Governance Briefing — January 1, 2025
Revisions to the UK Corporate Governance Code apply to accounting periods from January 1, 2025, elevating board reporting on internal controls, audit assurance, and ESG oversight for premium-listed companies.
Executive briefing: The Financial Reporting Council’s 2024 UK Corporate Governance Code applies to accounting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2025 (with the new internal controls declaration from January 2026). Boards must evidence robust risk management, maintain audit and assurance policies, and describe ESG governance mechanisms in annual reports.
Key governance signals
- Internal controls statement. Provision 29 requires boards to declare annually whether material controls operated effectively and outline remediation actions.
- Audit and assurance policy. Companies must publish a three-year rolling plan covering financial and non-financial assurance, including stakeholder engagement outcomes.
- ESG integration. Enhanced expectations for reporting on climate and sustainability oversight align with the Transition Plan Taskforce framework and upcoming IFRS S1/S2 adoption.
Operational priorities
- Strengthen controls testing. Build quarterly testing cadences and evidence logs that support the annual effectiveness attestation.
- Refresh audit committee charters. Embed assurance policy ownership, third-party assurance criteria, and stakeholder engagement plans.
- Align ESG disclosures. Map sustainability metrics to board oversight responsibilities to harmonize CSRD, TCFD, and UK code expectations.
Sources
- FRC: UK Corporate Governance Code 2024
- 2024 UK Corporate Governance Code (PDF)
- EY: Key changes in the 2024 UK Corporate Governance Code
Zeph Tech is supporting FTSE boards with internal control attestation playbooks, assurance policy design, and ESG reporting alignment for 2025 filings.