Annual Return
Explanation of the process:
The Town Council’s accounting year runs from 1 April to 31 March.
The Annual Return (Annual Governance and Accountability Return – AGAR) comprises of a 6 page document that must be presented to the Full Town Council for formal approval before it is submitted to the external auditor by 30th of June each year.
The independent internal auditor is also required to sign the Annual Return before it is presented to the full council for scrutiny and formal sign-off by the Chair.
The Annual Return is then sent to the external auditor with a variety of supporting documentation and explanations of any variance of 15% or more from the previous year. The external auditor may request specific additional information which may include copies of bank statements insurance policy details, asset and property registers, copies of governance documentation (council rules), risk management schedules and copies of minutes for some specific items. Anyone can ask for copies of our return for a thirty-day period once it has been submitted, the details for doing this are here though bear in mind that it is still unapproved at this stage and may change. Our latest signed submission can be viewed here.
Upon receipt, the external auditor, who is appointed by the Government, will examine the Annual Return and its supporting documentation, ask questions or request further information before completing section 3 of the form with any observations or recommendations. At this point we publish a notice to say that the full audit is now complete and we publish the final forms including the external auditor report. It is then tabled for the next council meeting where any remedial actions will be agreed.
The Town Council is required to display the fully completed (6 page) Annual Return, with an accompanying notice that advises local electors how they can view the Annual Return. Please click here to review this notice, here to see the fully audited return and here to see to see the external auditor’s final report.
The Precept:
The Precept is that element of your Council Tax that is paid to Darley Dale Town Council.
Every year, the Town Council draws up budgets and calculates how much money it needs for the next Financial Year. These are usually finalised at the January Full Council meeting and then submitted to Derbyshire Dales District Council (DDDC). DDDC co-ordinate the other demands from Derbyshire County Council, Police and themselves and come up with the rate to be paid from 1st April that year.
The Town Council’s approved Precept for 2023-2024 was £172,300 which was the same as 2022-2023.
