Monthly Archives: June 2021

The BCC is calling on the government to help businesses rebuild

Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
Optimism has grown since lockdown restrictions have started to ease, but businesses are still worried about the months ahead.
The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has created a report outlining proposals to help businesses build back stronger.
It focuses on five key areas:

Manage the virus response in a way that helps businesses survive and thrive
Economic health and investment
Build an ambitious global trade strategy
Skills for the jobs of today and tomorrow
Invest in the places where we live, work, study and play

Let’s see what they had to say.
>See also: Sunak ignores small business pleas for more help to get through lockdown
Manage the virus response in a way that helps businesses survive and thrive
UK-wide co-ordination of virus management and recovery, ensuring consistency of approach across nations
Set out a long-term Coronavirus testing strategy so businesses can plan with confidence
Set out contingency plans for future virus response so businesses can invest in their future with confidence
Economic health and investment
Require lenders to accept requests from Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan customers for the term of their loans to be extended from six to up to ten years
Introduce a blended approach to businesses’ Coronavirus-related debt, including a student-loan style option, so firms only

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What is the Business Banking Resolution Service (BBRS)?

Originally written by Lewis Shand-Smith on Small Business
What is the BBRS?
The Business Banking Resolution Service was launched in February this year, and is already helping small businesses who have had problems with their banks.
It is a free, voluntary scheme involving seven of the main business banks. Between them, these seven banks cover over 90 per cent of the SME banking market in the UK. It deals with unresolved disputes between larger SME customers and their banking services providers.
It is independent and the banks – which have signed up to a contract detailing the service – must accept its determinations. The BBRS can help UK registered businesses, partnerships, trusts, charities, friendly societies and co-operative societies.
How does it differ from the FOS?
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) is a scheme set up by statute for individuals and smaller SMEs. The BBRS has been designed so that it does not overlap with the FOS, but rather dovetails with the FOS’s rules. If your SME is not the right size for one it is likely to be right for the other, and the BBRS will refer you to the other organisation if it cannot help.
I’m a small business – can the BBRS help me?
It depends

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Forming a company: Choose your trading type

Originally written by Joanne Harris on Small Business
Choosing to go self-employed is a career goal for many working people in the UK. More money, better hours, and a flexible work-life balance are just some of the reasons many people aspire to work for themselves. But should you become a sole trader, form a limited company or even a partnership? Choosing the right trading type is a crucial early decision.
Although the pandemic has caused issues for all types of businesses, it failed to dampen the nation’s entrepreneurial spirits, with the latest ONS data recording more than 4.3m people still registered as being self-employed as of March 2021.
As vaccinations speed up and lockdown restrictions ease, now could be the time to form the business you’ve been planning to set up over the past year.
However, before you start, it’s important to consider the right company trading type for you.
The way in which you register your business can impact your tax, take-home pay, legal responsibilities, and even personal finances, so it’s vital to look at all the options before you make your choice.
Sole trader
Being a sole trader is the single most popular way of trading as business, with almost 60 per cent of UK

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