There are challenging days ahead. Calls for greater transparency, public pressure on issues like inequality, diversity and the environment; disruptive technology and legislation extending company accountability beyond shareholders. All these issues demand meaningful action, but simply doing the right thing won’t be enough. Demonstrating that you’re doing it is essential too, not just for current stakeholders, but future investors and the wider public.

Despite this, our CGR indicates that many companies are still struggling to either act or provide the proper reporting of that action. The revised UK Corporate Governance Code (the Code) was designed to help with both. A distillation of best practice the new Code is a blueprint to good governance and good governance reporting. What’s more, research published by Grant Thornton this year proves that businesses using it this way see very real benefits in terms of creating and retaining value.