The Audit and Governance Committee of North Northamptonshire Council is scheduled to convene on Monday 15 June 2026. The meeting's agenda includes a review of the external auditor's annual report and plan for the upcoming financial year, alongside updates on the progress and overall opinion of the internal audit service for 2025/26.

External Audit Plan 2025/26

The committee is scheduled to receive and note the External Audit Plan for 2025/26, as outlined in Appendix A of the report from Grant Thornton, the external auditor. This plan details the scope and timing of the statutory audit of North Northamptonshire Council's financial statements for the year ending 31 March 2026. It also highlights key considerations for the audit process, including significant risks, value for money arrangements, and the approach to materiality.

The report identifies several significant risks requiring special audit consideration, including management override of controls, the valuation of land and buildings, council dwellings, and investment properties. It also flags risks associated with the valuation of the pension fund gross liability, capital grants received in advance, cash and cash equivalents, and the implementation of IFRS16.

In terms of value for money arrangements, the risk assessment has identified potential weaknesses in the delivery of savings to bridge medium-term budget gaps, the Dedicated Schools Grant deficit and special educational needs provision, and the capacity and resilience within the finance team to support statutory financial reporting. The audit plan outlines proposed procedures to address these identified risks.

The report also details the audit timeline, the proposed audit fee of £822,940 for the Council, and confirms Grant Thornton's compliance with the Financial Reporting Council's Ethical Standard, affirming their independence.

Annual Internal Audit Report and Opinion 2025/26

Rachel Ashley-Caunt, Chief Internal Auditor, will present the Annual Internal Audit Report and Opinion for 2025/26. This report provides an overview of internal audit activity and findings throughout the year, forming a basis for the Council's Annual Governance Statement.

The Chief Internal Auditor's overall opinion on the Council's system of internal control for 2025/26 is one of Moderate Assurance . This opinion is informed by the work undertaken during the year, including the outcomes of planned audit assignments, management's responses to recommendations, and other sources of assurance. The report notes that while controls relating to key financial systems reviewed were generally operating at a Moderate Assurance level, assurances over shared service financial systems for accounts receivable and debt recovery are not yet finalised.

Key risks highlighted include significant financial pressures related to Children's services and the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficit. The report also mentions the Council's first Social Housing Regulator inspection, which resulted in a C2 grading, and the Care Quality Commission's (CQC) inspection of Adult Social Care, which rated services as 'requires improvement'.

Limitations to the overall opinion include the inability to provide assurances over IT systems hosted under lead authority arrangements and the pending receipt of the annual report from the Northamptonshire Children's Trust, which delivers the Council's children's services.

The report indicates that 71% of agreed management actions due for implementation during 2025/26 had been completed.

Internal Audit Progress Report

The committee will also receive an update on the progress of the Internal Audit team's work, including key findings from audits completed since the last meeting. Six audit reports have been finalised, covering areas such as housing complaints, Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHP) services, procurement compliance, taxi licensing, home to school transport safeguarding checks, and local taxation.

The audit of housing complaints found that while policies are up-to-date and align with the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code, some areas of non-compliance were identified within Tenancy Services, highlighting a need for strengthened oversight. The AMHP review noted effective referral allocation but identified weaknesses in procedure coverage, gaps in content, and a lack of management oversight regarding open referrals.

The procurement compliance review found an improving framework of controls, with higher value procurements demonstrating strong compliance. However, opportunities for improvement were identified in lower value, service-led procurements. The taxi licensing audit identified issues with evidencing right to work checks and consistent application of the Council's policy on Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) re-checks. The home to school transport audit highlighted weaknesses in the administration of DBS checks and a lack of centralised records for actions taken following school inspections. The local taxation review found that while income allocation and refund processes were generally sound, there were weaknesses in the recovery of older debts and inconsistencies in cash balancing processes.

The report also provides an overview of the implementation of recommended actions, with 21 open actions confirmed as implemented since the last meeting. There were 63 recommendations overdue for implementation as at 30 May 2026.