At Smith & Williamson we recruit high calibre people with the skills, knowledge and commitment to meet the demands of the business. The graduate programme is a three year structured training programme combining practical experience with technical studies, as well as providing numerous opportunities to increase your skill set with internal courses ranging from personal impact and negotiation skills to time management to delivering presentations.

Our Assurance & Business Services team provide a range of services to a diverse client base, ranging from small businesses and family enterprise start-ups to non-profit organisations. We work in a variety of different industry sectors, with both private and publicly listed businesses including London Stock Exchange and Alternative Investment Market.

What will I be doing?

As part of our Assurance & Business Services team you could be working directly with managing and financial directors, checking that numbers stack up with fact. This means providing advice and solutions that really make a difference to mid-large corporates, professional practices and charities.

Many of our audits last just one or two weeks, which means you’ll quickly gain exposure to a variety of businesses. You’ll also build valuable client experience, developing the knowledge and skills needed to be an effective auditor and trusted business adviser. Alongside your work, you’ll receive first-class professional training as you study for the Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA) qualification.

Duties of the Trainee Chartered Accountant role are as follows:

On the job training and studying towards your professional qualification will enable you to gain a full understanding of the technical aspects of audit and accountancy and additional financial advisory services. You will:

• Work as part of a team to undertake a variety of audit and accountancy tasks for our diverse client base
• Develop an understanding of our client’s and their businesses
• Complete audit programmes and form conclusions on each individual test and section completed
• Understand from your manager the scope of tasks allocated and objectives to be achieved
• Keep seniors and managers fully informed of any issues and problems, ensure work is completed to a level agreed with the manager and record clearly and concisely work done
• Become familiar with our audit and accounting software
• Resolve queries whether of an audit or accountancy nature
• Prioritising tasks whilst monitoring time against budget

What training and development will I receive in my first few years?

Progression within this team is fast, with responsibility from an early stage. By the second year you’ll be taking on a more senior role with smaller clients and helping to supervise the new intake of trainees and as your experience grows, you may have opportunities to experience other assignments such as control reviews and due diligence projects. 

To be successful in this role you will:

• Be committed and motivated to studying towards the Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA) qualification
• Be able to deliver first class client service and work effectively as part of a team
• Demonstrate an ability to communicate clearly both verbally and in writing
• Have a high level of general commercial awareness

Academic requirements:

• Must have or be on course for at least a strong second class honours degree in any discipline
• 300 UCAS points (or equivalent) in your top three A-levels (excluding General Studies)
• GCSE English and maths (or equivalent) at a minimum of grade B