Please Note: This is a page from our Council News Archive and any information contained on this page will have been correct at the time of publication.

Audit review awards highest possible rating for new depot project management

Image
Outside the Guildhall in Gainsborough

West Lindsey District Council is currently building a £5 million brand-new purpose-built central Operational Services Depot.

Located near Caenby Corner, it will secure the future of waste collection and street cleansing services in the district and has been designed with everyday operations and visitors in mind.

Auditors carried out a review into the project management of the new depot and gave it a ‘high level assurance’ that a clearly defined approach to the project is in place.

Ady Selby, Assistant Director of Commercial and Operational Services at the Council was delighted with the outcome. He said: “The primary aim of the depot is to provide a safe and comfortable environment for our staff, as well as delivering a top-quality facility that can accommodate any waste, cleansing or recycling service needs for the next 50 years.

“This audit opinion gives us all that extra confidence that we are on track with our project and the project team are doing a great job in making this happen.”

The findings have been published as part of an internal quarterly audit report, where four other service areas were also audited. Auditors from Assurance Lincolnshire also awarded a high assurance opinion for the Council jointly with North Kesteven District Council for their Public Service Network (PSN) compliance. This is the process which provides assurance that shared services and access to data are adequately protected by all who connect to the network.

Cliff Dean, ICT Shared Services Manager at the Council said he was pleased with the outcome. He added: “The audit in a complex area of technology were conducted by a specialist firm to provide the Council with the insight and robust assurance that we are working in a safe and secure way. The audits were carried out in depth over a six week period, testing the full process on a number of technologies and environments.”

A substantial audit opinion was also given to the following areas:

  • Audits into Homelessness in particular the implementation of the joint Lincolnshire Homelessness Strategy
  • Email security
  • Strategic risk - inability to raise local educational and skill levels.

The news has been welcomed by Di Krochmal, Assistant Director for Homes and Communities at the Council. She said: “Homelessness can affect anyone at any point of their life due to unforeseen or unplanned circumstances. Changes in a person’s circumstances around health, employment or relationships can soon spiral into greater problems leaving people homeless or at risk of homelessness.

“That is why at West Lindsey we put people at the centre of our planning and we focus our efforts on prevention, tackling inequalities and enabling people to live independently where possible.”

The findings have been published in a report and were presented to the Governance and Audit Committee at the Council. The Committee is responsible for the internal audit programme, which changes each year. Internal audits are carried out regularly at the council which is important to ensure we continuously review our governance procedures.

The full report can be viewed on the Council’s website.

For more information about the Council please visit the website.

For the latest news on West Lindsey District Council visit our council news pages

Follow us on X (formerly known as Twitter), find us on Facebook, or sign up to our newsletter