Agenda item

To receive a report from Corporate Performance & Improvement Manager and the Head of People, Performance & Waste providing Members with a quarterly update on the Corporate Risk Register.

The Committee had before it, and NOTED, the Corporate Risk Report * from the Corporate Performance and Improvement Manager providing Members with a quarterly update on the Corporate Risk Register.

The following was highlighted in the report:

• The report provided corporate risk data and the updated position as from 1 July to 30 September 2025.
• These were the risks which had been identified as having the most likely impact on the Council meeting its objectives.
• Paragraph 2.1 of the report provided a summary table showing the 15 corporate risks that the Council was currently managing and which it reviewed every quarter.
• A risk matrix was presented at Appendix one showing the relative position of each corporate risk. At Appendix two of the report, further details were provided for each risk.
• Any significant changes to the risk register since it was last reported to the Audit Committee were listed in the covering report at paragraph 2.3.

Discussion took place regarding:

• Whether all staff had been upgraded to Windows 11? It was confirmed that they had.
• How the Risk Register was being affected by Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)? It was explained that this was one of the biggest risks the Council currently faced. The timeline of the Government’s decision making process on LGR was explained. There would be challenges ahead that would be difficult to manage. For example, significant start up costs would be incurred, the level of which were unknown at the moment. Members would receive regular updates as soon as more was known.
• At the current time it was important to continue to deliver ‘business as usual’.
• There would need to be a period of preparation in the new year pulling together such information as asset registers and a people database.
• Business continuity plans were being reviewed.
• The Council had refunded all the tenants it could in relation to the rents error, however, those tenants in receipt of Universal Credit were still being assessed by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as to how much rent could be repaid. Clarity was needed from DWP as to how long this would take but at the moment the situation was out of the Council’s hands. It was confirmed that the Council had assumed and allowed for maximum repayments should they be deemed necessary at the final analysis.
• The Council was confident it had the right staffing levels and funding in place to meet the ongoing threat of a cyber attack.
• It was anticipated that the Government would be announcing the Financial Settlement due to local authorities next Wednesday. The S151 Officer would relay the impacts of this to Members as soon as details were released. As a rural Council it was expected that there would be at least a 5% reduction in the amount provided to Mid Devon.
• In regard to the Cullompton Relief Road, the project was on track in terms of the timeline for works and the budget. There had been some land assembly issues but an update would be provided to Members in the new year.
• It would be important for Town and Parish Council’s to contact the District Council sooner rather than later to discuss possible transfers of assets but at the moment still was yet to be determined as to LGR. It would be a priority for the Council to treat its current assets in the best possible way for the people of Mid Devon once decisions regarding future governance arrangements were known.

Note: * Report previously circulated.