Midlands Excellence Awards Finalist

We are pleased to announce that for the second year running the firm has succeeded in reaching the finals at the Midlands Excellence Awards.

The firm will be attending a prestigious awards ceremony to be held at the International Conference Centre Birmingham on 3 February 2011 where the key speaker will be Sir Ranulph Fiennes.

Walker Thompson are currently the only firm of Accountants in Coventry & Warwickshire who have been accredited against the IIE Standard of Excellence which is based upon the EFQM Quality Model.

“Clients can be assured of a high quality service by our dedicated team of accountants and support staff”

NIC Holiday for New Businesses

Further to the announcement in the June 2010 Coalition Budget, we now have more details regarding the NIC holiday for new businesses.

Subject to meeting the conditions, new businesses qualify for a deduction of up to £5000 on Employers NIC contributions, for each of the first ten employees taken on in the first year of trading. Each holiday will last for the first 52 week of employment.

Main Conditions:

Start up date: From 22 June 2010 to 5 September 2013. (But you can only deduct employers NIC due on earnings paid after 6 September 2010.)

Location: Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, East Midlands, North East, North West, South West, West Midlands, Yorkshire and Humber.
Some businesses located within the EU will be eligible where they are paying UK NICs.
This is based on your principal place of business.

Business Type: Managed Service Companies do not qualify.
IR35 – only salary or wage payments qualify, not ‘deemed earnings’.
Has to qualify for de minimis State Aid.

Start Date: Earlier of trading date and date first employee hired.

‘New’ Business: There are anti avoidance rules regarding what is considered a new business.


Points to bear in mind:

This legislation is expected to receive Royal Assent in early 2011. Therefore, if for any reason it does not become law, any relief already deducted will have to be repaid by 19 April 2011.

In the case of a limited company, directors count towards the first ten employees.

If an employee leaves, the replacement employee does not qualify if there are already ten employees in place.

Records of employees, earnings and contributions will need to be kept.

There will be a separate NIC holiday end of year return at 5th April.

Businesses need to apply for the scheme, the application form is available on the Business Link website.

2010 Coalition Budget

Here are a few of the changes brought in by Chancellor George Osborne's 2010 Coalition Budget.


Personal Tax Allowances
An increase of £1000 in allowances for 2011/12 for those <65 years old.

Tax Rates
The Basic Rate limit and the Upper Earnings & Profit limits for NIC have been reduced for 2011/12.

National Insurance
NIC Primary Threshold to increase from April 2011 plus a 1% increase in Employer Costs and Self Employed contribution.

Corporation Tax
Main Rate down by 1%.

Capital Gains Tax
Higher Rate Taxpayers to pay CGT at 28% after 23 June 2010.

VAT
Standard Rate of VAT increases to 20% from 4 January 2011.

If considering tax planning measures based upon the above we would encourage you to talk to us about the implications before making decisions.


For more information, please follow the links below
Walker Thompson
HM Treasury

Employment Law – A couple of interesting results

Some recent cases have interesting points to bear in mind when dealing with or thinking about employment tribunals and claims.

For example –

Sweeney v DLA Piper Solicitors

The Judge commented that, regarding an incident of claimed sexual harassment, that she had “‘laughed it off’ at the time”.

This was not, and should not be, a justification for harassment, but should help the employer in situations where an employee claims harassment concerning an incident which at the time had not created “an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment”.

Your responsibility

If you become aware of any incident that could be considered to be harassment, it is important that you take action quickly to avoid claims against you. Possible actions to consider:

• Initiating grievance procedures on behalf of the victim,
• Initiating disciplinary procedures against those responsible
• Arranging additional training for managers / staff

County Court

An employee can take you to an employment tribunal for unfair or wrongful dismissal. If there is a breach of contract, they also have the option to sue before the County Court. This route is normally used when the value of the notice period is higher than the statutory cap applied in the Employment Tribunal, or where there is no claim for unfair dismissal.

The value of this claim has been limited to the expiry of the notice period, and/or where there are “stigma” damages.

However, the case of Edwards v Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust extended this rule to include not only the time a disciplinary procedure would have taken if done properly, but also covering losses sustained as a result of the breach of contract i.e. damage to the person’s career.

In this case, the employer failed to follow their own disciplinary procedure.

Your responsibility

• Follow your contractual disciplinary procedure
• If unsure, seek legal advice before embarking on the procedure

Reasonable Responses

The employment tribunal must look at any decision to dismiss within the context of the circumstances surrounding the action, including the conduct of the employee, and must satisfy itself as to whether the decision was within the range of reasonable responses.

Employment law is designed to prevent unreasonable action by employers, not to restrain employers from legitimate action.

Solutions for Clients: Insolvency

As part of Walker Thompson’s commitment to find effective solutions for clients, a relationship has been developed with The P&A Partnership who are specialists in the field of insolvency, an area of work which we do not undertake ourselves.

In these times of economic hardship, companies of all sizes have been going into liquidation including well known household names. However we appreciate that the impact of this and the impact of finance being restricted is causing financial hardship for individuals. Therefore we are offering individuals the opportunity to consider a planned settlement of debts through a Voluntary Arrangement which will be organised by P&A and which can avoid the necessity of personal bankruptcy.

The circumstances might be such as a buy to let mortgage which can no longer be funded from lower rental incomes, credit card rollovers, personal guarantees given to support a failed business or simply losing a previously well paid employment.

The first step is to complete a Financial Information form which can be found here. P&A will then assess fully the situation and advise on the options available.

Obviously we can assist in the completion of the form if asked.

The key message is “Do Something rather than Do Nothing”

WORLD CUP FEVER

The World Cup is upon us and with it the potential HR nightmare of sick days, hangovers and flimsy excuses. How can employers handle World Cup Fever without it becoming an issue.

Make sure employees are aware of your holiday rules (contracts and written policies).

Talk to your staff, maybe you can come up with a sensible compromise.

The Law
A few points to keep in mind:

• All employees are entitled to a minimum of 28 days paid holiday (for a full time worker), including bank holidays. This right accrues from the first day of work.

• Contracts and policies can restrict when holiday may be taken and length of holiday.

• Notice should be given of twice the length of the holiday requested.

As with all things ‘fairness’ is the most important rule to follow, thus avoiding discrimination claims

Day Out

After the rush of the Payroll Year End and preparations for the P11d returns, the Brecon Beacons countryside was a haven of quiet for those staff who went on the ponytrekking day. One of the most beautiful days in May started early as the minibus taking us to Wales left at 7am from Coventry.



We made our way up into the hillside, under a practically cloud free sky, with only the gentle baa-ing of sheep to break the quiet. Several hours of riding was rewarded by a stop at the pub for rest and refreshment (a well earned lager!). We somewhat warily mounted up again for the afternoons ride, but enjoyed our return to the hills.

In spite of various aches and pains on the following days, a great day out was had by all!

A trip well worth repeating.

BUDGET DAY ANNOUNCED

Tuesday 22 June 2010 will see the first Budget of the newly elected (or perhaps not elected as such) Coalition Government.

George Osborne will deliver his Emergency Budget to the nation with explanations as to how the Government will address the £6billion hole in the year one forecasts.

It is interesting to observe that the Chancellor has delegated responsibility for budgetary forecasts to a new "Quango" - "The Office for Budgetary Responsibility". It is less than 12 months since David Cameron stated that vast numbers of Quangos needed to be cut back in order to direct money to front line services.

We can expect austerity measures to be implemented which could bring higher taxes on some sectors with the potential for lower level earners to gain more from increased personal allowances.

It will be an interesting period leading up to the Budget given that the Lib Dems will be seeking to assert a level of influence over Mr Osborne.

On a side note:

HM Revenue and Customs have now introduced a scheme for those taxed under Self Assessment to pay their tax early by direct debit. This must be seen as a desperation measure and something designed to prop up the Payment Support Office which is extending credit to taxpayers worth millions of pounds. Given the choice, would you pay tax sooner than necessary? That we suggest would take all of one second to contemplate.

Stress At Work – Who are you kidding?

At this time of the year, employers of all sizes are engaged in the annual process of completing End of Year payroll returns as well as the normal day to day management of the business.

Compliance with the regulations is a stressful task, particularly given that we are in a period of transition between manual & electronic filing with HMRC.

The principal form P35 together with P14’s for each employee on the payroll and a form P38a for those on the payroll but where no Tax or NIC falls due, must be filed before 19 May 2010.

Soon after that filing deadline comes the deadline for forms P11d and P11d (b) relating to any Benefits in Kind met on behalf of employees.

As if this was not enough of course, Self Assessment Tax Returns have effectively been issued with effect from 6 April 2010 with yet more stringent deadline filing dates.

The key to dealing with all of these issues with the minimum of stress lies in being well prepared and methodical in approach; allowing sufficient time & especially having a back up plan in the event of unforeseen circumstances.

Stress Management is itself not a legally enforceable requirement placed upon companies but it is an increasing issue within the Health & Safety at Work legislation. Good practice will inevitably mean less possibility of claims.

Health and Safety Executive
National Stress Awareness Day

Due Diligence

Throughout January to March this year, Walker Thompson has been assisting in the acquisition of Ray Owen Plating Ltd, a specialist metal plating business based in Telford. We were instructed jointly by Newmax Precision Engineering Holdings Ltd and HSBC Bank plc to carry out a detailed Due Diligence Report on the target company. The Report was delivered ahead of schedule enabling the respective lawyers to continue with the negotiation of an extremely complex deal which included property issues and employment matters in addition to the usual warranties & indemnities required of the vendors. The transaction was finally completed on 9 April 2010 and we look forward to working with the company in the future.

Redundancies - Re-employing ex-employees

Sometimes in the current economic climate, despite your best efforts, redundancies are unavoidable. What happens though when business takes an upturn again? What if you are not sure if the upturn is temporary or permanent?

Fixed Term contracts

One option might be to offer a previously redundant employee a fixed term contract. These contracts specify either an end date, or a particular period of time, e.g. three months.

An FTC can be renewed as necessary, and to suit you, and the notice period can be made as short as possible, e.g. one week, giving you the option to terminate early without breaching the contract.

Note: If an employee remains on a fixed term contract, or a series of FTC’s for a period exceeding four years, the FTC automatically converts to a permanent contract.

It is possible that the redundant employee will then question the validity of the redundancy, i.e. whether it was simply a way to reemploy them on an FTC.

Unfair Dismissal

An ex-employee would have three months from the date of their employment being terminated to bring an unfair dismissal claim.

Therefore, to be on the safe side, don’t offer an ex-employee an FTC until a minimum of three months has passed.

Also, make it clear that the FTC is a new period of employment, preventing any continuity of employment questions.

Note: If an employee has worked on a FTC (or a series of them) for over one year, they then have the same protection as a permanent employee from unfair dismissal.

SNAPSHOT OF THE 2010 BUDGET

So now we've heard it - Alistair Darling's third Budget speech. With a General Election looming and the country's dire economic position, what did the Chancellor say, and more importantly, what did it actually mean for you and I?

A few of the highlights:

Income Tax and VAT
The Chancellor announced that there would be no changes in VAT, income tax or National Insurance rates.

Corporation Tax
The main rate of Corporation Tax remains unchanged at 28%.
The Small Company Rate of Corporation Tax remains at 21%. (The previously announced rise to 22% announced in the 2009 Pre-Budget Report has been deferred until 2011-12.)

Capital Allowances
Small businesses can claim a higher annual investment allowance of £100,000.

Business Rates
Business rates will be cut for one year. This will take effect from October 2010.

Entrepreneurs Relief for Capital Gains Tax
The lifetime limit is to be doubled to £2m on which the lower 10% rate will apply.

Inheritance Tax
The threshold for inheritance tax is frozen for a further four years

Child Benefit
Child benefit will rise to £20.30 a week from April 2010.

Individual Savings Accounts
The annual ISA limits are to rise to £10,200 overall and will in future increase annually by inflation.

Pensioners / Older Workers
The higher Winter Fuel Payment of £250 and £400 for over 80s is guaranteed for a further year.

Stamp Duty
The Stamp Duty limit for first-time buyers is doubled from 25 March 2010 to £250,000 for this year and next. Stamp Duty will increase to 5% for houses valued over £1m from April 2011.

Fuel Price increases
Fuel duty rises will be staged. They rise by 1p in April, followed by a further 1p rise in October and the balance rising in January 2011.
Alcohol duties on beer, wine and spirits are to rise by 2% above inflation from 29 March 2010. Duty on cider is to increase by 10% above inflation at the same time. Tobacco duty rises immediately by 1% above inflation and will increase by 2% above inflation each year until 2014.

For a more indepth look at the Budget please follow the link here 2010 Budget Summary.

For any queries, please feel free to contact us by email or telephone.

Payroll Year End and The Taxman Phones

Payroll Year End

With the tax year drawing to a close, employers will shortly be required to start preparing Employers’ Annual Returns (P35s) and P14s/P60s for all payroll schemes, in order to submit these by 19th May 2010.

These involve collating the date from monthly/weekly payroll runs into a summary per employee, as well as checking that all payments of liability have been made to HMRC. Personally, I have always found it useful to do a number of the checks and reconciliations for the Annual Return prior to running the March payroll, because then if you find any errors or discrepancies, these can be fixed within the payroll year. These issues could include: liabilities underpaid or overpaid to the Revenue; employees PAYE under or overdeducted; credit balances or online filing incentive still to be deducted from liability.

Remember that if you had less than 50 employees and filed your 08/09 return online by 19th May 2009, you will have been entitled to an incentive of £75 to be deducted from any liability due to the Revenue in 09/10.

HMRC’s online filing system is actually reasonably user friendly and takes you through all the information that is required to produce P14/P60s for each individual employee and P35 for the company. It is also possible to input the information, save, and make amendments to it, before submission.

Of course, payroll software packages such as Sage have a year end ‘wizard’ to lead you through the process.

The filing deadline is 19th May 2010, and barring a few exceptions, all employers will have to file these returns online.

If you have not yet registered for online filing, it is important to do so immediately in preparation for the 5th April 2010 year end. HMRC suggests allowing at least one week, as you need to wait for them to send out passwords. The link below gives HMRC instructions for registering.

File Online

If you would like us to prepare and submit these returns for you, or if you require any advice, please feel free to contact us.

Email

The Taxman Phones

HMRC ran over 200 staff training courses last summer relating to cold calling.

Currently, the most likely reasons for calls from HMRC would be Tax Credit claims and overdue tax payments. However, it would appear that this may be expanded to include questions about tax returns and general tax issues.

Genuine or Scam?

HMRC do not work 9-5, therefore they could be calling on evenings or weekends. How do you know if it really is HMRC?

Don’t give out your tax reference or NI number. Ask the caller to confirm at least the first few digits of either of these. If they refuse, or they get them wrong, discontinue the call.

Once you are convinced that the caller is genuine, you are still not obliged to talk to them if it is not convenient to do so. If you are not sure of the answer, simply say you will find out and get back to them.

You are within your rights to refer them to your accountant for any correspondence on the matter.

Registered Office Address

We are please to be able to offer our clients an additional valuable service.

Walker Thompson’s offices can now be used as their Company Registered Office address.

Benefits:

The advantage of utilising a separate registered office address is that your private address will remain confidential on future Companies House records. In addition we will be able to filter junk mail for you and ensure that important post is given prompt attention by ourselves if necessary or forwarded to you.

Other independent companies offer a similar service but our investigations show that their charges are considerable for both the registered office and Director’s service address facility and may also incur additional transactional administration and postage costs for dealing with each individual item.

Costs:

We charge an annual fee for the Registered Office and Directors Service address of £80 + VAT per limited company. This will cover our costs for dealing with all post and forwarding this to a designated address as necessary.

Next step:

If you wish to use our address as registered office and directors’ service address or require any further information please email us on clientcare@walkerthompson.co.uk or call us on 024 7663 5522.

INTRODUCING OUR MANAGERS
Roger Allmark - Manager

Roger started his accountancy career with Francis Webb & Son in 1971, where he was joined some five years later by Sherod Williams. Roger left Francis Webb & Son in 1981, to pursue his career at two other accountancy practices, along with a three year spell in industry as the internal accountant for a Plant Hire company.
In 1992 Roger took the opportunity of joining Walker Thompson, rekindling working relationships established during his time at Francis Webb & Son.
Roger has responsibility for a portfolio of clients, handling their general accountancy and taxation requirements.
Roger's interests include photography, walking and travel.
Email Roger

Faye Davis - Manager

Faye began her accountancy career at Walker Thompson in 2000. After completing her AAT qualification Faye went on to study with ACCA and qualified as a Certified Accountant in 2005.

Faye is responsible for working with a large range of SMEs on all aspects of accountancy including taxation & auditing.
Away from the office Faye enjoys spending time with friends & family, running & travelling.
Email Faye

On a more personal note:
We are pleased to announce that on 25 January 2010, Faye Davis gave birth to baby Abby (8lbs 12ozs). Mother & baby are both doing extremely well. Faye is keen for us to point out that she was back into her jeans within a week! Last week we had a visit by them to the office which provided an opportunity for everyone to stop for a “my turn to hold the baby”

On Friday 5 March, Roger Allmark went into hospital for a hip replacement operation and whilst it is still very early days in terms of a full recovery and back to work, we can say that at this stage he is now at home & we wish him well over the coming weeks of physiotherapy and various tortures.

Welcome to Walker Thompson

Our Vision
“To be the best provider of solutions for business in Coventry & Warwickshire”

Walker Thompson are one of Coventry’s leading accountants, offering a wide range of advice on business matters including accounts, tax, audit and planning for acquisitions and disposals.

We are a three partner accountancy practice with over 75 years combined experience within the profession. As a recognised Investor in People, a National Standard representing excellence in development and training, clients can be assured that all work carried out by the practice is by competent staff at cost effective fee rates. The practice is also committed to Investors in Excellence to further improve its service to clients. We have recently received IIE reaccreditation for a further two years.

We can assist all sizes of business from sole traders to corporate groups across a wide range of business sectors. From book-keeping, payroll, VAT, self assessment, audits of companies, charities & other organisation, preparation of accounts for all business types, strategic planning & corporate finance, Walker Thompson works with its clients to find the right solutions.

INTRODUCING OUR PARTNERS

Sherod Williams - Partner
Sherod is a born and bred Coventrian who attended King Henry VIII School Coventry until starting his training with Francis Webb & Son in 1976. After nine years with the firm, he left to join the newly created firm of Walker Thompson and in 1989 became Staff Partner and from 1994 has been Managing Partner.
Sherod deals with Management Buy Outs, Buy Ins, Acquisitions, business sales and other areas of Corporate Finance. He also oversees general accounts & taxation work for a wide range of client types. He works closely with banks and lawyers to achieve the best outcome for clients.
Sherod has worked with the Investors in People standard since 1994 both as a recognition panel member and advocate to other businesses. In 2003 he was made an ambassador for the standard.
Sherod has worked on a voluntary basis across a number of organisations including QCS Ltd and the Connexions Service in the region. He has worked with George Eliot NHS Trust as a Non Executive Director and currently sits as a trustee on the hospitals Charitable Funds Committee. He is Vice Chair of the Coventry Foyer Trust and a member of The Institute of Directors where he is Vice Chair of the Coventry and Warwickshire Branch.
Sherod's main interests away from the office are all things Greek.
Sherod.Williams@Walkerthompson.co.uk


Kim Knowles - Partner
Kim started her accountancy career in industry and joined Walker Thompson as a trainee accountant in 1989 studying for the AAT qualification. She continued studying and qualified as a Certified Accountant in 1997 and was promoted to partner in 2002.
Kim is responsible for dealing with statutory audits, overseeing payroll and book-keeping assignments and deals with accounting and taxation matters for a portfolio of SME clients. She is also actively involved with our commitment to Investors In Excellence.
Outside of the office Kim has a young family who she enjoys spending time with and is treasurer for a local playgroup which is a registered charity.
Kim.Knowles@Walkerthompson.co.uk


Chris Irvine - Partner
Chris started his accountancy career at McCranors after leaving The Woodlands School Coventry in 1984. After spending time with several local accountancy firms he joined us in 1999 as a manager, having studied for and qualifying as a Certified Accountant.
Chris became a partner of Walker Thompson in 2005. He deals with statutory audits of companies, charities and other bodies, as well as overseeing general accounts and tax assignments for a wide portfolio of clients.
Chris' main interests away from the office are walking and circuit training workouts.
Chris.Irvine@Walkerthompson.co.uk