Statutory Financial Statement Preparation
Annual financial statements prepared to a professional standard — the set a lender, a member, an incoming partner or an auditor will actually rely on.
Financial statements are the formal, external-facing account of a year. Unlike management reports, which exist to inform the owner, statutory statements exist to be relied on by someone outside the business: a bank assessing serviceability, a member checking their entitlement, an incoming partner valuing what they are buying into, or an auditor forming an opinion. That difference in audience drives everything about how they are prepared.
A properly prepared set reconciles to the underlying records, treats each balance consistently with the prior year, discloses the accounting policies applied, and includes the notes needed to make the numbers intelligible. Where a treatment has changed, the change is visible rather than buried. Where a balance depends on judgement — a provision, a valuation, a related party balance — the basis is documented.
What a statement set includes
- Profit and loss statementTrading results for the year, presented consistently with the prior period so the comparison is meaningful.
- Balance sheetThe financial position at year end, with each material balance supported by working papers rather than carried forward on trust.
- Notes and policiesThe accounting policies applied and the notes needed for an external reader to understand what the figures represent.
- Reconciliation to the ledgerEvery statement balance traced back to the underlying accounting records, so the two cannot quietly diverge.
- Prior-year comparativesComparative figures presented correctly, including any restatement where a prior-year treatment has changed.
- Supporting working papersA retained file that supports each judgement, which is what makes the statements defensible if they are later examined.
Who this suits
Companies. Where annual statements are expected by directors, members, lenders or the entity’s own governance obligations.
Trusts and partnerships. Where beneficiaries or partners need a formal account of the year before entitlements can be determined.
Entities facing external scrutiny. Where a bank, an auditor, an investor or a buyer will be reading the statements closely.
How statements are prepared
Assess the ledger
The accounting file is reviewed and reconciled first. Statements built on an unreconciled ledger are not worth preparing.
Resolve the judgements
Provisions, valuations, related party balances and any changed treatment are worked through and documented.
Prepare and cross-check
The statements are prepared, internally cross-checked and traced back to the records and to the prior year.
Deliver and explain
You receive the statements with the material movements explained, so you can discuss them with a lender or partner confidently.
The quality of the statements is largely determined before we start, by the state of the ledger — which is why this work runs most smoothly alongside bookkeeping and financial reporting. Once prepared, the statements feed the entity’s income tax return under taxation services, and give any financial projection a credible historical base.
Works well with
Common questions
Is this the same as an audit?
Does my company have to prepare financial statements?
How long does it take?
Speak to a chartered accountant
Tell us what you need and we’ll let you know whether we can help, what it involves and what it costs — before you commit to anything.