KPMG and Deloitte UK enhance redundancy terms to reduce headcount
KPMG UK and Deloitte UK offer enhanced redundancy packages as the Big Four firms seek to cut audit and advisory headcount amid unusually low staff turnover.
KPMG and Deloitte have offered UK employees enhanced redundancy packages as the firms seek to reduce staffing levels amid unusually low employee turnover.
City A.M. broke the news that employees affected by KPMG’s recent redundancy programme were guaranteed at least eight weeks of basic salary. The firm also extended payments to employees with less than two years’ service and calculated redundancy amounts using employees’ actual weekly salaries rather than the statutory cap. Payments in lieu of notice or garden leave were also available where applicable, although departing employees would not receive a full-year 2026 bonus. KPMG confirmed that it had enhanced the package following consultation with affected staff.
Deloitte reportedly offered substantially larger payments under a voluntary redundancy programme in its UK audit business. According to City A.M., the package included as much as eight months of full pay. Employees were required to accept the offer by 10 July, with those taking it expected to leave by the end of July.
The Deloitte programme could affect up to 175 audit employees, principally at manager and assistant-manager level. Deloitte has said that the programme was introduced because staff departures within parts of its audit practice had fallen below normal levels.
The reductions form part of a wider adjustment across the UK Big Four. KPMG previously proposed eliminating as many as 440 audit positions, largely involving qualified assistant managers, as well as approximately 120 advisory roles. The firm attributed the audit cuts to low attrition and the need to align staffing with current market conditions.
Related coverage
City A.M. — “Revealed: KPMG and Deloitte offer bumper redundancy packages to slash headcount” — 17 July 2026
The original report detailing the enhanced packages offered by both firms.
Bloomberg Tax — “Deloitte UK to Shed Up To 175 Auditors in Voluntary Job Cuts” — 16 June 2026
Reports that Deloitte’s programme could affect up to 175 managers and assistant managers in its UK audit practice.
Reuters — “KPMG says to cut jobs in UK auditing division” — 27 March 2026
Confirms KPMG’s proposed UK audit reductions and the firm’s explanation that employee turnover had fallen unusually low.
Financial Times — “KPMG to cut almost 600 UK jobs as slowdown persists” — 27 March 2026
Provides wider context on the proposed audit and advisory reductions and the pressures facing KPMG’s UK business.
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