We are delighted to announce the release of a new edition of the QCA Corporate Governance Code.
The QCA Code is a practical, outcome-oriented approach to corporate governance that is tailored for small and mid-size quoted companies in the UK. Since its initial release in 2013, it has become a valuable reference for growing companies wishing to follow good governance examples.
The new and updated version of the QCA Corporate Governance Code includes 10 corporate governance principles that companies should follow, and step-by-step guidance on how to effectively apply these principles.
The Code has been put together by the QCA’s Corporate Governance Expert Group and a standalone Working Group comprising leading individuals from across the small & mid-size quoted company ecosystem.
The revision of the QCA Code is especially timely and relevant in that London Stock Exchange has announced a change in the rules so that all AIM companies will be required to apply a recognised corporate governance code and explain how they do so from September 2018.
Please find the QCA Corporate Governance Code here
Testimonials for the QCA Corporate Governance Code
"London Stock Exchange believes that companies benefit from adopting appropriate governance measures, but recognises that to be effective these measures should be tailored to a company’s individual requirements given its stage of growth and developed through considered engagement with key stakeholders.
Applying a principles-based approach to corporate governance which supports appropriate disclosure is consistent with our overall approach to AIM. We therefore welcome the Quoted Companies Alliance’s review and update of its corporate governance code as part of its support for both private and public companies as they grow and seek to build trust with their key stakeholders through good governance."
Marcus Stuttard, Head of AIM & Head of UK Primary Markets, London Stock Exchange Group
"The QCA Code provides a means for smaller quoted companies to consider their own circumstances when applying principles of good governance. This updated version of the QCA Code will assist these companies in adopting best practice.
The new principles highlight that having an “efficient, effective and dynamic management framework” will allow companies to deliver growth in long-term shareholder value. This is true for companies of all sizes. As is the need for building public trust in business through promoting transparency and integrity, which is the foundation of the FRC’s UK Corporate Governance Code"
Sir Winfried Bischoff, Chairman of the Financial Reporting Council
“One of Britain’s biggest assets in competing in the global economy is our reputation as a dependable place to do business. When it comes to our corporate governance regime, British standards have long been admired around the world.
The revised QCA code will, I hope, make a valuable contribution to helping maintain these standards, offering clear principles for smaller quoted companies to help ensure corporate governance is not seen as an add-on but as a key enabler of long-term success.”
Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Corporate Responsibility
"The QCA Corporate Governance Guide is an essential read for all those involved in managing a public company. It offers sensible and easy-to-follow advice that equips the reader with the practical steps needed to ensure they operate appropriately. It should be read once from cover-to-cover and then referred to whenever there is any doubt about how to act – I would recommend keeping a copy close-to hand!"
Patrick Birley, Chief Executive, NEX Exchange
"For a company, applying the QCA Corporate Governance Code will help investors get a much more informed understanding as to how they manage their risks, and a deeper appreciation of their internal cultures. The well-established nature of the QCA code should help investors directly compare a number of companies on these metrics by a common yardstick.
The adoption of the QCA Code should continue to help investors correctly pick out the quoted companies with the best internal cultures, and hence ensure our limited amounts of risk capital generate attractive returns. Equally importantly, the renewed support for quoted smaller companies should help to generate further employment growth and extra tax take in the UK over the coming years."
Gervais Williams, Senior Executive Director, Miton Group Plc
"Individual Shareholders think this is the best Code for the vast majority of AIM companies and most smaller and mid-size quoted companies."
Cliff Weight, Director of ShareSoc, the UK Individual Shareholders Society
"At last, a set of principles of corporate governance that genuinely add value. The Quoted Companies Alliance's ten principles of corporate governance are a breath of fresh air. Requirements for compliance are integrated with meaningful oversight pursuit. Board directors need to have a deep familiarity with the enterprise under their care yet equally act independently in order to address shareholder and wider stakeholder and social responsibility concerns. Other codes take note! The QCA tenth principle of building trust is positioned as central to the stewardship of the firm but is so absent from other codes. The QCA principles of corporate governance are the model to follow."
Andrew Kakabadse, Professor of Governance and Leadership, Chairman, Directors’ Forum, Henley Business School, Emeritus Professor, Cranfield School of Management
"Governance is increasingly important across all sectors and in organisations of all sizes. The QCA Corporate Governance Code provides a mechanism that is at once both sufficiently robust to add real value for those companies which follow it and at the same time sufficiently flexible to reflect the different governance needs and abilities of smaller quoted companies, particularly those quoted on the AIM market."
Peter Swabey, Policy and Research Director, ICSA: The Governance Institute
"Governance is not just a matter of ticking the compliance box, but more about how boards and corporate leadership can work together to create enduring success. The QCA Code makes an important contribution with its practical advice, based on ethical values and behaviours and getting the right culture across the company. This is the new focus of governance – and well worth the effort. "
Philippa Foster Back CBE, Director, Institute of Business Ethics
Please find the QCA Corporate Governance Code here
