Winchester City Council given clean bill of health by auditors
Winchester City Council given clean bill of health by auditors
Winchester City Council has been given a clean bill of health in a recent external audit report.
The council’s external auditors have reviewed the organisation’s financial statements and have concluded that they will issue an unqualified opinion and have found very few amendments that need to be made.
The council has had to deliver its financial statements in record speed with the deadline brought forward for the final report by a month compared to last year, with a further month less for the external audit. The auditors also provided an unqualified opinion on the council’s arrangements for securing value for money by declaring a ‘no matters to report’ conclusion on this aspect of financial management.
Portfolio Holder for Finance at Winchester City Council Cllr Guy Ashton, said:
“This positive report is a result of a significant amount of planning and preparation from the council to meet the government’s new shorter deadlines; I am very pleased that our finance team has risen to the challenge presented.
“This report also underlines the strong financial control and management that the council has over taxpayers' money and with changes that we have made to our regular financial reporting, provides a clearer and more accessible way for people to assess how the council spends public funds.”
The report was considered by the council’s recent audit committee and approved.