Venue: Siambr Hywel Dda, Council Offices, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 1SH
Contact: Bethan Adams 01286 679020
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APOLOGIES To receive apologies for absence. Minutes: Councillors Huw G. Wyn Jones and Paul Rowlinson. |
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DECLARATION OF PERSONAL INTEREST To receive any declaration of personal interest. Minutes: No declarations of personal interest were received from any members present. |
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URGENT ITEMS To note any items which are urgent business in the opinion of the Chairman so they may be considered. |
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The Chairman shall propose that the minutes of the meeting of this committee, held on 19 July 2018, be signed as a true record. Minutes: The Chair signed
the minutes of the previous meeting of this Committee, held on 19 July 2018, as
a true record. |
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GWYNEDD COUNCIL FINAL ACCOUNTS 2017/18 AND AUDIT REPORT PDF 138 KB To submit the report of the Head of Finance. Additional documents:
Minutes: The Head of
Finance Department submitted the revised statutory financial statements for
approval by the committee. He noted that the report from Deloitte on behalf of
the Auditor General for Wales stated the main changes to the accounts since the
pre-audit version had been submitted to the Committee meeting of 28 June. He drew attention to what Deloitte had identified as an allocation
misstatement of £5.640m within earmarked reserves, as payment to the Gwynedd
Pension Fund. He explained that the payment was for a fixed element of Council
contributions as an employer for the period between 2017/18 to 2019/20. He
noted that it had not been corrected as it only affected distribution within
the earmarked reserves, it did not affect the total earmarked reserves, and in
the medium term it could be argued that Gwynedd Council's system was more
transparent. In accordance with
the Annual Audit procedure, namely the Appointed Auditor’s report for those
charged with governance, the report by Deloitte on behalf of the Auditor
General for Wales was submitted by Ian Howse,
Financial Audit Engagement Leader, Deloitte. It was reported
that the Auditor General intended to issue an unqualified audit report on
Gwynedd Council’s accounts for 2017/18. The following main observations were made: ·
As noted by the Head of
Finance Department, one misstatement had not been corrected but they were
satisfied that it would not be corrected; ·
One misstatement had
been corrected to their satisfaction; ·
No matters requiring attention had been highlighted
by the audit team in relation to the significant risks that were tested; ·
The accounts team were praised for the quality of
the accounts. The
Head of Finance Department expressed his gratitude for the audit report
submitted by Deloitte, and for their usual co-operation throughout the audit. RESOLVED: (i)
to approve the Gwynedd Council Statement of
Accounts 2017/18 (post-audit); (ii)
to accept the Deloitte 'ISA260' audit report on
behalf of the Auditor General for Wales; (iii)
to authorise the Head of Finance Department and the
Chair of the Committee to sign the “letter of representation” in relation to
the Council’s accounts and submit it to the Auditor General for Wales. |
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GWYNEDD PENSION FUND FINAL ACCOUNTS 2017/18 AND AUDIT REPORT PDF 139 KB To submit the report of the Head of Finance. Additional documents:
Minutes: The Head of Finance Department submitted the
revised statutory financial statements of the Pension Fund for approval by the
committee. He noted that the report from Deloitte on behalf of the Auditor
General for Wales stated the main changes to the accounts since the pre-audit
version had been submitted to the Committee meeting of 19 July. He apologised that the documents for this
item had been sent out late to members. He noted that a revised copy of
accounts had been submitted with minor amendments following the Deloitte audit,
the amendments did not make a difference to the main statements. He expressed
his gratitude to officers for their work and achievement in light of
significant pressure due to staff absences. The Financial Audit Engagement Leader,
Deloitte submitted the ISA 260 audit report and apologised that the document
had been sent out late to members. He noted that the Auditor General intended
to issue an unqualified audit opinion on the accounts of the Gwynedd Pension
Fund for 2017/2018. The following main observations were made: ·
Some misstatements in the accounts had been
corrected to their satisfaction; ·
No matters requiring attention had been highlighted
by the audit team in relation to the significant risks that were tested except
control improvements as usually noted. A member conveyed
his thanks to the accounts team for their work and that it was encouraging to
receive confirmation from Deloitte that the accounts were clean. The Chairman
endorsed this observation and congratulated the accounts team on the standard
of the accounts. The Head of the
Finance Department expressed his appreciation of the work of the accounts
teams. In response to an
enquiry by a member regarding the risk to the Council from lending to other
Councils, the Head of Finance Department noted that the Council receives
guidance from Arlingclose, the Council's treasury
consultants, and a credit risk warning would be issued should there be a credit
risk. He explained that lending to other Councils was not a high risk, as the
situation was better than lending to a private company as Councils were bodies
with greater income security due to their power to charge rates. RESOLVED: (i) to approve the Gwynedd Pension Fund Statement of Accounts
2017/18 (post-audit); (ii) to
accept the Deloitte 'ISA260' audit report on behalf of the Auditor General for
Wales; (iii)
to authorise the Head of Finance
Department and the Chair of the Committee to sign the “letter of
representation” in relation to Gwynedd Pension Fund accounts and submit it to
the Auditor General for Wales. |
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INTERNAL AUDIT OUTPUT 1/4/18 - 14/9/18 PDF 200 KB To submit the report of the Audit Manager. Minutes: Submitted - the report of the Audit Manager outlining the Internal Audit
section’s work for the period. It was noted that 14 reports on audits from the
action plan had been completed. Members were reminded, in accordance with what
had been approved by the Committee on 19 July 2018, that
risk scores and assurance levels were provided for each audit. It was noted
that members and officers had given positive feedback on the new system. Consideration was given to each individual report and during the
discussion reference was made to the following main matters – Safeguarding
Arrangements – Domestic Abuse In response to a member’s observation in terms of when controls would be
in place, the Audit Manager noted that controls were in place but that they
required development. The Senior Revenue and Risk Manager added that an action
plan was in place to respond to the legislative requirement that all Council
staff complete the training. A member noted that managers had a responsibility to ensure that staff
completed the training. In response to a member’s observation in terms of why
it was more difficult for field workers to complete the training, the Audit
Manager noted that office staff had easy access to the training module,
therefore, it was easier for them to complete the module compared to field
workers. A member suggested that field workers should be able to gain access to
the training from home. In response, the Audit Manager noted that the Staff
Development Module was currently still in development and, ultimately, it would
enable all staff to gain access to the training module. She reminded members
that follow-up work would be undertaken on the audit and the results would be
reported upon. Arfon Leisure Centre A member referred
to the fact that every member of staff was responsible for completing stock
checks, he suggested that a specific staff member or even the manager should
complete the checks. In response to the observation, the Audit Manager
explained that staff worked on a rota basis, therefore, it was not possible for
a specific staff member to complete the checks. She confirmed that every member
of staff had received training to undertake stock checks. Income Collection –
Maritime and Country Parks A member drew
attention that the Maritime and Country Parks Officer noted that he was
confident that figures provided by the 'Adra'
company, which collected income from entry fees to Parc
Glynllifon on behalf of the Maritime and Country
Parks Service, were accurate even though there were no checks on the number of
visitors or the money collected. The member noted that evidence should be
obtained to support the officer's opinion. In this case, the Head of Finance Department noted that the cost of
having an officer checking the income collected from entry fees to the park
would be much higher than any additional income that would be collected. A member noted the need for the Maritime and Country Parks Officer to provide more information about ... view the full minutes text for item 7. |
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INTERNAL AUDIT PLAN 2018/19 PDF 110 KB To submit the report of the Audit Manager on the progress made on the 2018/19 Internal Audit Plan. Minutes: The report of the Audit Manager was
submitted, providing an update on the current situation in terms of completing
the 2018/19 internal audit plan. It was reported that the Internal Audit
Service up to 14 September 2018 had completed 25.45% of the plan, with 14 of
the 55 audits in the 2018/19 plan released in a finalised version. It was
explained that during quarter 1 and quarter 2 auditors had also undertaken
audits for some Community and Town Councils in Gwynedd and Anglesey.
Appreciation of the team's work was expressed. Attention was drawn to
amendments made to the Plan. In response to a question by a member,
the Audit Manager confirmed that there was full capacity within the team with
appointments to two temporary posts since July being an additional resource
whilst three officers completed training. RESOLVED to accept and note the content of the report as an update of progress against the 2018/19 audit plan. |