Tower Hamlets Council has approved the appointment of an independent chair of the audit committee, a move aimed at strengthening the committee's independence and governance. The decision was made during the Council meeting on Wednesday, 8 October 2025, following a recommendation outlined in Appendix 1 of the meeting agenda.
The council also noted the decision of the monitoring officer to postpone the next scheduled meeting of the audit committee. The postponement is due to the recruitment process concluding unexpectedly close to the Council meeting date. This did not allow sufficient time for the Independent Chair to consider and agree on the agenda in advance of the originally scheduled meeting on 16 October. The clerk to the Audit Committee is working to identify revised potential dates with committee members, and the postponement will be kept to a minimum.
The corporate peer challenge in September 2023 recommended that there should be an Independent Chair of the Audit Committee and this recommendation remains outstanding. The Transformation Assurance Board (TAB), the TAB lead for governance and the Ministerial Envoys support the appointment of an independent chair which is becoming recognised as best practice in the sector and will strengthen the independence of the Committee. The council held a workshop with the Transformation Assurance Board on 22 September to discuss the plan, and the board will be asked to agree on a revised version at its November meeting.
As agreed by Council in July, the appointment was advertised externally and a role description/person specification were developed in conjunction with Penna recruitment; Penna were also used to source suitable high calibre candidates.
The Recruitment Panel was chaired by the Statutory Deputy Mayor and also comprised the Chief Executive, a Member from the minority group nominated by the Leader of the Opposition, and an additional majority group Member. The Lead Envoy (and the TAB lead) for governance also observed the operation of the Panel. The Panel also benefitted from advice from Penna and internal Human Resources.
