We are delighted to announce the introduction of local firm ECL Howard Watson Smith into the Ad Valorem Group, providing further strength to our Milton Keynes presence.

Commenting on the completion, joint Ad Valorem Group CEO, Nikki Adams said…

“This is a super addition which further underpins our already strong Milton Keynes presence. We welcome Darren, Martin, and Malcolm, along with their fantastic team and clients into the Ad Valorem family and look forward to their valuable input as we push forward in our goal of becoming the leading digital accountancy practice to the micro and SME sector.” 

We have been working with Darren, Martin, and Malcolm, along with getting to know their fantastic team over the past 6 months and it became clear very early on that our two practices share the same values and business ethos. 

ECL Howard Watson Smith partner Darren Kerins added…

“We are very pleased to join forces with Ad Valorem which will enable our clients and staff to benefit from their additional resources, expertise and digital platforms. I believe that our shared aims of providing a professional, cost-effective and forward-looking service will see the practice go from strength to strength.”

(E) enquiries@advaloremgroup.uk or (T) 01908 219100 (W) advaloremgroup.uk  

Spring Statement 2022

Yesterday, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the 2022 Spring Statement, setting out the Government’s tax and spending plans.  Please see below a few key points taken from yesterdays statement.

Key Announcements

• Increasing the National Insurance Primary Threshold for Class 1 NICs and bringing this in line with the income tax personal allowance of £12,570 per annum, from 6 July 2022.
• Increasing the Lower Profits Limit for Class 4 NICs from 6 July 2022 and bringing this in line with the income tax personal allowance of £12,570 per annum.
• Self-Employed individuals with profits between the Small Profits Threshold (SMT) and the Lower Profit Limit will not pay Class 2 NICs from April 2022, while allowing individuals to be able to continue to build National Insurance credits. 
• Employment Allowance increase by £1000 to £5000 from 6 April 2022.
• 50% Business Rate discount for eligible businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, from April 2022.

To read the our full Spring Statement Summary please click the link below.  Spring Statement 2022 – Ad Valorem Summary  If you have any questions regarding what was outlined in yesterdays announcement, please do not hesitate to contact us:

(E) enquiries@advaloremgroup.uk or (T) 01908 219100 (W) advaloremgroup.uk  

Government announces plans for largest ever R&D budget

The government announced that the Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy’s partner organisations will receive the greatest ever research and development budget of £39.8 billion.

The £39.8 billion R&D budget for 2022-2025 will aid in the implementation of the government’s Innovation Strategy and the advancement of science technology.

• The Business Secretary confirms how the government’s £39.8 billion R&D budget for 2022-2025, the largest ever, will be distributed among partner organisations. 

• These allocations will support the government’s Innovation Strategy, which includes the goal of increasing total R&D investment to 2.4 percent of GDP by 2027. 

The Spending Review promised historic levels of investment in the UK’s world-leading research base over the next three years, with R&D spending scheduled to rise by £5 billion to £20 billion per year by 2024-2025, a 33 percent increase over the current parliament.

This information was provided by Gov.uk – ‘Government announces plans for largest ever R&D budget’

It is important to note that this article focuses more on R&D budgets that are mainly allocated to grant funding rather than R&D tax credits. This article shows a promising foreword to this week’s Spring Statement.

Thoughts from our Head of R&D – Alex Black:

“A really exciting time to be involved with innovation within the UK. We’re looking forward to seeing what the Chancellor has in store for us in the Spring Statement on 23 March. I and the R&D team at Ad Valorem will continue to support our clients in claiming R&D tax credits as the scheme continues to evolve.”

(E) enquiries@advaloremgroup.uk or (T) 01908 219100 (W) advaloremgroup.uk