Services

Lewis Smith & Co

Accountancy, Taxation and Business Advice Services

Lewis Smith & Co. has a highly experienced team that offers the broad range of accountancy, taxation and business advisory services that your organisation needs.

What sets Lewis Smith & Co. apart is that we recognise that you need more than just well qualified people to help you. The reason that over 500 clients (in Dudley, Stourbridge, Kingswinford and around the Black Country) use our services is because they like our approach to doing business.

They tell us that we are more approachable, that we try harder than anyone else to understand how their organisation works, that we match the right people to the right job and that we are always prepared to provide help and support.

To find out more about about what we can do for your business simply roll your mouse over any of the headings in the left-hand menu.

Then give us a call on +44 (0)1384 235549 (or email us at info@lewissmith.com) to discuss your accountancy requirements today!

Accountancy Services

Account Preparation

Lewis Smith & Co. has the expertise and resources to prepare accounts for all types and sizes of business. Whether you are a start-up or a multi national group we can match your needs with the right people.

We take a "value added" approach to our services. It isn't about simply signing off a client's books: we always try to find ways of improving the business, saving money and planning for the future.

All accounts are prepared using the latest Sage Accounts Production and Sage Line 50 software thus ensuring the highest standards and most cost-effective service.

Service Options

We provide the following account preparation services;

  • Sole Traders/Partnerships
    Accounts can be produced monthly or quarterly to keep you up to date and to assist in the day-to-day running of the business. At all times valuable advice will be at hand. Depending on your circumstances we will produce annual accounts in conformity with the requirements of HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), bankers, creditors etc.
  • Limited Companies/Limited Liability Partnerships
    As well as management accounts prepared monthly or quarterly we can produce annual accounts in conformity with current legislation and for filing with Companies House each year. Accounts can be audited or non-audited depending on the size of your business and bankers / creditors requirements. Audited accounts will always give the user of the accounts greater reassurance and can usually be prepared for little extra cost.

  • Social Clubs, Charities etc.
    These type of entities have specific reporting requirements. Lewis Smith & Co. can provide accounting services for any non-standard trading entity.

     

For more information on how we can help you prepare your business or organisation accounts or advise on Companies House filing just get in contact - we are happy to help.

If you are unsure what accounts preparation service you require then don't hesitate to set up an appointment with one of our expert team.

Taxation Services

'In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." Benjamin Franklin, 1817.

Tax is Complex

You can be certain that there will be a constant change in the legislation on the different forms of taxation that UK companies and business people face. Given the complexity of the UK tax system you may find it a necessity to get professional advice when dealing with your tax affairs.

At Lewis Smith & Co. we take our responsibility to keep up to date with changes in the tax system very seriously. That means that we are always ready to provide you assistance giving you the best possible tax planning advice. So if you find tax affairs difficult then we can help.

Taxation Assistance

Lewis Smith & Co. can offer advice and assistance in the following areas:

  • Self Assessment / Income Tax
    We will prepare your annual self-assessment tax return, advise you on your tax liabilities to be paid or of tax refunds due, and take care of all dealings with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) on your behalf. We offer valuable tax planning advice to enable you to manage your affairs in a tax efficient way and minimise any future tax liabilities. We also check employee's tax coding notices and advise on benefits in kind such as company cars.
  • Tax Planning and Inheritance Tax
    Ensuring that your future taxation liability is minimised requires a proactive approach...today. Lewis Smith & Co. offers a comprehensive taxation planning service that will help you to minimise your tax exposure, defer payment or simply achieve piece of mind in your taxation affairs.
  • Corporation Tax
    Lewis Smith & Co. can prepare your annual corporation tax return for filing with HMRC and advise you of any tax payments to be made or refunds due. We will deal at all times directly with HMRC on your behalf.
  • Capital Gains Tax
    This is an area which is very complex and it is essential that you take advantage of the specialist advice that we offer. Early planning must be made in this field of taxation to maximise the use of tax relief available.
  • VAT
    Many businesses are not aware of when they should register (or perhaps de-register) for VAT and do not realise that there are a variety of different VAT schemes. Lewis Smith & Co. will advise on these matters and arrange al of the necessary paperwork . The preparation of your VAT return can be tied into our book-keeping service, or maybe you are happy with your own book work and simply want your return checking: either way, we can help.

    Should you be subject to a VAT inspection or investigation we are used to dealing with HMRC and are on hand to provide any assistance you may require. It is essential that you keep your tax affairs in order and up to date, as the risk of not doing so will lead to the incurring of penalties and interest. Lewis Smith & Co. will do their best to help avoid such situations.
  • Fee Protection Service
    The likelihood of investigations into your tax affairs has greatly increased in recent years. Our Fee Protection Service is available to help cover the cost and hassle of dealing with HMRC. Select the option in the Service menu for more details.

Our practice is set-up to deal with the taxation issues of organisations of all sizes and across all industries.

To find out how we can help you just call or email and we will be delighted to discuss your requirements.

Management Accounting

Helping You to Manage Your Business

Management Accounting is focused on ensuring that you always know how the business is performing.

It is about understanding which activities are profitable or possibly loss-making. It is about managing cash-flow to ensure that overdraft and lending costs are minimised. And it is about overall control of your cost base, making sure, for instance, that billing and collections are on track.

Stay in Control With Lewis Smith & Co.

Our management accounting capability will help you to stay in control with a forward-looking perspective on company performance, the implementation of management systems and internal controls and up to the minute reporting against key performance indicators.

Our management accounting service is often offered on a fixed - fee basis.

To find out more about how we can help you achieve great business performance call or email Lewis Smith & Co. today.

Bookkeeping Services

Good Bookkeeping is Essential

Accurate and timely bookkeeping and record maintenance is essential for the successful management of every business. That's why Lewis Smith & Co. has established a specialist bookkeeping bureau to provide high quality, value for money bookkeeping services.

The Lewis Smith & Co. bookkeeping bureau is used by many of our clients and goes hand in hand with the production of accounts. Good bookkeeping ensures that you have accurate information for you to run your business profitably and makes compliance work such as VAT preparation far easier.

Bookkeeping Processes

The Lewis Smith & Co. bookkeeping bureau operates both manual and computerised systems tailored to suit the individual needs of each client. The bureau uses Sage software, the UK's number one bookkeeping and accounts software package, and we can offer on-site or off-site services, or even give you remote log-on facilities - whatever suits you best.

Lewis Smith & Co. are members of the Sage Accountants Club. This gives us us full Sage technical support, licences us to give advice on the Sage system and allows us to sell both the software and accessories at a discounted rate.

Lewis Smith & Co. are also able to provide training in all aspects of IT and non-IT based bookkeeping to make sure that you and your team are always up-to-date on good practice and current legislation.

Call Lewis Smith & Co. today to get a quote for our bookkeeping bureau service and find out how you can save both time and money straight away.

Audit Services

Audit Background

All companies are required to prepare accounts: normally larger companies with a turnover over a certain size threshold are legally obliged to have an annual audit.

At Lewis Smith & Co., we believe that an audit represents far more than a statutory business obligation: it provides the opportunity to conduct a detailed "health-check" on your business, to pinpoint any potential areas of weakness and to suggest new opportunities for improved profitability and business efficiency. Our approach to audit is to provide users of the accounts not only with an assurance that the accounts are not materially misstated but also to give a proactive service in recommending improvements to systems or performance factors.

Sometimes an audit may be needed for a reason other than the legal requirement – for example in support of loan applications, maintaining or increasing finance facilities, or simply at the request of the owners.

Audits

Our audit techniques are designed to be cost-effective and to ensure that all legislative requirements are efficiently dealt with. We are aware that timely information is essential for decision making and therefore plan to carry out each audit as soon after the year end as practical.

We are registered to carry out audits by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). Lewis Smith & Co. ensures that all audited accounts comply with current statutory requirements, Financial Reporting Standards (FRSs) and International Standards on Auditing (ISAs).

If you aren't sure what auditing your business requires or even if your business requires an audit then we can provide advice so that you can make the right decision.

Contact Lewis Smith & Co. today and let us know how we can help you establish the right audit profile for your business.

Start Up Assistance

Start Ups A Speciality

Supporting business start ups is one of Lewis Smith & Co's real specialities. We get involved with helping people take their first steps to running their own business on a regular basis.It is an area of our work that gives us tremendous satisfaction...and we are good at it!

Many of our long-standing existing clients have been with us from their first day of trading and even before!

Feel free to contact us with any questions you have about setting up a business.

For more information, take a look at our section."Starting in Business"

Payroll Services

Payroll Bureau

Even for small businesses preparing the payroll is a complex and time consuming activity. As your business grows the task just gets harder.

To make things easier for our clients Lewis Smith & Co. has its own payroll bureau, which has proved to be one of our most popular services. The bureau allows you to offload all of your payroll compliance tasks, from calculating net pay to dealing with all of those forms, to our expert team. The hassle is removed and you benefit from our cost effective operation.

Payroll Tasks

Using the latest computer software and well-honed business processes we can perform the full range of payroll tasks including;

  • Calculating gross pay
    - Hourly, weekly or monthly rates
    - Bonus systems, piece work etc.
  • Calculate additional payments
    - Statutory sick pay
    - Statutory maternity pay
    - Statutory paternity pay
    - Tax credits
  • Calculate additional items
    - Student loans
    - Court orders
    - Other items
  • Prepare gross pay to net pay calculations.
  • Prepare fully itemised payslips
  • Prepare details for payment
    - arrange payment with bankers
    - utilise cash, cheque, giro or electronic payments systems
  • Provide summaries and analysis reports for management purposes.
  • Advise of due payment dates for PAYE & National Insurance.
  • Deal with all the forms
    - P45 and P46 for leavers and joiners
    - P60, P14, P35 for tax year-ends
    - P11d and P11d(b) for employee benefits.

Low Cost Quotation

We would be delighted to provide you with a quote for payroll services so you can see how little it costs to remove a big problem. Call Lewis Smith & Co. today for more information.

Fees charged for outsourcing your payroll relate to the number of employees and frequency of payment.

Company Secretarial Services

Stay Compliant

The post of Company Secretary is extremely important but not always given the status and the resources it deserves. Lewis Smith & Co. can take away the burden and provide a comprehensive administrative service designed to ensure compliance with statutory obligations in this important area.

Managers and proprietors of businesses can avoid the risk of penalties without having to devote excessive time to "red tape".

Our Services

Details of our services are listed below and range from routine annual compliance to specialist "one-off" situations:

  • Formation of new companies (same day if required).
  • Tailored Memorandum & Articles of Association.
  • Preparation and filing of (363) annual return.
  • Online filing (cheaper and more efficient).
  • Maintenance of statutory registers.
  • Provision of registered office facility.
  • Assistance with board/shareholders meetings.
  • Change in accounting date.
  • Provision of a nominee company secretary.
  • Company searches.
  • Change of company name.
  • Appointment/Removal of directorships or Company Secretary.
  • Purchase of own shares.
  • Increase/re-organisation of share capital.
  • Change in registered office.
  • Redemption of preference shares.

Advice is always available on topics such as company structure, dividends and of course on selling your company. We can advise on when or whether to form a limited company or LLP.

Let us know what's on your mind and contact us to discuss your needs.

Specialist Reporting Services

Information to Manage Your Business

Aside from our regular bookkeeping and accounting services, we can offer assistance at different levels of management accounting that are tailored for a specific need. This can range from providing reporting required by banks / lenders through to the preparation of due diligence reports.

We have the expertise and computerised systems to provide an all-round service. Our aim is to produce fast and accurate information to assist in the management of your business.

Specialist Reporting

Below are some examples of the type of specialist reporting work Lewis Smith & Co. can offer:

  • Business Planning
    Specialist reporting is required in a number of different situations; new business start-up situation, expansion of an existing business, or refinancing to cover a period of uncertainty. In these circumstances you may need detailed cash flow forecasts, profit forecasts or the development of budgets. Lewis Smith & Co. can assist with the preparation of these using a combination of flexible spreadsheet modelling techniques and lots of experience and expertise!
  • Feasibility studies
    Feasibility analysis is one part of business planning which seeks to provide the information on which business decisions can be made. These decisions may relate to investment in a new venture or the refinancing of an existing one.
    We have substantial expertise in the compilation of feasibility reports, both for management use and to accompany applications for the renewal or extension of banking facilities.
  • Acquisitions and disposals
    The provision of sound business advice is of particular significance when the sale or purchase of a business is involved. We are able to help assess the viability of any business with the benefit of our experience and knowledge to recommend the most commercial and tax efficient methods to deal with acquisitions or disposals.
  • Grants and finance
    We are able to advise on the availability of grants for funding business projects and methods of financing commercial activities, taking into account the appropriate tax implications.
  • Investigations
    We have exceptional auditing and general accounting experience and are thus able to carry our effective investigations where required into business projects where feasibility studies are required.
  • Forensic accounting/divorce and separation
    Whether you have a corporate or personal dispute we can provide advice and reports which will be required by the legal profession if the dispute involves civil proceedings.

Whatever your specialist reporting needs are, we have the knowledge and expertise to help.

Simply give us a call and let's discuss your requirements.

Due Diligence

Making a Business Acquisition?

The due diligence process is a vital step in making sure that your acquisition, merger or MBO (Management Buy Out) is successful or that a lending decision or provision of supplier credit is safe.

At Lewis Smith & Co. we have the experience and resources to perform the objective investigations necessary to minimise the risks involved.

More Than Just The Numbers

Understanding the financial position of the target company and assessing its future performance are, of course, at the core of our services. However due diligence investigations must go beyond just "checking the books" because business success depends on so many factors.

Lewis Smith & Co. can provide reporting on a range of key factors including;

  • Reliance on key staff
  • Asset ownership
  • IP (Intellectual property) and copyright
  • Debtor levels
  • Sales forecasts
  • Supplier profiling
  • Working capital

Whatever transaction you are undertaking Lewis Smith & Co. are here to provide expert help.

Because of the commercial sensitivity of due diligence work you can call on us for a completely confidential discussion of your requirements.

Training Services

Improving Skills

Our experience with many clients tells us that one of the best ways of improving business performance is by improving the skills of their staff. Lewis Smith & Co are keen to advocate skills development since it not only adds value to your business, but it gives us a better base to work from when working with you on any accountancy project.

Training Capability

Our training services can vary from teaching very basic bookkeeping through to using advanced software applications. We have an extensive knowledge of many of the Sage and Microsoft products and will be keen to pass this on to you or your staff.

Would training on any aspect of accountancy help you? Let us know today.

Fee Protection Service

Increased Investigations

You have probably heard that the Tax Authorities have greatly increased the number of investigations they make into small and medium sized businesses.

What you might not have considered is that such investigations can lead to professional fees and time taken out of the business even if no additional tax demands are made.

Fee Protection

Our fee protection service covers all specialist professional fees that would occur if you needed to respond to an investigation from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

Benefits of Fee Protection

Dealing with HMRC under any circumstances can be stressful especially when an investigation is unexpected. Taking out our low cost fee protection service means that you don't have to worry about nasty surprises.

  • Professional fees will be covered
  • You get full, expert support to defend your case
  • Our team of professional advisors will manage all dealings with HMRC on your behalf

Interested? Contact us today by phone or email for a quotation and find out how you can get peace of mind with a very low investment cost.

Investment Advice

Making the Right Decision

Lewis Smith & Co. are regulated by the Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants to conduct a range of exempt regulated investment business activities.

Working alongside reputable local firms of Independent Financial Advisers we are able to help with investment products and services including:

  • Pensions
  • Life Assurances
  • Mortgages and Loans
  • Insurance
  • Health Insurance
  • Keyman Policies
  • Investment Portfolios

Our ability to provide investment advice means that we can offer our clients a complete service. This is very important when you need to make plans for expansion, sale or passing on your business.

Call or email for a confidential discussion on your investment needs.

Contact Us Services Starting in Business