Herefordshire Council has begun a review of its internal procedures following the publication of an audit report which has found serious issues with the way the Council had dealt with the Blueschool House project. The audit found that there had been “… a clear disregard for processes and procedures which has resulted in a significant overspend on the project”.

A review by the South West Audit Partnership (SWAP) was requested by Herefordshire Council’s incoming Chief Finance Officer who wanted SWAP to investigate the Blueschool House project management and overspend.

The audit scope included the background to the key decision, the procurement of the contract, changes to the original scope of refurbishment work, an understanding of the escalation of costs and how changes to the contract and refurbishment were authorised.

SWAP has presented the following key findings:

The council’s normal governance processes were not followed

A failure to report to Cabinet that the project could not be delivered to budget

The council’s procurement procedure rules were not followed

There was no project board to oversee the Blueschool House refurbishment, as there should be for all major projects

Time constraint pressure contributed to the progression and poor governance of the project.

Based on recommendations by SWAP, Herefordshire Council fully accepts the findings.

Council management will now consider and determine whether any further action should be taken in regard to individual officers.

The findings will be considered by the council’s audit and governance committee on Wednesday, September 20th.