Part-time finance director for Manchester businesses

Peter Allen, Buzz’s co-founder and Financial Director, works as the part-time finance director for growing Manchester companies. You get an annual plan, a 12-month cash flow forecast, a KPI dashboard and a quarterly board meeting, with the bookkeeping, payroll and VAT done by the Buzz finance team. From £2,000 + VAT a month.

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From £2,000 + VAT a month

Annual one-page plan
12-month cash flow forecast
KPI dashboard
Quarterly board meeting with Peter
Bookkeeping, payroll and VAT included

See the finance director service

Growing companies in Manchester

Manchester has 2,970 businesses employing between 10 and 249 people. 475 of them work in professional, scientific and technical services and 200 in information and communication (ONS, UK Business Counts 2026).

At that size the year-end accounts arrive months after the decisions they describe. Payroll becomes the biggest cost, a lease or a bank facility needs figures the landlord or lender will accept, and the owner is still the person reading the numbers each month.

A part-time finance director gives the company a plan for the year, a forecast of profit and cash for the next 12 months, and a board meeting each quarter where the results are read against the plan and decisions are taken.

Two people planning at a table in a bright studio

An agency hiring ahead of a contract

A Manchester agency with 14 staff and £1.4m of fee income wants three more people in place before a new contract starts.

The forecast puts the cost of the three hires in the months they start, beside the fee income the contract brings in and the month it is paid. Peter takes the board through the forecast before the offers go out, and the KPI dashboard tracks fee income against the new payroll each month after that.

Three hires at £38,000

Salaries: £114,000
Employer’s National Insurance at 15% above £5,000 each: £14,850
Employer pension at 3% of salary: £3,420
Cost a year: £132,270

About £11,023 a month. At a 50% gross margin, the agency needs £22,045 a month of new fee income to pay for the three hires.

An illustrative example. The agency is invented and every figure is made up.

Working with us from Manchester

Manchester clients work with Peter and the Buzz finance team by phone, video call and WhatsApp.

Our North West office

33 Modwen Road, Salford, M5 3EZ

07476 989568

Growing past £1m of sales? See the finance director for a £1m to £5m business.

Finance Director

From £2,000+ VAT a month

A plan for the year, a cash flow forecast, a KPI dashboard and a quarterly board meeting.

Annual one-page plan

Your business model, the year’s objectives and your team’s priorities, agreed with you and written on one page. The forecast and the board meetings are measured against it.

Cash flow forecast

Profit and loss, balance sheet, cash and valuation forecast for at least the next 12 months, ready for a lender or investor, so you see early when the business is off track.

KPI dashboard

Your most important numbers in one place, updated regularly. It includes non-financial measures, such as enquiries or orders, that show what is coming.

Quarterly board meeting

A meeting each quarter to review the results, take decisions and check that the actions agreed last time were done.

Your finance team, included

Weekly bookkeeping in Xero, monthly payroll and expenses, VAT returns, a monthly board pack, customer invoicing and chasing, supplier payments and cash monitoring.

What the finance team does

Peter Allen, co-founder and Financial Director of Buzz Accounting

Peter Allen is your finance director

Peter is Buzz’s co-founder and Financial Director, with more than 20 years’ experience. He writes the one-page plan with you, owns the forecast and the KPI dashboard, and runs your quarterly board meeting.

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Questions from Manchester businesses

Do you have an office in Manchester?

Buzz’s North West office is in Salford, at 33 Modwen Road, M5 3EZ. Manchester clients work with us by phone, video call and WhatsApp.

How much does a part-time finance director cost?

From £2,000 + VAT a month. The fee includes the day-to-day finance work as well: weekly bookkeeping in Xero, payroll and expenses, VAT returns, a monthly board pack, customer invoicing and chasing, supplier payments and cash monitoring. The fee is confirmed in writing before work starts.

We are an agency. Can you report margin by client?

Yes, where time or costs are recorded against each client. Margin by client can go in the KPI dashboard and the monthly board pack.

Is a part-time finance director the same as a fractional FD?

Yes. Part-time, fractional and outsourced finance director all describe a finance director who works on your business each month without being a full-time employee.

Talk to us about a finance director in Manchester

Tell us about the business and what you need. A named person replies within one working day.

Book a call with Peter The finance director service

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