HLAS

Disruptions due to the weather can happen anywhere at any time. Taking time to plan and prepare your business can save you time and money when something untoward happens. There are simple steps all businesses can take to ensure that they are prepared for adverse weather such as: signing up for flood warnings; installing flood protection systems; checking your insurance policy covers weather damage to your property - make sure you have suitable insurance, theAssociation of British Insurers provides helpful information; Commercial property insurance is particularly relevant; having a business continuity plan; making copies of your insurance documentation and key contact information; and preparing [...]

The Department for Transport (DfT) has refreshed the newly named Air passenger travel guide, making it easier for passengers to know their rights and responsibilities when they travel. Formerly known as the aviation passenger charter, it details what people can expect from airlines, travel agents, tour operators and airports, and what to do if things don’t go to plan. This includes advice on what to do if flights are cancelled or delayed, if baggage goes missing, and the rights of disabled passengers, as well as guidance on how to complain if passengers feel they have been treated unfairly. The travel guide also [...]

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, will invest up to £1 million in collaborative innovation projects with an artificial intelligence (AI) focus, that aim to benefit the wider UK music sector. This funding is part of Innovate UK's Creative Catalyst. Projects must: support the growth of the UK music industry; utilise artificial intelligence or enable the use of AI; demonstrate a clearly innovative and ambitious idea; respond to the changing market conditions and challenges in the global music industry; be market ready within 12 months of receiving support; and demonstrate value for money. To be eligible, applicants must [...]

From 6-10 November the British Business Bank, along with several partners from across the UK, will host Business Finance Week 2023. With a host of free of charge nationwide and regional in-person events, webinars and more, Business Finance Week helps smaller businesses learn about the different finance options available to them to support their individual needs. Some of the events running are: An introduction to angel investment Demystifying early-stage equity finance Founder Fables and Investor Tales: Common mistakes and how to avoid them How to start your business and avoid costly mistakes Making sense of start-up funding: Where do I [...]

By paying the real Living Wage, employers are voluntarily taking a stand to ensure their employees can earn a wage which is enough to live on. As well as it being the right thing to do, there is a growing body of evidence demonstrating the business benefits of becoming a Living Wage employer. The Living Wage rates are independently calculated based on the real cost of living in the UK and London. The new rates for 2023/24 are: £12 per hour UK rate; and £13.15 London rate. See: Real Living Wage increases to £12 in UK and £13.15 in London | Living [...]

The amount of VAT a business pays or claims back from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is usually the difference between the VAT charged by the business to customers and the VAT the business pays on their own purchases. With the Flat Rate Scheme: you pay a fixed rate of VAT to HMRC; you keep the difference between what you invoice your customers and pay to HMRC; you cannot reclaim the VAT on your purchases - except for certain capital assets over £2,000; and to join the scheme your VAT turnover must be £150,000 or less (excluding VAT), and you must apply to HMRC. The main benefits of the scheme are: simplified record [...]

As the winter sets in, the cost of energy will be a key issue for all businesses. The High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult has launched a pilot scheme to help small manufacturers cut energy usage. The Manufacturing Energy Toolkit is a guided assessment which is carried out by HVM Catapult experts to create a better understanding of energy usage and sources. With the Manufacturing Energy Toolkit, the HVM Catapult is opening its doors to help manufacturers make their processes more energy efficient, cutting their energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions by up to 46%. See: Manufacturing Energy Toolkit for SMEs [...]

Changes to Alcohol Duty took effect on 1‌‌‌ ‌‌August 2023. This includes new reliefs which could reduce your tax bill: A Small Producer Relief: which reforms and extends the relief previously enjoyed by small breweries, to producers of all alcoholic products under 8.5% ABV; and A reduced rate for draught products also known as Draught Relief, which reduces the tax due on draught alcoholic products under 8.5% ABV, packaged in containers of at least 20 litres, and designed to connect to a qualifying dispense system. Please contact us to check if you can take advantage of the new reliefs and [...]

Funding is available for immersive digital mental health therapeutic solutions. Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, will invest up to £4.5 million in innovation projects across the two strands of the Mindset XR competition. The aim of this competition is to develop digital therapeutic extended reality (XR) solutions to provide improved delivery of mental health and wellbeing services. This competition is split into two strands: strand 1 - for feasibility studies strand 2 - for industrial research Your project must undertake feasibility studies or industrial research in the application of XR to provide mental health care solutions. Your [...]

Following a public consultation, Wine: reforms to retained EU law, the UK government has set out reforms for the wine sector which will begin in 2024. Feedback from the wine industry has shown that certain regulations within the current 400-page rulebook have been stifling innovation and preventing the introduction of more efficient and sustainable practices. Changes will include removing some packaging requirements – such as ending the mandatory requirement that certain sparkling wines must have foil caps and mushroom-shaped stoppers. This will reduce unnecessary waste and packaging costs for businesses. Outdated rules around bottle shapes will also be scrapped, freeing [...]