Agenda item

S Loach, Head of Corporate Finance and Business Partnering, provided Members with the Draft Statement of Accounts 2022/23 which outlined the Council’s corporate performance for 2022/23 financial year.

S Loach advised that the accounts were submitted with External Audit by the 31^st May deadline which only 30% of all Local Authorities (94 of 314) completed. G Mills (representing the External Auditor) emphasised that Barnsley were in the minority for achieving the deadline.

The key messages from the Narrative report included:

General Fund

·       Overall cumulative cost pressures of £10.5M

·       Drawdown of reserves previously earmarked to balance position

·       Consequently, overall general fund reserves reduced by £1.5M

·       School related reserves increased by £4.1M

·       Minimum working balance retained at £20M

HRA

·       Overall overspend of £0.7M

·       Overall reduction in reserves £3.7M

G Mills added that two members of the Grant Thornton Public Sector Audit team were leaving which in turn had affected some South Yorkshire audits. However, the team were in a position where they could report key findings and bring them to the November meeting, there were hopes to have the audit completed by the 30^th November but it could be pushed back to December.

Members requested that averages were included in the narrative report when highlighting interest on loans and deposits. S Loach agreed that this could be updated.

Officers continued that the team had worked on the transformation programme through summer to address the 2024/25 gap and phase two would address the 2025/26 gap. In addition, the Council’s medium term financial strategy was taken into consideration with hopes it would be completed in February 2024 for the Committees consideration.

A question was asked in relation to reduced pensions contributions and the Council’s perspective. S Loach explained that in agreement with South Yorkshire Pensions the Council would negotiate reducing their contribution with the pensions scheme directly however it is was volatile area. Currently, this was not something the Council was looking to consider.

RESOLVED - That Members noted the Draft Statement of Accounts 2022/23.