body, but that there remains a question about whether the co-optees should have voting rights.

The report noted that as a Harbour Authority, there is an expectation that the Council will comply with the Ports Guide to Good Governance issued by the Department for Transport to all statutory harbour authorities. The report stated that external advisers are not aware of any statutory Harbour Authority that does not give co-opted members voting rights where the Harbour Committee has decision-making powers, but that it is open to the Council to decide whether to allow co-opted members to have voting rights or not based on its own local requirements.