Audit and Anti-Fraud Manager in Woolwich

Purpose of job
Ensuring effective audit coverage of the Council (Section 151): To manage the continuous internal audit of Council operations, including corporate financial systems, council wide contracts, computer audits, schools, housing benefits and autonomous bodies and also ensuring probity, compliance and value for money in the operation and delivery of Council services and Council funded services.

Ensuring work undertaken in accordance with laid down procedures and statutory requirements:
To ensure audits and investigations are undertaken to properly discharge the Director of Finance’s statutory Section 151 responsibility and are in compliance with corporate policy, established procedures, professional guidelines, Accounts and Audit regulations and other legislative requirements placed upon the Council.

Manage and review investigations:
To manage and critically review investigations undertaken primarily into Housing Benefit fraud but also into all other irregularities perpetrated against the Council corporately and to carry out more complex, contentious and sensitive investigations.

Main duties

• Managing the Audit and Anti Fraud Team: To organise, control and review the efficient and effective operation of the Audit and Anti Fraud team and to maximise opportunities to co-ordinate and integrate the activities of the team. Deputising for the Head of Audit and Anti Fraud as and when required.
• Training staff: To manage the daily operation of a team(s) of up to twenty members of staff as allocated either on site or at remote locations, training and directing staff in the use of techniques to detect and investigate all forms of fraud and corruption, including staff from other organisations during joint proactive counter fraud operations, audit reviews and staff employed under collaborative working partnerships.
• Planning and monitoring Audit and Anti-Fraud work: To contribute to the planning and monitoring of the Audit and Anti Fraud Service and assist production of an annual risk based Audit and Anti Fraud Plan which provides assurances for the Director of Finance & Customer Services to enable proper discharge of the Section 151 function ensuring that the areas of the plan under the post holder’s responsibility are delivered within budget managing supporting consultancy work as necessary.
• Monitoring achievement of Audit / Fraud plan: To assist the Head of Audit and Anti Fraud with preparing operational and strategic service plans and the effective monitoring and performance of those plans to ensure achievement of stated aims and objectives within budget allocation. To provide the Head of Audit and Anti Fraud with regular performance reports on all team members. To prepare the annual statement of Internal Audit which will inform the Council’s Annual Governance Statement.
• Directing and managing investigations: To direct and manage audit reviews and investigations, including those of a complex and confidential or sensitive nature into both internal and external fraud perpetrated against the council, and ensuring solutions to obtaining evidence in order to establish whether fraud has occurred, comply with relevant legislation and council procedures.
• Recommending control improvements to management to prevent fraud: Through audit and investigation work, continually identify risks and fraud trends and their implications to the control environment and recommending initiatives to ensure the discovery, detection and prevention of all forms of fraud and other irregularities, coordinate and provide regular fraud awareness training for officers at all levels, members, and schools’ staff on these issues.
• Promoting the service: To contribute to an effective client consultation process, ensuring that the purpose of the Audit and Anti Fraud functions are clearly understood, assisting with initiatives to enhance knowledge of service managers and engage them in the construction of the Audit and Anti Fraud Plan.
• Ensuring work undertaken to recognised standards: To ensure all audits are undertaken according to the policies and procedures in place in the Audit and Anti Fraud Service and in accordance with the CIPFA Internal Audit Code of Practice for Local Authorities in England and Wales. Ensuring continued accreditation for Investors in People and ISO Quality Management System and undertaking the annual review of Audit against the code of practice and benchmarking with other organisations.
• Using and promoting modern audit / investigation techniques: To ensure that staff undertaking investigations use all available techniques, including computer assisted audits, data matching, covert surveillance and observations, interviewing under caution, and that these comply with relevant regulations, legislation and policies and procedures in place.
• Ensuring efficient use of resources and prioritising workloads: To ensure resources are deployed effectively and within budget across a varied audit and investigation caseload, continually prioritising workloads in order to meet service needs and deadlines and those of departmental managers and other external agencies, e.g. the Courts and Police.
• Monitoring staff performance: To monitor, review and critically appraise audits and investigations undertaken by staff and monitor the deployment of staff to deliver the Audit and Anti Fraud Plan, monitoring performance through the Performance Review and Development Scheme and motivating staff to ensure that they meet the objectives set, and that work is of the appropriate quality and standard and carried out within the approved timescales to meet set targets.
• Ensuring audit/investigation confidentiality: To ensure staff apply judgement and sensitivity during the course of their work, maintaining confidentiality at all times and that in the case of a “whistleblower” under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1996, ensuring that the “whistleblower” is not subjected to harassment or victimisation.
• Provision of audit advice and guidance: To provide an advisory role and assist departments in the development of financial systems and procedures to ensure the adequacy of internal controls including attendance on project boards if required.
• Producing audit reports: Reporting upon management / internal control weaknesses within departmental operation systems and procedures and making recommendations to departmental managers that are practical and effective and monitoring implementation, taking appropriate action if this does not occur.
• Liaising directly with Chief Officers (Directors/Departmental Management): Establishing regular effective contacts with departmental managers ensuring that divisional objectives are met and with other agencies and the police to assist in the detection and investigation of all aspects of fraud and corruption.
• Reporting to Members: Providing professional advice and guidance to Members, Senior Officers and other staff on legislative and policy developments, assisting with Members’ enquiries, producing committee reports and attendance at committee or other Member meetings to explain audit or investigation findings and the role of Audit and Anti Fraud Team deputising for the Head of Audit and Anti Fraud as appropriate.
• Reporting to other regulatory bodies: Producing and presenting reports and correspondence on the results of evidence of investigations or audits to departments, Council Committees, the Police, other agencies, internal disciplinary hearings, external tribunals, Courts or any other forum related to the work of the Audit and Anti Fraud team.
• Maintain, develop and review quality standards: To regularly review the effectiveness and efficiency of systems and procedures in use within the Audit and Anti Fraud Team to ensure compliance with quality standards and with statutory and audit requirements and to ensure through the effective development and training of staff, and developments of smarter working methods there are continuous improvements in the Audit and Anti Fraud Team.
• Staff recruitment, training and development: To assist the Head of Audit and Anti Fraud with recruitment, attendance and sickness monitoring, motivate and develop staff and ensure there is effective communication. To be responsible for the review, development and training of staff in accordance with the corporate Performance Review and Development Scheme.
• Maintaining a knowledge of local authority developments: To maintain a detailed knowledge of the latest issues in local government including those that may affect the internal control environment of the Council. To keep abreast of current developments in central government policy affecting local authorities, developments within the Council and other areas of the post holder’s responsibilities and expertise and use such knowledge to implement changes to improve the service.
• Maintaining a detailed knowledge of audit/investigation techniques and apply: To maintain a detailed knowledge of audit and investigative techniques, relevant legislation, methodologies and skills and to apply the knowledge in development of the Audit and Anti Fraud Service and ensuring that modern techniques are applied during all audit / investigation work.
• Undertaking ad-hoc/high level reviews and investigations: To undertake ad hoc projects and any other work appropriate to the level and general nature of the post including audit reviews and investigations of a complex, high level and occasionally sensitive nature, value for money studies and special projects, including interviewing staff or persons suspected of fraud or irregularity in accordance with professional standards and legal guidelines.
• Promote Equal Opportunities: To ensure the promotion of the Council’s Equal Opportunities Policy and promoting equality and diversity within own employment and through service delivery with all investigation / audit work carried out.
• Promote and be alert to Health and Safety issues: To carry out all duties with regard to all relevant legislation, all Council policies and procedures and maintaining an awareness of Health & Safety issues and ensuring that procedures are adhered to at all times for the safety of oneself and colleagues.