Auto enrolment affects all employers. Every employer has been allocated a Staging Date by which time they must have a pension scheme in place. Even if you think your employees will not want to be part of a pension scheme you still have to put one in place. All eligible employees must be enrolled […]
Outsourcing will save you time
Outsourcing is the contracting out of a business service to a third party. Business owners need so many skills to keep their business going and growing that it makes sense to know what you are best at and what someone else will be able to do better than you. As a business owner myself […]
How valuable is training?
For the second time this year our office has closed for a team training day. We do get together regularly for team meetings but a whole day of training has proved extremely valuable to us. Whilst we work as a team supporting each other we all work independently with different clients and different types of […]
Are you considering employing someone aged under 16?
Children aged 13 and upwards can be employed part-time but there are restrictions and they may require an employment permit issued by the Education Department of the Council. Most local councils require that an employment permit is issued as this ensures that the employer is insured against accidents. Children do not need a permit for […]
Our top tips for invoicing
There isn’t a standard format for preparing an invoice and if you buy goods from a number of suppliers you will find they will all be different. However there is certain information you must include on an invoice for your customers’ benefit, for your own benefit and which is required if you are VAT registered. […]
HMRC publish their results for handling calls and post
HMRC recently published their annual report and accounts for 2014-15 which included two interesting facts which explain why we frequently don’t get the support we need. HMRC staff handled 72.5 per cent of the 6.5 million calls they received (lower than 2013-14 when they handled 79 per cent of calls). They processed 70 per cent […]
Is your Staging Date less than 6 months away?
If you have a Staging Date less than six months away and you haven’t started making arrangements for your pension scheme you may find that you can’t meet the deadline. Many pension schemes are not accepting employers with only a few employees and therefore there are a limited number of schemes to choose from. The […]
Meet the Sandra Silk Team
Meet our team of qualified and experienced bookkeepers who keep our clients’ accounts up to date, meet their VAT deadlines and provide them with the support and advice they need to maintain and grow their business. Photo courtesy of Fx92 Photograph Karen Anne Ruth […]
Pension Auto Enrolment is on the horizon for small businesses
There is no avoiding pension auto enrolment if you are an employer. The fines are significant if you do not comply. Even if you are the only employee and director of the business there is still action you need to take. We launched our Auto Enrolment Administration Service to our payroll clients last week […]
Can anyone process payroll?
Yes. Anyone can, but it doesn’t mean they get it right or understand it! The team who process payroll for our clients have a recognised payroll qualification and don’t just rely on using payroll software to do the calculations. Being able to calculate payroll manually has been invaluable on occasions. If the software doesn’t produce […]