Choosing an auditor is a big step for any business. Yes, you want efficient, accurate audit services at a fair price. But most of all you need a registered auditor who takes real pride in their work before putting their name to your accounts.
That’s exactly what THP’s audit team does. Since the 1980s, we’ve built a reputation as diligent, friendly and helpful auditors with a talent for making complex audit processes as painless as possible.
Most of our clients are privately owned companies with a turnover of up to £200 million, although we also act as joint auditors for firms that are five times that size. We stand out because we offer personalised, responsive audit services that give you direct access to our senior auditors every step of the way.
When you need a trusted partner for a statutory audit, THP’s offers you audit services based on care, consideration and excellent value. Why not get an instant quote now?
Good reasons to choose audit services from THP
- Significantly lower fees than most big audit firms
- A friendly team experienced in auditing major UK companies and groups
- Accessible senior auditors leading each project
- Agreed timelines – audit initiation to draft accounts usually in under 3 weeks
- Minimal disruption – most work is undertaken offsite
- A collaborative approach focused on your business’s best interests
- Helpful recommendations to help you make strategic business decisions
What is a statutory audit?
A statutory audit is an independent audit of your financial statements. Certain companies are legally required to undertake an audit every year.
A properly conducted audit gives you a high level of assurance that your company’s financial statements are free from material misstatement, and that they comply with current legislation and accounting standards.
Our auditing services also provide you with accurate financial information, help reduce the risk of fraud or error, and give you extra credibility with lenders, clients and credit ratings agencies.
For more insights, see our page Understanding the purpose of an audit.
Do I need statutory audit services?
Whether or not your company needs a statutory audit depends on a number of factors.
These include what’s written in your articles of association, the size of your company, and which industry you work in. You can find more details in our blog post, Statutory audit: does my limited company need one?
Most companies needing a statutory audit for the first time do so because they have grown. The law says you must have an annual audit if your business meets two of the following criteria:
- An annual turnover of more than £10.2 million
- Assets of more than £5.1 million
- 50+ employees on average
If you are beginning to reach (or have exceeded) these thresholds, we recommend you get in touch to find out how our audit services can help you.
What are the benefits of audit services?
Because statutory audits are compulsory, it’s tempting to see them as a burden.
In fact, a good audit is quite the opposite – it will give you critical information that is vital for consolidation, growth and reputation.
When you choose THP’s audit services, these are some of the benefits you can expect:
- Informed decision making. When you have detailed financial information, you can identify under- and over-performing areas of your business. This can help you make efficiencies, allocate resources better and exploit opportunities. It also aids you with longer term planning and strategic decision making.
- Lower risk of fraud and error. Drilling down into your financials is the best way to spot fraud or mistakes early. If we find inconsistencies or unauthorised transactions, it allows you to act quickly and take measures to improve your internal controls.
- Compliance. When you use our audit services, you can rely on us to check that your financial records are compliant with relevant financial, tax and accounting rules and standards. We’ll also advise you of any changes you need to make, reducing the risk of penalties or fines for non-compliance.
- Increased stakeholder confidence. When a THP auditor puts their name to your audit, it demonstrates that we believe your financial statements are free from significant errors and that they are compliant. This in turn boosts your credibility and gives confidence to stakeholders such as shareholders, investors, suppliers and clients.
Quality auditing services can also save you money. By bringing clarity and transparency to your accounts, you can spot problems such as unnecessary expenditure or potential errors that could otherwise have remained hidden for years.
The audit process
THP’s audit services are built on collaboration. As your auditors, we don’t believe our role should be confrontational. Instead, we tailor our audit process to your company’s needs, helping you to find areas of improvement and to get as much value from your financial records as possible.
Each audit is delivered in three broad stages that, together, normally take 3 weeks or less to complete.
All audits are signed off by one of our in-house RIs (Responsible Individuals). We will only issue an opinion and put our name to your accounts when we are completely satisfied that we’ve done the best possible work on your behalf.
Step 1
Audit Planning
This is when we work with you to agree the scope of your audit, devising an audit plan that’s as efficient as valuable as possible. We take time to understand your sector, operations, systems and controls, looking for areas of particular risk. This allows us to delve deeply into critical areas of your financial reporting, rather than wasting time and money on data that’s low risk. At the end of the planning process, we’ll ask you to agree a proposed schedule of work and we’ll commit to a delivery timeline.
Step 2
Execution
This is when we put the audit plan into action. We’ll analyse your accounts in detail to make sure they accurately support your financial statements. We’ll check that your records are compliant and we’ll evaluate your internal controls to make sure they are robust and keep the risk of fraud or mistakes to a minimum. Some of this work will take place at your premises, but thanks to state-of-the-art cloud accounting and audit software, the bulk of your audit will take place when we’re off-site. This means minimal disruption for you.
Step 3
Audit Completion
When we’ve completed your audit, we’ll prepare a report that presents our findings. We’ll inform you of any significant misstatements, plus any control issues we’ve discovered. We’ll also highlight any non-compliance with legal or regulatory requirements. When we present our report, we focus on the key findings that need to be addressed. This gives you the information you need to improve and devise ways of doing it.
Who will be responsible for my statutory audit?
Audit services from THP stand out because every project is led by a director who specialises in audit. They will normally lead a team of two or three experienced auditors, and you can speak directly to any of them during working hours.
We pride ourselves on maintaining excellent communications throughout the audit process. If you can’t speak to a member of the team immediately, they’ll call you back as soon as possible. If you email us with queries, we’ll respond as soon as we have the answers you need.
Our aim is to make the audit process as painless as possible for you, so you can rely on us to meet deadlines and do what we say we’ll do, when we say we’ll do it.
THP: auditing excellence since the 1980s
When many people think of auditors, huge accounting firms that charge vast fees for their services immediately spring to mind.
It was the same back in the 1980s. Even then, the biggest firms would charge eye-watering hourly fees for work completed by relatively junior auditors.
This led one of our founding partners – highly experienced auditor Chris Johnson – to devise a different approach. He realised that medium-sized private companies needed auditors who were in tune with their particular needs, not those multinational conglomerates. So he decided to build an expert team capable of providing thoughtful, diligent auditing services that wouldn’t cost companies the earth.
Fast forward 40 years and our audit team has grown and thrived, delivering hundreds of audits to satisfied clients. They’re here to help businesses like yours achieve robust, insightful audits without losing sight of the human aspect of their work. Through counselling and strategic advice, they’ll help you interpret and use your audit data to take your business to new and better places. Why not get an instant quote now?
Meet the THP audit team
Andy Green
Andy is our lead director responsible for our audit services. As our Compliance Director, he ensures that THP’s impeccable standards and reputation are consistently upheld. With a background in accounting, investment banking and audit, Andy’s passion for the profession stems from its dynamic nature: “Every day presents new challenges and opportunities to achieve successes for clients.” Andy’s approachable style and positive outlook make him a highly regarded lead auditor for a broad array of clients, regardless of size or sector.
Miles Girdlestone
Miles joined THP in 2014, bringing a breadth of experience gained from working with a range of organisations in statutory audit, accounts preparation and corporate tax. Now a Client Director, he manages an impressively diverse portfolio that spans industries including medical professions, property development and food processing. Miles’s commitment to building lasting relationships with clients is underpinned by trust, understanding and shared success: “My dedication goes far beyond numbers – it’s about being a true partner in their journey.”
Shahid Hameed
As one of THP’s Responsible Individuals (RI), Shahid oversees audits and signs them off with precision and care. In his role as Money Laundering Compliance Officer (MLCO), he ensures the firm stays ahead of compliance obligations while keeping the team fully trained in anti-money laundering legislation. Shahid’s expertise allows him to handle complex and sensitive audits with professionalism and respect. Since being appointed Client Director, he has embraced the opportunities for variety in his work: “The growth of THP’s audit portfolio has been exceptional, and it’s been exciting to play a key role in that progress.”
Audit services pricing and instant quote tool
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Audit services FAQs
The length of a statutory audit depends on a variety of factors, including the size of your company and the complexity of your financial records. However, our audit services for medium-sized limited companies generally take in the region of three weeks, with much of that work taking place off-site.
You must organise an independent statutory audit for every financial year that you are required to have one.
Yes, you need independent audit services. You cannot do a statutory audit in-house.
An auditor’s role is to review a company’s financial statements and ensure that they are free from misstatement and comply with UK accounting standards and relevant legislation. An auditor provides an opinion on whether financial statements present a true and fair view of the company’s financial position. We take this role very seriously, and will only sign off an audit if we have full confidence in our findings.
At the completion of your audit, we will give an audit opinion. In most cases, we are able to issue an unqualified opinion. That is to say we think your financial statements give a fair and accurate view. Sometimes, however, we have to issue a qualified opinion. This means that we think there are some issues or limitations with your financial statements. Rarely, we have to issue an adverse opinion. This is when we don’t think your financial statements reflect your financial position. Even more rarely, we need to give a disclaimer of opinion. This is when a lack of evidence prevents us from forming an opinion.
If an audit fails, you could face reputational damage, loss of business and financial penalties. In some circumstances, company directors could face legal sanctions.
Audits take time and expertise, so they are never cheap. However, at THP we pride ourselves on offering exceptional auditing services at a highly competitive price. Get a quote here.
We use a range of tried-and-tested software to speed up the auditing process and make it as accurate as possible. These packages include CCH Audit Automation software. We don’t currently use AI software for audit, but we will do in the future once we are satisfied that it delivers the accuracy that we demand.
Yes, if an auditor’s negligence leads to errors or omissions. However, THP audit services are conducted to the highest possible professional standards. We also hold all relevant insurances to give you peace of mind.
You’ll get the best value from our audit services if you are well prepared. Our work will always be quicker and simpler if you make sure your financial records are complete and up to date, you have strong internal controls and you’ve addressed any concerns raised by auditors during previous audits. If you’d like advice on preparing for an audit, please get in touch.
Yes, we can act as joint independent auditors on larger projects. We’re experienced at working with other teams on audits for companies with a turnover of up to £1 billion.
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