Agenda item

Jaclyn Gibson, Chief Finance Officer,

a)    provided Members with a status report for the City of Lincoln Councils Strategic Risk Register:

b)    highlighted that since reporting in February 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic had fundamentally affected the environment in which the Council operated and as such the risks that it faced. Whilst the strategic risks that were previously included in the register remained valid, the level of assessed risk (likelihood and impact), target risk scores and mitigating action needed to be reviewed and updated to reflect the new landscape, as well as identifying any new strategic risks.

c)    explained that considering these circumstances the quarter four strategic risk register for 2019/20, which would ordinarily include an assessment of whether the target risk for the year had been met or not, had not be prepared. Instead setting out in this report what were now considered to be the strategic risks/opportunities facing the Council having taken into consideration the impact that the pandemic and lockdown arrangements had, as well as the path to recovery.

d)    highlighted ten existing strategic risks that were all still felt to be relevant, although re-framed to reflect the effects of the pandemic and focus of the Council in 2020/21:

1.    Failure to engage and influence effectively the Council’s strategic partners, council staff and all stakeholders to deliver against e.g. Council’s Vision 2025.

2.    Failure to deliver a sustainable Medium-Term Financial Strategy (that supported the delivery of Vision 2025).

3.    Failure to deliver the Towards Financial Sustainability Programme whilst ensuring the resilience of the Council.

4.    Failure to ensure compliance with statutory duties/functions and appropriate governance arrangements are in place.

5.    Failure to protect the local authority’s Vision 2025 due to changing structures and relationships in local government and impact on size, scale and scope of the Council.

6.    Unable to meet the emergency changes required in the Council’s culture, behaviour and skills to support the delivery of the Council’s Vision 2020/2025 and the transformational journey to One Council approach.

7.    Insufficient levels of resilience and capacity exist in order to deliver key strategic projects & services within the Council.

8.    A decline in the economic prosperity within the City Centre.

9.    Failure to mitigate against the implications for the Council following the outcome of Brexit.

10. Failure to deliver key strategic projects.

e)    explained in addition to the ten existing strategic risks, three new risks relating to the impact of the pandemic had emerged and were as follows:

·         Failure of the Council’s key contractors and partners to remain sustainable and continue to deliver value for money.

·         Failure to work in partnership to sustain support to vulnerable residents post COVID-19.

·         Failure to put in place safe working practices and social distancing measures to protect officers and service users.

f)     invited members’ questions and comments.

Question: Members asked whether checks on contractors could be carried out?

Response: The City of Lincoln Council did have the ability to do financial checks on contractors if there were concerns.

RESOLVED that:

a)    the status of the current Strategic Risk Register be noted

b)    a full Strategic Risk Register be presented to Performance Scrutiny Committee in August 2020.