Welcome to our Winter Newsletter. This quarter we’ll be sharing how you could improve your cash flow. Plus we interview Amanda Fearn from WPA about how to support your employees with their health.
COS Crew News
What have our staff been getting up to this quarter? Find out here.
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Ann gets festive on her trip to the Big Apple
Ann Lavelle went to the Big Apple at the beginning of December with some friends. She saw the Christmas tree at The Rock (pictured). She enjoyed some seriously tasty food and her friends went ice skating. Ann even managed to ensure she didn’t miss the football and found a pub showing the game.
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Joseph achieves marathon success
Joseph is our newest member and he had some great news to share. He has completed two capital city marathons this year! He was in London in April and finished in 04:45; and Dublin in October and finished in 05:19. He’s looking forward to going to Brighton in April 2020 and will begin training in the New Year. All the best with it Joseph! He’s also hoping to become Xero Accredited early next year.
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Pantomime gets closer for Karen and Becky
Karen and Becky are busy planning and rehearsing their upcoming pantomime: The Tablet of Time, which will be performed early Feb 2020. The show is about a group of museum workers who accidentally travel through time on an adventure. It boasts not 1, but 2 Dames and is fun for all the family. Visit the Facebook event for more info, or grab a flyer from the office.
How you could improve your cash flow issues
Introducing Fluidly
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With 80% of business failure due to cash flow issues, helping you manage your cash is our priority. That’s why we’ve partnered with Fluidly, which identifies cash crunches ahead of time, so you can take action early.
Fluidly instantly produces cashflow forecasts using artificial intelligence. It saves time and informs the strategic advice COS Bookkeeping provides, meaning you can maximise opportunities. Fluidly helps you:
- Look ahead: Instantly see when cash is coming in, going out and everything in between.
- Plan for growth: Understand the levers to pull to drive growth, profitability and cash retention.
- Worry less: Put an end to sleepless nights and worrying about bills to pay.
Historically, cashflow management has been stressful, time-consuming and expensive, relying on spreadsheets that are quickly out-of-date. Fluidly requires no modelling whatsoever, using transaction-level detail to produce an accurate financial prediction in minutes. By connecting to your accounting software and constantly analysing bank transactions, it’s always current.
Fluidly’s Intelligent Chase feature helps you stay on top of debt, which is crucial to maintaining healthy cash flow. The tool provides practical insights, so you can prioritise debtors and retain complete control. It’s designed for ease and simplicity too, with average days to pay and overdue invoices visible all in one place.
With Fluidly, small businesses can avert disaster, take earlier action and save money on overdraft fees and business finance. Most of all, they can access critical information often unavailable to them, at a more affordable price. Fluidly is already connected to thousands of businesses.
**** We can sign you up to a FREE version of Fluidly! ****
If Fluidly is something that sounds of interest to you please get in touch: info@cosbookkeeping.co.uk. We can even train you and your staff so they feel confident using it. Our support team are always there if you get stuck, as are Fluidly themselves.
How to support your employees’ health
Interview with Amanda from WPA
Tell us about how you started your business and what’s it’s all about
I loved my job with a Health Insurance competitor, but I was looking for progression and freedom, which it didn’t seem they would offer, despite saying ‘give us 6 months’ etc. I was aware of WPA, most commended UK Health Insurer, and got in touch with them. They operate on a self-employed field basis, so several interviews & a business plan later I was accepted! WPA are a not-for-profit insurer with a heritage back to 1901, so you’re in safe hands. I get to meet my clients face to face if that suits them, but equally, if they only want a call or email I’ll do that too. It’s all about flexibility.
Typically I support the self-employed, professionals, and businesses of all sizes with their Private Healthcare, Cash Plan, and Dental Plan needs. Not just at quoting/joining stage but as a real person to support you throughout your healthcare journey. If I can network & connect my clients, I’ll do that too!
What can business, who can’t afford private company health insurance, do to support their employees with their health costs?
A WPA Cash Plan is amazing, covering 3+ staff for a really affordable price. You can claim back everyday expenses such as dentist bills, contact lenses and glasses, plus therapies and amazingly NHS prescriptions! All WPA company plans come with free telephone counselling & support for up to 49 staff, and for 50+ staff it’s about £1 per staff member extra. We also include under 18’s free on parent’s policy.
How can employers better support their employees with their mental wellbeing at work?
Again with the support of our 0800 24/7 helpline, that forms part of WPA Private Healthcare & Cash Plans. WPA assist with:
- Health & wellbeing information
- Telephone counselling
- Debt & money advice
- Legal support
- HR & Manager support
- Plus me at the end of a phone
Is it easy to claim for health costs with WPA?
It really is! You have a secure area online and if you’re claiming any cashback benefits you log in and you could be done within 5 minutes! Random security checks do happen, to prevent fraud, but most people will receive an ‘approved’ message and a credit to their bank within a few days. With a full Private Medical policy, you call a UK number for a pre-authorisation code first and give that to the medical provider at your appointment. The team are very knowledgeable, professional but friendly too.
Why should employers pick WPA over other health insurance providers?
Medical professional commend WPA the highest of all UK health insurers at 62%. WPA don’t make demands on you and don’t monitor you. We just look after you, with no pushy sales. The products and service are fantastic, and joining WPA Healthcare Practice was the best move I made!
If you’d like to hear more about WPA and how they can help your business, contact Amanda today: Amanda.Fearn@hcp-plc.org.uk | 07483 850336.
Upcoming Events
| Course/Event | Date |
| Xero Report Customisation | Tuesday 14th Jan |
| Xero Level 1 | Thursday 16th Jan |
| COS Members’ Meeting – Jan | Saturday 18th January |
| Double Entry Bookkeeping Theory (not software specific) | Tuesday 21st January |
| Xero Level 2 | Thursday 23rd January |
| Xero Projects including tracking | Thursday 30th January |
| Accruals and Prepayments (not software specific) | Tuesday 4th February |
| Xero Level 1 | Wednesday 12th February |
| Xero Fixed Assets: VAT returns and data health check | Tuesday 18th February |
| Xero Level 2 | Wednesday 19th February |
| COS Members’ Meeting – Feb | Saturday 22nd February |
| Xero Report Customisation | Thursday 12th March |
| COS Members’ Meeting – Mar | Saturday 21st March |
| Xero Chart of Accounts and Journals | Tuesday 24th March |
| Payroll Theory (not software specific) | Tuesday 31st March |
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