UHY Peninsula case studies - part 1
Every year since 2021, UHY Peninsula has interviewed a selection of clients to showcase some of the great businesses operating across the south west of England. These case studies are divided into four parts. In part one, we feature: Treworgey Manor, Datum Office Technologies, Hidden Valley, The Puzzle Park and The Orange Elephant.
If any of these businesses offer a service you could use, why not get in touch with them directly?
And if, after reading these case studies, you spot an opportunity for the UHY Peninsula team to support your business, feel free to reach out - they would be delighted to help.
Alan Walker bought the beautiful Treworgey estate near Liskeard, Cornwall in 2017, after selling off parts of his Hertfordshire farm for development.
Having looked for suitable properties across the West Country, Alan, his wife Pat, son Jim and daughter in law Debbie realised Treworgey ticked all their boxes and so they all relocated to Cornwall.
The Treworgey estate dates back to 1598. Unfortunately the original manor house burnt down in the 1930s but was rebuilt as a smaller version soon after. The estate now comprises 115 acres of grassland and woods, the manor house and four holiday cottages with associated facilities including a swimming pool.
Renovations from the outset
As soon as they moved into Treworgey, the Walkers made some substantial changes. This included installing a state of the art biomass wood chip heating system to replace the storage heaters in all the properties. A new septic tank system was also installed, and the holiday cottages were all rewired, along with general maintenance and repairs being carried out.
The team advised the family on various tax matters related to the purchase of Treworgey, including capital gains tax and rollover reliefs from the Hertfordshire farm. We were also able to advise on the capital allowance claims relating to the renovation work carried out. As a result, we were able to secure a substantial tax refund from HMRC by reviewing the rollover relief claims the previous accountant had made!
Planning for the future
The move from full time farming into a mix of farming and holiday lets has been a challenge for the family, but one that they find very satisfying. Their holiday guests come from across the UK and overseas to relax and soak up the magical surroundings which Treworgey has to offer. As a result, they have a 90-95% occupancy rate, with a high proportion of these guests being repeat visitors.
Not being the type of people to rest on their laurels, the family are currently looking into erecting an indoor swimming pool, renovating a stone barn into a restaurant, and potentially reinstating several ponds which were part of the original estate.
With all these changes in the pipeline and as part of an in-depth estate planning exercise, the practice has worked with the family to assess future inheritance tax liabilities and has implemented several measures to minimise potential tax bills in the years ahead.
On the family’s relationship with the practice, Jim Walker said: "They have played a key role in advising us on all aspects of our businesses, as well as our personal tax affairs. They have a great local team that we use on a day to day basis, but also have the national and international experts within their network who we can use when required. We can always pick up the phone and speak to someone, which is great.”
To find out more about the luxury holiday cottages at Treworgey Manor, take a look at www.treworgey-manor.co.uk
Having worked in the photocopy repairs industry for over 12 years and completed a degree in engineering, Kenny Edwards set up Datum Office Technologies to change the way offices manage print or copier breakdowns and to give them a better standard of service.
Revolutionising the office print industry
Traditionally offices call out an engineer to assess a print problem and then fit the required parts, all of which can take days to fix. However, Kenny has built a groundbreaking system whereby Datum can predict and prevent most printer failures from happening, the so-called ‘Fix before Failure’ service. This clever system saves businesses time and money by identifying and rectifying small issues with the machines before they develop into large scale problems and downtime.
Sustainable printing
Kenny is also keen to make printing more sustainable. Not only does their Fix before Failure service allow them to manage their diaries more effectively, reducing travel and knock-on environmental impacts, but they are also installing new technology (including in our office!) that enables a single piece of paper to be reused up to 6 times.
The challenge of remote and hybrid working
The changes to many businesses’ operations affected by Covid have been significant. For Datum, the main issue has been a rise in the number of employees working from home.
However, with the remote technology Datum has developed, along with a focus on personal and professional customer service, Datum has been educating its clients on how to get the most out of their machines, no matter where their staff are working. Where possible, centralising the businesses' printing to a single office machine can yield significant savings compared with having several home office printers. Plus, Datum can advise on additional products that can help streamline office procedures, such as document management systems.
Where next?
Datum’s clients are currently spread across the South West and South Wales. Kenny wants to grow the business across the UK and expand his service offering to include 3D print.
Speaking about our accounting practice, Kenny says, “The team are brilliant. They have been with me right from the start and helped me set up the business. I don’t have to think about my accounts and tax affairs, by logging into my QuickBooks account, which they helped me set up and use, they just take care of it all for me. They are a team of professionals who give me total peace of mind that everything is done correctly and on time. I can ring and ask for advice at any time.”
To see how Datum could help your business visit www.datumofficetech.com
Peter Jones, owner of Hidden Valley, The Puzzle Park near Launceston, always knew that fun and puzzles rather than farming and produce would be his future.
Having lived and worked on the family farm, Peter launched his venture into tourism in 1994 by creating a scavenger hunt. This was run from a small garden shed in one of the farm’s fields, but as word spread, more people visited, and soon a small tearoom was created to provide refreshments for clue hunters.
From a shed to a mansion to a unique village
Over the next few years, visitor numbers steadily grew, and ideas for expanding the theme park were rapidly taking shape. Following on from the tearoom, a small gift shop was added. However, the main expansion of Hidden Valley took place in 2012 when they invested in the construction of a new reception building, a larger tearoom and the ‘Forbidden Mansion’. The central theme of the park is always puzzle trails, brainteasers and having fun.
Further developments occurred in 2021, when Peter rebranded the park. Tremuddlewick Village was created, together with Professor Puzzlewit, the creator of all the park’s puzzles, riddles and quizzes and his unique ensemble of mysterious employees and villagers.
The park also boasts a mile-long miniature railway, a hedge maze made of over 4,000 beech trees, and peaceful gardens for those who want to get away from it all.
Taking stock
As with many businesses, the Covid pandemic brought new challenges to the park, not only from having to close for several months, but also from how they had to run it once they could reopen. However, some of the changes they implemented have contributed greatly to the puzzle park's success since.
To avoid overcrowding in the park during social distancing, they introduced an online booking system. This system is now key to their ongoing engagement with their visitors, enabling them to send news and information about the park, along with details of forthcoming events and special offers. They can also track the demographics of their visitors, which helps with future developments, as well as marketing.
Where next for Cornwall’s hidden treasure?
Peter is keen to make Hidden Valley, The Puzzle Park an all year round attraction and to double the number of visitors from the current 30,000 a year. 2022 has seen the creation of a new play area complete with impressive tower, zipwires and swings. There will also be an expansion into more adult-themed events, including an escape room and themed steampunk festivals. Plus, plans are underway to hold themed Halloween and Christmas events, helping to attract visitors to the park throughout the year.
Peter’s aim is to be ‘the Disney of Cornwall’, providing a quality, high-end theme park which is liked for its friendliness and cleanliness, as well as the amazing and fun experience people encounter when they visit.
Professional, trusted, personal support
Peter has been working with our team for over 20 years. He says, “They do everything for me, from bookkeeping to tax planning and the necessary compliance work. Not only does this free me up, physically and mentally, but it also gives me total peace of mind that they have our best interests at heart. This was experienced a few years ago when the practice advised we incorporate the business, and as a result, we have made some significant savings on our tax bills.”
To find out more about Hidden Valley, The Puzzle Park please visit www.hiddenvalley.co.uk
Nestled in the glorious Devon countryside is a dairy farm with a difference. The first inkling of what you are likely to find is in a field next to the A38 at Kennford near Exeter. Here you’ll see ‘The Orange Elephant’, the centrepiece to the farm’s hugely successful homemade ice cream enterprise.
The Taverner family have been farming at Lower Brenton for over 100 years. Rob and Helen Taverner are the current custodians, and together with their son William (now the fifth generation), they farm 350 head of dairy cattle. The milk from the herd is used to make over 30 different flavours of ice cream.
Opportunities for the next generations
Over 25 years ago Rob and Helen’s thoughts turned to the future opportunities for their children, William, Charlie and Katie. There were limited options to grow the dairy herd due to the location of the farm, so their ideas extended to diversification and what activities would work best.
In 1997 they opened a farm shop and butchery, selling meat produced on the farm, as well as a deli section and a range of locally produced items. They continued to run the shop alongside the dairy herd but realised they could do more with the milk they produced. So in 2006 they started making their own ice cream. Over time the ice cream parlour grew and this, together with the farm shop, kept them busy 365 days of the year.
Playing to their strengths
However, running the farm shop, making and selling ice cream and milking 350 head of dairy cows were taking their toll. So, after much deliberation, the difficult decision was made to close down the farm shop and focus their efforts on the dairy herd and on growing the Ice cream parlour, which would open for 6 months of the year.
As a result, it was the best decision they could have made. Rob now manages the dairy herd with William, and Helen is the chief ice cream producer; together, they oversee all aspects of the business.
When life presents you with Covid….do things differently
Unable to open the ice cream parlour during the lockdowns, Rob and Helen launched a new ‘drive-thru’ ice cream shop. This was initially run from a serving van, allowing people to buy ice cream without getting out of their cars. The drive-thru was so successful that they seized the ‘bull by the horns’ and built a large open span agricultural building, which housed the ice cream parlour at one end and provided lots of socially distanced seating for customers. The building now provides an excellent space for visitors to sit and enjoy the ice creams (plus other refreshments) and is located next to the summer meadow and play area.
Where next for the Orange Elephant?
Rob and Helen are currently converting some of their buildings into seven new holiday lets, which will open from Easter 2023. Recently they have created a maize maze, and Charlie has planted a small vineyard on the farm – could Orange Elephant wine soon be on the menu?
A relationship built on friendship and respect
The Taverners have worked with our team for over 30 years. Rob says, “The practice has been instrumental in how the business has diversified and developed. They have been very supportive during the good and the difficult times. They provide us with the usual accounts and tax services, but more than anything, it is their business advice that has helped us evolve and grow.”
Why not pop into the Orange Elephant or visit www.tavernersfarm.co.uk
Discover more client success stories
in our UHY Peninsula case studies.
The businesses featured on this page reflect the diverse range of clients we support and the many ways we help them achieve their goals.
Read more about our services and find our contact details on our Launceston page.
