Wrthi'n llwytho
Y penderfyniadau fel y mae cofnodion y cyngor yn eu cofnodi. Bydd crynodeb mewn iaith glir yn dilyn pan fydd wedi'i ysgrifennu.
RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the Governance and Audit Committee held on 29th April 2025 as an accurate reflection of the meeting.
RESOLVED: 1. To consider the Consortium’s certified draft Statement of Accounts for the financial year 2024/25; 2. To consider the impact, if any, upon the Statement of Accounts of issues and audit reports brought before the Committee during the year; and 3. To note the plans for production and audit of the Consortium’s Statement of Accounts for financial years 2024/25 and 2025/26.
RESOLVED: 1. To critically review the Annual Governance Statement, suggest any material amendments and recommend its certification by the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive for inclusion within the Council's 2024/25 certified draft Statement of Accounts; and 2. That in the event that reports from relevant External Inspectors be provided to the Council before the Statement of Accounts are approved, to authorise the Deputy Chief Executive and Group Director - Finance, Digital and Frontline Services to include reference within the Annual Governance Statement
RESOLVED: 1. To review the Annual Report and self-assessment and determine whether the Annual Report forms a balanced summary of the work undertaken by Governance and Audit Committee during 2024/25; 2. To endorse the recommendations to further support the Governance and Audit Committee in the effective discharge of its Terms of Reference and their incorporation into an action plan to enable ongoing monitoring; and 3. To approve the Governance and Audit Committee Annual Report 2024/25 and its presentation to full Council.
RESOLVED: 1. To consider the report and determine whether there are other areas / themes to incorporate within the workplan to help with the effective discharge of the Governance and Audit Committee’s responsibilities; and 2. To approve the workplan for delivery during the 2025/26 Municipal Year.
The Director for Legal and Democratic Services welcomed attendees to the meeting and apologies for absence were received from County Borough Councillor A Ellis and Mr J Roszkowski.
In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct, there were no declarations made pertaining to the agenda.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the Governance and Audit Committee held on 29th April 2025 as an accurate reflection of the meeting.
It was RESOLVED to approve the minutes of the Governance and Audit Committee held on 29th April 2025 as an accurate reflection of the meeting.
The Director for Legal and Democratic Services sought nominations for the position of Chair of the Governance and Audit Committee. It was RESOLVED that Mr C Jones be re-elected as Chairman of the Governance and Audit Committee for the Municipal Year 2025/26.
The Chair sought nominations for the position of Vice-Chair of the Governance and Audit Committee. It was RESOLVED to re-elect County Borough Councillor M Maohoub as Vice-Chair for the Municipal Year 2025/26.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: 1. To consider the Consortium’s certified draft Statement of Accounts for the financial year 2024/25; 2. To consider the impact, if any, upon the Statement of Accounts of issues and audit reports brought before the Committee during the year; and 3. To note the plans for production and audit of the Consortium’s Statement of Accounts for financial years 2024/25 and 2025/26.
The Service Director for Education and Financial Reporting provided the Governance and Audit Committee with the opportunity to consider the certified draft Statement of Accounts for the 2024/25 financial year in respect of the Central South Consortium Joint Education Service Joint Committee. It was explained that the draft Statement of Accounts for the Joint Committee had been brought to the Committee as a standalone item and earlier than previous years as it was the intention for the audit of the accounts to be reported to the Central South Consortium Joint Committee in July 2025. The Service Director spoke of the Welsh Government’s review of school improvement services and the decision for the delivery of school improvement functions to be undertaken by the individual local authorities. Members were informed that all local authorities continue to work together to put in place the necessary arrangements that would be implemented from 1st September 2025 and that discussions were ongoing with Audit Wales regarding the arrangements for the Central South Consortium statutory accounts for the 5 month period 1st April 2025 to 31st August 2025, following which, a new regional collaboration arrangement would be in place. Audit Wales then provided Members with an update on the audit of the Joint Committee statement of accounts. Members were assured that good progress had been made and it was anticipated that the audit work would be completed and signed off in July. Audit Wales acknowledged the work required to produce the final set of accounts for the five-month period, 1st April 2025 to 31st August 2025, and were confident that appropriate planning arrangements are in place between the Council and Audit Wales in this regard. For consideration and to discharge their responsibilities, Members were referred to the draft Statement of Accounts for the Central South Consortium Joint Education Service Joint Committee, which was attached as appendix 1 to the report. One Member noted from the report that the movement on useable reserves and earmarked reserves had significantly increased by £605k during the year. The Member questioned if there was a planned or agreed future use of the funds. The Service Director informed the Committee that the movement consisted of two earmarked reserves held by the Consortium. The first was in relation to a Revenue Grant Reserves, with funds transferred to this earmarked reserve and would be used in the following financial year in line with their intended purpose. The second earmarked reserve had been designated to support service remodelling and the associated cost of the transition from the current service to the new regional collaboration arrangement. The Chair thanked the Service Director for the comprehensive update and sought clarity on whether the cessation of the Consortium on 31st August 2025 would have any impact on the accounting arrangements for the 2025/26 accounts. Audit Wales advised that, to date, they had not identified any issues to address from the 2024/25 accounts and that they were working closely with the Council as part of preparing for the 2025/26 audit process. The Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To consider the Consortium’s certified draft Statement of Accounts for the financial year 2024/25; 2. To consider the impact, if any, upon the Statement of Accounts of issues and audit reports brought before the Committee during the year; and 3. To note the plans for production and audit of the Consortium’s Statement of Accounts for financial years 2024/25 and 2025/26.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: 1. To critically review the Annual Governance Statement, suggest any material amendments and recommend its certification by the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive for inclusion within the Council's 2024/25 certified draft Statement of Accounts; and 2. That in the event that reports from relevant External Inspectors be provided to the Council before the Statement of Accounts are approved, to authorise the Deputy Chief Executive and Group Director - Finance, Digital and Frontline Services to include reference within the Annual Governance Statement
The Service Director - Finance and Improvement Services provided Members with the Council’s draft 2024/25 Annual Governance Statement, which was attached as Appendix 1 to the report. The Service Director explained that the Draft Annual Governance Statement for 2024/25 had been produced in accordance with the requirements contained within the ‘Delivering Good Governance in Local Government: Framework (2016)’ and in line with the requirements of the new CIPFA guidance ‘Society of Local Authority Chief Executives and Senior Managers’, which had been issued in May 2025. It was noted that the guidance encouraged Local Authorities to consider its detail when compiling the 2024/25 Annual Governance Statement, but that it was not mandatory until the 2025/26 Annual Governance Statement. The compilation of the draft Annual Governance Statement entailed reviewing the activities in place around the Council’s main governance arrangements as set out in the Local Code of Corporate Governance and associated key processes, engagement with senior officers across services in respect of these arrangements, taking account of the findings from a range of existing reports including external regulator reports and review and challenge by the Senior Leadership Team. Members’ attention was drawn to section 5 of the report which summarised the review process across the 7 principles set out in the 2016 Framework and the five proposals for improvement to further strengthen the Council’s existing governance arrangements. The Chair thanked the Service Director for the report and sought comments and questions from Members. One Member noted from the report that a Climate Change Risk Assessment had been produced by the Public Services Board, which was informed by engagement with multiple partners. The Member sought further information in respect of the arrangements in place for the Council to consider the risk assessment and take forward relevant actions. The Head of Procurement Delivery advised that the draft Climate Change Risk Assessment had initially been considered by the Council’s Climate Change Cabinet Sub-Committee in November 2024 and following their feedback, the final Assessment had been presented to the Senior Leadership Team and would be presented to the Sub-Committee for final approval in the coming months. The officer confirmed that the Council’s own service self-assessments were consistent with the Climate Change Risk Assessment findings and also noted that the Council’s Strategic Risk Register includes a risk in respect of mitigating the impacts of climate change. One Member noted that the Council’s existing Digital Strategy runs to 2026 and sought clarity on the Digital Strategy arrangements in place for the period post-2026. The Service Director - Finance and Improvement Services informed the Committee that both internal engagement and engagement with partners was taking place and that the data and information would be collated to inform the Council’s next Digital Strategy. The Service Director added that the draft Digital Strategy would be subject to Scrutiny and Cabinet agreement before coming into force in 2026. Referring to the Council’s Involvement Strategy, the Vice-Chair sought further information in respect of the planned roll-out of the Strategy and the governance or control arrangements in place. The Service Director – Finance and Improvement Services advised that the Involvement Strategy had recently been approved by Cabinet at its meeting held on 11th June 2025, the aim of the document was to support the Council’s service departments in their approach to consultation and engagement with communities and an action plan was in place setting out the key actions to deliver the Strategy. The Service Director noted that the Strategy would enhance the strong arrangements already in place within the Council and the Director of Legal and Democratic Services emphasised the importance of co-production and working with residents at an early stage in terms of service delivery, ahead of any specific consultation processes. The Chair questioned what regard had been given to the new guidance that was issued by CIPFA in May 2025 and whether there was need for the Council to review its Local Code of Corporate Governance. The Service Director fed back that due regard had been given to the new CIPFA guidance during the compilation of the 2024/25 Annual Governance Statement and assured Members that the Council already had key processes in place, as set out in the new guidance. The Service Director went on to provide examples of key areas where the Council’s arrangements were in line with the new guidance, including the requirement for Local Authorities to have their own Local Code of Corporate Governance and the need for the Annual Governance Statement document to include an executive summary, an assessment of effectiveness of arrangements, areas for improvement and a forward look. Members were assured that, moving forward, continued regard would be given to the new CIPFA guidance and updates incorporated into the Annual Governance Statement, as required. In terms of whether there was need to update the Council’s Local Code of Corporate Governance, the Service Director explained that this document had been updated in December 2024 and the current view was that it was fit for purpose and would be subject to on-going review. The Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To critically review the Annual Governance Statement, suggest any material amendments and recommend its certification by the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive for inclusion within the Council's 2024/25 certified draft Statement of Accounts; and 2. That in the event that reports from relevant External Inspectors be provided to the Council before the Statement of Accounts are approved, to authorise the Deputy Chief Executive and Group Director - Finance, Digital and Frontline Services to include reference within the Annual Governance Statement
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: 1. To review the Annual Report and self-assessment and determine whether the Annual Report forms a balanced summary of the work undertaken by Governance and Audit Committee during 2024/25; 2. To endorse the recommendations to further support the Governance and Audit Committee in the effective discharge of its Terms of Reference and their incorporation into an action plan to enable ongoing monitoring; and 3. To approve the Governance and Audit Committee Annual Report 2024/25 and its presentation to full Council.
The Audit Manager presented the Governance and Audit Committee Annual Report 2024/25 together with a self-assessment against the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) publication ‘Audit Committees - Practical Guidance for Local Authorities & Police 2022 Edition’. It was explained that the CIPFA publication ‘Audit Committees - Practical Guidance for Local Authorities & Police 2022 Edition’ (from hereon the CIPFA Guidance) sets out a position statement that represents CIPFA’s view of audit committee practice and principles that local government bodies in the UK should adopt and had been prepared in consultation with sector representatives. The officer added that the position statement also sets out that the Committee should prepare an annual report that provides assurance to all those charged with governance that it fulfils its purpose and can demonstrate its impact, this being a key output of the Committee, and that the report should be publicly available, supporting the Authority’s accountability to wider stakeholders, including the public. Members’ attention was drawn to the draft Governance and Audit Committee Annual Report which sought to set out the work of the Committee during 2024/25, in line with the CIPFA Guidance, and to the self-assessment and review process, which demonstrated how the Committee delivered its Terms of Reference, its influence on the Council’s governance, internal control and risk management arrangements and proposed recommendations for improvement. Members were informed of the outcome of the review process, which had provided assurance that the targeted programme of work delivered by the Governance and Audit Committee has enabled the Committee to deliver its Terms of Reference and ensure compliance with the CIPFA Guidance; demonstrated that the Committee’s work has contributed to the robustness of the Council’s governance, internal control and risk management arrangements; and identified a small number of recommendations that will further support the Committee in the effective discharge of its Terms of Reference, these being the requirement for: • On-going focus on demonstrating the impact and influence of the Committee’s work in supporting effective governance, internal control, risk management and strong public financial management arrangements; and • Focus to be afforded to specific strategic risks, to further support the Committee’s oversight of these areas and provide assurance of the risk management arrangements in place. Referring to the training needs analysis, the Vice-Chair questioned if there were any plans in place to refresh this. The officer advised that following the training assessment undertaken with Members last year, the training plan had been formulated for the remainder of the 2024/25 Municipal Year. The officer assured Members that training would continue to be rolled out during the current Municipal Year based on the assessment and that a further needs analysis would be undertaken at a later date to ensure all needs are met on an ongoing basis. The Chair fed back that, in his opinion, the Annual Report clearly set out a comprehensive programme of work delivered during the year and was supportive of the recommendation that focussed on how the Committee can further evidence the impact it has on the Council’s arrangements and sought officers’ views in terms of opportunities to do this going forward. The Service Director - Finance and Improvement Services advised that the basis of the recommendation was on improved recording of the impact of the Committee’s work. As an example, the Service Director spoke of the Committee’s support to undertake specific follow-up reviews further to Internal Audit report updates and, in the majority of cases, the follow-up process identified clear improvements in the standard of internal controls in place. Other examples noted by the Service Director were in respect of the Committee’s role in identifying specific risks within the Strategic Risk Register to be scrutinised by the Committee and the request of the Committee to build specific thematic reviews into the Audit Plan for 2026 based on a review of internal audit findings in the previous year. The Service Director advised that such improvements, as a direct result of the Committee’s work, could be better reflected within future Annual Reports. The Chair thanked officers for the report and the Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To review the Annual Report and self-assessment and determine whether the Annual Report forms a balanced summary of the work undertaken by Governance and Audit Committee during 2024/25; 2. To endorse the recommendations to further support the Governance and Audit Committee in the effective discharge of its Terms of Reference and their incorporation into an action plan to enable ongoing monitoring; and 3. To approve the Governance and Audit Committee Annual Report 2024/25 and its presentation to full Council.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED: 1. To consider the report and determine whether there are other areas / themes to incorporate within the workplan to help with the effective discharge of the Governance and Audit Committee’s responsibilities; and 2. To approve the workplan for delivery during the 2025/26 Municipal Year.
The Head of Procurement Delivery set out a draft work plan for the 2025/26 Municipal Year to enable the Committee to effectively fulfil its Terms of Reference. The officer drew Members’ attention to the draft Governance and Audit Committee Work Plan for 2025/26, which was attached at Appendix 1 to the report. The Work Plan set out the Committee’s Terms of Reference together with a timetable for bringing reports and information updates before Committee for review and challenge. It was noted that the work plan would be subject to on-going review during the year and where further areas are identified, these would be reported to Governance and Audit Committee for consideration and, if deemed appropriate, incorporated into the work plan. Referring to the September 2025 meeting, one Member questioned if the draft Annual Performance Self-Assessment report and the overview of the Panel Performance Assessment would be subject to the same arrangements. The Head of Procurement Delivery fed back that the Local Government Elections (Wales) Act 2021 required both sets of work to be completed and it was explained that the Self-Assessment is undertaken annually by Officers of the Council to assess the extent to which the Council is meeting the performance requirements as set out within the Act. The Head of Procurement Delivery went on to explain that the Panel Performance Assessment is different as it is an independent review undertaken once during each electoral cycle by externally appointed peers. Members were assured that both pieces of work would be considered by the Governance and Audit Committee, before consideration by full Council for final approval. One Member noted the lack of specific timetabled updates for Audit Wales reports within the draft Work Programme and sought assurance that regular updates from Audit Wales would be reported to the Committee during the year. In terms of performance reports, assurance was provided that these would be presented to the Committee as and when finalised through the year, and with regard to financial audit work, a verbal update on the progress of the external audit process would be provided to the Committee during the year prior to the Council’s audited Statement of Accounts being presented to Full Council. The Chair thanked Members and officers for their contributions and the Governance and Audit Committee RESOLVED: 1. To consider the report and determine whether there are other areas / themes to incorporate within the workplan to help with the effective discharge of the Governance and Audit Committee’s responsibilities; and 2. To approve the workplan for delivery during the 2025/26 Municipal Year.
Rhaid i gynghorwyr ddweud pan fydd ganddyn nhw gysylltiad personol â rhywbeth sy'n cael ei drafod, fel swydd, eiddo neu aelod o'r teulu. Mae buddiant sy'n rhagfarnu yn ddigon cryf i'r cynghorydd adael yr ystafell fel arfer a pheidio â chymryd rhan.
Caiff datganiadau eu darllen o'r cofnodion unwaith y byddan nhw wedi'u cyhoeddi.
Yn rhestru cynghorwyr presennol y cyngor yn unig. Nid yw aelodau cyfetholedig, swyddogion a chyn-gynghorwyr yn cael eu dangos.