ISO 9001 · Independent internal audit · Remote delivery, UK and beyond
ISO 9001 internal audit for small businesses
An independent internal audit, led by a BSI-qualified Lead Auditor, that satisfies Clause 9.2 and shows you what your certification body will find before they do.
£1,950 + VAT fixed fee. Report within two to three weeks. Pass guarantee.
MEET YOUR ISO 9001 AUDITOR
Fiona Parker, BSI-qualified ISO 9001 Lead Auditor
Fiona is a BSI-qualified ISO 9001 Lead Auditor, with more than 6 years of hands-on experience running a live quality management system, not just auditing other people’s. She leads our ISO 9001 practice.
Book a free discovery callWhy ISO 9001 asks for an internal audit, and why it should be independent
Clause 9.2 of ISO 9001 requires you to audit your own quality management system at planned intervals, and to do it objectively. Your certification body will ask to see the audit programme, the report and what you did about the findings. Before initial certification you must have completed at least one full internal audit; after that, your whole system must be covered within every certification cycle.
The catch for a small business is objectivity. The standard says auditors must not audit their own work, and in a company of ten or twenty people the person who built the QMS is usually the only one who knows it well enough to audit it. That is where an independent internal audit earns its keep: it satisfies the impartiality requirement, and it gives you an honest dress rehearsal of the certification audit with findings you can fix quietly first.
Our internal audits are delivered by Fiona Parker, a BSI-qualified ISO 9001 Lead Auditor who spent six years running a certified integrated management system before auditing other people’s. She knows what gets raised as a finding because she has been on the receiving end of it.
How it works
- Scoping call (30 minutes). We agree the scope, your key processes, timing, and the evidence to have ready. If you have a certification or surveillance audit booked, we work back from that date.
- Document review (remote). Fiona reviews your quality manual or scope, policy and objectives, process documentation, risk and opportunity register, and the records the standard asks you to retain.
- Audit sessions (video call). Usually three or four sessions of 60 to 90 minutes, booked at your pace: the management system clauses (context, leadership, planning, support, performance evaluation, improvement), then deep dives into the processes that actually make you money, such as order to delivery, design, purchasing or service delivery.
- Report and close-out. A written findings report and nonconformity log, in the format your certification auditor expects, within five working days of the last session, followed by a close-out meeting to agree what to fix first.
Most audits complete within two to three weeks of booking, and we can usually start within days.
What you get
Internal audit report
Covers every clause of ISO 9001 and each process audited, with an overall conformance summary your management review can use directly.
Nonconformity log
Every finding graded as Major, Minor, Opportunity for Improvement or Observation, each with a suggested corrective action and owner.
Audit programme
A documented programme showing how, when and by whom the audit was conducted, including how independence was maintained. Exactly what the certification body asks to see for Clause 9.2.
Pricing
ISO 9001 Internal Audit
£1,950 + VAT, fixed fee
- Audit of all management system clauses (4 to 10)
- Deep-dive sessions on your key processes, scoped to what your business actually does
- Full review of your documents and records
- Written findings report and nonconformity log
- Audit programme for your Clause 9.2 evidence
- Close-out meeting to agree priorities
- Questions updated for ISO 9001:2026, so your system is tested against the edition you will transition to
All delivered remotely. 20% discount for organisations with three or fewer people.
Not built your system yet? An internal audit of an unfinished QMS produces a long list you already know about. If you are starting from nothing, or rescuing a system nobody uses, our ISO 9001 Coaching Programme (£2,950 fixed fee) takes you from blank page to audit-ready and includes a risk-based internal audit. Working towards ISO 27001 as well? See our integrated ISO 27001 + ISO 9001 offer.
Ready for ISO 9001:2026
ISO 9001:2026 was published on 16 September 2026. Certified organisations have a three-year transition, but your certification body will move to auditing against the new edition well before the deadline. Our audit questions already cover the new expectations: quality culture and ethical behaviour, the clearer separation of risks and opportunities, change management, climate change in your context, and organisational knowledge. If you are still on the 2015 edition, the report flags where the gap is so you can transition in a planned way rather than at the last surveillance visit. Our guide to what ISO 9001:2026 means for you explains the changes.
Who this is for
- Organisations preparing for their first ISO 9001 certification audit who want to know what will be raised before the auditor does.
- Certified businesses that need an independent internal audit before a surveillance or recertification visit.
- Small companies where the person who built the QMS is the only person who could audit it.
- Businesses that have been certified for years and suspect the internal audit has become a tick-box.
It is not the right starting point if your quality management system does not exist yet; the coaching programme above is.
Our guarantee
If your certification body raises a nonconformity that our audit should have found and did not, we will help you fix it at no charge. One audit, one fixed fee, one clear verdict.
Why Iseo Blue
We specialise in helping small businesses
They can move faster and implement change quicker. We like that.
Minimal Viable Compliance
We build and audit lean systems. If a document doesn’t earn its keep, it goes.
Genuinely independent
Your certification auditor will ask about internal audit independence; you’ll have a good answer.
Fixed fees, always
You know the cost before we start. No day rates, no scope creep.
Both standards, one roof
ISO 27001 and ISO 9001, coached or audited, separately or together.
We don’t make ourselves ‘sticky’.
We show you how to build, implement and support your own QMS.
Frequently asked questions
How long does an ISO 9001 internal audit take?
Typically two to three weeks from scoping call to final report. The audit sessions themselves add up to roughly a day of your time, split into three or four video calls booked around your diary.
Will the certification body accept your report?
Yes. The report, nonconformity log and audit programme are written to meet the Clause 9.2 documentation requirements, using the same Major, Minor, Opportunity for Improvement and Observation categories your certification auditor uses. We have no affiliation with any certification body, which is what makes the audit independent.
We built the system ourselves. Is that a problem?
No, it is the most common situation. A self-built system that genuinely runs the business usually audits well; the findings tend to be about evidence and records rather than the system itself.
Do you audit on-site?
Our standard audits are remote, which keeps the fixed fee low and works for the vast majority of SMEs, wherever you are in the UK or beyond. If your processes genuinely require on-site observation, ask on the discovery call. Fiona is based in Berkshire, so visits across the south of England are straightforward, and we can quote for anywhere else.
Can you audit against ISO 9001:2026?
Yes. Our audit questions cover the 2026 edition as well as 2015, and the report tells you where your system still reflects 2015 so you can plan the transition. Your certification body will confirm which edition they audit you against at each visit.
Can you audit ISO 27001 at the same time?
Yes. We audit both standards, separately or as one integrated internal audit with a bundle price. See our integrated ISO 27001 + ISO 9001 offer.
Do you offer a cheaper, lighter audit?
No. A partial audit gives you a partial answer, and partially ready for certification is not useful to anyone. One audit, one fixed fee, one clear verdict.
Ready to talk?
Book a free 30-minute discovery call. No pressure: we will look at where you are, tell you honestly what you need, and you can decide from there.