WEST OF SCOTLAND ARCHAEOLOGY SERVICE ANNUAL

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

WEST OF SCOTLAND ARCHAEOLOGY SERVICE

ANNUAL ACCOUNTS

For the Year Ended 31 March 2023

(Pre-Audit Inspection Copy)

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

WEST OF SCOTLAND ARCHAEOLOGY SERVICE

Financial Statements for the Year ended 31 March 2023

Contents Page

 Management Commentary 2

 Statement of Responsibilities for the Statement of Accounts 5

 Movement in Reserves Statement 7

 Comprehensive Income and Expenditure Statement 8

 Balance Sheet 9

 Notes to the Accounts 10

 Annual Governance Statement 16

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

 Management Commentary



The West of Scotland Archaeology Service (WoSAS) was set up in 1997 as a Joint

Committee of 12 Local Authorities in the region. However, North Lanarkshire Council left

the Joint Committee on 31 March 2009, as did Inverclyde Council on 31 March 2013, in

both cases after service of the requisite two year notice period. East Renfrewshire and

South Lanarkshire Councils, having previously submitted two years’ notice of withdrawal

from the service which would have come into effect on 1st April 2018, rescinded their

notice following progress on revisions to the service delivery model, and remain members.

 In 2004 West Lothian Council became members of the Joint Committee, and since 2018

the archaeological curatorial service has also been provided to East Dunbartonshire

Council, which became part of the Joint Committee in 2019.

 The primary purpose of the Archaeology Service is to provide planning related

archaeological advice to its member councils to allow them to discharge their duties in

respect of Scottish Government planning guidance for the treatment of archaeological

remains in the planning process.

 Since 2003, a curatorial archaeological advice service has also been provided to the Loch

Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority, originally in conjunction with Perth &

Kinross Heritage Trust and with the Stirling Council archaeologist. Since 1 July 2012

WoSAS has been the sole service provider.

 At various stages the Service has also provided advice to the Forestry Commission and its

successor authorities, and to the Scottish Rural Development Programme. The Service

has carried out specific archaeological advice contract work for a number of other public

sector clients including Transport Scotland. It also previously received grant aid from the

former Historic Scotland for specific projects.

 The Service covers a large, geographically diverse region stretching from the Southern

Uplands to Argyll and its islands. This varied territory includes the Clydeside conurbation

and the City of Glasgow with its strong industrial archaeological heritage, many important

towns with medieval cores, and a large rural area containing many significant

archaeological sites. The service plays a key role in identifying for its member councils and

other clients archaeological issues arising from development within this diverse area. For

this purpose, the service curates a detailed Historic Environment Record which contains

the most up to date archaeological knowledge.

 The Historic Environment Record (HER) is the key tool for the Service in its own work.

Selected data from the Record is made available online to the public through both a

Geographical Information System (GIS) based interface and a searchable database.

Spatial information from the Historic Environment Record is provided to the Local

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Government Improvement Service on behalf of each member council so that they continue

to comply with the statutory requirements of the INSPIRE (Scotland) Regulations 2009.

The service also responds to direct enquiries from the public.

 Not all archaeological sites are currently known – some areas of Scotland have still to be

systematically surveyed. Many sites remain to be discovered below ground level, for

example in the rich agricultural lands in Ayrshire where all surface traces have been

ploughed flat over the centuries. Since its inception, the Service has identified and handled

over 23,000 planning applications and as a result a number of significant archaeological

sites have been discovered and have been excavated with developer funding, as advised

in the Scottish Government policy.

 All archaeological fieldwork arising from the planning process is undertaken by private

sector commercial archaeologists on behalf of developers. The service undertakes no

fieldwork itself but oversees the implementation of archaeological conditions attached to

planning consent for development. The service has continually refined and updated how it

deals with the historic environment in the planning system, receiving Commendations for

the Development Management category in the Scottish Awards for Quality in Planning on

two occasions, most recently in 2014.

 During the report period, the service dealt with 1,935 new casework items, a 7.2%

increase on the total of the previous reporting year. The new casework items comprised

consultation on 973 planning applications, monitoring 621 Weekly Lists of Planning

Applications, and 341 other casework items. Achievements against the agreed

Performance Indicators for each of these categories of work for the reporting period to

31st March 2023 are set out below.

 During and after the Covid pandemic there were noticeably fewer requests for assistance

or consultation responses in the five categories of casework aggregated into “Other Work

Areas”. However, demand for this type of assistance is continuing to rise, and is

Casework

type

Performance Indicator

(As set out in WoSAS Service Level Agreement)

Performance

Standard

Performance

2022-23

Planning

Application

Consultations

Applications to be actioned within 21 calendar

days of receipt.

80% 90.6%

Monitoring

Weekly Lists

Lists to be monitored and actioned within 14

calendar days of receipt.

90% 99.8%

Other Work

Areas

Casework to be actioned within 21 calendar days

of receipt.

80% 90.1%

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

approaching the level seen before the pandemic. Due to the rising casework load in

planning applications, the Service’s capacity to respond quickly to external requests for

assistance in other work areas has been somewhat reduced, and there has been a slight

fall in the percentage of casework response times achieved within the agreed performance

standard compared to the last reporting period.

 Alterations to the host authority’s timetable for the implementation of its new staff salary

structure continues to delay the post-Covid review of the Service’s updated service

delivery proposals, but the Service will respond flexibly to take account of the outcome of

the new salary structure, and of the continuing phased introduction of the provisions of the

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4). In all of this, the Service will have to adapt and

accommodate any changes in the way in which our work is carried out in response to the

requirements of the member Councils.

 In the coming period, throughout any transition in working practices in the planning

system, the service will continue to monitor, identify, and handle archaeological issues

arising through the planning process on behalf of its member Councils and clients and will

continue to give advice to the public and to make Historic Environment Record information

available to them through the Service website at www.wosas.net

and through the

Improvement Service’s Spatial Hub and on the Pastmap portal in partnership with Historic

Environment Scotland.

Financial Results

The balance of usable reserves at the 1 April 2022 was £163,428. In 2022/23 total expenditure

was £182,113 and total income was £178,183 resulting in a deficit for the year of £3,930 compared

to a £16,187 budgeted deficit. The balance of usable reserves at 31 March 2023 was £159,498.

This represents 166% of the £96,000 reserve level recommended by the reserve policy review.

The difference between the 2022/23 budgeted deficit and the actual 2022/23 year end deficit can

be explained by a temporary arrangement reducing the number of hours worked by one of the

employees.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Statement of Responsibilities for the Statement of Accounts

1. The lead authority’s responsibilities

The lead authority is required to:

• Make arrangements for the proper administration of its financial affairs and to ensure that the

proper officer of the council has responsibility for the administration of those affairs (section 95

of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973). In this council, that officer is the Executive

Director of Finance;

• Manage its affairs to secure economic, efficient and effective use of resources and safeguard

its assets;

• Ensure the Annual Accounts are prepared in accordance with legislation (the Local Authority

Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2014 and so far as is compatible with that legislation, in

accordance with proper accounting practices (section 12 of the Local Government Scotland

Act 2003); and

• Approve the Annual Accounts for signature.

These Annual Accounts will be considered by the Service before 31 August 2023 and submitted to

the Service to be approved for signature no later than 30 November 2023 .

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

2. The Executive Director of Finance responsibilities

The Executive Director of Finance is responsible for the preparation of the council’s Annual

Accounts, in accordance with proper practices, as required by legislation and as set out in the

Code of Practice on Local Authority Accounting in the United Kingdom (the Code).

In preparing the Annual Accounts, the Executive Director of Finance has:

• Selected suitable accounting policies and then applied them consistently;

• Made judgements and estimates on a reasonable basis

• Complied with legislation; and

• Complied with the Code (in so far as it is compatible with legislation).

The Executive Director of Finance has also:

• Kept adequate accounting records, which were up to date; and

• Taken reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

I certify that the financial statements give a true and fair view of the financial position of West of

Scotland Archaeology Service as at 31 March 2023 and the transactions for the year then ended.

Martin Booth BA FCPFA MBA

Executive Director of Finance

29 June 2023

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Movement in Reserves Statement for the Year ended 31 March

2023

The Code requires reserves to be summarised as usable and unusable. The balance in WOSAS is

the sole useable reserve and represents the accumulated surplus of the organisation.

The balance on the fund stands at £159,498 as at 31 March 2023, a decrease of £3,930 from last

year, due to the deficit on the provision of services in the year.

Total

Reserves

Balance at 1 April 2021 150,465

Movement in reserves during 2021/22:

Surplus or (Deficit) on the Provision of Services 12,963

Other Comprehensive Income and (Expenditure) 0

Increase or (Decrease) in the year 12,963

Balance at 31 March 2022 163,428

Movement in reserves during 2022/23:

Surplus or (Deficit) on the Provision of Services (3,930)

Other Comprehensive Income and (Expenditure) 0

Increase or (Decrease) in the year

(3,930)

Balance at 31 March 2023 159,498

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Comprehensive Income and Expenditure Statement for the Year

ended 31 March 2023

2021/22

Net Exp.

Service

Note

2022/23

Net Expenditure

159,256

Gross expenditure

182,113

(172,156)

Gross income 3

(173,757)

(12,900)

Cost of Services

8,356

(63)

Interest and investment income

(4,426)

(12,963)

Financing and Investment Income and Expenditure

(4,426)

(12,963)

(Surplus) or Deficit on the Provision of Services

3,930

Other Comprehensive (Income) and Expenditure

(12,963)

Total Comprehensive (Income) and Expenditure

3,930

Comprehensive Income and Expenditure Statement – shows income and

expenditure incurred in the year relating to the provision of WOSAS and other unrealised gains

and losses. In total, this reflects the movement in the overall WOSAS reserves shown in the

Balance Sheet.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2023

31 March 22

Note

31 March 23

173,001

Net short-term debtors 8

162,088

173,001

Current Assets

162,088

(9,573)

Short-term creditors 9

(2,590)

(9,573)

Current Liabilities

(2,590)

163,428

Net Assets / (Liabilities)

159,498

163,428

Usable Reserves

159,498

Unusable Reserves

163,428

Total Reserves

159,498

Balance Sheet – represents the value of the assets and liabilities of WOSAS as at 31 March

2023. The net assets (assets less liabilities) are matched by the total Usable and Unusable

Reserves.

The unaudited accounts were issued on

the 29 June 2023

Martin Booth BA CPFA MBA

Executive Director of Finance

29 June 2023

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Notes to the Financial Statements

The main objective of these notes is to provide further explanation for certain aspects of the core

Financial Statements.

1. Statement of accounting policies

The Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2023 have been compiled on the basis of

recommendations made by the Local Authority (Scotland) Accounts Advisory Committee

(LASAAC) and have been prepared in accordance with the Code of Practice on Local Authority

Accounting in the United Kingdom 2022/23 (the Code). The Code is based on International

Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) with interpretation appropriate to the public sector. The

statements are designed to give a ‘true and fair view’ of the financial performance and position of

the Service.

The accounting concepts of materiality, accruals, going concern and primacy of legislative

requirements have been considered in the application of accounting policies. In this regard the

materiality concept means that information is included where the information is of such significance

as to justify its inclusion. The accruals concept requires the non-cash effects of transactions to be

included in the financial statement for the year in which they occur, not in the period in which the

cash is paid or received. The going concern concept assumes that the Service will not significantly

curtail the scale of its operation. Wherever accounting principles and legislative requirements are

in conflict, the latter shall apply.

Income

Income includes all sums due in respect of subscriptions from member authorities and other

organisations, fees and charges, and interest earned on fund balances for the year ended 31

March 2023.

Supplies of goods and services

Suppliers’ invoices received up to 31 March 2023 are included, together with the specific accrual of

invoices received after that date for material amounts, provided the goods or services were

received in 2022/23.

Salaries

Salaries earned to 31 March 2023 are included in the accounts for 2022/23 irrespective of when

the actual payments were made.

Material items

When items of income and expenditure are material, their nature and amount is disclosed

separately, either on the face of the Comprehensive Income and Expenditure Statement or in the

notes to the accounts, depending on how significant the items are to the understanding of the

service’s financial performance.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Events after the balance sheet date

Events after the balance sheet date are those events, both favourable and unfavourable, that

occur between the end of the reporting period and the date when the statement of accounts is

authorised for issue. Two types of events may be identified:

Those that provide evidence of conditions that existed at the end of the reporting period – the

Financial Statements are adjusted to reflect such events; and

Those that are indicative of conditions that arose after the reporting period – the Financial

Statements are not adjusted to reflect such events, but where this would have a material effect, the

nature and estimated financial impact of such events is disclosed in the notes.

Prior period adjustments, changes in accounting policies and estimates

Prior period adjustments may arise as a result of a change in accounting policy or to correct a

material error. Changes in accounting policy are only made when required by proper accounting

practice or to provide more reliable or relevant information on the council’s financial position.

Where a change is made, it is applied retrospectively by adjusting opening balances and

comparative amounts for the prior period, as if the new policy had always been applied. Changes

in accounting estimation techniques are applied in the current and future years and do not give rise

to a prior period adjustment

2. New standards issued but not yet adopted

The Code requires the disclosure of information relating to the impact of an accounting change

that will be required by a new standard that has been issued but not yet adopted. This applies to

the adoption of the following new or amended standards within the 2023/24 Code:

• Amendments to IAS8 Definition of Accounting Estimates.

• Amendments to IAS1 and IFRS Practice Statement 2 Disclosure of Accounting Policies.

• Amendments to IAS12 Deferred Tax related to Assets and Liabilities arising from Single

Transaction.

• Amendments to IFRS3 Conceptual Framework updates.

The Code requires implementation from 1 April 2023 therefore there is no impact on the 2022/23

annual accounts

Overall, these new or amended standards are not expected to have a significant impact on the

Annual Accounts

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

3. Income and expenditure statement

The table below provides a detailed breakdown of income and expenditure of the Service during

2022/23.

2021/22

Net Exp.

Note

2022/23

Net Expenditure

Income

(138,090)

Contributions from participating local authorities

(138,090)

(34,066)

Fees and charges 6 (35,667)

(63)

Interest on balances 7 (4,426)

(172,219)

Total income

(178,183)

Expenditure

147,370

Employee costs

169,153

Fees and subscriptions

200

3,000

IT maintenance

3,000

Purchase of services

6,700

Rents

7,370

2,120

Audit fee

2,390

159,256

Total expenditure

182,113

(12,963)

(Surplus) or deficit for year

3,930

(150,465)

(Surplus) brought forward (163,428)

(163,428)

Accumulated (surplus) or deficit (159,498)

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

4. Local authority subscriptions

The majority of income received by WOSAS is derived from contributions received from the local

authorities who are members of the Service.

A detailed breakdown of each member’s contribution to the Service is shown in the table below: -

Annual

Subscription

2021/22

Local Authority

Annual

Subscription

2022/23

(22,971) Argyll and Bute Council (22,971)

(8,647) Glasgow City Council (8,647)

(12,691) East Ayrshire Council (12,691)

(7,619) East Renfrewshire Council (7,619)

(12,691) North Ayrshire Council (12,691)

(12,691) Renfrewshire Council (12,691)

(12,691) South Ayrshire Council (12,691)

(17,784) South Lanarkshire Council (17,784)

(7,619) West Dunbartonshire Council (7,619)

(12,691) West Lothian Council (12,691)

(9,995) East Dunbartonshire Council (9,995)

(138,090) Total (138,090)

Note: - The contribution received from Glasgow City Council is net of an agreed lead authority

administrative charge of £5,000

5. Employee benefits

The staff members of the Service are Glasgow City Council employees and the council is an

admitted body of the Strathclyde Pension Fund.

In accordance with International Accounting Standard 19 (IAS 19) – Employee Benefits, the

council is required to disclose certain information concerning assets, liabilities, income and

expenditure, of the pension scheme. The Service’s staff pension costs are reflected in the figures

disclosed in Glasgow City Council’s financial statements.

The Code requires that employee benefits are recognised in the accounts when they are earned

rather than when they are paid. As a result, there is a requirement to consider notional

entitlements to annual leave earned but not taken as at 31 March. The employees working on the

Service’s activities are contracted to Glasgow City Council and therefore any notional liability has

been included within the accounts of Glasgow City Council who holds the contract of employment.

6. Fees and Charges

The £35,667 total for fees and charges includes £16,667 for an archaeological advice service

provided to the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park Authority.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

7. Interest

The Interest rate applied is 1.35% and is calculated on an annual basis at 31 March using an

average of the Base Rate interest over the year, the rate Glasgow City Council have paid to

borrow monies throughout the year and the rate Glasgow City Council have received when lending

throughout the year.

8. Short-term debtors

The net short-term debtors figure for 2022/23 of £162,088 (2021/22 £173,001) comprises the

following: -

31 March 2022

Short-term debtors

31 March 2023

35,642 Balance held by Glasgow City Council on behalf of WOSAS 36,607

Outstanding payments from: -

3,596 Pay accrual 3,536

22,971 Argyll and Bute Council 0

17,784 South Lanarkshire Council 0

12,691 East Ayrshire Council 15,387

12,691 North Ayrshire Council 0

12,691 South Ayrshire Council 25,382

12,691 Renfrewshire Council 12,691

12,691 West Lothian Council 12,691

9,995 East Dunbartonshire Council 9,995

0 Glasgow City Council contribution 8,294

7,619 West Dunbartonshire Council 7,619

7,619 East Renfrewshire Council 7,619

2,280 CFA Archaeology Ltd 0

0 Loch Lomond and the Trossachs 16,667

2,040 Other outstanding payments 5,600

173,001 Total sundry debtors 162,088

9. Short-term creditors

The short-term creditors figure for 2022/23 of £2,590 (2021/22 £9,573) comprises the following: -

31 March 2022

Short-term creditors

31 March 2023

2,120 Accrued audit fees

2,390

6,700 Rent 0

400 Provision for bad debt 0

353 Glasgow City Council contribution 0

0 Subscription 200

9,573 Total sundry creditors 2,590

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

10. Remuneration Report

West of Scotland Archaeology Service is a Joint Committee comprised of several local authorities.

Given that Glasgow City Council (GCC) is the lead authority, the senior management are deemed

to be from GCC. Details of remuneration paid to senior management at GCC are available in the

remuneration report included within GCC’s financial statements. One of the employees working on

the project is in the earnings band between £50,000 and £55,000 per annum.

11. Related Parties

Glasgow City Council is the administering body responsible for WOSAS. The related party

transactions between WOSAS and Glasgow City Council are shown in the table below: -

2021/22

Net

Exp/(Inc)

Debtor/(Creditor)

at 31 March 2022

Related Party

transactions and

balances

2022/23

Exp

2022/23

Inc

Debtor/(Creditor)

at 31 March 2023

Related bodies

1,053 28,589 Glasgow City Council 10,370 8,647 44,901

12. Auditor remuneration

WOSAS incurred fees of £2,390 for the statutory inspection of the financial statements by Audit

Scotland. The comparable figure for 2021/22 was £2,120. Fees payable in respect of other

services provided by the appointed auditor were £nil (2021/22 £nil).

13. IT Maintenance

IT provision is through a service level agreement between the Service and Glasgow City Council

valued at £3,000 for 2022/23 (2021/22 £3,000).

14. Events after the balance sheet date

There were no material events between 31 March 2023 and the date of signing that require to be

reflected in the Financial Statements.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Annual Governance Statement

1. Scope of responsibility

The West of Scotland Archaeology Service Joint Committee is responsible for ensuring that its

business is conducted in accordance with the law and proper standards and that public money is

safeguarded and properly accounted for. Under the Local Government in Scotland Act 2003, the

Joint Committee also has a statutory duty to make arrangements to secure best value, which is to

ensure continuous improvement in the way its functions are exercised, and to ensure public funds

and assets are used economically, efficiently and effectively.

In discharging these responsibilities, elected members and senior officers must ensure proper

arrangements for the governance of the Service’s affairs and facilitate the effective exercise of its

functions, which includes the management of risk and stewardship of the resources at its disposal.

WOSAS’s financial management arrangements complies with the governance requirements of the

CIPFA Statement on the Role of the Head of Internal Audit and the role of the Chief Financial

Officer in Local Government (2016) by virtue of the adoption by Glasgow City Council of a Local

Code of Corporate Governance, which is consistent with the principles of the Chartered Institute of

Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) and the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives

(SOLACE) Framework: Delivering Good Governance in Local Government.

The Code is regularly reviewed and evidences the Council’s commitment to achieving good

governance and demonstrates how it complies with recommended standards.

The Joint Committee relies on the Council which has embedded a system of risk management and

internal control. While providing reasonable assurance, these systems cannot, however, provide

absolute assurance or certainty in entirely eliminating the risk of the Council failing to achieve its

aims and objectives; incurring material errors; losses; fraud or breaches of laws and regulations

2. The Joint Committee’s Governance Framework

The governance framework comprises the systems and processes, and culture and values, by

which the Joint Committee is directed and controlled. Through the framework it is accountable to,

engages with and leads the community. It enables the Joint Committee to monitor the achievement

of its objectives against its plans and to consider whether those objectives have led to the delivery

of appropriate, cost-effective services. The governance framework will be continually updated to

reflect best practice, new legislative requirements and the expectations of stakeholders.

The Joint Committee has responsibility for ensuring the continuing effectiveness of its governance

framework and system of internal control. The main features of the Joint Committee’s governance

arrangements are as follows:-

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

• A Minute of Agreement between the member councils of WOSAS

• The Joint Committee of councillors from the member authorities is supported by a Steering

Group of officers from the authorities’ planning services

• Clearly defined Standing Orders, Scheme of Delegation and Financial Regulations

• Public performance reporting through the Annual Report

• Regular meetings of the WOSAS Officer Steering Group and the Joint Committee

• A budget setting process which includes the agreed local authority and other bodies

contributions to the annual running costs of the organisation

• The regulation of employee matters through the Council’s Code of Conduct for employees

3. Review of Effectiveness

The Council's governance arrangements, across 2022/23 and were regarded as fit for purpose in

accordance with the governance framework. The governance framework is continually reviewed

to reflect best practice, new legislative requirements and the expectations of stakeholders. The

effectiveness of the framework, including the system of internal control, is considered at least

annually and is informed by:

(a) The work of the members of the Corporate Management Team, including statutory

officers, who have responsibility for the development and maintenance of the

governance environment. Throughout 2022/23, arrangements continued to operate to

ensure that officers were clear on their role and responsibilities and that officers were

compliant with the CIPFA Statements on “The Role of the Chief Financial Officer in

Local Government” and “The Role of the Head of Internal Audit in Public Service

Organisations 2019”.

(b) Oversight by the Director of Legal and Administrative Services, who was the Council’s

Monitoring Officer for 2022/23.

section. The latest external quality review of the section was completed in April 2021

and reported to the Finance and Audit Scrutiny Committee on 5 May 2021

. This report

concluded that the section conforms with the requirements of the Public Sector

Internal Audit Standards 2017 (PSIAS). The Internal Audit section continues to hold

BSi quality accreditation under ISO9001:2015 and Audit Scotland continue to use the

work of the section in the execution of their annual audit plan.

Internal Audit continue

to present a register of all outstanding audit recommendations to the Finance and

Audit Scrutiny Committee on a regular basis.

The Internal Audit Plan for 2022/23 was

approved by the Finance and Audit Scrutiny Committee on 23 March 2022

with a subsequent

update on 22 March 2023

(d) Observations made by external auditors and other review agencies and inspectorates.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

(e) The completion of a self-assessment questionnaire by Service Directors and

Managing Directors/Chief Executives of subsidiaries and relevant associates. This

questionnaire is aligned to the principles contained in the CIPFA/SOLACE Framework:

Delivering Good Governance in Local Government, and requires assessments to be

made of the extent to which arrangements within each Service/organisation comply

with these principles. The responses to the questionnaires are confirmed on a sample

basis by Internal Audit, as part of a rolling programme of corporate governance

reviews.

(f) The completion of signed statements of internal control by all Service Directors and

the Managing Directors/Chief Executives of subsidiaries and relevant associates.

Such statements were received for 2022/23, declaring that “There are, in my opinion,

no significant matters that require to be raised in this Certificate, which is provided to

support Glasgow City Council's Statement of Internal Control for the financial year

2022/23, as it is my opinion that the procedures which have been designed to ensure

proper governance and financial control are operating adequately”.

(g) The exercising, by the two Scrutiny Committees, of respective remits including scrutiny

of the performance of Services, subsidiaries and relevant associates, including

financial management, statutory and other performance, and outcomes set through

the GCPP Community Plan, which are relevant to partnership working and monitoring

internal financial control, corporate risk management and corporate governance, and

receiving and considering summaries of internal and external audit reports. In

accordance with the Council’s Standing Orders, all Committees are required to

undertake an annual evaluation of effectiveness. An independent assessment of each

Council Committee was undertaken during 2021/22, having been delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic. These reviews were completed by senior officers independent

of the Committee to be reviewed and the results were consolidated and reported to the

Operational Performance and Delivery Scrutiny Committee on 9 February 2022.

Self

assessments will be undertaken during 2023, allowing for a year of working after the

2022 Local Government Elections.

(h) The CIPFA FInancial Management Code provides guidance for good and sustainable

financial management in local authorities. By complying with the principles and

standards within the code authorities will be able to demonstrate their financial

sustainability. Council management undertook a self-assessment against the

Financial Management Code during quarter one 2022/23, which confirmed overall

compliance with the Code’s requirements

Senior officers have been advised on the implications of the result of the review of the

effectiveness of the governance framework by Internal and External Audit and plans to address

weaknesses and ensure continuous improvement of the systems are in place.

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

4. Governance Developments and Future Activity

Following publication of a Best Value Assurance Report on the Council by Audit Scotland, on

behalf of the Accounts Commission, the Council approved its BVAR Action Plan in September

2018. Updates on the BVAR Action Plan were presented to Finance and Audit Scrutiny Committee

13 March 2019 and 11 September 2019. The final update was presented on 11 March 2020

and noted that the majority of the specific agreed actions were complete with those actions forming

part of longer-term ongoing plans, for example, homelessness and Thriving Places, continuing to

progress, with oversight by, and reports to, existing governance structures, including the Corporate

Management Team and City Administration Committee.

The following activity is planned, in relation to the governance framework, in 2023/24:

• Review the Strategic Plan to reflect the increasingly significant financial challenges

faced by the Council and its ALEOs, and also the cost of living crisis that our citizens

and communities continue to face.

• Review of the Council’s Performance Management Framework.

• Continued implementation of the recommendations arising from the Best Value

Assurance Report.

• Continuation of the Council Family Review, including the Glasgow Life CFR action

plan, and enhancing the Council’s ALEO Governance framework.

• Progressing implementation of a new pay and grading scheme.

5. Update on significant governance issues previously reported

ICT Service and Security

In 2021/22, the Internal Audit annual opinion was qualified due to significant concerns relating to

ICT security and ICT contract management arrangements. Whilst some progress has been made

to remedy these issues, the Council remains exposed to significant risk in this area. Internal Audit

remains heavily involved in monitoring the progress being made by the Council’s ICT provider,

CGI, and Council Management on the high priority actions that are required to mitigate the

significant risks arising in this area to an appropriate level.

6. Significant Governance Issues

SAP P1 Incident

In January 2023, the Council experienced a critical incident involving the SAP system, leaving this

business critical Enterprise Resource Planning system unavailable for five weeks. SAP is used to

manage essential business processes including payroll, accounts payable/receivable, and financial

ledger (including management accounts). It also interfaces with other key systems, for example

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

Social Work Services’ Care First system, and Financial Service’s Academy system (Council Tax

and Housing Benefit).

During the outage, Business Continuity Plans were activated by Services and ALEOs, but the

length of the disruption put significant strain on the Council’s ability to maintain transactional

finance and associated processes. Whilst the Council and ALEOs managed to ensure all staff

were paid on time, some manual processes had to be put in place. There was also a significant

impact on the ability to make payments to suppliers, with only emergency manual payments being

made manually for a period of time, and backlogs subsequently building up. Direct payments

(carers payments etc), were also subject to manual BCP activity. Management accounts (a key

aspect of the Council’s internal control environment) and outturn forecasts were not completed

between January and the year end.

A full lessons learned report by CGI was issued in May 2023 and Internal Audit is undertaking

corroboration assurance work on the findings. Internal Audit is also currently working through the

significant manual and business continuity activity that happened during the incident, and the

clearing of backlog transactions. The processes adopted and the risk-based approach observed

to date appear reasonable. However, substantive testing by Internal Audit on transactions affected

by the outage is ongoing due to the scale of the data. A further update will be provided to FASC

once this significant assurance work by Internal Audit is complete

7. Internal audit Opinion

The Council has a system of internal control designed to manage risk to a reasonable level.

Internal controls cannot eliminate the risk of failure to achieve policies, aims and objectives and

can therefore only provide reasonable and not absolute assurance of effectiveness.

Based on the audit work undertaken, the assurances provided by Service Directors and Managing

Directors/Chief Executives of subsidiaries and relevant associates, and noting the issues outlined

at Section 3 above, it is the Head of Audit and Inspection’s opinion that limited assurance can be

placed upon the adequacy and effectiveness of the governance and control environment which

operated during 2022/23 in the council and its subsidiaries and relevant associates

West of Scotland Archaeology Service

8. Certification

It is our opinion that limited assurance can be placed upon the adequacy and effectiveness of the

systems of governance and internal control that operate in Glasgow City Council and its

subsidiaries and relevant associates. The self-assessments, the statements of internal control

signed by Service Directors and Managing Directors (of subsidiaries and relevant associates) and

the work undertaken by Internal Audit has shown that, with the exception of those matters listed

above, the arrangements in place are operating as planned. However, improvements are

specifically required in relation to ICT services and resilience, and governance arrangements at

City Building. Work is underway to address these matters and officers will monitor and report on

their implementation.

We will continue to review and enhance, as necessary, our governance arrangements