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Can you live off £8,000 a year in retirement?

If this has grabbed your attention you may be surprised to learn that many people will exclusively rely upon the State Pension to fund their lifestyle in retirement and £155.65 per week (£8,093.80 per annum) is the maximum, assuming you are entitled to it. From April 2017, it’s set to rise to £159.55 per week (£8,296.60 per annum).

Pensions may be a boring subject for many folk, but the more you save the more you can look forward to in retirement and since we are generally living longer, it makes sense to make some form of provision while you are still working.

Year end tax planning

The 2016/17 Tax year will end on 5 April 2017, providing you with a few weeks to focus your mind clearly on ways to cut your tax bill.

The aim of year end tax planning is to maximise your allowances and exemptions with this principle being applied across each tax discipline. Many of the allowances you are entitled to are annual allowances and will be lost if they are not used.

MSI Presentation - Parisian Showcase

In future I am going to insist all presentations should be practiced over cups of tea in a Parisian hotel after spending a lovely day in Versailles. It certainly took the edge off presenting to 150 delegates from around the world for me and my collaborator Emma Ginguay from Synerga last October.  

So why was I lucky enough to be in Paris – when I’m usually to be found in the less glamourous surroundings of Penrith? Well, it’s all thanks to the work we do with MSI Global Alliance. 

Appointment of Administrators to Benfield Shrink & Seal Limited

Mark Ranson and Mike Kienlen of Armstrong Watson’s Restructuring, Recovery and Insolvency practice were appointed Joint Administrators to Benfield Shrink & Seal Limited on 17 January 2017,
The Company, which is based at the Port of Tyne in South Shields, has used the trading style Benfield Pack and Wrap since 2014.  The Company provides contract packing services to a number of well known manufacturers of consumer products and has achieved BRC accreditation in Consumer Products.

Our RRI team saves more than 350 jobs

Our RRI team have safeguarded more than 350 jobs at Earn Extra, a payroll specialist based in Brighouse, Yorkshire. The team, led by Mike Kienlen and Mark Ranson have secured the jobs since finding a buyer for both the business and assets after being appointed as administrators on 23 January.

Earn Extra 139 was founded in 2006 and is a large payroll provider in the region. 

The payroll company delivers Umbrella, CIS and PAYE Payroll services for the telecoms, construction, overhead power lines, utilities and civil engineering sectors.

Cumbria Family Business Awards

The majority of businesses we work with and advise at Armstrong Watson are predominately family business owned, managed or influenced and as a strategic adviser to many business owners, I needed to gain a greater insight into how they manage and motivate themselves and the loyal team of people who work with and for them. 

Xero in on your business

Following on from my previous article where I wrote about the success of Team GB cycling I thought I’d take this opportunity to follow up on one of those success tips, the successful capture and use of data.

Preparing for the changes to the VAT flat rate scheme

Following the surprise announcement by Philip Hammond in the Autumn Statement, major changes to the flat rate scheme will come into effect from 1 April 2017.  It is therefore vitally important for any business currently using the flat rate scheme to review their position as soon as possible.

Is it time to consider Short Life Asset elections?

Unless your business’s capital expenditure on plant and machinery falls within the Annual Investment Allowance (‘AIA’) limit for the period in which it is acquired (currently £200,000 per annum from 1 January 2016), tax relief will be obtained through claiming capital allowances.

At the current 18% rate of main pool writing down allowances it takes eight years to relieve 80% of the expenditure incurred, even if the asset has been sold at a loss or scrapped within that period.

Would you accept an increase in Council Tax to pay for social care?

The social care system in the UK is under significant pressure and with more than a million more people aged over 65 today than there were in 2010, it’s easy to see why calls have been made to put more money into the UK’s care system.

Social care funding does not fall to the Government through the NHS, instead it is the responsibility of local authorities to provide care to those who need it and as you may expect, money is tight.