Liam Wyatt, Coleman Insurance, Christopher Beale, Poole CVS, Jen Richardson, Ward Goodman, Ian Rodd, Ward Goodman, Rosie Parr, Lancaster Parr, Mark Ward, Trussell Trust and Dr Dylan Bright, Westcountry Rivers Trust.

On Tuesday 9^th April, Ward Goodman Chartered Accountants, advisers to the charity sector hosted their annual Dorset Charities Conference at the Lighthouse in Poole.

The event brought together charities and suppliers to the charity sector to discuss ideas and opportunities for collaborative working. Charities and businesses were invited to bring trade stands to showcase and raise awareness of their charity or service. Throughout the day a number of expert speakers delivered presentations relating to collaboration and working together to over 125 attendees.

The event enabled Ward Goodman to present Diverse Abilities Plus, its charity of the year for 2012, with a cheque for money the Ward Goodman team had raised in the final quarter of the year and to announce its charity of the year for 2013, Julia’s House. Chosen by the staff at Ward Goodman, Julia’s House will benefit from the fundraising efforts of the team throughout the coming year.

Speaking about the event, Jen Richardson, Audit and Accounts Manager and charities expert said, “Once again we are delighted that from the feedback so many charities and sector suppliers have benefitted from presentations by this year’s excellent speakers and, judging from the buzz of chatter in the room, had lots to talk about with each other.”

If you would like to register your interest in next year’s event please use the contact form below. If you would like a free initial meeting to discuss charity matters, please contact Julie Keen on 01202 875900 or via email at julie.keen@wardgoodman.co.uk.

Charities Conference Presentation, Gallery & Additional Information

To download the PowerPoint slides from the charities conference, please click here. 

Click Here to view the Event Gallery

If you attended the event and didn’t have time to complete the feedback form, please click here to download another. 

If you would like to express your interest in next year’s event or have any suggestions on how we could improve the charities conference, please fill out the contact form below.

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Graham Ball, Managing Director, David Lapthorn, Finance Director and Client Development Director, Ian Rodd, Accounts & Audits Director, Teresa Hatcher, Director of Ward Goodman (Gillingham) Ltd and Bob McGuire

Ward Goodman Chartered Accountants and Financial Advisers are delighted to announce their expansion into Gillingham. The expansion sees the integration of Hudson and Co. into Ward Goodman and allows the Gillingham based firm to better serve its clients in the North Dorset region.

The new office in Gillingham is an exciting development for Ward Goodman and will bring their full range of accountancy, business support and financial planning services to this local high street. Teresa Hatcher will continue to work in the Gillingham office alongside the Ward Goodman team. Clients of Hudson and Co. can therefore expect to continue to receive the same excellent, local service and value for money that they are accustomed to, with the added benefit of being able to access the full range of services on offer as part of Ward Goodman. Teresa said, “I am really excited that Hudson & Co clients can now benefit from a wider range of valuable business services.” When speaking about the expansion, Graham Ball, Managing Director of Ward Goodman said, “I am delighted to welcome Teresa to Ward Goodman. She is a fantastic person and we are really lucky to have her working with us.”

If you would like to arrange a free initial meeting to discuss the services that Ward Goodman offers, please get in touch with your regional office using the details below.

Gillingham: t: 01747 835435 e: gillingham@wardgoodman.co.uk

Wimborne: t: 01202 875900 e: enquiries@wardgoodman.co.uk

Wareham: t: 01929 551551 e: wareham@wardgoodman.co.uk

Alex brings a wealth of experience to Ward Goodman having previously worked as a Senior Financial Adviser for many years and will provide high quality advice for Business owners and High Net Worth Individuals throughout Dorset and the surrounding areas.

It is hoped by all concerned that Alex’s specialist knowledge of Pension Planning, Strategic Financial Planning, Commercial Property Purchases, Inheritance Tax Planning, Wealth Management, Employee Benefits and Investment Strategies, will prove invaluable to clients and ensure Ward Goodman Financial Services is able to provide the highest level of service that saw it awarded Citywire UK’s top 100 status earlier this year.

Speaking about his appointment Alex said, “I am thrilled to be appointed as a Wealth Management Adviser for Ward Good Financial Services where I feel I can progress my career in a well structured, driven and highly client focused firm. I look forward to continuing to grow and develop the team and mentoring the new trainee Advisers.” Simon Willcox, Managing Director of Ward Goodman Financial Services, spoke of Alex’s appointment, saying, “We are very excited to have Alex on board. He brings with him a wealth of specialist knowledge and is very much a ‘can do’ adviser that will fit in very well. I am sure Alex will help us to become a top 50 UK financial services firm in the coming years.

If you would like to learn more about the services Ward Goodman Financial Services offer, please call our head office on 01202 875900 to arrange your free initial meeting.

Businesses

• The top rate of Corporation tax will fall in two years to 20%.  The long-expected plans to merge corporation tax for smaller and larger companies to one fixed rate of 20% will finally be with us.  This measure should encourage investment in the UK, and will finally end the extra costs of running multiple companies under the same ownership.  Regardless of the size of the company, the rate will be 20%
• There will be a new allowance for National Insurance for Employers, allowing them to ignore the first £2,000 of Employer’s National Insurance for employees.  This should help offset some of the costs of reporting everything through the new “Real Time Information” system.
• A new “cash basis” for the smallest businesses was already expected and is due to go ahead in April.  This has been tweaked again, and it will be important to review this carefully to see if it is worthwhile for small businesses.
• Large companies undertaking R&D will be able to claim an “above the line” credit, which is to be set at 10% and will apply from April.
• Many businesses who have loaned monies to their shareholders (the overdrawn “Director’s Current Account”) will need to be careful of new rules designed to stop planning often undertaken to avoid the 25% corporation tax charge payable on such debts.

Individuals

• The seed-enterprise investment scheme (SEIS) has proven popular with our clients, giving valuable tax-reliefs for those investing in new and smaller companies.  The ability to re-invest capital gains in SEIS shares will be continued through to 2015.
• Company car income tax rates are set to rise again, with a new band of 5% for the lowest emission vehicles (0-50g of co2 per km) and a general increase in the taxable benefit across the board.
• The pre-announced new rules for determining UK tax residence for individuals will go ahead as planned.  This important new set of rules should be reviewed by everyone who either has recently lived overseas, or may do in the future.
• The government is pressing ahead with a new “General Anti-Abuse Rule” designed to make it easier for the government to cancel the benefits of mass-marketed tax avoidance schemes that are implemented after Royal Assent of the Finance Bill in the Summer.

We will of course be reading and considering the detail of the documents announced as it becomes available, and do ask us for more information if you are interested in discussing any of the points raised.

• Financial Services Compliance Consultant
• Financial Services Senior Administrator

To find out more or to apply please visit: http://www.wardgoodman.co.uk/?page_id=2803

Rosie advises on a wide range of matters including formation and registration, governance, constitutions, company law, regulatory issues, trustees’/directors’ liabilities, funding, mergers and joint ventures. She qualified as a solicitor in 1979 and worked for over 20 years as a company/commercial lawyer and in general legal practice before becoming a charities specialist in 2002. From 2003 to 2009 she was Head of the Charities and Social Enterprise Unit in a “Top 50″ UK law firm.

She has been listed in Chambers’ Guide to the UK Legal Profession as a leading charities specialist with “tremendous experience of the sector” who is “skilful, up-to-date and really understands the client’s position”. Clients have welcomed her “creative thinking” and “ability to explain complicated matters with clarity”.

Rosie is based in south Somerset. She is a member of the Law Society and the Charity Law Association.

He is also the Project Director of all Trust Projects and is responsible for the education program within the Trust, including the development a foundation degree program to be taught nationally. Dylan is responsible for financing targeting and supervising Westcountry Rivers Trust research and development.

Dylan’s specialisms include marine and freshwater ecology and environmental surveying. He possesses an extensive scientific knowledge of the aquatic environment and is highly skilled in data analysis and statistical testing methods.

Dylan has also bid successfully for, and overseen the delivery of, locally, nationally and internationally funded projects to carry out and manage habitat regeneration, catchment management and several multi–million pound Payments for Ecosystem Services schemes.

In addition to his work for the Westcountry Rivers Trust, Dylan also sits on several national scientific councils representing the Rivers Trust movement in the UK under the banner of the Association of Rivers Trusts.