Issue - meetings
External Audit Progress Report and Audit Plan for year ending 31 March 2023
Meeting: 23/11/2023 - Audit and Governance Committee (Item 33)
33 External Audit Progress Report and Audit Plan for year ending 31st March 2023 
PDF 61 KB
Purpose:
To provide Members with the Progress Report and the draft Audit Plan for year ending 31st March 2023.
Recommendation:
That the Audit and Governance Committee resolves to note the contents of the report and appendices.
Invited:
Madhu Richards, Director of Finance;
Peter Barber, Key Audit Partner, Grant Thornton.
Additional documents:
- 20231114 WODC - Progress Report November 2023, item 33
PDF 2 MB
- 20231114 WODC - Draft Audit Plan 2022-23, item 33
PDF 5 MB
Minutes:
The Director of Finance introduced Peter Barber from Grant Thornton.
Mr Barber explained that there were two elements to the item; a progress report and the audit plan setting out the external audit approach. The external auditor’s role was two-fold in providing an opinion on the Council’s financial statements and a value for money conclusion. The report was for 2022/23, Grant Thornton’s final year as the Council’s auditors.
The Committee noted the sector wide delay in audits and asked for a brief overview of the government’s proposals to address this. For 2022/23 the deadline for producing draft accounts was the end of May and the deadline for giving an audit opinion on the financial statements was the end of September. This deadline had only been met for 5 of 497 councils and other public bodies. There was still a clear view that accounts needed to be signed off in accordance with the auditing standards, which was frustrating. There were a number of new entrants into the external audit market but it was difficult because some councils had multiple years’ audits outstanding. The government had been considering introducing a backstop mechanism to enable more timely reporting of accounts but a decision was needed very soon and the minister had recently changed.
Councillor Elizabeth Poskitt proposed that the Committee notes the contents of the report and appendices. This was seconded by Councillor Michele Mead, was put to the vote and carried.
The Committee Resolved to:
1. Notes the contents of the report and appendices.