To receive and consider the report of the Director of Change and Delivery.

Rebecca Aziz-Brook presented the report and provided an annual update on the council’s strategic risk register which identified any key risks to the organisation and the delivery of services. The report was reviewed by senior management to consider any changes to the risk scores and new actions to help mitigate risks.

The greatest risks involved funding uncertainty due to the current national economic picture and rising inflation. Resourcing and capacity due to the national job market and skill shortage and cyber security which could impact services and cause reputational damage.

To mitigate the risks, strong control measures and actions were in place which included the new People Strategy, the council’s governance framework and budget setting and monitoring processes.

From the last Strategic Risk Review, three risks had decreased whereas four increased.

The decreased risks included

n  ‘R2 – Failure to achieve desired outcomes through partnership working and deterioration in relationships.’

n  ‘R4 – Failure to optimize opportunities for new ways of working.’

n  R16 – Failure to manage the recovery from Covid-19 effectively.

The decrease was due to the closer working relationships with partners, the familiarity and adoption of digital and workplace strategies and the reduced risk from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The increased risks

n  R3 – Budget challenges in key public and third sector partners having a negative impact on local level service delivery. This was monitored and managed through the budget planning process.

n  R5 – Lack of resources to deliver the Council’s priorities due to public sector funding cuts or lack of staff capacity and skills. This risk was being mitigated with the review of management capacity to ensure good levels of capacity at leadership level and with the new People Strategy, which included specialist recruitment campaigns for technical roles, greater communication of vacancies with the development of apprentice and graduate programmes to develop from within to fill hard to recruit areas.

n  R10 – Failure to fully realise the benefits of new technology and related impact on driving organisational change. Mitigated through new dedicated resources to drive the programme forward with the ICT plan.

n  R11 - Reduction in staff satisfaction and morale. Mitigated through the close monitoring of wellbeing and morale through pulse surveys, and the People Strategy with opportunities for staff engagement, reward and recognition.

The new People Strategy had been drafted and due to launch in September. Proposals in place for the launch initiative around the graduate and apprentice programme, with development days to enable staff to have dedicated time to work on their development and skills in September and October. An action plan to sit alongside the People Strategy that covered the next 12 months.

Resolved – That the report be noted.