Herefordshire residents can now see the council’s most recent financial accounts online.
The draft 2022-2023 accounts were published on 31 May. That was to meet a new statutory deadline that’s two months earlier than in previous years. Our council is among only 30 per cent of UK local authorities that met the tighter target.
The accounts have been decluttered to make them easier to read and understand. While simpler, they still comply with legal requirements.
The accounts report our performance for the financial year ended 31 March 2023 against budget. The over-spend is due to national pressures from rising costs and demand for placements for children and young people. We delivered all other areas under budget for the year.
The accounts will be presented to the council’s audit and governance committee on 23 June. The committee will also see the previous year’s auditor’s report. That provides an opinion on our arrangements to secure ‘value for money’ in 2021-2022. It notes clear improvements and no significant weaknesses in terms of financial sustainability or governance. We’re continuing to address the three significant weaknesses noted from the previous year.
This year’s accounts will go on to be audited by Grant Thornton between July and September this year. This is to confirm they are ‘true and fair’ and free from errors.
Paul Walker, our chief executive, says:
“Despite unprecedented financial challenges, we’ve reduced over-spend to £5.6 million. That’s 3.2 per cent of our budget. We’ve achieved this with robust controls throughout the year.
“Looking forward to 2023-24, we’ve set a balanced budget to improve our services and support our priorities.
“We’ve helped residents and businesses recover from the worst effects of the covid pandemic. We’ve successfully delivered our services in a way that represents value for money. We’ve also strengthened our governance to safeguard public money.”