The Corporate Governance Committee of Leicestershire County Council met on Friday 27 March 2026 to discuss the council's financial audit plans, internal audit progress, and risk management strategies. The meeting's agenda focused on reviewing the external audit plan for the upcoming financial year, assessing the progress of the internal audit service against its current plan, and considering the annual plan for the following year. Additionally, the committee was scheduled to receive an update on the council's risk management framework, including emerging risks and the outcome of an internal audit into these processes.

External Audit Plan 2025/26

The committee was scheduled to consider the external audit plans for both the County Council and the Pension Fund for the 2025/26 financial year. These plans, prepared by Grant Thornton UK LLP, outline the scope and timing of the statutory audits. Significant risks identified for the County Council's audit include management override of controls, the valuation of land and buildings, and the valuation of the pension fund net liability. For the Pension Fund, significant risks identified are similar, focusing on management override of controls and the valuation of level 3 investments. The audit plans also detail the approach to assessing Value for Money (VfM) arrangements, highlighting concerns regarding the funding of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficit and the financial gaps identified in the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS). The materiality levels for both audits were also to be discussed.

Internal Audit Service: Progress and Annual Plan

A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to the Internal Audit Service. The committee was to receive an update on the work undertaken between October 2025 and February 2026, including the assurance ratings for completed audits. A particular focus was placed on the progress of implementing High Importance (HI) recommendations, with a summary of new, ongoing, and closed HI recommendations to be presented. The report detailed delays in implementing some recommendations, often attributed to resource diversion for nationwide issues or staff availability. Furthermore, the committee was asked to approve the Internal Audit Plan for 2026-27. This plan outlines the proposed audit activities for the upcoming year, taking into account resource availability, recruitment challenges, and the impact of new global internal audit standards. The plan details resource allocations by department and audit type, with a contingency included for emerging risks.

Risk Management Update

The committee was scheduled to review updates to the Corporate Risk Register (CRR), which identifies the most significant strategic risks facing the council. This included discussions on new risks added, such as insufficient Department for Education (DfE) capital funding impacting school place planning, particularly for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) pupils, and the financial burden on the council from maintained primary schools submitting significant licensed deficit budgets. A risk concerning the demand for bespoke placements for children and young people with EHCPs was also to be re-defined. Emerging risks, including those arising from the Iran war and its impact on fuel costs and procurement, as well as an update on the Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) proposals for Leicestershire, Rutland, and Leicester, were also on the agenda. Finally, the committee was to be informed of the outcome of an internal audit into the council's risk management processes, which indicated that the framework is broadly effective but requires 14 medium-priority actions for improvement.

Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and Investigatory Powers Act 2016

The committee was to receive a report detailing the council's use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) and the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (IPA) for the period of January to December 2025. The report was to advise on the number of authorisations granted for Covert Human Intelligence Sources (CHIS), Directed Surveillance (DS), and the acquisition of Communications Data (CD). The Trading Standards Service was identified as the primary user of these powers, primarily for investigations into counterfeit and illicit tobacco and vaping products. The committee was also asked to review the Council's Covert Surveillance and the Acquisition of Communications Data Policy Statement to confirm its continued fitness for purpose.