Havant Borough Council will introduce more staff training after it admits £16.6m was spent 'unlawfully'
The cabinet has accepted a remedial action plan to address the issue
Havant Borough Council is introducing an enhanced programme of staff training after council officers identified that £16.6million has been spent “unlawfully” on emergency accommodation for homeless people.
A review undertaken by the officers “has not identified documentation evidencing compliant procurement of contracts” for payments made to providers of emergency accommodation and related services from 2019 to July 2026.
At a meeting of the council’s cabinet on September 23, members were told that the council had sought “independent, external legal advice” to examine the findings.
A remedial action plan has also been developed, including the new programme of staff training, and was accepted by the cabinet.
Leader of Havant Borough Council, Councillor Gillian Harris MBE, said: “As a council, we have a statutory duty to provide emergency accommodation for homeless people in our borough, often at short notice and in difficult circumstances.
“I believe we’ve sought to do this to the best of our ability and to meet the needs of vulnerable, homeless people, all within a very challenging budgetary environment.
“The reality though, is that we need to be able to evidence that we’ve done this properly and that we’ve also worked to use our resources efficiently and to achieve the best value accommodation. The lack of a clear procurement framework for the period during which this service was outsourced means that we can’t provide that evidence, and we need to ensure that we put that right.
“As a Cabinet, we accept the review and acknowledge that significant improvement must happen to ensure we have a compliant procurement system going forward so residents can be confident that value for money is being achieved, expenditure is fully documented and monitored, and our processes are transparent and fair.”
“I am confident that the Council’s response is both measured and robust, reflecting the seriousness of the matter and the importance of taking action that is proportionate and effective,” said Councillor Netty Shepherd, Deputy Leader of the Council.
“ The matter, together with the Council’s proposed response, has been subject to independent scrutiny by King’s Counsel, who identified no further steps for the Council to take. Cabinet has reinforced that assurance by strengthening democratic oversight, with regular progress reports to the Governance Committee providing an ongoing and transparent means of scrutiny and accountability.
“Cabinet are reassured that the changes made by bringing the service in-house last year have led to a much more robust procurement function within HBC, which has been demonstrated by this matter being brought to our attention.”
Councillor Terry Norton, who represents the Stakes ward for Havant Borough Council, said: “We welcome the fact that the council has finally identified the problem and is putting measures in place, but we don’t think an enhanced programme of staff training should be allowed to become the end of the story.
“A lack of proper procurement is a significant governance failure. In this case, one that took place over a number of years, involving substantial public expenditure, and residents are entitled to ask how it was allowed to continue for so long without being identified.
“There is also an important distinction between officer training and political accountability. Councillors are elected to provide oversight and scrutiny of the authority. If significant expenditure can continue for years without the proper framework being in place, then questions have to be asked about what political oversight existed, what information members were receiving and whether those responsible for leading the council were asking sufficiently robust questions.
“The current Liberal Democrat, Labour and Green administration cannot simply present this as an historic officer issue and move on.
“Residents should expect considerably more than an assurance that staff will receive additional training.”