The Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015

Joint boards, combined authorities , combined county authorities and National Park authorities

9A

• (1) This regulation applies to Category 1 authorities for the financial years in the period beginning with 1st April 2015 and ending with 31st March 2028.

• (2) Subject to paragraph (4), where an authority has not published its accountability statements for a financial year beginning in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 or 2022, it must do so after approving the statement of accounts in accordance with regulation 9(2) but not later than 13th December 2024.

• (3) Subject to paragraph (4), for the financial years listed in the first column of the following table, after approving the statement of accounts in accordance with regulation 9(2), an authority must publish its accountability statements on or before the corresponding date in the second column—

• (4) Where paragraph (5) applies an authority must—

• (a) on or as soon as reasonably practicable after the last publication date, publish a notice stating that it has not been able to publish its accountability statements and its reasons for this, and

• (b) publish its accountability statements as soon as reasonably practicable.

• (5) This paragraph applies in relation to an authority where the local auditor has not entered its opinion on the statement of accounts for a financial year before the last publication date and—

• (a) on the day before the last publication date—

• (i) the local auditor is considering an objection made under section 27 of the Act (right to make objections at audit),

• (ii) a person who has objected under section 27 of the Act may still appeal under section 28(3) of the Act (declaration that item of account is unlawful),

• (iii) the local auditor is considering whether to make an application to the court under section 28(1) of the Act, or

• (iv) an application has been made under section 28(1) or an appeal has been brought under section 28(3) of the Act and the court has not yet determined the application or appeal, or

• (b) for a financial year listed in paragraph (3), on the day before the last publication date the local auditor is not yet satisfied that the authority has made proper arrangements for securing economy, efficiency and effectiveness in its use of resources.

• (6) Where paragraph (5) does not apply and a Category 1 authority fails to comply with paragraph (2) or (3) (as the case may be), the authority must—

• (a) on or as soon as reasonably practicable after the last publication date, publish a notice stating—

• (i) that it has not been able to publish its accountability statements,

• (ii) its reasons for this, and

• (iii) that it acknowledges that it must publish its accountability statements as soon as reasonably practicable,

• (b) on or as soon as reasonably practicable after the last publication date, send a copy of the notice mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) to the Secretary of State, and

• (c) as soon as reasonably practicable publish its accountability statements.

• (7) When accountability statements are published under this regulation, an authority must—

• (a) keep copies of those documents for purchase by any person on payment of a reasonable sum, and

• (b) ensure that those documents remain available for public access for a period of not less than five years beginning with the date on which those documents were first published in accordance with this regulation.

• (8) Where an authority publishes any statement or notice in accordance with this regulation, this must include publication on the authority’s website.

• (9) In this regulation—

• “accountability statements” means—the statement of accounts together with the opinion and any certificate, entered by the local auditor in accordance with section 20(2) of the Act (general duties of auditors);the annual governance statement approved in accordance with regulation 6(2);the narrative statement prepared in accordance with regulation 8;

• “last publication date”, in relation to a financial year, means the date on or before which the accountability statements must be published in accordance with paragraphs (2) or (3).

Publication of statement of accounts, annual governance statement and narrative statement for Category 1 authorities : financial years 2028 onwards

Publication of annual audit letter or auditor’s annual report