Agenda and draft minutes
Venue: Conference Room 1a, County Hall, Ruthin
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APOLOGIES Minutes: None |
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DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST PDF 115 KB Members to declare any personal or prejudicial interests in
any business identified to be considered at this meeting. Minutes: Councillors Tony Flynn, Martyn Holland, Barry Mellor, Mabon ap Gwynfor, Emrys Wynne, Huw Hilditch- Roberts and Julian Thompson- Hill declared personal interests in agenda items 5 and 6 as they were school Governors. Councillor Alan James declared a personal interest in agenda item 5 as his daughter was Head of a school in financial difficulty. Councillor Joseph Welch declared a personal interest in agenda item 5 as he was the parent of a child attending a Denbighshire County Council school. Lay Member Paul Witham declared a personal interest in agenda item 5 as he was the Grandfather of a child at one of the schools listed in the report. |
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URGENT MATTERS Notice of items, which in the opinion of the Chair should be
considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency pursuant to Section 100B(4) of
the Local Government Act 1972. Minutes: No urgent matters were raised. |
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To receive the minutes of the Corporate Governance Committee
meeting held on 27 September 2017 (copy enclosed). Minutes: The minutes of the Corporate Governance Committee held on the 27 September 2017 were submitted. Accuracy – It was noted that
Lay Member Mr Paul Whitham was in attendance at the meeting. Matters Arising – Item 10
Loggerheads Car Park Project - Councillor Martyn Holland requested that his
concern regarding the high level of contingency with this development and the
formula used to calculate the contingency amount be noted. Lay Member Paul
Witham requested clarification on the definition of Contingency and this be
circulated to members as stipulated in the minutes. The Head of Legal, HR and Democratic Services confirmed he
would check and inform Members of the Committee. RESOLVED that subject to
the above, the minutes of the Corporate Governance Committee be received and
approved as a correct record. |
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SCHOOLS IN FINANCIAL DIFFICULTY PDF 117 KB To consider a report by the Head of Finance and Head of education (copy enclosed) to explain the council’s policy and approach to working with schools in financial difficulty. Additional documents:
Minutes: Councillor Julian Thompson-Hill Lead member for Finance,
Performance and Strategic Assets, introduced the report (previously circulated)
to explain the Council’s policy and approach to working with schools in
financial difficulty. Councillor Thompson-Hill guided members through the report.
Reference was made to the progress chart (within appendix 1, previously
circulated) which demonstrated the process for challenging and supporting
schools finances. Clarification was given regarding the stages where Local
Authority intervene and the steps in which follow. Concerns were heard regarding the number of schools in
financial difficulty. It was confirmed that the number of schools in financial
difficult had reduced over recent years. Denbighshire County Council had been
highlighted as one of the Local Authorities in the highest deficit. The Head of Education and Children’s Services (HECS)
explained that decisions in
respect of managing school budgets go through the school budget forum.
Decisions were made through a high level of conversation and deliberation. The
Head of Finance (HOF) reiterated the process is in place to challenge and
support schools to manage a 3 year rolling budget. There is continual monitoring of the process and schools' budgets. During discussion the following matters were raised: ·
Redundancy- It was confirmed that the method of
paying redundancy money had changed in 2012. Schools were now responsible for
funding any redundancies. ·
The School Budget Forum- the HECS confirmed that
the formula for determining School budgets is scrutinized by the School Budget
Forum (SBF). The forum is attended by HESC, HOF, representative School Head
Teachers, Lead member for Education, Children and
Young People and representative Officers. Good work had been done on
strengthening the Forum proactively working together to improve school
finances, ·
Engagement between officers and schools was
vital to try and improve finances
before any action was necessary. Officers worked closely with schools and know
the running of schools. GwE
supply feedback from involvement with schools. The duty to provide the best
level of education to young people in Denbighshire was reflected in the
improved exam results. ·
A robust Governors' forum designed to engage and
communicate with governors had aided in the understanding of the process in
place. A number of vacancies for school governors was observed. The
chair thanked officers for the work that had been put into developing and
monitoring schools. He concluded that pupil attainment and the education and
welfare of Denbighshire’s young people is vital. RESOLVED from a unanimous show of hands the
Corporate Governance Committee receive the report and note its contents. |
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INFORMATION MANAGEMENT AND IT MANAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS PDF 257 KB To consider a update report by the Head of Education and the Principal Education Manager (copy enclosed) to provide information on how the Council is implementing improvements in the way schools are managing information since the issue of the Internal Audit report that gave a Low Assurance. Minutes: The Principal Education Support Manager, introduced the
report (previously circulated) to provide an update on the work undertaken in
response to the report shared on 28 September, 2016 and further evidence provided
on January 25 2017 which provided details on Information Management and IT
Management in schools that received a “Low” Assurance rating. Information was provided as to how the Council was
implementing improvements in the way schools were managing information since
the issue of the Internal Audit report which had given a Low Assurance. The Corporate Governance Committee had
requested a second progress report to update members, issues were being
addressed. The Information Commissioners Office had completed training
to Head Teachers and Business Managers on 9 February, 2017. Training was also delivered to School
Governors. Further training had been offered on Data Security which was held on
15 February 2017. Further training will be scheduled when the new GDPR
(General Data Protection Regulations) are in place may 2018. The development of a regional on-line audit toolkit that
allowed schools and the Local Authority to monitor support and challenge had
taken place. The PEM confirmed each school had access to the toolkit to
complete audits and assign tasks to individuals to certain deadlines. School
staff, Local Authority and School Governors can monitor progress and
improvements, support offered when needed. Schools have adopted the toolkit
well and positive outcome and work had been observed. Links to Denbighshire
Website to policies and procedures had been included on the toolkit to allow
Schools a direct link to relevant pages for information. Training to all
individuals working with the toolkit was provided. The overall control of the toolkit would be assigned to the
school toolkit which would enable that individual to assign and monitor work
completed. The Head of Education and Children’s Services informed the
committee that the toolkit which was developed by officers of Denbighshire has
since been adopted by the 6 North Wales Counties and is working effectively. Concerns were raised by Councillor Emrys Wynne regarding the
collection of confidential waste. The Monitoring Officer confirmed that
contractors were in place for the removal of confidential waste and additional
collections could be arranged if needed, RESOLVED, that the Corporate
Governance Committee note the report and an update report be presented to
Corporate Governance Committee in 6 months. |
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At this junction (11:45 a.m.) there was a 10 minute break Meeting reconvened at 11:55 a.m. |
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ANNUAL RIPA (REGULATION OF INVESTIGATORY POWERS ACT 2000) REPORT PDF 112 KB To consider an information report by the Deputy Monitoring
Officer (copy enclosed) on the Council’s use of its powers of surveillance
under RIPA (Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000). Minutes: An information report was submitted (previously circulated) on the Council’s use of its powers of surveillance under RIPA (Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000). The Head of Legal, HR and Democratic Services (HLHD) provided an overview of RIPA and explained how powers under that Act could be used by the council together with the processes in place. There had been no activity in the use of these powers since the last report to the Corporate Governance Committee. Regular in-house training sessions were provided to officers using those powers with the next session planned for 30 March 2017. A refresher training event is to be provided to the Council’s Authorising Officers next year to enable them to effectively challenge and scrutinise any application. The HLHD explained to members, surveillance is the last resort. All other avenues and methods have to be exhausted prior to authorisation for surveillance be granted. The Chair thanked the HLHD for the update. RESOLVED that the Annual RIPA (Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000)
report be received and noted. |
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ANNUAL WHISTLE BLOWING REPORT PDF 197 KB To consider a report by the Head of Legal, HR and Democratic
Services (copy enclosed) to inform Members of activities in respect of the
Whistleblowing Policy. Minutes: A
report by the Monitoring Officer (MO), which provided information relating to
the operation of the Council’s Whistleblowing policy since the last report
brought to Corporate Governance Committee in July 2016. The report had been submitted in accordance with the Council’s
Whistleblowing Policy (WP), which contained a requirement that the MO bring a
report to the Corporate Governance Committee at least once a year on the
operation of the Policy and any changes in practice introduced as a result of
concerns raised under the Policy. The report covers the period from 14th
July to date, in this period there had been no concerns raised under the
whistleblowing policy. The MO confirmed in
March 2017 SLT agreed to a ‘whistleblowing e-learning module’ be mandatory for
all employees of Denbighshire County Council. The e-learning should be ready to
launch in January 2018. In response to concerns
raised by lay member Paul Witham, the MO confirmed he would clarify contractors
were aware of how to access the policy online. RESOLVED, that the Corporate Governance Committee receive
the annual report and note its contents. |
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INTERNAL AUDIT PROGRESS REPORT PDF 101 KB To consider a report by the Chief Internal Auditor (copy
enclosed) updating members on Internal Audit progress. Additional documents: Minutes: The Chief Internal Auditor (CIA), introduced the Internal
Audit update report (previously circulated) updating members on the Internal
Audit progress in terms of its service delivery, assurance provision, reviews
completed, performance and effectiveness in driving improvement. The report
provided information on work carried out by Internal Audit since the last
committee meeting. The CIA guided members through the reports which provided an
update as at November 2017 on: ·
Internal
Audit reports recently issued ·
Follow
up of previous Internal Audit reports ·
Progress
on Internal Audit work to date in 2017/18 ·
A
summary of upcoming Internal Audit projects · Internal Audit performance Standards The following
matters were raised during debate- · Petty Cash - November 2017- The CIA explained petty cash from school activity clubs such as breakfast club, afterschool clubs had caused confusion. The CIA explained that an action plan had been developed to enable the council to manage the risks associated with petty cash accounts. The Council accounts for cash from different areas within the council such as car parks and public conveniences with specific controls in place to manage them. However, an assessment of petty cash had been requested in relation to school monies e.g. breakfast clubs, and a report would be presented back to the Corporate Governance Committee in 6 months’ time. · Managing the risk of fraud and corruption - November 2017 – The CIA confirmed that the council committed to a zero tolerance approach to fraud and corruption. A few areas of improvement had been found which would be easily overcome. Council Housing Tenancy Fraud will be subject to review as part of phase 3 of the review. · Concerns were raised regarding the number of follow up reports – The CIA explained that reports are escalated to Heads of Service where there is a concern with progress made. The Chair
thanked officers for the detailed report and responses to concerns raised by
members. RESOLVED, that the Corporate Governance Committee receive the update report and note its contents. |
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ANNUAL GOVERNANCE STATEMENT - ACTION PLAN UPDATE PDF 179 KB To consider a report by the Chief Internal Auditor (copy enclosed) which provides information on how the Council is implementing improvements in governance arrangements since the issue of the Annual Governance Statement in July 2017. Additional documents: Minutes: The Chief Internal Auditor (CIA) submitted a report
(previously circulated) updating members on progress in implementing the
governance improvement plan that accompanied the Annual Governance Statement
2016/17. The CIA informed members that all actions were progressing forward and in a timely manner and all were on course to meet deadlines. RESOLVED that the Corporate
Governance Committee receive the report and note its contents. |
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INTERNAL AUDIT SELF-ASSESSMENT STANDARDS PDF 109 KB To consider a report by the Chief Internal Auditor (copy enclosed) which provides the result of the internal audit self-assessment against the Public Sector Internal Audit Standards. Additional documents: Minutes: The Chief Internal Audit (CIA) submitted a report (previously circulated) providing members the results of the internal audit self-assessment against the Public Sector Internal Audit Standards. The CIA explained the development of a quality assurance and improvement programme to evaluate conformance with the standards had been completed. The programme aided the monitoring of the internal audit effectiveness and identified opportunities for improvement. The CIA confirmed to members the overall results from the self-assessment had been positive. Appendix 1 demonstrated to members the highlighted areas included in the Quality Assurance & Improvement Action Plan. An external assessment by the chief audit executive of Gwynedd County Council will be carried out in spring 2018, in accordance with the standards. RESOLVED that the
Corporate Governance Committee receive the report and note its contents. |
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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE WORK PROGRAMME PDF 219 KB To consider the committee’s forward work programme (copy
enclosed). Minutes: The Head of Legal, HR and Democratic Services informed the Committee
that the date of the next meeting may change. The Corporate Governance Committee’s Forward Work programme (FWP) (previously
circulated) was presented for consideration. The Committee
confirmed the Corporate Governance FWP subject to the following amendments:- 24 January 2018- · Annual Treasury Management Strategy · Closure of the Statement of Accounts · Fleet Management- Follow up · CIPFA (Audit Committee Practical guidelines) 25 April 2018- · Internal Audit Strategy · Draft Annual Governance Statement · Internal Audit Annual Report 11 July 2018- · Draft Statement of Accounts 26 September 2018- · Approval of Statement of Accounts 21 November 2018- · Annual RIPA (Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000) · Annual Whistle Blowing Report RESOLVED that, subject to
the above, the Corporate Governance Committee approves the Forward Work
Programme. |
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The Meeting concluded at 13:05 p.m. |