240621ARCPaper5ProcurementActionPlan
Paper 5 Audit and Risk Committee — 21 June 2024
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For information
Title: Procurement action plan
Prepared by: Louise Allen, Head of Finance and Corporate Operations
Purpose
This paper presents an action plan towards improvement of the Park Authority’s procurement processes, procedures and internal controls. It has been developed in response to the Internal Audit review of procurement carried out by Azets as part of the approved 2023⁄24 audit programme.
Recommendations
The Committee is asked to:
a) Review the draft programme for improvement developed by management.
Draft programme for improvement
- The table below sets out actions required towards improving the Park Authority’s procurement processes and controls. The target dates for actions have been developed around the likely timescale for recruitment to the new Procurement Officer post.
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| Report ref | Management action | Target date | Responsible officer |
|---|---|---|---|
| All | Further discussion of offering from Central Government Procurement Shared Services (CGPSS) team and Scotland Excel | Ongoing | Louise Allen |
| 1.1 | Draft strategy received from Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) | 30.06.24 | Andy Jump |
| All | Procurement officer in post | 30.09.24 | Louise Allen |
| 1.1 | Update policies and procedures. Include: • Process flow for different procurement thresholds • Explanation of each step in the procurement route • Approvals and levels of authority • Delegated Levels of Authority (DLA) • Non-competitive actions | 30.09.24 to | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 2.1 | |||
| 2.2 | 31.12.24 | ||
| 3.1 | Formalise controls: • Approvals required at each stage of procurement process • Formal evaluation process • Required due diligence checks | 30.09.24 to 31.12.24 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 3.2 | |||
| 1.1 | Provide formal training for staff | 31.12.24 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 1.1 | Draft guidance for staff | 31.12.24 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 2.1 | Draft templates for each stage of the procurement journey | 30.09.24 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
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| Report ref | Management action | Target date | Responsible officer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.2 | Set up contracts register | 31.12.24 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 4.1 | Develop procurement KPIs | 31.03.25 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 1.2 | Develop reporting for procurement activity | 31.03.25 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
| 2.1 | Review existing contracts and prepare schedule for retendering | 31.03.25 | Louise Allen/Procurement Officer |
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Conclusions
There is a considerable amount of work to be done in developing, documenting and embedding procurement processes within the organisation. In-house procurement expertise is essential to achieving these improvements. While some work can be started prior to the appointment of a Procurement Officer, the need for additional staff resource means that most of the necessary actions will be completed by the new post holder.
It is proposed that the draft plan be brought back to the Audit and Risk Committee in September, together with progress against these improvement targets. By this time, we hope to have an officer in post, and to have a clearer idea of the likely timescale to completion.
Louise Allen Head of Finance and Corporate Operations June 2024