The Governance and Audit Committee of Kent County Council was scheduled to consider a range of financial and governance matters. The meeting's agenda included the review of the external auditor's annual reports for both the council and the Kent Pension Fund, alongside the draft Statement of Accounts and the Annual Governance Statement.

Kent County Council Auditor's Annual Report 2025-26

The committee was scheduled to receive the Kent County Council Auditor's Annual Report for 2025-26. This report was expected to provide commentary on the council's arrangements for securing economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in its use of resources, assessed across three key areas: financial sustainability, governance, and improving economy, efficiency, and effectiveness. The report was scheduled to highlight significant weaknesses identified in relation to Adult Social Care spend, the Dedicated Schools Grant deficit, and the effectiveness of the Governance and Audit Committee itself. A key recommendation was scheduled to be made regarding the development and implementation of a governance improvement programme.

Kent Pension Fund Audit Findings Report 2025-26

The committee was also scheduled to review the Kent Pension Fund Audit Findings Report for 2025-26. This report was expected to detail the findings of the audit of the pension fund's financial statements and its arrangements for value for money. It was anticipated to cover the financial sustainability and governance of the fund, as well as its economy, efficiency, and effectiveness. An improvement recommendation was scheduled to be made regarding the backlog of pension administration cases.

Draft Statement of Accounts 2025/26

The committee was scheduled to consider the draft Statement of Accounts for Kent County Council for the year ended 31 March 2026. This document provides an assessment of the council's financial performance and position. The report pack indicated that no adjustments to the financial statements were identified by the external auditors, other than minor disclosure errors. Recommendations for management were also scheduled to be presented.

Annual Governance Statement

The committee was scheduled to review the Annual Governance Statement (AGS) for 2025/26. This statement provides an annual assessment of the effectiveness of the council's governance arrangements and supports accountability, transparency, and good decision-making. The draft AGS was scheduled to be discussed, with members' comments and observations to be considered in the preparation of the final version. The statement was expected to conclude that Kent County Council continues to operate within an effective governance framework, despite significant financial pressures, major organisational change, and increasing external demands. However, it was also scheduled to identify several areas requiring ongoing attention and development, including capacity pressures, increasing complexity of member conduct complaints, financial sustainability challenges, the effectiveness of the Governance and Audit Committee, and the impact of Local Government Reorganisation.

Letters of Representation

The committee was scheduled to consider Letters of Representation for both Kent County Council and the Kent Pension Fund. These letters are provided in connection with the audits of the financial statements and are formally minuted by the committee to confirm their approval and signing by the Chair of the Committee and the Corporate Director Finance.

Minutes of the previous meeting

The committee was scheduled to review the minutes of its previous meeting, held on 23 July 2026. These minutes would have detailed the discussions and resolutions from that meeting, including updates on committee business, external audit progress, treasury management, counter fraud activities, and internal audit reports.

Other items

The agenda also included standard procedural items such as apologies and substitutes, and declarations of interest.