The UK’s economic picture remains uncertain ahead of the Autumn Budget and with the economy growing at a very slow pace, investors and taxpayers are feeling the pinch with a record number set to face a Dividend Tax bill.Continue reading
Author Archive: Muhammad Zia
Government announce commitment to deliver a genuine living wage: What does that mean for businesses?
Next year’s National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage have been hot topics of discussion with experts warning they must go up to meet the Government’s goal for it to match two thirds of median earnings.
App of the Month: Chaser – smarter credit control for your business
Late payments can put a real strain on your cash flow. That’s where Chaser comes in – an award-winning tool that helps businesses get paid faster while protecting valuable customer relationships.
Trusted by thousands of SMEs worldwide, Chaser combines automation with a personal touch, taking the stress out of chasing overdue invoices and freeing up your time to focus on running your business.
Why Chaser stands out
Chaser turns what is often a time-consuming, frustrating task into a smooth, automated process. Features include:
- Credit monitoring – Real-time checks on new and existing customers to manage risk.
- Pay rating – Insight into clients’ payment behaviour to guide decision-making.
- Revenue forecasting – Accurate cash flow projections.
- Automated reminders – Polite, persistent prompts via email, SMS or phone.
- Easy payment options – A customer-friendly payment portal and flexible payment plans.
You can also access debt collection services, outsource to Chaser’s credit control specialists, and track accounts receivable through seamless integration with your accounting software.
The result?
Less time chasing invoices, fewer overdue payments, and a stronger cash position – all while keeping your client relationships intact.
If you would like to explore whether Chaser could work for your business, speak to our team today.
Client spotlight: Education Business Partnership Northwest celebrates another award-winning year
At Rotherham Taylor, we take great pride in celebrating the achievements of our clients and few have had as consistent a run of success as Education Business Partnership Northwest (EBPNW).
Formed in 2014, EBPNW has been with Rotherham Taylor from the very beginning, growing from a start-up into an award-winning organisation that now supports around 10,000 young people each academic year.
Their mission is clear: to prepare young people across the North West of England for the world of work, bridging the gap between education and business, and helping to develop the skills of the future workforce.
Driving skills, opportunity and growth
By working in partnership with schools, employers, Local Authorities and Skills Hubs, the EBPNW team delivers statutory career guidance and work-related programmes that help schools meet Gatsby benchmarks and Ofsted requirements.
Their work ensures that young people have meaningful encounters with employers, experience real workplace environments, and link their curriculum learning to genuine career opportunities.
An award-winning track record
In June 2025, EBPNW added to their growing trophy cabinet by winning Medium Business of the Year at the Hyndburn Business Awards – the second time they have received this honour.
The event, held at the Dunkenhalgh Hotel, marked another milestone in their journey, having previously won Micro Business of the Year and Small Business of the Year at the same awards over the past nine years – a testament to their steady growth and impact.
Their success does not stop there. In 2024, they were also crowned Small Business of the Year at the prestigious Red Rose Awards, held at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool.
A shared journey
Directors and Co-Founders, Tracy Gardiner and Emma Woan, along with their talented team – Hollie Maringo, James Ainsworth, Charlotte Ainsworth and Claire Baker – continue to lead the organisation with passion and purpose.
We are proud to have supported EBPNW since their inception, providing the financial and strategic guidance needed to help them grow while staying true to their mission.
We congratulate the whole EBPNW team on their continued success and look forward to seeing how they will inspire and prepare the next generation in the years to come.
Want to feature in one of our future Client Spotlights? Share your latest good news with us.
How can you protect your savings from a hefty tax bill?
As the Government attempts to balance its books, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has revealed over 2.6 million taxpayers will be hit with tax bills on their savings.
According to a report, the average saver is paying a £2,300 tax bill for interest occurred on their savings this year.
It is estimated that during the 2025/26 tax year, HMRC will collect £6 billion from over 2.64 million savers – an increase of over 120,000 taxpayers in the previous year.
If you want to protect your savings, it is important to explore the options available and seek urgent advice from your accountant.
How does savings tax work?
Savings tax is charged at the taxpayers’ income tax rate and paid on the interest accrued in savings. You become liable when you are pushed over the personal savings threshold.
The personal savings allowance may allow you up to £1,000 of interest tax-free depending on the income tax band you are in.
The more you earn, the smaller the allowance. Individuals earning £125,140 or more do not benefit.
There are several forms of savings that are taxable, including current account interest, savings account interest, interest from peer-to-peer lending, Government bonds, and credit union savings interest.
Without checking your savings and examining the interest involved, you could be at risk of being pushed into a threshold where a tax bill could come your way.
Why are more savers paying tax?
The two main factors behind the increased number of savers paying tax are the continued frozen tax thresholds and higher interest rates.
With Income Tax currently frozen until 2028, as individuals earn more and save more, they are being pushed into higher tax brackets, making their savings liable for tax.
The upcoming Autumn Budget could see the Income Tax threshold extended as Chancellor Rachel Reeves tries to balance the Government’s book.
Higher interest rates are also pushing savers beyond the threshold.
Interest rates in the UK have been climbing since January 2022. Despite finally decreasing slowly, rates remain extremely high at 4.25 per cent, double the Government’s two per cent target.
The Bank of England monitors interest rates in the UK and will decide if cuts or increases are required. They have been holding and making modest cuts over the last few months, but not enough to stop the increase in savers paying more tax.
Bank of England will cut interest rates further this week, but not enough to meet the Government’s two per cent target.
How can I protect my savings?
Being proactive gives you the best opportunity to protect your savings and limit the damage of a tax bill.
A useful way to protect your savings is to open an Individual Savings Account (ISA).
You can earn tax-free interest on up to £20,000 through an ISA each year, making it a useful savings option if you are going to exceed the personal savings allowance.
Another option is to monitor savings interest rates, since these will fluctuate.
However, this doesn’t apply for fixed-rate accounts, as interest has already been agreed with the account provider.
It is also advisable to check when your interest is paid, as spreading the payments out can help to keep your returns below the personal savings allowance.
Is there support available?
It is important to protect as much of your hard-earned savings as possible and ensure you are not hit with an unwanted tax bill.
If you are concerned about the potential of a savings tax bill, our specialist accountants can help.
Are you making the most of Gift Aid donations to reduce Income Tax?
When it comes to making savings, any reduction to your Income Tax bill must be welcomed.
Gift Aid is a way of donating to charity that also includes the tax that you have been paid on the amount given.
The charity can claim back the basic rate Income Tax (20 per cent) that you have paid on the donation from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
Gift Aid is a fantastic way of boosting a charity’s funding while also reducing your Income Tax liability.
What are the benefits from donations?
Donating through Gift Aid means charities and community amateur sports clubs (CASCs) can claim an extra 25p for every £1 you give.
The process involves signing a Gift Aid declaration including your name, address, date, signature and declaration stating that you are a UK taxpayer, with any future donations made to the charity being treated as gift-aided donations.
When signing the Gift Aid declaration, the amount that you donate is taken from your taxed income, and the donation is then increased by the amount of tax that you have paid on it.
In essence, you give a portion of your taxable income to the charity, which means they can then claim back the tax that you have paid on that segment on your income.
For example, if you were to donate £100 to a chosen charity, your gift is treated as a net payment, which results in the gross amount of £125 with tax. The charity can then recuperate the £25 from HMRC.
Claiming tax relief through Self-Assessment
Self-Assessment taxpayers can claim tax relief on Gift Aid (once the charity has claimed the tax relief) on their own tax return.
You can also claim in the current tax year if you want the cash sooner or have previously paid the higher rate of Income Tax.
However, it is important to keep records of these donations if you wish to claim back tax on them.
Your records should evidence the date of the donation, the amount donated, and which charities you’ve donated to.
The official advice states that you should list your Gift Aid donations on your tax return or ask HMRC to add them to your PAYE code.
You can include all donations from the last four years.
In certain circumstances, you can carry donations back to the previous tax year.
This can bring you below certain income thresholds, helping you to retain certain reliefs and allowances such as Child Benefit payments, free hours of childcare, or your personal tax-free allowance.
Higher rate taxpayer benefits
If you pay tax at the rate of 40 per cent or higher, you can claim back the difference between the tax that you paid and the 20 per cent tax that is claimed by the charity.
For example, if you donate £200 to a charity, Gift Aid makes the total donation worth £250.
You can then claim back 20 per cent (the difference between 20 and 40 per cent) of £250, which is £50.
For sizable donations, this means you could claim back a substantial amount in tax.
For example, a donation of £5,000 becomes £6,250 with Gift Aid applied.
A 40 per cent rate taxpayer could claim back £1,250 in tax, while a 45 per cent rate taxpayer could reclaim £1,562.50.
Use Gift Aid to your advantage with Rotherham Taylor
Our experienced accountants can help you keep track of your Gift Aid donations and reclaim Income Tax through your Self-Assessment tax returns.
We can also advise on other ways to mitigate your liabilities as part of an overall tax planning strategy.
HMRC is cracking down on crypto – What taxpayers need to know
As cryptocurrencies become increasingly popular in the UK, the Government is introducing the Organisation for Economic Development (OECD) Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF) and extending it to include domestic reporting.
This means that, from 1 January 2026, cryptoasset service businesses will have new responsibilities for collecting data and reporting it to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), and UK cryptoasset holders will need to provide personal details to their service providers.
While this should not change the amount of tax you are liable for, it is important not to get caught out by the new compliance requirements.
What’s changing?
Currently, HMRC has only limited information on details of disposals and gains in particular circumstances.
It has already been announced that HMRC will now require full disclosure of any cryptoasset gains or income on Self Assessment forms for the 2024-25 tax year, with a new dedicated section in the capital gain pages for this purpose.
Under the new reporting requirements of CARF, HMRC will hold comprehensive information of all UK cryptoasset users and investors, including details of transactions and held assets.
This is designed to help HMRC crack down on cryptoasset tax avoidance and evasion.
All “reporting cryptoasset service providers” (RCASPs) based in the UK will need to report details of their users to HMRC.
A business is considered an RCASP if it either transacts cryptoassets on behalf of users or provides a means for users to transact cryptoassets.
You’ll only need to report on users who are tax resident in the UK or another country that is signed up to CARF rules.
Personal details you will need to collect include:
· The user’s name, address, and date of birth.
· The user’s tax residence.
· The user’s National Insurance (NI) number or Unique Tax Reference, or the tax identification number (TIN) and the country where it was issued (if the user is not a UK resident).
· Details of your cryptoasset transactions, including the value of the cryptoassets, the nature of the transactions, and the number of units.
You’ll need to submit your first report by 31 May 2027, giving details for 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026.
A penalty of £300 applies per user for late, inaccurate, incomplete or unverified reports. If you fail to report at all, you could also be penalised.
Why is the UK introducing CARF?
By collecting data on cryptoasset users from their service providers, HMRC will be able to identify those who haven’t paid the right amount of tax on gains or income from cryptocurrencies.
This will help to “unmask anyone evading tax due on their crypto profits,” states HMRC.
According to estimates from HM Treasury, the new reporting requirements will help to raise up to £315 million in unpaid tax by April 2030.
Stay compliant with cryptoasset tax
The introduction of CARF shouldn’t increase the amount of tax you pay, but it will increase your reporting requirements.
Our tax accountants are here to support both cryptoasset service providers and investors.
We can take care of your tax reporting for you, sparing you the burden of extra admin and giving you peace of mind that you’re fully compliant with HMRC.
Unpacking HMRC’s Transformation Roadmap
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) recently published their updated Transformation Roadmap, which brings a number of confirmations and updates regarding Making Tax Digital (MTD) and wider tax administration in the UK.
The Transformation Roadmap is part of HMRC’s ambition to become a digital-first organisation by 2030, where at least 90 per cent of interactions with the tax authority will occur digitally.
Here are the key highlights from the Transformation Roadmap.
MTD for Corporation Tax abolished
The Transformation Roadmap confirms that MTD for Corporation Tax (CT) will no longer be going ahead.
This move is not surprising, especially given the well-documented delays and difficulties ahead of the rollout of MTD for Income Tax (IT).
Instead, HMRC intends to renew internal CT systems as part of an overall move towards modernising UK tax administration.
Most businesses already use digital systems where appropriate, so the abolishment of MTD for CT doesn’t mean a move away from digital record keeping.
However, it does offer a reprieve for businesses already dealing with an increasingly complex and costly compliance, giving them the flexibility to choose systems that suit their business needs.
New online PAYE service
A new online Pay As You Earn (PAYE) service is being introduced for around 35 million UK taxpayers.
Accessed through the Personal Tax Account and HMRC app, the new service aims to make it easier to check and update incomes, allowances, reliefs, and expenses.
Taxpayers will be able to better understand the information held by HMRC and make changes to ensure they are paying the right tax on their salary or pension.
A new expenses service will also enable PAYE taxpayers to submit claims for tax relief on their allowable expenses and upload supporting evidence all in one place.
Digitalisation of Inheritance Tax
The process of migrating the current Inheritance Tax (IHT) system to a new digital system will begin this tax year, with the intention of operating a fully digitalised IHT service from the 2027/28 tax year onwards.
The aim is to make submitting returns and paying IHT simpler and quicker
Data and AI
With a total tax gap of £46.8 billion in the 2023/24 tax year, HMRC has laid out new measures to tackle fraud and non-compliance.
HMRC is set to increase its use of third-party data to help promote compliance, such as by pre-populating tax returns.
The Transformation Roadmap also lays out detailed plans for HMRC’s use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve tax collection and compliance.
For example, AI analytical tools will be used to improve the delivery of targeted digital nudges to taxpayers, designed to help them submit Income Tax Self Assessment and Corporation Tax returns on time and reduce the risk of errors.
HMRC also aims to use AI to assess risks and identify patterns of non-compliance that humans might miss.
Additionally, HMRC caseworkers will be trained in how to use enhanced AI-powered systems (including Generative AI) to speed up casework.
HMRC’s AI ethics working group will be responsible for monitoring the use of AI and establishing mandatory processes within the tax authority to ensure that AI is being used responsibly.
Valuation Office Agency x HMRC
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA), which gives the Government the valuations and property advice needed to support taxation and benefits, will be completely incorporated into HMRC from April 2026.
The move is designed to reduce administrative costs by at least five per cent, as well as simplify the tax system by bringing the VOA’s property tax services under the scope of HMRC.
This means queries and concerns regarding your business properties and related taxes will be dealt with directly through HMRC.
Face the future of tax with Rotherham Taylor
Although several measures in the Transformation Roadmap may seem far off, they will come round sooner than you realise.
Seeking advice from your accountant now is essential to make sure you are prepared for dealing with HMRC’s new services and requirements for business and individual taxation.
Rotherham Taylor’s experienced tax specialists are here to help you with your current and future tax affairs, ensuring you make the most of reliefs and allowances to support your overall tax planning strategy.
If you have questions about anything covered in HMRC’s Transformation Roadmap, please contact our friendly tax advisers today.
The cybercriminals are coming – Is your business ready?
In today’s interconnected world, cyber‑risk has gone from a simple technical concern to an existential threat for businesses.
Every business should be preparing itself to defend against cyber criminals, but the number of those doing so is worryingly low.
We consider the current state of cybersecurity and what more needs to be done to protect businesses.
How vulnerable are businesses to cybercrime?
Look at the news on nearly any given day, and you will find headlines concerning the latest business to fall victim to cybercrime.
You might think that this would inspire businesses to take every measure necessary to protect against cybercrime, but the opposite seems to be true.
The World Economic Forum has recently published its Global Cybersecurity Outlook for 2025, and the figures reported therein are troubling.
At the same time, cybercrime is on an unprecedented economic trajectory.
The report indicated that “scammers have siphoned away more than $1 trillion globally in the past year, costing certain countries losses of more than 3 per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP).”
Businesses should be aware that if cybercriminals can take such dramatic action against countries, that they are not safe.
As cybercrime is more efficient and effective than regular crime, there is little to stop cybercriminals from attacking businesses and organisations until they find success.
This can be done through social engineering, phishing scams, and hacking, though the former two are increasingly popular as humanity remains the greatest vulnerability within a system.
How can businesses protect themselves from cybercrime?
As mentioned, it is the people who work for your business that are the main vulnerability.
Technology developers and cybercriminals are in a constant arms race to surpass each other, so many cybercriminals take the easier route of simply asking for access to a network.
Training your staff is the best preventative measure, and cybersecurity training should be conducted with great regularity.
The World Economic Forum Report highlights the success of the Paris Olympic Games as a model for cybersecurity resilience.
It highlights how it “took two years of preparation, which included large-scale audits, penetration testing and cyber-crisis management exercises.”
Your business may not be as big a target as the Olympics, but if you handle any sensitive information, then it will feel as important as them.
The loss of revenue and reputation that comes from successful cyber-attacks can damage businesses for years, as trust takes a long time to be reestablished if it ever can be.
Cybersecurity has been too long overlooked and can have significant ramifications for businesses that do not engage with the matter seriously.
We are on hand to help you understand the importance of cybersecurity and the ways that it can impact your financial well-being.
Worried about the financial impact of a cyber attack on your business? Speak to our team today!
How can AI deliver unexpected savings within your business?
Many business owners assume artificial intelligence (AI) is only relevant for large corporations.
However, modern tools are already helping smaller firms reduce costs in subtle but powerful ways.
Better supplier pricing
Software can now track pricing trends across your industry, flagging when you are paying more than the market average.
For example, a commercial printer might discover that it is paying above-average for paper stock.
With this insight, it can renegotiate terms or source alternative suppliers, without compromising quality.
Smarter staff scheduling
Using historical data and seasonal patterns, planning tools forecast staffing needs more accurately.
A leisure centre, for instance, might notice spikes in footfall during school holidays.
Automated scheduling ensures the right number of staff are on shift, avoiding overtime costs during quiet periods.
Catching expense fraud
Claim-checking systems automatically flag unusual patterns in staff expenses.
Duplicate mileage, weekend travel or other policy breaches are identified early, preventing overpayments.
Trimming software waste
Unused or underused software subscriptions often go unnoticed.
Monitoring tools highlight where licences are not being used, helping you cut unnecessary costs without disrupting the team.
Tighter stock control
Demand forecasting tools analyse past sales, supplier timelines and seasonal behaviour.
This helps you order more accurately, avoid overstocking and reduce cash tied up in excess inventory.
These savings may seem small individually, but together they can make a real impact on profitability.
None of them require large-scale change, but all of them start with a simple review of your current systems and spending.
Looking to invest in AI and automation? Speak to our team about how to fund innovation.
