Afford Bond are delighted to announce the appointment of Chris Monks as partner. Chris will be joining the existing eight partners and working alongside Peter O'Malley and will be responsible for the continued growth of the recently acquired Wilmslow practice. Chris commented "this is a very exciting opportunity for me following a long and considered recruitment process. Having talked to a number of practices is was very clear that Afford Bond can provide the opportunities to progress within a very dynamic environment. To progress a successful acquisition in Wilmslow, along with achieving consistent organic growth in a very competitive market and difficult economic climate, is testament to the management team and I look forward to working with them to keep the momentum flowing".

Chris has a strong background in accounts and audit looking after a number of prestigious clients. Peter O'Malley of Afford Bond commented "the partners are delighted with the appointment of Chris and look forward to him joining the team. To find a candidate of Chris's calibre was not an easy process and I look forward to working closely with Chris over the coming years. Afford Bond are starting to build a strong client base in and around Manchester and with the extra resource of Chris we should be able to really push on. Our focus is always on the delivery of quality advice and exceptional service and it is clear Chris shares the same beliefs."

Afford Bond are delighted to announce the appointment of Paul Edwards as a director of the practice. Paul has been with the firm for 15 years joining as a trainee accountant in 1996. Paul qualified as a Chartered Certified Accountant in 2002 and furthered his studies by becoming a Chartered Tax Advisor in 2005. Paul has gradually progressed through the practice and is now a key addition to the management team. In addition to managing a number of significant audit and accounts clients of the practice Paul has been instrumental over the past three years in delivering complex tax solutions to a variety of clients. The directors are delighted to have Paul as part of the management team.

You should be aware that the standard rate of VAT increases to 20% from 4 January 2011, but what is less clear is how the VAT rules work where invoices are raised or payments are received around this date....

You may have heard on the news and read the press that around 45,000 taxpayers are receiving letters from HMRC over the next three months or so, explaining they have paid the wrong amount of tax, with 6 million expected to receive notifications by Christmas. These will be going out to people who have not had to fill in tax returns, but who have relied upon the PAYE system operated by their employers or pension payers to collect the right amount of tax...

It is quite common for land to be held in joint ownership either as 'joint tenants' or as 'tenants in common'. These are legal terms which denote two different types of land ownership. In the first case, each joint owner holds an equal share and they all have a right of survivorship. This means that if any one of the joint tenants dies, the remainder of the property is automatically transferred to the survivors no matter what is stipulated in his Will...

There are been numerous attacks by HMRC in recent years in attempt to deny agricultural property relief (APR) on farmhouses and farm buildings. The recent case of Atkinson v HMRC [2010] has resulted in a taxpayer victory, concerning whether a bungalow (treated as a farm cottage) had been occupied for the purposes of agriculture during the last four years of Mr Atkinson's life when he was forced to live in a care home due to ill health. He remained in the farming partnership until his death and continued to keep his belongings at the property and visited occasionally....

Do you have a staff handbook? If so, when was it last updated?
Do all your employees have contracts of employment?
Has an employee taken you to Employment Tribunal in the past 3 years.

These are a few questions you need to ask yourself and a simple solution to solving them can be found at a FREE SEMINAR on Wednesday 24 February. At the seminar, Cork Griffiths and Abbey's HR consultants will outline the current employment law provisions and, how you can stay one step ahead of these. After the session, there will be an opportunity to meet the consultants and discuss any specific HR or employment issue which may be troubling you.

If you would like to attend the seminar, please call Sarah Ashworth on 0844 736 2886 to reserve your place. These will be limited so please book early to avoid disappointment. Alternatively, if you don’t wish to attend but would like to discuss an HR issue or your existing provisions for HR, then please telephone Paul Griffiths on 07802 716996.

We are pleased to announce that we have a new service line to offer clients of our firm. This will be spearheaded by Paul Griffiths, FCIPD who has over 20 years experience in recruitment, supplemented by his initial career as an accountant. Paul has been running his own recruitment business for the past 15 years and, during that time, has supported us with a number of Partner appointments here at Afford Bond as well as carrying out numerous key appointments for clients.

If you would like to make contact with Paul, please telephone him on 0844 736 2886 or 07802 716996. He would welcome the opportunity to meet up and discuss any aspect of your HR strategy.

Afford Bond are pleased to announce their merger with Wilmslow based accountancy practice, Phibbs Edge. Afford Bond have been looking to gain a presence in the South Manchester area and identified Phibbs Edge as a like-minded organisation with similar focus and goals. The merger consolidates Afford Bond’s position as one of the leading independent practices in the North West.