Agenda item

To present the report of the Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer incorporating the Risk Management Policy and Guidance was presented for the Committee’s consideration.

The Insurance and Risk Manager reported on the outcome of the review of the Risk Management Strategy and Framework which was undertaken by the Head of Audit and Risk and the Risk and Insurance Manager in conjunction with the Senior Leadership Team and Heads of Service during Quarter 2. The review highlighted areas where improvements can be made mainly in relation to fully embedding risk management processes within the Council’s working practices so that it becomes an integral part of informed decision making rather than a tick-box paper exercise, as well as the steps being taken or already implemented  to ensure the improvements take place. The review also found that Elected Members and Officers are not always fully informed of the risks involved when taking decisions; neither has training on risk management been offered to Elected Members although senior and middle managers have received the training.

The Committee considered the information presented and made the following points –

•           The Committee having considered the Risk Management Guidance noted that the document sets out an approach to risk that appears to be onerous in terms of its complexity and level of detail. As such, it could be off-putting to managers and could reinforce the impression of risk management as a tick-box exercise rather than as a practice to be applied in a meaningful way as part of day to day operational activities and decision making. The Insurance and Risk Manager said that the guidance has been put together with the support of an external consultant and is pitched at a level which it was agreed Management required at the time; an abridged version covering the principal considerations is available on the Council’s intranet site.

•           In light of the recent flooding event the Committee sought clarification of the process for reviewing the risk of reoccurrence or if flooding does reoccur, the steps that will be taken to reduce the impact on the Council. The Chief Executive confirmed that the Council has commenced the lessons to be learnt process after the flood; the Head of Function  (Resources) and Section 151 Officer said that with regard to the Council office building specifically, the review of what happened will generate a lessons learnt log which will in turn feed into the relevant risk register.

•           The Committee sought clarification as to what level of decision making does the Risk Management process come into effect i.e. whether there is a risk to the Council in any way from decisions that may be taken at a more junior level. The Insurance and Risk Manager said that risks are assessed according to impact and likelihood against agreed criteria using descriptive scales; having made this assessment it is then a matter for Management and the level of authority and scope to act which an individual has. The Head of Function(Resources) and Section 151 Officer said that decision making and responsibility are  commensurate with post, so that decisions taken at a more junior level would not be expected to have an impact on the service.

•           The Committee noted that given Risk Management is a vitally important part of Council activities, it is therefore equally important that the Risk Management process is clearly articulated to staff so that they know what is expected of them. The Committee sought assurance therefore that appropriate direction is provided to staff on risk managing and risk assessing as part of their day to day activities. The Insurance and Risk Manager said that the message about the importance of risk management has been imparted to Heads of Service and that it has also been agreed that they will meet with the Insurance and Risk Manager twice a year to review their service registers – the most recent update was in the Autumn. The Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer said that repositioning the Insurance and Risk Manager so that the latter reports directly to the Head of Audit and Risk has invested the role with more authority thereby raising the profile of risk management within the Council. The Insurance and Risk Manager now attends meetings of the Senior Leadership Team every quarter and is able to update the SLT on any non-compliance by services.

•           The Committee further noted that the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) had not reviewed the Corporate Risk Register during the first half of 2017.The Committee therefore sought assurance of the Officers that Risk Management is now embedding within SLT as well as Heads of Services’ practices and it sought clarification also of the actions that would be taken to ensure that this is the case going forwards. The Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer said that the Audit Committee will be provided with regular updates on risk management and if as part of those reports the Head of Audit and Risk and/or the Insurance and Risk Manager find that the SLT and/or Heads of Service are not complying with established processes then the Audit Committee will be informed.

It was resolved that the Committee having considered the information presented and the assurances given on the issues raised verbally, accepts and notes the content of the report  and takes assurance that although there remains work to be done to fully embed risk management throughout the Council, progress has been made and is continuing.

NO ADDITIONAL ACTION WAS PROPOSED