PwC UK 2023 financial results: strong, stable growth backed by investment in people and technology

• PwC UK consolidated Group revenue up 16% to £5.8bn, with increases across all business lines 

• More than £100m additional investment in emerging tech including Generative AI 

• UK headcount including partners grew to more than 26,000, including over 4,800 technologists 

• Distributable profit per UK partner averaged £906,000 (£920,000 in FY22)

Commenting on the UK financial performance for the year ended 30 June 2023, Kevin Ellis, Chair and Senior Partner at PwC UK, said:

“Against a backdrop of political and economic upheaval, our multidisciplinary business has chartered a strong course.  Continued investment in people and technology, including a string of generative AI alliances, has powered our business. Our clients are looking for things that will give them an edge - where the costs of sitting still are too great to ignore.     

“Considering the sizable investments we’ve made in our people and technology, partner profits beat our forecasts. Our strong performance is due to the adaptability of our business in supporting our clients and is a credit to the talent of our people.”

Financial performance

Overall PwC UK consolidated Group revenues, which include the consolidated revenues for the PwC UK, Channel Islands and Middle East firms, grew 16% to £5.8bn, up from 12% growth in FY22.

The Group’s consulting revenues maintained the significant growth levels of the previous year, with growth of 30% (33% in FY22). This was driven by demand in the Middle East, as clients invest in programmes to modernise and diversify the region’s economy beyond oil. Energy diversification and sustainability are also behind many UK transformation projects, as the climate crisis and new reporting requirements galvanise businesses to move towards net zero. 

Expanded reporting requirements have likewise increased client demand for the Group’s audit services. Group audit revenues recorded 19% growth, with the UK practice winning a number of high profile mandates, including becoming auditor to Natwest from 2026, and being reappointed by HSBC. 

Tax, which includes People & Organisation and Legal services, recorded 19% Group revenue growth, and spearheaded PwC’s global investment in Generative AI platform Harvey.

The Group’s risk and deals divisions outperformed in a tough market, each achieving 6%  revenue growth.

Financial services remains one of our key industry sectors, with 15% growth in the UK in FY23.

Investment in people and technology

We invested an additional £100m in emerging technologies. This included AI and digital collaborations with Harvey, Microsoft and Icertis, and ContractPodAI, alongside generative AI skills training for all our people.  Cloud tech, and other technologies that advance how we deliver quality audits, have continued to be a focus.

UK headcount including partners grew to more than 26,000 people (around 24,500 last year),   including 4,850 technologists.  

Following our record staff pay rises in 2022, we continued to invest in our people.  This included support to help with winter fuel costs - around half of our people in the UK received special payments of between £1,000 and £1,500 spread over five months.

UK regional growth

UK headcount increases have been tilted outside London; with 54% of our 1,600 graduate hires in FY23 based in other locations. The number of people based in our Cardiff office has grown by more than  25% over the period, following on from our pledge to work with local governments and education providers to create quality jobs outside London. This follows similar successes in cities such as Belfast and Bradford over recent years. Expanding our regional presence is part of our strategy to attract diverse talent and support social mobility.

Broader impact

Broadening access to opportunity was also behind our decision to drop the 2:1 degree requirement for our graduate and undergraduate roles - focusing on potential rather than past performance. It’s also why we hosted a record number of students (2,400) from lower socio economic backgrounds at our offices for work insight days.  Our community contribution - including donations and volunteering - totalled £10m for the first time.

Kevin Ellis added: 

“The economy may be sluggish, but it is also changing as new technologies and the climate emergency change production and consumption.  We will continue to invest in skills and technology so we can help our clients and communities adapt. This way we can address the unknowns with confidence - both the challenges and opportunities.”

Ends

Financial highlights for year ended 30 June 2023:

Group revenue by business division (line of service):

• Total Group consolidated profit for the financial year to 30 June 2023 was £1,325m (£1,535m in FY22 - this included a one-off gain of £139m from the sale of the Group’s global mobility practice).

• The average distributable profit per UK partner was £906,000 before tax (down 1.5% from £920,000 in FY22), with an effective tax rate of 49% (47% in FY22).

• The UK total tax contribution for the Group’s UK business was £1,670m (FY22: £1,506m) and consisted of £989m in taxes collected and £681m in taxes borne.

Notes to editors

PwC UK’s 2023 digital Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2023 will be published on 13th September 2023.