A new face in Carlisle to support farming businesses through uncertain times

Armstrong Watson is delighted to announce that Jonathan York has relocated to join the agricultural team in Carlisle, bringing with him over 20 years’ experience in working with farmers and supporting them in their businesses.

Jonathan’s knowledge will be invaluable in supporting farming clients across Cumbria on a wide range of subjects, with a strong background in IHT, tax planning and securing business property reliefs he is well used to bringing the right advice for agricultural clients.

Is it worth being a partner in a law firm?

The Law Society Law Management Section (“LMS”) benchmarking survey for 2017 has arrived. It’s a great read and there is something useful for everyone in there. Although, there is a reason that we at Armstrong Watson do individual benchmarking exercises for our legal clients, rather than rely on these UK wide trends – it can be tricky to spot the key metrics hidden in so many pages of data and ask yourself the pertinent “so what”.

We're recruiting! Charity football tournament for Hospice at Home West Cumbria

The date has been set as Friday 16^th June 2017 (the day before the Cumberland Show), when we hope to make a chunk of money for Hospice at Home West Cumbria’s, 30 for 30 appeal. 

Our vision is a 6-a-side football competition, comprising of at least 10 teams; with entries from Armstrong Watson and other professional contacts.

Cockermouth School are kindly providing the venue for free, and with the entry set at £100 per team, we hope to see a considerable profit for the charity.

Kick-off will be at 6pm and we anticipate the tournament will end by 9pm.  

Forensic Accounting heavyweight Chris Hine joins our forensic team

We are delighted to announce that Chris Hine has joined our forensic accounting team as Forensic Consultant.

Chris brings with him over 20 years’ experience in the field of forensic accounting, including 10 years being the National Head of Forensic Accounting at a top ten firm of accountants. 
Chris’ previous experience covers the full spectrum of this complex and highly specialised field.

Don't miss this chance to take your business to the extraordinary

Want to get powerful strategies that will improve the performance of your business?

Want to hear from world class speakers such as Paul Dunn, four times TEDx speaker and award winning entrepreneur?  

Want to create a more profitable, valuable and enjoyable business?

We are gearing up for our next BIP event and have the last few spaces available for those last minute attendees.

A new Partner to support business growth in Cumbria

We are  delighted to announce the appointment of Kevin Engel who has joined us as Audit and Assurance Partner. 

Kevin comes from Grant Thornton in Edinburgh where his previous role as Managing Partner means he has worked with,  and developed businesses to be the very best they can be, with great success. 
With experience in all kinds of family owner managed businesses, he is confident that his natural ability to understand what makes businesses tick and in helping businesses grow, will benefit Cumbria’s businesses community.

Hunting Growth

I once asked a successful business owner which was the best type of customer.  The answer was “a client who is experiencing growth”*.

But how can business owners find or switch-on “growth”? Lots of companies want it, but not all attain it. If it was easy to achieve, then everyone would be at it.

HMRC collected extra £3.3bn in unpaid VAT from SMEs

HMRC has collected an extra £3.3bn in unpaid VAT over the last year, following investigations into SMEs. Such successful returns from these enquiries means more are likely to follow, and business owners should ensure that tax affairs are in order as a result.

The extra tax was collected by two newly created specialist HMRC teams, the Individuals & Small Business Compliance unit and the Wealthy & Mid-sized Business Compliance unit.

Are you a Cumbrian Business looking to grow?

We are looking for Cumbrian businesses who are serious about growing their business  and are up for attending a challenging, intensive and enjoyable programme which is guaranteed to make a difference to their business. 
 
If this sounds like you then read on! 
 
We have a unique opportunity for eligible businesses to attend our world- renowned Business Improvement Programme  using a Growth Hub Subsidy which would give 40% funding towards the cost of the 2 day programme. 
 

Is the Lifetime ISA for you?

The Lifetime ISA (LISA) became available to investors under the age of 40 from 6 April 2017. The design of the account has specifically been for a dual purpose:

1. to provide a deposit for a first home (worth up to £450,000) and/or;

2. to save for retirement