This year’s report highlights continued growth in accountancy membership, with nearly 400,000 members now in the UK and Republic of Ireland, up 2.1% on the previous year. However, the number of accountancy students fell by 3.5% in 2022 to just over 155,000.

Whilst 50% of students are female the overall percentage of members of the accountancy bodies who are female is 38%, although that does represent a slight increase compared to 37% in 2018. The largest proportion of worldwide members were aged between 35 to 44 in 2022, accounting for 28% of the total population; 51% are 45 and over. Although, for the workforce of the PIE auditors who responded to our survey, only 22% are 45 and over.

This year 30 firms with PIE clients (out of 54) participated compared with 25 firms in last year’s publication. Total fee income increased by 11.9% for the Big Four UK firms and 18.5% for the non-Big Four firms (bearing in mind that some of this latter increase is due to 3 more non-Big Four firms auditing PIEs responding to our survey this year, compared to last year).

Audit fee income increased by a more moderate 7.6% for the Big Four firms and 23.3% for the non-Big Four with the same caveat applying

The concentration of audits with the Big Four firms continued to reduce with 33 FTSE 350 audits being undertaken by non-Big Four audit firms compared with 27 last year.

Improving choice across the FTSE 350 audit market has been one of the FRC’s primary objectives as it continues its transition to become to the new regulator, the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA). In 2022, the Government set out how new powers for ARGA will boost resilience, competition and choice in the audit market in its response to the consultation on strengthening the UK’s audit, corporate reporting and corporate governance systems.