Peterborough pushes ahead with housing revenue account plan
Peterborough City Council’s cabinet has voted to set up a housing revenue account (HRA) to allow it to expand the number of homes for rent it owns and take advantage[…]
Technical
Redmond Review to probe audit approach on commercialisation
The Redmond Review of local authority audit will consider whether councils are being effectively held to account following changes to business models including greater commercialisation and property investment. Sir Tony[…]
Peterborough capital receipts episode prompts prudential framework review
The government is to consider changes to the prudential framework covering local authority finances to prevent a repeat of the controversy over Peterborough City Council’s use of capital receipts. In[…]
Resetting the dial – getting public audit right
The complexity of the audit framework and fragmented responsibility for oversight are at the root of delays to the signing-off of last year’s accounts, says Paul Dossett. The audit profession[…]
Stephen Sheen: The state of local government audit
The pressure has been on external auditors this Summer. The first year of the new Public Sector Audit Appointments (PSAA) contracts, with fees cut by 23%, reshuffled appointments, and firms[…]
Councils urged to protect themselves against money laundering
The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) has urged councils to ensure that they have the right procedures in place to protect against sophisticated financial crime. Last month,[…]
Auditors and PSAA slammed after jump in accounts deadline failures
Auditors scrutinising local authority accounts and the body responsible for appointing them have come under fire after new figures showed 40% of audit opinions missed the target date of 31[…]
Finance staff ‘inexperience’ contributed to error-ridden council accounts, say auditors
Auditors have issued a qualified adverse opinion on Reading Borough Council’s 2016/17 accounts – almost two years late due to a litany of problems. In a stinging assessment, audit firm[…]
Warrington warned over MRP approach ‘risk’
Warrington Borough Council has been warned that its approach to calculating its minimum revenue provision (MRP) could present a threat to delivery of its medium term financial plan (MTFP). The[…]
Redditch issued with section 24 notice and told to save £1.5m
Auditors have issued an adverse audit report for Redditch Borough Council, telling the council it needs to save £1.5m over the next three years and is at risk of breaching[…]
