Members Present:
Dorinnia Carville, Chair (C&AG)
Rodney Allen (COO)
Patrick Barr (Director)
Suzanne Jones (Director)
Colette Kane (Director)
Brian O’Neill (Director)
Seamus Wade (Director)
Tomas Wilkinson (Director)
In Attendance:
Jill Aicken (Head of People and OD) – agenda item 2 and 3.2
Louise Halligan (Secretariat Support)
Conor Hill (Auditor) – agenda item 4.3
Apologies
No apologies were recorded.
Declaration of Conflicts of Interest
There were no conflicts declared by members.
Minutes of previous meeting
Matters Arising
Minutes of the previous meeting held on 18 March 2025 were agreed subject to minor amendment and the matters arising were noted as updated.
Corporate Management Team (CMT) Briefing
There is no CMT meeting scheduled for April therefore, no briefing will be provided to SLT this month.
People and OD
2.1 People and OD Monthly Report
Jill Aicken presented a report, highlighting the following key areas:
- Sickness Absence statistics – members noted and welcomed the positive figures presented.
- Employee Opinion Survey – A briefing for staff on the results of the survey due to be held on 15 April 2025 has been cancelled and will be rescheduled for a later date.
- Trade Union (TU) Liaison – The TU pay claim for 2025/26 was received on 27 March 2025 and is currently being considered by management.
Training and Development – Jill advised that the Learning and Development Officer would be undertaking an exercise to map the training needs of staff to the Learning and Development Strategy. Members welcomed this development.
Strategic Projects
3.1 Accommodation Project
Rodney Allen advised the following:
- New tenants have taken occupancy of the second-floor office space and efforts to secure tenants for the remaining vacant office space are ongoing.
- A meeting has been scheduled this week with the contractors and sub-contractors to agree a final strategy to address the ongoing heating/cooling issues.
- An initial roof inspection of the building has identified some areas that require further investigation.
Seamus Wade provided a verbal update on resource planning.
- Strategic Performance
Management Information (MI) Report – Financial Audit and Public Reporting
A combined report providing a breakdown of the costs associated with financial audits and the costs and timing for completing public reports was presented. Brian O’Neill advised that figures relating to the 2024/25 financial audits would be added to the report for the May 2025 meeting.
The C&AG requested that a further paper detailing audit budgets, costs and income be prepared for the May SLT meeting. Brian O’Neill agreed to progress this.
4.2 Position re Backlog Accounts
Members provided the C&AG with an update on the current position regarding the number of backlog audits. The C&AG welcomed the positive position to date.
4.3 Net Zero Action Plan – Quarterly Update
Conor Hill joined the meeting and provided a comprehensive update on key developments to date, he advised that an updated action plan would be presented at the May SLT meeting.
Members were asked to note the following:
- Early 2024-25 emission figures (gas, water, electricity and waste)
- The results from the recent staff transport survey.
- A report on the potential use of solar power energy at 106 University Street.
SLT welcomed the update provided and reiterated their continued support to the work of the Group.
Quality Report
5.1 Technical Team Update
Suzanne Jones provided an update on the following key areas:
- Audit Quality - Four out of the five QCR reviews have now had their file summaries completed. Root cause analysis meetings are currently underway and will be completed with each team and the technical team before the Easter holiday period. A timeline for the final ICAEW report will be shared with SLT when dates have been confirmed.
- Training - Ethics training will be recorded this week and should be available for staff to view after the Easter holiday period.
5.2 Public Reporting Update
Patrick Barr provided an update on the following key areas:
- Public Reporting Guidance Refresh – A successful public reporting day was held on the 11 April 2025, the Directorate will now liaise with their individual teams to progress feedback and information gathered on the day.
- Peer Review - The peer review process is now complete with two studies having been reviewed. Overall, positive feedback has been received and the relevant teams have been briefed accordingly.
Financial Management
6.1 Corporate Services Report
Members were asked to note the current financial position and variances from budget.
- Corporate Governance
- Business Support Services Report
A report to update members on Complaints, Procurement, Legal Advice, Information Management, Governance and Assembly Liaison was presented. No significant issues were raised.
An Induction Day for newly appointed Non-Executive Directors has been scheduled for 14 May 2025 and further details will be issued to members in the coming weeks.
Communications and Engagement
8.1 Communications and Engagement Report
MLA Survey – Work is progressing on developing a survey, this should be completed in the coming months.
Assembly Monitoring Service – A three-month extension has been agreed with the current provider, a procurement exercise will take place in the coming months with a view to a longer-term supplier being in place from September 2025.
9. Risk Management
9.1 Corporate Risk Register (CRR)
The Corporate Risk Register was presented by Colette Kane, minor changes made since the March SLT meeting were highlighted in red for members’ convenience.
Risk Register Review
Work is underway by Internal Audit, it was agreed that once the revised format has been received it will be shared with CMT for their input/consideration.
10. Papers noted:
Internal Audit Reports:
10.1 Delivery Management: Management of Contracted-Out Audits
10.2 Core Financial Controls
11. Matters for Escalation to Advisory Board, ARAC, RemCom
No items presented.
AOB
No AOB to note.
13. Date of next meeting
The next meeting will be held on 19 May 2025.