The Charter Trustees for the City of Durham are scheduled to meet on Wednesday 24 June 2026 to review the authority's financial performance for the past year and to consider its governance arrangements. The meeting will also address the formal annual return for the financial year ending March 2026.

Annual Governance Statement 2025/26

A key item on the agenda is the review of the Annual Governance Statement for the financial year 2025/26. This statement, detailed in the Public reports pack Wednesday 24-Jun-2026 14.00 Charter Trustees for the City of Durham.pdf, outlines how the Charter Trustees have complied with the requirements of the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 regarding the annual review of their internal control systems. The report highlights ten assertions relating to good governance, financial management, and internal control. Evidence is provided to demonstrate compliance with each assertion. The report notes that the internal audit for 2025/26 provided a Moderate overall assurance opinion on the adequacy and effectiveness of internal control. The statement will need to be formally approved and signed by the Chair and Treasurer before submission to external auditors.

Revenue Outturn for the year ending 31 March 2026

The meeting will also examine the Revenue Outturn for the year ending 31 March 2026. This report details the actual expenditure compared to the budget set for the financial year. For the year ending 31 March 2026, the actual net expenditure was £66,290, representing an underspend of £5,270 against a budget of £71,560. The report attributes this underspend primarily to a net reduction in expenditure on the Mayor's hospitality and an overachievement in ticket sales income for the Mayor's Civic Dinner. A donation of £3,000 was also received from the Durham City Freemen Charitable Trust for the purchase of new robes in the following financial year.

Annual Return for the year ended 31 March 2026

The Charter Trustees will consider the Annual Return for the year ended 31 March 2026. This document, which includes the Annual Governance Statement and the Accounting Statements, is a requirement for smaller authorities in England with an annual turnover of £6.5 million or less. The return must be approved by the Charter Trustees no later than 30 June 2026 and is then subject to a limited assurance review by external auditors. The report indicates that the accounting statements incorporate an estimated valuation of fixed assets, primarily civic regalia and bequeathed assets, valued at approximately £0.261 million. The meeting is being asked to approve Sections 1 and 2 of this Annual Return.

The meeting is scheduled to take place in Committee Room 2, County Hall, Durham, on Wednesday 24 June 2026 at 2:00 pm. The agenda and reports pack are available to view in the Public reports pack Wednesday 24-Jun-2026 14.00 Charter Trustees for the City of Durham.pdf and Agenda frontsheet Wednesday 24-Jun-2026 14.00 Charter Trustees for the City of Durham.pdf.