Inverness-based all-trades contractors Simpson Builders were able to claim back a substantial research and development tax (R&D) claim with Access2Funding after finding R&D on each of its sites.
About Simpson Builders:
Specialising in civils works, Simpson Builders, a medium-sized enterprise established in 1999 with three staff on the books has since developed into a business with a 48 strong team. Simpson Builders works across the Scottish Highlands on anything from renovations and extensions to new builds, with projects ranging from £10k to £2m.
Research and development in the business:
The team was initially unfamiliar with R&D tax credits, but after making contact with the Scottish arm of UK-wide Access2Funding, the business began to uncover hidden finance within all of its sites including the Strathconon Church Conversion.
Acting as the main contractor on an old church conversion that was also a listed building and turning it into a two-bedroom church without compromising on design – the project came with its technical challenges. Simpson Builders had to conduct a large amount of research on various elements of the building, including the most effective way of retaining the fragile original stain glass windows, 3D scans to help with the steelwork and roof design and research into protecting and relocating the endangered bats on the site, to name just a few. The project required a range of specialist expertise and was a prime example of just one of Simpson Builders exciting and unique projects which qualified for R&D.
Yvonne Simpson, business development manager at Simpson Builders, said: “We were surprised to learn that each site had a different challenge that required some element of R&D to make it work, whether it was using different products to come up with the end solution or how best to install a curved glass bespoke handrail system.”
Experience of claiming with Access2Funding:
Yvonne went through the claims process with Suzy Carter and Taylor Franchetti from the company’s team in Scotland. She said: “The whole process was easy peasy! In all honestly it did sound daunting to begin with, but it was so straight forward and effortless thanks to the helpful team at Access2Funding. It was so quick too; within one month we found out how much money we were entitled to and then within 6-8 weeks of beginning the process the money was in our bank. We are now working on our second claim for the last financial year!”
Final words:
Although R&D can be found in pretty much any sector, the latest HMRC figures show a significant rise in construction businesses claiming for tax relief on innovation-focused investment, resulting in £175m claimed for 2018/2019 with the average claim at £57k.
If you’d like to have a chat with our team about potential hidden funds in your business, contact Suzy Carter on s.carter@access2funding.co.uk or visit our quick and easy R&D calculator.
