The Farm Bookkeeper

The Farm Bookkeeper Based in East Anglia, covering all your bookkeeping and farm secretarial requirements. Based in East Anglia, covering all your bookkeeping requirements.

Pleased to have recently completed my Xero recertification 🎉
07/09/2026

Pleased to have recently completed my Xero recertification 🎉

Hello👋Back in the office after a couple of weeks off.
25/08/2026

Hello👋Back in the office after a couple of weeks off.

Thinking about taking on a member of staff, and wondering what will it cost?A farm worker earning a salary of £30,000 a ...
20/07/2026

Thinking about taking on a member of staff, and wondering what will it cost?

A farm worker earning a salary of £30,000 a year, could actually cost your business around £34,900, once you include:

🌾 Salary: £30,000
📋 Employer National Insurance: ~£3,750
💼 Employer pension contributions: ~£713
👷 PPE and work clothing: ~£200+
🚜 Training and certifications: ~£200+

Not to mention the cost of holiday cover, recruitment costs, or the cost of accommodation, if it’s provided with the role.

If you are expanding your team, make sure you’re budgeting for total cost, not just the salary.

🚩 Is your farm's cash flow trying to tell you something?Cash flow challenges aren’t always as obvious as an empty bank a...
06/07/2026

🚩 Is your farm's cash flow trying to tell you something?

Cash flow challenges aren’t always as obvious as an empty bank account. Sometimes there are red flags long before things become critical.

Do any of these sound familiar?

🌾 Relying on your overdraft for the majority of the year, rather than just at pinch points

💰Waiting for future money to come in before you can pay this month’s bills, or delaying paying suppliers to stay afloat

🚜Pushing back maintenance or repairs for “another day”

📉Despite having a good harvest, still having very little cash in the bank

⏳Struggling to find enough cash to pay the wages, struggling to keep up with HMRC liabilities

🌱 Turning down opportunities because you don’t have the cash to finance them.

Dealing with cash flow struggles can seem overwhelming Here are a few practical tips to get you started.

✅ Create a rolling 12 month cash flow forecast to identify pinch points before they happen

✅ Review your biggest expenses and consider whether any can be delayed, reduced, or spread over time

✅ Where possible, reduce your payment terms (for example, from 30 days to 14 days) and follow up on outstanding invoices sooner

✅Talk to your suppliers if you need more flexible payments terms – communication is key

✅Review your fixed asset register to see if any cash is held up in machinery or other implements you don’t use anymore

✅Speak to your accountant, bank manager, or other advisor about your concerns – the sooner you do this the more options you are likely to have available to you

🤝 If financial pressure is affecting you personally, don't face it alone. Farming charities can provide confidential support, practical guidance, and someone to talk to

📢 Self-Assessment Reminder 📢If you're required to make Payments on Account, your second payment for the 2025/26 tax year...
25/06/2026

📢 Self-Assessment Reminder 📢

If you're required to make Payments on Account, your second payment for the 2025/26 tax year is due by 31 July.

💻 Login to your personal tax account to check if you have a payment becoming due.

If you need to make a payment, don't forget to use your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) followed by the letter "K" as your 10-digit reference.

📣 If your income has changed and you think your payment may be too high, you may be able to reduce your Payments on Account.

📅 Stay on top of your tax to avoid interest or penalties.

☔If the weather has you spending a little more time in the office today, why not tackle your P11D and tick another job o...
08/06/2026

☔If the weather has you spending a little more time in the office today, why not tackle your P11D and tick another job off the list?

📢Don't forget — the deadline for submitting your P11D and P11D(b) forms to HMRC is 6 July.

If you've provided employees with benefits or expenses such as company vehicles, fuel, accommodation, or other taxable benefits, it's time to get your paperwork in order.

Choosing the best VAT scheme can make a real difference to your business cash flow and administrative burden. Have you c...
26/05/2026

Choosing the best VAT scheme can make a real difference to your business cash flow and administrative burden.

Have you considered which scheme works best for your business?

🔹 Standard VAT Accounting
VAT is paid and reclaimed based on invoice dates.

🔹 Cash Accounting Scheme
VAT is accounted for when payments are received and made, as opposed to when they are invoiced – this can be beneficial for cash flow.

🔹 Flat Rate Scheme
Businesses pay a fixed percentage of turnover depending on the industry in which they operate.

🔹 Annual Accounting Scheme
If applicable, advance VAT payments are made throughout the year with one annual return.

🔹 Margin Schemes
Pay VAT on profit margin for eligible goods.

🔹 Retail Schemes
Simplifies VAT calculations for businesses with lots of low value sales, by only calculating VAT once with each VAT Return rather than on every sale you make.

The best option depends on turnover, industry, cash flow, and how the business operates.

Not all schemes are available to all businesses, but a quick VAT review can sometimes uncover opportunities to simplify processes or improve cash flow 🚀

🚀 Say goodbye to manual data entry!Xero’s new Smart Document Capture makes bookkeeping faster, easier, and more accurate...
17/05/2026

🚀 Say goodbye to manual data entry!

Xero’s new Smart Document Capture makes bookkeeping faster, easier, and more accurate by automatically extracting key details from bills and receipts using AI 📄✨

Here’s how to use it 👇

1. Upload or drag your invoice/receipt into Xero’s “Files”

2. Smart Document Capture scans the document automatically

3. Supplier details, dates, invoice numbers, and amounts are pre-filled for you

4. Review the information and make any edits if needed

5. Publish and reconcile in just a few clicks ✅

Less admin. More automation. More time back in your day. ⏱️

Have you tried it yet? Let us know your thoughts below 👇

Big changes are here under the Employment Rights Act 👇• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): From April 2026, SSP becomes a day one...
20/04/2026

Big changes are here under the Employment Rights Act 👇

• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP): From April 2026, SSP becomes a day one right — no waiting days and no lower earnings limit.

--> Review your sickness policies and absence management policies

• Paternity and Parental Leave: From 6 April 2026, paternity and parental leave become a day one right (leave only, not pay), removing previous service requirements.

--> Update your staff handbook, contracts, policies to reflect new rules.

• Sexual Harassment: From October 2026, employers are liable for harassment against their staff by third parties and must take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. Allegations in the public interest will receive Whistleblowing protections.

--> Conduct risk assessments to identify high risks and make action plans to assess those risk. Ensure Whistleblowing policies refer to sexual harassment.

• Fair Work Agency: A new enforcement body launching from April 2026 to uphold rights like sick pay and holiday pay.

--> Review holiday pay calculations, ensure adequate records to demonstrate evidence of compliance (6 years’).

• Unfair Dismissal: Protections are being strengthened in phases — from January 2027 the qualifying period will be reduced to 6 months (currently employees must wait for two years before they are protected).

--> Review recruitment procedures probation process.

Thinking about your year end stock take? Here’s a reminder of what to include.* Crop in store – make a note of tonnages ...
16/04/2026

Thinking about your year end stock take? Here’s a reminder of what to include.

* Crop in store – make a note of tonnages and remember to estimate at cost (discount sales value by 25%) [exclude anything that’s left the farm that you’ve not received payment for yet, this should be brought in via debtors]

* Livestock – as with crops in store, make a note of numbers and remember to estimate at cost as opposed to sales value

* Inputs in store – any seed, fertiliser, and spray in store, yet to be applied

* Cultivations – seed, fertiliser and spray applied, as well as any contracting costs [you many use farm management software to record this]

* Wearing parts, red diesel, kerosene, etc – anything else (of sufficient value) held in stock at the end of the year

For arable farmers, essentially you need to record anything you’ve paid for to date relating to the 2026 harvest, plus anything yet to be sold relating to the 2025 harvest.

For anyone who’s diversified, don’t forget to include any non-farming stock on hand in relation to these businesses too.

Make sure you keep a detailed note of your workings. If challenged by HMRC, you would need to be able to justify the figures you’ve used.

Address

Bury St. Edmunds

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

07801827610

Website

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