Audit support
Audit-ready books
Audit-ready books from Finbryn means every account reconciled, every schedule tied to the trial balance, and a file organised under FRS 102 or FRS 105 before your registered auditor arrives. We prepare the file; a UK registered audit firm carries out the audit and gives the opinion.
Auditor request list
Illustrative client · August 2026
GBP
- Trial balance and general ledger exportDone
- Bank confirmations and statementsDone
- Receivables and payables listingsDone
- Fixed asset register with additionsIn progress
- Accruals and prepayments supportNext
Illustrative. An example of the document, not a client's figures.
The gaps that slow UK fieldwork
Audit delays rarely come from the numbers themselves. They come from a reconciliation nobody finished, a fixed asset register three years out of date, or a director's loan account with no supporting note. We close those gaps before your registered auditor is on the clock.
Every bank, card and control account is reconciled to its statement. Accruals, prepayments, fixed assets and intercompany balances each get a schedule that ties directly to the trial balance, built to the format your specific auditor already uses where one exists.
FRS 102, FRS 105 and the trial balance
Most private UK companies report under FRS 102; the smallest, within the Companies Act 2006 micro entity thresholds, use FRS 105 instead. We keep your books consistent with whichever standard applies, and flag where the FRC's Periodic Review 2024 changes to FRS 102, in force for periods starting on or after 1 January 2026, affect revenue recognition or lease accounting on your balance sheet.
Director and shareholder detail
UK request lists lean heavily on related party detail: director's loan accounts, dividend vouchers, and board minutes behind any unusual transaction. We keep a running note on these through the year so the audit request list does not surface them for the first time in the final week.
What this does not include
We do not carry out the audit, form an opinion, or represent your company to the auditor on matters of judgement. Those sit with you and with the registered audit firm you engage, supervised by a Recognised Supervisory Body such as ICAEW or ACCA. Our PBC list management and working paper preparation pick up once the request list itself lands.
First-year and repeat engagements
A first UK audit almost always runs longer, mainly because nobody on the team has seen that particular firm's request list before. We keep notes on what was asked for last time, so a second year starts from a shorter list rather than the same questions again.
Questions
Frequently asked questions: Audit-ready books
How do you know what a UK auditor will ask for before the request list arrives?
Most lists repeat the same core items: reconciled cash, aged receivables and payables, a fixed asset roll forward, director and related party detail. We prepare those as a matter of course, then adjust once the actual list lands.
Will you work from our existing chart of accounts?
Yes. We reconcile against your current chart of accounts and only suggest a change when it is genuinely slowing the audit down, never as a default step.
What if this is our company's first statutory audit?
We walk your team through what a UK auditor typically asks for and build the schedules ahead of the request list, so a first audit does not turn into a scramble.
What happens if audit fieldwork uncovers an error in the books?
We work with you and the auditor to correct the entry and understand why it occurred, so the same issue does not recur next year. Catching it during preparation, rather than mid-fieldwork, is the point of starting early, and a corrected entry is documented for the auditor's file.
Do you attend audit fieldwork meetings with us?
We can join calls where the request list or a specific schedule needs walking through, alongside you or in your place if you prefer, depending on how your team wants to run the relationship with the auditor. The exact level of involvement is agreed at the start of the engagement.
Does this include the audit itself?
No. We prepare the books and schedules; the audit and any opinion on them come from an independent audit firm you engage and credential separately.
How early should we start preparing?
Most businesses see the biggest benefit starting two to three months before fieldwork, so open items get resolved before the auditor is on the clock.
What is included in audit-ready books?
Audit-ready books covers reconciliations for every bank, card and balance sheet account, tied to source statements and supporting schedules for accruals, prepaids, fixed assets and intercompany balances. The exact scope is agreed and set out in writing before work starts, so you know precisely what is and is not covered before the first deliverable arrives.
How is audit-ready books priced?
Pricing for audit-ready books depends on your transaction volume, the software you use, and how much cleanup is needed before ongoing work starts. Current ranges are published on the pricing page, and your exact fee is confirmed in writing before anything begins.
Related services
- Audit supportPBC list managementThe auditor's provided-by-client request list tracked item by item, with documents gathered, organized and delivered on schedule instead of chased down in the final week.
- Audit supportWorking paper preparationSupporting schedules and reconciliations built the way an auditor expects to see them, cross-referenced to the trial balance, so review comments come back with fewer open questions.
Industries
Next step
Talk to the team that would run your books
A short call covers your setup, your software and what a first month would look like. You get a written scope and price after it.