Audit Group provides independent grant audit services for organisations that receive public funding, lottery awards or charitable grants. As an ICAEW-registered firm of chartered accountants, we provide audit and assurance services that satisfy funder requirements and help you comply with grant conditions. Your dedicated grant auditor delivers clear reports tailored to each funding body’s requirements.
What is a grant audit?
A grant audit is an independent examination of how grant funding has been spent. This type of audit checks that expenditure matches the terms and conditions of the grant agreement, that costs claimed are genuine and properly supported, and that compliance conditions have been met. Grant audits are separate from your statutory audit or annual financial audit – the focus is specifically on the funded project.
Most funding bodies require the work to be done by a registered auditor, and the report must follow a prescribed template set by the funding body.
Do you need a grant audit?
If your organisation has been awarded funding for a project, check your grant agreement for any assurance requirements. Grant audits are required by many funders before releasing final payments. Common triggers include:
- Central government – Departments like DCMS, DLUHC and DfE typically require a certificate on spending above £100,000
- Innovate UK and UKRI – Requires an independent accountant’s report for research and innovation awards above £25,000, confirming costs are eligible
- Horizon Europe and Horizon 2020 – EU framework programme claims above 430,000 euros need a Certificate on Financial Statements from a qualified firm
- National Lottery – Heritage Fund, Arts Council England and Sport England each have their own audit templates and quality assurance standards
- Charitable trusts – Some require an audited statement before releasing the final tranche of grant funding
Different funding streams have different grant requirements and not all funding opportunities require grant audits. If you’re not sure whether your specific grant requires an independent review, ask us and we’ll confirm within 24 hours.
How does the grant audit process work?
Our grant audit team follows three stages:
- Scope agreement – We review the funding agreement and funder-specific templates. Our grant audit specialist confirms exactly what testing is needed and what format the report should take.
- Testing – We sample transactions, check supporting evidence and verify spending against the approved budget. The audit covers invoices, timesheets, financial records, contractual terms and payment records. We also review your internal controls, accounting procedures and financial reporting for regulatory compliance.
- Reporting – You receive a clear report in the format your funder requires, ready for submission before the deadline. Our approach focuses on transparency – if we find issues, including any risk of clawback, we discuss them with you first.
Most grant audits and project audits complete within two to three weeks. We work to tight deadlines when there’s a specific submission date.
Innovate UK grant audits
We carry out a number of audit reviews for Innovate UK-funded research projects each year. The programme has specific requirements around what costs qualify – particularly staff time, subcontracting and overhead calculations. The report must confirm that only eligible amounts have been claimed and that time recording supports the figures.
Why choose our grant audit specialists?
We have extensive experience working with grant-funded organisations across charities, councils, universities and social enterprises. As a grant audit partner you can trust, we understand what major UK grant bodies expect – from a straightforward certificate to a detailed review of a multi-year programme. Whether you need grant assurance, grant management support or a full independent audit, we can help.
- ICAEW-registered – Meeting the qualification requirements of all major UK grant programmes
- Funder experience – We know what Heritage Fund, Arts Council and government department reviewers expect
- Fixed fees – Agreed upfront so the cost doesn’t eat into your project budget
- Fast turnaround – Most reports completed within two to three weeks
If you need an audit report, a grant application review, or want to check whether your agreement requires independent verification, get in touch.
