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Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Annual Audit Report to Members and the Controller of Audit

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Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Annual Audit Report to Members and the Controller of Audit Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Annual audit report to Members and the Controller of Audit September 2015 Key contacts Elaine Boyd, Senior Audit Manager [email protected] Blyth Deans, Senior Auditor [email protected] Karen Cotterell, Senior Auditor [email protected] Ray Buist, Trainee Auditor [email protected] 4th Floor South Suite The Accounts Commission is a statutory body which appoints external auditors to Scottish local The Athenaeum Building government bodies. (www.audit-scotland.gov.uk/about/ac) 8 Nelson Mandela Place Audit Scotland is a statutory body which provides audit services to the Accounts Commission and Glasgow the Auditor General. (www.audit-scotland.gov.uk) G2 1BT Telephone: 0131 625 1500 The Accounts Commission has appointed Elaine Boyd as the external auditor of Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee (“the Park”) for the period 2011/12 to 2015/16. Website: www.audit-scotland.gov.uk This report has been prepared for the use of Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee and no responsibility to any member or officer in their individual capacity or any third party is accepted. This report will be published on our website after it has been considered by the council. The information in this report may be used for the Accounts Commission’s annual overview report on local authority audits published on its website and presented to the Local Government and Regeneration Committee of the Scottish Parliament. Contents Contents Key messages ...................................................................................... 4 Best Value ........................................................................................... 16 Introduction .......................................................................................... 5 Appendix I – Significant audit risks .................................................. 17 Audit of the 2014/15 financial statements .......................................... 6 Appendix II - Summary of local audit reports 2014/15 ..................... 22 Financial management and sustainability ........................................ 11 Appendix III - Summary of national report 2014/15 .......................... 23 Governance and transparency .......................................................... 14 Appendix IV - Action Plan .................................................................. 24 Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Page 3 Key messages Key messages Audit of Unqualified auditor's report on the 2014/15 financial statements. financial Quality control improvements are required in the preparation of financial statements and statements supporting working papers. The Park reported an underspend against budget of £65,952 for 2014/15. Financial management Overspend noted against publicity budget at year end of £3,300. Utilities also overspent by and £16,145. sustainability An updated Minute of Agreement between the constituent authorities is required to confirm funding arrangements and to ensure the financial sustainability of the Park. The Park continues to utilise the financial systems of East Dunbartonshire Council. Governance and Improvements could be made to transparency by making committee papers and minutes publicly transparency available on the Park or Council websites. No specific internal audit work was carried out on the transactions of the Park in 2014/15. The outlook for public spending for the period 2015/16 to 2016/17 remains very challenging. Outlook The Park will continue to face financial constraints which may increase the pressure on them to deliver their statutory duties and meet established performance targets. The Park will again need to be prepared to face the challenging financial environment ahead. Page 4 Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Introduction 5. A number of reports, both local and national, have been issued by Introduction Audit Scotland during the course of the year. These reports, summarised at appendices II and III, include recommendations for 1. This report is a summary of our findings arising from the 2014/15 improvements. audit of Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee. The report is divided into sections which reflect our public sector audit 6. Appendix IV is an action plan setting out our recommendations to model. address the high level risks we have identified during the course of the audit. Officers have considered the issues and agreed to take 2. The management of the Park is responsible for: the specific steps in the column headed "Management preparing financial statements which give a true and fair view action/response". We recognise that not all risks can be eliminated implementing appropriate internal control systems or even minimised. What is important is that Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee understands its risks and has putting in place proper arrangements for the conduct of its arrangements in place to manage these risks. The Park and Joint affairs Management Committee members should ensure that they are ensuring that the financial position is soundly based. satisfied with proposed action and have a mechanism in place to 3. Our responsibility, as the external auditor of the Mugdock Country assess progress and monitor outcomes. Park Joint Management Committee, is to undertake our audit in 7. We have included in this report only those matters that have come accordance with International Standards on Auditing, the principles to our attention as a result of our normal audit procedures; contained in the Code of Audit Practice issued by Audit Scotland in consequently, our comments should not be regarded as a May 2011 and the ethical standards issued by the Auditing comprehensive record of all deficiencies that may exist or Practices Board. improvements that could be made. 4. An audit of financial statements is not designed to identify all 8. The cooperation and assistance afforded to the audit team during matters that may be relevant to those charged with governance. It is the course of the audit is gratefully acknowledged. the auditor's responsibility to form and express an opinion on the financial statements; this does not relieve management of their responsibility for the preparation of financial statements which give a true and fair view. Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Page 5 Audit of the 2014/15 financial statements Audit of the 2014/15 financial statements Audit opinion We have completed our audit and issued an unqualified independent auditor’s report. The financial statements of the Park have been prepared on the going concern basis. Action is Going concern required to formalise an updated Minute of Agreement between the constituent authorities to ensure the future operation and financial sustainability of the Park. We review and report on other information published with the financial statements, including the Other information management commentary, annual governance statement and the remuneration report. We have nothing to report in respect of these statements. Submission of financial statements for audit Overview of the scope of the audit of the financial statements 9. We received the unaudited financial statements on 8 June 2015, in accordance with the agreed timetable. Although working papers 10. Information on the integrity and objectivity of the appointed auditor were also provided, these were not subject to a suitable quality and audit staff, and the nature and scope of the audit, were outlined control process and a number of errors were identified. This had an in our Annual Audit Plan issued to management on 23 March 2015. adverse impact on audit progress, with additional work required by 11. As part of the requirement to provide full and fair disclosure of the audit team as a result. East Dunbartonshire Council staff matters relating to our independence, we can confirm that we have provided support to the audit team which assisted the delivery of the not undertaken non-audit related services. The 2014/15 agreed fee audit to deadline. for the audit was set out in the Annual Audit Plan and this remains unchanged. 12. The concept of audit risk is of central importance to our audit approach. During the planning stage of our audit we identified a Page 6 Mugdock Country Park Joint Management Committee Audit of the 2014/15 financial statements number of key audit risks which involved the highest level of 16. We summarised our approach to materiality in our Annual Audit judgement and impact on the financial statements and consequently Plan. Based on our knowledge and understanding of Mugdock had the greatest effect on the audit strategy, resources and effort. Country Park Joint Management Committee we set our planning We set out in our Annual Audit Plan the audit work we proposed to materiality for 2014/15 at £4,900 (1% of gross expenditure). We undertake to secure appropriate levels of assurance. Appendix I report all misstatements greater than £200. Performance materiality sets out the significant audit risks identified during the course of the was calculated at £3,900, to reduce to an acceptable level the audit and how we addressed each risk in arriving at our opinion on probability of uncorrected and undetected audit differences the financial statements. exceeding our planning materiality level. 13. Our audit involved obtaining evidence about the amounts and 17. On receipt of the financial statements and following completion of disclosures in the financial
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