External audit – a THP history
Are you looking for an external auditor for your limited company, but are shocked by the fees charged by some of the big audit firms?
If so, you’re not alone. For decades, medium-sized companies have turned to THP external auditors for both statutory and voluntary audits. It’s because we’ve built up a reputation for audits that are efficient, cost effective and conducted by friendly and helpful experts.
To help you understand the THP difference, below is the story of how our audit services have come to be trusted by dozens of companies like yours. If you like what you read and would like an instant quote for your audit, we’d be delighted to help.
An external audit service created for firms like yours
THP’s audit department was the brainchild of one our early partners, Chris Johnson.
Chris had come to us with extensive auditing experience, having managed major audits for companies such as Sainsbury’s. So, back in the 1980s, he decided to set up a team of external auditors at THP (at that time Adrian C Hart and Co) who could offer a first-class service to medium-sized companies, at a much lower cost than the big auditing firms.
Growing our auditing unit soon became the driving goal of Chris’s career. When he wasn’t out at clients’ premises, you’d usually find him at his desk working away at piles of audit files and papers. In those early days before the computer era and the Internet, pretty much every auditing task had to be carried out manually.
What Chris understood from the outset was that auditing is very much a team-based activity. With his guidance, help and kindness over the years, he assisted many junior external auditors achieve their full Chartered Qualification.
Our external audit team today
Chris retired in 2018, but his legacy and methodology continue under Andy Green, who took up the baton of external audit. Andy had built up significant experience as Chris’s second in command, learning that strong leadership and an unwavering devotion to our clients’ needs form the bedrock for providing exceptional audit services.
Under Andy’s leadership, THP’s external audit team has grown exponentially. This has largely been thanks to client and commercial referrals, particularly from medium-sized limited companies. Andy has now built up his own management team to assist him in maintaining the excellent service delivery for which THP Audit has come to be known.
Our audit directors
Andy is now one of three THP directors who specialise as external auditors. Shahid Hameed looks after much of the training, compliance and anti-money-laundering processes which have become increasingly essential in recent times. Miles Girdlestone undertakes a lot of statutory audit work for companies across a wide range of industries. Lee Daley and Kate Brasser are also directors who undertake significant audit work, priding themselves on providing a friendly and efficient service to all their clients.
Assisted by a fast-growing team of experienced and junior auditors, external audit has become the fastest growing and high-profile service that THP Chartered Accountants provides.
So, it’s fair to say that the dream that Chris had in the 1980s has now become a clear reality!
Andy Green
Shahid Hameed
Miles Girdlestone
Lee Daley
Kate Brasser
Great value external audit fees
Did you know that only certain accounting firms are able to offer external audit services to companies in the UK?
To be authorised to do so, an accountancy business needs to be listed on the Register of Statutory Auditors. The bar required to obtain and maintain this registration is set very high, so we like to think of it as being a bit like obtaining a couple of Michelin stars!
Indeed, the compliance, registration and ongoing monitoring requirements of external auditing is so extensive and time consuming that the majority of accounting firms in the UK just don’t bother to offer external audit services at all.
At THP, we don’t think external audit should be a licence to print money. Instead, we perform thoughtful and diligent medium and large commercial UK audits that give you a great deal of value and don’t cost the earth. We help you by setting our fees and charges at competitive levels that are highly affordable for medium-sized limited companies.
So how do we do it? It’s partly because modern audit techniques allow us to complete more of the work from our relatively modest Wanstead offices. Our external auditors are also specially trained to be extremely efficient and experienced, usually taking under three weeks to complete an audit.
How our audit services work
When it comes to our audit services, Chris taught us well!
During his long tenure as Head of Auditing at THP, he used his strong organisational skills and talents to create streamlined systems and processes for every aspect of the auditing process. These have been further refined over the years.
He did this without losing sight of the human aspect of our work. Our audit team is not there to find fault or catch you out, but rather to work alongside you to overcome any issues or problems that may come to light during the audit process. Our aim is to help every business to use the valuable data arising from an external audit to take them to new and better places.
So, don’t waste money on an audit from an overpriced firm. Instead, use our simple online audit fee calculator to obtain a ballpark figure on what your audit is likely to cost and then get in touch with Andy for an exploratory chat.
Simply press the button below to get an instant quote!
