Agenda item - New England House Closure: Response to Internal Audit

RESOLVED –

That the Audit, Standards, and General Purposes Committee:

1)       Notes the Internal Audit report as set out at Appendix 1 of the report.

2)       Notes the recommendations for action as set out in paragraphs 3.10 and 3.13 of the report setting how the city council, as a learning organisation, are responding and applying lessons learned.

3)       Agrees to officers bringing a report to a future meeting of Audit, Standards and General Purposes Committee, six months from the date of this meeting, to update on progress in implementing lessons and actions from the Lessons Learned report.

11.1    The committee considered the Internal Audit response to the New England House Closure, the report sets out the findings of a lessons learned exercise undertaken by the council’s Internal Audit team into the sudden temporary closure of New England House (NEH) in November 2024 for fire safety reasons, and the events leading up to that and to the subsequent closure of the building while long term options were reviewed.

11.2    Councillors Hewitt, Meadows, and West asked questions and contributed to the debate of the report.

11.3    RESOLVED –

That the Audit, Standards, and General Purposes Committee:

1)       Notes the Internal Audit report as set out at Appendix 1 of the report.

2)       Notes the recommendations for action as set out in paragraphs 3.10 and 3.13 of the report setting how the city council, as a learning organisation, are responding and applying lessons learned.

3)       Agrees to officers bringing a report to a future meeting of Audit, Standards and General Purposes Committee, six months from the date of this meeting, to update on progress in implementing lessons and actions from the Lessons Learned report.