The head of internal audit at Barrow Borough Council resigned earlier this year over concerns about governance, management, transparency and accountability, it has been revealed.
The former employee said in a letter that the previous two to three years had seen a deterioration in the functioning of a council that at times, did not appear to focus on delivering services to those in most need.
His resignation came in the same year as an external audit report that said there were significant weaknesses in the council’s procurement and contract management arrangements and that the local authority had been slow to address them.
The former employee claimed that an increase in delegated powers had occurred and that this constituted the removal of real transparency and accountability.
He suggested this change had been followed up by failed senior officer recruitment drives.
The external audit report, put together by Grant Thornton, said several attempts to hire a contracts and procurement manager and a project management officer had proved unsuccessful.
“The council has worked collaboratively with neighbouring councils and bought in skills and experience from Cumbria County Council and external procurement support and consultancy services, but recognises this incurs additional cost and is not an ideal substitute for an internal, fully staffed and skilled procurement team,” said the report.
A joint statement issued by councillors Hazel Edwards, Wendy McClure and Martin McLeavy, who sit on the borough council as independents, said: “Procurement, contracts and other issues have been delegated to our senior management team, removing councillor involvement.”
The former head of internal audit agreed in his letter that procurement and contract matters had been ‘weak, potentially very weak’ for a ‘number of years’.
“A number of contracts have not been managed effectively or efficiently, the waste arrangement being the most stand-out failure,” he said.
The report from Grant Thornton also highlighted issues with the waste management contract, such as a two-year delay in completing the council’s pre-contract checklist, which should have been completed prior to awarding the contract.
The report said that problems escalated throughout the contract process despite council attempts to remedy the situation.
A spokesman for Barrow Borough Council said that delegation provided an opportunity to respond quickly and efficiently within the framework set by elected members.
“This does not remove accountability or transparency but provides for more efficient local government and allows the council to meet deadlines set by others, such as government,” he said.
He acknowledged there had been challenges in recruiting to certain roles but said recruitment had improved overall in recent years.
Ann Thomson, the leader of Barrow Borough Council, said: “The council received three statutory recommendations as part of its most recent external audit – something we have already addressed publicly.
“This was for the period to March 2021 and the corresponding report from the auditors Grant Thornton acknowledges the improvements already secured by the council as well as those on the way.
“In reference to any correspondence sent by a former employee, this isn’t something we can comment on, except to say that we welcome any feedback that helps the council to review and, where appropriate, improve our processes.”
