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There is no summary of this meeting yet. One is written once the council publishes the minutes. The agenda and papers are below.
Resolved that Paula O’Connor be elected Chair for the 2026/27 Municipal year.
Resolved that David Roberts be elected Vice-Chair for the 2026/27 Municipal year.
In accordance with the Code of Conduct adopted by the City and County of Swansea, no interests were declared.
Resolved that the Minutes of the Governance & Audit Committee held on 15 April 2026 be approved and signed as a correct record.
Kate Havard, Engagement Director at Audit Wales, presented the Audit Plan 2026 for the City & County of Swansea. The Committee was advised of the planned financial work: • Group accounts • Pension fund, • Swansea Bay Health Authority • Grant claims, notably housing benefits, teachers’ pension and the non-domestic rates return The Committee was advised the proposed timetable: • Accounts submission by 30 September 2026 • Audit completion by 30 December 2026 • Supports return to statutory timetable for 2026–27 Euros Lake, Performance Audit Manager at Audit Wales, presented the performance audit elements of the plan. It was reported that this work would assess the Council’s arrangements for securing economy, efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance with the sustainable development principle. The Committee was advised that the 2026 programme would focus on three areas: • Review of the Council’s performance management framework; • Examination of community benefits, including the “Beyond Bricks and Mortar” initiative; • Ongoing monitoring and follow-up of previous audit recommendations. The Committee discussed the potential role of artificial intelligence (AI) in both audit and Council operations. The Chair thanked the Audit Wales representatives for the report.
Eros Lake, Performance Audit Manager at Audit Wales, introduced a national report relating to the system supporting children and young people with additional learning needs (ALN) across Wales. The Audit Wales representative advised the Committee the following: • System was facing increasing strain due to rising demand, more complex needs, and growing costs • Gaps remained in data and understanding of demand, costs and outcomes: • Recommendations were primarily directed at Welsh Government The Committee Members raised queries on: • Role of assistive technology • Variation in provision between councils • Funding arrangements The Chair thanked the Audit Wales representative for the report.
Simon Cockings, Chief Auditor, presented a ‘for information’ report, which summarised the work completed by Internal Audit in 2025/26 and included the Chief Auditor’s opinion for 2025/26. The report detailed the following: • The Internal Audit Annual Plan for 2025/26 contained 122 separate audit activities. • As of 31 March 2026, 97 audit activities (80%) had been completed, with two additional audits substantially completed and draft reports had been issued (2%). - 82% of the audit plan had been completed. - An additional 8 activities were in progress at the end of the quarter (7%). - As a result, approximately 89% of the audit activities included in the 2025/26 Plan had either been completed or were in progress. • Of the 82 audit reports issued in the year, 33 (40%) were awarded a High assurance level and 47 (58%) were awarded a Substantial assurance level. Therefore, 98% of the audits issued in year received a positive assurance rating. - Only two Moderate assurance reports were issued in the year, and no Limited assurance reports were issued. The Committee discussed the following: • Milage claims • Training and development for the team • Change in regulations and the process for obtaining external assurance - CIPFA official checklist had now been published, and the Chief Auditor would undertake an internal assessment against this independent document which would be reported to the Committee to provide an additional level of assurance The chair thanked officers for the report and Committee noted the report.
The Chief Auditor presented the Annual Report of the Governance and Audit Committee for the 2025–26 municipal year . It was noted that there were no additional comments on the content of the report. However, minor formatting issues identified, particularly on page 144, would be resolved prior to submission to Council. The Chair expressed thanks to Simon Cockings, his team, and Democratic Services for their work in preparing the report.
Allison Lowe, Democratic Services Officer presented a report which sought the Appointment of the Governance & Audit Committee Representative and Reserve representative on the Strategic Governance Group, ‘ She highlighted an error at paragraph 3, which should read that Councillor Mike White was the current representative and Councillor Sam Pritchard the reserve member. Resolved that: 1) Councillor Mike White be appointed as the representative on the Strategic Governance Group; 2) Councillor Sam Pritchard be appointed as the reserve representative on the Strategic Governance Group.
Ness Young, Director of Corporate Services, presented a report to provide the Governance & Audit Committee the opportunity to review and comment on the draft Annual Governance Statement (AGS) for 2025-26 before it was approved by the Council as part of the Statement of Accounts. Members were advised that updated guidance issued in May 2025 had informed the structure of the draft AGS, with a greater emphasis on clarity of assurance and rationale for conclusions. The draft AGS, outlined atAppendix A evaluated the Council’s governance arrangements against seven core principles, drawing on evidence from internal audit and senior management assurance statements. The overall conclusion was that governance, risk management, and internal control arrangements had been generally effective during 2025–26. Some inconsistency remained in application across the organisation, reflected in “mixed application” assessments. Enhancements had been made to the Senior Management Assurance Statement (SMAS) process, strengthening self-assessment. Directors would continue to work with Heads of Service to address identified inconsistencies. Ongoing pressures were highlighted, including financial, demand-led, and workforce challenges. Progress had been made on the previously identified workforce capacity issue, though this remained an area of focus. A new significant governance issue was identified relating to contract management and capital programme delivery. Actions to address these during 2026–27 were outlined. The draft AGS remained subject to completion of financial information and would be refined following Committee feedback before inclusion in the Statement of Accounts. The Chair noted that detailed queries had been addressed prior to the meeting and thanked officers for their work.
Simon Cockings, Chief Auditor, presented a “For Information” report which , covered the period January to March 2026. It was reported that 24 audits had been finalised during the quarter, of which 11 received a high assurance rating and 13 received a substantial assurance rating. A total of 155 recommendations had been made, with all but one accepted; the exception related to a good practice recommendation. Members were advised that 82% of the annual audit plan had been completed by the end of the quarter, with a further eight audits in progress, resulting in approximately 89% of the plan either completed or underway. It was reported that three mid-cycle reviews had been undertaken during the quarter in relation to Employee Services, Business Rates (NNDR), and Council Tax. In addition, four follow-up reviews of previously issued moderate assurance reports had been completed, with outcomes detailed in the report. Progress on implementing recommendations from substantial and high assurance reports were also noted, with only three outstanding actions remaining, all assessed as low risk. During discussion, members queried the escalation process for outstanding recommendations. It was explained that where high or medium risk recommendations remained unresolved after two follow-up reviews, these would be escalated to the relevant Director and Head of Service. Low risk recommendations would typically be addressed at the next full audit review. The Chair raised concerns regarding low completion rates for information governance training (49% of staff). It was explained that this reflected the nature of roles within certain service areas, where staff may not have access to IT systems. It was reported that work was underway to address this through alternative training arrangements and by identifying staff requiring access to such training. Further discussion took place regarding Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks. It was confirmed that issues identified during the audit had been rectified at the time, and that a comprehensive, organisation-wide review of DBS arrangements had recently been completed. It was anticipated that this report would be presented to the Committee in Q1.
Rhian Millar, Corporate Planning and Performance Manager, presented an overview of the status of the Council’s strategic risks and issues of 31 March 2026 to provide assurance to the committee that they are being managed in accordance with the Council’s risk management framework. The report confirmed continued effective application of the Council’s Risk Management Framework. Members were advised that, at Q4: • Swansea Council held 30 strategic risks and 5 strategic issues. • Six new strategic risks had been identified through a corporate horizon scanning exercise, including risks relating to supply chain volatility, technological change, demographic change, climate adaptation, and governance. - Two additional strategic risks had been identified at director level. • Changes to existing risks were outlined. • A new strategic issue relating to flooding in Cwmbwrla was also noted. • Three strategic risks had increased in severity during the quarter, including those relating to the Medium-Term Financial Plan and the impact of poverty. • Overall assurance remained positive, with evidence of active risk management, including regular review, escalation and de-escalation processes, and the identification of emerging risks. The Chair raised a query in relation to the Highways risk and the need for clearer articulation of control measures, which officers agreed to review. Resolved that: 1) The status of the Council’s strategic risks and issues as of the end of quarter 4 2025-26 be noted.
The Audit Wales Recommendations Tracker, was provided “for information”.
The Governance & Audit Committee Action Tracker Report was provided “for information”.
The Governance & Audit Committee Work Plan was provided “for information”.
The Committee was requested to exclude the public from the meeting during consideration of the item(s) of business identified in the recommendation(s) to the report on the grounds that it / they involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as set out in the exclusion paragraph of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) (Wales) Order 2007 relevant to the item(s) of business set out in the report. The Committee considered the Public Interest Test in deciding whether to exclude the public from the meeting for the items of business where the Public Interest Test was relevant as set out in the report. Resolved that the public be excluded for the following items of business.
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