We agreed to report any corrected or uncorrected adjustments exceeding £1,400 (2023: £1,320) for the Group and £245 (2023: £980) for the Parent Company respectively to the Board of Directors as well as differences below this threshold that, in our view, warranted reporting on qualitative grounds.

Overview of the scope of the Group and Parent Company audits

Our assessment of audit risk, evaluation of materiality and our determination of performance materiality sets our audit scope for each company within the Group. Taken together, this enables us to form an opinion on the consolidated financial statements. This assessment takes into account the size, risk profile, changes in the business environment and other factors when assessing the level of work to be performed at each component.

The Group consists of 7 components, all of which are based in the UK and audited by the Group audit team.

The control environment

We evaluated the design and implementation of those internal controls of the Group, including the Parent Company, which are relevant to our audit, such as those relating to the financial reporting cycle.

Reporting on other information

The other information comprises the information included in the annual report other than the financial

statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The Directors are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. 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. 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 course of 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.

Strategic report and directors’ report

In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:

the information given in the Strategic Report and the Directors’ Report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and

the Strategic Report and the Directors’ Report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the Group and the Parent Company and their environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the Strategic report or the Directors’ report.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report to you if, in our opinion:

adequate accounting records have not been kept by the Parent company, or returns adequate from branches not visited by us; or

the parent company 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.

Responsibilities of directors

As explained more fully in the directors’ responsibilities statement, as set out on page x, 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 is 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 Group’s and the Parent 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 Group or the Parent Company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Auditor 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 an auditor’s report 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 aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

A further description of our responsibilities for the financial statements is located on the FRC’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.

Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud.

These audit procedures were designed to provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements were free from fraud or error. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement due to fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting one resulting from error and detecting irregularities that result from fraud is inherently more difficult than detecting those that result from error, as fraud may involve collusion, deliberate concealment, forgery or intentional misrepresentations. Also, the further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations is from events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the less likely we would become aware of it.

Identifying and assessing potential risks arising from irregularities, including fraud

The extent of the procedures undertaken to identify and assess the risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud, included the following:

• We considered the nature of the industry and sector, the control environment, business performance including remuneration policies and the Group’s, including the Parent Company’s, own risk assessment that irregularities might occur as a result of fraud or error. From our sector experience and through discussion with the directors, we obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks applicable to the Group focusing on laws and regulations that could reasonably be expected to have a direct material effect on the financial statements, such as provisions of the Companies Act 2006, UK tax legislation or those that had a fundamental effect on the operations of the Group.
• We enquired of the directors and management concerning the Group’s and the Parent Company’s policies and procedures relating to: identifying, evaluating and complying with the laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
• detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they had any knowledge of actual or suspected fraud; and
• the internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations.
• 
  
• We discussed among the engagement team regarding how and where fraud might occur in the financial statements and any potential indicators of fraud.
• We assessed the susceptibility of the financial statements to material misstatement, including how fraud might occur by evaluating management’s incentives and opportunities for manipulation of the financial statements. This included utilising the spectrum of inherent risk and an evaluation of the risk of management override of controls. We determined that the principal risks were related to posting inappropriate journal entries to increase revenue or reduce costs, creating fictitious transactions to hide losses or to improve financial performance, and management bias in any accounting estimates.

 

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Our application of materiality

Our definition of materiality considers the value of error or omission on the financial statements that, individually or in aggregate, would change or influence the economic decision of a reasonably knowledgeable user of those financial statements. Misstatements below these levels will not necessarily be evaluated as immaterial as we also take account of the nature of identified misstatements, and the particular circumstances of their occurrence, when evaluating their effect on the financial statements as a whole. Materiality is used in planning the scope of our work, executing that work and evaluating the results.

Performance materiality is the application of materiality at the individual account or balance level, set at an amount to reduce, to an appropriately low level, the probability that the aggregate of uncorrected and undetected misstatements exceeds materiality for the financial statements as a whole.

The determination of performance materiality reflects our assessment of the risk of undetected errors existing, the nature of the systems and controls and the level of misstatements arising in previous audits.