Agenda item

The Leader presented the report which provided an update of the Council’s Corporate Risk Register for the end of Quarter 4 (31st March 2020).  The Leader explained that due to Covid-19 the update from this report had to be postponed until now.

The Leader drew attention to the following updates contained in the report:

•           At the end of quarter 4 the corporate risk register included 13 risks requiring monitoring from Cabinet and the Council’s Corporate Management Team;

•           The remaining risks will continue to be monitored through the Council’s service areas and Corporate Management Team.  Mechanisms are in place to escalate any new or existing risk to the Corporate Risk Register. 

•           At the end of Quarter 4 (1stJanuary to 31st March 2020) the Council has 8 High risks (15 to 25) and 3 Medium Risks (5 to 14) and 2 Low Risks (13 to 1).  In comparison to quarter 3 there was one new risk and no risks were closed.  However, one risk has increased in Risk score and four decreased.

o          (NEW) Covid-19 Pandemic Outbreak

         In quarter 4 the Council added the Covid-19 risk onto the risk register as a result of Covid-19 spreading across communities in Newport and impacting on the delivery of Council services.  The Council implemented its Gold Command Business Continuity arrangements to manage operational and community risks and issues for Newport with direct communications to regional and national groups (also outlined in the Covid-19 report on this agenda). Further updates on the strategic risks impacting the Council during the Covid-19 outbreak will be reported in the 2020/21 Quarter 1 risk update.

The Leader paused here to highlight that when these reports were prepared we were not in the position we find ourselves in today and she couldn’t emphasise enough how much covid-19 has impacted on our communities.  She confirmed the situation is still very fluid and subject to daily change.  Some of Newport’s neighbours are back in lockdown and the situation in Newport is also very serious.  Everyone needs to ensure they are doing everything they can to reduce the risk and ensure they follow the guidelines to prevent the spread of the virus.  The contact tracing service is fundamental to this and the Leader urged  the people of Newport to ensure that they use this system when attending restaurants, pubs, etc., which is fundamental in tracking any virus outbreaks.

Going back to the content of the report:

o          Stability of Social Care Providers (Risk score increase from 20 to 25)

         The capacity and ability for Social Care Providers (residential and domiciliary) to be able to provide the necessary care and support for service users was being affected by Covid-19 outbreaks in the community and in care settings across Newport at the end of Q4.

o             Balancing the Council’s Medium Term Budget Plan (Risk score decrease from 20 to 15)

         At the end of the financial year the Council had reduced the gap between its forecasted projections for the next 3 years.

o          In-Year Financial Management (Risk score decrease from 12 to 3)

         At the end of the financial year the Council’s Cabinet agreed a cash injection into the schools’ budgets reducing the impact of deficits.  However, there remains individual schools facing a deficit budget position and further action is required to reduce the impact of overspending in 2020/21.

o          Demand for Additional Learning Needs (ALN) and Special Educational Needs (SEN) support (Risk score decrease from 20 to 16)

         The budget for 2020/21 includes the new Additional Learning Needs funding formula agreed with head teachers which reduces the immediate risk.  During the lock down there has been an increase of requests for Formal Assessment for pupils who may require specialist placements or additional support.

•           A further update on the strategic risks impacting the Council during the Covid-19 outbreak will be reported in the 2020/21 Quarter 1 risk update.

The Leader invited her Cabinet colleagues to comment and all agreed with the Leader’s comments earlier in the meeting regarding the seriousness of the virus and urged everyone to be mindful to follow the rules to prevent further spread of the virus in order to help to prevent a second lockdown like two of our neighbouring authorities.

In summary the report asked Cabinet to:

•           consider the contents of the report and note the changes to the risk register for the end of quarter 4.

•           note that the Council’s Risk Management Policy and Corporate Risk Register enables the administration and officers to effectively identify, manage and monitor those risks which could prevent the authority from achieving its objectives in the Corporate Plan (2017-22) and its statutory duties.

•           note that the Quarter 4 risk report will also be presented to the Council’s Audit Committee in September 2020 to review the Council’s risk management process and governance arrangements.

Decision:

Cabinet voted and unanimously agreed the report.