Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any declaration of interest by any Member or Officer in respect of any item of business.

No declaration of interest was received.

·        To present the Statement of the Accounts for 2020/21.

·        To present the Annual Governance Statement for 2020/21.

·        To present External Audit’s report on the financial statements 2020/21 (ISA 260 Report).

·         The report of the Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer incorporating the Final Statement of the Accounts for 2020/21 following audit was presented for the Committee’s consideration.

The Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer in reporting that the statutory deadline for the completion of the audited accounts for the 2020/21 financial year was again extended to 30 November, 2021 to accommodate the working conditions in relation to the Coronavirus pandemic, took the opportunity to thank all those who had been involved in the accounts preparation and audit processes including the Council’s  Finance and Accountancy services’ staff and also Audit Wales officers who were auditing the Statement of Accounts for the first time this year. The Director of Function (Resources)/Section 151 Officer said that changes will be made to some processes and working papers to reflect the standards required by Audit Wales which are different to the requirements of the Council’s previous auditors.  All issues that have arisen throughout the audit were dealt with promptly and in a satisfactory manner.

The Section 151 Officer referred to the amendments to the accounts since the draft version was presented to this Committee in June, 2021 as set out in section 3 of the report and expanded upon in External Audit’s report on the Financial Statements below. The changes are mostly technical in nature and although they have resulted in adjustments to the income and expenditure account and balance sheet none have impacted on the Council Fund nor the Housing Revenue Account Balances. Where relevant, the notes to the accounts have been revised to reflect the amendments made within the body of the accounts and at the same time endeavours have been made to improve the quality of the notes and to delete those notes the auditors deem do not add value to the accounts. It is gratifying to be able to report in conclusion that the auditors’ report confirms that the accounts have been properly prepared in accordance with legislative requirements and accounting standards and that they give a true and fair view of the Council’s financial position as at 31 March, 2021.

·         The report of the Head of Profession (HR) and Transformation incorporating the Annual Governance Statement for 2020/21 was presented for the Committee’s consideration and endorsement. The Annual Governance Statement (the draft version of which was presented to the Committee for comment in June, 2021) seeks to provide assurance that the Council had in place appropriate arrangements for managing its business during the year and it will form part of the definitive 2020/21 Statement of the Accounts.

·         The report of External Audit on the audit of the Financial Statements for 2020/21 (ISA 260 report) was presented for the Committee’s consideration.

Mr Derwyn Owen, Audit Wales Engagement Director reported on the main findings from the audit of the Council’s accounts for the 2020/21 financial year as follows -–

·         That auditors can never provide complete assurance that accounts are correctly stated and work instead to a level of materiality. This level of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.