Local Authority Accounting Conference – Latest developments in local authority financial reporting and finance

Helen is a CIPFA qualified accountant who joined CIPFA in 2023 after 20 years working in the public sector. Helen has experience working within finance for local government and the housing sector. Her career has covered many areas of accounting including capital accounting, business planning and the preparation of the statement of accounts.

David joined CIPFA in July 2012 as a FAN advisor, after a 30 year career in local government. He spent several years as chief accountant with key responsibilities for the statement of accounts. David has an extensive technical knowledge and practical understanding of local authority financial statements and the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)-based Code of Practice, and uses that wealth of knowledge and experience to provide support and guidance to practitioners across local government in his established role as FAN advisor. David qualified with CIPFA back in 1989 and uses his passion for understanding the evolving technical aspects of local authority accounting to provide support to finance staff at a practical level. As the pressures on local government funding and services continue to bite, CIPFA's FAN support is becoming an ever-important lifeline for busy practitioners in helping them prepare for and manage the changes in financial reporting and accounting required to comply with the code of practice.

Email: david.ellis@cipfa.org
Tel: 07879 665950

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Mark qualified as a Chartered Accountant and has worked in local government finance for the past twenty years. Since 2016 he has been Director of Finance and Resources at Maidstone Borough Council. His resource management has provided the financial platform for the council’s ambitious social housing programme and he has developed and enhanced the council’s asset portfolio to support its leisure and culture strategy. He has chaired the Kent Finance Officers Group and since 2023 has been a member of the CIPFA/LASAAC Board, responsible for setting local government accounting standards. He has a strong interest in making local authority accounts more accessible and in 2024 he authored a survey report for the Society of District Council Treasurers, ‘Streamlining Accounts’.

Conrad has twenty years of senior financial management experience in London local authorities, the last ten of which have been in chief finance officer roles,

He trained with the Audit Commission, qualified as a CIPFA accountant in 1998, and is a former winner of the Accountancy Age UK Accountant of the Year award for his work in transforming Lambeth Council. He is currently the Corporate Director of Resources for Newham Council and chairs the CIPFA/LASAAC board, which is responsible for financial reporting and accounting standards for UK local government

David Lyford-Tilley is CIPFA’s Head of Standards and Technical. He leads CIPFA’s work on public sector standard-setting and technical support via CIPFA’s Networks. He was formerly a Technical Manager in ICAEW’s Tech Faculty, where he wrote and spoke on a wide range of technological topics relevant to accountants in business and practice.

Ben joined CIPFA in 2023, after working for seven years in local government. Ben is CIPFA qualified and driven by a passion to deliver excellence in public financial management and reporting. His main area of expertise is in the closure of accounts with experience including Capital, Collection Fund and Financial Instruments.

Helen is a Senior Associate of Bruton Knowles and is the Head of Public Sector Valuations. Helen’s experience includes 20 years in the public sector providing valuation advice, strategic asset management including the delivery of acquisitions and disposals, along with estate management duties for a varied portfolio. Helen is a Chartered Surveyor and Registered Valuer and is a member of the Association of Chief Estates Surveyors and Property Managers in the Public Sector and holds a CIPFA Certificate in Asset Valuations. Helen is also an APC Assessor and an Inspire Ambassador for the RICS.

Alex is engaged as a Principal Consultant with the IPSASB, supported by World Bank funding, to develop a public sector reporting standard focused on climate-related disclosures. Previously, Alex worked at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), where he led the global accountancy body’s public sector strategy. He concluded his tenure at ACCA with an internal secondment to the Strategy Leadership Team. In this role, he developed the organisation’s sustainability strategy, increased the maturity of its net zero approach, and produced the organisation’s ISSB implementation roadmap. Earlier in his career, Alex worked across central, provincial and local government in the UK and Canadian civil service, including as a Senior Economist - specializing in tax policy - at the Ontario Ministry of Finance. Alex is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA). He studied at Oxford, Cambridge and Queen's universities.

Rosie Seymour is a civil servant in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Since April 2024 she has had responsibility for Local Audit Reform which is within the Local Government Oversight and Accountability Directorate. In the civil service, Rosie has worked mainly on social policy and public service transformation, including local government policy and finance, devolution, equality and social exclusion. Prior to April, Rosie worked for a number of years on secondment to the Better Care Fund programme hosted in NHS England.

Amit is a Chemical Process Engineer with over fifteen years of experience in technical and policy management. He has worked across diverse industry sectors including Oil and Gas, Food and Drinks, Construction and Renewables in technical leadership positions delivering complex projects worldwide. Currently, Amit is leading Sustainability function of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) as Sustainability Policy Manager within the Policy and Technical team. His role involves developing a comprehensive carbon emissions reduction strategy for CIPFA to meet its Net Zero ambitions, working with diverse stakeholders for sustainability standards developments and implementation, responding to technical consultations, developing CIPFA thought leadership activities and projects both within the UK and internationally.

Hazel joined CIPFA in 2023 after working for eighteen years in local government. She is a CIPFA qualified accountant who has experience of technical accounting, including capital accounting, group account consolidation, and the preparation of the statement of accounts.