Accountants in Sheffield

Running a business in Sheffield? You really should read this.
	If you access your bank accounts on-line, you will already have discovered just how useful and convenient 24/7 access to your financial information is. This facility has now been extended to you daily bookkeeping and management accounts and before you decide on your accountants you should consider how useful it would also be to have all your day-to-day accounting paperwork processed for you, enabling your management accounts to made available to you 'on-line' - 24/7.
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Local Accountants

Name	TPhone	url
Gibson Booth	01226 213131	Website
Barber Harrison and Platt	0114 266 7171	Website
Professional bookkeeping and accountancy in Sheffield	01684 295666	Website
Wells Richardson	0114 275 3030	Website
gvt (Goodband Viner Taylor)	0114 236 1888	Website

Why Accounts?

It is often assumed that all businesses must produce annual accounts and that they must employ the services of an accountant to produce them. In fact the legal requirements for full formal accounts is mostly restricted to companies with turnovers in excess of 1 million pounds/year. So why produce accounts and who should prepare them. The situation is different depending on how your business is set up

Case file: Westminster Hotel Location: Nottingham Business Type: Hotel

Accounts for Ltd Companies with turnovers less than 1 million.

All ltd companies have to produce a statement (accounts) for Companies House each year and provide the Inland Revenue with more detailed accounts so that the company's tax liability may be checked. This is the quid-pro-quo for the directors and shareholders enjoying protection from their creditors if the business goes wrong and cannot meet its liabilities.

Case file: TeamHR Location: Northampton Business Type: Human Resources Consultancy

Ok why do Companies House require accounts?

Well it's easier to think of this the other way round. If a business asks you for credit, would you feel happier about giving that credit to an individual who will be personally responsible for paying your bill come what may, or a limited company from whom you will not get paid if they go bust. Clearly anyone will have reservations about trading with the limited company unless they can convince themselves that they have a good chance of being paid. The accounts that limited companies have to provide to Companies House each year are made available for anyone (yes anyone) to see. The thinking behind this is to give potential creditors information about the company with whom they are thinking of trading so that they can make a reasonable judgement as to whether the risk is worthwhile. At the same time it would be commercially unacceptable if all the details of a company's business were made publicly available. It could well supply competitors with information about the company which they could use to compete against it. For most companies, the format of the accounts required is therefore restricted to a 'balance sheet' only. This balance sheet will show anyone what the companies assets and liabilities are, and indeed how the company is financed, but not the details of their trading e.g. gross profits, wage costs etc.

Case file: Alison and Busby Ltd Location: London and Barcelona Business Type: Book Publisher

Who has to the prepare these accounts for Companies House?

Well, anyone can prepare them but it is the directors responsibilty to sign them and therefore verify their accuracy.

Case file: Linton Lodge Hotel Location: Oxford Business Type: Hotel

What about the Inland Revenue?

The Inland Revenue is responsible for collecting corporation tax - which is the tax on the profits of limited companies. It is each company's responsibility to calculate and pay the correct amount of tax to the Inland Revenue and supply sufficient information that they may check that the amount of tax paid is correct. Unlike the data supplied to Companies House, information supplied to the Inland Revenue is completely confidential and not available to the public. The accounts supplied to the Inland Revenue are therefore more detailed which enables them to compare the figures each year with those in previous years and indeed compare them to other businesses in the same sort of business. This in turn enables them to make judgements as to the likely accuracy of the accounts.

Case file: BHB Recruitment Ltd Location: Bletchley Business Type: Driver and Industrial Recruitment

Who has to prepare these accounts for the Inland Revenue.

Again anyone can prepare them but it is the directors responsibilty to sign them and therefore verify their accuracy.

Case file: Noise Control Audio Ltd Location: Hackney and France Business Type: Manuufacturers

So why do I need an accountant?

Well you don't. However bear in mind that there are rules as to what may or may not be offset against your profits, what allowances against profits a company may claim - and worse still that these rules are constantly changing.

Case file: Eastmount Hotel Location: Isle of Wight Business Type: Hotel

Are all accountants equal?

No. Put simply, the largest firms of accountants will only deal with the biggest (and in general more complex) companies. This is largely self-selecting as their fees are also very high. The smallest firms of accountants (often one-man businesses) may not have a wide range of experience and not offer other services such as management accounts and bookkeeping.

Case file: The Brass Decorative Grille Company Location: Harrow, London Business Type: Manufacturer