Building Societies Act 1986

72 Duty of directors to prepare annual accounts. U.K.

(1) Subject to subsection (4) below, the directors of every building society shall prepare with respect to each financial year of the society—

(a) an income and expenditure account showing the income and expenditure for that year,

(b) a balance sheet showing the state of its affairs as at the end of that year, and

(c) a statement of the source and application of the funds during that year.

(2) Except as provided in subsection (5) below, if, at the end of its financial year, a building society has subsidiaries, the directors shall also prepare, with respect to that year, group accounts dealing respectively with the income and expenditure, the state of the affairs and the source and application of the funds, of the society and the subsidiaries.

(3) The directors of a building society which has subsidiaries shall secure that, except where in their opinion there are good reasons against it, the financial year of each of its subsidiaries coincides with the society’s own financial year.

(4) Where the directors prepare a statement of the source and application of the funds of the society and its subsidiaries under subsection (2) above they need not also prepare such a statement as to the society’s funds under subsection (1) above.

(5) Subject to subsection (6) below, group accounts need not deal with a subsidiary if the society’s directors are of the opinion that—

(a) it is impracticable, or would be of no real value to the society’s members, in view of the insignificant amounts involved,

(b) it would involve expense or delay out of proportion to the value to members, or

(c) the result would be misleading or harmful to the business of the society or any of its subsidiaries;

and if the directors are of that opinion about each of the society’s subsidiaries group accounts are not required.

(6) Except to the extent that regulations under section 73 otherwise allow, group accounts or group accounts dealing with a particular subsidiary shall not be dispensed with under subsection (5)(c) above without prior approval of the Commission.

(7) The Commission may by regulations made with the consent of the Treasury—

(a) add to the classes of documents to be comprised in a society’s accounts to be prepared for each financial year under subsection (1) or (2) above;

(b) make provision as to the matters to be included in any document so added;

(c) modify the requirements of this Part as to the matters to be stated in any document comprised in the society’s accounts; and

(d) reduce the classes of documents to be comprised in a society’s accounts.

(8) Regulations under subsection (7) above may make different provision for different descriptions of society, and may include incidental and supplementary provisions.

(9) The power to make regulations under subsection (7) above is exercisable by statutory instrument which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(10) The accounts prepared with respect to a society’s financial year under this section (whether as individual accounts or group accounts), with the notes to them, are referred to in this Part as “the annual accounts”.