This report updates the Committee on progress with the completion of the Council’s Accounts for 2017/18 and 2018/19.

Matt Davis, Assistant Director of Finance, submitted a report providing an update on progress with the completion of the Council’s Accounts for 2017/18 and 2018/19.  The Committee was advised that following the formal certification of the 2016/17 accounts in July 2019, the 2017/18 draft accounts had been completed and handed to the Council’s external auditors (EY).  The formal period of public inspection of the 2017/18 Accounts had commenced on 12 August 2019 and would be concluded on 20 September 2019.  A technical review of the 2017/18 accounts had already been undertaken by EY and officers were currently preparing responses to these initial queries.  Officers were also fully engaged in completing the 2018/19 accounts. At this stage it was anticipated that the draft 2018/19 accounts would be completed for submission to EY at the end of September 2019 and available for public inspection shortly thereafter.  The external auditors were due to arrive on site to commence the substantial work for the formal audit of both the 2017/18 accounts and the 2018/19 accounts on 30^th September 2019.

Resolved:

(1)           That the 2017/18 accounts had now been handed over to the Council’s external auditors and that the statutory 30 day public inspection period for the same had commenced be noted;

(2)           That the progress being made in closing the 2018/19 accounts be noted;

(3)           That the external auditors would be on-site at the Civic Offices from the 30^th September 2019 to audit both the 2017/18 and the 2018/19 accounts be noted.