Agenda item

The Resilience Service Manager introduced a report on Risk Management (RM) and Business Continuity (BC), which had recently been approved by Corporate Management Team (CMT).  In addition, Members were advised that there had been a number of new diagrams included within the Risk Management Policy.

The key points within the report included:

• Completion of operational risk profile;
• Continuation of review and revision of Service and Corporate BC plans;
• Quarterly review of Strategic (corporate) risk register by CMT;
• Coordination of Strategic and Departmental risk registers;
• Regular risk “conversations” within and between services at all levels;
• Updates on Insite, web and E-Learning;
• Strategic issues e.g. introducing and embedding RM/BC into procurement processes, induction briefings and business plans; and
• Delivery of training aimed at ensuring Members understand the risk management process and expectations upon Officers.

         The Resilience Services Manager, Head of Legal Services and Head of Strategic             Finance responded to comments, concerns and questions raised by Members.  In     summary the comments and responses included:

• The completion of the Adult Social Care and Strategic Resources risk registers were expected shortly.  In particular, the Strategic Resources register had awaited minor updates to the existing version;
• Cabinet would receive regular risk reports and any feedback recorded through the Audit Committee minutes; 
• A training session would be held each year for all Members at the All Party Policy meetings regarding the Risk Registers and Business Continuity;
• There was a management mechanism in place in order for Cabinet Members to be kept informed and assess risks within their portfolio area, which was intended to aide them in building an appetite towards identifying risks; 
• The Council would hold the statutory responsibility to ensure that landscape maintenance was carried out by the appointed contractors, in addition the Council would hold the responsibility if a member of public was to become injured as a result of poor landscape maintenance;
• At this point Councillor Fletcher wished for it to be noted that due to the many briars that were being left to grow to 9ft in height and across public footpaths in South Bretton, he felt that there may be a risk to the public of injury in the future if the maintenance was not carried out to an acceptable level;
• The Cabinet Member for Resources advised Members that it would be appropriate to raise concerns regarding contract issues at the Sustainable Growth Scrutiny Committee meetings that held a specific agenda item on contracts and that requests should be initiated through the Member’s Group Representative;
• The Cabinet Member for Resources also advised Members that they should receive a feedback report following any issues they had identified during their ward walks with the Enterprise Contract Officers;
• Consideration could be given in the future to provide a joined up, robust customer focussed approach in terms of dealing with grounds maintenance, providing responses to residents and conducting exercises such as tree surveys, however, the options were limited due to Officer resources;  
• Councillor Lee raised a point of information in that there were two managers who inspected the work of Enterprise complaints and issues.  It was also advised that their manager was the Head Of Strategic Client Services;

• The Cabinet Member for Resources advised Members that there was a fine balance in identifying the higher corporate risk priorities for the Council;
• There was a Senior Management restructure underway and it had been intended that after that process a table top exercise, to test contingency scenarios based on the Council’s ability to deliver services should Council buildings become unavailable, would be conducted by the Resilience Service;
• It was intended that CMT would undertake the necessary training in order to prepare them in dealing with any risk that may arise from the loss of Council offices;
• Departmental Strategic Registers would need to follow a standard format in order to embed a project;
• Councillor Knowles expressed that the quality of life aspect of risks should not be lost in risk assessing;
• All information technology servers were in the process of being externally backed up by a company called Sunguard.  This provision was intended to maintain corporate information. The arrangement of Officers working from home had never been a substitute in providing Council services in an office base, as there was a balance to be realised.  However, many Councils would see working from home becoming a normal arrangement;
• Comments and suggested improvements arising from a previous Audit Committee meeting had been fed into the Business Continuity Policy and Risk Management Strategy and it had been agreed to report the Council’s position back to Audit Committee on a quarterly basis; and
• The Risk Management Strategy had also been assessed by an external organisation to ensure that it had complied with the national standards.

ACTION AGREED:

  The Committee

1.    Considered and noted the content of the report.

  The Committee also agreed that:

1. The Head of Legal Services would liaise with the Enterprise contract manager over the concerns raised by Audit Committee regarding the potential risks highlighted over the lack of provision of maintenance/groundworks in bio- diverse areas across the city, which may cause injury to members of the public should the issue be left unresolved;
2. The Project Management Team, demonstrate an example of how managers would apply their logic in utilising the risk matrix within the Risk Management Policy when entering a new project onto the Verto system.  The example was to be demonstrated at the Verto training, which was due to be held on 28 October 2013, for Members of the Audit Committee; and
3. The Resilience Services Manager would report back to CMT, Audit Committee’s comments regarding whether Cabinet Members would be informed of links between the Risk Management Policy and how Cabinet could gain an appetite in becoming fully informed of current risks.

The Committee also recommended that:

1. The Resilience Services Manager would provide a report to Audit Committee outlining how Cabinet Members set the overall risk appetite for the Council and monitor the performance of management in mitigating strategic risks across all departments.