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Cornish Accounting Solutions

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Chartered Accountants & Business Advisers
Helping family businesses to grow, thrive and succeed. We are one too so understand the challenges and issues.
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Author of the book - Building a legacy- a guide for family businesses. Comments by Ant Chartered Accountants & Business Specialists

30/10/2026

Happy Halloween everyone, have a brilliant weekend!
I'm off to take a bite out of the weekend!

28/10/2026

Today I wanted to write about John Healey's first Budget, and what it means for family businesses here in Cornwall.

For me, the most important news is that the inheritance tax rules on business and agricultural property stay as they are. The first £2.5 million of qualifying assets still gets 100% relief, and spouses or civil partners can pass on an unused allowance, so up to £5 million together.

The points I'd pick out:

● Business Asset Disposal Relief is halved from £1 million to £500,000 for sales from 6 April 2027. The rate stays at 18%.
● A new founders' relief taxes lifetime gains up to £10 million at 10%, with the qualifying rules still to come.
● The National Living Wage goes from £12.71 to £13.20 an hour in April 2027, and the 18 to 20 rate goes to £11.27.
● Small business rate relief for retail, hospitality and leisure rises from £12,000 to £18,000 rateable value.
● No change to dividend tax.

If you were planning to sell or pass on shares in the next few years, the BADR change is the one to look at now, would you agree? Personally, I'd like families to plan this with time on there side, well before next April.

So how about you, has the Budget changed your plans?

01208 74615 | www.cornishaccounting.com

28/10/2026

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂?

It's a useful question for any family business owner who's thinking about handing over one day... and most owners find the answer is "not quite yet".

Owners often carry a lot in their heads... like which customers need a call, how the pricing works, who to ring when the van breaks down, and where the passwords are kept.

A few things to try this autumn:

● Write down the jobs only you do, and pick one to pass on each month
● Let someone else run the weekly figures in Xero, and go through them together
● Put main suppliers, contracts and logins in one place the family can find
● Take a full week off and see what comes back to you

Each step makes the business easier to run, and it gives the next generation a chance to build confidence while you're still around to help.

Our free Handover Health Check takes about five minutes and gives you a score for how ready the business is, alongside how ready you and your successor are. It's a good place to start, and the link is in the comments.

To talk it through with us, give us a call on 01208 74615.

26/10/2026

The tax bill many business owners pay at the end of January often comes at the leanest point of the year for cash.

For a lot of family businesses in Cornwall, the busy months are behind us now. Takings slow down, the wages and overheads carry on, and then January brings Self Assessment payments for owners, sometimes with a payment on account for the year ahead as well.

A bit of planning now makes the winter much easier:

● Put together a simple cash forecast for November to March, month by month
● Ask us for an estimate of your January tax bill, so it isn't a surprise
● Move money each month into a separate account for tax
● Chase any money owed to you before Christmas, when people are slower to pay
● Talk to your bank in good time if you think you'll need some extra headroom

If your bookkeeping is up to date in Xero, the short-term cash flow view gives you a quick picture of what's coming in and going out over the next few weeks.

When the numbers are planned out in October, you can make decisions calmly... and you go into the new year knowing where you stand.

To talk it through with us, give us a call on 01208 74615.

22/10/2026

Around 70% of family businesses fail or are sold before the second generation takes over... and only about 10% reach the third.

In the latest Meet the Author episode, Paul Miller talks to Graeme Tennick about why. On average it takes roughly 24 years to reach £1 million turnover, and that means years of sacrifice, decisions and difficult choices. Paul shares an old saying: one generation to build, one generation to manage, and one generation to lose the business.

The further a family gets from the founder, the easier it is to forget why the business started. Sharing those stories with the next generation helps to keep that purpose alive.

Watch the full episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNJywv0-EOs

01208 74615 | www.cornishaccounting.com

21/10/2026

If you're a director of a limited company, have you verified your identity with Companies House yet?

Identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025. Existing directors verify when their company files its next confirmation statement, and by now many companies have already been through one.

In September, the Insolvency Service brought its first prosecutions for identity verification offences. The directors involved were fined, and one was prosecuted for not taking reasonable steps to stop an unverified co-director from acting.

A few things to check:

● Every director has verified and has their Companies House personal code
● The code goes in with your next confirmation statement, for each company you're a director of
● People with significant control who aren't directors have their own timing, linked to their birth month
● Verification is free, online through Companies House or through an authorised provider

Family businesses often have a parent, partner or grown-up son or daughter listed as a director who isn't involved day to day, and they're easy to miss. It's worth checking your list this week!

To talk it through with us, give us a call on 01208 74615.

19/10/2026

Most family business owners in Cornwall know they'll hand over one day... the harder part is knowing how ready everyone is.

Our free Handover Health Check takes about five minutes, there's nothing to look up beforehand, and you get your results straight away.

It gives you a score in three areas, plus an overall score:

● How ready you are as the owner... what you'll need from the business when you step back, and how you feel about no longer working in it
● How ready your successor is... who would take over, what they do now, and if they've said they want the business
● How ready the business is... how well it runs without you, how long it could cover its costs, and if you have forward figures in place

It's written so the owner and the person taking over can both answer it. We'd suggest you each fill it in separately and then compare your results... the differences can tell you a lot.

It's a good way to start the conversation round the kitchen table, and it shows you where to focus first.

The link is in the comments.

To talk it through with us, give us a call on 01208 74615.

15/10/2026

The Autumn Budget is on Wednesday 28 October less than a fortnight away and there'll be plenty of speculation about what might change.

We'd suggest waiting for what's actually announced and avoid the speculation. What you can do this week is get ready:

● Make a note of any big decisions you've been putting off, such as buying equipment, taking dividends, pension contributions or plans to pass the business on
● Check your up-to-date figures in Xero, so you know your profit for the year so far
● Note your year end and any tax payments due in the next few months
● Hold off on rushed changes made only because of something you've read

Once the Budget has been delivered, we'll look at the confirmed measures and what they mean for established family businesses here in Cornwall. Some changes take effect straight away and others start later, so it helps to know which is which before you act.

If a decision is coming up, it's worth a conversation with us after the announcement and before you commit.

To talk it through with us, give us a call on 01208 74615.

14/10/2026

An HMRC enquiry can be opened even when your return is correct, and the professional fees for dealing with it can run into thousands of pounds.

Last year, 93,000 enquiries ended with a nil settlement, which means no extra tax, penalties or interest were due. The people involved still paid for the professional time it took to get there.

One small business owner faced an enquiry that lasted 18 months after HMRC questioned transactions between personal and business accounts. No tax was due, but the fees came to more than £9,000. A simple nudge letter about a property sale cost nearly £1,000 to answer, and nothing on the return changed.

All our clients are covered by our Tax Investigation Service, and it's included in their fees. If HMRC contacts you, we represent you and the cost of that work is covered.

If you're not a client yet and want to know how this works, get in touch with our team and we'll talk it through.

01208 74615

13/10/2026

Autumn is a good time to take half an hour away from the day to day and think about where your business is heading.

Paul's tool of the month is the Business Bullseye, a one-page plan for the next three years. This is how it works:

● The centre of the target is where you are today
● Each ring is a year, starting with this year and moving out to year three
● The turnover arrow runs out through the rings, so you can write in the turnover you're aiming for at each stage
● Boxes around the outside cover your critical business factors, your personal aspirations and your main projects

We'd suggest starting with your personal aspirations... your business plan should support the life you want outside of work. In a lot of family businesses, the plan gets written around the business and the family has to fit in where it can. Writing down what you want first gives you something to measure the rest of the plan against.

Print it off, grab a coffee and give yourself half an hour. You'll be surprised how much clearer the next three years look once they're on one page.

Free PDF in the comments.

To talk it through with us, give us a call on 01208 74615.

Address

79 Higher Bore Street
Bodmin
PL311JT

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5:15pm
Tuesday	9am - 5:15pm
Wednesday	9am - 5:15pm
Thursday	9am - 5:15pm
Friday	9am - 5:15pm

Telephone

01208 74615

Website

http://www.cornishaccounting.com/

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