Catch up on earlier records
Tell us the last reconciled date, which accounts and sales channels you use, and the next filing deadline. We assess missing records and opening balances before agreeing the catch-up period and work.
Bookkeeping
Bookkeeping for companies and sole traders
We help companies and sole traders keep their sales, costs and bank records up to date. Choose help with a backlog, ongoing bookkeeping or checks of records you keep yourself. We agree the work and frequency around your business.
How much bookkeeping would you like us to handle?
Some businesses need their records brought up to date. Others want regular bookkeeping or someone to check the records they already keep. We can agree the right level of support with you.
Ongoing bookkeeping
We agree who records invoices and receipts, how often we reconcile the accounts and how questions are resolved. The frequency should suit the number of transactions and the reports or returns you need.
Check the records you keep
You or your team continue entering transactions. We agree checks such as bank reconciliation, VAT coding and outstanding balances, then explain corrections and anything you need to clarify.
What happens to your records?
A bank feed shows that money moved. The invoice or receipt explains what it was for. Matching the two helps distinguish business costs, transfers, loans and money taken out by a director.
Bring the records together
Sales invoices, supplier bills, receipts and bank or card statements form the starting point. Marketplace settlement reports, loan statements and payroll records may also be needed.
Reconcile and resolve questions
The agreed checks compare the accounting records with the bank, identify duplicates or missing entries and review unexplained balances. You help confirm the purpose of transactions and supply missing evidence.
Confirm the completed period
We confirm the period completed and any outstanding queries. Depending on the scope, the records can include updated bank balances, unpaid customer invoices, supplier bills and figures ready for VAT or year-end work.
Use the records to understand your business
Once the transactions are up to date, the next question is what you want to know from them. We agree any reporting and related services separately within your overall scope.
Management accounts
A profit and loss report shows how trading is going. A balance sheet shows what the business owns and owes. Cash reporting helps you plan payments. See the reports and decisions covered by management accounts.
VAT and payroll
Bookkeeping supplies the sales and purchase records for VAT returns. Where payroll and pensions work is agreed, payroll journals connect pay, deductions and employer costs to the accounts.
Annual accounts and tax
Reconciled records support company accounts and Corporation Tax or sole-trader accounts and Self Assessment. Year-end adjustments and the tax calculation are part of the agreed accounts work.
Work with software you can use
We review what you already have before recommending a change. Bank feeds and receipt capture can reduce repeated entry, but the transactions still need checking.
Our cloud accounting page explains the platforms we work with. We agree access, who enters each type of transaction and how you send supporting records. Please use the software's invitation process rather than sharing a password.
Online sellers also need to reconcile gross sales, fees and refunds to payouts. Read how ecommerce VAT and marketplace records fit together. Construction businesses may need Construction Industry Scheme records alongside the bank transactions.
For digital filing, the record requirements depend on the tax involved. Read our guides to Making Tax Digital for VAT and Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.
What to tell us at the first conversation
Bring a brief picture of your records so we can discuss the work and a realistic starting point.
Your current records
Tell us your software, bank and credit card accounts, sales channels and the last period checked. Mention paper records, spreadsheets or a backlog.
The work you need
Let us know who currently enters transactions, whether you are VAT registered, whether you employ staff and what you want to understand from the figures.
Your next deadlines
Share the next VAT or accounts deadline and any handover from an existing accountant. We set out responsibilities, timing and a fixed fee in writing before work starts.
Your questions answered
Do limited companies need a bookkeeper?
A limited company must keep proper accounting records, although it does not have to appoint a bookkeeper. The records need to explain its transactions and support the accounts. You can maintain them yourself, use us for agreed checks or ask us to handle the bookkeeping.
Can you work with a backlog?
Yes. We first look at the periods involved, the available records and any deadlines. That lets us agree the catch-up work and identify documents or explanations needed from you.
How often should bookkeeping be done?
It depends on the volume of transactions and how you use the figures. A business needing monthly reports needs records updated in time for those reports. VAT periods and payroll can also affect the schedule. We agree the frequency and dates with you.
Do I still need to keep receipts?
Yes. A bank transaction alone may not establish what you bought or support a VAT claim. Keep invoices, receipts and other supporting records; we agree how these reach the accounting software.
Will bookkeeping show me my profit and cash position?
It provides the records needed to prepare those figures. Management accounts add the agreed adjustments, reports and explanation. We can discuss that alongside bookkeeping if you want regular help interpreting profit, cash and outstanding balances.
Discuss your bookkeeping
Tell us what you keep up to date already and where you would like help. We will discuss catch-up work, regular bookkeeping or checks of your existing records, then confirm the scope and fee.
Arrange a consultation
Locations
Sheffield and Mansfield
Bookkeeping for companies and sole traders for UK limited companies in South Yorkshire, the East Midlands and across the UK, with the work run through secure cloud records and scheduled calls.