Business under Lockdown - Amaiz talks to Kate Young of the Safeguarding Association

Kate Young founded the Safeguarding Association to support professionals in their jobs, creating a space for collaboration that encourages better working in safeguarding. Four years in, Kate talk about business banking as a business owner. Like many owners with a growing business, she faced the challenge of multiple payments into a high street account, Switching to an online account has allowed her to pull everything together and keep track of her income and expenditure without the hassle. In a roller-coaster year, the Association has found it in a good position with respect to support, after setting up an external office at the end of 2019. But Kate’s is a good example of where not all COVID relief is a good fit for smaller companies. The main challenge remains the crucial work supporting vulnerable people around the country. 

Find out more about the Amaiz business app and its payments, bookkeeping and accounting features and how they support small business at https://amaiz.com/features/

Transcript

Amaiz talks to Kate Young, www.safeguardingassociation.com 

SPEAKERS

Jake Shaw, Kate Young

Jake Shaw 00:01

Hello, and welcome to the Amaiz podcast where we talk to businesses large and small experts in subjects across a spectrum of business entrepreneurial ism tech, innovation, investment and finance. I'm Jake Shaw, your host. If you'd like to learn more about Amaiz, please go to www.amaiz.com I'm with Kate Young, good morning, Kate. So, Kate, could you tell our listeners a little bit about yourself and what you do what your business does, 

Kate Young 00:31

Good morning, Jake. my business is the safeguarding Association. And I founded that about, oh, four years ago. Now, as a former child protection solicitor, I noticed that there was an awful lot of professionals out there who were amazingly good at what they did. But we're kind of stuck focused on their one thing. So, they missed a lot of the periphery, that could give them early warning signs that children may be at risk of harm or be in difficult situations. And also, they didn't really have a place to go where they could share where they could talk about things for those kinds of what if situations because at the same time, lots of the multi-agency safeguarding hubs were starting to drop out in terms of offering that that what if support that professionals really needed. So hence it started out as the safeguarding Academy and we morphed into the safeguarding Association when I realised staff really needed much more support than simply a bit of online training. 

Jake Shaw 01:33

Tell me what you do about the business's banking? 

Kate Young 01:37

I have. So, I use a number of platforms to accept payments in even as a lawyer, I'm not massively detail-oriented. So, I'm great at the headline stuff. But if I have to go into the detail of things, it really makes my head hurt. And I always say, part of my thing as a child protection lawyer was if I have to look up the law, it's not a great day. It didn't happen very often. But I loved my job. And it was the same with the banking. If it was easy, then it was fine. But increasingly, I just couldn't keep a handle on what was coming in and what was going out and I had money from all over the place. So, I was looking for alternatives. 

Jake Shaw 02:36

 How much time do you think you were taking on administration of your finances? 

 Kate Young 02:41

I really wasn't something that was a strong suit. I had hired a bookkeeper to look after it. So I was paying them as well as my accountants. And I really struggled to it as much as I had a lovely spreadsheet that told me what was coming in and what was going out on a day to day just trying to get a handle on what was happening it. It really wasn't easy for somebody that doesn't like numbers and isn't a particularly detailed person. 

 Jake Shaw 03:07

So it was taken up time and stress and headspace and things 

 Kate Young 03:11

yeah, totally took up headspace took up stress. But in terms of actual activity, not a great deal, because I just didn't like going in there and trying to fathom out what was there and what was going on with things. 

 Jake Shaw 03:24

Tell me how you're receiving payments, cash, cheque, things like that. And also had card and contactless payments. 

 Kate Young 03:30

I've never used contactless payments for the business. I used to look at cash. And when my book first came out, and I was taking it to networking events, I would use cash but then I was being charged by the bank for putting cash in. And so, I the payments come through now via the website. 

 Jake Shaw 03:50

So, using a couple of different platforms and apps to manage your finances. That's interesting. So, have you ever forgotten an invoice? 

 Kate Young 03:58

I don't think so. I, I have I've had a couple of moments of did I invoice for that and then had to trawl back through my invoices to check whether I had actually invoiced for it. But no, I've never. I've never forgotten to invoice, 

 Jake Shaw 04:15

thinking about tax and sort of statuary costs. How do you how do you handle that? Do you budget for that every month? 

 Kate Young 04:21

I tried to add again, I was up until probably Christmas time when I implemented the styling process and profit first process. It was all a bit hit mess. So, there's less of a worry now and there's the aim is that there won't be a scramble at the end of the financial year going, Oh my word what on earth do I do? Where on earth do I find this money from? That's the plan.

 Jake Shaw 04:44

You have a separate business account to your personal account. Do you understand the advantages of having a separate account for the business?

 Kate Young 04:52

Well, I have to because I'm a limited company. So, the business has to have its own bank account because it is a separate legal entity. I think had I been a, it's been set up that way since day dot. And so, I've always had a separate bank account, had I been a sole trader and not had the need to have a separate bank account, I would have really got myself into an unholy mess, quite frankly. 

 Jake Shaw 05:18

So how many hours a week do you think you spend on your sort of administration of the finances for the company?

 Kate Young 05:25

I try to spend a couple of hours a week just checking that I've got invoices in, thankfully that the apps I use will do automatic chasing of the invoices. And then if it's coming towards the end of the month or this week, it'll be the beginning of the month. So, this Friday, there'll be a lot of additional admin over the next few days, because it's obviously the financial year end. So, it's making sure that I've got everything in there and basically uploaded into the system, so that my accountants can work their magic and sort out my year end return

 Jake Shaw 06:01

Do you expect to be eligible for the government self-employed assistance?

 Kate Young 06:06

Yes, I made a decision. That frankly, at Christmas I was regretting at so with my husband working away. He when he came home, and we didn't know whether he was going to go back to work off to work offshore. Again, I made the decision to take an office outside of the family home, so that I had somewhere to go and just work and not worry about being distracted by husband and golden retriever. And then when he went back offshore, again, was kind of questioning whether I needed to have it. Thankfully, it's there. Because Now what that means I'm eligible for the 10 k grant for small business rate relief and premises. As for the other relief, and I'm a sole director, I'm unlikely to get any relief in relation to that. And I don't want to furlough myself, I love my business. And actually, now more than ever, I need to be present, I need to be visible. I need people to know that we are there is a support for them. Because in the world of child protection unfortunately, there are lots and lots of children and young people and vulnerable adults in houses up and down the country where they are not safe and where professionals are really worried about them. And they need somewhere to ask those what if questions and to develop and hone their peripheral vision on issues that are really relevant. Around COVID-19?

 Jake Shaw 07:34

Where do people find you? Where's your website case?

 Kate Young 07:37

So, my website is safeguardingassociation.com and that's where I am. You can also find me on Facebook and on LinkedIn. 

 Jake Shaw 07:44

 Kate young of the safeguarding Association. Thank you very much.

 Kate Young 07:48

You're very welcome.

 Jake Shaw 07:49

Thank you for listening. If you'd like to hear more podcasts like this, please go to www.amaiz.com and don't forget to like and share this podcast.