Nearly 1 in 3 privately rented homes in the UK don’t meet the Decent Homes Standard.
That means they contain hazards with a serious threat to health or safety, are damp, don’t have adequate kitchen or bathroom facilities, or don’t have proper heating or insulation.
And it can be nigh on impossible for renters to get landlords to do anything about it.
Mighty oaks do grow from acorns, though: in only a couple of years, community-based union Acorn has brought people together to tackle injustice and secured a much better deal for many tenants of private landlords.
Jonny Butcher of Acorn joined me in Sheffield Live’s radio studio on Friday to tell me what Acorn does, why its action is so necessary, how it works and how to get involved. Listen to the podcast below.
Also on the show: an in-depth Q&A with Morgan Killick all about VAT for small businesses.
If your business is approaching the VAT threshold, or you are planning to build a business and charge VAT, you need to listen to this.
“You can go horribly wrong, if you get it wrong,” says Morgan.
Morgan addressed common misconceptions about VAT (will you lose customers when you start charging; and problems businesses can have with collecting and paying their VAT.
And he told me about the free VAT Breakthrough programme, designed to help sole traders and small businesses in Sheffield which are nearing the VAT Threshold. With the support of the programme, “the idea is you bust through the threshold,” adds Morgan.
Podcast:
Timings:
- 0 – 4:00 introduction and updates, including an acquisition by Sheffield-headquartered games studio, Sumo Digital; and the deadline for the Sheffield Business Awards,
- 4:00 – 24:34 Jonny Butcher,
- 24:34 – end (54:03) Morgan Killick.
What next?
- Websites for Acorn and the VAT Breakthrough programme.
- More about my Business Live radio show.
- If you’d like details of new podcasts and enjoy reading useful, practical advice – delivered in an accessible, entertaining format, then you’re welcome to join my free newsletter email list (if you’re not already signed up). Just pop your details in below and look out for a confirmation email to click to confirm you want to join the list.