UK accountants are financial specialists who deal with virtually every money-related matter in a company. They perform a systematic set of duties and are relied upon by managers in providing information used in decision-making. Furthermore, there are a number of professional bodies of accountants in the UK that work either for a private or public institution.
First and foremost, the duties of UK accountants are to document, classify, summarize, and interpret the financial transactions that are submitted by a company. They coordinate with other finance-related staff in the process of bookkeeping, which involves the documentation of transactions made by the company. After which, they will classify the transactions that have been recorded into separate categories. Accountants usually distinguish the transactions related to revenue from those related to expenditure in this stage. Once the process of classifying has been accomplished, the accountant will sum up the information and create the financial statement, which serves as an overview of the profitability and financial condition of a company. Managers use financial statements in making decisions related to the business. Apart from these duties, UK accountants are also trained in managing the payroll system of companies.
Moving on, there are a number of professional bodies in the UK that focus on accountancy. For instance, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, also known as CIMA, is a UK-based professional body that provides qualification in the area of management accountancy. CIMA focuses on accounting for business. Another professional body for UK accountants is the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, otherwise known as ICAEW. It is the largest English and Welsh accountancy body for auditors and chartered accountants. ICAEW has more than 128000 members.
