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AUDIT, GOVERNANCE AND STANDARDS COMMITTEE |
30 July 2018 |
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Annual Governance Statement 2017-18 |
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Final Decision-Maker |
Audit, Governance and Standards Committee |
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Lead Head of Service/Lead Director |
Angela Woodhouse, Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Lead Officer and Report Author |
Angela Woodhouse, Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Classification |
Public
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Wards affected |
All
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Executive Summary |
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Attached at Appendix A is the Annual Governance Statement for 2017-18. The purpose of the Annual Governance Statement is to provide assurance on the Council’s governance arrangements. The local code of corporate governance was revised and adopted in 2017 and does not require refreshing this year.
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This report makes the following recommendations to this Committee: |
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1. To approve the Annual Governance Statement. |
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Timetable |
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Meeting |
Date |
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Audit, Governance and Standards Committee |
30 July 2018 |
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Annual Governance Statement 2017-18 |
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1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
1.1 Each year the Council reviews its governance arrangements to ensure compliance with the Local Code of Corporate Governance. The purpose of the review is to provide assurance that governance arrangements are adequate and operating effectively and to identify action which is planned to ensure effective governance in the future. The outcome of the review takes the form of an Annual Governance Statement (AGS) prepared on behalf of the Leader at the Council and Chief Executive.
1.2 The Council produces the AGS to accompany the statement of accounts. The Audit, Governance and Standards Committee is asked to consider this statement. The statement looks back at the governance arrangements for 2017-18 and identifies areas for action for 2018-19 to ensure good governance is maintained. We do not consider that there are any significant governance issues arising from the review; we have however identified actions for 2018-19 to ensure good standards of governance are maintained and these are set in Appendix A.
1.3 Action taken last year includes a resident survey and the delivery of the communication and engagement action plan for 2017-18 and the continuation of a member sounding board and monthly bulletin for members. There was also an externally led away day for group leaders and regular briefings for all members on key topics to ensure members are engaged and informed. The work on risk management has continued with a risk appetite being agreed and changes to the committee report template. The council was putting in place measures to ensure compliance with GDPR and the new Data Protection Act 2018 including training across the council.
2. AVAILABLE OPTIONS
2.1 The AGS is a requirement of statutory regulations and provides assurance about the Council’s governance arrangements. The Committee is asked to review the Annual Governance Statement and recommend amendments as appropriate.
3. PREFERRED OPTION AND REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
3.1 The Committee is asked to review the Annual Governance Statement and
action plan and approve the areas suggested for improvement for 2018-19.
4. RISK
4.1 The
Annual Governance Statement considers and gives assurance to the Council’s
approach to risk management.
5. CONSULTATION RESULTS AND PREVIOUS COMMITTEE FEEDBACK
5.1 The Annual Governance Statement has been reviewed by the Corporate Governance Group and the Council’s Leadership Team.
6. NEXT STEPS: COMMUNICATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DECISION
6.1 Once approved the Annual Governance Statement is made available on our website and shared with our external auditors.
7. CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES AND IMPLICATIONS
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Issue |
Implications |
Sign-off |
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Impact on Corporate Priorities |
Effective corporate governance arrangements ensure the council’s priorities are understood and delivered |
Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Risk Management |
Already covered in the risk section |
Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Financial |
This report has no direct financial implications. The AGS is a requirement of statutory regulations and provides assurance about the Council’s governance arrangements. |
Section 151 Officer & Finance Team |
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Staffing |
We will deliver the action plan with our current staffing.
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Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Legal |
Under the Council’s Constitution one of the functions of the Committee is to oversee the production of the Council’s Annual Governance Statement. There are no legal implications identified in the report. The Annual Statement demonstrates measures are in place to ensure good governance arrangements which enable the Council to meet its statutory requirements. |
Team Leader (Corporate Governance), MKLS |
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Privacy and Data Protection |
There is action detailed in the plan for 2017-18 on compliance with Data Protection requirements. The Audit, Governance and Standards Committee will receive updates on the GDPR action plan in 2018-19. |
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Equalities |
Effective corporate governance arrangements include behaving with integrity, demonstrating strong commitment to ethical values, and respecting rule of law as set out in the code of corporate governance
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Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Crime and Disorder |
Effective corporate governance arrangements include behaving with integrity, demonstrating strong commitment to ethical values, and respecting rule of law as set out in the code of corporate governance
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Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
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Procurement |
Effective corporate governance arrangements include behaving with integrity, demonstrating strong commitment to ethical values, and respecting rule of law as set out in the code of corporate governance
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Head of Policy, Communications and Governance |
8. REPORT APPENDICES
The following documents are to be published with this report and form part of the report:
· Appendix A: Annual Governance Statement 2017-18
9. BACKGROUND PAPERS
None