Self-employment

Getting a job is essential if you are living independently and have bills to pay but some people who are looking for employment find the idea of working a nine to five job off-putting and so they may look at alternatives to this way of working. Working in an environment where the hours are different, possibly unsociable could be the answer but starting up as self-employed is an option for many people who have the suitable skills and experience that will be required. If you have been unemployed for a while or have been made redundant from a job there is usually help available to set up your own business if that is something that you would like to try.

Once you have decided on your particular strengths and what type of business yours is going to be you will need to register as a sole trader with HMRC so that they know that you will be completing a self-assessment tax form and paying class 2 and possibly class 4 national insurance contributions. HMRC will need to know the name of your business so you will need to decide on a name. If the name reflects your business then that will be beneficial for example if you run a gardening business there are names that play on words related to gardening or landscaping or if you run a local business you may want to include the name of the town in which you will be based. Checking online to make sure that there is not another business with exactly the same name is essential to avoid being accosted by other business owners.

You will need to arrange the level of public liability and professional indemnity insurance that your business needs to ensure that you are covered against any injury or damage you may inadvertently cause in the course of your work. Quotes for these insurances can be found online and are quite reasonably priced but make sure that you read the small print to ensure it covers aspects of your particular business.

Setting up the financial aspects of self-employment can be daunting for some new business owners and a visit to the bank is essential so that you can set up a business bank account. Many banks have special rates for new businesses for the first twelve months which is helpful. Hiring an accountant is an option but may not be necessary if you are doing cash accounting and your turnover is quite small.