“I started my own business in 2015, originally placing perms. But my first contract was for temp workers, so I went down the LLP model route. This seemed easier at the time because I was working on my own.

My initial thoughts were that it wouldn’t be any different to working for another person. I was billing for margin, with someone else effectively employing my workers.

A few things started to bother me, to the point where I didn’t want to be with my provider. The straw that broke the camel’s back was when they missed my temps off the payroll and didn’t pay them the Friday before Christmas. The MD wouldn’t take my call to rectify the situation.

So in the new year, I approached different companies. I knew that I wanted to employ my own temps and I wanted my turnover, but I was happy to be guided on the best model for me.

I met up with Shelagh Ward and she struck me as the most human, the most normal, and the nicest person I’d spoken to. I don’t particularly like being sold to (which is what the others did), so I opted for Workwell Outsourcing.

Although it might have felt like less hassle, the LLP model was much more expensive. Moving to the 100% funded model was a no brainer – it actually cost me nothing in the first year, because of the savings I made. Overnight I instantly gained £3k annually, because I could use my National Insurance allowance.

Three years later, and I’m still with Workwell Outsourcing. They absolutely value my business and they operate in a friendly, human way.

There have been times when I’ve had a problem and they’ve sorted it out for me even though they didn’t have to. For example, I was in Florida and I set up a VPN to log into the payroll portal so my temps could get paid, but the VPN wasn’t working. I had no way of paying them, but I called Shelagh, and the team ran my payroll for me.

It’s great that they’re part of a large company too, as it means the mechanism is there if I need additional services. For instance, one of my clients was looking for a third-party/umbrella company, and I was able to recommend them straight away, which helped me get new business.”