Agenda item

Consideration was given to a report of the Director of Finance which outlined the Audit Committee was charged with the scrutiny and approval of the Statement of Accounts.  The report presented the Council’s Statement of Accounts for the financial year 2018/19.

The report highlighted the following:

·         The overall revenue outturn position for 2018/19 had a surplus of £0.849m.  This was in increase on the favourable variance of £0.255m projected at month 9 that was report to Cabinet on 25 March 2019.

·         The year-end variances that were attributable to each portfolio.

·         Schools balances at 31 March 2019 were £6.925m but were offset by the deficit on the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) of £2.723m leaving a net balance of £4.202m held with other earmarked reserves.

·         The final Housing Revenue Account (HRA) balance was £21.305m.

·         The balance on the Collection Fund was a surplus £4.147m.

·         The small reduction in revenue account earmarked reserves of £2.108m to a level of £80.623m, an increase in other earmarked reserves to a level of £12.935m and an increase in balances to £14.840m reflective of the revenue outturn position.

·         Expenditure on the Council’s Capital Programme for 2018/19 was £48.564m which was a small increase on the month 9 forecast of £48.267m.  The increase in expenditure required funding allocated to future years to be re-profiled to fully finance the Capital Programme in 2018/19.

·         Capital receipts in year totalled £6.180m, which when taken with the brought forward balance, gave a total of £14.927m, which was used to finance the Capital Programme in year.

·         The significant items in each of the primary financial statements.

·         A small number of changes to the draft Statement of Accounts.

·         The high level of performance of the Finance Team in closing the accounts to such accuracy and in a shortened timescale.

The presentation of the audited Statement of Accounts provided the Audit Committee with the opportunity to review the Council’s Statement of Accounts and any amendments made to date as a result of the audit process and following the conclusion of the period for public inspection. 

The Committee were advised that at the time of the publication of the agenda, the audit, although substantially completed, required the resolution of an outstanding item related to the measurement of Pension Liability.  This had been delayed due to a national issue involving two legal cases.  As it had been anticipated, that it was unlikely that the national issue would have been resolved by 25 June 2019, the External Auditor was content with the recommendation that the Committee consider the accounts, but delegated the final approval of the Council’s Statement of Accounts (once there had been a national resolution on the pensions issue) to the Vice Chair of the Audit Committee and the Director of Finance on receipt of advice of the External Auditor.

Having regard to the comments of the External Auditor included in reports considered previously on the agenda, revised group accounts were provided to the Committee members.  However, it was noted that there was no impact on the outturn presented to the Audit Committee on 6 June 2019.  The Committee was informed that the report had been issued with the agenda papers whilst there was still some work ongoing.

Members asked about their ability to review the accounts of the organisations included in the group accounts and were informed that Members sat on MioCare and Unity Partnership Boards and were able to ask questions on the financial position of the respective organisations.  Members were informed that MioCare worked on a different financial year which ended in December and its accounts for 2018 had already been subject to an external audit review and had been approved.  The audit of the Unity accounts had yet to be completed but would be brought to a future meeting.  Members were advised that undertaking the transactions to reflect a part-year acquisition of Unity had been complicated.

RESOLVED that:

1.    The Council’s Statement of Accounts be accepted subject to the conclusion of the national pensions matter for which the Council was awaiting the advice of the External Auditor.

2.    The Management Letter of Representation be noted.

3.    Delegation of approval of the Council’s Statement of Accounts to the Vice Chair of the Audit Committee and the Director of Finance on receipt of advice from the External Auditor be approved.