Forres mum carves out a new career balancing the books

A MORAY MUM has started up her own bookkeeping business after completing courses at Ideal Schools, a specialist UK-wide e-learning college focusing exclusively on bookkeeping and accounting.

Her new business, Abacus Comprehensive Bookkeeping, is now ready to take on small business clients in the local area.

Lisa MacLeod, 31, from Forres, has a background in finance, having studied for an HND in Accounting in 2007 and working as an Accounts Assistant for a firm of Chartered Accountants.

She turned her accounting experience into working for a number of companies on the financial side of the construction industry but decided to broaden her skills after she began to feel she was learning to use specific accounting programmes just for individual companies’ needs.

Looking at the website of a local bookkeeper, she saw the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB) crest, which led her to long-established, Glasgow-headquartered online college, Ideal Schools. By 2011, she had joined 2000 other students on the path to becoming a member of the ICB.

She said: “I started off on the career path with Ideal Schools, and became pregnant shortly afterwards. We also had a couple of house moves at the same time, so it was a pretty hectic time.

“Ideal Schools was fantastic for my situation. It was really simple to pick up and put down the work, and I didn’t feel I was being pushed, or having to match someone else’s schedule. I started my business last year, and I’ve been growing it slowly, with a view to moving up a gear when my daughter goes to school.”

Lisa waved her daughter off to school this month and will now be devoting more time to keeping the books of Moray sole traders and small businesses. She wants to be a trusted partner, rather than simply a herald of the tax paying season to local businesspeople.

She said: “I want to build slowly so that I’m able to provide the personal touch, at a human level. I am a firm believer in good relationships with clients, so I know what they need for their businesses.

“For anyone wondering if bookkeeping is for them, I would say ‘take the plunge.’ There’s nothing to lose from learning something new, and Ideal Schools is a great resource.”

To find out more visit Lisa’s new enterprise online.