Chit c

hat Newsletter 2

April 17 / July 17

t

Hello Keys to the door!

Team Achievements

Running For a Cause

We hope that you enjoyed our first issue of Chit Chat back in December. We have even more useful information and exciting events to look forward to in this second issue.New faces, new events and even more impressive achievements from our great clients. This issue of Chit Chat is sure to keep you up-to-date with everything that is going on in the accountancy world and here at Crowther!

Do you have some exciting news? Get in touch! We love sharing our clients successes.

Crowther Chartered Accountants are pleased to announce Kristian Lee is due to start his ACA training.Kristian will start with 2 exams from the Certificate Level of the ICAEW qualification. After this, Kristian will embark on his Professional Level, which is even more difficult, but with hard work and determination we’re confident he will be successful.

On Sat 20th May seven of our girls will be taking part in a Colour Run to raise money for Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice.This amazing charity supports children across West Yorkshire who have life shortening conditions, as well as providing much needed support to their families.

Please dig deep and help us reach our target of £1,000. To donate text CROW71 and £5 to 70070, or go to: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/crowthercharteredaccountants

“And time goes by so slowly…” Sang Robson and Jerome in one of the biggest hits of 1995.Now, all these years later, I think we can all safely say that the boys got that one wrong!So slowly? How about hasn’t time flown? But some things haven’t changed a bit. Throughout it all, the good times and the tough times, we’ve been on hand to offer the support, knowledge and expertise to help our clients grow, build and flourish.

We think that deserves a party. And now we’re 21, we’ve got the key to the door… of our new offices at Pennine Business Park, so keep an eye out for our invitation!

– Lee Kaznowski Director

We are extremely proud that Kristian’s focus and hard work has paid off, he’s a very reliable member of staff and we are looking forward to him progressing further.

From the Couch to 5kWhen some of the girls in the office began complaining that they were unfit, Lee offered to help them do something about it!He put together a weekly plan, dedicated his Monday evenings and got the girls off the couch and running the 5k Brighouse Park Run in just 9 weeks.

We wonder what’s next… a marathon maybe?

Join us for Powerhoop!

Getting fit and having some fun!Join us at our offices on a Thursday at 5:15pm for an hour of Powerhooping with professional instructor, Katherine Hill. The class is £4 and lasts for one hour.

Call Steph or email joinus@crowther.accountants

t

It’s Your Birthday!

Happy Birthday to our clients who have milestone birthdays in the next three months.

Happy 50th to:David Hanson on 3rd Jun Simon George on 8th Jun

Happy 60th to:Geoff Smith on 16th Apr

Happy 30th to:Luke Kitchen on 19th May

Happy 40th to:Lee Mortimer on 12th May

Happy 70th to:Jim Simpson 7th Apr Mick Ingram 6th Jun

Happy 21st to:Jake Tomlinson on 24th May

Upcoming EventsOur next events, save the date!

All events run from 5.30pm-7.30pm

For more visit: at-huddersfield.co.uk

20/04/2017 Franco’s & Fizz Bar, Almondbury

06/07/2017 Epicure Bar & Kitchen

19/10/2017 Rosenbauer UK, Meltham

Local business people across Kirklees and Calderdale raised £18,000 for Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice.In January the hospice was hit by a devastating fire and lost £140,000 in funding. The money KACCL raised will go towards recouping some of this funding.

The lunch was attended by 240 people. Due to its popularity, a second KACCL event will take place on Thursday 7th December 2017. Find out more at www.kaccl.uk

Get ready for our Xero workshops from summer 2017! Xero is one of the latest leading cloud accounting sotware packages and is great for small to medium sized businesses.Come along to one of our workshops to discover the benefits of Xero and learn how to use the software. Whether you’re a bookkeeper or business owner we are

tailoring our workshops to meet the needs of our clients.

For more details, contact Danie Sharp on 01484 515544

KACCL Charity Dinner is a Success!

2017 Tax-Free Childcare Summary – Eligibility Criteria

Xero Workshop

• Other family members can also contribute

• If you are part of a couple then you must both be working or one is receiving an eligible benefit

• Do not receive tax credits, universal

credit or childcare vouchers

• Live and work in the UK

• You must be aged 16 or over• Typically you must earn at least

£115.20 per week on average

• The child must live with you and is aged 12 years and

under (Aged 17 and under for children with disabilities)

• You can close the scheme at any time and

be repaid your own personal contributions

• You can apply for adopted children, however, the scheme is not available for fostered children

Join The Team!We welcome Charlotte Skayee to the Crowther team.

Client News

Payroll / Tax Update

Wedding Bells Congratulations to Peter Gallagher and Elaine Harrison on your upcoming marriage from everyone at Crowther.

We wish you all the best for your future together.

From Strength to Strength Congratulations to the Engine Room on their recent awards at the prestigious DBA Design Awards in London.

Growing Business We’re excited to be working with both Solidcam UK and Amber Nolson. Both of whom are currently expanding rapidly and making great achievements in business.

FRS 105 These accounts will have very little content, the accounts will consist of:

Profit and loss account

Balance sheet (no longer displaying a bank balance or stock and debtors – all are just merged into 1 figure)

Minimal notes in the accounts

Detailed profit and loss account

Deferred tax is no longer calculated

FRS 102 These accounts will have slight differences, the main being:

Average staff numbers disclosed

A new operating lease note (disclosing the full value of the lease)

New Accounting StandardsLimited companies can adopt either FRS 102 or FRS 105.Most small companies will meet the FRS 105 criteria:

• Turnover not more than £632,000 • Balance sheet total not more than £316,000 • Average number of employees not more than 10

At least 2 of the conditions need to be met in order to qualify for FRS 105.

Changes to the Flat Rate VATWhat are the changes to the FRS?

HMRC have announced that from 1 April 2017 a new category will be launched in the VAT Flat Rate Scheme (FRS), the % applied to this category is 16.5% and is applicable to any ‘limited cost trader’. Businesses will need to ensure that for each accounting period they calculate accurately whether they fit into these criteria, to ensure that any VAT liability is calculated using the correct % rate.

How will my business be affected?

For most consulting businesses, it will be clear whether you fall into the category of a limited cost trader, however for some smaller business that are closer to the thresholds, HMRC will be providing an online calculator to help businesses establish whether they are classed as a limited cost trader.

How can we help?

We can carry out an assessment of your most recent VAT return to review what impact the changes to the FRS could have on your business, we will consider whether the FRS is the correct scheme for you. If you are currently not VAT registered but would like to know how the new scheme could affect your business, please do not hesitate to get in touch and we can assess your situation.

What is a limited cost trader?

...A trader whose VAT inclusive expenditure on goods is either;

• Less than 2% of their VAT inclusive turnover in the accounting period.

• Greater than 2% of their VAT inclusive turnover but less than £1000 per annum.

When calculating VAT inclusive expenditure, the goods must be used exclusively for the purpose of the business and the following are excluded;

• Capital expenditure (such as equipment, land and buildings).

• Food or drink for consumption by the business or its employees.

• Vehicles, vehicle parts and fuel (except transport services, for example a taxi business).

National Minimum Wage / Living Wage Minimum Wage rate increase from 1st April 2017:

25 and over £7.50 p/h

21 and over £7.05 p/h

18 to 20 £5.60 p/h

Under 18 £4.05 p/h

Apprentice* £3.50 p/h

*This rate applies to apprentices aged 16-18 and those aged 19 or over in their first year of an apprenticeship. All other apprentices are entitled to the minimum wage for their age group.

Tax Update Tax rates and allowances change on 6th April 2017 to:

Personal Allowance 11,500 n/a

Dividend Allowance 5,000 n/a

Savings Allowance BR – 1,000 HR – 500 n/a

Basic Rate 0-33,500 20%*

Higher Rate 33,501-150,000 40%**

Additional Rate 150,001+ 45%***

*7.5% for dividend income **32.5% for dividend income ***38.1% for dividend income

Contact us to find out more Contacttogether@crowther.accountants

01484 515544

www.crowther.accountants