The latest edition of ICAEW’s research into UK mid-tier accountancy firms suggested a shift in the provision of environmental, social and governance (ESG) service lines. Close to half of the 36 firms surveyed confirmed they would be starting to offer services in the next three years, where just 10% of firms had seen ESG as a growth opportunity in 2024.

The research also highlighted the vital importance of having the correct skills to grasp this growth opportunity. The majority of firms planning new ESG services were already investing in upskilling staff. Meanwhile, of those not planning ESG service lines, two-thirds said it was due to a lack of expertise and resources. 

The research came as the UK government consults on its draft Sustainability Reporting Standards, which outline requirements not just on climate-related disclosures and sustainability risk reporting, but also transition planning and assurance of sustainability reports. 

ICAEW has long identified the need to support its members in developing sustainability creating its popular Sustainability Certificate three years ago. At the start of 2025, the institute developed this training further with the launch of the Sustainability Accelerator Programme (SAP) – a comprehensive elearning resource that is free to members.

The SAP offers 50 hours of training, taking practitioners from the fundamental principles of sustainability, through building the business case and reporting requirements to strategy and risk management.

Richard Spencer, Director, Sustainability at ICAEW, says: “The ICAEW Sustainability Accelerator is not about turning our members into sustainability experts, but rather about future-proofing their careers. It focuses on managing risk and providing the necessary tools and resources to help businesses navigate the complexities of sustainability, ultimately leading to a more resilient and prosperous future.”

Flexible and bite-sized 

Developed with subject-matter experts and in consultation with members who are leading in the sustainability field, the SAP is designed to allow members to learn at their own pace and fit study into their professional schedules.

The course has five main units, which are divided into modules featuring practical examples and interactive content based on members’ and advisers’ real-life case studies:

• Unit 1: Introduction to sustainability – an update to ICAEW’s successful Sustainability Certificate offers a grounding to the sustainability issues practitioners need to succeed.
• Unit 2: Building the business case – everything practitioners need to know about how to create the business case for the development of sustainability service lines, including assessing client demand.
• Unit 3: Reporting and decision making – the tools and knowledge needed to gather, analyse and report on sustainability metrics effectively. This unit covers management information, carbon accounting, natural and social capital accounting and improving social performance.
• Unit 4: Strategy and risk management – the fundamental elements of governance, integrating sustainability into strategic management and sustainability risk management. This unit also covers systems thinking and transition planning
• Unit 5: Sustainability assurance – launching in the coming weeks, this unit delves into how to assess and verify sustainability information.

While the units and modules are structured to build on each other, members can start at the beginning if they are new to the topic of sustainability or can dive straight into the topic if they have a specific challenge to resolve.

Jayne Saywell, founder of Edinburgh-based sustainability consultancy Black Skies Blue, was heavily involved in the creation of the programme and quickly realised that chartered accountants needed something bespoke in their sustainability training because members are approaching this issue from different angles and at different stages of their career. 

“When designing the programme we talked to members at different stages in their sustainability career, from interested to expert, to find out what their sustainability journey was and what they wished they’d known at the start,” she says. “We found that sustainability is not linear. People could be very junior, but nonetheless leading on sustainability issues within their organisation.”

Building on existing skillsets

Accountants’ professional training is steeped in scepticism, accuracy and fact-checking. These are also qualities needed to apply to sustainability, Saywell says, and “we need to layer these sustainability skills on top of our existing professional knowledge and skills”.

The aim of the programme is to instil the competencies surrounding sustainability into the foundations of accountancy training. In this way, at the most basic level, accountants can feel competent in talking about the issue with stakeholders and clients, and also understand what they don’t know and how and when to bring in other experts.

“The Sustainability Accelerator provides members with the vocabulary and ability to know how it fits in with an organisation’s strategy and goals,” says Saywell. 

The fourth unit of the programme is particularly useful for those looking to integrate sustainability into strategy. It offers practical support for finance professionals on how to incorporate social and natural capital, alongside the financial bottom line to better identify risks and opportunities. 

Potential actions include adjusting budgeting processes to ensure short and long-term sustainability factors are captured and setting organisational goals that consider social and natural outcomes, as well as financial.

The programme also offers support on how to go about measuring and reporting on non-financial aspects. Unit three outlines a variety of frameworks that practitioners can use to map and calculate greenhouse gas emissions, measure natural capital and evaluate social outcomes.

It also includes a six-step process to help identify where and how an organisation’s operations, activities, practices, locations and value chains impact natural, human and social capital flows: 

1. assess business context and map value chain; 
2. materiality assessment – incorporating double materiality;
3. stakeholder engagement;
4. prioritisation;
5. integration into business strategy; and
6. continuous monitoring and reporting. 

This approach helps in managing immediate environmental impacts and builds long-term stakeholder trust, as well as aligning with the company’s broader sustainability commitments. 

By quantifying dependencies and impacts, accountants can play a vital role in uncovering hidden risks, and ensuring their organisation or clients are aligning strategies with natural capital considerations and making informed, sustainable decisions.

ICAEW’s Spencer says: “At ICAEW, we take the view that sustainability is a huge business and economic issue and, in many respects, it’s a story of resilience. It’s important from the perspective of our businesses thriving and succeeding that we ensure that the planet succeeds.”