A B C S UK founder Stephanie Marshall breaks ICB record with six LUCA Awards finalist places

Theo Paphitis #SBS Winner Stephanie Marshall FICB PM.Dip has broken the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers record for the most individual finalist places in a single LUCA Awards year.

Stephanie, founder and CEO of Kent-based bookkeeping and accountancy practice A B C S UK, has been named a finalist in six individual categories at the 2026 LUCA Awards, dubbed the “Oscars of the bookkeeping world”.

The six categories are:

• Bookkeepers’ Champion
• Payroll Professional of the Year
• Small Practice of the Year
• Client Experience
• Bookkeeper Influencer of the Year
• Bookkeeper Innovator of the Year

The result breaks the previous record of five individual finalist places, which Stephanie herself set in 2025 and which was confirmed by ICB.

It also continues a strong run of LUCA recognition for Stephanie. She won Bookkeeper Influencer of the Year in 2024, retained the title in 2025, and was also Highly Commended for Payroll Practitioner of the Year last year.

Stephanie said:

“Last year I broke the record with five finalist places, so finding out I’d somehow managed six this year was a bit ridiculous.

“But genuinely, the bit I’m most proud of isn’t the number. It’s what the six categories are for.

“They cover client experience, payroll, innovation, the practice I’ve built, the work I do within the bookkeeping profession and the content I create to make business and finance a bit easier to understand.

“They’re six very different things and together they pretty much sum up what I’ve spent the last few years trying to build.”

Stephanie founded A B C S UK to provide business owners with more than traditional year-end bookkeeping and accountancy support.

She added:

“I want clients to understand what is actually happening in their business. I want them to feel comfortable asking questions, and I want them to have someone looking at the bigger picture with them.

“So yes, six LUCA finals in one year feels pretty special.”

Alongside Stephanie’s six individual finalist places, Aberdeenshire Branch, of which she is a member, has also been named a finalist for ICB Branch of the Year.

A B C S UK works with growing businesses across Kent and the wider UK, providing bookkeeping, accountancy, payroll, tax and proactive business support.

Stephanie is also an author, speaker, host of The 3Bz Podcast: Building Better Business, and was named on the Female Founders List 2026.

The winners of the 2026 LUCA Awards will be announced in November.

Find out more about A B C S UK at www.abcsuk.com