Bookkeeping
A current ledger, a bank reconciliation and a profit and loss you can read. The Starter retainer is for people who need the books kept, not a finance department.
Read moreMarket Harborough · sole traders and small companies
Bookkeeping, VAT and management accounts in Market Harborough
The books, kept. The decisions, clearer.
Sternal Finance keeps the books for sole traders and small companies, files Making Tax Digital VAT returns, and provides management accounts or a fractional finance director when you need one. Fixed monthly fees from £150. Based in Market Harborough, serving Leicestershire and Northamptonshire.
I'm Jon. The call is free, with no obligation: twenty minutes to talk through bookkeeping, VAT or Making Tax Digital.
- 15+
- years inside companies
- CIMA
- qualified practitioner
- Fixed
- monthly retainers
Services
Bookkeeping, VAT, and a finance director when you need one.
VAT
A Making Tax Digital return is only as good as the books behind it. The VAT work sits on top of bookkeeping that is already up to date.
Read moreXero
Most clients are on Xero. The practice connects the bank feed, reconciles it, and closes the month. If you are already on QuickBooks, that ledger is supported too.
Read moreManagement accounts
Growth is the step up from a tidy ledger. You get management accounts with a short written note, a 13-week cash forecast, and a quarterly call.
Read moreFractional FD
A fractional finance director for the owner who needs a judgement on cash, pricing, hiring and funding, and someone accountable for the numbers underneath.
Read moreMaking Tax Digital
A significant change for UK sole traders and landlords. Sternal Finance helps you get ready, and then keep up with it.
Read morePackages
A monthly fee, written down before you commit.
Foundation, at £250 a month excluding VAT, is the recommended starting point. The retainer is still set against turnover, volume and how much senior time you need.
Retainer
Starter
£150per month, ex VAT
Sole traders and smaller companies that only need the books kept.
- Monthly bookkeeping and bank reconciliations
- A simple monthly profit and loss
- Up to about 40 bank transactions
- Cloud ledger support in Xero or QuickBooks
- VAT returns and payroll as separate add-ons, quoted individually
Recommended
Foundation
£250per month, ex VAT
The recommended starting point: books kept, and the filings done.
- Monthly bookkeeping and bank reconciliations
- Quarterly VAT return, where registered
- Year-end accounts and corporation tax computation
- Confirmation statement
- One director Self Assessment
- Cloud ledger support in Xero or QuickBooks
Retainer
Growth
£650per month, ex VAT
Businesses that need a monthly picture, not just a year-end file.
- Everything in Foundation
- Monthly management accounts with written commentary
- 13-week rolling cash forecast
- KPI dashboard and budget versus actual
- Quarterly review call
- Up to two directors’ Self Assessments
Retainer
Fractional FD
£1,800per month, ex VAT
Owners who want senior finance leadership without a full-time hire.
- Everything in Growth
- Monthly strategy meeting and board-style pack
- Forecasting, scenarios and working-capital advice
- Margin, pricing and unit economics
- Lender and investor-ready numbers
- Oversight of the day-to-day finance work
VAT returns and payroll are separate add-ons. They are discussed and quoted individually, and the price depends on the complexity of the business. Catch-up bookkeeping is offered too. It is quoted after a conversation, because the cost depends on how far behind the books are, the volume of transactions, and the state of the records. Extra Self Assessments and one-off forecasts sit outside the retainer, and the fee is confirmed in writing before that work starts.
Approach
How an engagement starts.
01
A short conversation
We look at turnover, transaction volume, software and what you actually need decided each month.
02
A fixed scope
You get a written proposal and engagement letter. The monthly fee is agreed before any work starts.
03
The books put right
We set up or tidy the ledger and connect the bank feed. The month-end close is delivered by the 10th of the following month.
04
A rhythm, not a scramble
The month-end close, and management information where you have it, arrives by the 10th of the following month. Commentary tells you what changed.
JS
Jonathan Sternal
ACMA CGMA · CIMA qualified
About Jon
The person behind the numbers.
I'm Jonathan Sternal, Jon to most people, and I run Sternal Finance from Market Harborough. I'm a CIMA-qualified management accountant (ACMA, CGMA), and I've spent more than fifteen years inside companies. That's meant management accounting, commercial finance, and the work a finance director actually does between board meetings.
I set up Sternal Finance to bring that experience to sole traders and small businesses across Leicestershire and Northamptonshire. I keep your books, file your VAT returns, and turn the figures into something you can use, then stay close enough to help you act on them. I work from Market Harborough and I visit clients locally, including Lutterworth, Kibworth, Corby and the wider Harborough district. The places I cover are on the areas served page.
I'm a Xero partner, so your accounts sit in software I know inside out, with a live view of your business whenever you want it.
You deal with me directly, with no call centre and no hand-offs. If you'd like to talk about your books, get in touch or connect with me on LinkedIn.
Statutory audit is not offered. Personal tax is taken on where the affairs are straightforward, and referred where they are not.
Free, no obligation
Book a free 20-minute call.
I'm Jon. If you want twenty minutes on bookkeeping, VAT or Making Tax Digital, send the form and choose the free call. There's no fee, and no obligation to go further. A short note is also enough if you'd rather describe the work. I'll reply to the email you give.
Foundation is the recommended starting point. I'll say if Starter, Growth or a fractional FD conversation is a better fit. Scope and fee are confirmed in writing before any work starts.