Bath’s Christmas Market, which returned last year for the first time since 2019, attracted an estimated half-a-million visitors, according to official figures just released – making it one of the most successful in its 20-year history. Footfall was round 25% up on pre-2019 average and while the financial impact of the market has not...
More than 100 firms across the West of England have signed up to a regional Good Employment Charter which pledges to pay staff a Real Living Wage and clamp down on the use of zero-hours contracts. Introduced by Metro Mayor Dan Norris as part of a campaign against poverty pay, it also commits employers...
After multiple policy U-turns and much uncertainty, the main rate of Corporation Tax will rise from 19% to 25% from 1 April, writes Pearson May partner Matthew Rutter. The government will also establish a ‘small profits rate’, which will hold Corporation Tax at 19% on profits of £50,000 or less. According to the government,...
Each week Bath accountancy firm Pearson May and Bath Business News team up to bring you the top national finance stories. HMRC publishes updated VAT penalty regime The new penalty system came into effect on 3 January. Click here to find out what has changed Small business tax debt is growing Non-payment has increased since the Covid-19 pandemic. Find out...
Three areas of legal expertise at Bath-headquartered law firm Stone King have been enhanced with a number of new appointments. The firm’s leading charity team has been further strengthened by the appointment of Frances Godden as a senior associate, and its dispute resolution team has also been boosted with the appointment of senior associate...
Bath Building Society has appointed Joanne Evans as its first female chair as it enters a new phase in its 118-year history. Joanne, pictured, joined the society’s board as a non-executive director in 2021 and has also chaired its risk committee. Her career in financial services started as a management trainee at a building society,...
The private client team at RWK Goodman, the Bath-headquartered law firm, has been boosted by the arrival of Cherry Stuckey as a partner. Cherry, pictured, has more than 15 years’ private client experience specialising in estate planning and estate administration. Prior to joining RWK Goodman, she was head of the Bristol private client team...
Confidence among the South West’s small businesses has plunged to the lowest level since the country emerged from Covid lockdowns, according to a new survey. The latest quarterly confidence report from the FSB (Federation of Small Businesses) reveals that fears of inflation, falling consumer demand and the general cost of doing business left optimism...
Time Finance, the Bath-headquartered alternative lender, has hailed as a success a change in strategy which shifted its focus to core lending products from its own resources. As a result, its lending book reached an all-time high of more than £150m at the end of November. The turnaround at the firm, which specialises in...
Did you know that eight of out 10 parents in the South West have no legal guardian in place to care for their children in the event of their deaths? And did you know that social services or the courts can step in to decide what happens to your children, should you die without...
