A profitable business can still face pressure when receipts arrive after bills need paying. A cashflow forecast helps you map expected money coming in and going out, using stated assumptions about amounts and timing. It gives you a planning tool to review as circumstances change.
EPOS Accountancy can discuss forecasting within an agreed reporting or CFO support engagement. Tell us what you want to plan, how far ahead you need to look and which information is available. We will agree a level of detail that supports the decision rather than creating a model your team cannot maintain.
What a forecast can help you explore
You may want to understand the timing of customer receipts, seasonal costs, recruitment or planned investment. The work can identify periods when forecast cash becomes tighter and compare alternative timings. It cannot establish that customers will pay as assumed or guarantee the business will avoid a shortfall.
| Scope option | Possible deliverable | Input needed |
|---|---|---|
| Initial forecast | Period-by-period receipts, payments and cash position | Opening balances and expected movements |
| Scenario comparison | Base plan and agreed alternatives | Changed assumptions and their rationale |
| Recurring review | Actual-versus-forecast comparison and update | Current records and revised plans |
We agree the planning horizon, reporting intervals, accounts covered and review frequency. Tax-related payments can be included as cash commitments where appropriate information is provided; this does not itself include tax calculations or advice. Borrowing, funding applications and specialist advice require separate confirmation.
What you supply and approve
Useful inputs include opening cash, unpaid invoices, supplier balances, payroll commitments, borrowing payments and planned purchases. We also need your expectations for future sales and collections. Where a payment amount comes from another adviser, provide the relevant information and explain its status.
You approve operational assumptions and tell us about changes that affect the plan. We document important uncertainties, such as a contract that is not yet signed or a receipt whose date is unclear. If records are incomplete, we discuss whether to improve them first or identify limitations in the forecast.
How we prepare the model
We start with the question the forecast needs to answer, then review the available information and agree scope and fees. We build the agreed model, check its internal logic and review assumptions with you. At handover, we explain the main movements and the update responsibilities. Further revisions or recurring reviews are included only where agreed.
How this works in practice
Imagine a supplier planning a large stock purchase before a busy season. The forecast could compare paying for all the stock immediately with ordering in stages. A scenario with slower customer payments could show how the available cash changes. The owner can then consider timing and contingency questions. This is an illustration, not a recommendation or promise of funding.
Discuss your planning question
Tell us what is coming up, when the decision is needed and what records you have. We can discuss a suitable forecasting scope.