No apologies were received.

Members are asked to declare any interests in matters for consideration at the meeting.

No Declarations of Interest were made.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 10 February 2010.

The Minutes of the meeting held on the 10^th February 2010 were agreed as a correct record of proceedings and the Chair authorised to sign them.

In relation to the previous minutes the committee heard and noted:

1. that the IT protocol had been incorporated in to general member guidance as agreed by Council at its meeting of the 27^th April 2010 and was no longer an issue for the Audit Committee.
   
   
2. that substantial work had been undertaken in relation to Data management.  A template for information sharing and a protocol for the Authority had been rolled out.  These measures would be reviewed again in 6 – 12 Months to assess the impact on data sharing and associated risks.
   
   

There were no representations from members of the public.

This report, of the Head of Democratic Services, updates the Committee on the e-meeting held in April 2010 and asks it to approve the recommendations of the last Committee.

The Committee considered a report of the Head of Democratic Services the purpose of which was to advise on the comments received and recommendations by the previous committee in response to reports tabled at an e-meeting conducted prior to the elections in May.  The recommendations contained in the report reflected the will of the previous committee the Committee were informed that they were not bound by them. 

Officers responded to comments and questions received via e-mail from the previous committee, in particular they reported that:

·         That a timetable had been put in place to address the backlog of assessments for Self Directed Support, follow up work would continue in September and October 2010 and a full review would be carried out after a year.

·         That notice had been served to SPEAR in respect of the Rent Deposit Service and services brought back in house.

·         That as parking enforcement and financial accounting worked on different methods and this had lead to the delay in reconciliation.  Permits were now up to date to April 2010 and season ticket issues were also nearly complete.

·         That there was no difference between CIPFA and ACCA accreditation.

It was RESOLVED that

1.                  that in accordance with the views taken by the previous committee the recommendations in Appendices A-E be approved.

2.                  That the PKF Grants report be noted

3.                  That responses to previous committee queries received, be noted.

This report of the Head of Internal Audit and Risk Management summarises the annual audit report for 2009/10.

The Committee received a report of the Joint Heads of Internal Audit and Risk Management the purpose of which was to provide for the committee the annual internal audit report for 2009/10. 

In response to comments made and questions asked the committee was advised of that:

·                      That the audit plan had been completed and exceeded.

·                      That client satisfaction was 100%

·                      That the Benefits Investigation Team and the general fraud team had been amalgamated to establish a new Corporate Anti Fraud Team

·                      That opinion of the Heads of Internal Audit was that the Council had an adequate and effective control process.

·                      That Payroll and Pensions had a significant number of minor issues identified and that this would continue to be tracked and returned to the Committee as a substantive agenda item if necessary.

·                      That reductions in staffing levels in Internal Audit had been manageable to date.  A review of delivery methods and a possible restructure would take place next year.

It was RESOLVED that the Annual Internal Audit report for 2009/10 be agreed.

This report, of the Director of Finance and Corporate Services, sets out details of the officer review level process undertaken in order to produce the draft Annual Governance Statement (AGS).  On reviewing this information the Committee is asked to recommend the AGS for publication as part of the Statement of Accounts. 

The Committee received a report of the Director of Finance and Corporate Services setting out details of the officer level review process undertaken in order to produce the draft Annual Governance Statement (AGS) and seeking approval of the AGS for signature by the Leader and Chief Executive for inclusion in the Statement of Accounts 2009/10.

During the discussion of the report and questions to officers the meeting was advised that:

• The Senior Manager’s self assessments were validated by internal audit
  
  
• That the cabinets that contained the Civic Regalia in York House had been reviewed for safety and police advice taken in order to address any outstanding issues.  The safety of the collection would continue to be reviewed.
  
  

It was RESOLVED:

1.                  That the information in the report and attached appendices be noted

2.                  That the Annual Governance Statement be approved and the Leader and Chief Executive be recommended to sign it for inclusion in the Statement of Accounts.

This report, of the Head of Internal Audit and Risk Management, summarises the proposed Internal Audit Plan for 2010/2011 for the agreement of the Committee.

The Committee considered a report of the joint Heads of Internal Audit and Risk Management summarising the proposed Internal Audit Plan for 2010/11.

In response to comments made and questions asked, the Committee heard that:

• The main influences on the plan were key risks identified and those that were due a review on a cyclical basis.
  
  
• That service departments risk registers were used to help draw up the plan.  Some departments had not yet put these in place, these would be reported to the committee at a later date.
  
  
• The working arrangement with Croydon Council which allowed Internal Audit at Richmond to buy in days if needed was progressing well and would continue for the foreseeable future until a restructure was completed.  Any significant changes to staffing or structure would be reported to the Committee
  
  

It was RESOLVED that the Internal Audit Plan for 2010/11 be agreed.

This report, of the Director of Finance and Corporate Services, provides an update on the Corporate Risk Register maintained by the Executive Board. 

The Committee received a report of the Director of Finance and Corporate Services providing an update on the Corporate Risk Register for the consideration of the Committee.

The Committee looked at the top 20 risks identified over the Council and heard that they were identified by looking at the impact and the likelihood of any risk.

The Committee expressed interest in seeing the next level of risks on a less frequent cycle than the review of the top 20 and in the first instance of June 2011.

The Committee expressed a desire to see the Business Continuity Plan and it was suggested it be linked to the next scheduled Risk Management challenge in February.

It was RESOLVED that Corporate Risk Register be noted.

This report, of the Head of Democratic Services, seeks permission to advertise for an Independent member of the Audit Committee and delegate responsibility for appointment to the Chair and Vice Chair in consultation with the Head of Internal Audit.

The Committee received a report of the Head of Democratic Services the purpose of which was to report a decision of the Audit Committee and the Council to appoint a non-voting independent member and to seek the approval of the Committee to advertise and fill the position.

It was RESOLVED:

1.                  That authority be delegated to the joint Heads of Internal Audit to write a Job description and Person Specification for the post

2.                  that the advertisement of the post be approved

3.                  That authority be delegated to the Chair and Vice Chair of the Committee in consultation with the Head of Democratic Services to appoint a non voting member from the applicants.