The Audit & Governance Committee of Croydon Council was scheduled to discuss the approval of the 2024-25 Statement of Accounts, including the Pension Fund accounts. The committee was also set to review the committee's work programme and assurance mapping document, and receive an update on the Audit and Governance Committee Action Log.

Approval of the 2024-25 Statement of Accounts including Pension Fund

The committee was recommended to consider the auditor's Audit Findings Reports and Audit Opinions for the Council and Pension Fund for 2024-25. It was also recommended that authority be delegated to the Section 151 Officer, in consultation with the Chair of the Audit and Governance Committee, to sign the 2024-25 Letters of Representation to Grant Thornton LLP for both the Council and the Pension Fund. Furthermore, the committee was asked to delegate authority to sign the 2024-25 accounts, including the Pension Fund accounts, with any non-material amendments required by due diligence. The committee was also to note the proposed audit fees for the years 2020-21 to 2023-24 and the final Pension Fund audit plan for 2024-25.

The report highlighted that the approval of these accounts would represent a significant step forward for the Council in meeting financial reporting requirements, being the first set of accounts to be prepared and approved within statutory timeframes since 2018-19. The report also noted that the external audit team viewed the Council's efforts as a positive start to rebuilding assurance, a process expected to take several years and be guided by national guidelines applicable to many local authorities. The Council intended to continue working with external auditors to complete this process at the earliest opportunity.

The final version of the Statement of Accounts presented total usable reserves at £259.2m as at 31 March 2025, a decrease from £283.4m the previous year. The report also included the external auditor's Audit Findings Report, which provided an independent assessment of identified risk areas, adjustments made to the accounts, and recommendations for improvement, with management responses provided.

The report acknowledged the national backdrop of delays in local government accounts and audits, and the introduction of backstop dates by the government. For the financial year ending 31 March 2025, the statutory deadline for the publication of audited accounts was 27 February 2026. The report explained the implications of backstopped disclaimers for previous financial years' accounts, which meant that opening balances had not been tested, impacting the auditor's ability to provide assurance on them. This would have knock-on effects for several years until audit firms could provide normal audit opinions through iterative testing and increased assurance.

The report detailed the impacts of changes made to the Council's 2024-25 accounts, summarising the effects on the General Fund, Housing Revenue Account (HRA), and Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) budget. The total impact on resources available was £29.56m. The report identified critical process failures in a few restricted areas, including special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) placements recording, payments, and forecasting within the DSG, and the alignment of data within the NEC system (used for rent accounts) back to the general ledger. There was also a failure in reporting the status of long-term loans granted to Brick By Brick. The Council outlined its plans for improvement for 2025-26, including commissioning a review of SEND placements, highlighting the reconciliation of feeder systems to the general ledger as a key action, and acknowledging the need to improve processes for data completeness.

The report also provided details on external audit fees for the financial years that received backstop opinions, noting a discount on the scale fee for years where an audit did not take place. Fees were assessed to reflect the work required for the audit role, including liaison with the Council, issuing disclaimed opinions, and supporting Value for Money conclusions. The final Pension Fund audit plan for 2024-25 was also presented for the committee's sight.

Audit and Governance Committee Action Log

The committee was scheduled to receive the updated Audit and Governance Committee Action Log, which details actions arising from previous meetings and their progress.

Committee Work Programme & Committee Assurance Mapping Document

The committee was set to review the updated Audit & Governance Committee Work Programme for 2025-26 alongside the Committee Assurance Mapping Document. This would allow for an overview of the committee's planned activities and how assurance is mapped across its responsibilities.

DSG Deficit Management Plan

A report on the DSG Deficit Management Plan was scheduled to follow. This indicates that the details of this plan were not available at the time the agenda was published.