Hartlepool Borough Council’s Audit Woes: A Qualified Opinion and Yet More Delays...

Yet more delays hit Hartlepool Borough Councils Accounts, leading to claims financial transparency at one of Teesside's most troubled organisations is being thrown out of the window....

6th March 2025

Hartlepool Borough Council's finally let the cat out of the bag—or rather, the audited accounts out of the vault.

James Magog, Hartlepool Borough Council’s Director of Finance, IT and Digital Services

On February 28, 2025, James Magog, the council’s Director of Finance, IT and Digital, issued a notice that the external audit of the Statement of Accounts for the year ended March 31, 2024, was completed. The auditors, Forvis Mazars LLP, delivered their report on February 27, 2025. But don’t pop the champagne cork just yet: the opinion was qualified, and the all-important Audit Certificate remains in limbo.

Why?

Because the National Audit Office (NAO) hasn’t yet confirmed whether Hartlepool will face further scrutiny under the Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) process.

For taxpayers in Hartlepool, this raises a slew of uncomfortable questions. Why has it taken nearly a year to get this far, only to stumble at the finish line?

What does a “qualified opinion” actually mean for the council’s financial credibility? And why does it feel like the public's being left in the dark whilst bureaucrats seemingly shuffle papers?

A Qualified Opinion: Is Not a Gold Star !

Let’s start with the qualified opinion side of things. In audit-speak, this isn’t an outright condemnation of the councils finances, but it’s far from a clean bill of health. It means Forvis Mazars found something in the council’s accounts—be it incomplete records, questionable accounting practices, or discrepancies that prevents them from fully endorsing the numbers. The specifics of this qualification aren’t detailed in the council’s notice, which in itself a red flag. Transparency demands more than a vague nod to “regulation this” and “section that.” Hartlepool residents deserve to know what's going wrong and how this is impacting on their council tax & more importantly, their services ?

Instead, we’re directed to a link—Statement of Accounts | Hartlepool Borough Council—where the full report, annual governance statement, and narrative statement supposedly reside. But how many residents simply have the time or expertise to wade through all this dense financial jargon? It’s a convenient way to bury bad news under a pile of paperwork and call it accountability.

The Audit Certificate Delay: Who’s Really to Blame?

The National Audit Office (NAO), located in London

Then there’s the missing Audit Certificate. Forvis Mazars has reportedly completed its work, yet the NAO’s indecision over WGA requirements has left Hartlepool in a state of administrative purgatory.

This isn’t a minor hiccup—it’s a failure to close the books on a financial year that ended almost 12 months ago. Under the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 (as amended in 2021), councils are legally required to make their audited accounts available to the public in a timely manner. Yet here we are, in March 2025, still waiting for the final stamp of approval.

Is this delay the NAO’s fault, or is HBC's finance Department dragging its feet?

The notice seems to conveniently shift the blame to the NAO, but it offers no insight as to whether the council has proactively chased answers or prepared for this contingency. James Magog’s statement reads like a masterclass in passing the buck: “We’ve done our bit, now it’s up to them.” Meanwhile, Council Tax Payers are left wondering if their council is sitting on a financial mess that requires further government scrutiny.

This isn’t just about one delayed certificate. It’s about a broader culture of opacity that seems to permeate Hartlepool Borough Council’s handling of public funds. A qualified opinion suggests at least 'some' underlying issues in the councils accounts—issues the council hasn’t seen fit to explain in plain English. The reliance on external bodies like the NAO to justify further delays only deepens the sense that Hartlepool’s unelected & unaccountable leadership seems to be more interested in ticking regulatory boxes than building public trust.

And let’s not forget the timing. The financial year ended March 31, 2024. The audit report landed February 27, 2025—eleven months later. Even accounting for the complexities of local government finance, this sluggish pace raises eyebrows. Were there disputes with Forvis Mazars? Did the council struggle to provide the necessary documentation? Or is this just business as usual in a system that prioritizes procedure & ticky boxes over people?

Local's aren’t asking for much—just clear, honest answers about how their money is being managed. A qualified audit opinion and a missing certificate don’t inspire much confidence. Instead, they fuel suspicion that the council is either incompetent or being deliberately evasive. If the NAO does select Hartlepool for WGA work, what further skeletons might just tumble out of the closet?

It’s time for James Magog and the council's directors to stop hiding behind legalese and hyperlinks.

Publish a summary of the audit findings in a language everyone can understand. Explain the qualified opinion. And light a fire under the NAO to get that certificate issued—or at least tell us what’s holding it up.

Anything less is an insult to the people of Hartlepool, who deserve much better than bureaucratic excuses and half-finished financial homework.