Agenda item

To consider Item 10

The Principal Accountant presented to Members the Statement of Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2021. These show the financial detail of the services the Authority had provided, together with explanatory notes, the resources consumed and the financial position at the end of the year compared with the previous year. When putting together the Accounts, the Authority had followed the CIPFA Code of Practice on Local Authority Accounting in the UK 2020/21: Based on IFRS, the Code. The Accounts were drawn up in accordance with the accounting policies which were set out in detail within the Statement of Accounting Policies section.

The responsibility for the proper administration of the Authority’s financial affairs was vested in the Director of Finance and Assets who was required by law to confirm that the Authority’s system of internal controls could be relied upon to produce an accurate Statement of Accounts. The Accounts contain four main statements. Each of the four main statements were supported by disclosure notes providing additional detail to figures presented. The four main statements were; Movement in Reserves Statement - this statement showed the changes in the financial resources over the year; Comprehensive Income and Expenditure Statement - this statement showed the gains and losses that contributed towards the changes in resources shown in the Movement in Reserves Statement; Balance Sheet - this statement showed how the resources available were held in the form of assets and liabilities and the Cash Flow Statement - this statement showed how the movement in resources had been reflected in cash flows.

The Principal Accountant advised Members that the Accounts also contained information regarding the Firefighters’ Pension Fund Account. Along with a Narrative Statement which provided information about the Authority including Key Facts about the Authority, Financial Performance in 2020/21, Corporate Risks, the Pandemic, and a Going Concern Review. The auditor’s report would be added to the document before publication.

The Principal Accountant advised Members that there was a 16 percent decrease in the total of non-current assets, the reason for the reduction was Bletchley Fire Station being sold during the financial year, which included an investment property on this site,  and reporting Great Holm Fire Station as an asset held for sale, which was not shown separately in the Accounts due to details surrounding the sale being commercially sensitive.  Assets under construction related to the build of the Blue Light Hub that was completed during 2020/21 and following an independent valuation, the value of the property was now seen within Land and Buildings. The valuation of all other property had fallen slightly following the independent valuations and the market position at the time.

The Principal Accountant advised Members that there was a 22 percent decrease overall in the current liabilities compared to the previous year. The main reason for the difference was a decrease seen in short term creditors on business rates relief grant seen in 2019-20, but not 2020-21 and more noticeably a large decrease in provisions of £1.08m, which included a reduction in the NNDR appeals provision and fully utilising the injury pensions provision.

The Principal Accountant advised that non-current / long term liabilities had increase by 25 percent in the long-term liabilities compared to the previous year. The majority of this increase was due to the liability relating to the defined benefit pension scheme. There was a change to the financial assumptions used by the Actuary, which included a significant change on the ‘discount rate’ Inflation expectations, which resulted in a higher value being placed on the defined benefit obligation. This increase was offset by the pension reserve. Usable Reserves had increase by 27 percent and the Unusable Reserves had increased by 34 percent.

A Member asked how much of the reserves had been used to fund day-to-day activity.

The Deputy Director of Finance and Assets responded by saying that in terms of the day-to-day activity for this coming year, the Authority had set aside £1.1m use of reserves to balance the budget for 2021/22. In reality, the Authority would not be using it, as there had been some underspend within existing budgets, additional government funding and additional funding from a rate review that had been carried out. Setting the budget for next year, a balanced budget had been set without the use of reserves from the revenue expenditure. In terms of the capital expenditure, the Authority does not receive any capital funding from government, so the Authority allocates revenue budget to transfer in the region of £1.4-£1.9m to fund capital projects.

A Member asked with regard to Human Resources why the amount had dropped by £96k, was it a recruitment issue, or were there less people than at the beginning of the year.

The Deputy Director of Finance and Assets confirmed that the budget for Human Resources was £542k and the Authority spent £446k, so there was an underspend of £96k. This was due to some vacancies within Human Resources. The Deputy Director of Finance and Assets confirmed that the vacancies had now been filled and Human Resources was back to full establishment.

Resolved –

1. That the matters raised by the external auditors be considered.

2. That the Statement of Accounts for the financial year ended 31 March 2021 be approved for signing by the Chairman of the Overview and Audit Committee.