Partners in the UK’s top 75 accountancy firms must be feeling happy with their performance, having weathered the recessionary storms of recent years to emerge in a strong position to tackle the uncertainties of the coming year.

Widely regarded as a bellwether for the UK economy – when their clients do well, the firms do well – the accountancy sector has recorded solid growth in fee income over the past 12 months, with many senior partners now preparing for further demands on their skills across the board.

According to the latest Accountancy Top 75 survey, fee income has increased by a healthy 6% compared with the previous 12 months to reach more than £12bn (£11.5bn in the previous year).