Risk Management and Internal Audit

Our Risk Management Team is responsible for supporting all areas of the Church in identifying, assessing and helping to manage key risks. We recognise effective risk management across all church councils is a key contributor towards achieving our missional and operational objectives and mitigating unwanted negative events.

Effective risk management supports sustainability and safeguards mission, people, reputation, operations, and finances; ultimately supporting the ongoing pursuit of our vision and mission.

Risk management generally considers the following questions:

• What could prevent objectives?
• What could make the above happen?
• If something did go wrong, how bad could it be?
• What is being done or could be done to prevent things going wrong, or to minimise the impact when they go wrong?

To support presbyteries and congregations in their risk management activities, a risk management framework has been prepared that is available for presbyteries and congregations.

Contacts

General enquiries: [email protected]

Reporting to the Synod’s Audit and Risk Committee, the role of Internal Audit is to provide independent advice for key activities and processes across the Church. Internal Audit provides insights and guidance to help ensure activities are conducted appropriately, effectively and efficiently and that related risks are minimised.

Differing from external audit, which focuses primarily on the accuracy of the annual financial report and financial statements, internal audit provides insights and support across a range of areas important to the Church’s mission and operation.

Internal audit is a review activity, which seeks to work alongside the different Church councils to:

• identify and understand the strengths and weaknesses of processes; and
• provide guidance and expertise to support improving processes and reducing risk.

An annual Internal Audit Plan is developed and approved by the Synod’s Audit and Risk Committee and includes a number of internal audit projects, including projects relating to presbyteries and congregations.

Contacts

General enquiries: [email protected]