• Posted August 5, 2016

New Team Members

Whitesides has recruited two new members of staff for their growing Horsforth office. Adam Fox joined Whitesides as our new office manager from a large high street retailer where he spent 6 years working as a manager in their Finance and Operations section. Adam will be responsible for the smooth running of the office, ensuring […]


  • Posted April 25, 2016

Keeping Records

  Last week I was asked twice about keeping records – which made me think perhaps it should be the next topic for my blog. So what records do individuals and businesses need to keep, and for how long?   HMRC require all businesses (whether sole traders, partnerships or limited companies) to keep and retain […]


  • Posted March 31, 2016

How to pay your corporation tax

As accountants, we often get asked by our clients how to pay corporation tax. Reference To pay your corporation tax you will need your 17 character Corporation Tax payslip reference for the accounting period you are paying.  The reference number can be found by logging into your company’s HMRC online account and going to “view […]


  • Posted March 22, 2016

What the 2016 budget means for small businesses

The latest budget was billed as the budget for “the next generation”, but there was plenty of good news for small business owners too, here are a few of the headline points. Business Rates Following significant lobbying from small business groups, George Osborne announced that from next April, the rate at which small business rates […]


  • Posted March 21, 2016

What is the Confirmation Statement?

How is this different to the annual return, and what does it mean to my business? From June 2016 companies will no longer have to submit an annual return to Companies House, instead they will submit a confirmation statement. Unlike the annual return, companies will be able to submit a confirmation statement any time they […]


  • Posted March 11, 2016

Taxation of Dividends

In the summer Budget, the chancellor George Osborne announced major changes to the current tax legislation which applies to dividend income. From 6 April 2016 there are 4 main changes coming into effect: The 10% dividend tax credit will be abolished. Individuals will have a £5,000 a year tax-free dividend tax allowance. This allowance will […]


  • Posted March 8, 2016

Preparing for the National Living Wage

On 1 April 2016 the new National Living Wage of £7.20 an hour for workers aged 25 and over will take effect. There are several steps employers must take to ensure that they comply with the new rates, including: Finding out which staff are eligible for the new rate Updating their payroll before 1 April 2016 […]


  • Posted February 25, 2016

HMRC’s clampdown on undeclared income

In July 2015 HMRC launched a campaign to clampdown on individuals and businesses who let out rooms in their homes on the internet or sell goods on sites such as Amazon, ebay or etsy without paying tax. Many people who use these sites are unaware that they should be completing a self-assessment tax return for […]


  • Posted February 1, 2016

Sage Shortcuts

At Whitesides, we have been using Sage for over 20 years. We have trained and supported hundreds of businesses on how to use Sage and are often asked about shortcuts. Using shortcuts on Sage can save a significant amount of time when entering transactions, and all without the need to move the mouse. Here are […]


  • Posted January 12, 2016

Leaving it to the Last Minute?

Last year 979,526 tax returns were filed on the last two days of filing (30 and 31 January), that is over 10% of the total number of returns submitted online. So why do people leave it right to the last minute? It doesn’t seem logical, how many news stories do you read of HMRC’s portal […]