Finance & Annual Governance & Accountability Returns (AGAR)

Finance & Governance

The Parish Council estimates its budget for the ensuing year at the November meeting. This includes repairs and maintenance together with administration costs. The request for this funding (the precept) is submitted to Dorset Council to be included in the Annual Community Charge.

The precept is paid by Dorset Council in two installments - one in April and the second in September of each year.

The precept was increased this year (2023-2024) to £7000.00 from £5000.00 in order to fund maintenance works on the bus shelters and adjacent public benches in each village. These are used on a daily basis with the Steepleton shelter still used by our local school children.

The Annual Accounts are produced and internally audited for approval at the Annual Parish Council Meeting in May. The end of the financial year is 31st March.

The Accounts & Annual Governance Returns (AGAR) and statutory notice etc are shown in full below. Please scroll further down for previous years.

As the parish council's income or expenditure does not exceed £25,000 a Certificate of Exemption has been sent to the External Auditors (BDO LLP - see below for address / contact) as we wish to certify ourselves exempt from a limited assurance review under section 9 of the Local Audit (Smaller Authorities) Regulations 2015.

This has now been submitted to the external auditor and they do not require any further information from us. The public notice of the above was displayed as required until 2/8/2023.

Year ending 31st March 2023 :

Internally audited accounts :

For easy reference : An extract of Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 22nd May 2023 (item 7f) relating to above.

Item 6 on page 5 above * : The internal audit was properly completed but submitted too late. The 2021/22 external auditor PKF Littlejohn completed and approved the AGAR but commented : The smaller authority has not arranged for an independent internal auditor to review the internal controls and give their conclusion in the Annual Internal Audit report. It must disclose this by answering “No” to assertion 6 of the Annual Governance Statement on the 2022/23 AGAR.

NB : The internal audit has been completed before the Annual Meeting held on 22nd May 2023 and we now have a proper internal auditing regime in place. The new external auditors are satisfied with the recent AGAR submission and do not rquire any further information or action from us.