Certainty By Design
A Clearer Way To Work With Your Accountant
Certainty By Design is our way of making the accountancy relationship clearer, more predictable and easier to rely on.
You should not have to chase to find out what is happening, wait until the last minute to understand your tax position or wonder whether an unexpected fee is coming.
You should know who to speak to, what is happening next and where you stand.
So rather than simply promising to be proactive, responsive and supportive, we have built clear processes around those promises.
“Proactive” Should Mean More Than A Word On A Website
Plenty of accountants describe themselves as proactive, personal or responsive.
Those are good qualities. The problem is that they can mean very different things in practice.
For a business owner, the real questions are more practical:
- How quickly will somebody get back to me?
- Who actually owns my relationship?
- When will we talk about tax?
- Will I know what is coming before a deadline arrives?
- What happens after we agree an action?
- Will I know the price before extra work starts?
- What happens if something goes wrong?
Certainty By Design turns those questions into a defined way of working.
It applies to every recurring accountancy client. Some clients choose deeper advisory support on top, but the core standards are not reserved for a premium package.
Know Who To Speak To - And When You Will Hear From Us
One of the quickest ways to lose confidence in an accountant is to feel that you are constantly chasing for answers.
We cannot promise that every question can be solved immediately. We can promise that you should not be left wondering whether anybody is dealing with it.
A Named Primary Contact
Every recurring client has a named primary contact who owns the overall relationship, plus a named backup for continuity.
Where it makes sense, you can still deal directly with the relevant payroll, VAT or tax specialist. The aim is not to create another layer between you and the answer – it is to make ownership clear.
A Substantive Response Within 24 Working Hours
For normal enquiries during our Monday-Friday office hours, you receive a substantive response within 24 working hours.
If we cannot give you the complete answer within that time, we acknowledge the query, explain what is needed and tell you when you should expect the full response.
Where the answer depends on HMRC, another adviser or a third party, we tell you when we will update you again – even if we are still waiting.
A Dedicated Urgent Telephone Route
If you believe something is urgent, you have a dedicated urgent telephone number.
During office hours, urgent matters are prioritised as soon as reasonably possible. Outside office hours, the number remains available for voicemail so the matter can be picked up and prioritised as soon as reasonably possible.
Your Financial Control Calendar
Accountancy should not feel like a series of dates that suddenly appear in your inbox.
Every recurring client receives a personalised Financial Control Calendar aligned to their accounting year.
It brings together the important dates we manage with you, such as:
- accounts and tax deadlines;
- VAT and payroll dates where relevant;
- dates when we need information from you;
- your Tax Clarity & Planning Review;
- your Business Performance & Planning Review;
- other planned accountancy and service contact points.
It is first issued when you join and then refreshed at the start of each accounting year.
The purpose is simple: you should be able to see what is coming and understand what happens next.
Two Defined Points In The Year To Look Ahead
1. Tax Clarity & Planning Review
Around two months before your accounting year end, we meet to look at your tax position while there is still time to make relevant decisions.
We show you the exact tax accumulated up to month nine based on the information available, work through your Tax Opportunity Review and discuss the final three months of the year.
We do not pretend the final three months can be known with certainty. Instead, we separate what is already known from what may happen next and identify legitimate planning opportunities worth considering before year end.
2. Business Performance & Planning Review
Within three months after your accounting year end, we confirm your final tax liability and widen the conversation beyond compliance.
We review how the business performed, compare it with the previous year, benchmark it against similar businesses in your industry and identify areas that may deserve attention.
We also complete your Business Owner Essentials Check and focus the meeting on the 3-6 priorities that matter most rather than overwhelming you with a long checklist.
Your service package and fee are also reviewed at this meeting so the support you receive can keep pace with the business.
A Good Meeting Should Lead To Something
It is easy to have a useful conversation, agree several sensible actions and then let day-to-day business take over.
So both formal reviews end with a written action plan issued the same day.
It shows:
- what needs to happen;
- who owns each action;
- the target date;
- the current status or notes.
We carry out a general progress check around 30 days later and follow up where agreed actions pass their target dates.
The aim is not to create administration for the sake of it. It is to stop useful advice disappearing as soon as the meeting ends.
Know What Is Included - And What Something Costs Before It Starts
Unexpected professional fees create exactly the kind of uncertainty we are trying to remove.
When you join, you receive a clear written service schedule explaining what is included in your agreed package and what sits outside it.
If we later recommend additional chargeable work, our No-Unapproved-Fee Rule applies.
Before Additional Work Begins, We Explain:
- what we recommend;
- why we recommend it;
- the problem, risk or opportunity involved;
- the likely timeframe and any important deadline;
- the price;
- the potential benefit where it can reasonably be explained or quantified.
You decide whether to proceed. No additional chargeable work starts until you approve it.
Where a project has a clearly measurable financial outcome but genuine uncertainty, we may also be able to use a Shared-Risk Fee structure, including no-win-no-fee arrangements where appropriate.
Your Package Should Still Fit The Business You Have Now
The right level of accountancy support can change as a business grows, becomes more complex or simply needs something different from its accountant.
We formally review your package every year as part of the Business Performance & Planning Review and can also raise it during the year if a material change makes the existing arrangement less suitable.
If we recommend a change, we explain what has changed, what additional support would provide, the revised price and the limitations of staying with the existing service.
Where your current arrangement remains workable, the choice is yours.
If We Get Something Materially Wrong, We Should Put It Right
Defined service standards only matter if there is accountability behind them.
That is why Certainty By Design includes our Service Recovery Guarantee.
If we materially fail one of our defined service commitments for something within our control, we do not wait for you to chase or make a formal complaint.
We will:
- tell you what went wrong;
- explain what we are doing to correct it;
- give you a revised commitment where relevant;
- review the failure internally;
- provide a remedy appropriate to the impact.
Depending on the circumstances, that remedy could include a fee credit, a refund relating to the affected work, additional work without charge or another appropriate solution.
The guarantee is there to reinforce a simple principle: if something within our control materially falls below the standard we have promised, responsibility sits with us to deal with it.
Certainty Works Both Ways
There are parts of the relationship we can control and parts that depend on you.
To give you the full benefit of Certainty By Design, we ask clients to:
- provide requested information by the agreed deadline;
- tell us promptly about important changes that could affect the accounts or tax;
- keep records and bookkeeping sufficiently current where relevant;
- respond when approval is needed for additional work;
- book and attend the two proactive reviews;
- take responsibility for actions allocated to them.
When we need information from you, we set a clear deadline and follow up if it is missed. If a filing, forecast or planned piece of work becomes delayed because information remains outstanding, we tell you clearly rather than allowing the position to become ambiguous.
One Way Of Working, With Different Levels Of Support
Certainty By Design is the foundation of every recurring accountancy relationship with us.
From there, the way you enter the relationship or the level of ongoing support can differ depending on what you need.
Changing Accountant?
Every client switching from another accountant begins with our Accountancy Reset – a structured onboarding process designed to establish what we have inherited, where you stand and what happens next.
Need More Ongoing Financial Support?
Clients who want deeper, more frequent financial involvement can add our Embedded Finance Partner service, including tailored dashboards, business finance reviews, rolling cash and tax outlooks and on-demand decision support.
Clear Expectations From The Beginning
Every recurring client receives a concise Certainty By Design Service Charter when they join.
It summarises the practical standards you can expect from us and what we need from you, including communication, named contacts, annual reviews, tax visibility, fees and our Service Recovery Guarantee.
The Charter is designed to make the service understandable. Your engagement letter remains the formal legal agreement.
Know Where You Stand
You should not need to become an expert in accounts and tax to feel in control of the financial side of your business.
You need the work handled properly, the important points explained clearly and somebody you can speak to when you need advice.
Certainty By Design is how we build that expectation into the relationship rather than leaving it to chance.
If that sounds like the kind of relationship you want with your accountant, start with a straightforward conversation.
No pressure. No accountancy jargon.
Just a conversation about your business and what you need from your accountant.