BDO Stoy Hayward

Infobox_Company
company_name = BDO Stoy Hayward, LLP
company_
foundation = 1994
location = London
num_employees =
industry =
products = Professional Services
revenue =
CEO =
Chairman of the Board =
homepage = http://www.bdo.co.uk

BDO Stoy Hayward LLP is a partnership of chartered accountants in the United Kingdom. It is the UK member firm of BDO International, the fifth largest worldwide network of professional service firms in the world. With offices throughout the UK, the firm offers auditing, consultancy and tax services to a wide variety of organisations in the private and public sectors.

BDO Stoy Hayward is the 5th largest accountancy firm in the UK, with revenues of £285 million for the year ending 30 June 2006, and average revenue per partner of £1.2 million [ [http://www.accountancyage.com/resource/top50 Accountancy Age Top 50 Accountancy Firms] ] .

History

The firm was founded in 1903 as Stoy and Co by Fred Stoy. In 1919, Jack Hayward joined the firm and it became Stoy Hayward and Co. A series of mergers with Finnie and Co in 1992 and the BDO Binder Hamlyn offices that didn't join Arthur Andersen in 1994 created BDO Stoy Hayward, which became the UK member of BDO International.

The firm became a limited liability partnership in 2004.

Awards

BDO Stoy Hayward is viewed as a major challenger to the "Big 4" accountancy practices. It has done this by being vociferous in the lack of competition for accounting services in the large corporate market [ [http://www.financialdirector.co.uk/accountancyage/analysis/2156378/big-four-arrogance-cannot-paper Big Four 'arrogance' cannot paper over the cracks exposed by Oxera] ] and by developing its own award winning “successfully different” culture.

This has been publicly recognised by the following awards:
* 2004 Accountancy Age ‘Employer of the Year’
* 2005 Accountancy Age ‘Large Firm of the Year’
* 2005 Accountancy Age ‘Employer of the Year’ (second year)
* 2006 Top 100 Best Companies to Work For - Sunday Times [ [http://www.bestcompanies.co.uk/survey_list.aspx Sunday Times List 2006 - Mid Companies] ]
* 2006 Top 50 Companies Where Women Want to Work - Sunday Times
* 2006 Global Firm of the Year - Accountancy Age, 2006 [ [http://www.accountancyage.com/accountancyage/features/2168750/awards-2006-bdo-stoy-hayward Accountancy Age Global Firm of the Year] ]
* 2006 Accountancy Age ‘Personality of the Year’ awarded to Jeremy Newman (managing partner)
* 2007 Accountancy Age 'Employer of the Year'
* 2008 Top 50 Best Workplaces - Financial Times
* 2008 Top 100 Best Companies to Work For - Sunday Times

Criticism

BDO Stoy Hayward was criticised in their role as administrators for the collapsed Christmas hamper savings company Farepak [ [http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,1956915,00.html Scandal of Farepak phone lines] ] . BDO Stoy Hayward used an 0870 non-geographic phone service (termed by some "premium rate") to provide information for victims of Farepak's collapse. The criticism was at least partially based on the mistaken belief that BDO Stoy Hayward were taking a share of the call revenue to pay for the administration; this incorrect belief was later corrected by the Observer.

Northern Rock

In September 2008, Andrew Caldwell, valuations partner at BDO Stoy Hayward, was appointed independent valuer for the stricken mortgage bank, Northern Rock plc [ [http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article4710083.ece Times Online "Northern Rock valuers to be paid £4.5 million"] ] . The UK government nationalised Northern Rock in February 2008, and the legislation effecting the nationalisation required an independent valuer to ascertain the value of the business at the point of nationalisation. The role is a controversial one, as the legislation specifies in some detail the basis of valuation, and shareholder action groups claim that the valuation basis has been designed to minimise the compensation due.

Locations

BDO Stoy Hayward has 14 offices in the UK:

* Belfast
* Birmingham
* Bristol
* Cambridge
* Chelmsford
* Epsom
* Gatwick
* Glasgow
* Hatfield
* Leeds
* London (Head Office)
* Manchester
* Reading
* Southampton

References