Agenda item

Report from the Director of Finance

Unaudited Draft Statement of Accounts

Draft Annual Governance Statement

The Director of Finance presented a report introducing the Draft Statement of Accounts.

The report explained that in accordance with the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 (as amended) the Unaudited Draft 2025/26 Statement of Accounts were signed by the Director of Finance (S151 Officer) on 30 June 2026 by the deadline and published on the Councils website. However, the Annual Governance Statement was not available by the 30 June 2026 deadline, therefore the Council has been unable to commence the 30-working day period for the Exercise of Public Rights and a delay notice was published on the Council website.

The council had re-published the Draft 2025/26 Statement of Accounts and the Draft 2025/26 Annual Governance Statement on 15 July 2026 to commence the 30-working day period for the Exercise of Public Rights from Thursday 16 July 2026 and this will end on Wednesday 26 August 2026.

The Accounts and Audit (Amendment) Regulations 2024 came into force on the 30 September 2024, this legislated the statutory backstop dates, including the 2025/26 Statement of Accounts of 31 January 2027. To comply with the backstop date legislation the Council must publish accountability statements on the website by this backstop date, accountability statements need to include:

·         The Statement of Accounts together with the Audit Opinion and any certificate.

·         The Annual Governance Statement.

·         The Narrative Statement (the Council includes this within the Statement of Accounts)

Whilst there is no longer a requirement for those charged with governance to approve the Unaudited Draft Statement of Accounts and Draft Annual Governance Statement, Audit Committee are asked to consider and note the Unaudited Draft 2025/26 Statement of Accounts (Appendix 1) and Draft 2025/26 Annual Governance Statement (Appendix 2).

Those present were given the opportunity to ask questions and the following points were raised:

• Councillor Gartside referred to the overspend and savings that hadn’t been delivered for this financial year and asked if there was a timetable of action for each.

The Director of Finance explained that nothing had been written off and it was assumed that they would be delivered in the current financial year.

The Finance Board meets on a monthly basis and progress will be reported to the Cabinet in September.

• Councillor Martin asked at what level would a S.114 notice become a risk for the Council?

It was explained that the February budget report set out the requirement to undertake a number of service reviews to identify savings proposals to address the gap. All reviews have been completed and are being worked through and will be reported to November Cabinet.

It was also explained that there is no specific threshold at which a Section 114 Notice must be issued. Rather, it is a matter of professional judgement for the Director of Finance, taking into account factors such as the size of the projected budget gap, the level of available reserves, and the degree of confidence that the financial position can be improved and the gap reduced in future years.

• Councillor Green stated that many authorities across the country were in the same position as Bury in relation to funding due to demand for services.

The Monitoring Officer presented the Draft Annual Governance Statement (AGS), covering the period from March 2025 to March 2026.

The Statement outlined the Council’s governance framework and explained how it discharges its responsibilities while maintaining accountability.

The Annual Governance Statement focuses on the effectiveness of internal controls and describes the arrangements in place to ensure good governance across all areas of the Council’s activities. It reflected the findings of the Internal Audit Opinion and acknowledged that, while further improvements are still required, progress has been made and a number of improvements have now been embedded within the Council's processes and practices.

It was also explained that the Governance and Assurance Boards meet on a monthly basis and a Members’ Assurance Board receive highlight reports in relation to their work.

• Councillor Green referred to the Let’s Do It Strategy, noting that it was originally due to run until 2030. She asked whether any plans were being considered for the period beyond 2030 and whether the ambitions set out within the strategy were on track to be achieved.

In response, it was explained that the Let’s Do It Strategy is owned collectively by the Council and its partners and key stakeholders. Progress against the strategy is monitored through Team Bury, which undertakes regular reviews to assess delivery and ensure objectives remain on track. Where areas are identified as not progressing as intended, Team Bury has the ability to challenge the approach, review priorities and, where necessary, reset elements of the plan to support its successful delivery.

• Councillor Green also asked whether succession planning was carried out in relation to staff as this was fundamental.

It was explained that each service has a workforce strategy plan which is embedded as part of the annual business plans across each service. Each plan looks at staffing across each team and what each team needs to do to make sure it is effective.

It was agreed:

That the Unaudited Draft 2025/26 Statement of Accounts and Draft 2025/26 Annual Governance Statement be noted.