When Covid-19 forced the UK to go under lockdown, many UK workers were “furloughed”. This meant the government paid 80% of their salary for the duration of the lockdown, in the form of a loan. The scheme was designed to protect businesses from going bankrupt under lockdown, and to prevent employees from losing their jobs.

Unfortunately, for some businesses, and many workers, this wasn’t enough. Many UK workers are now facing redundancy. And unfortunately, we won’t know for some time just how many people will lose their jobs as a result of lockdown.

What To Do When Made Redundant

There’s no denying it – losing your job is horrible. It’s especially horrible to lose your job after months of lockdown. You’re first steps are:

• Don’t panic – We know this is a difficult time and, it might sound like a trite cliché, but you truly could transform this crisis into an opportunity.
• Check over your outgoings – It’s always a good idea to get a firm handle on your outgoings so you know exactly where you have some shortfalls, if there is any.
• Seek financial advice – Make sure you have the pay you’re entitled to, you can claim any benefits you’re entitled to and that you’re financially getting the support you can.
• Plan your next steps – Whether that’s looking for a new job or taking this as an opportunity to explore careers you’ve always wanted to or even setting up your own business.

Setting Up a Business After Redundancy

This could be your perfect chance to finally do that thing you’ve always wanted to do. Imagine – by this time next year, you could be riding an initial wave of independent success, and looking forward to a future of steady and sustainable growth.

In this post, we’ll look at the process for setting up as a remote worker. We’ll cover some of the practical considerations you’ll have to make, as well as the support that’s open to you.

Setting Up as a Remote Worker – First Steps

You can’t simply decide to work from home and take it from there. You need a solid business idea to build on. On one level, this means you need a set of skills to sell. You might be able to do your old job on a freelance, self-employed business. But even if not, your knowledge and experience could be invaluable in itself. You could set yourself up as a consultant. Read our guide to starting a consulting business.

Once you have an idea for a business, you’ll find there’s a lot of support available to help people get their ideas off the ground. For example, the New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) is a government grant to help you start your own business. As well as a weekly allowance, you’ll also get a designated business mentor who’ll talk you through the process of setting up a business, while helping you to fine-tune your business plan.

Head here to read our complete guide to the New Enterprise Allowance.

How to Run a Business from Home – Practical Considerations

Can you run your business from your own home? It all depends on what you intend to do.

It’s really a question of what sort of equipment you’ll use to do your job. If you’re looking to set yourself up as a consultant, or you plan to offer freelance IT or marketing support, then really all you’ll need is a laptop, a smartphone, and an internet connection. In this case, you’ll have no problem at all in running a business from home.

But what if you need more elaborate equipment? Or what if your business involves visiting other people at their homes, or even receiving customers at your property?

We’ve got a complete guide to all of the practical considerations you’ll have to make when you’re setting up a business at home. Our guide also tells you what sort of arrangements you’ll have to make if you live in a rented home, or a council house. Find our guide here.

If you run a business from your home, it might affect the tax you pay. You may have to start paying business rates – a form of tax charged on any property that’s used for business purposes. But don’t worry – these only usually apply if you’ve had to fundamentally alter your home to accommodate your business. Head here to find our complete guide to business rates.

How to Register Your Business

Eventually, you’ll have to register your business. This is basically to tell HMRC who you are and what you’re doing. That way, they’ll know how to tax you correctly.

Once you’ve registered your business, you’ll have to keep detailed records of all of your finances – all the money you make, and all of your expenses. You’ll also have to submit a tax return by January 31 each year. And depending on how you register your business, you might have to take on some additional accounting and admin responsibilities.

Head here to read our full guide to registering your business. It will tell you the official steps you’ll need to take, and some of the additional responsibilities you’ll have once you’re registered.

You might also want to open a business bank account. There are many pros and cons to doing this. But a major benefit of having a business bank account is that it gives you access to various financial products that are exclusive for businesses – such as specialist loans. Head here to read our full guide to business bank accounts.

Safeguarding Your and Your Business

If you run your own business, you’ll take on responsibility for everything. That’s why it’s important to safeguard yourself against the unknown. Affordable and flexible insurance will cover you against many eventualities, from personal injury to unavoidable interruption. This way, no matter what happens, you can rest assured that everything will be taken care of.

The type of insurance you get will depend on what you do. For example, if you take on any additional staff, you’ll need employer liability insurance. And if your business is to offer professional advice, you’ll need professional indemnity insurance to cover you and your clients, should things not play out the way you expect.

We offer specialist insurance cover tailored to suit the needs of emerging businesses. We’ll only cover you for the things you need.

If you would like an insurance quote or have any questions about our products please give us a call on 020 7846 0108 or email us at info@tapoly.com.