Bradford-on-Tone Internal Audit Report 2023-24

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Bradford-on-Tone Parish Council Internal Audit Report Financial Year 2023-24
Internal audit carried out by:
Jill Larcombe
6 The Old School
Chapel Street
Tiverton
EX16 6ND
Tel: 01884 252647
jilllarcombe@yahoo.co.uk
Date of audit: 23rd and 24th June 2024
Smaller authorities are required by the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 to ‘undertake an
effective internal audit to evaluate the effectiveness of its risk management, control and governance
processes, taking into account public sector internal auditing standards or guidance’.
This report details the results of the Internal Audit for Bradford on Tone Parish Council which has
been carried out in accordance with the requirements as detailed within the Joint Panel on
Accountability and Governance Practitioners Guide 2023.
General Information
Was the higher of gross income or
gross expenditure £25,000 or less?
Does the Council meet the qualifying
criteria and wishes to certify itself as
exempt from a limited assurance
review?
Does the Council have the General
Power of Competence?
Have the accounting statements
prepared during the year been
prepared as Receipts and Payments or
Income and Expenditure?
Tests
Financial
Are there Financial Regulations in
place?
Have they been reviewed recently?
Are they using the most recent version
of the NALC Model Financial
Regulations?
Was the process for agreeing the
budget for 2022-23 documented and
was the budget approved?

Yes/No
N/A

Has the Council considered the
establishment of specific earmarked
reserves and did it review the level and

Yes

Final Internal Audit Report 2023-24

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Comments
Receipts and payments are below £25,000 for
2023-24 and the Council will meet the
qualifying criteria this year.

No
Receipts and Payments

Yes/No

Comments and recommendations

Yes
Yes

Reviewed 09.01.24 – no changes

Yes
Yes

Budget agreed at Parish Council meeting held
on 05.01.23 item 103. Report circulated for
councillors to consider. Discussion included
ear marked reserves
The following ear-marked reserves were
agreed as part of the budget setting process:
£5,500 general contingency fund
£2,500 election contingency

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purpose of these as part of the budget
setting process?
Does the Council have adequate
reserves taking into account any
earmarked reserves?

£5,000 staffing contingency
Yes

General reserves are within the appropriate
level of a Smaller Authorities General
Reserve. (It is recommended that this should
be maintained at between three and twelve
months of the precept. The smaller the
council the nearer twelve months this should
be).
Approved at the meeting held on 16.05.23
and reviewed on 09.01.24
Precept agreed at Parish Council meeting
held on 05.01.23 item 104
Minuted that £10,250 was agreed.

Does the Council have a General
Reserves Policy?
Was the 2022-23 precept approved by
the Council?
Was the amount requested, recorded
in the minutes?
Does the precept received match the
amount requested on the submission
form for 2022-23?
Has the correct balance been carried
forward from 2022-23?
Was all expected income fully
received based on correct
prices, was it properly recorded in the
Cashbook and promptly banked

Yes

Yes

All expected income fully received, properly
recorded and all payments made into the
Council’s bank account.

Is there a procedure for checking the
accuracy of supplier invoices before
they are presented for payment?
Are payments correctly authorised in
line with the Council’s payment
controls?
Are all payments included in the
minutes?
Does the Clerk have a debit or credit
card?
If so, what are the monthly and
individual transaction limits?
Are there appropriate controls over the
physical security and usage of the
card/s.
Are all payments correctly recorded in
the Cashbook?
Is VAT correctly accounted for in the
Cashbook?
Are any payments made using S137
correctly identified?
Is the arithmetic in the Cashbook
accurate?
Are payments made by cheque, online
banking or both?

Yes

Minuted that the invoices have been checked
for accuracy

Yes

Payments approved at meetings

Final Internal Audit Report 2023-24

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Yes

Yes

£10,250 received

Yes

Yes
No

Yes
Yes

Checked against invoices

Yes

Poppy appeal

Yes
N/A

Cheque payments with 2 signatures. Parish
Council has agreed to move its banking from
NatWest Bank to Lloyds Bank.

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Is the payment procedure the same as
agreed in the Council’s Financial
Regulations?
Does the Council have any petty cash
payments?
Are bank reconciliations prepared
routinely and are they subject to
independent scrutiny and sign off by
members?

Yes

Does the bank balance at 31 March
2024 agrees to the accounts and AGAR
Section 2, line 8 for 2023-24?
Does the Council have bank balances in
excess of £100,000?
If so, does it have an appropriate
investment strategy?
Are VAT reclaims prepared and
submitted in a timely manner in line
with the underlying records and
in accordance with current HMRC
requirements?
Does the Council regularly review and
monitor its spending against its budget
and are monitoring reports produced?
Are there procedures in place for
acquisition of formal tenders and
quotes?
Are they in line with the Council’s
Standing Orders and Financial
Regulations (Which should be based on
the latest version)?
Are consistent values in place for the
acquisition of formal tenders between
Standing Orders and Financial
Regulations?
Tangible fixed assets
Are asset and investment registers
complete and accurate and properly
maintained?
Borrowing and Lending:

Yes

Risk management
Insurance cover in place
Has the policy been reviewed this year
and has that been minuted?
Does the Council have the appropriate
level of cover for:
• Land (if any)
Final Internal Audit Report 2023-24

No

Expense claims are made

Yes

Bank reconciliations are presented at Parish
Council meetings. Minuted that bank
statement presented at meeting on 12.09.23.
There was an issues with a bank statement
not being provided by the bank and therefore
a bank reconciliations couldn’t be produced
for a meeting.

No

Yes

Yes

Regular reviews are carried out with reports
considered.

Yes

No formal tenders needed

Yes

Yes

Values have not been updated in line with
new thresholds

Yes

Asset Register reviewed 16.05.23 and play
equipment and coronation bench added.

N/C

No loans

Yes

Council agreed a 5 year long term agreement
with Zurich Municipal commencing on
01.06.22. Query raised regarding land the
play equipment is on.

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•
•
•
•

No land owned by the Council
No buildings owned by the Council
Yes
Yes
Yes

Buildings (if any)
Public liability
Employers’ liability
Fidelity Guarantee

Does the Council have more than
£85,000 in its bank accounts and, if so,
are these accounts all with the same
bank?
Has the Council reviewed the
effectiveness of its internal controls?
Is there a Risk register in place, is it up
to date and has it been reviewed within
last 12 months?
Are appropriate arrangements in place
for monitoring play areas?
Are such reviews undertaken by
appropriately qualified external
inspectors or, if by officers or
members, have they received the
appropriate training and accreditation?
Employment
Do the Clerk and any other Council
employee have a Contract of
employment in place?
Have there been any changes to the
contract and, if so, is there a letter
confirming the changes?
Is the gross pay due calculated in
accordance with the appropriate spinal
point/hourly rate on the NJC scale and
contracted hours. Is the correct tax
code being applied for each employee
Are payroll procedures carried out
correctly and PAYE, NI and pension
correctly accounted for?
Does the Clerk receive a tax free
working from home allowance, as
allowed by HMRC?
Are staffing costs correctly recorded in
Section 2, line 4 of the 2022-23
Accounting Statements?
Has the Clerk received any training in
year?
Does the Council have an Absence and
Sickness Policy and if not, are
arrangements included in Contracts of
Employment?

No

Below £85,000. Accounts covered by FSCS

Yes

Reviewed at Parish Council meeting on
16.05.23 item 137
There is a risk register in place but not
reviewed during 2023-24. The one on the
website is very out of date.
Regular weekly play area inspections are
carried out.

Final Internal Audit Report 2023-24

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Yes

The Council only has one employee, the
Clerk. Appointed on 01.01.23. Contract of
Employment in place.

Yes

National annual pay award for Clerk/RFO
approved at meeting held on 09.01.24.

Yes

HMRC payroll software used

No

Yes

Not
The Clerk is CILCA qualified
covered
No
Information included in Contract of
Employment

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Does the Council have an Annual Leave
Policy and if not, are arrangements
included in a Contract of Employment?
Does the Council have a Grievance and
Disciplinary Policy and if not, are
arrangements included in a Contract of
Employment?
Compliance with the publication
requirements under the Accounts and
Audit Regulations 2015. Authorities
must publish the following
information on the authority
website/webpage:

No

Information included in Contract of
Employment

No

included in Contract of Employment

Was a notice of the period for the
exercise of public rights and a
declaration that the accounting
statements are as yet unaudited
published on the website?
Is AGAR Section 1 - Annual Governance
Statement 20212/23, approved and
signed, published on the website?
Is AGAR Section 2 - Annual Governance
Statement 2022/23, approved and
signed, published on the website?
Is the AGAR Annual Internal Audit
Report for 2022-23 published on the
website? (Recommended as best
practice)
Have documents required under the
Transparency Code been published on
the website
Members
Is the Council’s Code of Conduct in
place, has it been reviewed recently
and is it up to date?
Are all councillors’ Register of interests
up to date?
Other policies and procedures (are
they in place and up to date?)
Standing Orders
Anti-fraud and Corruption
Data Protection
Privacy Notice/s
Awarding of Grants
Equality
Complaints
Safeguarding
Information Publication Scheme

Yes

AGAR Form 2 – These tests only apply to
Councils that had a Limited Assurance
Review

Yes

Yes

Yes

Mostly

Payments over £100 in 2022-23 not
published

Yes

Not reviewed in year. Councillors previously
agreed not to adopt the LGA Code of Conduct

Yes

Details on website

Yes
No
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
Yes

09.01.24

Other matters
Final Internal Audit Report 2023-24

Publication date 29 June. Period for
inspection 29 June to 9 August was correct
number of days and included first 10 working
days of July

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2018

Equality Statement on agendas

May 2018. Suggest updating as more
information could be provided by email

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Did the Council take appropriate action
on all matters raised in reports from
internal and external audit?
What are the arrangements for website
management?
Does the website have an accessibility
statement?
Are there arrangements in place for IT
backup?

Yes

Plan put in place

N/A

Website provider provides support.

No

Accessibility statement needs to be added to
the website.
The Clerk has a laptop and back up hard
drive.

Yes

I have carried out the internal audit for 2023/24 in accordance with what I have considered to
be this authority’s needs and planned coverage. Good progress on the Parish Council’s
governance has continued during 2023-24 and the Council has met all the internal control
objectives in 2023-24.
Signed:
Date: 23/06/24 and 24/06/24

Final Internal Audit Report 2023-24

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