The Strategic Director: Place gave a presentation on the methods the Council used to manage risks.
In answer to Members’ questions, the Strategic Director: Place and the Strategic Director: Resources answered Members’ questions as follows:
(i) The Corporate Risk Register considered the accumulative risk of a number of individual risks occurring at the same time. Risks that were common in all projects would filter through to the Corporate Risk Register.
(ii) The methodology used in the risk proximity score indicated how immediate the risk was and considered the impact on revenue rather than the longer term impact, for example on construction. It was commented by a Member that a higher level risk management tool was required to span the 40 year horizon of a project to adequately cover the longer term period.
(iii) The Corporate Risk Register took into consideration risks of partnerships, including private sector contractor risks. This would include the potential default of an operator, including for example the operator of the new leisure centre.
(iv) The Council's risk appetite was included in the risk register and included all potential risk options including that a project was not financially viable. The Council could look at each stage at the risks and could also look to see if the current controls needed to be stronger. The Cabinet Committees also considered projects from outline to full business stage and ensured that project gateways and stop points were included as well as preventing mission creep that increased costs. In addition, each project had its own project board that met monthly.
Councillor Ashton commented that the date of commencement of construction of the sport and leisure centre project had been delayed resulting in a slippage against the schedule as The Overview and Scrutiny Committee had requested a Facilities Needs Appraisal. There were no new risks resulting and this matter had been considered by the Cabinet (Leisure Centre) Committee. The full business case, including the risks associated with the partner operator would be known by February 2019. The risk of the project programme/project delivery being delayed was risk number 6 in the Winchester Sport and Leisure Centre Project Risk Register and was constantly reviewed. The informal meetings of the project groups were cross political party and the notes of meetings were available to Members.
The Chairman commented that the likely scenarios associated with Brexit were a possible matter for consideration within the Corporate Risk Register.
RESOLVED:
That the Report be noted.