In June 2022, EU policymakers reached an agreement on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The new law enhances sustainability reporting requirements and will impact over 50 000 companies. It also introduces an EU wide limited assurance requirement, a first for sustainability information.
The CSRD comes with additional educational requirements for the statutory auditors to provide assurance on sustainability information. They will have to acquire the necessary theoretical and practical knowledge on this and pass the required examination.
This is a major shift for the accountancy profession and getting adequate training will be key. Many small practitioners will rely on their professional institute to help them get ready to take up this new challenge.
Accountancy Europe serves as a platform to exchange experience and good practice among Member Bodies. This page showcases how they have integrated sustainability into their professional education frameworks. For more information contact [email protected].
Updates are made constantly to this page. The number of Member Bodies’ initiatives is not final.
The recently introduced CSRD mandates fresh training and insights for accountants. This is the reason the FSR–danske revisorer (Danish auditors) has established its Sustainability Academy, designed to provide auditors and sustainability teams with comprehensive access to pertinent information and CSRD knowledge. Watch the video with Amalie Schou Nielsen, sustainability advisor at FSR, to learn more about the various academy modules and discover how you can become an approved sustainability auditor in Denmark.
Find out more about the FSR Sustainability Academy here.
The Finnish Association of Authorised Public Accountants teamed up with ST-Akatemia to train businesses and auditors on how to integrate corporate sustainability in their operations. This is of critical importance as the European Commission’s recent Corporate Reporting Sustainability Directive increases sustainability reporting requirements. In this interview, Ingalill Aspholm from ST explains new education requirements for auditors to provide assurance on sustainability information. More information about ST training programme in this video with Hanna Silvola here.
Gillian Waldbauer, Head of International Affairs at IDW, shares what the Institute of Public Auditors in Germany has been doing on sustainability education to support German auditors.
Chartered Accountants Ireland has prequalification and post qualification sustainability training for their members.
In 2019, CAI started off by integrating sustainability in a prequalification curriculum with the introduction of such concepts like Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and developing case studies asking their students to reflect their knowledge of CSR principles to coming to the right decisions.
CAI’s continuing professional development (CPD) framework offers pyramid approach recognising that different accountants’ categories will have different requirements and levels of knowledge, e.g., Board level will need very concise briefings – see more in the video.
CAI aims for their members to understand the challenges, identify the risks and to be able to communicate to their stakeholders on the issues at hand.
Sustainability concerns us all, and the Italian profession is well aware of that. The National Board of Professional Chartered Accountants (Consiglio Nazionale dei Dottori Commercialisti e degli Esperti Contabili – CNDCEC) has been enhancing sustainability education for its members. This is even more relevant as the new European legislation on corporate sustainability reporting includes education requirements to provide assurance on sustainability reporting.
In this article, Lorenzo Magrassi from CNDCEC explains the key role of CNDCEC in accrediting sustainability education training and courses for accountants in Italy.
Marius Lanskoronskis, Director at the Lithuanian Chamber of Auditors (LAR), sheds light on the efforts made by LAR to bolster sustainability education, extending support to auditors in Lithuania.
The Norwegian Institute of Public Accountants teamed up with Big 5 audit firms (IBDO, Deloitte, EY, KPMG, PwC) to launch a program – Academy on sustainability reporting. This is meant to be a practical course that puts EFRAG’s European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) exposure drafts in practice.
The Academy on sustainability reporting consists of seven modules or seven days that will be spread over three months starting as from September 2022. This is tailored for both auditors and reporting companies. Additional course for Boards, CFOs and audit committees is expected to be launched in the autumn 2022.
Sarah Wilkin, Director of Sustainability at ICAS, discusses what the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland is doing regarding sustainability education and how ICAS equips their members with updated skills and knowledge.
Raquel San Jaime and Angel Cervantes, responsible for Sustainability and for Education at the ICJCE respectively, explain the current education offer at the institute and the most recent initiatives to help auditors navigate through sustainability related requirements that affect the profession.
Karin Apelman, Secretary General and CEO at FAR, explains how the Institute for the accountancy profession in Sweden has been assisting professionals and public in sustainability transition.
Dr Jeremy Osborn, FCMA, CGMA, CPA (Aust.), Global Head of Sustainability, AICPA & CIMA, explains how the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants has been building capacity and capability among accounting and finance professionals by enhancing their skillset and providing them with knowledge and opportunities to become leaders in ESG and to contribute to a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future.
More information at:
Susanna Di Feliciantonio, Head of EU Public Affairs at ICAEW, explains how the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales has been helping its members on the journey to a more sustainable business future.
More information at:
Professional Accountancy Education Europe (PAEE) is a collaboration between European accountancy bodies that strives to provide a high-quality education framework at an international level. As the importance of sustainability across the profession is rising, PAEE members lead multiple initiatives on sustainability education.
In the interview with Accountancy Europe, PAEE explains what is vital to further develop sustainability awareness among accountancy and auditing professionals.
Read the interview here
