Fifty Years of Simpkins Edwards

2018 is a special year for Simpkins Edwards as we celebrate the 50th year of operations of the practice founded by John Simpkins and Gordon Edwards.

The Firm was the creation of two remarkable people. John Simpkins – a North Devon man who held the distinction of not only achieving the ICAEW’s overall Order of Merit on qualification, but winning every single individual award as well – and Gordon Edwards, born and bred in Exeter, who became an accountant following a distinguished army career. They worked together for Nevill Hovey Luxton & West, which had a head office in Plymouth and also offices over Dunn’s Hat Shop in Exeter High Street, where John and Gordon were based.

The offices had different profiles, with Plymouth having a small number of very large clients and Exeter dealing with a large number of small clients. When John and Gordon were offered the chance to make the Exeter office their own business, they took it and Simpkins Edwards became a reality. The plan was to expand rapidly and, although it was an age when advertising was forbidden by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), business was nevertheless brisk.

John Simpkins was a visionary in the profession – he saw early on that the future lay in information technology and even anticipated a form of online accounting decades before it became a reality. Whilst both founders are sadly no longer with us, Gordon Edwards recalled, back in 2008, that, “We were growing and where we were lacking particular expertise, we went out and found it.

By merging with Yeo & Co in 1969, we were joined by Gordon Channon as Tax Partner. Other highly capable people joined over the years…and between us we knew just about everybody in the small business world, while at the same time the agricultural sector became an important part of our work. We absorbed a number of other small practices and partnerships and steadily built a reputation for integrity, quality and reliability.”

In 1983, the firm moved into Michael House in Exeter, with other landmarks including merging with Honey Perriam in 1996, the Holsworthy office of Metherell Gard in 2002 and the Barnstaple office of Sully & Co in 2005. Recent developments have seen a new office opening in Bovey Tracey, along with a rebrand, updated website and the need to embrace 21st Century technology to provide fast, proactive, cost-effective solutions for the ever-expanding needs of our diverse client base.

Having been founded before men landed on the moon, or the first flight of a Boeing 747 jumbo jet we have helped clients cope with many milestones across the years. Decimalisation in February 1971; joining the EEC and the introduction of VAT in 1973; the replacement of Estate Duty with Capital Transfer Tax and then Inheritance Tax; the issues arising from Foot and Mouth disease in 2001; the audit threshold introduced at a turnover level of £90,000 in 1994 rising to £12 million today; separation of husband and wife tax returns and the establishment of the self-assessment regime have all brought major challenges for the profession.

Opportunities have increased with probate, corporate finance and litigation support caseload adding to the traditional services of accounts preparation, tax, payroll and VAT compliance. Today, Simpkins Edwards has 13 partners and some 90 staff, who operate from five full-time offices in Devon – Exeter, Barnstaple, Bovey Tracey, Holsworthy and Okehampton. Celebrating our 50th year is a proud achievement – a time to remember the people who built the firm and to reflect on what has been accomplished. It is also a time to look ahead to the continuing success of Simpkins Edwards over the next fifty years. We have always had a strong reputation for tax advisory and planning work, which we are keen to continue and develop. We are well positioned to deal with future challenges to both the firm and our clients such as Brexit, MTDfB, future Finance Acts and government policy, alongside social media, millennials and the retirement of the Baby Boomers.