Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 23 June 2025 were taken as read, confirmed and signed.

The Chief Executive reported that no questions had been received under Standing Order 34.

The Chief Executive reported that no questions had been received under Standing Order 7(3) and 7(5).

There were no urgent items for consideration.

The Chairman invited members who wished to do so to declare any interest in respect of items on the agenda for the meeting.

No declarations were made.

There were no petitions.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Corporate Resources which presented the external auditor’s progress report on the audit of the County Council and the Pension Fund 2024/25 financial statements.  A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 7’, is filed with these minutes.

The Chairman welcomed Ms Mary Wren from Grant Thornton LLP, the Council’s external auditors, to the meeting to present the report.

A member raised a query around the likelihood of the County Council receiving additional money as a result of the Government’s Fair Funding proposals.  In response, the Director of Corporate Resources stated that the Government had yet to release the impact of planned changes for individual authorities, but there were initial indications that Leicestershire County Council would benefit marginally.  It was noted that there could be change as a result of significant lobbying of the Government and the final outcome was expected in late November. 

RESOLVED:

That the progress of the external audit of the financial statements be noted.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Corporate Resources which provided an update on the actions taken in respect of treasury management for the quarter ending 30 June 2025 (Quarter 1).  A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 8’, is filed with these minutes.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Corporate Resources the purpose of which was to present the Corporate Risk Register for approval along with an update on the Worker Protection Act and Local Government Reorganisation as emerging risks.  A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 9’, is filed with these minutes.

As part of this item, the Committee also received a presentation from the Head of Procurement and Supply Chain Management regarding ‘if there is an actual or perceived breach of procurement guidelines’.  A copy of the presentation is filed with these minutes.

Arising from the discussion, the following points were made:

Presentation

(i)             In response to a query around whether probity was inherent in the procurement process, assurance was given that specific approval levels and escalation points were woven through.  However, it was acknowledged that these could be demonstrated further.

(ii)            There were gateways at every stage of the procurement process to ensure that there was an audit trail.  It was possible to have up to ten gateways throughout a process; these could be mapped out and sent to members.  It was stated that Internal Audit would be involved in larger procurement processes to ensure there was a level of probity by the team.

(iii)          A question was raised around the number of times there had been a challenge relating to a procurement process.  There were different levels of challenge, but within a year, it was typical to receive a handful of challenges from providers who had been unsuccessful with their bid to provide a service.  In terms of formal challenges, there had only been one in the last seven years.

RESOLVED:

a)    That the status of the corporate and strategic risks facing the County Council be approved;

b)    That recommendations be made on any areas which might benefit from further examination;

c)    That the emerging risk on the Worker Protection Act, and an update on the emerging risk on local government reorganisation, be noted.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Corporate Resources which presented the annual report on work conducted by the Insurance Service during the period September 2024 to August 2025.  A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 10’, is filed with these minutes.

In preparation for the annual renewal on 1 October, the Service had gathered the insurers’ required data from all services, disclosed any proposed significant changes to policies and service provision and provided information on the claims position.  This would be checked by the Council’s broker in time for any negotiations in policy increases and further decisions on deductibles.

RESOLVED:

That the Insurance Service Annual report for 2024-25 be noted.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of Corporate Resources which presented the Interim Team Leader, Nottingham City Council Internal Audit annual report and opinion for internal audit work undertaken at East Midlands Shared Service for the year 2024-25.  The report also provided details of the planned internal audit work at East Midlands Shared Service for the year 2025-26 and progress to date.  A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 11’, is filed with these minutes.

The Chairman welcomed Mr Richard Green, Interim Team Leader of Nottingham City Council Internal Audit, to the meeting to present the report.

Arising from the discussion, the following points were made:

(i)             It was noted that, for the three areas that had been audited, a moderate opinion had been given which was considered to be a good conclusion.  In terms of the Payroll audit, concern had been raised around the overpayment of salaries, and confirmation was given that this would be considered a separate piece of work in addition to the planned audits for 2025-26. 

(ii)            Assurance was given that the issue of overpayment was not the fault of East Midlands Shared Service; the fault lay with managers not declaring that staff had left their employment in a timely manner which had ultimately led to an overpayment.  Individually, the amount of overpayments was small, but collectively this was a much larger amount.  Consideration was being given to developing a system whereby there was an automatic notification from HR to the Payroll team when a member of staff left the organisation. 

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted.

The next meeting of the Committee will be held on Monday 24 November 2025 at 10.00am.

RESOLVED:

That the next meeting of the Committee be held on Monday 24 November 2025 at 10.00am.