Business121 Small Business Newsletter #36

In this week's Business121:

1. Rate Relief follow-up and recruiting
2. Responsibilities of a Company Director
3. Recruiting Older Workers Could be Ageist
4. Most UK Web Sites Are Illegal under Disability rules
5. Low paid workers to gain additional annual leave
6. eBay robot aims to track down VAT dodgers
7. Google Spreadsheets - Our review
8. World Cup Glory could spark spending spree
9. Small Businesses in Europe - Facts and Figures
10. More local branches good for small business banking

Rate Relief follow-up and recruiting

Last week's newsletter certainly stimulated a lot of interest and generated quite a response, so thank you for all your emails. If you missed last week's issue, you can read it here

We highlighted how 450,000 small businesses are missing out on up to £2,500 in Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR). It seems that many Business121 readers were among those small businesses that were oblivious to the SBRR scheme until we brought it to your attention last week.

It's great to hear that many of you are now submitting your claims and saving a significant amount of money. Money, I'm sure that you will be able to put to better use by investing it in your business.

I also got an email from Keith Mabbutt of London-based, EnhanceUK in response to our 'Guide to recruiting staff and interviewing candidates' article. The article said, 'recruitment agencies are expensive – you may have to pay an agency as much as 30% of the employee’s annual salary'.

Keith pointed out that some recruiters charge a lot less, "We are graduate placement specialists and actually specialise in the talent we have to offer employers (candidate driven) rather than specialise in any particular industry sector. Our candidates are typically 2.1 or 1st class honours graduates with any number of years experience. Our fee? A flat rate of just 10%."

I'm happy to set the record straight for you Keith.

If you're in the North West and looking to recruit graduates or students, nwSAGO gives you the ability to recruit graduates without paying any fees.

nwSAGO is a partnership of university and higher education careers services and various business support services in the North West region and provides a free recruitment service for employers looking to employ students and graduates.

You submit the details of your vacancy through an online booking form on their website and the position is then advertised and emailed to their audience of students and graduates.

You can access the nwSago website here - http://snipurl.com/nwsago
and EnhanceUK here - http://snipurl.com/EnhanceUK

************************* Advertisement *************************
LOOKING FOR A FRIENDLY AND FAIRLY-PRICED ACCOUNTANT?
..............................................................
You might not think it's possible to find that rare mix.
But we at HfM pride ourselves on friendly, fairly-priced,
professional tax and accounting services for small
businesses.

PUT US TO THE TEST! Contact us today and we think you'll be
pleasantly surprised. Call Ian Marlow on 020 8690 7444, or
email Ian@HfMtax.co.uk Website: http://snipurl.com/__HfM
*****************************************************************

Responsibilities of a Company Director
What responsibilities do you have as a director of a limited company? Here are the financial and legal issues that you will need to consider as a director of your own business;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=18

Recruiting Older Workers Could be Ageist
Employers trying to demonstrate they are not ageist by actively recruiting older workers could actually be risking age discrimination claims! Our employment laws become even more ludicrous in October so you'll need to be careful when recruiting;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=19

Most UK Web Sites Are Illegal under Disability rules
UK Disability Discrimination legislation includes specific accessibility requirements for website owners which are rarely followed currently. However, with surveys showing that up to 80% of UK sites are in breach of the requirements, how long can small businesses continue to ignore the law?
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=20

Low paid workers to gain additional annual leave
Plans to ensure that workers get to take paid leave for bank holidays in addition to the statutory four weeks annual leave, were set out in a Government consultation this week.

The proposals mean that up to two million of the lowest paid will be granted additional leave, with women, part-timers and those from ethnic minorities likely to gain the most;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=21

eBay robot aims to track down VAT dodgers
As our fascination with everything eBay-related continues, the Government has revealed that HMRC has enlisted the help of a robot in its efforts to cut down on eBay seller tax dodgers;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=22

Google Spreadsheets - Our review
The Bytestart team recently tried out Google's latest offering - the "Spreadsheet", with mixed success;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=23

************************** Advertisement ************************
Better Business - the magazine for small business owners
.................................................................
Every issue of Better Business brings you ideas, advice and
inspiration to help you to transform your business.

The June edition includes; Leila Wilcox's rapid move from a young mum
to running a £10million turnover business, How to innovate and avoid
becoming a dinosaur, Pitching to Dragons, How to maximise your sales
leads and How to beat the big boys with great customer service.

Better Business is available by subscription only. You can find out
more about it and a special offer for Business121 readers here;
http://snipurl.com/_Better_Business
*****************************************************************

===================
SMALL BUSINESS NEWS
===================

World Cup Glory could spark spending spree
------------------------------------
An England victory in the World Cup could lead to an unparalleled boost in consumer spending, as delighted fans celebrate. However, businesses may feel the strain as workers' distraction could severely affect productivity;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=24

Small Businesses in Europe - Facts and Figures
--------------------------------------------------
Although Bytestart is aimed purely at UK-based small business people, we have taken a brief look at the massive contribution SME's make to the EU economy as a whole;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=25

More local branches good for small business banking
--------------------------------------------------
Halifax, HSBC and Abbey are all planning to open over 50 branches each in the near future. The news that these banks are planning to reverse the recent trend of closing High Street branches, will surely be welcomed by small businesses;
http://www.bytestart.co.uk/cgi-bin/click.cgi?id=26

** For the latest Small Business News, visit http://snipurl.com/Bytestart_News **

===========
CLASSIFIEDS
===========

YOU COULD QUALIFY FOR GOVERNMENT SPONSORED DRIVER TRAINING
.................................................................
If you're a small business with a fleet of van drivers you can now
get Government sponsored and Approved Driver training for free.
This could save you up to £500/van/year. For details contact
Rick Auton on 01302-882304 or visit http://www.acceleratingdc.co.uk

30-DAY FREE TRIAL FRANKING MACHINES
.................................................................
With £20 Free Postage, plus a free personalised logo so you can
advertise your business on every piece of mail you post. All
details here; http://snipurl.com/_Free_No_Ties_Trial

(c) Business121.co.uk 2006