Finance and Accounts

As the keeper of public funds Horsforth Town Council works within strict legislation and law, set down by the UK Government to ensure transparency, democracy and fairness in all transacted business. It has robust procedures, checks and audit for all its decisions. The Council works within the Accounts and Audit Regulations to ensure that all financial transactions of the Council are transparent, legal, recorded and available for public viewing. Horsforth Town Council complies with proper financial practices. It keeps full financial accounts, completes robust audit processes, and follows best practice in procurement.
At the end of each financial year Horsforth Town Council submits an annual governance and accountability return (AGAR) to the external auditor, PKF Littlejohn LLP, 1 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, London, E14 4HD. Once reviewed, the auditor supplies the Town Council with the notice of conclusion of audit. You can view the documents for this year and previous two years below. The relevant sections of the AGAR and the external auditor's report can be seen by clicking on the link below, and are also available for inspection at the Council office.

Accounts for the financial year ending 31st March 2025

Horsforth Town Council receives the majority of its income through the precept; an annual sum of money collected with the Council Tax by Leeds City Council.

At the Full Council meeting held on 25th January 2024, the Town Council agreed to request a precept of £144,900 and the band D charge increased to £19.33. This equated to an increase of 20p per month per Band D property.

The budget for 2024-2025, was agreed at the meeting in January 2024 and can be found using the link below.

Budget 2024-2025
Budget and Precept Report 
The Fixed Asset Register

A Fixed Asset Register has four main purposes:

  • It forms a basis for completion of box 9 in the ‘Annual Return.’
  • It forms a basis for decisions on risk and insurance issues.
  • It provides information on the age and potential lifespan of certain items.
  • It provides assurance of the continued existence of Council’s property.

The Register is adopted by the Council at the end of each Municipal Year but is a working document over the following Municipal Year, during which Council Officers will update and amend details as necessary.

The values indicated in the asset register will inform the ‘total fixed assets’ section of the Annual Return with the exception of assets held on trust.

Once recorded on the asset register, the value of assets must not change from year to year until disposal. Concepts of depreciation and impairment adjustments are not appropriate for local councils (Governance and Accountability for Local Councils: A Practitioner’s Guide (England) 2014, para. 3.69).

Accounts for financial year ending 31st March 2025

Annual Accounts
Notice of Public Rights
Section 1 - Accounting Statement
Section 2 - Annual Governance Statement
Annual Internal Audit
Final External Auditor Report
Notice of Audit and Rights to Inspection
Notice of conclusion of audit

 

Schedule of Payments

 

Horsforth Town Council provides a schedule of payments at the Full Council and Finance & General Purposes Committee meetings, as a supporting document of the agenda. Once approved, the schedule of payments is published below. This exceeds the minimum requirement of the Data Transparency Code to publish expenditure items over £500 on a quarterly basis.

26.09.2024 
25.07.2024  12.09.2024
30.05.2024   11.07.2024

Accounts for the financial year ending 31st March 2024

Accounts for the financial year ending 31st March 2023

Schedule of Payments

Horsforth Town Council provides a schedule of payments at the Full Council and Finance & General Purposes Committee meetings, as a supporting document of the agenda. Once approved, the schedule of payments is published below. This exceeds the minimum requirement of the Data Transparency Code to publish expenditure items over £500 on a quarterly basis.

23.03.2023   09.03.2023 
26.01.2023   12.01.2023 
24.11.2022    10.11.2022