How outside help can smooth the path for farm business admin
© Yau Ming Low/iStockphoto The increasing burden of compliance in general and the pressure to fulfil regulatory requirements such as tax and other official business online means more farm businesses are likely to need help with administration.
For many farming businesses, employing a traditional farm secretary is now simply too expensive, says Vicky Anderson.
She runs a six-person team of farm administrators based in the north-east of England and is seeing a growing demand for both one-off and regular work.
“We need to think differently about how that support is delivered, so that it’s delivered in the most practical and cost-effective way,” she says.
See also: Advice on keeping accurate farm accounts to pay the right tax
That could be on the farm or remotely, and can be anything from a few hours a month, to full-time.
From their bases in Stokesley in the Tees valley and Northallerton in North Yorkshire, Vicky’s team at VA Business Services supports about 85 customers on 100 farms, from Northumberland to Lincolnshire.
Whether having someone to do the VAT, PAYE, bookkeeping, bank reconciliation, compliance such as annual declarations or Cattle Tracing System reports, anything from a few hours a month to a full-time service, can often improve things, says Vicky.
“Having someone take responsibility for the bookkeeping can mean the difference between knowing where the business stands financially and trying to piece everything together at the end of the year.
Businesses could often do with good management reports but don’t know how to extract those – we can help and that can help them make better decisions.”
Employing admin help on farm
- Be clear with the person about who has what responsibility in the business. For example, to authorise a bank payment or cheque, and up to what level. “Some ground rules are needed,” says Vicky. “We need to know who we are answerable to, and it’s important to keep that under review as people age and can become incapacitated.”
- Give them space to work – a corner of a cluttered kitchen table won’t do, says Vicky. “We’re very organised people and like to make the most of our time.”
- Keep them informed about any changes to the business that will affect their work.
Software choice
Just choosing the most appropriate software can be a challenge for a farm business, but because outside administrators usually work across many different businesses, they can advise on this because they see how the different products work for different types of business.
“We’ve had quite a few farmers contact us just lately purely to help them through their first Making Tax Digital submissions,” says Vicky.
For some farms, it may be a monthly or quarterly visit. For others, a virtual service is the answer.
“The farmer can still pick up the phone and speak to someone who knows their business, but they are only paying for the support they actually need.
“It’s not an all or nothing option – most farm secretaries or administrators will be very flexible,” says Vicky, who sees the demands to move online adding to the pressure and for some, a feeling of increasing isolation.
“Think of a farm secretary or administrator as an extra piece of kit to help the business run smoothly.
“We can be an extra cog in the wheel and it can be a relief – someone to open those brown envelopes that no one wants to open, or to make sure loans are put in the correct place in the accounts.
Deadlines and penalties
“We’re also there to help them meet deadlines and avoid penalties, many of which are increasing.
“Or the bank manager might be wanting a cash flow and budgets for the first time and we can work through this, which can be daunting otherwise.
“Often, it’s just a question of putting processes in place to make things easier and quicker, and often cheaper.
“Our time probably costs about a quarter of that of an accountant and can cut down the hours the accountant spends just making sure things are in the right place and have been presented properly.
“A lot of customers like the fact we work for different farm businesses.
“That experience not only means we know how to do the routine things, but also leads to finding different ways of doing things when a situation arises in a business we work for.
“We may have come across that issue in another business or be able to suggest a way of dealing with routine things we have seen elsewhere.
“It can be as simple as small things such as applying for a driving licence renewal, which is required at age 70, or an online road tax application – everything has changed and is changing.”
Increasing demands
There can also be an issue when, in combination, increasing complexity, the push to online reporting and working, and an ageing population can cause problems.
This can lead to people taking a head-in-the-sand approach, partly because he day to day job of farming is also more demanding, says Vicky.
She is also conscious that it can be quite intimidating for someone who until now has been doing the bookkeeping and records but may no longer be able to cope – when they need to hand over that role to someone else, their role diminishes but that can also be a relief.
Social and welfare aspects
An independent party coming to the farm brings not only administrative help but can see changes and perhaps make suggestions that family wouldn’t feel comfortable making, says Vicky – for example, when it looks as if someone may not be coping with either their workload, daily life or responsibilities.
“We have put people in touch with the Farming Community Network or the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution, and it has helped them make that first move to ask for help,” she says.
A professional approach to farm admin
There is a demand for more people to provide farm secretarial and administration services, says Louise Templeton, who runs her own farm administration business in Cumbria, KL Templeton Agricultural Bookkeeper.
She is also the current chairman of professional body the Institute of Agricultural Secretaries and Administrators (IAgSA).
Agricultural college courses specific to farm administration traditionally provided the route into this type of work but have disappeared, Louise says, so the path now is not a clear one, but the institute can advise anyone interested in it.
The increasing complexity of running a farm business is adding pressure and stress for farming families, which often have to be handled sensitively, whether because of capacity or other issues, she says.
“People can be reluctant to have someone from outside coming in, for all sorts of reasons.
“Simple mistakes can cause big problems, but having someone in to keep things on track can avoid this,” she says, giving an example in which dyslexia caused a misalignment on an official form, leading to an inspection in which the matter was resolved with her help, resulting in a minimal penalty.
Members of IAgSA have offered a wide range of services to farming and rural businesses since the organisation was founded in 1967.
An important part of its function is to promote a high standard of professional conduct in the work members carry out.
This includes a code of conduct and career development through training to ensure members’ technical knowledge is up to date.
A disciplinary committee ensures the good governance of the membership in relation to the code of conduct and ethical matters. IAgSA’s certificated training courses also help professionalise members’ work.
Those running over the next few weeks include managing farm financial business performance, livestock record keeping, reconciliations, valuations and farm cropping recordkeeping.
Louise also points out that all practicing members must have professional indemnity insurance and be correctly licensed for their bookkeeping work.
Contact IAgSa through its website iagsa.co.uk or by phone on 01604 770372.
