To think accountancy isn't a "keyworker" job?

[hannabull]

One of the parents at school is a self employed accountant who works from home, but sending kids into school. The other parent works out of the home (not a key worker) how is this allowed? Claims to be an essential worker (doesn't work for the nhs or anything, just accounts for small businesses)

Why do people care so much and stick their noses into others businesses?!
Of course accountancy can be a keyworker job!
It's a pretty important one, and how do you it with kids running around your ankles or needing supervising doing their schoolwork?!
I honestly can't get worked up who is or isn't "worthy" of a place.
If you need one, you need one.

No. Of course it's not.

its important work - but they do that from home. Its not a 'key' worker

This applies to plenty of nhs workers. Would you deny them a school place too?

It’s unambiguously on the list whether people agree with that or not.

I have been on calls all day and only nipped to check on the kids every hour or so, but mostly they have been in their own and have managed

Yet you said you took breaks to home school. So which is it? Either you took breaks to home school or you checked on them once an hour or so and they were managing. Which sounds like they don't need supported through their learning- are they young primary? Or are they older and able to just crack on?

Can you see that having the flexibility and them being self led is a big plus here? Stressful as your job is. Lots of stressful home working jobs cannot be carried out the way you have due to time constraints or small dc needing hand held through their whole schooling.

WTAF? Seriously, how do some people survive in the real world? Of course it’s like the busiest time of the year for accountants! They support so many businesses that support so many families.

Why do people on Mumsnet think they're qualified to decide who is a key worker and who isn't?
Every thread about keyworkers I see I think this!!

Well unless HMRC suspend the 31st January date for filing tax returns, I imagine for most accountants this is their busiest time of year!

Where is it on the list?
Speaking as an accountant, accountancy is not part of essential financial services provision - this is for the banking infrastructure and other FCA regulated services.

I'm an accountant by trade (although studying in addition to working as wanted a career change -for anyone who checks my other posts )
We have over 250 clients who have furloughed staff - guess who is calculating and processing the furlough claims for them -us and we are doing it free of charge as it wouldn't be morally correct to charge for that type of work. We also run payroll for over 400 clients- many of whom are care homes like a PO mentioned. Also hospitality, retail and pretty much every other type of business you can imagine.
Many couldn't run their payroll without the furlough funds so it's doubly critical.
We are also supporting clients in applications for grant funding and discretionary funding and providing cash flows and forecasts for loan or overdraft applications. All of that and just general hand holding clients who up until now have had viable, healthy, profitable businesses who are now facing ruin- they are scared and bewildered and need sound and knowledgeable advice.
So yes I think it's fair to say accountants are definitely essential workers.

@dameofdilemma

KW has been defined (deliberately) wide to maximise work output and minimise the opportunity for parents to ask for flexible hours or parental leave. No requirement on employers to grant (even unpaid) leave or flexible hours requests.

Accountants, bankers, lawyers, HR, marketing, IT, project managers etc - all caught within the definition (for some industries).
Even if WFH.
Even if not related to health or social care, food distribution, utilities etc.

Classic approach of a government that has prioritised business over the NHS and shown zero understanding of what is actually happening in schools.

Try to remember this when the next election comes round.

(And I say all this as someone classed as a KW and resisting pressure from my employer to take a school place).

That's exactly it.

Sport should have added - that's all in addition to the 'normal' accountancy work that hasn't stopped. Tax and VAT returns, annual accounts- all of which generate fines if submitted late.

Why do people on Mumsnet think they're qualified to decide who is a key worker and who isn't?

This experts on everything apparently.

This may be a daft question but why do accountants with regular clients get themselves into a frenzy every January?

I'm self-employed, have been for over ten years, and have never submitted my tax return later than December.

I do my own accounts but the accounts that I know ask their regular clients to submit theirs by July. Given that they relate to the tax year that finished three months earlier, this seems perfectly reasonable.

What have I missed here? It's not like the SA submission deadline is sprung on us as a surprise each year.

@Hotelhelp

Has extending the deadline been discussed at all?

Yes, accountants have been campaigning for it, but HMRC and government have refused.

Accountants are on the critical workers list so the government has made that call with their understanding as to what is genuinely essential for our country to run. You probably don’t have the expertise to make that call.

It’s like people who don’t work in healthcare thinking only doctors and nurses are essential. The support and admin are also essential to enable the doctors and nurses.

I wish people would let schools deal with parents and stop judging. I know an accountant who sends her ds to school. He has an ehcp for special needs but you wouldn’t know that as a random mum on the playground.

@christinarossetti19 I’m not in private client type work but mostly when stuff is up to the deadline it’s because a lot of clients are nowhere near as organised as you and send everything to you last minute!

I can’t see accountants on the list either. And my employer, one of the largest employers of accountants in the country I suspect, has not mentioned it, only to work round the home schooling....

@christinarossetti19

This may be a daft question but why do accountants with regular clients get themselves into a frenzy every January?

I'm self-employed, have been for over ten years, and have never submitted my tax return later than December.

I do my own accounts but the accounts that I know ask their regular clients to submit theirs by July. Given that they relate to the tax year that finished three months earlier, this seems perfectly reasonable.

What have I missed here? It's not like the SA submission deadline is sprung on us as a surprise each year.

I can answer from my own perspective only, the only returns we do in January are for the clients we have chased and chased and chased and always provide the information we need at the last minute. And yes it's pretty much the same ones every year Luckily for us it's a very small percentage of our client base.

You're right OP....who needs to pay their taxes and get paid their salary it's not as if it's important or anything is it?......oh wait.

Basically you're saying that ensuring businesses comply with the law and pay their taxes isn't essential. Right.

And to the PP who say that [these sort of] accountants are no busier than anyone else who works from home rather than in their usual office... in January?! You're having a laugh! There's not enough hours in the day for them to do all the extra tax returns on top of homeschool. Literally.

[quote tappitytaptap]@christinarossetti19 I’m not in private client type work but mostly when stuff is up to the deadline it’s because a lot of clients are nowhere near as organised as you and send everything to you last minute![/quote]
So it doesn't sound like essential work more like a failure to plan adequately to get it done earlier. Seriously how do these people cope do they leave everything to the last minute?

christinarossetti19 people aren't all that organised - simple as that. Accountants can ask their clients to provide info early, and offer a discount for doing so, but there will always be a large number of people who don't care about paying a premium to have it done at the last minute.

@christinarossetti19

This may be a daft question but why do accountants with regular clients get themselves into a frenzy every January?

I'm self-employed, have been for over ten years, and have never submitted my tax return later than December.

I do my own accounts but the accounts that I know ask their regular clients to submit theirs by July. Given that they relate to the tax year that finished three months earlier, this seems perfectly reasonable.

What have I missed here? It's not like the SA submission deadline is sprung on us as a surprise each year.

Because that's when clients finally give them stuff. I know someone who basically just drops of shoe box of reciepts along with paperwork🤦

@tappitytaptap

I can’t see accountants on the list either. And my employer, one of the largest employers of accountants in the country I suspect, has not mentioned it, only to work round the home schooling....

You can’t see it in the most because it isn’t on the list Accountancy is not part of Financial services

My DH works for a big 4 firm and they have been told they are not critical workers