The Spring Statement by the Chancellor got rather overlooked yesterday, what with the government falling apart a bit.
It’s worth picking up on one thing though. There seems to be a concerted effort to stop companies paying late for work completed.
READ MORE > Posted on 14 March 2019
If you were one of the many people who left everything to the 31st January tax return deadline, you might now be recovering from what I call the tax hangover.
It’s caused by a mixture of adrenaline, that feeling of wooziness because you’re not quite sure if you did everything right, coupled with relief that it’s over, followed hotly by the unpleasant realisation that you have to do it all again next January.
But it doesn’t have to be like that!
READ MORE > Posted on 12 February 2019
You might be vaguely aware that the 31st January is an important deadline for tax affairs.
In fact it’s two deadlines:
READ MORE > Posted on 14 January 2019
I’m writing this just as the Chancellor sits down from delivering his 2018 budget. It was heavy going, mainly because his jokes were so awful.
What he covered in the speech is only the tip of the iceberg. More detail will drip out as we trawl through the big Budget Red Book.
What I can give you here is a quick run-down of bits that might affect freelancers and self-employed folk, as he mentioned them in the House. READ MORE >
Posted on 29 October 2018
At a recent freelancing workshop someone asked a great question. “How can I avoid being skint in winter when there’s no work?”
This simple question goes to the heart of good financial management when you’re freelancing.
We have a short video explainer about freelance cash flow planning.
Watch it on our Free Stuff page >
READ MORE > Posted on 01 October 2018

I’ve been going through cash flow planning with sole traders now for nearly 15 years, and it’s a great way to plan how to not run out of the money.
A cash flow sheet READ MORE >
Posted on 01 October 2018
Well. Would you Adam and Eve it.
After 2 years of toing and froing over Class 2 national insurance, the government has announced sole traders will continue to pay it after all.READ MORE >
Posted on 10 September 2018
If you’ve been on one of my networking for freelancers workshops, we probably discussed how to not waste time on social media.
Don’t get me wrong. Social media can be a very good way of keeping in the loop when you’re working for yourself.
But many people talk about getting sucked into social media. They intend to check their timelines for a couple of minutes, and two hours later they’re on their 20th cat video.READ MORE >
Posted on 01 August 2018

iPhone showing Coconut Bank website
Banking is undergoing something of a quiet revolution. There are two main reasons for this:
1/ Since the financial crash of 2007/8 new banks have been encouraged to challenge the high street brands that got us into such a mess.
READ MORE >
Posted on 26 February 2018
[Post Budget update: The VAT threshold will not drop from £85,000 as threatened. It looks like Chancellor Hammond was leant on by his colleagues.
However the government will READ MORE >
Posted on 06 November 2017