Agenda item

·       To consider the Draft Annual Governance Statement that appears in the appendix

·       Challenge the Head of Finance on the risk scores that have been identified, and the narrative that explains the justification for the score

·       Consider the action plan contained in the draft Annual Governance Statement

·       Approve the Statement and recommend that the Council Leader and Chief Executive sign it

 

DECISION:

·        To accept the (draft) Annual Governance Statement

·        To accept the (draft) Annual Governance Statement Action Plan.

·        To approve the Statement, and recommend that the Council Leader and Chief Executive sign it.

 

Note:

·        Amend the current Finance risk score from 20 to 15 in the Welsh version of the report, point 4.2

·        The context of the 'culture' risk refers to the fudamental principles of Ffordd Gwynedd

·        Request for further information to ensure that arrangements are in place to improe services

·        Request for the Council Tax Collection Rates report to highlight the housing premium

 

The Statement was presented by the Head of Finance Department. He explained that the Statement, although not part of the accounts, was a statutory document which needed to be published with the accounts. In accordance with the Accounts and Audit (Wales) Regulations and the CIPFA Code of Practice, all Local Authorities were required ensure that a statement of internal management was in place and that the management system was reviewed at least once a year. It was reported that the Chief Executive and the Council Leader were required to sign the statement, although the Audit and Governance Committee's approval was needed.

 

Some background was given to the statement which was based on the CIPFA / SOLACE Framework published in 2016 and identified 7 core principles for good governance which were then further broken down into sub-principles. It was highlighted that the Governance Arrangement Assessment Group, led by the Chief Executive, had considered these principles and sub-principles and had created a Governance Risk Register, which was part of the Council's Corporate Risk Register. Risks had been identified in 24 different areas of governance, identifying the controls that the Council had in place to mitigate these risks.

 

It was reported that there were four types of risks and that each risk had departmental ownership; the Group had concluded that there were 0 areas of very high risks, 6 high risk areas, 9 areas of medium risk and 9 low risk areas. It was accepted that although there were 6 high risk areas, the Group was aware of the work that needed to be done to reduce these risks.

 

In terms of adjustments, it was expressed that Finance's current risk score had been reduced from 20 to 15. It was reiterated that an update on previous years' actions would be reported in Cyngor Gwynedd’s Annual Performance Report and Self-Assessment 2024/25 at the October 2025 meeting.

 

Members expressed their thanks for the report.

 

Observations by Members and responses from Officers:

In response to a question about the lack of detail of the risks, it was noted that a more detailed expenditure report would be submitted to the Committee in October, and that this was an attempt to summarise issues to comply with the requirements of the Accounts and Audit Regulations for Wales.

 

In response to an observation about the low number of staff (Staff Voice Survey) and residents (the National Resident Survey) who had responded to these two surveys and what was being done to encourage more responses in the future, it was noted that although the number of responses to the National Resident Survey appeared to be very low, it compared well with the number of responses in the past. It was reiterated that, with the Survey also being a national one, responses could be compared by Local Authority, and of the nine Local Authorities that took part in the survey (the first of its kind in Wales), during 2024/25, Gwynedd's rate was among the highest. However, it was accepted that there was room for improvement and that work had been done to include new steps in the engagement process to encourage more responses. One example of improvement was asking for context or narrative in response rather than ticking off very good, good or bad. It was also noted that the results of the National Resident Survey had set a baseline and therefore progress on future improvements could be measured.

 

With reference to the term 'culture', it was noted that a better interpretation of the word was needed as it had a wide range of possible considerations. It was noted that in this context the focus was on the culture of Ffordd Gwynedd and the role of the Committee was to consider assurance that the information they received about the working culture was embedded in the Council's way of working.

 

In response to a comment that Finance's current risk score had been reduced from 20 to 15 and that this was premature as no evidence had been submitted that the overspend had ceased, the Head of Finance Department, in his role as Section 151 Officer, stated that a score of 15 was a fair risk score. He agreed that raising the score to 20 during 2024/25 may have been an overly hasty response and that a score of 20 meant the introduction of a final Section 114 warning that the budget would not be sufficient to sustain services. He expressed that Cyngor Gwynedd was not in this position and with an ongoing review of the situation, he was confident in the reduction of the rating. In terms of overspending, Members were reminded that the Committee received reports twice a year on departmental expenditure following service reviews.

 

In response to a supplementary question regarding the submission of a Medium Term Financial Plan, it was noted that the plan would be submitted to the meeting held in October 2025.

 

Highlighting the fact that this was a Self-assessment and if there was a tendency not to be too hard on personal performance, it was asked how it could be assured that the situation was a realistic one. In response, it was noted that it was the Committee's role to challenge the self-assessment and that there was no benefit to the Council in under-rating risk. It was suggested that headlines could be shared and more detailed information on the risks presented over the year so that Members had a better understanding of the areas.

 

The success of the Apprenticeship Scheme was praised.

 

Referring to the internal review to improve Council Tax collection arrangements, and the intention to report to the Committee in November, a request was made to highlight information about the housing premium in that report.

 

In response to an observation that there was a need to consider the risk of costs from potential Article 4 claims, it was noted that this would be addressed in the statement of accounts (note 39 - contingent liabilities). It was reiterated that if the risk was greater than 50% then money would be set aside to meet the costs.

 

In the context of Information Management (risk score of 12 due to 'failure to meet statutory requirements in dealing with information and data'), it was noted that 'statutory' requirements included two elements to the work and that while the Council complied with the requirements of the Data Requirements Act, the Council had room for improvement in making the best use of data/information to improve services.

 

In terms of the Health, Safety and Wellbeing Management System and the system being ineffective (risk score 15), it was noted that this was a reference to a procedural system and not a technical system and that the score was based on the probability that something may go wrong.

 

RESOLVED:

·        To accept the (draft) Annual Governance Statement

·        To accept the (draft) Annual Governance Statement Action Plan.

·        To approve the Statement and recommend that the Council Leader and Chief Executive sign it.

 

Note:

·        Amend the current Finance risk score from 20 to 15 in the Welsh version of the report, point 4.2

·        The context of the 'culture' risk refers to the fundamental principles of Ffordd Gwynedd

·        Request for further information to ensure that arrangements are in place to improve services

·        Request for the Council Tax Collection Rates report to highlight the housing premium