Finance Articles
Managing financial risk: What every growing SME needs to know In the wake of the global pandemic, and with continued market turbulence across many industries, business risk is quite understandably one of the biggest challenges that SME business owners report they’re...
Finance Articles
Financial Control – How to get paid on time – 10 top tips for SMEs Getting paid, on time, by your customers should be the norm but yet for many SMEs, it can be one of their biggest challenges and one of their greatest financial stresses. “But I don’t want to...
Finance Articles
Gaining Financial Control: Start streamlining with simple accounting automations Implementing simple automations within your accounting systems can have many potential business benefits for SMEs, including significant improvements in efficiencies, reduced inaccuracies...
Finance Articles, why-do-i-need-an-accountant
Profit vs Cash Flow – Why you should care and how to improve both! Editors Note: Expert content needs an expert content writer and Yorkshire Powerhouse is pleased to publish this business advice article on SME Accountancy and Management Accounts, kindly written by a...
collecting payment, Finance Articles
Taking card payments, negotiating the minefield There is no doubt that the movement from cash to card payments continues to move forward rapidly, it is anyone’s guess when the world will become cashless, but almost all businesses will require the ability to take...
bookkeeping, Finance Articles
Invoicing First rule is to get the invoice itself right as this document is your route to cash. Invoices – what they must include You must clearly display the word ‘invoice’ on the document. An invoice must include: A unique identification number / invoice number Your...
bookkeeping, Finance Articles
Bookkeeping Best Practice To run a successful enterprise and be compliant to the legal aspects of running a business, you must keep clear and accurate records of all the income and expenditure associated with your activity. In this article, we will talk about...
Guides
Finance articles – an introduction Quick Links: There are literally hundreds of business advice articles within the Yorkshire Powerhouse website for finance-related content – for some of the main sections please simply click on: Raising finance Why do I need an...
Finance Articles, tax
Personal Liabilities and Personal Taxation In the UK, everybody who earns over the Personal Allowance (£12,570 for 2022/2023, but you can check rates on HMRC) must pay income tax. You also get a tax-free allowance for income relating to savings interest and dividends...
Finance Articles, tax
Corporation Tax Welcome to this introduction to corporation tax, which hopefully you will find useful. At its simplest, corporation tax is only paid by companies who are registered in the UK. If you’re operating as a sole trader or partnership you don’t need to worry...
Finance Articles, tax
VAT – an overview VAT came to the UK in 1973 when we joined the EU – even though we have now left the EU, sadly we have not left VAT…. For an idea of importance to the treasury, in 2019 – 2020 VAT accounted for £148 billion from VAT, for a comparison...
Finance Articles, types of finance
Crowdfunding: Getting other people to fund your new product development When you are launching a new product or a new company the hardest thing is to find out if people will actually buy it. Your friends will often tell it is a great idea but that is not the same as...
Finance Articles, Raising Finance
Types of Finance The biggest issue most people face when starting a business is knowing how much money is needed to successfully start and sustain the venture and how to raise the funds. How much do you need before starting? How much do you need to launch? How much do...
Finance Articles
How to Avoid Insolvency and Manage Cashflow Success in business and avoiding insolvency is all about managing your business risks. This can be achieved by focusing on 4 key areas Ensure that you have sufficient working capital at all times to maintain the business...
Finance Articles
Debt Collection & Recovery – The D Word! There are very many cloud-based accounting packages available these days such as Xero, QuickBooks, and Sage. If used to their full potential, they can cover the full credit control escalation process and chasing cycle, all...
Finance Articles
Business Tax – an overview At Yorkshire Powerhouse, we provide advice to startups, and small and medium-sized businesses to support them and help them grow. An element of that is to be as tax efficient as possible. This is not only about reducing the overall tax...
Finance Articles
Foreign Exchange – We don’t give an FX about anything else If you’re a Yorkshire business thinking about exporting, or are already exporting, the chances are you’ll have to consider foreign exchange at some point. Now, let’s make no bones about it; foreign exchange...
Finance Articles
Collecting Payment It is unfortunately common for really profitable businesses to go bust because they have a poor cash flow model or because they don’t collect the debts due to them. This is not just a case of ‘not collecting payment’ though. A good business...
Finance Articles
Bookkeeping Keeping accurate bookkeeping records is absolutely essential to comply with the law and to keep peace of mind – but knowing your numbers and recording your numbers accurately is a business discipline that strong businesses practice constantly. There are...
Finance Articles
Choosing the Right Accountant The vast majority of small businesses use an external accountant. Complying with HMRC and all the legal filing regulations is a complex and ever changing task. It is perfectly legal (and possible) to do it yourself, but very few...
Finance Articles
Why do I need an accountant? Editors Note: Expert content needs an expert content writer and Yorkshire Powerhouse is pleased to publish this business advice article on SME Accountancy, kindly written by a real expert in her field – Victoria Wainwright, Managing...
Finance Articles
Raising Finance Raising Finance is generally the most difficult task for start-ups and SMEs (“small medium enterprises”) capable of scale-up and significant growth. This is despite the fact that successive governments, the major banks and other lending institutions...
business grants, Finance Articles
Where to start with a grant application At this point you should have completed your research, understood what grant(s) is available, and be ready to start the application process. The first thing to always do before starting an application is to check eligibility....
business grants, Finance Articles
Understanding what grant providers are looking for Grant funding programmes tend to have a theme, and sometimes these themes can overlap. Themes might include manufacturing, export, growth, start-up, skills, digital, construction, energy efficiency or access to...
business grants, Finance Articles
The Most Popular Regional Business Grants Important Note: This article is written primarily with SMEs based in Leeds City Region in mind. Each Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) / Growth Hub offers a range of different grant/business support programmes. If you have...
business grants, Finance Articles
Is it worthwhile applying for grants? Before rushing into a grant application you really need to ask yourself the question ‘will it be worth my time and effort?’ If you are desperate for cash you might be willing to spend any amount of time on your application but...
business grants, Finance Articles
Grants & Funding FAQ’s If you are interested in seeking grants or financial support for your business then also read our full advice article on grants and funding. To help you with the basics, here are some commonly asked Grants & Funding FAQ’s: I heard grant...
choosing-the-right-accountant, Finance Articles
A Guide to Self Employed Expenses FACT: Self Employed Expenses can be confusing “Can I claim for the computer I just purchased?” “I travel to my customers – how do I reclaim for fuel? “I took a customer out for lunch – is it tax deductible?” These are just some of the...
choosing-the-right-accountant, Finance Articles
How to use bookkeeping technology to input your receipts and save time Be honest … how many of you store your receipts in the bottom of your handbag, or in your wallet? Do you find you often lose receipts and invoices, which can mean paying too much tax? Book-keeping...
choosing-the-right-accountant, Finance Articles
Cloud accounting and Making Tax Digital for VAT registered businesses We’ve provided an advice article about the options for cloud accounting software and provided a look at automating and speeding up your bookkeeping and record keeping systems. Today, we’re looking...
choosing-the-right-accountant, Finance Articles
An overview of the options for Cloud Accounting To make your business work, you know that you have to record the in’s and out’s, but how do you know what software is best for that? It can take lots of your time drudging through the many cloud accounting packages, so...
Finance Articles, why-do-i-need-an-accountant
5 reasons why management accounts can help you to grow your business Editors Note: Expert content needs an expert content writer and Yorkshire Powerhouse is pleased to publish this business advice article on SME Accountancy and Management Accounts, kindly written by a...
Finance Articles, foreign-exchange-we-dont-give-an-fx-about-anything-else
When looking at FX / Forex, size matters! Forex / FX / Foreign Exchange is an “over-the-counter” (OTC) global marketplace. Over the counter means that there isn’t one single centralised system or one single price. Participants agree deals and exchange rates between...
Finance Articles, foreign-exchange-we-dont-give-an-fx-about-anything-else
What the FX does it all mean? We know that business owners are busy running their businesses. They’re not meant to be foreign exchange experts. FX, when done right, can save you £££’s on your bottom line. But for many small exporters, the fear of losing their money,...
Finance Articles, Insolvency
Members Voluntary Liquidation – an overview Can I wind up my company even if it is not insolvent? Yes, a solvent winding up or Members Voluntary Liquidation (“MVL”) is often a legal requirement if directors/shareholders wish to retire and the shareholders wish to...
Finance Articles, Insolvency
Steps to maximise your cashflow Working Capital When starting a business it is crucial to secure adequate working capital from sources such as personal funds, grants, loans or possibly outside investors to ensure there is always sufficient cash resource to support the...
Finance Articles, Insolvency
Dealing with Creditor Action How company directors can minimise the costs of dealing with creditor claims and ensure the survival of their company when threatened with creditor action. If you are the director or adviser of a company dealing with a large business...
Finance Articles, Insolvency
What is a licenced Insolvency Practitioner? A licenced insolvency practitioner is a qualified professional individual holding the necessary licences and other relevant qualifications in order to act as the office holder in various Insolvency processes. This can relate...
Finance Articles, Insolvency
Personal Bankruptcy: The basics Personal Bankruptcy is a formal mechanism within English Law which allows the assets and liabilities of an insolvent individual to be dealt with. A trustee will be appointed to administer the bankruptcy estate and will realise the...
Finance Articles, good debt collection practice
How to Choose the right Debt Collection Agency When it comes to collecting payments from difficult customers, the assistance and advice from a debt collection agency can be a great help. But choosing the right one to support your business and get the desired results...
Finance Articles, good debt collection practice
The Importance of Terms & Conditions The importance of correctly formed Terms & Conditions that specifies the nature of the relationship between a supplier and their customer can be the difference in getting paid for an order or not. Many businesses do not...
Finance Articles, good debt collection practice
Issuing Court Proceedings & Enforcement Once any pre-legal debt collection activity has run its course and payment has not been received then it may be necessary to issue legal action through the courts to recover the amount owed. You need to be aware that issuing...
Finance Articles, good debt collection practice
The Importance of Establishing Effective Credit Control Policies in a Business There are a number of credible sources that will all support the statement that one of the top reasons for a business failing is poor cash flow. In a world that revolves around credit there...
Finance Articles, good debt collection practice
Credit Management Procedures & Keys Facts Whilst debt recovery is something most business owners recognise and often require, few recognise that debt recovery and credit control are intrinsically linked. Credit Management includes them both, but more often than...
Finance Articles, good debt collection practice
Credit Control – A Checklist of the 9 Pillars of a Credit Policy If you have ever asked the question ‘what is credit control and why is it important’, this article should help you answer that and the fundamental basics which you must start to implement in your...
Finance Articles, Raising Finance
Business grants, grant funding & business support Let’s start with some horrible truths: Truth 1: A business that depends longterm on grants is not a strong business! It becomes inherently weak and inefficient because it is constantly chasing handouts instead of... 
