Accounting services

We provide accounting services to sole traders, partnerships, limited companies, charities & societies.

We offer advice on how you can not only comply with your legal requirements in terms of keeping records but how to present your information in such a way as to obtain a better understanding of your business and to minimise your accountancy fees by making our tasks easier.

How does a company’s accounts differ from those of a sole trader?

A company’s financial statements are compulsory and must be made publicly available on Companies House. In general the deadline for submission for a private company is 9 months after the companies year end but special rules apply where the first accounts* are submitted or where a company period end has been extended. If the accounts are filed after the deadline then company will be fined for late submission of the accounts. There are however certain rules which allow smaller companies to disclose less information in their publicly filed accounts than in a full set of financial statements.

A soletraders’ or partnership’s accounts are used as the starting point for assessing their businesses taxable profits for their tax return. These accounts are submitted as an attachment to HMRC with the tax return but are not otherwise made publicly available.

Furthermore your sole trader accounts provide a useful insight into the business and can be used as an assessment of operating performance and as a basis from which to make informed decisions.

Why use a Chartered Accountant?

A Chartered Accountant is a business professional who has achieved one of the highest levels of accountancy qualification. The qualification takes a minimum of 3 years to complete and requires not only the passing of professional examinations but the completion of technical work experience with a regulated training employer.

Chartered Accountants are regulated by their professional body and after qualifying as a Chartered Accountant the individual must undertake Continuous Professional Development training.

Unfortunately accountancy is not a protected profession and consequently anybody can call themselves an ‘accountant’. An ‘unqualified’ accountant will not been subject to the same level of professional training nor are they regulated by a professional body such as The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales.

^* If your company’s first accounts cover a period of more than 12 months, you must deliver them to Companies House within 21 months of the date of incorporation for private companies, or 3 months from the accounting reference date, whichever is the longer.