Issue - meetings

The Committee received a report which advised that the Council’s external auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) had issued their annual audit letter to the committee summarising the results of their 2014/15 audit.

The letter included the following:

·           PWC issued an unqualified audit opinion for the 2014/15 accounts on 30 September 2015. Their Report to Those Charged with Governance (ISA (UK&I) 260) was presented to the Audit Committee on 24 September 2015.

·           PWC would issue their Annual Certification Report for 2014/15 on the Certification of Claims and Returns in December 2015.The Committee had been informed that PWC had signed of the Housing Benefit Claim last week.

·           Other Matters Reported to Those Charged with Governance (pages 5 and 6 of the report) included recommendations relating to

o     Bank Reconciliations

o     Pension Fund - following up on National Fraud Initiative results on a timely basis

o     Financial Resilience

The first two matters had been addressed and Financial Resilience was being addressed as part of the Budget Strategy for reporting to Cabinet in February 2016.

PWC had confirmed that the cost of the non-audit work included in their fees should be £37,750 not £37,500. The fee over and above the scale element was in the process of being agreed with management and Public Sector Audit Appointments Limited and would be reported in due course. The additional fees were £6,123 for the statement of accounts in relation to trial balance reconciliation and £3,000 for the pension fund in relation to audit work on more complex investments held by the fund.

The Committee had noted the report.

The Committee had placed on record their appreciation of the sterling work PWC had undertaken with the Council since being appointed external auditors. Officers stated that they had developed a very good working relationship with PWC which had helped ensure the Council received an unqualified opinion.