Bookkeeping is the record
Invoices in, bills out, bank feeds matched, VAT coded correctly. That is bookkeeping. It should happen every week or month — not once a year in a shoebox.
Accounting is the picture
Year-end accounts, Corporation Tax or Self Assessment, management figures, and advice on whether you can take a dividend. Accounting needs clean books. It cannot invent them after the fact without cost and risk.
What “good enough” looks like
- Bank and card accounts reconciled.
- Director’s or owner’s drawings clearly split from expenses.
- VAT returns that match the records you will later file.
- A simple monthly profit figure you can believe.
We do the books, the year-end, or both. Start at accounts & bookkeeping if you are not sure which you need.
This article is general information for UK readers, not personal tax advice. Rules change. Check GOV.UK or speak to us before you file.