125 Years of Excellence

From Counting Houses to the Cloud: The Story of Arnold Hill & Co LLP

Founded 1901 · Celebrating 125 Years · London

In 1901, a chartered accountant named Arnold Hill opened a practice in London with nothing more than his expertise and his reputation. What he built has outlasted empires, wars, and the invention of the internet.

In the spring of 1901, as Queen Victoria's reign had just drawn to a close and Edwardian Britain was beginning to reshape the world's commercial landscape, a chartered accountant by the name of Arnold Hill opened the doors of his practice in London. He could not have known that the firm bearing his name would still be thriving 125 years later — advising clients on everything from research and development tax credits to international cross-border taxation, fund accounting to ESG strategy.

Yet here we are. Arnold Hill & Co LLP reaches its 125th anniversary in 2026: a milestone that fewer than a handful of UK accountancy firms ever achieve. This is the story of how a single practitioner's vision became one of London's most enduring professional services firms.

Part One

The World Mr Arnold Hill Was Born Into

The Profession at the Turn of the Century

When Arnold Hill & Co was established in 1901, the accountancy profession was barely two decades old in its organised form. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) had only been founded by Royal Charter in 1880 — just 21 years earlier. Prior to that, the men who called themselves accountants were largely unregulated, their work confined to the bookkeeping of merchants and manufacturers.

The late Victorian era changed everything. The growth of the limited liability company under the Companies Acts of 1862 and 1879 created an explosion of demand for independent financial oversight, audit, and tax advice. Professional accountancy bodies formed in London, Liverpool, Manchester, and Sheffield in the 1870s, and it was their merger that gave rise to ICAEW in 1880. By the time Arnold Hill set up his practice, the profession had established examination standards, ethical codes, and a growing public standing.

London in 1901 was the financial capital of the world. The City was home to the Bank of England, the London Stock Exchange, and the world's most powerful merchant banks. Britain's empire stretched across a quarter of the globe, and the commercial activity generated by trade, manufacturing, and finance created unrelenting demand for skilled financial practitioners. Arnold Hill was entering the profession at precisely the right moment.

Part Two

The Early Decades (1901–1939)

Building a Practice in Edwardian and Interwar London

The earliest records of Arnold Hill & Co speak to a practice built on precision, discretion, and personal service — values that would come to define the firm across generations. From its London base, the firm served the financial needs of businesses, private individuals, and family estates at a time when income tax, introduced in 1842, was becoming an increasingly complex feature of commercial life.

The Finance Act of 1907, the introduction of super-tax in 1909, and the landmark Finance Act of 1910 — Lloyd George's 'People's Budget' — dramatically increased both the burden of taxation and the complexity of compliance for businesses and wealthy individuals. It was precisely in this environment that firms like Arnold Hill & Co found their purpose, helping clients navigate a tax landscape that was shifting rapidly beneath their feet.

The First World War (1914–1918) brought enormous disruption to London's commercial life. Businesses were requisitioned, staff were called up, and the economic landscape was transformed almost overnight. Yet the firm survived — a testament to the loyalty of its clients and the adaptability of its leadership. That Arnold Hill & Co continued through this period reflects an organisational resilience that would serve it well in the decades to come.

The 1920s brought the boom and bust of the interwar economy, culminating in the Great Depression of the 1930s. Once again, the firm's emphasis on trusted, long-term client relationships proved crucial. When businesses were struggling, the value of an accountant who truly knew your affairs — and could offer sound, experienced counsel — was immeasurable.

Part Three

Post-War Reconstruction (1945–1970)

Rebuilding and Professionalising in a Changed World

The Second World War reshaped British society in ways that would be felt for generations. The introduction of the welfare state, the nationalisation of key industries, and a sweeping overhaul of the tax system created both challenges and opportunities for the accountancy profession. The Finance Acts of the post-war period introduced PAYE (Pay As You Earn) income tax collection, new corporate taxation structures, and an ever-growing body of financial regulation.

Arnold Hill & Co responded to this changing landscape by deepening its technical expertise and broadening its service offering. The firm became an approved training firm of the ICAEW during this era — a commitment to the development of future chartered accountants that continues to this day. Each generation of trainees passing through the firm brought fresh energy and new skills, helping Arnold Hill & Co remain current and competitive.

The 1960s brought the introduction of corporation tax (1965) and capital gains tax (1965), while the 1970s saw the introduction of Value Added Tax (1973) following Britain's entry into the European Economic Community. Each of these milestones created new service lines and new complexity — and for a firm with Arnold Hill & Co's depth of experience, they represented opportunities to deepen client relationships and demonstrate value.

Part Four

The Modern Era (1980–2010)

Navigating Thatcher's Britain and the Dawn of Globalisation

The 1980s ushered in a new era of British economic policy. The Thatcher government's privatisation of state enterprises, deregulation of financial markets, and reform of the tax system transformed the landscape for businesses and their advisers alike. The Big Bang of 1986 — the deregulation of the City of London's financial markets — fundamentally changed the nature of financial services in Britain and created an entirely new class of client for firms like Arnold Hill & Co.

The firm adapted to these changes by developing expertise in cross-border and international taxation, as British businesses increasingly operated across multiple jurisdictions and foreign investors looked to the UK as a base. The 1990s brought further change: the growth of the internet, the rise of the knowledge economy, and the explosion of the private equity and investment fund sector all created new demands that forward-thinking accountancy firms were well placed to meet.

By the end of the twentieth century, Arnold Hill & Co had evolved from a traditional bookkeeping and audit practice into a broad-based advisory firm. Its client base spanned private individuals and family trusts, small and medium-sized enterprises, investment funds, international corporate groups, charities, and property investors — in essence, what it remains today: a trusted, full-service financial partner for a wide range of clients.

Part Five

Restructuring and Renewal (2010–2020)

Arnold Hill & Co LLP: A New Chapter

On 15 November 2010, Arnold Hill & Co modernised its governance by formally registering as a Limited Liability Partnership (Arnold Hill & Co LLP, Companies House number OC359508) under the LLP Act 2000, establishing its registered office on Northumberland Avenue. This chapter ushered in a period of rapid innovation, prompting the firm to invest in technology, data analytics, and training to embrace cloud accounting and HMRC’s Making Tax Digital (MTD) agenda. This evolution birthed new specialist service lines, including outsourced finance functions, corporate finance advisory (covering valuations, transactions, and capital raising), specialist fund accounting, and an Innovation Tax team dedicated to securing Research and Development Tax Credits for clients.

After a period of sustained growth spent at Craven House on Northumberland Avenue near Trafalgar Square, the firm moved to a South Bank base at Capital Tower in August 2022, where it remains today. As the 2020s accelerated the digitisation of the UK tax system, Arnold Hill successfully guided clients through universal MTD for VAT compliance in April 2022 and actively leads preparations for the monumental April 2026 MTD for Income Tax Self-Assessment (MTD ITSA) mandates affecting sole traders and landlords. Simultaneously, the firm developed dedicated ESG advisory capabilities to help businesses navigate rising regulatory pressures. Solidifying its international reach, Arnold Hill achieved a major milestone in November 2022 by joining IR Global—the world's leading professional services network across 165 jurisdictions—as the exclusive Tax (Private Client) member for England. With multiple partners now holding membership roles, this cross-border network connects Arnold Hill’s clients to vetted global specialists in legal, accountancy, and financial disciplines, perfectly blending the firm's 125 years of London roots with a genuinely global platform.

Part Six

Arnold Hill & Co LLP Today

A Twenty-First Century Firm with Deep Roots

As Arnold Hill & Co LLP celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2026, it is a firm that would be largely unrecognisable to Mr Arnold Hill in its form and capabilities — yet entirely recognisable to him in its values. The commitment to building lasting relationships, providing genuinely personal service, and delivering honest, expert advice that he embedded in the firm's DNA in 1901 remain as central to its identity today as they were in the Edwardian era.

The firm serves clients across a remarkable breadth of sectors and geographies — from SMEs taking their first steps in growth, to multinational corporate groups managing complex cross-border tax structures; from family trusts preserving multi-generational wealth, to investment funds requiring specialist accounting and tax compliance; from charities and not-for-profit organisations, to energy companies navigating an increasingly complex regulatory landscape.
Arnold Hill & Co LLP's service portfolio today encompasses audit and accounts, fund accounting, business tax (including corporation tax, international taxation, R&D tax credits, fund tax, and VAT), personal tax (compliance and advisory, non-domicile tax, inheritance tax, trusts and estates), bookkeeping and payroll, outsourced finance functions, corporate advisory, corporate finance, and private office services.

The firm's culture is shaped by four core values: 'We're in this together' speaks to the collaborative ethos that runs through all client and team relationships; 'Investing in people' reflects the commitment to developing talent at every level; 'Entrepreneurial spirit' captures the hunger for innovation and adaptability that has allowed the firm to thrive across 12 decades; and underpinning it all, a deep commitment to client success.

Part Seven

Looking to the future

The Next 125 Years

As we look ahead from this remarkable milestone, the firm does so with confidence and ambition. The challenges facing businesses in 2026 — from the complexities of post-Brexit trade, to the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence, to the growing imperative of sustainability and ESG compliance — are precisely the kinds of challenges that a firm with Arnold Hill & Co LLP's depth of experience and breadth of capability is well placed to help clients navigate.
The firm continues to invest in its team, its technology, and its services. It continues to train the next generation of chartered accountants, maintaining the ICAEW-approved training firm status it has held for decades. And it continues to build the long-term, trusted relationships with clients that have been the defining characteristic of Arnold Hill & Co since Arnold Hill first opened his practice in 1901.

One hundred and twenty-five years is a long time in any business. It spans two World Wars, a global depression, the digital revolution, a global pandemic, and countless shifts in the tax, regulatory, and economic landscapes. That Arnold Hill & Co LLP has not merely survived but flourished across all of it is a testament to the qualities that made the firm worth founding in the first place: integrity, expertise, adaptability, and an unshakeable commitment to the clients it serves.