Issue - meetings

Each year, the Audit Committee is invited to review its Terms of Reference and this item was deferred at the meeting on 25 September 2018. A comprehensive review was carried out in November 2017 and the current Terms of Reference are attached.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Audit Committee reviews its Terms of Reference and agrees any amendments to be recommended to the Standards Committee and Council.

The Committee considered its current Terms of Reference. Cllr Seaborne reminded Members that last year, a review had been undertaken collaboratively with Members and officers to tighten up some of the wording.

Members felt that it would be useful to review the Committee’s Terms of Reference in a wider context, taking into account the remit of other Committees, e.g. Overview and Scrutiny. Some suggestions were made to tighten up the wording and review terminology used. Cllr Frost suggested that the s.151 Officer and Head of Policy and Governance should prepare an updated draft and present this to the Committee for approval.

The Committee therefore RESOLVED to defer this item to enable further discussion between the s.151 Officer and Head of Policy and Governance on the Committee’s role and remit; this item would then be brought back to next meeting of the Committee.

Each year, the Audit Committee is invited to review its Terms of Reference. A comprehensive review was carried out in November 2017 and the current Terms of Reference are attached.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Audit Committee reviews its Terms of Reference and recommends any amendments to the Standards Committee and Council.

The Committee considered its Terms of Reference. Cllr Townsend queried whether the IT systems were covered under the Terms of Reference. Officers responded that this was included under ‘non-financial performance (processes and controls)’ and while individual areas were not listed separately, nothing was excluded.

Cllr Gray raised concern over a potential overlap between the roles of the Audit Committee and the Value for Money O&S Committee. He planned to raise this matter with the Strategic Director and Head of Policy and Governance and therefore moved that the Committee defer further consideration of the Terms of Reference until this matter had been clarified.

The Committee RESOLVED to defer the item to its November meeting to enable clarification to be sought on the roles of the Audit Committee and Value for Money O&S Committee.