King’s Lynn accountant on going back to school and starting office life
In his monthly ‘It’s A Dad’s Life’ column, accountant Neil Gayton, of King's Lynn company Stephenson Smart, discusses going back to school and office apprenticeships...
We are finally back to a school routine after a summer break that felt like seven years. Everyone knows it too as we have had the weather we should have had throughout July and August.
All the new uniforms that have been crisply ironed and named to within an inch of their life have already been subjected to the suncream saga. You apply it, make sure it's dry before your child puts their school shirt on, yet they arrive home with a lovely yellow colour around their collar and then you spend ages with the stain remover.
Summer was good, we spent a week away in the New Forest and as usual went for the element of adventure. Long zip wires and forest rollercoasters were the highlights, but I also went on a few trail runs where I ended up getting completely lost and chased by cows. Luckily, I was faster than them.
Oliver is back at school and was totally ready, but for Samuel, who has just started high school, it was a different story. We didn’t worry about him getting lost in school or having an accident, because with his track record it was inevitable. The main concern was his tie.
Of course, I was concerned he would end up with it damaged, filthy or abandoned in a classroom, but we wouldn’t even get that far if he couldn’t remember how to do it. We practised all summer, but on the first day he got in a muddle, and it ended up looking like a piece of origami gone wrong. It’s got better since, but I’m very much an advocate of the clip-on tie.
We have had quite a few new starters at Stephenson Smart too with it being the start of a new academic year. There’s a great trainee and apprenticeship programme in place here and we offer opportunities to graduates, as well as school leavers, who would like an alternative to going to university and want to learn and study while gaining vital practical experience.
Give us a shout on 01553 774104 if you think we can help.