Why the UK accounts stop tying to the group pack

The UK entity files statutory accounts under FRS 102 or FRS 101. Head office consolidates under IFRS, HGB or French GAAP. Two sets of numbers are normal. What matters is that the bridge between them is documented, reviewed and owned by someone.

Where the drift comes from

• Framework differences that nobody tracks. The FRS 102 amendments for periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026 bring most leases on balance sheet and a five-step revenue model. That changes existing bridges rather than removing them.
• Intercompany agreed at different dates or rates. Both sides are right in their own ledger, and the difference lands in the consolidation.
• Foreign exchange. Different rate sources or remeasurement policies between the entity and the group.
• Top-side adjustments. Late entries posted in the group system only, never pushed back to the local ledger.
• Mapping drift. New local accounts opened without updating the group chart-of-accounts mapping.

What works

One mapping, maintained locally and reviewed at each close. A bridge schedule by type of adjustment, not a single balancing line. Intercompany agreed with each counterparty before cut-off. A log of top-side adjustments sent back to the entity, so the next statutory accounts start from the same place as the group.

None of this needs a new system. It needs an owner at the interface between the local accountant, the group controller and the auditors. Documenting that bridge is usually the first deliverable of a Finance Interface Review.