Pembrokeshire County Council has been praised by the Appointed Auditor, Ceri Stradling, in his presentation of the Authority’s Annual Letter for 2008-09.
Mr Stradling presented the Wales Audit Office’s report to the Corporate Governance Committee at County Hall on Friday (5th February).
The Letter set out key messages arising from audit and inspection work of the Council undertaken over the past 12 months.
“Again, a very positive conclusion for yourselves,” Mr Stradling told the committee. “We felt that the Council is very well placed to face future challenges, and as we know, there are lots of future challenges.”
He said the Council has complied with financial and performance improvement reporting requirements and has arrangements in place to respond to future changes.
“There are going to be financial pressures; but your budgetary control will help you to meet them,” said Mr Stradling. “We feel you are well placed to plan effectively for all those pressures we will all face over the next few years.”
He also praised the £6.5m in Council reserves, describing as ‘not excessive, but prudent’.
Mr Stradling said the Council’s Improvement Plan 2009-2010 meets statutory requirements and provides a balanced view of its performance in 2008-09. He added that Performance Indicators demonstrated that the majority of services have continued to improve.
Council Leader, Councillor John Davies, welcomed the report, saying:
“We have received similar consistent messages from the Auditor over the years with regard to the progress that we make.
“It is very difficult to continue to improve on an already exceptional record, but nevertheless a tremendous amount of services look very positive and the direction in which they are travelling is good. This is reassuring news to the taxpayers of Pembrokeshire.”
Councillor Peter Stock, Committee Chairman, said described the report as in general, ‘very pleasing’, adding that the Council would take on board the Auditor’s recommendations for improvement.
“We know over the next couple of years the whole country will be going through a difficult period,” he said. “Pembrokeshire County Council will be striving to provide the best quality services for the people of Pembrokeshire. That is and has always been our aim.”
