Liverpool City Council - Finance and legal services portfolio

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Finance and legal services

• Committee Services provides secretarial support and professional advice to the city council, its members and officers and the citizens of Liverpool, this includes, the servicing of the executive board, committees  and city council meetings, quality assuring the decision making process,  providing dedicated support for councillors and providing training for members and officers where appropriate, in relation to the democratic function and processes of the city council
• Community Resources unit administers the main council grant programme for voluntary and community organisations in Liverpool and also has the facility to run other small grants programmes. The unit funds a wide range of community and voluntary groups, many of whom work with diverse communities in the city. They can assist those wishing to make links with voluntary and community groups and advise on good practice in working with the voluntary and community sector (VCS) and refer people on to specialist VCS agencies. 
• Corporate Procurement service provides advice on contracting and compliance with procurement regulations and also has the responsibility for delivering the council's procurement strategy [link]. This strategy ensures that the council's procurement complies with best value principles, delivers efficiency and cashable cost savings and meets the Governments expectations with regard to the national procurement strategy. 
• Electoral Services deal with elections  and electoral registration. During elections they are helped by hundreds of volunteers who carry out the canvass and work. 
• Coroner's office provides administrative and secretarial support to H.M. Coroner, André Rebello. The coroner is an independent judicial officer responsible for investigating sudden and unexpected deaths.  
• Financial Management Services provides financial and accounting advice and information to all levels of management - both officer and member, to the council's scrutiny and audit committees and to the government on behalf of the council. The service is provided through 6 finance teams of which 5 are based along side the senior management teams of the portfolios with the corporate Finance team providing specialist financial advice and co-ordinating the overall financial position of the council.
• Fleet and Transport Services provide professional and technical advice on all aspects of fleet and transport operations to ensure legal and roadworthy compliance.  
• Home Ownership unit is responsible for managing the council's mortgage portfolio, processing right to buy applications and administering leasehold service charge accounts.
• Internal Audit has specific responsibility for the provision of an adequate and effective internal audit service, which is a statutory requirement in local government. The service assists management by reviewing and evaluating the effectiveness of financial systems and the overall internal control environment across all city council services to ensure they are soundly based and incorporate an adequate level of control. They also investigate frauds and other irregularities. 
• Legal Services provides legal advice to the council, its members and officers, and helps them to find other legal service providers when necessary.
• Licensing unit processes licence applications and enforces licence conditions for taxi and private hire drivers, vehicles and operators, public entertainments (including large public events), cinemas, theatres, street trading, charity collections, pet shops and night cafes.  They also have responsibility for ensuring the conditions of the Licensing Act 2003 are met.
• Premises Management is responsible for the management of a wide range of council premises and the delivery of services to these premises.  These include the accommodation strategy, repair and maintenance, relocations, technical support, compliance with legislation, energy management, customer focus centres, building cleaning, archive scanning, printing and mail delivery.
• Property and Asset Management service provides the council's strategic property and estates management function, supporting the physical regeneration of the city through proactive management of our land and property interests.
• Risk Management service is responsible for developing risk management initiatives, which includes health and safety, risk and insurance
• Scrutiny and Best Value service - this service manages the council's performance management systems, assists with the scrutiny function and leads on corporate performance plan, comprehensive performance assessment, consultation, inspections 
• Liverpool Registry Office has a responsibility to register all births and deaths occurring in Liverpool, to take notices of marriage from residents of the city and to conduct civil marriages in the Register Office and at other approved premises in the city.  They al maintain and keep safe the original birth, death and marriage registers for Liverpool from 1837 to the present day, and to issue copy or duplicate certificates for those registers as required.  
• Treasury Management service is responsible for management of the council's debt portfolio of over £800m, arrangement of borrowing, leasing and other facilities to fund capital expenditure and investment of surplus funds.  The section also administers the officers' car loan scheme.