Bookkeeping · East of England
Bookkeeping services in Duck End, Bedford
Bookkeeping for Duck End sole traders and limited companies who want their numbers right without doing it themselves. We work entirely online, so you pay for the reconciliation and not for premises. Three volume bands cover almost every small business, and the VAT bundle adds quarterly returns for a fixed extra.
from £49/mo · fixed, per month
Next deadlines
- VAT return and payment for the quarter that ended last month
- MTD quarterly update deadline (7 August, 7 November, 7 February, 7 May)
- VAT return and payment for the quarter that ended last month
- VAT return and payment for the quarter that ended last month
Who this is for
Bookkeeping for Duck End
Sole traders, partnerships and limited companies in Duck End, Bedford with anything from a dozen to a few hundred bank transactions a month: trades, consultants, online sellers, cafes and shops, landlords with several properties, and anyone approaching the VAT threshold or Making Tax Digital for Income Tax who needs digital records kept properly.
What is included
Everything inside the fixed fee
- Cloud accounting software set up with bank feeds for every business account and card
- Every transaction categorised and reconciled each month, with queries sent to you in one batch
- Receipt and invoice capture by photo or email forwarding, matched to the bank
- Sales invoices, supplier bills and VAT coding kept current and Making Tax Digital-ready
- A monthly position summary: income, costs, cash, what you owe HMRC so far
- Year-end handover to our accounts team or your own accountant with no re-work
How it works
Bookkeeping from Duck End, Bedford, step by step
Scope the job
We find out what you need filed, when it is due and what state the records are in, and tell you which fixed-fee package applies.
Agree the price
The fee is confirmed in writing. There is no hourly billing and nothing added for questions during the work.
Hand over the records
Photographs, PDFs, software access or a spreadsheet, sent however suits you. We confirm what we have and what is missing within two working days.
Approve, then we submit
You review the draft with our explanation, sign off, and we file. Receipts, copies and the next deadlines come back to you immediately.
Why IGI
Why Duck End businesses file with IGI
No hourly rate and no surprise invoice. Duck End clients know the fee for bookkeeping before they send a single document, and it stays fixed.
Deadline-first: the dates that matter for bookkeeping are shown at the top of this page, diarised for every Duck End client and chased before they arrive.
We serve Duck End, Bedford remotely by design: records by WhatsApp or email, drafts back for approval, filing electronic. The saving on premises is passed to you in the fee for bookkeeping.
Continuity matters in bookkeeping: the person who prepared last year's work for your Duck End business prepares this year's, and remembers what was agreed.
We explain bookkeeping in the words Duck End, Bedford business owners use, not in accountant's shorthand, and we show our working so you can check it.
You stay in control of bookkeeping: drafts go to Duck End clients first, with the figures explained, and nothing leaves us until you say so.
Local facts
About Duck End, Bedford
Duck End, Bedford is in East of England, England. For businesses in England the tax rules are those set by the UK Parliament: the 20/40/45% income tax bands, Class 4 National Insurance for the self-employed at 6% and 2%, Corporation Tax at 19% to 25%, and Stamp Duty Land Tax on property. Business rates are set locally by the council.
| Place | Distance | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Wilstead | 0.3 mi | S |
| Wixams | 0.6 mi | NW |
| Chapel End, Bedford | 0.9 mi | E |
| Littleworth, Bedford | 1 mi | E |
| Chapel End, Central Bedfordshire | 1 mi | S |
| Herring's Green | 1 mi | E |
| Cotton End, North East | 2 mi | NE |
| Shortstown | 2 mi | N |
Worth knowing
Rules that come up in this work
Director's loan accounts
The most common tax problem in owner-managed companies is an overdrawn director's loan account: drawings taken during the year that were never declared as dividends or salary. The company faces a 35.75% charge on the balance outstanding nine months after the year end, and the director may have a benefit in kind. We review the account before every year end to clear it properly.
Salary versus dividends
The salary-and-dividend split is the central planning decision for an owner-managed company. Salary costs employer National Insurance above £5,000 but is deductible; dividends are not deductible but attract lower personal rates and no National Insurance. The optimum changes each April with the thresholds and depends on the director's other income, so it should be set deliberately every year.
Corporation Tax rates and marginal relief
Since April 2023 there have been two Corporation Tax rates, 19% small profits and 25% main, with marginal relief smoothing the transition between £50,000 and £250,000 of profit. The band is where planning matters: each pound of profit in it is taxed at an effective 26.5%, so pension contributions and capital expenditure timed to keep profit below £50,000 are worth more than they look.
The VAT registration threshold
The £90,000 VAT threshold is measured over any twelve consecutive months, which is why a strong quarter can tip a business over unexpectedly. Registration must follow within thirty days of the end of the month the threshold was crossed. Below the threshold, voluntary registration is worth considering when customers are VAT-registered businesses and costs carry VAT.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax began in April 2026 for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000, extends to those over £30,000 in April 2027 and is planned for £20,000 in April 2028. It requires digital records in compatible software and four quarterly updates to HMRC each year, with a final declaration replacing the traditional return. Payment dates are unchanged.
Late filing penalties
HMRC's penalties for a late Self Assessment return are automatic: £100 the day after 31 January, £10 a day from three months late up to £900, then the greater of £300 or 5% of the tax at six and twelve months. Interest and separate late-payment penalties apply to the tax itself. Companies House charges £150 to £1,500 for late accounts, doubling for a second consecutive year.
Payments on account
A common surprise in Self Assessment is the January payment that is far larger than expected. That is the balancing payment for the year just ended plus the first payment on account for the year ahead, which HMRC sets at half of the bill just calculated. We put the figure in your hands months ahead and tell you how to adjust it legitimately when circumstances change.
Questions
Bookkeeping questions from Duck End
What is the VAT bundle?
Bookkeeping plus quarterly VAT returns for £119 a month, covering up to 150 transactions. Because we already have the coded transactions, the return is prepared and submitted through MTD-compatible software without extra data entry, and you approve it before anything goes to HMRC.
Can you catch up a backlog?
Yes. Backlogs are quoted as a fixed fee based on the number of months and transactions, agreed before we start. Once caught up, the normal monthly band applies. We tell you honestly if the backlog is small enough to do yourself.
How do you handle cash sales and personal spending from the business account?
Cash takings are recorded from your till or daily summary, and personal spending is coded to drawings or the director's loan account so it does not end up as a business expense. We flag patterns that could cause problems, such as a growing director's loan balance.
Will I need this for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax?
If you are a sole trader or landlord with qualifying income over £50,000 you joined MTD for Income Tax in April 2026, and the £30,000 threshold follows in April 2027. It requires digital records and quarterly updates to HMRC. Our bookkeeping service keeps the records in the required form and submits the updates.
How quickly are the books up to date?
Bank feeds update daily. We reconcile within five working days of the month end once your receipts are in, so the monthly summary arrives in the first week of the following month. Queries are sent in one message rather than piecemeal.
Can my existing accountant still do the year end?
Yes. Many clients use us for bookkeeping and another firm for accounts. At year end we hand over a reconciled file with the trial balance, bank reconciliations and supporting documents, in whatever format your accountant prefers.
Is bookkeeping in Duck End really the same price as elsewhere?
Yes. The fee published on this page is what a client in Duck End, Bedford pays and what a client in any other part of England pays. It is confirmed in writing before work starts and the invoice matches the quote. Where a higher package applies because your situation is more complex, we say so at the quote stage, never afterwards.
Do you have an office in Duck End?
No. IGI Accounting is an online-only firm. We serve Duck End, Bedford and every other UK postcode remotely, with records sent by WhatsApp or email and everything filed electronically. The absence of local premises is why the fee for bookkeeping is the same in Duck End as anywhere else in the country, and why there is nothing to visit and nothing to print.
Fixed fees, filed on time, for Duck End
Tell us what you need. You get one fixed fee in writing, and nothing is filed until you approve it.