Numeric Accounting

Thinking About Changing Accountants? Ask These Questions First.

How often will we speak?
Will you help us forecast?
Can you provide meaningful management information?
Will you challenge our numbers and assumptions?
Can you support us with tax planning before year-end?
Can you help us understand profitability and cash flow?
Do you understand businesses at our stage of growth?

Then the price really matters.

The question isn't simply what your accountant costs. It's what your accountant helps you achieve.

Save these questions and read more in our September blog.
https://www.numericaccounting.co.uk/blog/is-it-time-to-change-your-accountant/

Your current accountant tells you what happened in the past. You want help deciding what happens next, but you do not have the capacity to hire someone for that role.

There is an important difference between financial reporting and financial management.

Your accounts might tell you that gross margin fell from 38% to 34%. Useful information; however, a Finance Director-style conversation only begins there.

Why did it fall? Was it wages? Supplier costs? Discounting? Poor job recovery? Product mix? Pricing?

Then comes the more important question: What are we going to do about it?

This is the direction we believe accountancy support for established SMEs should take. Accounts should not simply arrive, get reviewed and disappear into a folder.

Your numbers should spark conversations about pricing, people, profitability, cash flow, investment, and growth.

That is where future financial conversations with Numeric, from a Financial Director's perspective, will begin to add real value to a business.

Is your business ready for strategic financial leadership but not yet ready to hire a full-time Financial Director?

There comes a point in business growth when having an accountant is essential AND having someone who helps you think financially becomes just as important.

That’s where a Finance Director (FD) makes all the difference.

An FD goes beyond asking, “Can we afford it?”

They’ll challenge you with: What’s the expected return? How will this impact cash flow? What if sales drop 10%? Does this move us closer to our long-term goals?

At Numeric, we are developing our Financial Director coaching service as standard in our accounting service for your business, bringing this level of strategic financial thinking to the businesses we support.

This is not your traditional accountant service. It is about giving directors the right financial insights, challenge, and support to make confident, growth-focused decisions alongside a standard annual report.

Compliance is just the start: What value are you receiving?

Filing accounts on time is not a value-add. It is simply the baseline. For businesses with growing teams, rising costs, and tighter margins, the real value of an accountant includes:

• identifying risks before they become problems
• helping you understand why performance is changing
• advising on staffing costs, pricing, and cash reserves
• providing proactive tax planning rather than retrospective advice

If your accountant only contacts you at year-end, you are likely missing opportunities and may be carrying unnecessary risks.

Numeric Accounting operates as an extension of your leadership team, not just as a reporting function.

Get in touch with us if any of these points resonate with you.

📧 [email protected]

Dividends vs Salary: What Works Best?

"Just pay yourself in dividends; it is more tax-efficient."

This is one of the most common pieces of advice directors hear from other, but it is not always true.

The right mix of salary and dividends depends on your Corporation Tax position, your personal tax bracket, whether you want pension contributions to count, and any other factors affecting your personal finances this year.

What worked for your friend's business might not be the right approach for yours.
The most tax-efficient structure is not a fixed formula; it is a conversation.

At Numeric, we review this every year because the right answer rarely remains the same for long.

Companies House is closing the DIY Route; if you currently file your own company accounts through the Companies House web portal, that option will soon be unavailable.

You will soon need to use software or an agent to file. Although the deadline may seem distant, it is important to have compatible systems in place well in advance.

There is an advantage for small companies and micro-entities: you can now choose to keep your profit and loss account off the public register while still filing it with Companies House as required.

Neither change requires immediate action, but both are worth understanding now rather than discovering them the week your filing is due.

Mileage Rate Increase: Check Your Figures

A quick update for anyone claiming mileage: The simplified rate has increased to 55p per mile, up to 10,000 miles, started from the 6th April.

It may seem like a minor change, but if your records, spreadsheets, or expense claims have not been updated, you could be under-claiming, or your business could be overpaying each month since the increase.

It is worth taking five minutes to check if everyone is submitting mileage at the current rate or still using the old one.

Small details like this can quietly cost your business money when overlooked.