CIMA offered six recommendations for business leaders and finance professionals to prepare for upcoming UK sustainability reporting standards (UK SRS) after exposure drafts were issued for the standards.
In a news release, CIMA welcomed the exposure drafts, commenting that the standards will “set a clear and practical structure for sustainability-related financial reporting”.
The new standards are “a game-changer for long-term value creation”, Jeremy Osborn, FCMA, CGMA, FCPA (Aust.), global head of sustainability at the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, said in a news release. “[They] will enable organisations which can demonstrate they are managing their sustainability-related risks and opportunities effectively to access financial capital at a lower cost.”
The release advises leaders to start preparations for the standards by:
- Understanding the requirements and likely adoption timeline of the UK SRS S1 and S2.
- Conducting a gap analysis against current practices.
- Reviewing internal governance and data systems.
- Embedding sustainability data into decision-making and reporting cycles.
- Beginning to prepare for external assurance.
- Participating in upskilling opportunities.
The UK Department for Business and Trade’s ED consultation will close on 17 September. Comments can be submitted online.
“Sustainability-related disclosures are reshaping finance, with finance professionals now central to managing and reporting on systemic risks across value chains,” the CIMA release said. “These insights enhance resilience, support access to capital, and fuel emerging roles like the sustainability controller — often a pathway to CFO.”
AICPA and CIMA’s Sustainable Finance Strategy Course and ESG Data Management Programme, developed in partnership with Oxford’s Saïd Business School, focus on principles and priorities and their crucial relationship to business strategy, to help finance professionals develop and implement ESG reporting strategies in their organisations.
— To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Steph Brown at Stephanie.Brown@aicpa-cima.com.