www.spofforths.co.uk
Your Specialist
Social Housing team
Services built around yyou
Chartered Accountants
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‘‘
The goalposts tend to
move in social housing
and it takes a specialist
service to give us
proper support
‘‘
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A service built on
experience
As a dedicated team, with a long history and deep appreciation for this
challenging and quickly evolving sector, we are ideally placed to bring
you comprehensive support. Whether you need specialist audit,
accounting, tax consultancy or structure and trading advice, we can help.
We’ve worked with all kinds of different providers both charitable and not
for profit to assist their teams as they address their financial challenges.
Our partnership approach means that we consider your circumstances and
long-term aims, in order to bring a rounded, informed view that can guide
your decision-making. We’ll keep you abreast of financial legislation, tax
incentives and changing economic conditions, as we assist you with your
statutory requirements.
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Specialist advice
& expertise
Accounting & audit
The regulations facing Registered Providers are complex, and audit is an important part
of compliance. We can deliver accurate year-end reporting that fulfils your obligations –
for internal and external audits, single-issue audits and investigations.
Decades of experience in preparing management accounts for housing associations and
charitable organisations mean we go even further - supporting your team in streamlining
your processes and fine-tuning your data compilation.
Many of our clients also invite us to attend annual or bi-annual board meetings, to report
on topical regulatory matters, new legislation and economic developments. This gives
relevant feedback and trustees peace of mind.
Structure and trading
It may be useful to regularly review your organisational structure. The right group structure
can free up efficiencies and minimise your tax liabilities. We can give you our perspective
on whether being a Registered Provider and/or charity is still the best option for you. The
incentives of grants and funding must be balanced against the weight of compliance.
Of course, Registered Providers all do very different things; from small-scale set-ups
with fewer than 10 properties, to manager-assisted retirement rentals, youth hostel
associations and supported accommodation for those with physical or mental health
issues. We will look closely at your business model before offering advice on how to
enhance your structure.
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Maintaining
excellence
Tax consultancy
Our in-house tax advisory service is here to guide you through the minefield of tax. We will
assist you to minimise your tax exposure, offering Health Check reviews to identify any
areas where you can establish greater efficiency – now and as you develop.
The question of VAT
VAT is a key concern for the social housing sector. We have a dedicated VAT team that
understands the tax system and are aware of any reliefs or schemes available.
Your trading structure may mean you are exempt or partially exempt. You can rely on us
to exhaust every avenue as we handle your calculations and adjustments. VAT Health
Checks can often give rise to new strategies, such as suggesting separating one income
stream into a new subsidiary, even timings can work to your advantage and help you to
avoid irrecoverable VAT.
‘‘
These are testing times for the social housing
sector, so we need a keen pair of eyes to make
sure we stay on track
‘‘
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A dedicated team
Employee matters
Whether you have a handful of staff or hundreds, payroll administration can be problematic. Not
only in terms of resources, but also keeping up with evolving tax complexities. Our teams can
assist with PAYE, national insurance contributions and negotiations in respect of benefits in kind.
While issues such as auto-enrolment into pension schemes have added to your responsibilities,
we can ease the burden by bringing you the most recent information and options.
One-off issues and development
All sorts of opportunities can arise across the year as tenants and the market changes.
We understand your responsibilities well enough to help you steer a route forwards.
You may be considering developing adjacent land or require funding and grants for property
conversion or regeneration. You may want us to look at a potential acquisitions’ return on
investment. You may require predictions of future cash requirements, or perhaps you’ve had a
fraud that needs investigating quickly. Whatever the reason, we are ready to help you manage
the situation.
Service charge accounts
Accounting for service charges and service charge accounts in the property industry is a
specialist area that requires expertise and an understanding of the sector. Meeting your
service charge requirements and providing certificates in time to meet deadlines can be a
headache, at Spofforths we aim to help take away some of the stress and help you meet your
obligations. Our aim is to work closely with both managing agents and property managers and
owners with a view to making the whole process more efficient and to provide a flexible and
efficient service which is value for money.
‘‘
‘‘
We strongly believe in keeping the
lines of communication open
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Spofforths commitment
As a firm, we are actively involved in the sector. We have representatives at ICAEW
offering timely advice as requested. Members of the Spofforths team keep abreast of
forthcoming changes in legislation and share their expertise by attending and speaking
at annual conferences such as the National Landlords Association (NLA) meeting.
Our integrated approach gives you streamlined access to a full spectrum of specialist
services. While we incorporate the latest developments and practices,
we also maintain the traditional qualities associated with a well-established firm.
For further information, contact our specialist Social Housing team
[email protected]
www.spofforths.co.uk/sectors/housing-associations
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Our Offices:
Brighton
One Jubilee Street, Brighton,
East Sussex BN1 1GE
T: 01273 811 000
F: 01273 811 001
E: [email protected]
Chichester
9 Donnington Park, 85 Birdham Road,
Chichester, West Sussex PO20 7AJ
T: 01243 787 627
F: 01243 532 757
E: [email protected]
Horsham
Springfield House, Springfield Road,
Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 2RG
T: 01403 253 282
F: 01403 250 926
E: [email protected]
Worthing
A2 Yeoman Gate, Yeoman Way,
Worthing, West Sussex BN13 3QZ
Spofforths LLP is registered to carry on audit work in the UK and
regulated for a range of investment business activities by the
Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
Registered in England and Wales No.OC315867
Registered office: 9 Donnington Park, 85 Birdham Road,
Chichester, West Sussex, PO20 7AJ
Spofforths Private Client Service LLP is regulated for a range of
investment business activities by the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in England and Wales
Registered in England and Wales No. OC342713
Registered office: 9 Donnington Park, 85 Birdham Road,
Chichester, West Sussex, PO20 7AJ
Spofforths LLP and Spofforths Private Client Services LLP are not
authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 but
are able in certain circumstances to offer a limited range of investment
services to clients because they are licensed by the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. We can provide these
investment services if they are an incidental part of the professional
services we have been engaged to provide.
Spofforths Financial Planning Limited is authorised and regulated by
the Financial Conduct Authority for investment business
Registered in England and Wales No.03327931
Registered office: Springfield House, Springfield Road,
Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 2RG
Spofforths is the trading name of Spofforths LLP, Spofforths Private
Client Services LLP and Spofforths Financial Planning Limited.
T: 01903 828 728
F: 01903 828 729
E: [email protected]
www.spofforths.co.uk
January 2015
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