Issue - meetings

Report of the Director – Finance and Corporate Services

The Director for Finance and Corporate Services presented the Annual Governance Statement 2024/25 which is published alongside the Council’s Statement of Accounts and outlines the Council’s governance arrangements.

The Group were advised the Governance Statement follows a standard format of principles and reflects the requirements of the CIPFA/SOLACE ‘Delivering good governance in local government framework (20160’.

The Director of Finance and Corporate Services highlighted that currently there are no significant concerns over governance. However, the forthcoming Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) is likely to create a significant shift in governance risks as the Council manages this new work stream and the impact on workforce capacity.

Councillor Gowland asked a specific question regarding the decision process and at what extent is this followed through by Cabinet and Council. The Director for Finance and Corporate Services explained that the constitution defines the different levels of delegation for both Cabinet and Council decisions. Full Council having mainly the Council’s budget, its constitution and any legislative changes from Government.

It was RESOLVED that the Governance Scrutiny Group reviewed and approved the Annual Governance Statement 2024/25 (Appendix 1) which incorporated actions for the forthcoming year.