Issue - meetings

To approve the updated Local Code of Corporate Governance (report of the Assistant Director – Governance (Monitoring Officer) enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Assistant Director – Governance to approve the updated Local Code of Corporate Governance.

The Assistant Director – Governance introduced the report which sought the Committees views on whether the revised and updated Local Code of Corporate Governance accurately reflected the Council’s governance arrangements and that it met the core principles as set out in the CIPFA guidance ‘Delivery Good Governance in Local Government’.

The following points were highlighted to the Committee:

• The Committee had received corporate governance training on 16 May 2023 which outlined the core principles of good governance;
• The Local Code of Corporate Governance 2023-2026 at Appendix A had been updated in line with the CIPFA SOLACE framework which  identified seven core principles of good governance. The document outlined how SHDC’s governance arrangements applied to each of the seven core principles;
• The Annual Governance Statement, due to come forward to the 9 November 2023 Governance and Audit Committee meeting, would demonstrate how the Council delivered against the principles stated in the Local Code of Corporate Governance;
• The format of the Local Code of Corporate Governance was in the process of being standardised across all three authorities of the S&ELCP; and
• It was to be noted that the year stated at bullet point 4 of the ‘Robust Internal Control’ section of Appendix A (page 10) had subsequently been amended from 2010 to 2019.

AGREED:

That after consideration by the Governance and Audit Committee, the revised Local Code of Corporate Governance be approved.