Family Businesses

Family run businesses require specialist advice, a considered business approach and a different way of thinking. You also need an expert team of family business advisors to guide you in the right direction.

In the UK, the number of family-run businesses is on the rise, with approximately 75% of all businesses in the private sector now being family-owned.

Growing and running a family business presents unique challenges and requires a considered business approach and a different way of thinking. A number of family businesses do not survive the transition to later generations. This is why you need specialist advice and assistance from experienced family business accountants and tax advisors.

Alexander & Co’s family business accountants and tax advisors have a wealth of experience and provide the specialist knowledge to help you utilise opportunities to keep your business growing.

Knowing how to manage family businesses can be difficult. As decision-making processes tend to be more informal and unstructured, there may be succession dilemmas and shareholder disagreements that arise. As well as this, there is the difficulty of creating a solid work-life balance for your family and structuring a family share-ownership. 

Our family business accountants are here to help you meet these challenges and ensure that you and your family overcome the problems that you may face. Our team works hard to understand the needs of your business and all of the members in it so that we can build a bespoke plan to suit everyone’s needs.

Our family business accounting and tax services include:

Inheritance tax advice for family businesses is essential. This is especially so with upcoming changes in UK tax rules set to take effect from April 2026. Family business owners require expert guidance on managing inheritance tax liabilities. This includes reviewing succession planning, minimising tax exposure on business assets and navigating the new £1 million cap on Business Property Relief (BPR).

With Business Property Relief reduced to 50% for businesses valued over £1 million, a 20% tax charge could apply above this level. Proactive inheritance tax planning can help families protect their legacy. This could be through utilising lifetime gifting, trusts, and structured business handovers tailored to multi-generational family enterprises.

If your family business requires clear, up-to-date inheritance tax advice, working with Alexander & Co will help to ensure your succession and tax planning align with the latest legislation. This will help to secure your company’s future while minimising your tax burden for the next generation.

Succession planning for family businesses is a crucial step to ensure smooth leadership transitions and safeguard the long-term success of your business. With tax reforms impacting Business Property Relief, and only 32% of family business owners having an up-to-date succession plan or will, it is more important than ever to take urgent action.

Effective succession planning involves choosing the right successors, structuring the business to retain family control, and using tools such as lifetime gifting, trusts, and clear governance arrangements. These strategies help minimise inheritance tax exposure, avoid family disputes, and ensure future generations are prepared to lead.

Whether considering family succession, management buyouts, or employee ownership trusts, tailored advice ensures your family business remains resilient. Start planning now to protect your family wealth, maintain control, and secure the legacy of your family business.

“Alexander & Co are insightful, dedicated, experienced and trustworthy. Having experienced and worked with the big four accountants, I continue to put my trust in Alexander & Co.”

When you choose Alexander & Co as your accountants, we will keep you up-to-date with the latest regulations. This includes tax regulations from HMRC, liabilities and challenges that may affect your family business.

From life science and healthcare to the creative industries, we are proud to support businesses across diverse business sectors, and offer a wide range of services to provide everything our clients need to grow their businesses.

To get started or for more information on how we can support your business, call our family business experts on 0161 832 4841 or email info@alexander.co.uk. Alternatively, complete the online enquiry form on this page and a member of our team will be in touch.

With offices in Manchester City Centre and London we are ideally placed to help family businesses across the UK.