Dorset Council has announced a series of reforms to strengthen its governance and financial controls following an independent audit and investigation by the South West Audit Partnership (SWAP).
A detailed progress report will be presented to the Audit and Governance Committee on 24 November, outlining the changes made to ensure such failings cannot happen again.
Council Leader Councillor Nick Ireland said the findings had been “a wake-up call” and that the organisation must operate with the highest standards of transparency and accountability.
The SWAP investigation, commissioned earlier this year, identified serious weaknesses in contract management, procurement, financial oversight and internal controls, after concerns were raised about compliance and overspending on health and safety works in council-owned buildings.
Chief Executive Catherine Howe said the council had already introduced new controls, clarified responsibilities and strengthened governance. She added that the focus was now on learning and ensuring systems support better decision-making.
Since the findings were published in July, Dorset Council has revised its spending authorisations, tightened procurement procedures, created a cross-functional audit response taskforce, and introduced new training for staff. Work is also underway with the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny to improve transparency and values-based decision-making.
A follow-up audit is planned to review progress in improving building management services.
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