At the end of each financial year we publish a statement of accounts.
The accounts show:
- how we have spent money on services in Lincolnshire
- statements of movement in the general fund
- gains and losses
- a balance sheet with all our assets and liabilities at 31 March
Statutory information
By law, we must publish certain documents and information about the annual external audit of our accounts:
- final statement of accounts 2020-21 (audited)
- covering letter for 2020-21 auditor's report
- notice of conclusion of audit 2019-2020
- completion report 2019-2020 - pension fund
- completion report 2019-2020 - Lincolnshire County Council
- annual audit letter - lincolnshire county council 2019-2020
- annual audit letter - lincolnshire pension fund 2019-2020
Date: 30 September 2021
Invoice payment performance
| Financial year | Undisputed invoices paid within 30 days | Value of liability of invoices paid after 30 days | Value of interest for late payment charges paid to suppliers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | 97.1% | £145,139.43 | £0 |
| 2020-21 | 97.3% | £197,463 | £368 |
| 2019-20 | 91.0% | £356,964 | £0 |
| 2018-19 | 89.0% | £272,026 | £0 |
| 2017-18 | 89.1% | £231,036 | £0 |
| 2016-17 | 86.7% | £277,190 | £0 |
| 2015-16 | 87.7% | £944,479 | £0 |
We are committed to paying all undisputed invoices within 30 days. Payment delays can happen if invoices are in dispute.
Payment delays to undisputed invoices can happen if credit balances are held on supplier accounts.
We calculate interest liability at 8% plus the Bank of England base rate on 31 March for each financial year.
A large majority of maintained schools use our financial system. At present, we are not able to separate their figures.
We plan to develop our finance system by April 2021. We aim to improve processes, extend staff training, and improve our payment performance.
Delay in publishing draft statement of accounts: year ended 31 March 2023
Under the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 regulations 9 and 15, the commencement period for the exercise of public rights to inspect the draft 2022 to 2023 accounts and related documents, based on an account’s completion date of 31 May 2023, should include the first 10 working days of June, with inspection dates being between 1 June and 12 July 2023.
The audit of the 2021 to 22 accounts is still in progress due a variety of complex factors arising from audit delays in previous years. This has been compounded by the council moving to a new ERP system from April 23, with anticipated downtime and changeover issues to resolve, which has impacted on the commencement of the 2022 to 2023 accounts. We will therefore not be in a position to commence the period for the exercise of public rights as set out above.
We now aim to publish our draft 2022 to 2023 accounts on Friday 9 June 2023 upon which point we will ensure the public have the right to inspection for 10 working days as required by Regulation 15. Our auditors have been informed of this delay, and this will also be included in our report to Audit Committee on the 19 June 2023, when the committee will review the draft accounts.
Delay in publishing audited statement of accounts: year ended 31 March 2022
The external audit of the draft statement of accounts for the year ended 31 March 2022 has not yet been completed by our external auditors, Mazars LLP. This is due to an outstanding technical accounting issue which affects all local authorities with infrastructure assets.
We currently envisage that the audit will be completed early in 2023, following which Mazars LLP will provide their audit opinions and issue their audit reports, in respect of the Lincolnshire County Council and the Lincolnshire Pension Fund Statements.
This situation is allowed for by Regulation 10, paragraph (2) of the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 (SI 2015-234), as amended by the Accounts and Audit (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (SI 2022/708).
This notification explains, as per Regulation 10 (2) (a), that we are not yet able to publish our audited 2021-22 statement of accounts in line with publication date of 30 November 2022, as per Regulation 10 (1).
We are continuing to work closely with the external auditor to ensure the required work is completed as soon as possible. In line with the accounts and Audit Regulations 2015, a draft statement of accounts was published subject to audit on 6 July 2022. The final audited statement of accounts for the year ended 31 March 2022 will be published as soon as the audit is concluded, and the independent auditor’s report issued.