Prestige of a firm vs benefits

What do you mean project work alongside audit? If you mean you working in other business areas Deloitte have a secondment programme which is quite flexible

Benefits are neither here nor there as a new starter. Take the prestige and the doors it opens for exit ops post-qualification. Also, big papa D will sponsor you for ACA. This is no contest. Big papa D.

I'd be in the 'big business' team which does project work to add value to clients' businesses instead of just auditing them. Was thinking it might be a bit more variety and set me up better for a future move into consultancy etc as I can't see myself in audit long-term

I’d probably try and get a better understanding of what that actually is, make sure it’s not just something to draw you into the scheme. But besides I would still be inclined to opt for Deloitte

I would try and avoid Cooper Parry. I've heard there's a lot of favouritism and bullying from upper management and it's expected to put in an additional 20-30 hours a week (including weekends) unpaid overtime while those same managers finish early each day - a lot different to the flexible and cheerful working environment they sell themselves as. A few of my friends who have worked there have left recently for those reasons. Definitely try your luck elsewhere!

How important is the reputation of an accountancy firm compared to other factors like culture, work-life balance, perks, etc?
What I'm asking is are big 4 (specifically Deloitte) trained audit apprentices looked upon more favourably than qualified ACA accountants from medium sized firms (specifically Cooper Parry), or is the prestige of the firm not so important in comparison to the individual? Are ACA qualified accountants seen as roughly equal or does where you train make a difference for future prospects (in the same way that a Russell group would compared to an ex-poly)?
Another draw to Cooper Parry over Deloitte is the fact they are offering more project work alongside audit which I think would give more variety and opportunity to branch out later on.
Any insight would be much appreciated!

I'm going to work on the assumption that you want to make a lot of cash out of this accountancy gig and either work in the City or eventually become a CFO of a FTSE 350 company or higher after you qualify....

In which case, firm matters more than anything else because Experience > Qualification. Whether you emerge from the Big 4 as a CA, ACA, an ACCA or even an ACMA or CPFA (it used to be possible to get these from certain graduate roles, I'm not sure if it is now!) then - all other things being equal - you will be a stronger candidate than someone with ACA from Cooper Parry (all other things are never equal though so I guess if the ACA from Cooper Parry speaks a few languages, can program in Python and has amazing social skills deployed with lethal effect in an interview then where they trained probably won't matter so much!)

However, if you want to make your long term career as fruitful as possible, Big 4 will help a lot more than whatever pay and benefits smaller firms offer in the short term (they won't be worth it in the long term). Remember on top of everything else if you are working in the Big 4 you will be exposed to massive clients, the kind that you will want to work for later on to earn the big bucks. If you work for Cooper Parry, you'll work for smaller clients and get a different experience. Nothing wrong with it, still a good career, but you'll have to make up for a lack of FTSE 100 type exposure somehow.

Thanks for the insight - you seem to know what you're talking about, can I ask what your background is? Also do you know anything specifically about Cooper Parry, ie its unique culture and way of doing things, or are you only working with the knowledge that it is a relatively small firm, with smaller clients, in comparison to big 4? Won't the smaller clients potentially mean I get a better insight into how the business is run as a whole, and the bigger picture of the business, rather than being bogged down by smaller aspects of huge FTSE 100 companies?
You make a compelling argument that big 4 is the way to go to get experience and exposure with large FTSE businesses. I wonder how difficult it would be to move to the big 4 after completing an ACA at Cooper Parry, considering a lot of big 4 ACA graduates leave audit after becoming chartered, it seems likely that it won't be too difficult to join as a chartered accountant?

Thanks for the insight - you seem to know what you're talking about, can I ask what your background is? Also do you know anything specifically about Cooper Parry, ie its unique culture and way of doing things, or are you only working with the knowledge that it is a relatively small firm, with smaller clients, in comparison to big 4? Won't the smaller clients potentially mean I get a better insight into how the business is run as a whole, and the bigger picture of the business, rather than being bogged down by smaller aspects of huge FTSE 100 companies?
You make a compelling argument that big 4 is the way to go to get experience and exposure with large FTSE businesses. I wonder how difficult it would be to move to the big 4 after completing an ACA at Cooper Parry, considering a lot of big 4 ACA graduates leave audit after becoming chartered, it seems likely that it won't be too difficult to join as a chartered accountant?