Decisions

The Head of the Worcestershire Internal Audit Shared Service presented the report in respect of the Final Audit Plan 2020/21. The draft report was considered prior to the outbreak of Covid-19 and associated lockdown and the final report was due to be considered by the Committee at the meeting on 9^th April 2020 however, this meeting was cancelled.

It was reported to Members that the plan needed to be flexible given the current situation. He explained that the report was a good benchmark, however, Members were assured that if any changes were made should risks emerge; they would be bought before the Committee to confirm what changes were being proposed and why.

Members questioned as to how audits would be carried out under the circumstances and were informed that although audits may take a little longer, the service had access to many of the systems and processes that were used by officers and they could be accessed directly. In addition to this, they were able to conduct virtual meetings platforms.

Some Members noted that things would inevitably change going forward and the new Housing System which was still to be implemented and it was agreed that there would be a need to prioritise throughout the year, particularly around any limited assurances which would need to be reported to the Committee.

RESOLVED that

a)              the Audit Plan 2020/21 be approved; and

b)              the Key Performance Indicators be approved.