FRC publishes "What makes a good Annual Report and Accounts" report

December 13, 2022

Today’s ‘What makes a Good Annual Report and Accounts’ sets out the attributes for a high-quality Annual Report and Accounts (ARA)

The ARA is the cornerstone of corporate reporting and should provide investors and other stakeholders with clear and relevant information on the company’s performance and prospects to help them make informed investment decisions and to promote effective stewardship.

As an Improvement Regulator, the FRC uses a principles-based framework which identifies corporate reporting principles and effective communication characteristics.

To Illustrate these, today’s publication provides a range of good practice examples which have been identified by the FRC as part of our ongoing supervision work.

A high-quality ARA will:

• comply with relevant accounting standards, laws and regulations, and codes;
• be responsive to the needs of stakeholders in an accessible way; and
• demonstrate the corporate reporting principles and effective communication characteristics outlined in this publication.

The FRC’s Executive Director of Supervision, Sarah Rapson said:

It is clear that many companies rise to the challenge of producing high quality ARAs to anticipate and meet the needs of their stakeholders. However, some companies need to improve. Today’s publication is the latest in the FRC’s ‘What Makes a Good…’ series and clearly sets out the FRC’s view of the characteristics associated with a high-quality ARA in a clear and accessible way, which we believe preparers, including audit committee chairs and company secretaries will find helpful in producing decision-useful reports and accounts for stakeholders.”

[FRC, UK]