Lewisham Council's Audit and Risk Committee has pinpointed budget challenges and the impending Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) switch-off as key concerns, according to the latest corporate risk register.
The Risk Update for Audit and Risk Committee report, presented at the committee's meeting on Tuesday, 22 July 2025, highlighted these issues alongside other changes to the corporate risk register. The report also noted that seven risks on the corporate risk register have reduced scores since the last update.
One of the key factors contributing to the budget uncertainty is the delay in finalizing the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS). Councillor James Rathbone explained that the MTFS has not been finalized due to the extreme uncertainty about what the settlement funding agreement is going to be and what's going to come out of the fair funding review and the reforms to local government finance settlements.
Councillor James Rathbone voiced concerns over the reduced risk score for Unable to Set a Balanced Budget
(LBL 010), arguing that it did not reflect the council's current financial instability. He cited the use of reserves and delays in finalising the MTFS as evidence of ongoing financial uncertainty. Rathbone also warned that an inaccurate risk score could lead to the council being inadequately prepared for potential financial difficulties.
The risk owner, who was not named in the meeting minutes, acknowledged Councillor Rathbone's points, clarifying that the register was published before all relevant information was available and that the score would likely increase again in September.
Another area of concern was the PSTN switch-off, scheduled for December 2025. Councillor Stephen Penfold inquired about potential cost increases for lines that remain functional after the deadline. Rebecca Short, Head of Resilience, explained that the council is working towards the original deadline, and any costs beyond that date are speculative. To mitigate the risks associated with the PSTN switch-off, Lewisham Council has established a dedicated project team and engaged an external telephony provider to lead an audit process to assess the impact and identify required upgrades to the council's telecommunications infrastructure and equipment. According to Councillor Stephen Penfold and Rebecca Short, they are working towards the original deadline of December this year with our internal project management
.
Other notable changes to the corporate risk register include:
- LBL009 (Significant Cyber Security Breach): Risk remains at Very High
- LBL001 (Failure to achieve full regulatory compliance for Council Housing Stock): Risk score has decreased from Very High score of 20, to a High score of 15.
- LBL014 (Major procurement failure): Risk has reduced from a score of 16, to a score of 12
- LBL011 (Loss of overall financial control): The risk has reduced from a High Risk of 12 to a Moderate risk of 9
- LBL021 (Housing Management Software implementation failure): Risk has reduced to Moderate score of 9 from a High score of 16
- LBL024 (End of year processes and systems): The risk score has reduced from a High score of 12, to a Moderate score of 9
- LBL020 (Building for Lewisham Failure): Risk score has been reduced to a Moderate score of 8, from a score of 9.
