Internal audit and risk management

The NSW Government required all councils in NSW to establish an Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC) by 4 June 2022.

The Office of Local Government issued Draft Guidelines for Risk Management and Internal Audit Framework for Local Councils in NSW in August 2021, although final Guidelines are yet to be published. Council established an ARIC which was consistent with these draft Guidelines and held its first meeting on 9 May 2022. The Committee comprises an independent Chair, Mr Stephen Coates, and three independent members with requisite skills and experience – Ms Sheridan Dudley, Ms Hayley Elson and Mr Richard Jones.

The objective of Council’s ARIC is to provide independent assurance to Council by monitoring, reviewing and providing advice about Council’s governance processes, compliance, risk management and control frameworks, external accountability obligations and overall performance.

To date, the ARIC has reviewed Council’s Enterprise Risk Management Framework and has endorsed an Internal Audit Plan 2022-2024.

Audits of Developer Contributions and Payroll have recently been completed by independent internal auditors and actions arising are being implemented subject to budget and resourcing allocations. Internal audits of Asset Management Planning, Liveability, and a review of Council’s compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS) are currently underway. The ARIC reviews all internal audit reports and monitors outstanding recommendations on a quarterly basis.

Internal audits will progress in accordance with the Internal Audit Plan 2022-2024 and actions arising from audits will be kept under constant review by the Committee.

The additional operations required to resource and implement the ARIC and its requirements have been absorbed into existing staff functions.