Auditor criticises college accounts and calls for 'urgent action'

A public spending watchdog has issued a scathing opinion on the annual accounts of the Northern Regional College.

The Auditor General has taken the rare step of issuing what is known as a "disclaimed opinion".

That means she was unable to obtain sufficient evidence to support the information in the college's financial statements.

The college's 2023 accounts were 19 months late and had to go through 11 different versions in an attempt to address "a large number of errors".

The auditor, Dorinnia Carville, said she was still unable to obtain sufficient audit evidence for balances totalling more than £11m.

She said: "This audit was completed 19 months beyond the normal reporting deadline .

"That was as a result of the delay by the college in producing financial statements, the poor quality of those financial statements and the extremely poor quality of available working papers to support the figures.

"Urgent action is required by the college, its governing body and the Department for the Economy to address the weaknesses identified."

Among the issues identified was an entry in the accounts suggesting the college was due £5m from the Department for the Economy in respect of grant aid which had not been drawn down in a previous year.

When the auditor raised this with the department it said it was unaware of the existence of this liability and was unable to confirm the validity of the college's estimate.

The issues at the college were so significant that they have led to the Department of Economy's accounts being disclaimed for a second year in a row.

The college said it planned to strengthen financial controls, improve processes and enhance oversight.