Author: Glenn

HMRC’s Personal Tax Accounts (PTAs) serve as an online tool that enables taxpayers to view and update their information in real time. The PTA can be used for many routine requests and services and help you bypass the need to call or write to HMRC.

Every individual in the UK that pays tax has a PTA, but taxpayers must sign up in order to access and use the service. This can be achieved by using the Government Gateway. You may need to verify your identify when using the service.

The following services are currently available on your PTA:

• check your Income Tax estimate and tax code
• fill in, send and view a personal tax return
• claim a tax refund
• check your Child Benefit
• check your income from work in the previous 5 years
• check how much Income Tax you paid in the previous 5 years
• check and manage your tax credits
• check your State Pension
• check if you’ll benefit from paying voluntary National Insurance contributions and if you can pay online
• track tax forms that you’ve submitted online
• check or update your Marriage Allowance
• tell HMRC about a change of name or address
• check or update benefits you get from work, for example company car details and medical insurance
• find your National Insurance number
• find your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number
• check your Simple Assessment tax bill

The PTA is a key component of HMRC’s broader strategy to transition to a fully digital tax service.

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is an executive non-departmental public body sponsored by the Home Office. The DBS helps employers across the public, private, and voluntary sectors make safer hiring decisions by identifying individuals who might not be suitable for certain roles, particularly those involving children or vulnerable adults. Additionally, the DBS maintains the Adults’ and Children’s Barred Lists. The DBS checks are used across England, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.

There are four types of DBS checks, and each type results in the issuance of a DBS certificate to an individual. Employers are allowed to request to see this certificate in order to confirm that they are hiring suitable candidates.

The four levels of DBS check are:

• Basic DBS check
• Standard DBS check
• Enhanced DBS check
• Enhanced with Barred List(s) DBS check

The DBS also offer an Update Service that allows:

• applicants to keep their DBS certificates up to date
• employers to check a DBS certificate

The service is for standard and enhanced DBS checks only.

In order to use this service, a subscription is required. It costs £13 per year, and you can pay by debit or credit card. There is no charge for volunteers or for those living in Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man.

The enhanced Check Your State Pension forecast service is available online. The service can be found on GOV.UK at the following webpage https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension.

The new digital service is a joint service by HMRC and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). It has been enhanced to include a fully end-to-end digital solution.

The service allows most people under State Pension age to view their pension forecast and identify any gaps in their National Insurance Contributions (NICs) record. This will be helpful for taxpayers looking to make voluntary NIC contributions to increase their entitlement to benefits, including the State or New State Pension.

Usually, HMRC allow you to pay voluntary contributions for the past 6 tax years. The deadline is 5 April each year. However, there is currently an opportunity for people to make up for gaps in their NICs for the tax years from April 2006 to April 2017 as part of transitional measures to the new State Pension. The deadline has been extended a number of times and has been most recently extended until 5 April 2025.

The launch of HMRC’s online service will help speed up this process. HMRC’s helplines have been struggling to meet the demands for information and processing claims to pay additional NIC contributions.

HMRC has also confirmed that all relevant voluntary NIC payments will be accepted at the rates applicable in 2022-23 until 5 April 2025.

It is advised to regularly check your State Pension position to help optimise your entitlement. You should also consider what other savings or pensions might be required for a long and comfortable retirement.

The charity commission has offered the following guidance to charities following the recent public disorder events.

The main points are summarised below:

• Are you operating in an area which has seen or is at risk of unrest? If so and you wish to continue to operate what changes could be made to mitigate any risk to your staff, visitors or beneficiaries?
• Have you reviewed the entry points to your property for weaknesses should there be unrest? Can you restrict access/improve secure entry to the property?
• Are different entrances available?
• Do you have alternative exit routes from the property if required? Are these clear and communicated to staff visitors on arrival?
• Should an incident occur do you have a clear procedure in place for what staff / visitors should do to stay safe? Is everyone briefed on this procedure and is it clear who will issue instructions should an incident occur?
• Do you need to have first aid trained staff or volunteers onsite?
• Have you contacted the local police force community liaison team to agree contact points for sharing of specific risks or to seek specific advice and guidance on operating?

Some risks may be specific, or time bound such as an alert from police of a specific risk / threat based on their monitoring of social media or intelligence. You may therefore want to consider:

• Who in your charity / how your charity continually reviews the latest advice, guidance or alerts from police forces or other local authorities including monitoring of social media channels.
• If you are at higher risk do you need a procedure at the start of each day to assess risk and a clear channel or method to communicate with staff or beneficiaries prior to start of operations on whether or not they should attend site.
• Ensuring you have a clear process or nominated person responsible for acting upon any urgent alert or risk.

Charities should not hesitate to call emergency services if their staff, volunteers or beneficiaries face abuse, feel threatened, or are in danger.

Companies developing artificial intelligence (AI) to improve safety on construction sites, reduce time spent repairing the railways and cut emissions across supply chains are amongst a number of projects set to receive a share of £32 million in UK Government funding.

Announced 7 August 2024, almost 100 ground-breaking projects have been awarded financial backing as the government continues its mission to boost productivity and kickstart growth across the economy through AI, so everyone is better off.

A total of 98 projects from Southampton to Birmingham and Northern Ireland will receive funding, involving more than 200 businesses and research organisations spanning a range of sectors including public services, driving efficiencies and reducing administrative tasks.

As part of the government’s mission to build an NHS which is fit for the future, pharmacies that deliver prescriptions across the country are also set to benefit from this new financial support. A project led by Nottingham-based Anteam will see them collaborating with retailers and the NHS to improve the efficiency of their deliveries using AI algorithms. This technology will match the delivery needs of retailers and hospitals to existing delivery journeys, unlocking under-utilised capacity, cutting carbon emissions and delivering a better experience for patients.