Member News

We are pleased to announce that we have recently started working with Co-Living Group on their new website, covering online lead generation and search engine optimisation (SEO). Having redone their older, less responsive website, Co-Living Group have needed to get their much-improved new website up to scratch and thus, the SEO is a big part of this.

Co-Living Group work to purchase and repurpose disused and underutilised premises, to convert them into co-living spaces, communal living spaces in urban city centres for young professionals to live in and enjoy.

We have been working to ensure the new website not only looks and feels better than the last, but that it can consistently perform well online and specifically on Google and other search engines like Yahoo, Bing and Baidu. The importance of getting their site indexed properly on global search engines is key, at a time where more people than ever are working from and spending more time at home. It is more important than ever to be discoverable by Google and other well-known search engines.

Work We Are Doing for Co-Living Group

SEO is very much a moving picture, and therefore, there is no amount of work which makes a project ‘complete.’ Thus, we are working on a number of key elements, all of which are integral to the Co-Living Group website’s ranking on search engines:

Website Crawling – First and foremost, ensuring the new website can be seen, read and understood by Google, Bing, Baidu, Yahoo and others is key to any SEO campaign because after all, if the site can’t even be read and ranked by search engines, any subsequent work will be fruitless. We are therefore working on all Google ranking factors including the website’s meta data, on page content and titles, website architecture and the website’s source code, upon which the entire platform is built.

Site Content – Another key element of the works is the focus on the content and content planning of the Co-Living website and brand. There ultimately needs to be content for users to be able to read and understand for any website to rank. There should also be a focus on specific search terms and areas, achieved through targeted and well-written content.

Links & PR – All websites and brand need online PR and when it comes to SEO, there needs to be the correctly formatted and constructed backlinks to the website in question too. Co-Living Group’s website is no different and we are working to generate as much natural and strong PR for the brand and website as possible.

Two-year event sees more prehistoric creatures stomping in on the heels of the T.rex Summer trail

With dates for the 2021 GoGoDiscover T.rex trail set to be announced very soon, Break has revealed that this year’s event will form the first half of a two year trail of prehistoric proportions, with even more T.rex and another gigantic species to discover next year!

The 20 T.rex forming a Jurassic jaunt around Norwich in Summer 2021 won’t fade into extinction, and will return in Summer 2022 for 10 weeks, with more new T.rex friends and a mighty herd of Steppe Mammoth – and this time it will go county wide!

Bringing colour, fun and beautiful art across Norwich and Norfolk, GoGoDiscover is delivered by East Anglia based charity Break in partnership with Wild in Art and the 2022 trail will celebrate the Deep History Coast. The new Steppe Mammoth sculptures tie into Norfolk being home to the discovery of the largest and oldest mammoth ever found in Britain.

The T.rex and Steppe Mammoth sculptures will be decorated by local and national artists and sponsored by businesses from across the region.

Following the 2021 and 2022 GoGoDiscover family-friendly trails, a charity auction of most of the sculptures will be held in October 2022 to raise vital funds for Break; transforming futures and changing lives of vulnerable children and young people across the region.

Break will be announcing some of the partners and sponsors who have already stomped on board for 2022 very soon, but is now calling out for other businesses to get involved by sponsoring a T.rex or Steppe Mammoth. Peter Marron, GoGoDiscover project manager, comments: “We are so excited to once again be working with Wild in Art to bring a two year art trail to Norwich and Norfolk, which will bring tourism and economic benefits to the region, put smiles on people’s faces, encourage adventure and exploration of our beautiful county and raise awareness and vital funds for Break. Money raised from the trail will support young people right here in East Anglia. We’ll also be launching a Learning & Community Programme to get even more people involved and getting creative!

“The 2021 T.rex all have sponsors already and look amazing – we can’t wait to start sharing more news and sneak peeks of them very soon! But now is the time for businesses to sign-up for 2022 and be part of this truly unique and exciting event, while supporting Break.”

Charlie Langhorne, Managing Director and Co-founder of Wild in Art said: “We are proud to continue our partnership with Break and unveil our latest project, which will be brought to life across Norwich and Norfolk, giving new audiences the chance to enjoy public art in a fun and engaging manner. We passionately champion the importance of art for everybody and the social, cultural and educational benefits which it provides. We hope that through GoGoDiscover we can introduce new businesses to the arts, inject additional funds into the creative sector, and encourage people to explore the cultural offer in Norfolk.”

Businesses and community groups interested in getting involved in GoGoDiscover should visit break-charity.org/gogodiscover or email [email protected]

GoGoDiscover follows the success of GoGoHares in 2018, GoGoDragons and GoGoGorillas. Previous GoGo sculpture trails have raised over £1million for Break.

For more information about Break visit break-charity.org

If there’s one thing the events of the last year have shown, it’s that businesses need the services of a quality accountant like never before.

Here at TaxAssist Accountants, this last year has been the busiest for a number of years. It’s clear that the demands and needs of clients are increasing and changing, and Covid-19 has accelerated these changes.

It can be a tough, lonely place being a business owner, or an individual managing your own tax affairs, and we have seen a real need amongst clients to reach out for help and support.

Change is all around us, and a key take away from my almost 30 years of being an accountant, is that the main driver of opportunity is change. Change always creates uncertainty from a client/prospective client’s perspective, which in turn drives a need for help and support – and that’s what we are going to see – not just through the coronavirus pandemic but on an ongoing basis.

Historically the accounting profession has always been focused on looking at the past, helping businesses and individuals deal with their filing and compliance needs. While this type of work has always been a big part of the TaxAssist business model, business owners now need extra support from their accountant to help them to understand how their business is performing and to look ahead. They need to protect their business, plan for growth, consider accessing finance, make key decisions and to plan for their own and their family’s future. A good accountant should be able to provide support in all of these areas.

And in these exceptional times, businesses and individuals need more help than ever. They are faced with an ever more confusing range of funding options, new schemes, grants and tax changes being announced by the Government. It is vital that they do not miss opportunities to access these funds and benefit from the support available. We are likely to see more Government intervention before we hopefully put Covid behind us, so it’s important for clients to stay close to their accountant so that they’re aware of what’s out there. The accountant’s role is to help translate all of the schemes, initiatives and general confusion into ideas for their clients and to spot opportunities – many of which are completely unfamiliar to small businesses.

TaxAssist practices are local, operate through highly visible premises and importantly, are relationship based. Our accountants are ideally placed to support clients, to get to know them and their business, work with them, to understand them and help them through these difficult times. We have a very broad offering in terms of what we can do – a real one-stop-shop.

We are all trying to adjust to a very different world around us and the true cost of the pandemic has been horrific, with so many lives lost and large parts of the economy struggling. But what history has shown us is how resilient we are as a society and how our small business community and entrepreneurial drive can help us cope with and recover from adversity. We have our part to play, so even in these unprecedented times, I truly believe that there has never been a better time to be running a TaxAssist accounting practice.

If you’re thinking about running your own practice for small business and you’re interested in the TaxAssist model, visit the website www.taxassistfranchise.co.uk and contact us on 0800 0188297. We still have many prime territories available.

TaxAssist Accountants has been working hard to support small businesses across the UK during this busy tax season.

James Mattam, Group Business Development Director, said: “It’s certainly been a busy tax season for our accountants who have been well organised to meet the tax deadline for their clients. Our inbound sales team have been dealing with a higher volume of new clients calling in and we recruited a new team member late last year to cope with this expected demand.

Figures reveal that TaxAssist Accountants had its busiest January on record for new business enquiries, with the inbound sales lead team working hard to deliver 1,711 leads to its franchisees.

This is an average of 85 per working day, surpassing previous years’ averages by 72 per working day in 2020 and 80 per working day in 2019. More than 500 business leads alone, were delivered in the first week of January.

“February saw the tax season extend somewhat due to HMRC’s announcement that no late filing penalties would be applied this month so we’ve seen new business enquiry numbers surpassing previous years’ weekly totals. We delivered 287 potential new clients in the first week of February, and 260 in the second week, and we are on course to deliver another record-breaking month to support the growth of the network.

“We pride ourselves on the power of the TaxAssist brand and its ability to attract new clients for our network of over 375 franchised practices. The brand strength has grown further in the last 12 months due to the service levels our franchisees have given to their clients during the pandemic. Client feedback on our service and levels of communication is consistently positive, and we currently have a Trust Pilot rating of ‘excellent’. Our recent national client survey also revealed that 96% of clients would recommend our services to a friend.

“With a roadmap now laid out for a return to normality from the Government, we look forward to the TaxAssist Accountants network continuing to make a real difference to businesses right across the UK.”

With more than 375 TaxAssist Accountants offices nationwide, the network provides accountancy services, tax returns, payroll, bookkeeping, tax savings and tax advice to 77,000 customers including sole traders, partnerships, limited companies and personal tax payers.

Bukky Shonola will operate her new shop at 6b Brand Street, Hitchin alongside her existing practice in Letchworth.

Experienced accountant Bukky Shonola joined TaxAssist Accountants in 2018, after purchasing a franchise resale in Letchworth, thereby realising her long held wish to run her own practice. Working alongside husband Dapo, and four long-standing staff members, she has had a very successful first three years.

“I’ve really enjoyed running the practice, meeting with, and getting to know and help business clients around Letchworth,” said Bukky. “I have a fantastic team around me, and we are all ambitious to grow, which is why we have now chosen to expand the practice to a highly visible shop on the high street in Hitchin.

“The TaxAssist Accountants network really is one big family and their support for me and my practice has enabled me to expertly guide my clients through the pandemic. Many clients have been very worried about their finances, but by being part of a wider support network, I have a wealth of information and guidance to hand, which I am able to pass on to my clients, which I know they have greatly appreciated. Many have said we’ve made a real impact on their business.

“I’d encourage anyone interested in finding out more about our services to get in touch for a free initial consultation. We provide a comprehensive tax, accountancy and advisory service including business planning and cash flow forecasting. We can talk clients through a range of software solutions to help them to select the right package for their needs.”

For more information about Bukky’s services, please visit her website taxassist.co.uk/hitchin-central or call on 01462 682988.

If you are interested in joining the TaxAssist Accountants network, regular Virtual Discovery Days are being held, where you can find out more about the technical, marketing and business development support on offer. Call 0800 0188297 or submit an enquiry via the button at the top of the page to register your interest.

In this week’s Business Insights Chat, Ian Fitch speaks to Mark Ferguson, managing director of Castle Colour Packaging, a specialist packaging manufacturer in Norwich. They produce packaging for well-known brands including Pritt Stick and Eat Natural, among many others. The business has a focus on being the best it can be, while leading in sustainability and recyclable products.

Mark’s insights into lockdown offer a unique perspective in this series, as they were identified as an essential business at the start of the first lockdown. They were able to continue trading, albeit with new safety measures in place for staff, while also having to adapt to new and changing demands for their products. He describes how it was all about feeling safe at work and staying efficient.

Mark reflects on their government COVID spot check, and how the resilience and commitment of his team played a huge part in their successes during the last year. He also explains the measures that the company put in place to aid the wellbeing of the team.

He discusses the opportunities they identified for Research and Development through their work on sustainability; what his personal weaknesses are, and how he strives to make everyone around him better than him; the benefits of having a non-executive director on your board; how promoting from within is good for business; how running a business is like playing a game of rugby; and how experience outside family businesses is key, citing his time as a young man spent working for McDonald’s as a fantastic opportunity to learn about processes and discipline.

Mark’s personal journey, as a man at the top of a key part of the ‘pandemic economy,’ and the success he has had building Castle Colour, make for a fascinating listen.

You can listen to Business Insights Chat on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts. This is the last in this series of Business Insights Chat, so make sure you subscribe to our channel so you don’t miss out on the release of series 2 later on this year. 

Listen here!

Searles Leisure Resort are delighted to announce that we have been nominated for the Camping, Glamping and Holiday Park of the Year in the Norfolk & Suffolk Tourism Awards 2020. 

As the award is nominated by the general public, we are extremely honoured to have made the final four. Managing Director of Searles Leisure Resort, Paul Searle, had this to say on our latest award nomination:

“To be nominated by our customers for such a prestigious award is very humbling. Thank you to all our wonderful guests for their support and to our brilliant staff for all their hard work to help make this possible”. 

The nomination feels particularly special for everyone here at Searles as we were lucky enough to win the Best Holiday Park category at inaugural Norfolk and Suffolk Tourism Awards in 2018.

At the 2018 awards ceremony, Searles Leisure Resort was cited as a holiday park which

“Creates happiness for all ages, and offers a wide range of facilities to meet the needs of all its customers. The park performs well in all areas and keeps reinvesting to better the experience for its guests both throughout the summer season and with special events and themed breaks during the winter.”

The award has been updated in 2020 to include Camping and Glamping, both of which we’re proud to offer as part of the Searles Leisure Resort experience. 

In this special episode of Impromptu Business Chat, Mark and James pick the brains of marketeer extraordinaire, Damian Horner.

They draw out some amazing advice, tips and insights from Damian that are relevant to SME Business owners on the use of marketing and marketing strategies in the digital age. Damian has used the skills he acquired when building a career in a London marketing agency to not only advise global brands on marketing but also starts, grows and sells his own businesses. His current venture is that of founder and Chief Creative Officer for Real Vision, a global platform aimed at helping investors easily understand the complex world of finance.

Along the journey Damian has worked with the likes of JK Rowling, Damien Hirst and Stephen King.

This is an episode not to be missed!

You can contact Damian at [email protected] or www.damianhorner.com

You can check out the work of Real Vision here. 

Listen here!

As part of their Go Digital programme, Norfolk County Council have launched a Suppliers Portal which promotes digital tech suppliers and training providers to micro, small and medium sized businesses based in Norfolk. 

The portal will;

1. Promote Norfolk digital tech suppliers and training providers to local businesses
2. Provide businesses with a tool to find the right supplier for their digital transformation projects.

To sign up, all suppliers need to do is click here to access the portal then click through to the upload form.  This is a straightforward sign up process and once completed, goes through a final check from Go Digital and is then made live.

Join the other digital providers already on the platform!

MHA Larking Gowen is pleased to support the Every Child Online campaign, spearheaded by Norfolk County Council and the Norfolk Community Foundation, with a donation of £3,300.

The campaign was launched in January 2021 to make sure every school age child in Norfolk has a digital device and internet connection, so they can embrace online learning from home.

Claire Cullens, chief executive of Norfolk Community Foundation, says, “As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, our young people are having to learn from home, which is hard enough without a teacher and friends alongside you. But it’s impossible if you don’t have access to an appropriate computer or connectivity. 

“So far, the Every Child Online campaign has delivered nearly 4,000 devices to Norfolk schools, with more on order, to ensure that every school age child will have the technology they need.” 

Businesses and individuals have been asked to donate money to the campaign, so that new equipment can be bought, or to donate pre-used equipment, which can be refurbished. The devices are provided to schools who distribute them to the children in their cohort who need them. 

Whilst the campaign has achieved massive success since its launch, there’s still some way to go. “We’re continuing to uncover more and more need, with many of our young people still struggling with online learning because they don’t have proper access to a suitable computer or tablet,” adds Claire. “For example, we spoke to one teenager who was having to wait for her mum to return home from work so she could use her smartphone to get online. This is simply not fair.”

Julie Grimmer, managing partner of MHA Larking Gowen, comments, “Providing support to our local communities is a key part of our ethos as a business and we’re always looking for ways to help. Every year we employ trainees straight out of sixth-form, so we understand the challenges that young people face. These challenges have been hugely exacerbated by the pandemic and subsequent closure of schools and colleges. We’re proud to play a part to make sure that no child in Norfolk is disadvantaged because they don’t have access to the technology they need for online learning.”

If you’d like to make a donation to the Every Child Online appeal, please visit the Norfolk Community Foundation website. Alternatively, please make a cheque payable to Norfolk Community Foundation (referencing the Every Child Online campaign) and send it to Norfolk Community Foundation, St. James Mill, Whitefriars, Norwich, NR3 1TN, or telephone us on 01603 623958.

MHA Larking Gowen has also donated £1,500 to the Suffolk Community Foundation and Essex Community Foundation.

MHA Larking Gowen, chartered accountants and business advisors, is pleased to announce the launch of their new podcast series, Tourism Business Chat, where tourism specialist, Chris Scargill, interviews successful business owners and leaders from the tourism, leisure and hospitality sector throughout Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex. 

Each week, Chris’s special guests share the challenges their business and the sector overall are facing; what they have learnt from the last year; and how they plan to structure their business in the face of lockdown challenges, and beyond.

The tourism, leisure and hospitality industry is a key sector in the East Anglia economy, and has faced huge disruption during the COVID-19 lockdown. Being in business can be a lonely place, and this open discussion will hopefully help those in the sector plan for growth, as the region aims to rightfully hold its place as a key destination for visitors in the UK.

In the first episode, Chris Scargill talks to Andrew Hird, General Manager at Woodland Holiday Park, and Chairman of Visit North Norfolk Coast & Countryside. They discuss how it’s important now, more than ever, to have cohesion with local DMOs; how this is essential for promotion; and how businesses must work with the residents in their community.

Andrew also highlights how a potential downturn in the high street could mean that the skills of those workers can transfer into the tourism sector and help such a vibrant and crucial part of the economy. Andrew believes that recruitment is key, moving forwards, and emphasises that “meaningful careers with good pay are available if you work hard.”

Future guest, Philip Turner, from Chestnut, echoes this, with the hope that one of the positives that will come from lockdown closures will be a change in how people view careers in the sector; “There will never be a greater opportunity for us to find people who will look at the hospitality sector through different eyes.”

Chris hopes that these conversations will inject some much needed optimism into the sector. In light of the recent government update regarding the roadmap out of lockdown, he believes that the reflection of these leaders is invaluable to others.

Chris said: “One of the underlying themes of each of the conversations I have had, has been a passion for the sector. These inspirational business leaders have a love for what they do, and not only do they want to get back to normal, they want to remind people that their capacity to trade successfully is not only important to the economy of the area, but also to the wellbeing of their staff, their customers and our communities.”

These conversations are a unique insight into the thoughts and processes of some of our region’s key sector leaders, running hugely successful and renowned businesses. Their insights are invaluable for anyone thinking of getting into the sector, or for those already leading their own business, looking to the light at the end of the COVID tunnel.

You can listen to Chris’s chat with Andrew Hird here. 

You can subscribe to Tourism Business Chat on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

Due to the situation regarding the coronavirus, as a business owner your team may be working from home for the time being. With less social interaction and face to face support in the workplace during this time, it’s vital to look after your mental health as well as your physical health. Now more than ever it’s important to ensure that your team are looking after their own mental health too.

So how can you support the mental health of your team while working remotely?

• Keep in touch with your team and let them know that you care. Understandably, your team may be feeling worried and anxious about what the future may hold. You can help to ease these feelings of uncertainty by staying in touch and letting your team know that you’re there should they need support.
• Encourage team collaboration. When working from home, there can be a tendency for communication to drop off between your team as they’re no longer seeing each other face to face every day. Encouraging your team to utilise technology such as video conferencing means that they’re still able to work collaboratively and maintain a level of social interaction.
• Read the mood of your team and be aware of negative mood change. It’s completely normal for people to experience mood changes during periods of significant change. Tuning into the mood of your team and looking out for signs of negative mood change can help you to adapt your communication and provide the appropriate levels of support to the employees that may need it.
• Listen out for distress and struggling in things people say and in their tone. Some members of your team may feel comfortable openly talking about their feelings. However, others may have a tendency to keep their emotions bottled up and try to deal with them themselves. Be alert and listen out for distress and struggling in the things that your employees say and their tone.
• Look out for behaviour changes. Is a team member replying to emails in the middle of the night? Or have you noticed on a conference call that an upbeat team member is unusually quiet and upset. This may indicate that they’re struggling and may need additional support.
• Use your instinct. When you work with your team every day, you get to know them. You should therefore trust your instincts – if someone in your team doesn’t seem quite right, have an honest conversation with them to find out if there’s anything you can do to help.
• Promote any support that is available. If you provide support services for your team, ensure they know how to access them should they need it and that they’re clearly signposted so they know that help is available.

​You may be well accustomed to having your team work from home, or it may be a brand new experience for you. However, making sure that you’re staying in regular contact, prioritising mental health and maintaining a positive work life balance are steps that can help to ease the pressure of remote working.

By Eugene Farrell, Mental Health Lead at AXA Health