companies house made easy

self-assessment deadline extended

Sole traders, entrepreneurs and other individuals who are required to fill out self-assessment tax returns will not receive a late filing penalty if they make their submission on the 1st or 2nd of February.

schools must develop entrepreneurs

The Forum for Private Business has called for schools to play a leading role in encouraging entrepreneurship amongst young people.

google targets welsh SMEs

Search engine giant Google has announced a 12 month campaign to get businesses in Wales to start using the web.

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The UK’s jobcentres are not providing value for money according to research by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), which is calling for an overhaul of the system.

With unemployment rising, particularly amongst young people, the Jobcentre Plus system has an important role to play in linking businesses and jobseekers.

However, 34% of firms surveyed by the FSB found Jobcentres to be “ineffective”, with many employers complaining that applicants sent to them by the Jobcentre had not been well informed about the position they were applying for, and many applicants did not have necessary qualifications for the job.

There are concerns that money for Jobcentre Plus is being used to fund training schemes at large companies, instead of being used to provide more front line staff and funding for the centres themselves.

"The FSB is concerned the lion's share of funding from Jobcentre Plus currently goes to large companies and multi-nationals which would still provide training if public funding were not available," stated FSB Chairman John Wright.

The FSB are planning to set up “employment centres” at the party conferences of the major political parties, to raise awareness of this issue.