At the end of the Quality Review process, the firm is provided with a report which gives an overall assessment of the firm, a commentary on those areas where they have performed particularly well and, as appendices, a record of the Findings and Suggestions arising from the visit.
Definitions
Findings arise when rules, regulations, or bye-laws have not been adhered to or where there are fundamental or consistent breaches of best practice.
Suggestions for improvement arise when there are less frequent or less significant breaches of best practice. The report also shows the firm's response and intended action arising from these Findings and Suggestions.
What are the most common Findings and Suggestions?
A summary list is given below of the Findings and Suggestions which have occurred regularly in the second cycle of Quality Review. This list is not exhaustive and does not include every Finding and Suggestion raised since the inception of Quality Review.
- Breaches of Client Money Regulations
- Breaches of Money Laundering Regulations
- Breaches of Designated Professional Bodies (DPB) rules
- Independence/ Code of Ethics
- Lack of evidence to support opinions given, financial statements and tax returns
- Inadequate CPD or documenting thereof
- Inadequate review procedures
- Disclosure errors within accounts
- Inadequate supporting tax documentation
- Internal office procedures, eg. Staff management, complaints, internal compliance reviews
- No engagement letters in place/out of date engagement letters
- No formal new client procedures
A more extensive list of Findings and Suggestions is available here.
Annual Reports on Quality Review Activities
Every year we summarise the main Quality Review findings with the aim of sharing our experience and educating the members on the key issues identified, with the aim of further upholding standards. The 2011 report can be found below:-