More Big Four blues as Deloitte plans to slash UK audit roles

Big Four giant Deloitte is seeking to cut nearly 200 jobs across its audit business in the UK, the latest in a series of cuts at the accountancy giants.

The firm is offering voluntary redundancy packages to a number of employees in response to low levels of staff attrition in its audit practice.

A Deloitte UK spokesperson said: “We have been experiencing low rates of attrition in certain areas of our UK audit and assurance business. As a result, we have taken the decision to offer voluntary redundancy on enhanced terms to some of our people in the impacted areas. We do not take these decisions lightly and will do everything we can to provide support to those who are considering this option.” 

It is understood that as many as 175 auditors, including managers and assistant managers, will be on the chopping block, representing less than 3 per cent of its audit and assurance business and less than 1 per cent of the UK firm.

Deloitte UK reported an annual revenue of £5.68bn for the fiscal year ending 31 May 2025, a 1 per cent decrease from the previous year (£5.75bn) and was the firm’s first revenue drop in 15 years. Despite that, revenue from its audit and assurance business grew by 3 per cent.

This isn’t the first time the firm has rolled out layoffs; back in October 2024, it was revealed that Deloitte cut 250 members of staff in the UK who were deemed to be ‘underperforming’ in their roles.

For the fresh batch of job cuts, stagnant revenue has been blamed, as has low attrition, which was also cited by the firm’s competitor, KPMG, which led this year’s job cuts.

Back in March, yet another redundancy round broke, this time at KPMG, as it sought to cut around 600 jobs in the UK, including 440 ‘assistant manager’ roles in the firm’s audit business, along with around 120 roles in its advisory arm, on the chopping block.

From the bottom to the top, there has been a steady stream of layoffs over the last couple of years as the current economic landscape has seen its traditional “attrition model” fail to keep pace. Traditionally, the Big Four firms maintain a large headcount, especially at the junior/graduate level, with the understanding that many will leave to join other businesses across the City and broader UK. However, fewer staff have been leaving due to the struggling economy.