The latest training film from ICAEW is called All Too Familiar. It explores the degree of trust still placed in personal and professional relationships and whether trust is enough in the fight against economic crime. Produced in collaboration with HMRC, it aims to challenge mindsets and provoke discussion on the need for greater professional scepticism when faced with potential money laundering risks.
Duncan Wiggetts – Chief Officer, Professional Standards, ICAEW, and the film’s writer – explains the motivation behind the film: “We’ve created it to make ICAEW firms and members more aware of how easy it can be to become inadvertent professional enablers of economic crime, which may have both a financial and a terrible human cost. We hope that the messages in All Too Familiar will last long in the memory of all those who watch it and that they remember what happens to the accountants in the film if they are ever tempted in the future not to challenge or question unusual developments with new or existing clients. We’re determined to challenge mindsets so professional advisers don’t miss the vital red flags that can devastate lives and livelihoods.”
Familiar faces
As with ICAEW’s earlier training films, the cast includes well-known film and television actors. Alex is played by Bill Ward, who has had long-term roles in Coronation Street and Emmerdale, while Riley is played by Kazia Pelka, familiar from Brookside, Heartbeat and, more recently, the Channel 4 drama Before We Die.
“We hold out to get the best possible actors,” explains Wiggetts. “The better the actor, the more effectively they convey our message because they come across as credible and realistic in their roles. This means viewers identify with them, empathise with them, and feel their stress and their pain, which is how we drive the lessons home.”
Provoking discussion
All Too Familiar launched in March 2022 and is available to the UK offices of ICAEW and HMRC-supervised firms free of charge, for use in their internal training. John Glen MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, gave a keynote speech at the launch event. Other attendees included Ruth Dearnley OBE, CEO of Stop the Traffik, and Simon York CBE, Director and Chief Investigation Officer, Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC.
The film is supported by a range of resources to help deliver training sessions and workshops. It is relevant for all accountants, but its focus on how longstanding relationships between clients and advisers can influence professional judgement means that it can also engage a wider audience.
“The reason we make these films is because we believe people are more likely to remember lessons from what they’ve seen visually,” says Wiggetts. “This is so much stronger than anything you can ever achieve through presentations or written learning materials. You identify with some of the characters, you feel bad when things go badly for them and, in the future, if you’re thinking about starting work without doing all the right checks, you’ll remember how you felt about what happened to them.”
Visit icaew.com/alltoofamiliar to find out more about how to access the film.
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How to view |
| The UK offices of ICAEW-supervised firms and insolvency practitioners have been sent a link via an email sent on 9 March 2022 enabling them to stream the film and the learning materials free of charge. This email was sent to the ICAEW regulatory point of contact – ie, practice assurance or audit principal. Please speak to your firm’s contact for access to the film. Global licences will be available for firms/organisations to use All Too Familiar outside the UK later in 2022. There will be a charge for global licences. If you would like more information or to register your interest, please go to icaew.com/alltoofamiliar |