Devon
Accountant in Paignton
Paignton’s economy is anchored by tourism, retail, and a growing healthcare sector, with Torbay Hospital and Paignton Zoo as major local employers.
- Experienced team
- Fixed fees
- National coverage
Why we work with Paignton businesses
Paignton businesses range from seasonal hospitality operators on the seafront to established manufacturers in Marldon. We serve them from a remote-first base, meeting clients in the Town Centre or Preston as needed. The mix of tourism, retail, and public sector work demands a generalist approach: corporation tax for a B&B, VAT for a gift shop, payroll for a care home. Local directors get the confidence that the numbers are right, whether they are filing quarterly or planning an exit.
The Paignton business scene
Paignton’s business scene is shaped by its coastal location and a population of around 50,000. Tourism and hospitality dominate the Town Centre and Goodrington, with attractions such as Quaywest Waterpark and Paignton Zoo drawing visitors seasonally. Retail is concentrated along the high street, while healthcare is a major employer thanks to Torbay Hospital in neighbouring Torquay. Manufacturing remains present in pockets like Marldon, and Torbay Council provides a steady public sector anchor. The local economy is distinctive for its reliance on seasonal spending, which creates cashflow volatility for many small businesses. That volatility drives demand for reliable bookkeeping, VAT planning, and payroll management across the year.
Business hubs in Paignton
Town Centre · Preston · Goodrington · Marldon
How Paignton’s economic mix shapes our service emphasis
The local sector mix shapes how we prioritise services for Paignton clients. A hotel or B&B in Goodrington often needs help with VAT partial exemption on mixed supplies (accommodation versus food and drink). A retail shop in the Town Centre might come to us for payroll set up as they take on seasonal staff. Healthcare contractors linked to Torbay Hospital frequently require IR35 reviews and limited company accounting. Manufacturers in Marldon, such as those in precision engineering, are candidates for R&D tax credits on process improvements. Public sector subcontractors working with Torbay Council often need assistance with CIS returns and year end filings. Because Paignton has no single dominant industry, we keep a broad service line: corporation tax, VAT, payroll, R&D credits, and exit planning are all in regular demand. That breadth is the point. A local business gets one accountant who understands the full picture, not a specialist who only sees one tax type.
Anchor employers in Paignton
Paignton Zoo · Torbay Hospital (Torquay nearby) · Devonshire Park Theatre (Eastbourne legacy) · Torbay Council · Quaywest Waterpark
What we do
What we do for Paignton businesses
Year-end accounts & corporation tax
Statutory accounts to FRS 102 / FRS 105, CT600 filings, marginal relief modelling between £50,000 and £250,000, group relief where it applies. Filed accurately, filed on time.
Director pay and tax planning
Optimal salary-and-dividend split for each director’s personal tax position, modelled annually and recalibrated when thresholds move. Pension contributions, BIK strategy, P11D where relevant.
VAT and Making Tax Digital
Registration timing against the £90,000 threshold, scheme selection (Standard, Flat Rate, Cash, Annual), partial-exemption handling, quarterly returns, MTD-compliant software setup.
Payroll, PAYE and pensions
Monthly payroll runs, RTI submissions, Employment Allowance claims (up to £10,500), salary-sacrifice schemes, workplace pension administration and auto-enrolment.
R&D tax credits
Merged-scheme claims under the post-April-2024 regime, qualifying-activity narrative written by qualified staff, costs eligibility review, ERIS where the loss-making intensive route applies.
Incorporation and structure
When to move from sole trader to Ltd, the real cost of incorporation (SDLT, CGT where property is involved), holding-company design, alphabet shares, group restructures.
Paignton worked example
Worked example: £31,400 of overpaid VAT on mixed supplies
15 employee tourism operator
Consider a Paignton tourism operator running a café and self catering apartments in Goodrington, with one till applying the standard rate to everything. Cold takeaway food is zero rated, sit in food is standard rated, and holiday accommodation is standard rated, so a single rate across the whole till guarantees an error in one direction. Splitting the booking and till systems into accommodation, sit in and takeaway streams, suppose the restated records show £188,400 of cold takeaway sales rung through at the standard rate across the four year correction window. At the VAT fraction of one sixth that is £31,400 of overpaid output tax. The four year cap is the binding constraint: anything overpaid before it is simply lost, which is why the split is worth doing before the next return rather than after.
Illustrative example. It is not a record of a client engagement and the figures are worked through to show how the rules apply, not taken from a real return.
Want the same read on your own figures?
What it costs depends on the size and structure of the business, so we will talk that through rather than quote blind.
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Frequently asked questions from Paignton
Related reading
Guides for limited company owners
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Speak to an accountant in Paignton
Book a free 30-minute call. We will talk through your situation and give you clear, practical recommendations. No jargon, no obligation.
- 24-hour response, usually same dayYou hear back from a person, not an autoresponder
- Fixed fees, agreed before any workIn writing, before anything starts
- One named accountant, not a team inboxThe same person every time you call