The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 50: Aug/Sept 2020 | Page 8

OPTIMUM WELCOMES NEW MANAGER TO AUDIT TEAM Leading professional services company Optimum has strengthened its audit division as part of ambitious plans for growth. Experienced auditor Hannah Churches has joined Swindon-based Optimum as Audit & Assurance Manager. Hannah is working closely with Optimum Director and Head of Audit, Rob Stokes, to support a growing portfolio of audit clients, including corporate entities, charities and a raft of academy schools. “At Optimum, I am very much looking forward to growing our portfolio of clients,” said Hannah. “I really enjoy working as an auditor. The role continues to evolve and we are now primarily in an advisory role. Supporting clients, being a critical friend and being a bridge between compliance and our clients is very engaging. As an auditor you are exposed to hundreds of different businesses throughout your career, you are privy to things which most people don’t get to see. For example, you get to see how things are made, observe different systems and processes, and gain an insight into how people are trained, which I find fascinating.” Rob added,“Having previously worked with Hannah, I knew she would be an asset for the firm. Her quest for knowledge combined with the ability to challenge both on a technical level and personal level makes her ideally placed to help our clients. Hannah has always been a very good communicator and has combined this with her inquisitive nature to good effect. She also displays a passion for helping not just our clients but the team as well, through answering technical questions and offering guidance on how to practically apply laws and regulations, which made appointing her in the new role of audit manager an easy decision for us to make.” Hannah began her career in finance before she had even left university. While studying for her accounting and finance degree, she juggled several part-time jobs in a bid to gain practical experience. She also worked with a company delivering hospitality and event solutions, progressing to senior cash controller which focused on revenue protection and internal control. Before joining Optimum, Hannah was part of an audit team within a Cheltenham based Optimum’s Audit & Assurance Manager Hannah Churches with Head of Audit Rob Stokes. accountancy firm, supporting charities, corporate entities, pension schemes and academies. The audit team make up just one part of the suite of services offered by Optimum. On the accountancy side, Optimum offers accounting, bookkeeping, payroll, business planning and business tax, personal tax, VAT and Making Tax Digital advice. Optimum has a growing legal division, specialising in domestic and commercial property sales, tenancies and leases, equity release, and wills and probate. The legal team, headed by Iain Mason, welcomed the recent news of a holiday on Stamp Duty Land Tax. The threshold has now moved to £500,000, taking a large percentage of properties out of the SDLT catchment, saving homebuyers an average of £4,500 on a purchase. The changes last until 31st March 2021 and apply to house moves completed before then. Iain said, “The Stamp Duty Land Tax changes are good news for homebuyers and the housing marketing in general, which, along with so many other sectors, has been adversely affected by the Coronavirus pandemic.” For more information about Optimum Professional Services, based at Ermin Street, Stratton, visit www.optps.co.uk, email [email protected] or call 01793 538 198. Late Again: How the coronavirus pandemic is impacting payment terms for small firms Ruth Lambert, Local Development Manager for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) shares the findings of its recent study. It will come as no surprise that our recent challenges have hit many small businesses hard. Latest Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) research shows the majority of small firms have been hit by late payment as a result of Covid-19, despite only a small minority having had their payment terms changed. For a small business this can have a huge impact on cash flow and even survival. In our new report entitled Late Again: how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting payment terms for small firms FSB shows that only one in ten have agreed changes in payment terms whereas 62% have been subject to late or frozen payments. Despite concerted efforts by government to improve procurement practices there is also sadly no discernible difference between public and private supply chains in late payment. Small firms in the wholesale, legal and accounting, advertising and marketing sectors seem to have been the hardest hit, but this is a widespread crisis across all our small business community. As an organisation we are calling on policymakers to make changes to ensure 30 day payment is the norm and that those who ignore this are penalised. Across Swindon and Wiltshire I’d encourage us all to think about how quickly we are paying our own invoices from small businesses we use. Prompt payment allows a business to plan ahead, to pay staff, invest in new equipment and stock and to support their local community. We know small businesses are very often the heartbeat of our communities and our surveys show us around 80% of FSB members have volunteered or contributed to their local community organisations recently providing skills, time and resources to help our towns and villages thrive. 42% engage with their local schools, colleges and youth organisations, a vital support service when youth unemployment looks set to rise across the county. As we stand on the precipice of one of the worst recessions we have seen, with our town centres struggling to survive, we can all do our bit to support our small business community by paying our bills on time and keeping our money circulating within our local economies. This in turn will help support the recovery of us all. To find out more about the FSB or #FSBConnectOnline email Ruth at: [email protected] For info on the FSB (including its Coronavirus Hub) go to www.fsb.org.uk and visit our Facebook page ‘FSB.Somerset.Wiltshire’ @fsbsomandwilts Ruth Lambert, FSB Local Development Manager 8 www.tbeswindonandwilts.co.uk