Err... what is a cash book?

A cash book is an accounting book that records all cash receipts and payments. No
matter what the size of the organisation, this book forms a key part of a business's
books of account.

Yet it is a very simple book and is very easy to maintain.

A strict definition of a cash book can be found here.

Why would I need one?

Do you need timely information of the state of play of the business?
BACS transactions can take up to 5 days (though they typically take 3 days) to clear
bank. Cheque receipts can take up to the same length of time. By keeping a cash book
you can see what the bank balance will be!

Do you trust your bank?
It is very rare for a bank to make a mistake but it does happen.  Wouldn't you prefer to
be in control of your bank balance?

Do you need to know what is happening with your business from onen year end to the
next?
Many small businesses judge there business performance by the balance in their bank.
Maintaining a cash book with some analysis columns will allow the business owner to
keep track of sales and profits through out the year.

What do you they look like?

This depends on the need of the business.

In it's simplest form, the cash book is used like a memo book with a running balance
and columns for receipts and payments. This can be maintained in a memo pad type
book or in Excel. An example of an Excel spreadsheet can be found here.

One up from this in terms of complexity is a cash book with a page for receipts and a
page for payments. Each page includes some analysis columns that allow the user to
identify categories of receipt and payment. From this the user can prepare accounts
either annually or more regularly. This type of cash book is better maintained within
Excel and an example can be found here.

How can we help?

We can advise on the best cash book solution for you whether this is the simple cash
book or not.
We can provide tuition for creating and maintaining the cash book.
We can provide a range of services for the small business. These are listed above.