Bexley Council's internal audit has revealed issues concerning the recording and management of gifts and hospitality offered to employees. The findings were presented at the General Purposes and Audit Committee meeting on Tuesday, 30 September 2025.
The audit, detailed in the Internal Audit & Counter Fraud Progress Reports Q2 2025/26, gave 'limited assurance' regarding the council's adherence to established protocols. The report highlighted the absence of a formal gift and hospitality policy and procedure, as well as inconsistencies in recording practices.
Key areas of concern included:
- Lack of a Formal Policy: The audit revealed that a comprehensive gift and hospitality policy and procedure was not in place.
- Inadequate Recording: Not all gifts and hospitality offered were being recorded, including those that were declined.
- Absence of Declarations: The reporting process lacked a formal declaration to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information provided.
- Missing Approval Processes: A clear process for the review and approval of gifts and hospitality offered to senior officers, including Deputy Directors, Directors, and the Chief Executive Officer, was not consistently followed.
- Infrequent Register Reviews: The gifts and hospitality register was not being reviewed regularly by a senior officer to identify and investigate any inappropriate offers.
In response to the audit findings, management has outlined several actions to address the identified weaknesses. These actions are being implemented with the following deadlines:
- Draft amendments to the Code of Conduct by 31 August 2025.
- Consultation with Tus by 30 September 2025.
- Communications and implementation by 30 October 2025.
- Organisational Development (OD) colleagues will include reference to the policy in corporate inductions from the next corporate induction onwards.
- The first reminder to reflect updated policy schedule will be issued according to the schedule.
- Reports will be run quarterly from 1 October 2025.
These include:
- Developing a formal gift and hospitality policy and procedure, to be included within the Code of Conduct issued to staff.
- Including the gifts and hospitality policy and procedures in staff induction training and issuing periodic reminders to staff.
- Amending the MyView form to include a declaration to ensure the information recorded is full, complete, and accurate.
- Establishing a process for the review and approval of gifts and hospitality offered to senior officers.
- Implementing a system for regular review of the gifts and hospitality register by a designated senior officer. The effectiveness of these new measures will be measured by running a quarterly report to be reviewed by a designated officer to ensure that any inappropriate gifts or hospitality is identified and investigated.