Bookkeeping,
Company Secretary &
Incorporation in Greenwich

UK company formation is regulated under the Companies Act 2006 and administered by Companies House (Cardiff for England and Wales). For a private company limited by shares — the most common structure for Royal Borough of Greenwich SMEs, creative and digital companies, professional-services firms, and contractors — the process involves: (1) Company name search via the Companies House WebCHeck database to verify availability and screen for prohibited and sensitive words (words such as 'Greenwich', 'Royal', 'British', 'Group', 'Holdings' may require approval or supporting evidence — note that 'Royal' in particular is a sensitive word requiring justification, and the borough's own royal status does not grant any automatic entitlement to use it in a company name); (2) Drafting Memorandum and Articles of Association — most Greenwich clients adopt the Model Articles for Private Companies Limited by Shares, with customisation for share-class structures, founder vesting, and pre-emption rights where creative and technology companies plan to raise investment; (3) Form IN01 submission via Companies House WebFiling (electronic, £50 standard fee) or paper (£71, 8–10 working days) with registered office address (must be a physical UK address — we provide a Greenwich Town, Woolwich, or North Greenwich registered office where required), first directors, shareholders, share capital structure, SIC codes, and PSC declaration. Online incorporations are typically approved within 24 hours, with automatic HMRC Corporation Tax registration.

The Greenwich Peninsula, home to The O2 and Ravensbourne University, has become a notable creative-digital cluster, and the borough hosts a wide community of media producers, design studios, animators, post-production houses, and technology startups. Creative and digital accounting is distinctive: (1) Intellectual property and project revenue recognition under FRS 102 Section 23 — recognising revenue across project milestones, retainers, and licensing rather than simply on invoice; (2) R&D tax relief — software, tools, and technical-production development frequently qualify under the merged R&D Expenditure Credit (RDEC) scheme; (3) The UK Creative Industry Tax Reliefs — for qualifying film, animation, video games, and high-end television production, claimed via the Audio-Visual Expenditure Credit and the Video Games Expenditure Credit, and for theatre, orchestra, and museum production — where productions may qualify for valuable additional reliefs; (4) SEIS and EIS investment-readiness — we help creative and technology companies obtain HMRC Advance Assurance, structure share classes correctly, and keep the clean cap-table records investors expect; (5) EMI share-option scheme accounting to attract and retain talent; (6) Freelance and contractor cost treatment, since creative projects rely heavily on freelance crew; (7) Grant accounting under FRS 102 Section 24. We keep books investor-ready and claim-ready from day one.

Tourism is one of the most important parts of the Greenwich economy — central Greenwich Town contains the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the Old Royal Naval College, the Royal Observatory, Cutty Sark, the Queen's House, and the Prime Meridian, and the borough also draws very large visitor numbers to The O2, Eltham Palace, the IFS Cloud Cable Car, and the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich, supporting many hotels, restaurants, bars, cafés, tour operators, and serviced-accommodation businesses. Tourism and hospitality accounting has distinctive needs: (1) Strongly seasonal revenue recognition and cash-flow management, with summer and event-driven peaks; (2) Deferred income for advance bookings, deposits, and gift vouchers under FRS 102 Section 23; (3) Hospitality VAT treatment — the distinction between standard-rated and zero-rated food and drink, and the treatment of accommodation, service charges, and tips; (4) Tronc scheme setup and payroll for tips; (5) For self-catering, holiday-let, and serviced-accommodation owners, the Furnished Holiday Lettings rules and the qualifying-occupancy tests, alongside the wider changes to the FHL regime; (6) Multi-channel and booking-platform reconciliation; (7) Event-driven and O2-linked demand planning. We help Greenwich tourism and hospitality operators keep clean, lender-ready books and manage cash through the seasonal and event cycle.

The Royal Borough of Greenwich has a broad base of professional-services firms — consultancies, architects, engineering and design practices, marketing and communications agencies — and a very large number of independent contractors and freelancers who live in the borough and work across London, often through their own personal service companies. Professional-services and contractor accounting has distinctive requirements: (1) Time-based and project-based revenue recognition under FRS 102 Section 23, with accurate treatment of fixed-fee, retainer, and time-and-materials engagements; (2) Work-in-progress valuation for unbilled time and disbursements; (3) IR35 / off-payroll working rules — central for the borough's many personal service companies, where the public-sector and medium-and-large private-sector client rules shift the status determination to the client, and a clear understanding of contract status matters; (4) Efficient owner-director remuneration planning — the optimal salary / dividend mix given the current dividend allowance and rates; (5) Allowable business expenses, home-office, and travel treatment; (6) Quarterly management accounts so directors can plan tax and drawings; (7) VAT, including the Flat Rate Scheme assessment for smaller consultancies. We help Greenwich professionals and contractors stay compliant and tax-efficient.

The Royal Borough of Greenwich is one of London's most active regeneration boroughs — major waterfront and town-centre development is underway at the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich, the Greenwich Peninsula, Kidbrooke Village, and Thamesmead — and the borough supports a large construction and property sector of contractors, fit-out firms, trades subcontractors, property developers, and landlords. Construction and property accounting has distinctive requirements: (1) The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) — registering as a contractor and/or subcontractor, verifying subcontractors with HMRC, applying the correct deduction rate (0%, 20%, or 30%), and filing monthly CIS returns; (2) The VAT Domestic Reverse Charge for construction services, which shifts responsibility for accounting for VAT on most B2B construction work to the customer; (3) Contract and project revenue recognition under FRS 102 Section 23, with accurate treatment of stage payments, retentions, and contract variations; (4) Work-in-progress valuation and cost-to-complete estimates; (5) Property development accounting — distinguishing trading stock from investment property, and handling development finance and Stamp Duty Land Tax considerations; (6) For landlords, accurate treatment of rental income and the restriction on finance-cost relief; (7) CIS deduction reconciliation against PAYE and Corporation Tax. We keep clean, lender-ready construction and property books and handle the full CIS monthly cycle.

We offer two specialised bundles for Royal Borough of Greenwich businesses because the borough's economy has two broad pillars that need different accounting expertise. (1) Creative, Digital & Professional Services Bundle (£2,350 / year) is purpose-built for Greenwich creative and digital companies, media producers, design studios, technology startups, and professional-services firms and contractors. It includes Companies House formation, 12 months of company secretary, 12 months of bookkeeping with IP and project revenue recognition or professional-services time-and-WIP accounting, R&D tax credit claim support under the merged RDEC scheme, Creative Industry Tax Relief support where productions qualify, SEIS / EIS investment-readiness and HMRC Advance Assurance support, EMI share-option scheme accounting, IR35 / off-payroll guidance, year-end FRS 102 / FRS 105 accounts, and Corporation Tax CT600 filing. (2) Tourism, Construction & Independent Bundle (£2,150 / year) is tailored for Greenwich tourism and hospitality operators, construction and property regeneration businesses, and independent retailers. It includes Companies House formation, 12 months of company secretary, 12 months of tourism / construction / retail bookkeeping with seasonal revenue recognition and deferred income, hospitality VAT treatment and tronc setup, the full CIS monthly cycle and VAT Domestic Reverse Charge handling, contract and retention accounting, Furnished Holiday Lettings treatment, multi-channel retail reconciliation, year-end FRS 102 / FRS 105 accounts, and Corporation Tax CT600 filing. Both bundles carry a single fixed annual fee, a single point of contact, and no surprise bills — and both are priced to deliver genuine 50–70% savings versus traditional London accountancy firms.