BATH AT WORK

Our series of photographic portraits by Neill Menneer shows Bath people at work. View a gallery of Bath@work subjects at: thebathmag.co.uk

Christophe Lacroix Restaurateur

Iwas born in La Rochelle in western France, but didn’t have the best start in life. I was taken away from my parents as my mum wasn’t managing. She basically starved us, which must account for my love of food from an early age. My foster dad was not a lot better and a lot of smacking was part o f the daily diet.

Consequently I was what might be called ‘a troubled individual’ and was always getting into scrapes with someone or other. I was sent to a boarding school at seven and left at 14, as soon as I could, to become an apprentice. The chef I worked for was a tough taskmaster, which also didn’t bring the best out in me, so I was given a choice between prison o r the army. The army changed me and gave me the discipline and stability I needed and I have many fond memories from that time. I was liked because I used to take the rationed (and obligatory) wine from my friends and, together with a little honey, transform it into warming mulled wine for the evenings.

After leaving the army, I applied my culinary skills all over the world: Germany, Switzerland, St Lu cia and even Madagascar for a while. This included a time as chef for Mohamed Al-Fayed in Surrey and Nicholas Cage in Midford. I met Jean Pierre Auge when visiting a friend in Bath, and I began working for him at Le Beaujolais. From there on my life has been in Bath.

You might remember the various restaurants I have run. The Pinch of Salt in Margaret’s Buildings, Le Petit Cochon in Widcombe and No.1 B eaufort in Larkhall. They have all been s uccessful in their way, especially Le Petit Cochon, which did really well. I rather regret selling it after only three years. Still, all these adventures have led me to where I am today at Ma Cuisine in Larkhall.

I love it here. The sense of community in this small village is so rare nowadays and I have made many friends. The business keeps evolving. The idea at first was to sell ready meals. These are pre-cooked takeaways and consist of many French classics, like our wild boar pie and a few English dishes like faggots which go down well. My best customer, though, is still Sydney Jacob who runs the Jeeves retail chain and who has become a real friend. We run two special evenings from here: The Supper Club which offers eight courses and our quiz night, which is enormous f un. I put on 14 courses with three glasses of wine for a very reasonable fee per head, including six blind courses and prizes. I love these evenings as I get to cook and socialise all at the same time. I certainly didn’t come to Bath for the weather. It was, and is, the people I love. Compared to France this is a very tolerant country. You might not realise this, but in France there are p olice everywhere. I’ve not been stopped for any reason w hile I’ve been here, which would not be true in France. I’ve enjoyed sharing my passion with others and believe hard work makes better people. One parent was so grateful after I worked with their son and helped transform his perspective on life that they even gave me a part in their feature film!

We’re about to open our garden which will have spec ial paella n ights, so new things are always happening. n

ocl A C C O U N TA N C Y

141 Englishcombe Lane, Bath BA2 2EL Tel: 01225 445507 www.oclaccountancy.com

MAJOR CHANGE: Capital Gains Tax payable within 30 days of completion of sale

Under current regulations, if you owe Capital Gains Tax (CGT) from a property sale, you have until the next self-assessment tax deadline to report the liability and pay the tax. This will be the 31st January following the end of the tax year of the sale / disposal. For example, where a property is sold on 15th May 2019, the sale falls into the 2019-20 tax year, and you would declare the CGT owed and pay your bill as part of submitting your self-assessment tax return by 31 January 2021.

NEW: 30-day payment window from April 2020 From 6th April 2020 however, whenever you make a taxable capital gain from UK residential property, you will have to pay the tax owed within 30 days of the completion of the sale / disposal. This is done by submitting a 'residential property return' and making a payment on account. This new requirement significantly reduces the time you have to calculate and report your CGT. This 30-day rule only applies to UK residential property sold on or after 6th April 2020, and only where CGT is chargeable. Your solicitor should advise on this but arrangements for reporting and payment may be unclear; if so, please contact us urgently.

For tax saving tips contact us – call Marie Sheldrake, Tom Hulett or Hannah Pettifer on 01225 445507

CITYNEWS

STAY UP TO DATE

Bath & North East Somerset Council have added a new page to their website to keep citizens updated on council services as the authority responds to the Coronavirus (Covid-19). The site will follow Public Health England advice and guidance as it is issued. Council leader Councillor Dine Romero said: “The situation regarding Coronavirus is changing rapidly and we must work together as a community to protect ourselves and those around us. It is important that everyone remains calm

and follows the latest national advice on the steps needed to reduce the spread of infection. It is essential that we support each other and understand that we will all need to adapt to different day-to-day behaviours during this period.” c ovid-19incidentcomms@bathnes.gov.uk Councillor Dine Romero

SPRING INTO EASTER

The Botanical ABC are offering a blossoming collection of charming products showcasing the watercolour paintings of Lavinia Thomas. Each letter of the alphabet is represented by a flower whose name begins with that letter, their petals and leaves teased into shape, providing harmonious rhythm in our everyday chaos. Botanical ABC have a beautiful range of cards, gifts and indulgences, all of which are availab le online. botanicalabc.com

ON THE MOVE

After 12 years in Belvedere, locally based Danish goldsmith Tina Engell is thrilled to announce a move into Bartlett Street this month. Tina’s new shop sits in the heart of Bath among exciting shops, cafés and wine bars. All of Tina’s jewellery is contemporary in style and made by hand. She will also use the space to showcase bespoke work by fellow goldsmiths such as Mikala Djorup and Sophie Harley. Tina said, “Be ing full of creative and l ikeminded businesses, this area represents the best of Bath. I know the new location will really inspire me and I can’t wait to get started.” tinaengell.com

BUILD YOUR BUSINESS

“Entrepreneurship is no longer a choice in these uncertain times. Companies are making employees redundant. We live longer than what our pensions can support. Stay-home spouses must create a business to support the rising cost of living.” Meet Cynthia Wihardja, a practical advisor and founder of The Brave Zone. She combines her psychology and business skills to give self-employed professionals the mental strengt h and business s trategy they need to reach their dreams. She may be a new resident of Bath, but she’s not new to business. A graduate from UCLA and a Master NLP Practitioner, she has been a business achiever since 1996 in Fortune 500 companies as well as in her own businesses. She has been recognised for sales and profit achievements, building a top-ranking firm, and most importantly, working with good b usiness e thics. She owns two coaching companies in Indonesia, which are now running indepdently. “When I moved here, I wanted to help the self-employed. They have the least resources and the biggest challenges. They need customised strategies just like big businesses,” Cynthia explains. A purpose-driven entrepreneur with a heart for the community, join Cynthia’s free webinars or get fresh insights for yo ur business growth every month. thebravezone.com Cynthia Wihardja

BATH BUSINESS BAROMETER

UPDATE: FEBRUARY 2020 High Street Footfall (Month on month % change) n Looking at the difference in footfall for February over January we can see that Bath fared well compared to the region and the nation. We also note that the first week of March was up 3% on the February average. provided by

Bath 6.7%

n Bath & North East Somerset Council leader Councillor Dine Romero has chaired a teleconference of local agencies who are working together to protect our community from the COVID-19 threat. As well as the council, the meeting involved the Police, Curo, RUH and CCG, all of whom are working closely together to protect our local communities. The partners agreed to continue to co-ordinate their efforts and offer mutual aid and support, with their top priority being protecting the public, particularly the most vulnerable. Dine Romero said: “We must work together as partners and as communities to protect ourselves and those around us. It is vital that everyone follows the latest advice and we ask the public to follow national guidance on COVID-19, to keep up to date with any service changes through our websites and social media, and to offer support and help wherever possible to neighbours and the local community. We will continue to work closely together to protect the public during this challenging period.”

UK 1.3%

South West 2.1 %

Sending staff home

We all want and need to do our bit to limit the spread of the coronavirus and keep vulnerable people safe. But as the situation changes daily and we have no idea how long this will continue, businesses are not only dealing with the need to reduce staff numbers on site, in order to restrict the spread, many are also trying to cope with a sudden loss of business as social distancing and self-isolation becomes the new norm.

So, how should employers prepare? First of all, establishing who can work from home is essential. There are some roles that can’t be done anywhere else other than the place of work, for example retail or manufacturing. If working from home is not possible, an employer will need to determine if they can afford to send staff home on full pay – after all, if an employee is ready, willing and able to work, then they expect to work and more importantly be paid. For those employers who can implement home working, there are certain factors to be considered including the following:

• Do employment contracts include a mobility clause allowing home working (i.e. can the employer require the employee to work at a different location than the normal place of work) or does that need to be achieved by consent? • Do staff have access to all equipment needed to do their job? • What additional expenses will staff incur from home – for example, broadband usage, heat, lighting and telecoms? Will those extra expenses be offset by the removal of commuting expenses or will the employer need to put plans in place to cover them? • Putting in place robust processes to monitor productivity of home workers to ensure the business continues to function effectively. • Considerations around additional support to help staff transition from office to home working. How will business communicate with their staff to ensure their wellbeing?

With the expectation that sustained efforts will be needed to deal with the pandemic, companies should prepare for a situation that allows for remote working on an ongoing basis for the foreseeable months ahead. It has never been more important to communicate with your teams and all employers will be relying upon the loyalty and commitment of their people like never before.

There is however, no denying that the level of uncertainty about the duration of disruption to daily lives creates its own set of problems for businesses, particularly those who cannot easily adapt to a homeworking model. While some businesses may have the luxury of keeping payroll unchanged in the short term, as the situation continues many will have to make difficult decisions to ensure survival of the business. The government has already announced a range of measures which are available to businesses to assist with the crisis but there is not yet sufficient clarity around how those measures are to be delivered.

Ultimately, businesses that plan ahead will undoubtedly be in the best position to deal with the uncertainty to come and protect and retain its staff. In these very difficult and uncertain times, we are here to help and are committed to assisting our local communities where possible. If you would like to talk about any of the issues highlighted in this article, either formally or informally, please do contact Mogers Drewett on 01225 750000 or me directly on 07809 772301.

Sean McDonough, Partner, Employment & HR, Mogers Drewett