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Audit committees

Practical information and guidance for Corporate Governance professionals working on audit committees.

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Need to know

A practical guide for audit committees on improving financial reporting

A joint publication with the Financial Reporting Council, this guide offers practical suggestions for audit committees and boards of smaller listed and AIM quoted companies seeking to deliver high quality financial and risk reporting.
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Articles & features

Exclusive INTERNAL AUDIT COMMUNITY I'm an audit chair - get me out of here!
  • Sep 2024
  • Carolyn Clarke - Internal Audit Community
In years gone by, the Audit Committee was firmly a finance domain. Audit Committee Chairs were predominantly accountants, often former external audit partners or CFOs, tasked with ensuring the financial results and the Annual Report reflected the performance of the organisation.
Accountants in business ‘must lead’ anti-corruption action
  • Jul 2024
  • ICAEW Insights
ICAEW joins forces with the International Federation of Accountants and the Basel Institute to offer anti-corruption guidance for accountants.
AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Climate assurance: governance and accountability
  • Jun 2024
  • Audit and Assurance Faculty
Explore the board's responsibilities, audit committee obligations and the role of internal systems of management and control in delivering appropriate and effective climate assurance.
Business should embrace the audit and assurance policy
  • Apr 2024
  • ICAEW Insights
Despite the UK government dropping corporate governance reforms, many audit committee chairs are likely to continue following the principles behind the Audit and Assurance Policy even if they don’t publish a statement.
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Guidance

AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Audit committees on improving financial reporting
  • Helpsheets and support
  • May 2019
  • PDF (492kb)
  • ICAEW in association with the Financial Reporting Council
A practical guide for audit committees on improving financial reporting.
AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Assurance mapping
  • Helpsheets and support
  • Sep 2018
  • Audit and Assurance Faculty
Assurance maps can be a powerful tool providing great insights for boards, senior management and audit committees. Here the Audit and Assurance Faculty explores the concept of assurance maps and the benefits to various stakeholders.
AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Evaluating your auditors
  • Helpsheets and support
  • May 2003
  • PDF (130kb)
  • Audit and Assurance Faculty
Guidance for audit committees: Guidance to assist non-executive directors on audit committees to gain an understanding of the provisions of the Combined Code on Corporate Governance
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CPD Training courses

Stay on top of the rapidly evolving corporate governance landscape and discover how to be a high-performing board director.
Corporate governance courses
Octopus

Reports

AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Sharpening the focus on corporate fraud: an audit committee perspective
  • Thought leadership report
  • May 2023
  • Audit and Assurance Faculty
This report from ICAEW's Audit and Assurance Faculty considers audit committee perspectives on the nature and extent of corporate fraud and what the corporate sector is doing to improve the chances of preventing and detecting it.
AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Audit quality: how to raise the bar
  • Thought leadership report
  • Mar 2021
  • Audit and Assurance Faculty
What steps can and should audit committees, audit regulators, investors and auditors in the UK take to improve audit quality? This essay from the Audit and Assurance Faculty examines audit quality in terms of ownership, behavioural aspects, and structural drivers.
INTERNATIONAL Audit committees in Europe
  • Report
  • Nov 2019
  • PDF (1,368kb)
  • European Affairs
This report expands our examination to audit committees in a further six EU countries, spread across the centre and south, with various corporate governance traditions and different sized capital markets – namely Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, The Netherlands and Portugal.
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Webinars and other recordings

Exclusive CORPORATE GOVERNANCE COMMUNITY Navigating the Governance of AI
  • Webinar
  • Sep 2024
This webinar aims to provide insights into the governance of AI, to equip board members and audit committees with practical strategies to effectively oversee AI implementations.
AUDIT AND ASSURANCE FACULTY Developing an audit and assurance policy
  • Webinar
  • Apr 2021
  • Audit and Assurance Faculty
This webinar will provide attendees with an overview of ICAEWs recommendations for developing an audit and assurance policy, based on proposals included in Brydon’s report on the quality and effectiveness of audit.
Exclusive CORPORATE GOVERNANCE COMMUNITY Leading an effective audit committee
  • Webinar
  • Mar 2018
  • Corporate Governance Community
Angela Crawford-Ingle, Chair of Audit & Risk Committees at Beazley plc, Swinton Insurance and River and Mercantile Group, and Tim Copnell, Founding Chairman of KPMG’s UK Audit Committee Institute share best practice in leading an effective Audit Committee.

Bloomsbury Accounting and Tax Service

Eligible firms have free access to Bloomsbury Professional's comprehensive online library, comprising around 80 titles from some of the country's leading tax and accounting subject matter experts. Find out who is eligible and how you can access the Accounting and Tax Service.
Exclusive Corporate governance
  • eBook
  • 01 Jan 2024
  • Financial Reporting Council
  • Bloomsbury Professional
  • Corporate Governance
The full text of the Combined Code and related documents issued by the Financial Reporting Council.
Exclusive Board committees
  • eBook chapter
  • 01 Jan 2020
  • Andrew Chambers
  • Bloomsbury Professional
  • Corporate Governance Handbook
Practical guidance on the effectiveness of audit, risk, remuneration and nomination board committees.
Exclusive Board committees
  • eBook chapter
  • 01 Jan 2020
  • Andrew Chambers
  • Bloomsbury Professional
  • Corporate Governance Handbook
Appendix 4 gives terms of reference for the following committees: audit committee, remuneration committee, nominations committee, finance committee, HR/personnel committee, standing orders committee and risk committee.
Exclusive The risk conversation at board level
  • eBook chapter
  • 01 Jan 2020
  • Andrew Chambers
  • Bloomsbury Professional
  • Corporate Governance Handbook
A chapter exploring how the oversight of risk should be dealt with at the level of the board of directors.
Terms of use:

You are permitted to access, download, copy, or print out content from eBooks for your own research or study only, subject to the Acceptable usage terms.

eBooks

The Library & Information Service provides a collection of eBooks as a benefit of membership. Please note that ICSA publications are only available to ICAEW members and ACA students.  Please log in to access these titles. If you are unable to access an eBook, please see our Help and support or contact library@icaew.com
Exclusive The board structure and its committees
  • eBook chapter
  • 2017
  • ICSA Publishing
  • ICSA Publishing
  • The ICSA Corporate Governance Handbook
Chapter 3 deals with the structure of the board, its governance role and responsibilities. It also gives brief overviews of the different types of board committees, including: audit; nomination; remuneration; and risk committees. These are dealt with in more detail in later chapters.
Exclusive Audits, accounts and financial statements
  • eBook chapter
  • 2017
  • ICSA Publishing
  • ICSA Publishing
  • The ICSA Corporate Governance Handbook
Chapter 7 gives details of the purpose of audit and the auditor's duty of care. The role of the audit committee is dealt with in detail, including audit tendering and internal control and risk management.
Exclusive Audit
  • eBook chapter
  • 2016
  • Douglas Armour
  • ICSA Publishing
  • Company Secretarys Handbook
An authoritative guide to company secretarial practice. Detailed commentary is accompanied by over 80 precedents. Chapter 11 of the handbook looks at audit, including choice of auditor, audit rotation, audit committees and reports to the audit committee.
Terms of use:

You are permitted to access, download, copy, or print out content from eBooks for your own research or study only, subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.

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Industry press

The Library & Information Service provides a collection of articles as a benefit of membership. Please log in to view these articles. If you are unable to access the articles, please see our Help and support page or contact library@icaew.com.
Exclusive AI at the crossroads: Revamping board structures for effective governance.
  • Apr 2024
  • Tom Petro
  • National Association of Corporate Directors
The article focuses on the dilemma faced by corporate boards regarding the oversight of artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives, questioning which committee is best suited for governing AI's multifaceted risks. The author explores potential contenders for this role, including the risk management committee, a dedicated AI governance committee, and the technology committee, each offering unique expertise and perspectives tailored to the challenges posed by AI governance.
Exclusive Navigating AI: a pragmatic guide for corporate boards
  • Oct 2023
  • Chris Smith
  • National Association of Corporate Directors
The article focuses on how the exponential growth of artificial intelligence (AI) across various sectors is compelling boards to redefine their roles in providing oversight and guidance on AI strategy and risk management. It emphasizes the importance of a human-centred approach to AI, aligning strategic decisions with an organization's mission and values, addressing ethical dilemmas, intellectual property concerns, and privacy challenges.
Exclusive COSO issues guidance on internal control over sustainability reporting
  • Jun 2023
  • Dan Goelzer
  • Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory
An update on the publication of guidance by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) on applying its internal control framework to sustainability reporting. It explains how the 17 principles in COSO's framework can be applied to sustainability reporting, emphasizing the importance of effective internal control over sustainability-related matters and the need for audit committees to ensure appropriate controls are in place.
Exclusive AI ethics committee - a new necessity?
  • Jul 2022
  • Reid Blackman
  • Harvard Business Publications
Article explains why having expert oversight over your organisation's use of AI can safeguard your data and your brand. An AI ethics committee can identify and mitigate the ethical risks of AI products that are developed in-house or procured from third-party vendors.
Terms of use:

You are permitted to access articles subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.

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Useful links

UK Corporate Governance Code
  • Financial Reporting Council
Section 4 – Audit, risk and internal control - from the UK Corporate Governance Code 2024 (for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2025)
Section 4 - Audit, risk and internal control - from the UK Corporate Governance Code 2018.
Audit Committees and the External Audit: Minimum Standard
  • Financial Reporting Council
The primary objective of this standard is to enhance performance and ensure a consistent approach across audit committees within the FTSE350. By setting out clear expectations and guidelines, the FRC aims to support the delivery of high-quality audits and reinforce public trust in the financial reporting process. The standard will apply to FTSE350 companies.
Auditing Practices Committee Archives
  • University of Manchester
Information on the special collection of Auditing Practices Committee (APC) papers from 1971 to 1991 held by John Rylands University Library.
Corporate Governance Review
  • Grant Thornton
Grant Thornton's review of the annual reports of 252 of the UK’s FTSE 350 companies. The section on audit committees looks at how successfully the reports cover significant financial statement issues, auditor tenure and independence, audit fees and risk and internal control disclosures.
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ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided ‘as is’ with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.

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