
BEST PRACTICE SPONSOR 2020
19FINDER MONKEY |
Pursue what is meaningful,
not what is expedient
I started FinderMonkey back in 2009
with John Arko. We had £500 each
and an idea: our aim was to create
a people tracing company with an
unforgettable name offering an
unforgettable service.
The challenges in those first few
years were huge but we soon realised
that’s just business: there are always
challenges and once we’d come to
terms with that, the company started
to grow. From a first-year turnover
of £40,000, we have grown to £1
million and plan to continue to build
the brand and to keep improving
ourservice.
One of our biggest challenges is
the amount of tax we pay and
the aggressive nature with which
it is collected. As a member of
Entrepreneurs Circle, an organisation
designed to help and support
businesses, I hear horror stories
about HMRC and it’s clear that a
short-sighted view on collecting
money has now been adopted. I
understand that it is necessary to
collect tax in a timely fashion but
small businesses are the heartbeat
of the economy and many of us
feel strangled and confused by tax
regulations. We also need guidance,
help and support around tax so we
can reinvest in our businesses and
employ more people. As tax is now
digital, we should be able to pay it
daily, weekly or monthly so we don’t
accrue massivebills.
Just like we have to be ethical in our
business, we believe HMRC should
be ethical in their approach. HMRC
need to train their own team to a
higher standard so they understand
that business owners do want to pay
tax but are also trying to grow our
businesses, look after our families
and, of course, our team too.
Adoption tracing issues
We have teamed up with Dr Joanna
North of Joanna North Associates,
an adoption support agency rated
“outstanding” by Ofsted, having seen
a need to expand our adoption tracing
service so as to help our clients.
When carrying out a search for an
adopted person, we have to, by law,
contact the adoption agency that dealt
with the adoption. This can be difficult
to identify with merges and closures
over so many years. We can contact the
court that issued the adoption order,
who should also be able to provide the
name of the adoptionagency.
This is where the problems begin. The
law is clear: the court should come
back to us in a timely fashion so we
can continue to help and support
our client. This frequently does not
happen or often takes months to
get any response. Some never even
acknowledge receipt of our requests.
When the adoption agencies no longer
exist, their records are often kept by
a local authority. This is where our
second problem starts.
Dr Joanna North of
Joanna North Associates
Just like we
have to be
ethical in our
business, we
believe HMRC
should be
ethical in their
approach
“
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