Audit Readiness and Support

An audit goes well or badly long before the auditor arrives. When the records are complete, the reconciliations agree and the difficult judgements are already documented, an audit is quicker, calmer and usually cheaper. When they are not, it drags on, the questions keep coming, the fee creeps up and the finance team loses weeks.

We help you get ready and see it through.

What is included

• Preparing your business and its records for audit
• Help on technical accounting matters
• Responding to audit findings and management letter points
• Reviewing internal controls and processes, with recommendations

To be clear about our role: we do not carry out audits. Your audit is carried out by your appointed auditor, an independent firm. We work on your side of the table, helping your business prepare for the audit and supporting you through it.

Preparing for audit

We work through what your auditor is going to ask for, before they ask for it. That means making sure the ledgers are complete and reconciled, the balance sheet can be backed up line by line, and the supporting documents are in order: bank confirmations, fixed asset registers, stock counts, contracts, loan agreements and board minutes.

We put together a clear set of working papers and a schedule of the information the auditor has requested, and we help your team work through it. Anything that looks likely to raise a question is dealt with in advance, with the explanation written down.

Help on technical accounting matters

Some of the hardest parts of an audit are judgements rather than arithmetic. How should revenue on long-term contracts be recognised? Is that a lease? How should a group restructure, a new loan or a share scheme be accounted for? What happens when a new accounting standard applies for the first time?

These are exactly the points where a well-prepared, properly reasoned position saves days of back and forth. We research the question, document the treatment under UK GAAP or IFRS, and discuss it with you and your auditor.

Responding to audit findings and management letter points

At the end of an audit, the auditor will usually raise findings and send a management letter setting out weaknesses they found and what they recommend. We help you understand each point, agree a realistic response with the auditor, and then put the fixes in place so that the same points do not come back next year.

Reviewing internal controls and processes

Good controls are what make the numbers trustworthy all year round, not just at audit time. We review how your business authorises spending, approves payments, handles cash, closes each month and keeps its records, and we recommend practical improvements that fit the size of your business. A growing business does not need the controls of a multinational, but it does need the right ones.

Why this matters for growing businesses

A business may need an audit because it has grown past the size thresholds, because a lender, investor or parent company requires one, or because it is preparing for a sale or a funding round. Whatever the reason, the first audit is often the hardest. We help you make it a smooth one, and set you up so that every audit after it is easier.

Who does the work

This work is led by Omar Ahmed Khan ACA, an ICAEW Chartered Accountant with over ten years of auditing experience across Deloitte, one of the Big 4, and mid-tier firms, as well as in-house finance roles. Omar knows what auditors look for because he has worked on their side of the table, and he has managed audit cycles from the inside as well. You deal with Omar directly.

Getting started

1. A free consultation, to understand why you are being audited, who your auditor is and when the work is due.
2. A readiness review of your records, controls and likely areas of challenge.
3. An agreed plan and fee, confirmed in writing before we start.
4. Support through the audit, and help with the findings afterwards.

We are based in Crawley and work with businesses across Crawley, East Grinstead, Horsham, Haywards Heath and Horley, and with clients across the UK and abroad, travelling for the meetings that matter.