Abbreviated Accounts Balance Sheet
The following guidance is provided to help you complete the abbreviated accounts for filing with Companies House. If you require any further technical advice regarding the content of the accounts then you will need to seek independent advice. Companies House is a registry and can not provide professional accountancy advice.
- General
- Abbreviated accounts are derived from full or simplified accounts.
- Statements on the balance sheet
- All four statements must be accepted before the accounts are submitted to Companies House.
- Date of approving director
- This must be on or after the balance sheet date and must not be a date in the future (the calendar will only display dates within this period).
- Approving director
- The name of the director who signed the company’s statutory accounts on behalf of the board of directors must be given.
- Additional approving director (if any)
- More than one director’s name can be entered if required.
- Comparative figures
- Comparative figures must be provided unless there is no prior accounting period.
- Date of balance sheet
- This must be within 7 days of the accounting reference date (the date list will only display dates within this period). Otherwise an AA01 must be filed to change the company’s accounting reference date.
- Currency
- You must use the same currency throughout the accounts.
- Called up share capital not paid
- This is the amount that has been called for when shares have been allotted but that amount has not been received as at the date of the balance sheet.
- Fixed Assets
- Fixed assets (see below for an explanation of tangible and intangible assets) are items acquired by the business that have a value to the business and an economic life that is more extended than the accounting period for which accounts are being presented.
- Intangible assets
- Long term resources, not cash or held for conversion into cash that do not have a physical presence e.g. brand, reputation, goodwill, supplier relationships.
If intangible assets are entered a note must be provided containing the cost at the start of the accounting period together with any depreciation during the period. - Tangible assets
- Long term resources, not cash or held for conversion into cash that do have a physical presence e.g. company vehicles, premises, machinery and equipment.
If tangible assets are entered a note must be provided containing the cost at the start of the accounting period together with any depreciation during the period. - Investments (Fixed Assets)
- A resource held by the company for investment rather than trading purposes, e.g. property, shares.
If fixed investments are entered a note must be provided containing details of the cost at the start of the accounting period together with any depreciation during the period. - Total Fixed Assets
- This is the total of the net book values of intangible assets, tangible assets and fixed asset investments.
- Current Assets
- Cash or resources held for the purpose of converting into cash, these include stock, debtors and investments.
- Stocks
- Goods bought or made for resale, but unsold as at the date of the balance sheet.
- Debtors
- These are amounts owed to the business resulting from trading activity.
A note must be provided if your debtors include any amounts due to be paid to the business more than one year from the balance sheet date. - Investments (Current Assets)
- A resource held by the company for investment rather than trading purposes, and likely to be sold soon.
- Cash at bank and in hand
- The book value of the cash in hand (i.e notes and coins) and any positive current account balance at the time of the balance sheet date.
- Prepayments and accrued income
- Advance payments and sales that the company has not yet recorded in its books.
- Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Amounts owed currently by the business that are payable in the short term i.e. at any time up to a year from the balance sheet date.
If these include any secured debts (e.g. secured bank overdraft repayable on demand, instalments payable on secured loans within a year of the balance sheet etc.), they must be disclosed in the creditors note to the accounts. It is acceptable to show the total of short term and long term secured debts as a single figure in the creditors note.
- Net current assets (liabilities)
- Total current assets plus prepayments and accrued income less creditors: amounts due within one year.
- Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year
Amounts owed by the business that are payable or repayable over the longer term i.e. later than one year from the balance sheet date.
If these include any secured debts (e.g. instalments payable on secured loans after one year from the balance sheet date), they must be disclosed in the creditors note to the accounts. It is acceptable to show the total of short term and long term secured debts as a single total in the creditors note.
If these include any loans or debts payable by the business in instalments or otherwise later than 5 years from the balance sheet, they must be disclosed separately, a) instalment debts after 5 years and b) non-instalment debts after 5 years in the creditors note to the accounts.
- Provisions for liabilities
- Provision for future payments – the value and timing of which is uncertain.
- Accruals and deferred income
- Income received relating to a subsequent accounting period.
- Total net assets (liabilities)
- Total assets less total liabilities.
- Called up share capital
Shares for which the company has requested and received full or part payment. If there is more than one share class a note must be provided including the number and aggregate nominal value of each share class.
If shares have been allotted during the year, a note must be provided of the share details (including share class, the aggregate share value, and the number of shares).
- Share premium account
- The difference between the share nominal value and the value at which they were issued by the company.
- Revaluation reserve
- The total change in asset values resulting from revaluation.
- Other reserves
- The value of any reserves not otherwise stated i.e. those set aside to meet large or unforeseen costs.
- Shareholders funds
- The total of the shareholders investment in a company either directly (via issued share capital) or indirectly by allowing some retained profits to be re-invested.
- Accounting Policies note
- This is a mandatory note and should provide all principal accounting policies observed by the company when preparing its statutory accounts. Where the company has adopted the Financial Reporting Standard for Smaller Entities (FRSSE) the accounting policies should include a statement that the accounts are produced in accordance with the FRSSE giving the effective date.
- Transactions with Directors note
For each director information may be included on advances or credits granted by the company or any guarantees of any kind entered into by the company on behalf of the director.
For each advance or credit disclose the amount, interest rate, main conditions and amounts repaid. For each guarantee disclose the main terms, the maximum liability that may be incurred by the company and any amount paid and any liability incurred by the company for the purpose of fulfilling the guarantee (including any loss incurred by reason of enforcement of the guarantee.
Also disclose the totals of: advances or credits, amounts repaid, amounts of maximum liability under guarantees, and any amounts paid or liabilities incurred under guarantee arrangements.
This note is only mandatory in statutory accounts.
- Companies limited by guarantee
- These companies are not limited by shares therefore a sample note is provided, containing typical text. This note can be edited to include the amount of the guarantee or other information relevant to the company.
- Save and exit
- Allows the details entered to be saved and the accounts resumed and submitted at a later date.
- Discard and exit
- Allows any details entered to be discarded and the form exited.
- Save a copy
- Allow a copy of the accounts to be saved to your computer.
- Validate and continue
- Carries out basic checks on the accounts information supplied. If no further changes are needed a summary screen of how the accounts will be held on the Register will be displayed. Please check this summary as it must match your signed copy. If you are satisfied submit the accounts by selecting ‘Submit accounts’.