Top tips from our business contacts…

In the final post of our business tips series we have top tips from local businesses, which you will hopefully find interesting and useful to you or your clients:

 

Ensure you have core values as a business and stick to them. For example we aim to deliver an experience that combines fun, quality and innovation to gain the most rewarding results for all.

Nick Howarth – Workplace Pensions Co-ordinator – Taylor Patterson Financial Planning

 

While borrowing money from friends and family might be an easier solution initially, in the long term it will act as an impediment to growth. As fast growing SMEs’ funding needs change and their funding requirements become more sophisticated, the tap of familial generosity will run dry. Invoice financing is good way of gaining access to cash that you are already owed, instead of having to wait for weeks, if not months, for clients to pay their invoices. Additionally, trade and export finance offer specialist funding for businesses trading abroad. Now is the time for the small business owner to heed this advice and start using their own assets to finance growth in 2016. There is no need to borrow money from others – whether a loan or funds from a family member – when you are sitting on hard-earned profits that you can release today, instead of tomorrow.

Christopher Rimmer – Business Development Manager – Bibby Financial Services

 

More than 3 billion people are now using the internet, with people from all over the world spending time online. This means that having a website has never been so important to your business. Not only will it give you the opportunity to introduce your brand and engage with new customers but you can also make sales that would otherwise not have been possible.

If you’re looking to get a new website or perhaps want to upgrade your existing one you will need to consider Quality of the design,  Functionality, Search Engine Optimisation and Content.

Sharon Challiner – Piranha Advertising & Marketing Solutions

 

No one can predict the future so to reduce any unnecessary stress on yourself and your business ensure you have adequate insurance in place to protect you from fire, flood, water leaks, storm damage, malicious damage, theft and business interruption. If the worst does happen and you need to make a claim appoint a FCA regulated loss assessor as they will do their utmost to expedite your insurance claim as quickly and efficiently as possible, maximising your settlement and minimising the disruption to your business.

Martin Curran – Martin Curran & Associates

 

As a firm of accountants we come across many businesses and service providers on a day to day basis, we love to recommend local businesses to our clients and visa versa. It is just one of the ways we go the extra mile.

RT Charity Challenge

At RT we like to do our bit for charity. This year Rebecca, Nicola, Chloe, Amy and Lucy are completing a 10,000 steps a day challenge for the whole of March for Care International’s Walk In Her Shoes campaign.

 

It is raising money and awareness that a lot of women and girls in some of the world’s poorest countries have to walk at least 10,000 steps just to get water for their families, this is preventing them from going to school and reaching their full potential.

 

10,000 steps is the equivalent of 5 miles, whilst it may not sound that far to some when you have an office job it can be a struggle to reach even 3,000 steps a day.

 

So if you are passing by the office you may see us power walking round Preston Docks before work, at lunch time and after work!

 

We had a £500 target which we have managed to surpass and now the sky’s the limit so  if you could donate even the smallest amount it would be much appreciated.

 

Also for any donations made before the 4^th June 2016, the Government will double them! Great news for the charity!

 

Please visit https://www.justgiving.com/rtaccountants2016/ to make a donation! Make sure to leave your name so we know who to thank!

 

Rebecca Bradshaw, our Director, gives 5 top tips for businesses…

In the last few weeks we have had blogs on our top tips for employers and also individuals. This week our focus is on businesses.

Working at RT I am in contact with a variety of businesses on a daily basis, operating in a variety of business sectors and all of different sizes, despite their differences most businesses do have some underlying common traits and face the same issues.

 

My top 5 tips for all businesses are;

 

• Employ the right staff and reward them well.

Staff are the forefront of any business and to invest in the future of your business you need to spend some time selecting, recruiting and training the best people for the job. Ensuring a fair remuneration package is also key, some people are rewarded by money, and others consider work life balance to be more important. Understanding the people in your business can only lead to a more productive business as a whole.

 

• Work on the business not just in it.

We all struggle to find time to fit all our daily tasks in but in order for a business to prosper it is vital to always be thinking of ‘what’s next’. A common problem with many business owners is that their time is zapped by the minutiae of daily problems which doesn’t give them enough time to focus on strategy. Businesses of all sizes need to set clear goals for the future, devise a plan to work towards and then evaluate this periodically.

 

• Choose quality.

Over the years I have seen many people choose the cheaper option only to regret it later on. Whatever you do consider the cost/benefit analysis. Sometimes the cheapest advice, stationery, equipment etc. seems the best option but it is generally true that in life that you do get what you pay for!

 

• Forewarned is forearmed.

Everyone knows someone who already has an established business or has been involved in one. Take advice from others where possible and learn from their mistakes. Not everyone needs to wear the T Shirt of disaster.

 

• Be your best advocate

Who better to sell your business than yourself? In theory any business owner is the most passionate about their business and so is the best ‘shop window’ for their product or service. Networking doesn’t have to be through official channels, talk to people about what you are doing as the situation arises – you don’t know who the person sat next to you knows and so on.

 

At RT we pride ourselves on being business advisors as well as number crunchers. Our ultimate aim is to provide a service that ticks all the boxes of statutory compliance as a minimum and then go much further. We believe where we really excel is working with our clients to help take them to the next level in their business. If you or anyone you know could benefit from a free initial meeting with one of our team them please get in touch.

Lucy Birchall gives 5 top tips for employers…

Tips for Employers

 

Following on from last week’s tips for individuals here are five of our top tips to help employers in the new tax year…

 

The Employment Allowance

For the last two years employers have been able to claim £2,000 towards their Employer’s National Insurance contributions. From 6^th April 2016, the Allowance is set to increase to £3,000. This is great news for employers and will help reduce the PAYE costs. However, going forward, the Employment Allowance will not be available for companies where the director is the sole employee.

The National Living Wage

From April 2016 the Government is introducing a new mandatory National Living Wage. This will apply to all workers aged 25 and above. The National Living Wage will initially be set at £7.20, which gives eligible workers an extra 50p above the National Minimum Wage. Remember, all employees under 21 should still be paid at least the National Minimum Wage.

 

Auto Enrolment

In 2016/17 we will see the majority of small employers reach their staging dates. You should have now nominated a contact on the Pension Regulator website and you should have started to receive reminder letters from them with key dates. We would recommend that you start enquiring about pension schemes at least six months before your staging date. Whether you are looking for a compliant only scheme or a more bespoke scheme, we are able to help.

Payrolling Benefits

There will now be no need to submit employee’s benefits on a P11D at the end of the tax year. From April 2016, you will be able to payroll benefits in kind and the tax will be collected in real time; living accommodation, beneficial loans, credit vouchers and tokens are the only exceptions, meaning that these will still need to be declared on a P11D.

 

National Insurance Categories

If you employ someone aged 16-21 there are now new National Insurance categories that you will have to choose when assessing their National Insurance contributions. Continuing from last year, there will be also no Employer’s National Insurance payable for under 21 year olds who earn below the Upper Secondary Threshold, which is £827 per month for 2016/17.

If you would like to discuss any of the above points (or anything else) please do not hesitate to get in touch.

01772 735865 / info@rtaccountants.co.uk

Nicola Hardy, our practice manager, gives some top tips for individuals…

Tips for Individuals

As we are now gearing up for the new tax year in April, we have put together some tips for individuals to consider.

 

Dividend Taxation

From April 2016 the way dividends are taxed are changing, instead of the tax credit system there will be a £5,000 dividend allowance. If you are manager owned business, are a basic rate tax payer and if company profits allow it would be advisable to take dividends up to the basic rate band before the rules change in April 2016. If you require tax planning on this please do not hesitate to get in touch.

 

Use up your Partners Tax Free Allowance

The marriage allowance allows you to transfer part of your personal allowance to your husband, wife, or civil partner. To benefit as a couple, you can transfer up to £1,000 in 2016/2017, to your spouse or civil partner provided that the recipient is not liable to income tax above the basic rate. Taxpayers have 4 years to make this election.

 

Pay into a Pension Scheme

Contributions to your employer’s pension scheme can be made from your gross pay before any deductions are made for tax. All employers will soon have to offer pension schemes to their employees. A percentage of your pay will automatically be put into the scheme, to which in most cases, your employer will add money and to which you will receive tax relief on the contributions.

 

Check your Tax Code

Is your tax code correct? Having the wrong tax code could mean you are paying too little or even too much tax! The standard tax code for 2016/2017 will be 1100L, meaning you can earn up to £11,000 before paying tax at 20%. Even though this is the standard code, reductions can be made by HMRC in respect of benefits in kind, unpaid tax, and other taxable income. Likewise, the code can be increased in respect of allowable expenditure for example subscriptions. If you believe that your tax code is wrong you can contact us for advice or HMRC to review the code.

 

Help to Buy ISA

Designed for first time buyers, the government has created the Help to Buy Scheme, to help you take the first steps towards buying your own home. The Help to Buy ISA is available to each individual buyer as opposed to each household, and pays a government bonus of 25%.  So for every £200 a month saved, you receive an extra £50 bonus up to a maximum of £3,000, boosting your savings of £12,000 to £15,000. The minimum saving is £1,600 to claim a £400 bonus and you can kick start your account by depositing a lump sum of up to £1,200. On purchasing your first home your solicitor will apply for the government bonus to add to your savings.

 

If you have any questions about the above then please give us a call and we would be happy to discuss with you.

Rebecca Bradshaw, our Director, introduces you to the RT Team…

During the month of March we will be changing the blogs slightly and so the more observant reader will notice they won’t be following the normal pattern of writer. To start things off we thought we would introduce you to Team RT, you have previously been introduced by way of baby pictures but this week you will get to meet everyone in their current states!

 

Michael Barton

Michael is our Chief Executive and resident expert in most things. Although a frequent visitor to the office he tends to spend most of his days visiting existing and prospective clients.

 

 

 

Nick Smith

Nick is our Corporate Finance and Audit specialist, he looks after our larger clients and works with Nicola to ensure that we are technically amazing!

 

 

 

 

Nicola Hardy

Nicola is our Practice Manager and training aficionado. She keeps us all on track and makes sure we are constantly up to date with changes in regulations and tax rules – not an easy task!

 

 

 

 

Chloe Greenbank

As well as being a resident Accountant, Chloe is also our networking queen. She can often be seen out and about representing RT at various events, she is trying very hard to drag us into the correct century and spread the word about RT.

 

 

 

 

Amy Sharples

Always smiling Amy is our office ray of sunshine as well as being an Accountant. More recently she has found herself becoming our Xero specialist as we embrace all things cloud related!

 

 

  

Ian Sergeant

Unfortunately Ian drew the short straw and has somehow found that as well as being an Accountant he is the unofficial IT guru and general office hero!

 

 

 

 

    Lucy Birchall

Amongst other things Lucy is our payroll whiz kid, she is currently helping all our clients through the mine field which is Auto Enrolment. Lucy is just awaiting her final AAT exam results and will then be progressing on to studying her ICAEW ACA exams with us.

 

 

 

Jack Clarke

Jack is our newest recruit and is proving a great asset to the team not only for his accounting and payroll skills but for supplying Nick with hair wax on a daily basis! Jack is currently completing his AAT exams.

 

 

  

 

Sue McFayden

Super Sue is our Administrator and front of house. She greets all our clients with a warm smile and a cup of coffee and has the unenviable task of keeping all our back office systems running

 

 

 

Obviously I am also on the team (no picture necessary!!!) and like to think I have a key role in being nosy and generally keep an eye on everyone!

 

We always welcome visitors and so if you are passing our office and would like to come and meet the team in person please do drop in!

 

 

 

 

Lancashire Business Expo – 4th March 2016

It is only two days until the Lancashire Business Expo 2016, taking place on the 4^th March 2016 from 9am – 4pm at the Guild Hall in Preston.

 

We, along with over 200 other local businesses, will be exhibiting on the day and it would be fantastic to see you there.

 

It will be a great opportunity to meet with likeminded business owners and network with the 2,000 attendees registered so far.