Report of: the Head of Financial Services

Purpose of report:  to update the Committee on both corporate and service risks as at 31 March 2019.

Recommendation: to discuss and note the report.

The Committee considered and asked questions about the report of the Head of Financial Services giving an update on both corporate and service risks as at 31 March 2019.

Bill Lewis (Financial Accounting Manager) presented the report and answered questions.

The Committee noted:

·         Risks around housing delivery and supply were partly mitigated by the council’s Lord Mayor’s deposit scheme and the rent guarantee scheme. The Oxfordshire Growth Deal had a significant role in housing delivery, and the Council had an opportunity to use the removal of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) debt cap to significantly increase its housing.

·         The auditors’ comments about the treatment of the risks around the treasury management function at other local authorities they audited.  The identified risks and the accompanying narrative were usually broadly in line with Oxford City Council’s assessment but the risk prioritisation was often lower, usually in the amber range, in line with the individual council’s analysis and assessment criteria.

The Committee noted a significant risk to the Council and the city from climate change, and requested a report setting out how to properly audit and evaluate the risks and mitigation of the effects of climate change including:

·         the risks to the Council and to the city from climate change;

·         evaluating the Council’s own carbon use;

·         skills and resources required to audit and manage the Council’s reduction in carbon use;

·         what data is required and how to collect this;

·         how to audit and evaluate the Council’s activities;

·         evaluation of the risks and the effectiveness of possible and actual mitigation measures.

The Committee noted the report and comments.

The Committee asked for a report as set out above to be brought to a future meeting.

Report of: the Head of Financial Services

Purpose of report:  to update the Committee on both corporate and service risks as at 30 November 2018.

Recommendation: to discuss and note the report.

The Committee considered and asked questions about the report of the Head of Financial Services giving an update on both corporate and service risks as at 30 November 2018.

The Committee commented on the risks related to the council’s property fund investments and confirmed that these should continue to be closely monitored.

The Committee noted the report.

Report of: the Head of Financial Services

Purpose of report:  to update the Committee on both corporate and service risks as at 30 September 2018

Recommendation: to discuss and note the report.

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Financial Services giving an update on major corporate and service risks as at 31 May 2018.

Bill Lewis (Financial Accounting Manager) and Alison Nash (Finance Officer) in presenting the report and in answer to questions reported:

·         Key risks and the development of contingency plans were explained, in particular around a major ICT failure.

·         If the main building was unusable there were some contingencies in place. For a major ICT failure there was a 16hr recovery time in the service contract and contingency plans would include how best to redeploy staff and maintain essential services in addition to recovery plans.

·         The red risk relating to health and safety (buildings) referred to both council-owned public-use and rented commercial properties: health and safety issues for council housing and buildings used by staff were managed separately.

·         The risks associated with local government reorganisation were no longer included as the probability of this happening was significantly reduced.

·         Risks around failure to meet response times for complaints and freedom of information requests were not new, but were included to ensure these were not overlooked and appropriate management plans were in place.

The Committee noted the report and comments.

Report of: the Head of Financial Services

Purpose of report:  to update the Committee on both corporate and service risks as at 31 May 2018

Recommendation: to discuss and note the report.

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Financial Services giving an update on both corporate and service risks as at 31 May 2018.

In the presentation and discussion the Committee noted:

·         The risk register was being updated and a Council wide group re-established to give a more consistent approach and to re-evaluate stated and unstated risks.

·         There needed to be a way to differentiate between ‘new’ high risk and ‘ongoing’ high risks.

·         Financial risks were always included and rated ‘red’ and high risk partly to maintain focus on the need for stringent mitigation.

·         The wider risks to the city and its economy from the potential loss of major employers were hard to quantify but were significant. The Finance Panel had recently considered a paper on the Local Implications of Brexit.

The Committee noted the report and comments.