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Hiring a Finance Director? Here's an Alternative

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Freddie Mayer
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Just started working with Accounts and Legal cause my old accountants were utterly terrible. They've been great! So glad I switched over! The level of service is brilliant!
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Flowan Health Ultrasound & Wellbeing
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I’ve used Jamie Davies at Accounts and Legal for my small business accounts and Self Assessment, and I’ve been really impressed with the difference in the level of service and advice. Having had some rather patchy and fairly superficial accounting advice in the past, it’s been a real change to work with someone who is knowledgeable, competent and genuinely takes the time to understand the business. He is approachable, responsive and, importantly, doesn’t just deal with the numbers - he provides practical advice that has delivered real value. I now feel much more confident that my accounts and tax affairs are being properly looked after and I would happily recommend him to other small business owners looking for an accountant who adds genuine value rather than simply filing the paperwork.
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Rose and Pete
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Really lovely accountants!
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Robson Estates
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Great help!
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Matthew Egan
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Isabel and Millie worked brilliantly to get our payroll back on track after some hiccups that caused me sleepless nights. Thank you for your brilliant service. We look forward to you working with us more.
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Leyla El Moudden
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As a new small / micro business, I had no idea what an accountant should or shouldn't be and had terrible experience after terrible experience with all these companies that market to small organisations like mine. What a disaster - I was so stressed out I was about to give up - considering myself too tiny for any company to care about. When I connected with Accounts and Legal, & Dominic who looks after my accounts - I felt like I was getting big business accounting care and attention, even though my business remained tiny. Since working with them, I've had no more scary letters, my cashflow is looking great, I have a complete financial overview of what is possible with my business and an intelligent responsible person at the other side of emails and phone calls anytime I need. Major kudos to Dominic and the Accounts and Legal team - who have been very patient and supportive all the way through.
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Dewald Botha
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Accounts & Legal have been a great partner with expert knowledge in tax and accounting. Dominic in particular has been extremely helpful and always very quick to respond to queries.
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William
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Excellent service. A big shoutout to Dominic for being efficient, responsive, and easy to work with. We never had to chase them and actually we were always proactively followed up, which made the whole process smooth and stress-free.
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What Does a Finance Director Do?

If you’re looking to hire a Finance Director, chances are, you need someone who can:

  • Lead financial planning and strategy

  • Oversee budgeting, forecasting and cashflow management

  • Produce board-level reporting and insight

  • Ensure compliance and financial controls are in place

  • Support investment decisions and growth planning

  • Own performance reporting and KPI analysis

In the UK, roles of this seniority often command salaries between £80,000–£150,000 per year — before pensions, NI and other employment costs are factored in.

Finance Director having a conversation

Before You Hire a Finance Director ...

If you’re hiring, it’s because you need a properly structured finance function.

That means:

Whether that comes from a permanent hire or a structured outsourced team depends on your stage of growth, but the end goal is the same: financial clarity and control.

Hiring a Finance Director? Here’s an Alternative.

Finance Director Job role

What Outsourcing your Finance Director Means...

Outsourcing doesn’t mean lowering the bar. It means structuring the finance function differently.

Our outsourced finance service gives you access to:

  • Strategic financial oversight
  • Financial management and reporting
  • Forward-looking cashflow forecasting
  • Budgeting and performance tracking
  • Financial input into growth decisions
  • Oversight of compliance and controls
  • Bookkeeping, credit control and payroll support

For some businesses, this replaces the need for a full-time FD. For others, it complements an existing team.

Outsourced finance Team

What You Actually Get

If your goal is to strengthen financial leadership, what you actually need is clarity, structure and accountability.

Instead of relying on one person, you get a dedicated A+L team built around your business, with the right mix of experience across the whole finance function.

Financial leadership

  • Proper financial planning aligned to your growth
  • Board-level reporting with clear, straight answers
  • Cashflow forecasting and scenario planning
  • Oversight of controls, compliance and funding conversations

Management & insight

  • Monthly management accounts you can actually use
  • Budgeting and analysis vs budget
  • KPI reporting built around what matters to you
  • Clear performance insight, not just numbers on a page

Oversight of the day-to-day

  • Supervision of invoicing, payments and credit control
  • VAT and payroll oversight
  • Structure, accountability and consistent reporting deadlines

All delivered with the feel of an in-house team available by phone, email, Teams or WhatsApp, whatever suits your needs.

Hiring a Finance Controller? Here’s an Alternative.

Find out more
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A happy client - Gentoo Racing

Inhouse vs Outsourced: Cost Comparison

If your goal is to strengthen financial leadership, what you actually need is clarity, structure and accountability.

Instead of relying on one person, you get a dedicated A+L team built around your business, with the right mix of experience across the whole finance function.

Fully Outsourced Finance Department for SME Owners

Find out more
Support from an outsourced finance team

How Are We Cheaper?

It might sound too good to be true, but the main difference comes down to structure and efficiency, not cutting corners:

  • You’re not committing to a full-time salary where the workload may fluctuate

  • There are no recruitment fees or long onboarding periods

  • Continuity is built in, so there’s no disruption around holidays or absence

  • You have access to a team of qualified accountants, so you’re not relying on one or two people

  • Best-in-practice software and automation are implemented as standard

  • Processes such as payment runs, credit control and reporting is streamlined

  • Reporting is designed around the KPIs that matter to you.

It’s not about cutting corners, it’s about building your finance function in a way that removes any blockers.

Hiring a Finance Manager? Here’s an Alternative.

efficient team

Speak to an expert

Jack Dawber-Axon

Jack Dawber-Axon

Head of Accounting
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Know what you need? Get a quote.

Get an instant quote

No, Outsourced Finance is designed for growing businesses of all sizes.

The clients who outsource their finance function to us are generally ambitious, growing businesses that need a full finance function but don’t want the overhead of hiring internally. The service also favours tech-savvy firms that want to stay on top of the latest industry developments, while maintaining full oversight of their numbers with customised reports and dashboards.

Yes, we'll be on hand to answer any queries whenever you need it.

We’re flexible with each client depending on how they prefer to communicate, whether that’s email, phone, Teams or WhatsApp. The idea is we become a part of your team, just like an inhouse hire would. You won’t just have one point of contact either, you’ll have a team at your disposal which makes communication as starightforward as can be.

That's common, and still works very well.

For some businesses, we’ll work alongside a Finance Manager, Finance Director, bookkeepers or credit controllers.

We’re not here to just replace roles, we’re here to make your finance function easier and more effective. We can plug into your existing setup and support wherever needed, building something that actually works for your business. That also means we can stay flexible around how you already run things.

This depend on you, and what you need.

For some clients, our team of qualified accountants will do the job of one person or an entire team. However, for clients who may not need that level of support, our team may only need to support as a replacement for one role. It all depends on your requirements, and the beauty of the fully managed finance option is its flexibility.

Pricing is always built on a bespoke basis depending on the clients' requirements.

Our clients pay us on a monthly retainer basis, and your quote will be tailored to your needs. In addition to this, we also work on a one-off basis for any project work you may need, such as legal assistance or tax advice/planning.

Growth is different for every business, but we've worked with enough businesses to tailor our approach.

It might be boosting profitability by looking at pricing and costs. It could be expanding your team or opening a new office. Maybe it’s attracting investment or buyers to your business? The point is, we use your financial data to identify how we make your goals a reality. If you’re unsure whether you can afford that next hire, with better insights, you’ll be able to answer that question easily. In every case, we combine financial insight with practical business advice so you grow in a way that’s sustainable and strategic.

Usually, our onboarding can start the same week you decide to sign up with us.

That way, you’ll have:

  • No more onerous notice periods
  • Less risk for onboarding than taking on a staff member
  • No awkward limbo period
  • No reliance on a single employee

The great thing about letting us take care of your finance function is you get continuity, even during holidays or sickness, not to mention the cost saving.

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