The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 43: June/July 2019 | Page 9

FINANCE
Purple Lime and its new
‘Zest for Xero’ training service
The team at one of Wiltshire’s most innovative tech firms
has launched a new training service for users of Xero’s
world renowned ‘beautiful accountancy software’.
A finalist in the Driven By Data category
of the recent influential Wiltshire Techie
Awards, Purple Lime, has launched the
service across the South West including
Bristol, Bath and Swindon to share tips
and tricks to make the most of Xero.
Angela Ashworth, Co-Founder of Purple
Lime, said, “We recognised some time
ago there is a real need and desire for
business owners and their teams to make
more use of the Xero platform.
“While it’s fantastic to have online
resources to guide you, many people
want face to face support. Every business
is unique and will have its own specific
questions around Xero and how it can
be used to suit the quirky ways of an
individual business or team.”
Initially Purple Lime will offer one-to-
one or team training within a business or
to a group of people who work in a similar
sector. Over time, they will be running
open workshops.
“We have already been supporting
business people with this type of training,”
Angela said. “It’s the level of interest
which has prompted us to formalise this
service which people can access and pay
us by the hour for training and any ad hoc
ongoing support they might require.”
To date the team have supported
businesses in these sectors:
• Retail
• Hospitality
• Professional Services
• Commercial Property
• Industry
• Manufacturing
• Arts and Recreation Services
• Construction & Trades
ASK AMS:
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU
RECEIVE A VAT ASSESSMENT
How to avoid waiting for HMRC to correct an
incorrect VAT Assessment.
The reason for HMRC sending you an
assessment is that you are late submitting your
VAT Return. If you pay the assessment you could
wait a very long time for them to correct the
amount after you send in your Return, which is
especially annoying if they owe you money!
What to do
Firstly, make some time to prepare your
outstanding VAT Returns (or provide the
necessary information to your accountant).
Then submit any late Returns as soon as
possible and pay the actual amounts due (if you
can). If you do this within a few days of receiving
it, you can ignore the VAT assessment.
Peter Bromiley ACA
Partner, AMS Accountancy
• Charities
• Health and Social Care
• Education & Training
• Support for those who wish to do
remote refresher sessions or one-to-
one sessions if a particular need arises
A training session will cover the following
areas and can be adapted to suit the
knowledge level of the attendees:
• An initial consultation of Xero and demo
if needed
• Set up of Xero and data transfer
(from any existing systems)
• Training tailored to the needs of your
team or sector
• Advice on what you should be doing
regularly to ensure you have accurate
and up to date financial information
on hand
• Apps marketplace – a discussion on
which apps might help streamline a
particular business
Purple Lime’s success in placing tech at
the centre of its business has attracted
significant interest and the team is
growing with clients joining month on
month. It is this growth which has led to
the launch of Purple Lime Training.
For more info:
www.purplelimetraining.co.uk
Ask AMS
Advice for small businesses
AMS Accountancy Ltd. 01793 818400
Can you explain shares and dividends?
Most Companies are ‘limited’ by shares, and ownership of
the Company is represented by the number of shares held by
shareholders. e.g. 20 of 100 shares = ownership of 20% of
the Company. Typically, in shareholder meetings, one share =
one vote. Shares also give the owner a share of the value of
the Company when it is sold or wound up. Profits are paid
out of the Company as dividends to shareholders when
proposed by the Directors in proportion to shares held.
Directors proposing a dividend, should draft a ‘Minute’, and
pay out the dividends to the shareholders; then they should
issue a dividend voucher to each shareholder. For most small
Companies, an accountant is consulted regarding the tax
efficient split of shares between directors and their partners/
spouses to ensure to ensure that minimum tax is paid.
Peter Bromiley ACA
80+ videos on
‘AMS Accountancy’
@AMSAccountancy
01793 818400
www.ams-accountancy.co.uk
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2019
9