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Coniston reviving the glory daysBy LIZ RULE
Pharon Independent
Financial Advisers Ltd
FROM April 6, 2010, pension investors
will no longer be able to take benefits at
age 50 but will have to wait until they
are 55.
For many this will not be a problem, as
few can afford to retire at that age, but
you need to be aware if you were born
between April, 1955, and April, 1960.
If you need to crystallise any of your
pension benefits for any reason, there is
a window of opportunity, which will shut
again for up to five years for some, come
April.
There are many reasons why people
take pension benefits early. Some who
have amassed larger pension pots simply
wish to access the tax-free cash, perhaps
to buy a holiday home and leave the
remaining monies invested until they
actually need an income from it, perhaps
much later in retirement.
Lifeline
For others, perhaps in debt, accessing
their pension early has been a lifeline
when all other options of finance have
failed.
These instances are unfortunate and
we only deal with them if they are a last
resort, but in some cases they make the
difference between financial survival or
not.
Whatever the reason, for some
investors, the option of utilising their
pension money early is going to disap-
pear.
If you fit in the window where your
options are going to be curtailed, you
should be clear about how this will affect
you and get advice.
This need for advice includes anyone in
the relevant age bracket who is phasing
their crystallisations by partially with-
drawing as and when required, as new
encashments will not be allowed until
age 55.
A window of
opportunity
on pensions
To view, search `Hadlow'
@ yourkenttv.co.uk
Julie Maddocks talks to Hadlow
College's finance director Mark
Lumsden-Taylor
DESPITE the UK's stumbling
emergence from recession,
Government-sponsored advisory
service Business Link South East
has called on Kent companies to
be positive.
It also urged adoption of this five-point
recovery plan to build upon news that the
economy grew 0.1 per cent in the final quar-
ter of 2009:
� Get your people on board. If confidence
builds from the reported upturn, you may
find a change in attitude among staff who
have so far felt grateful for a job.
Ask yourself whether imbalances or skill
gaps might hinder your business plan or the
smooth running of your business or inhibit
changes you want to make.
Motivation
Rebuild employee motivation. The chance
to learn new skills may increase commit-
ment. Can you harness creative energy
released by optimism?
Ensure you invest enough resources into
creative activities that result in revenue-gen-
erating innovations. Long-term profitability
and business value depends on being cre-
ative and innovative, especially in highly
competitive markets.
Is there any resistance to change or ten-
sions and conflicts? Discuss your business
and ideas for change with staff continually.
� Build a resilient and flexible plan.
Businesses with a clear strategy are more
optimistic, but stay flexible and don't throw
caution to the wind. Identify risks in your
business and try to minimise them. Include
short and long-term contingencies.
Track performance against your plan,
using indicators that give a quick and accu-
rate view of your business and not just finan-
cial ones.
� Maintain cost control. During the past 18
months most businesses kept costs under
constant review � don't relax now.
Watch overheads and review suppliers and
get comparative quotes, but take care that
cost-cutting does not damage growth oppor-
tunities or impact on service.
� Maintain active credit and cashflow con-
trols. If you implemented credit control pro-
cedures in 2009, you should be benefiting
now. If you missed the opportunity though,
it's not too late and may help win the race to
recovery. Credit control is cheaper to imple-
ment and more sustainable than invoice fac-
toring and bank overdrafts.
Undertake credit checks or secure an
upfront payment. Provide discount incen-
tives for early payment and negotiate pay-
ment plans as a last resort.
Keep open communication with debtors
and maintain a detailed forecast for your
business, showing expected amounts of
income and expenditure.
� Invest in marketing. Successful business-
es do so. If you reduced marketing activity,
reinstate it or consider low-cost alternatives.
Consider direct selling as part of the mar-
keting mix and measure the cost-effective-
ness of each member of the team in terms of
the profit margin they earn.
Walk tall on the
road to recovery
with five points
By STEVE LOADER
steve.loader@kosmedia.co.uk
MILLIONS have been splashed on lavish rede-
velopment of a Sittingbourne hotel which
closed in 2003 after controversial Government
plans to house asylum seekers there.
Before that, the Coniston Hotel in London
Road had been a landmark in the Kent town
and will now be reborn as a four-star place to
stay.
The project has been piloted by local busi-
nessmen Ernie Berntsen and Chris Richardson
who recently sold their successful fire alarm
systems company IFP Ltd in Upchurch.
They spent four years renovating Coniston
House, built as a private home in the 1880s,
before turning their attention to the old hotel
section, boarded up after the refuge proposal
was shelved after residents' protests.
"The hotel was a prominent and successful
feature in Sittingbourne in times gone by. That
drove us to embark on this project with the aim
of creating a facility for the whole community,"
said Mr Berntsen. "We feel privileged to have
the opportunity to regenerate such an impor-
tant asset and look forward to opening in the
spring.
"We believe the Coniston will provide a
refreshing alternative for businesses wanting
real value and four-star facilities outside of
London. We are also perfectly positioned for
leisure travellers from Belgium, Holland, France
and Germany � all markets that have shown
interest."
The new-look Coniston will have conference
and banqueting facilities as well as a ballroom,
71 en-suite bedrooms and eight suites, plus a
fine dining restaurant for 100.LANDMARK: Computer image of how the Coniston Hotel will look on completion in spring

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