bookkeepers rates and where to find them?

[June2009]

hiya

My accountant left us two weeks ago now and we're looking for a new one at the moment but in the meantime we need someone to do our bookeeping.
We got in touch with an agency and we were offered 3 candidates who all take £20 an hour.

I think that's too much seeing that's what I was paying my accountant (who is a qualified accountant and was doing credit control and end of year as well as bookkeeping.)

I realise that agencies will charge more than if I find someone another way.

Do you know how much bookkeeper usually charge and where to find one without using an agency?

where are you? I'll do it for less than £20 an hour?

I think £20 sounds about right.

£20 is reasonable. I charge £15 per hour. Try gumtree that's where i'm advertising atm. or a local firm of accountants may have someone they recommend.

Feel free to CAT me if I can help though

North London, I honestly thought someone could enter stuff in SAGE for 10 pounds an hour, is that really completely delusional? (or is that not what bookkeeping is).

if it's sage work then that's why it's £20 per hour. Some people will charge less for Sage other's more but ball park of £20-30 is not unsual IMO

I think you're delusional. £15 per hour self employed only equates to a salary of around £22k per year - no pension or fringe benefits!

Sadly I'm too far away to work for you. Now is it data entry or are you expecting them to look at the info that comes out and check it is correct and makes sense & make decisisions using it?

Thanks for your replies.
No offense to people who charge more by the way, I truly didn't have a clue, we've always had a qualified accountant who did it for us as part of a package.
I just don't want to be pressured to make a decision on another accountant but don't want to get behind with credit control either.

Not offended!

It completely depends what the job entails. Have you got someone with admin skills who can do the data entry side and then employ someone with book keeping skills to do the rest of it. I think you'd be looking at £15-£18 per hour to employ direct.

I'd maybe do simple data entry for £15 per hour, but for any analysis it would be at least £20 - £25 per hour.
I don't charge per hour though, I charge per year/job, so it's up to me how many hours I spend. But it all depends on what kind of work you need doing, and what level of reporting you want. Charges seem reasonable to me.

The agency i work for charge even more than that!

By astonishing coincidence I hired a book-keeper today. North London - £16.50/hr. I pay my accountant a lot more than that