Issue - meetings

Grant Thornton, as the Council’s appointed External Auditors, have produced a report (Appendix A) which provides an update to Audit & Governance Committee on their progress to date in delivering their responsibilities.

The report includes an update on their audit work. Key points of note are:

·       Financial Statements Audit 2024/25

o   Work on the financial statement audit is nearly complete.

o   The audit findings report is being reported to the Audit & Governance Committee alongside this progress report.

o   The value for money audit is complete and was included in the interim annual auditor report (AAR) presented to this committee in Nov 2025.

o   The AAR report will be updated to include key financial statement audit findings and then issued in final form.

·       Financial Statements Audit 2025/26

o   Plan to undertake planning and early testing prior to the year end to support an earlier completion.

o   In order to prepare for the backstop moving forward over the next two years, plan to finalise the 2025/26 audit by November 2026.

The report also includes a summary of emerging national issues and developments that may be relevant to the Council.