Once we’ve chatted, established your requirements and agreed to work together, we ask for your paperwork (bank statements, invoices, receipts etc) on a regular basis. We use the latest technology to work virtually and electronically (eliminating the need for physical paper!) and we spend time making sure you know how to use any new software we introduce.

You decide the level of support you require and we’ll agree on a fee. Our fees are based on the services you need, the size of your business and the volume of transactions. This is reviewed regularly to ensure you are getting all the support and services you need.

We use QuickBooks Online and Xero and are experts in both pieces of software. 

• We also use Float for cashflow forecasting, 
• We use Hubdoc with Xero and Autoentry with QuickBooks Online for processing receipts and invoices
• Employment Hero for payroll and Modulr for paying employee’s their wages 
• And Zoom or Microsoft Teams to connect with you.

We are registered with the ICO for Data Protection and all our data is backed up very securely to the cloud. You never need to worry about your data falling into the wrong hands.

We get asked this quite often. Whilst we continue to support different types of businesses, of different sizes, in different industries, our expertise lies in working with VAT registered, service-based, limited companies who operate locally and run with a small team, with turnover of £250K and above.

We can help you get the right systems and processes in place for managing your finances, and we support and guide you through all the compliance and regulations. We also make sure you have accurate and timely financial data and information so you can make decisions as your business evolves and grows. We take time to get to know your business, so if your industry requires a specific procedural practice, that’s no problem, we’re happy to learn.

We operate from Newbury in West Berkshire, but our team is virtual, and therefore so are our clients. Whilst we love to work with local businesses so we can meet face to face, many of our clients are not based nearby and we find zoom meetings work just as well for regular client meetings.

Our registered office is in Newbury, and we can meet there with prior arrangement, however we are a virtual team so we operate via zoom, or like to take our clients out for a coffee to catch up.

Once onboarded with us, you will be assigned a member of the team who will become your main point of contact going forward.

When we meet and discuss your requirements we will identify how often we think it’s best to meet to discuss your finances. As a minimum we believe quarterly review meetings are required to ensure you are getting the best service and we are doing everything we can to support you in understanding your business performance, however you may find more or less support is needed depending on what is happening within your business. The right frequency depends on your unique business needs and regular communication with us ensures financial clarity and peace of mind – how do you know how your business is performing if you’re not reviewing your numbers with an expert on a regular basis?

Our core hours are Monday to Friday between 9am and 3:30pm, although we are a flexible firm and may sometimes operate different hours to meet staff and client needs.

Absolutely! We have a business Whatsapp account and find this a great way to communicate with clients for quick queries or reminders.

We are licensed to practice with the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB) and, because of the nature of services we provide, we need to do ID checks on all clients. We need to verify you are who you say you are, and we need to be aware of any associated risks so we can ensure we have documented our risk assessments. We ask clients to provide proof of identification and proof of address.

If you prefer to continue working in a spreadsheet then we’re probably not the best fit for you. We work with clients who like to work with technology and will use accounting software and other tools to automate processes where possible. Of course, if you’re keen to move to software but don’t know where to start we are really happy to help with the transition.

Every new client starts with an onboarding call where we make sure you know how to use the various tools needed to work with us, and the different bits of the software that you will need access to. We also provide documentation for you and your staff on certain aspects of the payroll software for example.

We don’t offer 1-2-1 training on accounting software as we believe that no small business owner should be doing their own bookkeeping or payroll, this is our area of expertise!

Often when you start a business you think about needing an accountant, but not always about needing a bookkeeper. Some of that is probably because you don’t know what the difference is. There is some overlap, and to make things more confusing, some accountants do bookkeeping and some bookkeepers can do end of year accounts.

One of the main differences you might find between accountants and bookkeepers is that you will work closely with your bookkeeper on a much more regular basis. They will learn the processes of your business and how your business works, they will know who your biggest customers are, who your main suppliers are, who pays you late and what your biggest expenses are. They are interested in the detail and the specifics of every transaction. You may only be in touch with your accountant on an annual basis once your bookkeeper has gathered all the information required and the accountant is ready to prepare your end of year accounts. The accountant is more likely to be looking at the bigger picture of your financial situation.

Our expertise as a bookkeeping practice is in managing the day to day financial operations of your business. We work with many great accountants and because we have built strong relationships with them, we can deal with many queries on your behalf making things much easier for you. If you start working with us, and also need a recommendation for a new accountant, then we have several we like to recommend.

Whilst the thought of changing to a new provider can be stressful, we make things as easy as we can do to transition and start working with us. There may be a bit of admin to start with, such as ID checks, HMRC authorisations and software access, but we always book in an onboarding call to go through some of these initial steps and take as many phone calls and meetings as needed to get up and running. Once these first steps are sorted out, we use software to manage our tasks and deadlines and send out automatic reminders for information we need, keeping things running as smoothly as we can.

If you have a simple sole trader business, then you may be able to maintain your accounts on a spreadsheet, but for the types of businesses we like to work with we really wouldn’t advise it! We have lots of experience of taking on work where business owners have tried managing their own bookkeeping and/or payroll and this always results in errors, poor set up and lack of knowledge around how to use the software to maximise its potential.

When we prepare a proposal for you, we talk through everything you need and identify which software might be best for your business, and then we include that subscription in the price. If you come to us and already have a software subscription in place, we can take over managing that for you too.

For our Xero clients we use Hubdoc to manage your supplier invoices and receipts, and for our QuickBooks clients we use Autoentry for this.

If you have staff who regularly incur expenses, the Xero expenses add-on works well, or we recommend a credit card such as Capital On Tap, where you can provide cards to employees.

All members of the team are qualified with the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB) to various levels, depending on experience. We are also certified in the different software we use meaning we know the software really well and regularly keep up to date with all the latest developments.

We are supervised by the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB).

Yes absolutely! We use Employment Hero (EH) for running our payroll. It’s very comprehensive and enables you to approve pay runs, manage timesheets for your staff and manage leave, all through the one platform. It also has an employee app where staff can access their payslips and update their personal information.

EH is also an HR platform and we can provide this additional functionality to you as well. One of the great things about it is that it integrates with the payroll software, so for example, if you give one of your employees a pay rise, this automatically feeds through to the payroll.

Yes, we specialise in working with VAT registered service based limited companies so we can definitely prepare and submit your VAT returns. We have a very thorough process that includes several steps and checks for preparing the VAT return. When it’s ready for approval we use our client portal for you to e-sign the return confirming we can submit it to HMRC. We also advise all our clients to set up a direct debit with HMRC for their VAT which makes paying their VAT one less thing to worry about!

We use various methods to communicate with our clients, mainly email, Whatsapp and zoom. We also have a client portal where our clients can access their documents, send us documents and sign documents. Our client portal also has an app so our clients can use this to:

• See and download documents such as tax returns, VAT returns etc
• Upload documents to share with us securely
• E-sign any documents we send them

We always give clients plenty of notice of upcoming deadlines and we will send reminders as deadlines draw near. If a deadline is missed due to late supply of information by the client then that is not our responsibility.

The best thing is to give us a call or book a 15 minute discovery call in our diary:

https://calendly.com/fiona-nws/discovery-call

It’s important for us to have that initial chat to make sure we are the right people to help you, and that we get on and can work together. Building relationships with our clients is really important to us so we need to get to know you and your business. If we both believe we’re a good fit then we can schedule a proposal meeting where we go through your requirements in more details.

Definitely! As part of our management accounts service we can provide regular tax and VAT estimates to make sure you are putting enough money aside to cover these items. No one likes an unexpected tax bill when they don’t have the money available to pay it!

We advise all our clients to have separate savings accounts, and the new challenger banks make this really easy with savings pots or spaces meaning you can save easily for your VAT and tax.

We are always looking at technology and automation, and improving processes. So we hope to save you time, not create more work! If you’ve never been asked to provide paperwork before, then it might seem like we’re asking for lots of information, but this is so we can ensure everything is accurate and compliant, and you’re claiming for everything you can.

The amount of accounting software available on the market can be overwhelming, and whilst you can probably manage some simple bookkeeping tasks yourself, you won’t know everything or have the knowledge and expertise to be fully compliant. You’d also be missing out on support and guidance that can help to build and grow your business.