REGISTERED NUMBER: |
Report of the Directors and |
Financial Statements |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
for |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
REGISTERED NUMBER: |
Report of the Directors and |
Financial Statements |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
for |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Contents of the Financial Statements |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
Page |
Company Information | 1 |
Report of the Directors | 2 |
Report of the Independent Auditors | 4 |
Income Statement | 8 |
Balance Sheet | 9 |
Notes to the Financial Statements | 10 |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
Company Information |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
DIRECTORS: |
REGISTERED OFFICE: |
REGISTERED NUMBER: |
SENIOR STATUTORY AUDITOR: |
AUDITORS: |
Upper Ground Floor |
18 Farnham Road |
Guildford |
Surrey |
GU1 4XA |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Report of the Directors |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
The directors present their report with the financial statements of the company for the year ended 31 December 2023. |
PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY |
The principal activity of the company in the year under review was that of providing a mutual professional association for accountants. |
DIRECTORS |
The directors shown below have held office during the whole of the period from 1 January 2023 to the date of this report. |
Other changes in directors holding office are as follows: |
STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS' RESPONSIBILITIES |
The directors are responsible for preparing the Report of the Directors and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations. |
Company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law the directors have elected to prepare the financial statements in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom Accounting Standards and applicable law). Under company law the directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company and of the surplus or deficit of the company for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the directors are required to: |
- | select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently; |
- | make judgements and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent; |
- | prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the company will continue in business. |
The directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the company's transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. |
STATEMENT AS TO DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION TO AUDITORS |
So far as the directors are aware, there is no relevant audit information (as defined by Section 418 of the Companies Act 2006) of which the company's auditors are unaware, and each director has taken all the steps that he or she ought to have taken as a director in order to make himself or herself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the company's auditors are aware of that information. |
AUDITORS |
The auditors, Bennewith 2018 Limited (Statutory Auditors), will be proposed for re-appointment at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting. |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Report of the Directors |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions of Part 15 of the Companies Act 2006 relating to small companies. |
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD: |
Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
Opinion |
We have audited the financial statements of Certified Public Accountants Association (the 'company') for the year ended 31 December 2023 which comprise the Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Notes to the Financial Statements, including a summary of significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 'The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland' (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice). |
In our opinion the financial statements: |
- | give a true and fair view of the state of the company's affairs as at 31 December 2023 and of its surplus for the year then ended; |
- | have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice; and |
- | have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006. |
Basis for opinion |
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditors' responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC's Ethical Standard, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. |
Conclusions relating to going concern |
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the directors' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate. |
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue. |
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the directors with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report. |
Other information |
The directors are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises the information in the Report of the Directors, but does not include the financial statements and our Report of the Auditors thereon. |
Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. |
In connection with our audit of the financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard. |
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006 |
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit: |
- | the information given in the Report of the Directors for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and |
- | the Report of the Directors has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements. |
Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
Matters on which we are required to report by exception |
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Report of the Directors. |
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion: |
- | adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or |
- | the financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or |
- | certain disclosures of directors' remuneration specified by law are not made; or |
- | we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or |
- | the directors were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies' exemption from the requirement to prepare a Strategic Report or in preparing the Report of the Directors. |
Responsibilities of directors |
As explained more fully in the Statement of Directors' Responsibilities set out on page two, the directors are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the directors determine necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. |
In preparing the financial statements, the directors are responsible for assessing the company's ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the directors either intend to liquidate the company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so. |
Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
Auditors' responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements |
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue a Report of the Auditors that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements. |
In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations we have considered the following: |
- The nature of the industry and sector, control environment and business performance; |
- Results of the enquiries of management about their own identification and assessment of the risks of irregularities; |
- Any matters we have identified having obtained and reviewed the companies documentation of their policies and procedures relating to: |
- identifying, evaluating and complying with laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of noncompliance; |
-detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected or alleged fraud; |
-the internal controls established to mitigate risks of fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations; |
- the matters discussed among the audit engagement team regarding how and where fraud might occur in the financial statements and any potential indicators of fraud. |
As a result of these procedures, we considered the opportunities and incentives that may exist within the organisation for fraud and identified the greatest potential for fraud in the following areas: timing of recognition of income.. In common with all audits under ISAs (UK), we are also required to perform specific procedures to respond to the risk of management override. |
We also obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks that the company operates in, focusing on provisions of those laws and regulations that had a direct effect on the determination of material amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The key laws and regulations we considered in this context included UK Companies Act, health and safety and tax legislation. |
In addition, we considered provisions of other laws and regulations that do not have a direct effect on the financial statements but compliance with which may be fundamental to the company's ability to operate or to avoid a material penalty. |
Audit response to risks identified |
Our procedures to respond to risks identified included the following: |
- reviewing the financial statement disclosures and testing to supporting documentation to assess compliance with provisions of relevant laws and regulations described as having a direct effect on the financial statements; |
- enquiring of management concerning actual and potential litigation and claims; |
- performing analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships that may indicate risks of material misstatement due to fraud; |
- reviewing correspondence with HMRC; and |
- in addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, testing the appropriateness of journal entries and other adjustments; assessing whether the judgements made in making accounting estimates are indicative of a potential bias; and evaluating the business rationale of any significant transactions that are unusual or outside the normal course of business. |
We also communicated relevant identified laws and regulations and potential fraud risks to all engagement team members including internal specialists, and remained alert to any indications of fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations throughout the audit. |
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting Council's website at www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our Report of the Auditors. |
Report of the Independent Auditors to the Members of |
Certified Public Accountants Association |
Use of our report |
This report is made solely to the company's members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the company's members those matters we are required to state to them in a Report of the Auditors and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and the company's members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed. |
for and on behalf of |
Upper Ground Floor |
18 Farnham Road |
Guildford |
Surrey |
GU1 4XA |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Income Statement |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
Notes | £ | £ |
TURNOVER |
Cost of sales |
GROSS SURPLUS |
Administrative expenses |
OPERATING SURPLUS and |
SURPLUS BEFORE TAXATION |
Tax on surplus |
SURPLUS FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Balance Sheet |
31 December 2023 |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
Notes | £ | £ | £ | £ |
FIXED ASSETS |
Intangible assets | 5 |
Tangible assets | 6 |
CURRENT ASSETS |
Debtors | 7 |
Investments | 8 |
Cash at bank |
CREDITORS |
Amounts falling due within one year | 9 |
NET CURRENT ASSETS |
TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES |
CREDITORS |
Amounts falling due after more than one year |
10 |
NET ASSETS |
RESERVES |
Income and expenditure account |
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors and authorised for issue on |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Notes to the Financial Statements |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
1. | STATUTORY INFORMATION |
Certified Public Accountants Association is a |
2. | ACCOUNTING POLICIES |
Basis of preparing the financial statements |
Intangible assets |
Intangible assets are initially measured at cost. After initial recognition, intangible assets are measured at cost less any accumulated amortisation and any accumulated impairment losses. |
Tangible fixed assets |
Office Equipment | - |
Pension costs and other post-retirement benefits |
The company operates a defined contribution pension scheme. Contributions are charged to the profit and loss account as they become payable in accordance with the rules of the scheme. |
Income |
Income represents subscriptions and the value of work carried out in respect of services provided to members. |
Freehold land and buildings |
Freehold land and buildings are stated at the cost of purchase and renovations and have not been depreciated. Financial Reporting Standard 17 requires freehold property to be depreciated. The standard has not been complied with in this case as the Directors consider the value of the building to be more than the purchase cost. It is not believed that this will have any material affect on the financial statements at present. |
3. | EMPLOYEES AND DIRECTORS |
The average number of employees during the year was |
4. | OPERATING SURPLUS |
The operating surplus is stated after charging: |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
£ | £ |
Depreciation - owned assets |
Website amortisation |
Directors' remuneration |
Governance costs - branch representatives |
Auditor's remuneration |
Auditor's fee non audit work |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
5. | INTANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS |
Other |
intangible |
assets |
£ |
COST |
At 1 January 2023 |
Additions |
Disposals | ( |
) |
At 31 December 2023 |
AMORTISATION |
At 1 January 2023 |
Charge for year |
Eliminated on disposal | ( |
) |
At 31 December 2023 |
NET BOOK VALUE |
At 31 December 2023 |
At 31 December 2022 |
6. | TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS |
Land and | Office |
buildings | Equipment | Totals |
£ | £ | £ |
COST |
At 1 January 2023 |
Disposals | ( |
) | ( |
) |
At 31 December 2023 |
DEPRECIATION |
At 1 January 2023 |
Charge for year |
Eliminated on disposal | ( |
) | ( |
) |
At 31 December 2023 |
NET BOOK VALUE |
At 31 December 2023 |
At 31 December 2022 |
Included in cost of land and buildings is freehold land of £ 219,575 (2022 - £ 219,575 ) which is not depreciated. |
7. | DEBTORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
£ | £ |
Other debtors |
Certified Public Accountants Association (Registered number: 03448159) |
Notes to the Financial Statements - continued |
for the Year Ended 31 December 2023 |
8. | CURRENT ASSET INVESTMENTS |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
£ | £ |
Shares in group undertakings |
9. | CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE WITHIN ONE YEAR |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
£ | £ |
Trade creditors |
Taxation and social security |
Other creditors |
10. | CREDITORS: AMOUNTS FALLING DUE AFTER MORE THAN ONE YEAR |
31.12.23 | 31.12.22 |
£ | £ |
Trade creditors |
11. | FINANCIAL COMMITMENTS |
As at 31 December Certified Public Accountants Association had annual commitments under operating leases as follows: |
2023 | 2022 |
£ | £ |
within one year | 1,877 | 1,831 |
within 2-5 years | 1,855 | 3,664 |
more than 5 years | 0 | 0 |
Total | 3,732 | 5,495 |