Academies & Multi Academy Trusts

How we can help your Academy Trust

We see the audit as an important part of good governance, to help the Governors ensure that they are fully compliant with relevant legislation and best practice.

Our approach to the year end audit is based on a ‘hands-on’ partner and manager led, flexible and individually focused service. With a firm wide team of 230 people and a dedicated Education team, we have the resources available to deal with the many audits concentrated in the autumn each year.

We will support you throughout the year, rather than just restricting our involvement to the year-end audit. We believe in open relationships with our clients and so will be in contact with you on a regular basis to understand your progress and developments, and to advise you of the emerging issues affecting the sector. Many of our clients send us minutes of trustee meetings throughout the year which enables us to keep in touch more effectively and address issues as they arise.

Internal Assurance

The Academies Financial Handbook continues to stress the importance of the audit committee (or equivalent) playing an active role in assessing and managing the risks facing the Trust. Internal assurance plays an important part in assessing and devising a plan to respond to any risks and to ensure that the Academy has sufficient, robust and appropriate controls.

To respond to the varying risks faced across the sector we have expanded our internal assurance offering. This will allow for the audit committee (or equivalent) to direct the testing to those areas they perceive to be of most importance or highest risk.

Some of the key areas of work that we can undertake are Regularity and Compliance, Month end procedure, Budgeting and Financial management, Procurement, Bank payments, Income, Risk management and insurance, Vehicles, Capital and contract management, Payroll, VAT, Corporation tax and other taxes.

This is not an exhaustive list, but is a starting point to help trustees consider the effectiveness of the Academy’s internal controls and the risks faced.