Narrative Reporting Regulations
Background
The narrative reporting regulations issued by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) require all companies (except small companies) to prepare a Strategic Report.
Project Milestones
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) published an Exposure Draft (ED) of guidance to assist directors of listed companies to apply the Strategic Report requirements set out in The Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors’ Report) Regulations 2013 (the “narrative reporting regulations”). This non-mandatory guidance was created in response to a request from BIS and has been developed to encourage preparers to consider how the Strategic Report fits within the annual report as a whole and help enhance the quality of narrative reporting more generally.
The comment period for the Exposure Draft closed on 15 November 2013.
The FRC published Guidance on the Strategic Report ('FRC Guidance'), and a Feedback Statement summarising the responses to the consultation, in June 2014.
Current status of the project
In July 2018 the FRC published an amended version of its Guidance, following consultation. The Guidance remains non-mandatory with a view to encouraging best practice.