One Highland Council department was left red-faced after it was discovered that £300 was missing from its petty cash and no one noticing for more than a month
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Hundreds of pounds of petty cash was “lost or misappropriated” from a Highland Council building at some point between Christmas Eve last year and the start of February this year.
The local authority’s audit and scrutiny committee will be told later this week that the £300 in cash went missing at an unidentified council facility after bosses failed to lock the money up securely.
The cash had been intended to cover any emergencies arising over the festive period.
At least eight people knew that cash had been put in an envelope and left under three drawers in an unlocked office after an email was sent to a manager and six health and social care staff, telling them where it was.
That “informal arrangement” was “not in accordance with any council policy or procedure” and there was no “proper documented handover of the emergency money.”
A number of individuals who do not normally have uncontrolled access to cash were among those made aware of the money, but it took until February 1 for bosses to realise it was missing – despite staff returning from the festive holiday around January 6.
The incident was revealed by a business support operations manager who contacted the internal audit team to say that £300 from petty cash was missing but that: “It is uncertain if this money has been lost or misappropriated.”
However, it is known that staff did not go to the building over the festive period and have had limited access to it since March 2020 due to the Covid pandemic.
The auditor’s report prepared for the committee meeting this week notes the “control weaknesses” that have been found at the facility including the time lag between the facility reopening after Christmas and the discovery that the cash was missing.
Based on the evidence available, councillors will be told, it is not possible to determine whether the money has simply been lost or actually stolen.
It is clear, however, that the council’s financial regulations were not complied with in this instance.
