Decision details

The Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive submitted a report asking Committee to formally approve the Statement of Accounts for 2022/23 subject to completion of the audit.

The Head of Financial Services reminded Members that their role in approving the Statement of Accounts, following the conclusion of the audit, was to demonstrate their ownership of the statements, their confidence in the Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive (Section 151 Officer) and the process by which accounting records were maintained and the statements prepared.

He reported that:

·       The deadline for the publication of the draft accounts had been met and the Statement of Accounts (subject to Audit) had been made available on the Council’s website on 2 June 2023.

·       The final position showed that the Council had taken £242,000 from general fund balances during the year compared with the Revised Estimate of £537,000, and the original planned amount of £412,000, to fund 2022/23 spending plans.

·       The Council had added £83,959 to earmarked reserves for revenue purposes, rather than the forecast of £649,476, and had taken £459,709 from earmarked reserves to fund the capital programme.  The overall net movement was £375,750 taken from earmarked reserves.

·       The Collection Fund showed an overall net surplus of £697k.

·       A presentational adjustment had been needed to the accounts due to the previous inclusion of a number of recharges. This had been applied to the 2022/23 financial statements and had resulted in a prior period adjustment for the restating of the figures used in 2021/22.

The final outturn on the general fund revenue account was a deficit of £241,738 rather than the £537k deficit forecast at the revised estimate.

There was discussion at the meeting around the increased cost of External Audit which was explained to Members by Grant Thornton. The Head of Financial Services also confirmed that the Council does complete reasonableness checks against other authorities in relation to fees. The surplus position on the Pension Fund was also noted and it was explained that this was as a result of a number of reasons as noted in the accounts, including the triannual review which had been completed.

The Chairman thanked the Head of Financial Services and his staff for all their hard work in achieving the closedown of the accounts.

RESOLVED THAT COMMITTEE:

1.     Approve the audited Statement of Accounts for 2022/23.

2.     Delegate to the Director of Resources/Deputy Chief Executive in consultation with the Chairman, approval of any non-material amendments to the Statement of Accounts.