Audit for Charities

Audit

It is often easy to overlook the fact that Trustees are volunteers too, yet they take on an enormous responsibility and regulatory burden when they accept the post. The external audit process is a key tool for the Board to obtain comfort on the financial statements and the financial operations of the charity.

The charity sector is a fascinating and rewarding one, but it does have its own unique challenges, risks and requirements. From financial reporting to the differing levels of communication between management and trustees, everything works differently in a charity.

Our experience

Our teams have significant experience, gained over many years by advising not-for-profit sector clients, which means we can offer a more-than-an-average audit process.

We will engage with both your Board of Trustees and management to ensure that communication is clear and effective. We will use our sector knowledge to provide advice on best practice and efficiencies. And we will give you practical support around financial reporting and regulatory compliance which not only underpins the audit process itself, but provides your Trustees with the comfort they require.

Internal Audit

We live in a world where the best intentions to reduce red tape can all too often have the reverse effect and increase the regulatory burden by transferring the onus onto organisations themselves, and this is felt most acutely in the not-for-profit sector.

Trustees, who freely give their time, unfortunately end up having to accept responsibility in the event of a regulatory failure, and are therefore incredibly dependent on the effectiveness of internal controls, processes and systems being in place.

Many of these controls and systems will be in respect of financial processes, but increasingly the risks around areas such as cyber-attack, data protection and effective operational governance can all have an equally significant impact.

By outsourcing your internal audit process, you can provide your Board with the reassurance that appropriate controls and systems are in place and working correctly. But perhaps more importantly, undergoing an internal audit allows you to tap into the wealth of experience that our professional teams have garnered over the years through their work with similar organisations, which means that they are well placed to provide recommendations on how to improve efficiency and quality.

In addition our internal audit team regularly work with Boards to ensure that the risk assessment and mitigation processes are formalised and documented, as well as facilitating sessions around self-assessment of effectiveness of the Board and any Committees in operation.

Meet the team

We’re a friendly, independent and professional team of accountants, auditors, tax advisers, insurance brokers, corporate finance specialists, business advisers and so much more.

View all our team profiles

Graham Doubtfire

Private Client Tax Partner

Graham is one of our Private Client Tax Partners working from our Colchester office.

Paul Goddard

Risk & Assurance Partner

Paul specialises in internal audits and delivers robust frameworks to help businesses.

Get in touch for forward-thinking, impartial advice

Do you have a specific issue to discuss? Or simply looking for a long-term plan that protects your financial future? We’re here to help provide the answers.