"External auditors EY said urgent and sustained action was required at the town hall in east London, which is under statutory intervention, overseen by government envoys seeking improvements. EY partner Stephen Reid told local politicians last week many of the issues had persisted for many years and needed urgent action. He said: Many of the weaknesses which we have reported here in the report are not new. They are long-standing issues that have persisted, some of which over many years."
"These included significant turnover in the council's three most senior management positions. EY said the council has been slow in efforts to find a permanent replacement for its former chief finance officer, who left in April. EY also said the council should have referred itself to the Regulator for Social Housing sooner after taking its housing management service in-house in 2023. The regulator gave the council a C3 grade the second worst out of four possible grades after an investigation in April."
External auditors EY warned that Tower Hamlets Council requires urgent and sustained action due to significant, long-standing governance weaknesses while the council remains under statutory intervention. EY identified ten significant weaknesses in the 2024/25 audit, including high turnover among the three most senior managers, a delay finding a permanent chief finance officer, slow self-referral to the Regulator for Social Housing after in-sourcing housing management, and shortcomings in procurement, contract management and internal investigations. The Regulator rated the council C3 after an April investigation. The council's chief executive Stephen Halsey affirmed agreement with the report and said the council is acting on recommendations.
Read at www.standard.co.uk
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]