In Focus Issue 15

ISSUE 15 | WINTER 2018 RANDALL-PAYNE.CO.UK

Thinking to capitalise on

How to grow your business HRML’s route to growth

CLIENT SATISFACTION

‘PLOT’ OF GOLD?

DIGITAL INFLUENCE INDEX

Survey results revealed - ACCOUNTANCY PAGE 7

The implications of the Gloucestershire towns rank development value of higher than major cities your land

BUSINESS NEWS

HAPPERLEY ON PROVENANCE OF LOCAL PRODUCE

STATE OF THE NATION TIM LOOKS AT PRODUCTIVITY

OUR NEWS

OUR COMMITMENT TO TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

IN THE COMMUNITY

WE RAISE FUNDS FOR PIED PIPER APPEAL PLAYGROUND

WELCOME

Jo Byrd | HR Director

MEET OUR PARTNERS Tim Watkins Managing Partner

Welcome to our winter issue of In Focus.

2018 is now in full flow and New Year’s resolutions may have been forgotten, but not our business plans. As a new year begins, we reflect on 2017’s achievements and look forward to 2018’s opportunities.

We are proud to be a training firm, recognised and approved by the ACA, ACCA and AAT, and each year we commit to recruiting a number of trainees. We have the exciting opportunity to recruit talent from those just starting out in their careers. Our trainees either join us straight from A levels or after university. Most will train for technical roles like accountants and auditors, but we also recruit trainees like Charlotte, our Administration Trainee.

We feel that this ongoing commitment to bringing in new trainees allows us to play our part in the wider community, as

We feel that this ongoing commitment to bringing in new trainees allows us to play our part in the wider community 2

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well as ensuring we continue to build our already talented workforce, sustaining and growing our business.

We offer an excellent training programme and many of our past trainees have gone on to achieve great things. Some are now partners and managers, whereas others are well on their way to developing successful careers here, making a real and valuable contribution to the business and adding value for our clients.

Our differentiator to other training firms is our encouragement of early client contact, developing skills and confidence for the trainee. We also support all of our staff by providing wider opportunities for regular personal development and nontechnical learning.

As well as a great training package, our trainees have the opportunity to undertake meaningful work in a friendly environment, where they are valued and supported. We believe in fun, a healthy work-life balance and wellbeing as much as hard work and delivering excellence to our clients.

Will Abbott Partner Specialism: Business Advisory Russ Byrd Partner Specialism: Audit Vicky Link Partner Specialism: Accountancy Rob Case Partner Specialism: Tax Rob Stokes Partner Specialism: Outsourcing Ollie Newbold Partner Specialism: Corporate Finance For further information about any of the topics covered in this magazine, please contact Fiona Hughes, Marketing Manager: T: 01242 776000 E: marketing@randall-payne.co.uk randall-payne.co.uk @RandallPayne Randall & Payne LLP Or drop into Chargrove House, Shurdington Road, Cheltenham GL51 4GA

CONTENTS

IN THIS ISSUE NEWS FOCUS | 04 — 05

P7 Client satisfaction — ­ the results are in!

Social media drives retail footfall, plus Happerley on local food provenance TIM’S VIEW | 06 How simple innovations can help to improve productivity ACCOUNTANCY | 07 The results of our client satisfaction survey BUSINESS ADVISORY | 08 — 09 How we helped HRML to take their business to the next level OUTSOURCING | 10 — 11 Is payroll giving you a headache?

TAX | 12 The implications of the development value of your land AUDIT | 13

P8 HRML’s route to growth

Strength in numbers brings success CORPORATE FINANCE & BUSINESS ADVISORY | 14 How to boost your chance of business success IN THE COMMUNITY | 15 Playground build is underway but the fundraising continues RANDALL & PAYNE NEWS | 16-17 Our people commitment, a day in the life of an admin trainee, goodbye to Joan and more GUEST ARTICLE | 18 Useful GDPR insights ahead of May EVENTS | 19 Key accounting deadlines and upcoming events

P10 Focus on payroll

randall-payne.co.uk 3

NEWS FOCUS

Local towns rank higher than major cities for digital influence This success is due to the #WDYT campaign, which helps businesses increase the use of digital channels to encourage more customers to visit their store.

Polly Barnfield OBE Founder and CEO of Maybe* Maybe* eliminates the gap between how shoppers want to shop and how retailers are able to serve them. The #WDYT campaign helps towns and retailers drive footfall to UK high streets. In 2012, Polly was awarded an OBE for services to philanthropy.

The #WDYT campaign has already helped over 1,000 businesses in nine Gloucestershire towns significantly increase their digital activity, and has delivered an increase in local footfall by over 22% weekly.

The tools and campaign are now available for towns and retailers across the UK to assist them in increasing digital influence, national footfall and sales.

Success is measured by the UK Digital Influence Index, which ranks more than 1,300 towns and cities, based on retailers’ activity across their social media channels.

Since the launch of the Index a year ago, Gloucester and Cheltenham have established themselves in the top 20 of 4

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the UK Digital Influence Index alongside London and Edinburgh.

Importantly, market towns like Stroud and Tewkesbury are also seeing phenomenal rises in digital activity. Both towns have increased their digital activity significantly and now sit within the top 100 towns in the UK for digital influence above significantly larger towns like Swansea and Stockport.

In participating towns, there have been increases in footfall of up to 22%, which has been directly linked to the #WDYT campaign. This is a result of a doubling in the number of businesses using social media, which has also led to significant and improved digital rankings in the Digital Influence Index.

By 2020, 80% of retail will still be offline, but close to 50% will be determined by what you see online through various digital challenges.

The problem that many towns and cities have is that up to 74% of retailers are not using digital media to drive local footfall.

Every town in the UK is the sum of its digital parts, and places that don’t embrace digital channels face an uncertain future.

Every town in the UK is the sum of its digital parts, and places that don’t embrace digital channels face an uncertain future Polly Barnfield OBE, CEO and founder of the #WDYT campaign said: “We see a clear link between digital activity and physical footfall. Shoppers increasingly start their journey online. Every town and city in the UK is a sum of its digital parts. From what we see, it’s key that businesses become more proactive on social media. That is frequently the start of their digital journey.”

Contact Polly Barnfield, OBE for more information by emailing wdyt@maybe.xyz, or call 0800 0614 214. www.wdyt.org.uk

NEWS FOCUS

Happerley Food Heaven brings 100% provenance 33% of people in the UK have a trust issue with the food they buy. With 72% concerned about food fraud, Happerley Food Heaven has been launched.

Taken from the NFU Mutual Food Fraud report 2017, these figures are hardly surprising with supermarkets regularly inventing fake farms and scandals ranging from horsemeat in lasagne to Two Sisters chickens. As almost half of consumers (46%) have a reduced confidence in UK food supplies, a full disclosure of a food’s provenance has been identified as a top food trend for 2018.

Started by two Gloucestershire farmers, Happerley’s mission is to provide independent validation of foods’ provenance to restore consumer confidence. It will be celebrating local food with its sumptuous Food Heavens, the first time that visitors can shop 100% provenanced food, talk to the producers and simply enjoy buying food that is totally traceable and wholly delicious.

Many people want to buy local — not only to support their local food economy but also to enjoy eating produce raised, grown, sourced or made on their doorstep. Happerley wants consumers to start asking questions and to insist on knowing the provenance of food whether, in a restaurant, market or shop.

Started by two Gloucestershire farmers, Happerley’s mission is to provide independent validation of foods’ provenance to restore consumer confidence The disconnect between farmer and consumer has led to the commoditisation of food. This is why Happerley has the backing of leading names from across the food and farming industry including local farmer and TV presenter, Adam Henson.

Adam is passionate about bringing together those who eat and buy food with those who grow and produce it. Family farms across the UK are disappearing at an alarming rate as, with no means of validating foodstuffs through the

food chain, UK farmers and growers are unable to attain premium to cover the cost of production.

If the trend continues, our food choices will be compromised as Happerley founder Matt Rymer explains: “By delivering the provenance on all foods we are giving the consumer choice. In enabling visibility of a food’s journey, shoppers can choose the food they put in their basket and feed to their families. Our Food Heavens take this one step further and provide a shopping environment where people know where every single product has come from with 100% surety.”

The very first Happerley Food Heaven will be at Andoversford Races on Sunday 8 April and will provide a showcase for the best validated, local food. From flour grown in Worcestershire to meat that has flourished from a lifetime on Gloucestershire pasture, Food Heavens will be the flagship for local, sustainable food buying.

Contact Hannah Piet for more information by emailing info@happerley.co.uk or call 01242 222848. randall-payne.co.uk 5

TIM’S VIEW

Tim Watkins | Managing Partner

Improving productivity with simple innovations Much has been said about the productivity of the UK economy in general and it being lower than many others in both Europe and the wider world.

The Chancellor referred to the level of UK productivity in his Budget speech. The problem being outlined is that if there is no improvement in the productivity of UK business, then profits will not improve so pay won’t improve and tax receipts won’t rise. This means government borrowing will stay high with continuing pressure on spending and our individual standards of living will, at best, show no improvement.

seen it in the sporting arena with the UK cycling team, where small improvements were found in every area and led to the team being world beaters. Such innovations may well entitle the business to R&D tax relief, which will provide a further cash flow benefit to invest in productivity.

Productivity is, crudely, the amount produced per head. In the past, UK business was overmanned but this was addressed in the 1980s and, seeing the pressure many are now working under reducing the workforce, is unlikely to be the answer now. How else can productivity be improved?

Innovation doesn’t have to be big technology projects — innovation can be small improvements to how things are done

Perhaps a bit of innovation might help.

Innovation doesn’t have to be big technology projects — innovation can be small improvements to how things are done. This can be improvements to processes, improvements to a product and service or training, for example. A number of small improvements can add up to something significant. We have 6

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Our challenge in business is to find those small improvements to get productivity moving the right way, and then to find more improvements so that it becomes habit. Everyone in an organisation has a

part to play and business leaders have a role to encourage ideas — if we all carry on doing what we do, in the same old way, the productivity problem will never be beaten.

Contact Tim Watkins for more information by emailing tim.watkins@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

Bite-Sized Thinking

›› Don’t let the word innovation put you off. ›› Small improvements can improve profitability. ›› Take the challenge to find your business’ small innovations and see the difference these can make.

To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this article, visit randall-payne.co.uk

ACCOUNTANCY

Vicky Link | Partner

The results are in!

Here’s what our clients say We were pleased to have achieved a higher than average response rate, as 22% of our clients responded to our call for feedback about their levels of satisfaction.

Reviewing the results of the recent client satisfaction survey, we were delighted to learn that 66% of those who responded are highly satisfied with our service, which combined with those who are satisfied make up 98% of respondents.

When we asked about value for money, 82% said we offer good value for money and a further 10% said we offer exceptional value. It was acknowledged that we are not the cheapest provider but this was outweighed by the quality of the work and the peace of mind that is worth paying for. One client commented “Quite expensive but I accept that good accountancy advice saves money and trouble in the long run”.

There was a lot of very positive feedback about our professional service and our very knowledgeable and helpful staff. We expected to receive a level of negative feedback, but were pleased that the few comments made were in areas where we can improve:

1. Communication The desire to be kept informed about the progress of work and its completion date.

2. Response time Quicker response to client contact and completion of work.

3. Contact Some prefer a dedicated contact and others value teams to deal with their query.

The key is to explain why a different expert is required, ensuring all clients are well informed.

There was a lot of very positive feedback about our professional service and our very knowledgeable and helpful staff When it came to attending specific events, the most common interests were tax updates, cloud accounting, profit improvement and exit strategies.

We have held these events in the past and plan to hold further seminars in the future.

Overall we were very pleased with the survey results and will continue to provide our clients with a quality service, ensuring that we strive to continually improve on what we do.

We welcome your feedback, so if you ever have any comments or concerns, please speak to your usual contact on 01242 776000.

Bite-Sized Thinking

Areas where we will continue to improve our client service: ›› Improved communication ›› Quicker response times To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this article, visit randall-payne.co.uk randall-payne.co.uk 7

BUSINESS ADVISORY

Will Abbott | Partner

HRML tap into Randall & Payne’s business advisory resources to grow

HRML approached the business advisory team in October 2014 as owner-managers Ian and Julie Heather were reflecting on the strategies and next steps for their business.

The government in October 2014 was looking to help SMEs develop growth plans and generate new jobs. A pilot scheme gave businesses access to a £2,000 Growth Voucher to subsidise the cost of independent strategic advice. Having seen that the business advisory team at Randall & Payne were accredited to accept the voucher and already being aware of the work being done by them with SMEs, Ian Heather sought the guidance and input of our team.

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BUSINESS ADVISORY

THE STRATEGIC PLAN The initial project involved the development of a three-year One Page Strategic Plan – the result of a process involving exploring options, clarifying goals and prioritising the key strategies and actions to deliver them.

An important part of the process involved looking at barriers to implementation of the plan including significant risks to the business: 1. The potential loss of key staff was addressed by improving the processes within the business to share knowledge and expertise across the team, reducing the reliance on individuals.

This had the added benefits of improving customer service and increasing efficiency, which directly impacted on the bottom line.

2. To address the risk of losing key customers, the Directors identified recruitment as a significant problem for SMEs, which matched well with the existing skills within the team. By developing an innovative recruitment product targeted at this problem, additional sales were quickly generated with new customers.

The business has delivered a number of successful, high profile restructuring projects, including the recruitment and engagement of a significant number of employees for the recently opened Gloucester Services. These projects were identified as a key success driver and again play to the strengths of HRML, leading the Directors to focus efforts on projects as a growth opportunity.

IMPLEMENTATION The Implementation Stage – EPIC (Explore | Prioritise | Implement | Confirm)

Once the One Page Plan had been committed to, HRML engaged with us to support implementation.

Having considered the timescales for implementation and resources available at HRML, Ian and Julie selected the EPIC Engage programme, which involves a

quarterly board meeting, a quarterly peer workshop and unlimited access to our cloud coaching and personal development platform.

All the EPIC programmes have a fixed monthly investment that gives HRML a key benefit, access to an independent sounding board for advice and support whenever it is needed.

THE OUTCOME Having worked with Will over the last three years, the business has seen a number of significant changes and overcome a number of challenges as it has implemented its growth plan.

Will Abbott, Head of Business Advisory said: “It is a pleasure to work with Ian and Julie and to be closely involved with the successful implementation of the plan we developed together.

With their initial decision to make a change and their continued commitment, they should be proud of the progress the business has made over the last three years.”

Ian Heather said “We have often debated the need to have a person in a non-executive type role, who can challenge our thinking, bring an outside perspective and keep us focused on key actions.

“Will fulfils this role for us and access to workshops allows us to learn best practice from peers as well as holding us accountable. As in any business, the unexpected will happen and being able to talk to Will, whenever we need to, with his clear understanding of what we are trying to achieve, is invaluable.”

Contact Will Abbott for more information by emailing will.abbott@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

Bite-Sized Thinking

›› Explore many strategic options from the outset before you decide. ›› Identify barriers and key business risks as well as opportunities. ›› Fixed cost programmes allow access to resources to deal with any issues that arise.

To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this article, visit randall-payne.co.uk randall-payne.co.uk 9

OUTSOURCING

Is payroll giving you a headache?

Running payroll for your business is time-consuming and complex. With our expertise, we can help you maintain payroll compliance to keep you abreast of ever-changing legislation.

Karen Harries Payroll Administrator

Andrea Cormor Payroll Administrator

Employees are the most important asset of your business, and paying them accurately and on time helps to ensure a motivated and productive workplace. Staying up to date with ever-changing legislation and responsibilities can be daunting.

Our expertise extends across a wide client base across a variety of industry sectors with businesses of many different sizes – sole traders and partnerships, through to medium-sized limited companies. We process weekly, four weekly, monthly and quarterly payrolls.

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Outsourcing your payroll to us relieves you of your payroll responsibilities in the knowledge that an expert team is doing the job for you meaning you can get on with what’s important – running your business All you need to do is send us your payroll figures and we’ll take care of all the processing. We’ll send you payslips, and all necessary reports. We are proud of our loyal client base, many of whom have been with us for a number of years. We are conscientious, friendly and work together as a team to deliver a personal service.

Outsourcing your payroll to us relieves you of your payroll responsibilities in the knowledge that an expert team is doing the job for you meaning you can get on with what’s important – running your business.

Bite-Sized Thinking

›› Fully compliant so that you can rest assured knowing your payroll data complies with HMRC legislation ›› We have the up-to-date knowledge and expertise ›› Efficient, safe and secure systems To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this article, visit randall-payne.co.uk

OUTSOURCING

Here are some of the things we can help you with: Automatic enrolment duties and cyclical re-enrolment Under the Pensions Act 2008, every employer in the UK must put certain staff into a pension scheme and contribute towards it. If you employ at least one person, you have certain legal duties. We provide a full auto-enrolment management process integrated within our payroll processing. The minimum contributions that you must pay into your staff’s pension scheme are being introduced gradually over time, with the next increase due on 6 April 2018. We ensure that you are kept compliant with legislation.

Cyclical automatic re-enrolment is carried out approximately every three years after an employer’s staging date. We manage all of this on your behalf. ›› You choose a date to re-enrol your staff – this can be any date within three months either side of the third anniversary of your starting date. Consider any upcoming business priorities you want reenrolment to coincide with, or any you don’t. You can’t use postponement for re-enrolment. ›› We will work out if any of your staff need to be re-enrolled (there are exceptions). ›› We can re-declare your compliance to The Pensions Regulator. If you don’t re-declare your compliance in time, you may be fined.

Reporting to HMRC As an employer operating PAYE, all employees’ payments and deductions need to be reported to HMRC on or before each pay date, including the tax and NI owed. Using the correct tax codes for your staff is key to correctly working out how much tax to deduct from your staff’s pay. We ensure that the latest tax codes for each staff member are used when calculating their tax liability each pay day.

HMRC expect another report to claim any reduction on what is owed to them eg statutory maternity/ paternity pay recovered.

We submit all of your RTI submissions to HMRC ensuring they are on time to avoid penalties.

National Insurance contributions There are different NI rates and categories eg when your staff reach state pension age or you employ apprentices. We ensure the correct NI categories are applied to your employees’ pay, ensuring that NI contributions are correct.

Statutory payments We will accurately calculate any statutory payments, such as statutory sick pay, maternity / paternity pay and redundancy payments.

Student loan deductions Do you know when and how to make student loan deductions from your staff’s pay (Plan 1 or Plan 2)?

We manage this on your behalf.

Compliance We have the expertise and resources to keep you compliant throughout all of your payroll process.

Our systems are efficient, safe and secure, and you can be confident that we are always up to date with legislation, alleviating you of the administrative burden of updates and the expense of paying for regular software upgrades.

Communication Our team of experts are on hand to dissect and translate into simple terms any updates announced, from changes to minimum wage or national living wage, through to reporting and other compliance changes. We pull this information together in an easy-to-read format and disseminate in a timely manner to our clients.

Contact Karen Harries or Andrea Cormor for more information by emailing payroll@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

randall-payne.co.uk 11

TAX

‘Developing’ an issue With councils coming under increasing pressure to meet planning quotas, and with building space at a premium, could you have a ‘plot’ of gold?

Emma Robinson Senior Tax Accountant The selling up/cashing in issue Selling a plot of land linked to your private residence would be exempt from Capital Gains Tax (CGT) by virtue of the Private Residence Relief (PRR). However, exemption does not apply if the land does not form part of your garden, ie it is fenced off or used for stables or a paddock. The relief also only applies to garden property up to 1.2 acres, but it is possible to claim if you are able to prove that the whole garden was required for ‘reasonable’ enjoyment of the residence.

The Inheritance Tax (IHT) issue If you choose not to sell, then your IHT estate could drastically increase by the ‘development’ value the land holds.

This could be as a result of a previous approach by a developer or where neighbours have sold their land for development.

From 2016/17 onwards, an additional annual incremental allowance called the main residence nil rate band (RNBR) will 12

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be introduced, which will raise the IHT threshold but this may be restricted by the increase in value.

If you choose not to sell then your IHT estate could drastically increase by the ‘development’ value the land holds Also, depending on how the land has been used during its ownership, Agricultural Property Relief (APR) or Business Property Relief (BPR) may be available to reduce some or all of the value of the land.

Passing the land to the next generation A straightforward gift will not have immediate IHT implications, but tax liabilities may apply for CGT purposes as this is a chargeable disposal.

While trusts are not as tax efficient as they once were, they are still a useful method of

both reducing the Settlors IHT estate and passing assets to future generations. Settling into a trust will still be a disposal for CGT, but there are reliefs available to defer the gain.

The crucial point is to get your plans in place early. We can help you decide the best and most tax efficient option depending on your circumstances.

Contact Emma Robinson for more information by emailing emma.robinson@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

Bite-Sized Thinking

›› IHT & CGT implications occur if your residential garden has a ‘development value’. ›› Early action is required when you realise your residential land may increase in value.

To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this article, visit randall-payne.co.uk

AUDIT

Russel Byrd | Partner

Strength in numbers achieves success The area of audit is a highly regulated and complicated process that is becoming more complex and costly, but we have adapted our thinking for our clients’ advantage.

When the audit threshold for companies rose to £10 million in 2015, many smaller audit firms saw their client base drop dramatically, but at Randall & Payne, we adapted our thinking and have seen a double digit growth within our department.

We have expanded our dedicated team who work on over 100 audit clients all year. They are familiar with the regulation and are effective in all they do. Using the latest audit software, we have a unique approach to every client we act for, but all with the same end game – client satisfaction.

Three years ago, our audit team embraced the use of computerised audit methodologies. This has not only encouraged efficiencies for clients, but has allowed our team to be more effective. Our approach was recognised last October when we were shortlisted finalists at the British Accountancy Awards for Audit Team of the Year.

In the next five years, company audits will become more automated with the use of data analytical software and

our early adoption internally of using a computerised process will enable us to offer clients experienced advice when they are required to do so.

Using the latest audit software we have a unique approach to every client we act for, but all with the same end game – client satisfaction Working with a wide variety of audit clients, our team have a collaborative, best practice approach, which is shared with clients if problems are encountered.

We are able to balance servicing clients effectively with sharing our experiences and knowledge throughout.

Any strong ideas in relation to controls and systems are shared and any foreseeable regulation changes are discussed in advance of our visits to ensure clients are able to plan and the audit process remains efficient for all of those involved.

Contact Russel Byrd for more information by emailing russel.byrd@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

Bite-Sized Thinking

›› Best practice is key to solving audit queries effectively before they become problems ›› Dedicated team of highly trained individuals offer ongoing support ›› Audits supported by a computerised service encourage efficiencies To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this article, visit randall-payne.co.uk randall-payne.co.uk 13

BUSINESS ADVISORY / CORPORATE FINANCE

Oliver Newbold | Partner

The four key stages of the business lifecycle explained If you are not happy with your business’s performance against last year’s business plan, have you considered the changes needed in 2018 to ensure success? This is how we can help.

Reflection and planning are key to a successful business journey. We’re here to help with strategic thinking, timely advice and practical solutions.

To ensure success, every business, whatever its size, will benefit from examining four key stages of the business lifecycle, but many fail to take time to do so. This is a fundamental barrier to achieving success.

We have recently won the British Accountancy Award for ‘Best Client Project of the Year’ based on our success by working through this process with our clients. We would love to help you.

Contact Ollie Newbold or Will Abbott for more information by emailing iige@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

Take time to consider where you are now, where you want to be, and how you need to get there. Then use these four key stages of the business lifecycle (IIGE) shown in the diagram below.

FOUR KEY STAGES OF THE BUSINESS LIFECYCLE - IIGE

1. IMPROVE

The first step is to understand which parts of the business are most profitable and which need to change. Identify the quick wins and prioritise key actions to drive results.

2. INVEST

When you are enjoying greater efficiency, profitability and cash generation, it’s time to invest. It should now be easier to finance asset purchases, innovate products and services and invest in staff development.

3. GROW

The next step is to capitalise on your investment to drive profitable, organic growth.

Making the right, targeted acquisition will now become a real option – not just increasing turnover, but delivering even greater profit.

4. EXIT

When it’s time to step back, it’s important to ensure your business is ready for your departure. An exit should only be considered once your business is in the best position to achieve maximum sale price, or to enjoy an effective handover to the next generation.

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IN THE COMMUNITY

Our playground target is achieved for the Pied Piper Appeal The Randall & Payne ‘Jumbo Jungle Climber’ at Belmont School is now being built, but we are still fundraising for vital equipment for the Children’s Centre.

Fiona Hughes Marketing Manager A huge thank you to everyone who has taken part in our fundraising for the Pied Piper Appeal over the last 18 months.

We are excited to announce that we have raised the £6,676 required for the Jumbo Jungle Climber for Belmont School, which is situated on Warden Hill Road in Cheltenham, close to our office.

dress down Fridays at the end of each month, but more impressively, Russel Byrd, Partner, took part in Stoptober and also raised £1,000 through his role as Golf Society Captain!

Funding was raised at our Budget Day event at Kingsholm Rugby Club last year.

We are excited to announce that we have raised the £6,676 required for the Jumbo Jungle Climber for Belmont School This has been achieved as a result of numerous activities. Recent examples include a raffle at our Budget Day event,

The motto at Belmont School is to ‘always be the best you can be’ and they encourage all members of their school community to set high standards in whatever they do and aim to achieve these. Their students have a wide range of different needs but when they leave they are more confident and ready to take on the challenges that face them after school.

scrambling features create a variety of challenges. It is an impressive 2.5 metres in height and over 5 metres at the widest point, so will be a fantastic centre piece for the playground. The build has started so we look forward to sharing photos when it is finished.

We have made a two-year commitment to the Pied Piper Appeal to raise £10,000. With 6,500 children passing through the Children’s Centre at Gloucester Royal each year, we would love to provide them with some vital equipment, so we have lots planned over the coming months to raise the remaining £3,500, including a second race night and a quiz night, and something more physical for the partners to take part in!

To find out more about the Pied Piper Appeal and the vital work that they do for children in Gloucestershire, visit piedpiperappeal.co.uk

The Jumbo Jungle Climber is a captivating timber climbing frame with interlaced wooden beams intricately interwoven with rope. Climbing and randall-payne.co.uk 15

RANDALL & PAYNE NEWS

Randall & Payne’s commitment to staff training and development After many fantastic achievements across all teams last year, we now look forward to achieving the great plans we have for the year ahead. ››

Jo Byrd HR Director 2017 was a successful year with new opportunities, clients and team members.

Our achievements demonstrate our investment in staff training, development, and wellbeing, and are testament to the talent we have: ››

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We won ‘Best Client Project of the Year’ at the British Accountancy Awards and were finalists for ‘Audit Team of the Year’.

Gina Gardner was awarded ‘AAT Trainee of the Year’.

We achieved accreditation for The Workplace Wellbeing Charter.

Our managers completed a management programme, which was developed in conjunction with, and delivered by, HRML. Selected managers achieved the Institute of Leadership & Management Level 3 Award.

We made a pledge to Hollie Gazzard Trust’s ‘Working without Fear’ campaign and provided awareness training.

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Six trainees completed their professional training, strengthening our numbers of qualified members.

Our 2018 plans continue to show our commitment to training and development, with a focus on delivering excellent client service: ››

Plans are in place for staff to undergo bespoke client training, which will sit alongside our award to recognise those who go the extra mile for our clients. If you are a client and wish to nominate a team member for a client service award, we would love to hear from you.

If you are a client and wish to nominate a team member for a client service award, we would love to hear from you

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We recognise the benefits of a fully inclusive workforce and will be delivering equality and diversity training.

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We continue to focus on employee engagement and wellbeing with our Employee Survey being rolled out this month for the fourth consecutive year.

We strongly believe in the mutual benefits of listening to suggestions in order to ensure continuous improvement.

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I am also excited by the introduction of the Randall & Payne Academy.

This is designed to equip our high potential professionals to become the line managers and Client Relationship Managers of the future.

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We are in the process of recruiting new apprentice and graduate trainees.

It is an exciting and rewarding time being able to offer individuals the opportunity to gain valuable skills and experience and give them a strong start to their careers.

Contact Jo Byrd for more information by emailing jo.byrd@randall-payne.co.uk or call 01242 776000.

RANDALL & PAYNE NEWS

Emma joins the Tax team Rob Case, Partner, introduces the newest member of his Tax team, Emma Robinson, who joined last year as Senior Tax Accountant.

“I am really pleased to welcome Emma to the team, who joins us from a top ten accounting firm. Emma has background of providing bespoke tax advice for high net worth individuals, internationally mobile clients and trusts, but is equally competent at standard personal tax matters.

She also has a wealth of experience in dealing with HM Revenue & Customs.

“Emma will undoubtedly be an asset to our firm and our clients and we look forward to introducing her to our clients and contacts over the forthcoming months.”

Joan retires and heads home to South Africa Joan made the decision to retire at the end of 2017 and head home to Durban in South Africa where her family are based.

We look forward to following her new chapter on Facebook.

This will help fill the void which she leaves behind.

In the run up to Joan’s retirement, the staff organised a surprise lunch for her, preceded by a ‘flash mob’ style rendition of Tony Christie’s ‘Amarillo’ with the words rewritten about Joan’s return to South Africa, complete with South African flag and pom-poms – see the video on our Facebook page!

Those who know Joan appreciate her for helping to put things into perspective, she is worldly wise and says it how it is. She gives some great advice and keeps us all grounded and ‘real’.

Rob Stokes, Partner, said, “Joan had become a valuable and integral part of our team, embracing all changes and taking them in her stride.”

Joan comments, “After a week of being absolutely overwhelmed by the affection shown to me by my colleagues, the last day has finally arrived! Randall & Payne has been a fantastic firm to work for, the staff have become my ‘work family’ and I will miss them all dearly. I will keep in touch and stalk you all on Facebook!”

A day in the life of an admin trainee Charlotte joined the admin team as a trainee over two years ago. She wanted to start a career and gain a qualification and valuable experience on the job, after a brief time in retail following the completion of her A levels. She finds the firm very supportive; she completes her coursework during a set time each week and catches up regularly with her manager.

Her time is typically spent booking in records, ensuring the scanning is up to date and assisting with HR tasks – she also organised the staff Christmas party after her first year with the firm!

Charlotte enjoys the relaxed and friendly but hard working environment, and has her sights set on completion of the Level 3 Apprenticeship in Business Admin while taking on increased responsibilities.

randall-payne.co.uk 17

GUEST ARTICLE

Matthew Clayton, Employment Law Partner | Willans LLP solicitors

GDPR: Useful insights from one of our legal partners When GDPR takes effect this May data governance will be at the forefront and you will need to have a strong program of policies, standards and controls in place to ensure compliance.

A considerable amount has been written on GDPR but in our opinion one of the most useful documents to date is the ICO’s ‘Preparing for the General Protection Regulation – 12 steps to take now’.

However, even this can leave you asking what you need to do to be compliant.

Here are some of our legal insights: Consent You don’t always need to have consent in order to process data (ie hold or use).

There are other legal justifications for doing so.

Processing is justified (amongst other things) if: ››

It’s necessary to deliver a contract eg if they’re a customer and you need that data to provide goods or services to them.

››

It’s in your legitimate business interests, provided that it doesn’t outweigh their privacy rights. This can be more difficult to judge, and would probably not extend to marketing to non-customers.

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– Winter 2018

Privacy notices

Review contracts

You’ll need to provide new privacy notices with more information about the legal basis for processing their data: what data may be processed and for what purpose, how long it will be stored and their legal rights. Current privacy notices won’t be adequate.

Any contracts you have with a ‘data processor’, such as a payroll bureau or marketing agency, will need to be reviewed, as GDPR requires you to include certain contractual terms guaranteeing data privacy.

You’ll need to provide new privacy notices with more information about the legal basis for processing their data Data security breaches You’ll be legally required to report data security breaches to the authorities, where feasible within 72 hours of becoming aware and where it is likely to result in a risk to “the rights and freedoms of individuals”.

This can be difficult to assess.

Contact us, or your preferred solicitor, to help ensure you have strong governance controls to ensure compliance.

Willans’ multi-disciplinary legal teams spend all day, every day helping companies large and small with complex business decisions. Download a handy fact sheet on GDPR compliance at www.willans.co.uk

EVENTS

Key Events FEBRUARY Advice Clinic Every Monday, 1:30pm – 4:30pm Need some free tax planning advice to ensure you use the annual allowances available by 5 April 2018? February’s free Advice Clinics can be specifically tailored for you to discuss using these allowances to your benefit before the deadline.

Our expert team can provide the right professional guidance. Give us a call to book your free one-hour slot on 01242 776000.

EPIC Business Leaders Workshop 20 February, 9am — 1pm Our EPIC business leaders workshops are run by our business advisers and provide the opportunity to tackle your growth issues head on with the support, experience and guidance of other successful business leaders. To join this workshop, contact Will Abbott or Richard Gray on 01242 776000.

Academies Seminar 21 February, time to be arranged These seminars are free for all converted academies and MATs and are tailored to give specific advice to head teachers, business managers, school governors and individuals who have responsibilities for more of the practical operations.

Visit our website for more details or to book your place.

Pied Piper Quiz Night 23 February, 7pm for 7:30pm start Taking place at Brickhampton Golf Complex in Gloucester, with teams of 4 — 6 people and food will be provided. £12 per person, all proceeds will go to the Pied Piper Appeal. Entries must be made beforehand: call 0300 422 6119 or email office@piedpiperappeal.co.uk.

KEY DEADLINES GDPR Made Easy – Part 2 28 February, 9am — 11:30am Organised by Circle2Success, this free seminar is a follow-up to GDPR Made Easy. South West Digital Lead, Professor Richard Benham will provide an overview on the GDPR landscape, Jon Rathbone of Hughes Paddison will give an update on the latest news from the ICO and Salpo will demonstrate their newly launched GDPR tool to help all organisations become GDPR compliant. Visit our website to book your place.

FEBRUARY

1

C orporation Tax due period ended 30/04/17

19

D ue date for 2017/18 PAYE month 10

22

P AYE & Class 1 NIC payments (electronic)

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MARCH Advice Clinic Every Monday, 1:30pm – 4:30pm Need some free advice with a tricky business question or need advice to move forward? Our expert teams can provide the right professional guidance. Give us a call to book your free one-hour slot with the relevant expert on 01242 776000.

APRIL

MARCH

1

Charity Race Night Date to be confirmed – visit our website for more details about our charity fundraising events.

This is a fun evening to raise money for the Pied Piper Appeal, which will take place at Hatherley & Reddings Cricket Club.

C orporation Tax due – period ended 31/05/17

19

D ue date for 2017/18 PAYE month 11

22

P AYE & Class 1 NIC payments (electronic)

31

Advice Clinic Every Monday, 1:30pm – 4:30pm Need some free advice with a tricky business question or need advice to move forward? Our expert teams can provide the right professional guidance. Give us a call to book your free one-hour slot with the relevant expert on 01242 776000.

A ccounts deadline to Companies House – periods to 31/05/17 Corporation Tax return deadline to HMRC – periods to 28/02/17

A ccounts deadline to Companies House – periods to 30/06/17 Corporation Tax return deadline to HMRC – periods to 31/03/17

APRIL

1

C orporation Tax due – period ended 30/06/17

19

Due for 2017/18 PAYE month 12

22

P AYE & Class 1 NIC payments (electronic)

30

A ccounts deadline to Companies House – periods to 31/07/17 Corporation Tax return deadline to HMRC – periods to 30/04/17

Would your business benefit from a three-hour review with one of our experts to plan key actions for 2018 for just £500?

If so, contact Will or Richard on businessadvisory@randall-payne.co.uk or 01242 776000 randall-payne.co.uk 19

Spreadsheets Clouding Your Judgement?

Knowledge is power, so they say.

And in a fast-paced business world brimming with opportunity, it’s never been more important to be able to pinpoint where your business stands at any given moment.

Ditching the spreadsheets and switching to cloud accounting will give a real-time view of your finances, enabling you to use today’s data to drive tomorrow’s business.

So when it comes to your accounts, isn’t it time your business stopped just floating along?

To harness the benefits of cloud accounting, call our cloud transition experts on 01242 776000 or visit randall-payne.co.uk