Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Town Hall, Saturday Market Place, King's Lynn PE30 5DQ. View directions

Contact: Wendy Vincent, Democratic Services Officer, 01553 616377, Email:  wendy.vincent@west-norfolk.gov.uk 

Items
No. Item

A30

Apologies

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors J Collop and B Long.

A31

Minutes pdf icon PDF 366 KB

To approve the minutes from the Audit Committee held on 30 July 2018.

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 30 July 2018 were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman, subject to the following amendment:

 

Councillor Tilbrook commented that the page numbers in the draft Statement of Accounts received by the Committee did not correlate with the final document and made it difficult for Members to follow and identify the changes made.  The approach for 2018/2019 audit agreed to be based on draft document and racked changes to auditor ISA 260 report.

A32

Declarations of Interest

Please indicate if there are any interests which should be declared.  A declaration of an interest should indicate the nature of the interest (if not already declared on the Register of Interests) and the agenda item to which it relates.  If a disclosable pecuniary interest is declared, the Member should withdraw from the room whilst the matter is discussed.

 

These declarations apply to all Members present, whether the Member is part of the meeting, attending to speak as a local Member on any item or simply observing the meeting from the public seating area.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

A33

Urgent Business Under Standing Order 7

To consider any business which, by reason of special circumstances, the Chairman proposed to accept as urgent under Section 100(b)(4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

Minutes:

There was no urgent business.

A34

Members Present Pursuant to Standing Order 34

Members wishing to speak pursuant to Standing Order 34 should inform the Chairman of their intention to do so and on what items they wish to be heard before the meeting commences.  Any Member attending the meeting under Standing Order 34 will only be permitted to speak on those items which have been previously notified to the Chairman

Minutes:

There were no Members present under Standing Order 34.

A35

Chairman's Correspondence

Minutes:

The Chairman, Councillor Middleton outlined the reason why the Annual Audit Letter for year ended 31 March 2018 was being considered at this meeting.

A36

Annual Audit Letter for year ended 31 March 2018 pdf icon PDF 2 MB

Minutes:

The Executive Director – Finance presented the Annual Audit Letter for the year ended 31 March 2018.

 

The Committee’s attention was drawn to the following sections of the report:

 

·         Executive Summary, which detailed the results and conclusions on the significant areas of the audit process.

·         Purpose and Responsibilities.

·         Financial Statement Audit.

·         Value for Money.

·         Other Reporting Issues.

·         Audit Fees – it was highlighted that the final fee for the Housing Benefit Subsidy Certification would be confirmed upon completion by the 30 November 2018 deadline and would therefore be reported in the annual grant certification report.

 

The Executive Director – Finance responded to questions relating to:

 

·         Final Audit Fees to be discussed and negotiated with Ernst and Young.

·         Written Recommendation set out on page 57 of the Agenda.  The Executive Director undertook to liaise with Ernst and Young to amend the recommendation.

·         Leases – The Council would need to review its leases based on changes to IFRS 16.  The Committee was advised that the required work had already commenced.

·         The Borough Council’s appointment of Auditors for the main accounts.

·         The tender process for the appointment of Auditors for the West Norfolk Housing Company and West Norfolk Property Company.

·         The audit approach undertaken by Ernst and Young.

 

RESOLVED:  The Audit Committee received and noted the Annual Audit Letter for year ending 31 March 2018.

A37

Committee Work Programme 2018/2019 pdf icon PDF 69 KB

To note the Committee’s Work Programme for 2018/2019.

Minutes:

The Committee noted the work programme for 2018/2019.

A38

Date of Next Meeting

To note that the date of the next meeting of the Audit Committee will take place on Monday 12 November 2018 at 5 pm in the Council Chamber, Town Hall, Saturday Market Place, King’s Lynn.

Minutes:

The next meeting of the Audit Committee would be held on 12 November 2018 at 5 pm in the Council Chamber, Town Hall, Saturday Market Place, King’s Lynn.