Countryside Connections uses KeySIM multi-network IoT SIMs for Ajax alarm systems

Rural connectivity makes access to multiple mobile networks important for alarm installations across the areas served by the Welsh connectivity provider.

Countryside Connections is using KeySIM multi-network IoT SIM cards with Ajax alarm systems, helping provide cellular connectivity for security installations in rural locations.

Founded by Morgan Jones, Countryside Connections works to improve connectivity for rural communities and businesses. 

In areas where mobile coverage can vary from one location to another, a multi-network IoT SIM gives a connected device access to multiple available mobile networks.

That flexibility is valuable for Ajax alarm systems installed across Countryside Connections’ service area. By using KeySIM IoT SIMs, the company can support alarm connectivity with a SIM designed for connected devices and deployments where network availability matters.

Morgan Jones of Countryside Connections told That's Business: “We work across rural areas where mobile coverage can differ significantly from one place to another. 

"Having a multi-network SIM is important for the Ajax alarm systems we install, because it gives us more flexibility in finding the best available connection. KeySIM is a good fit for the way we work and the locations we serve.”

KeySIM provides multi-network IoT SIM cards for security, telemetry and other connected applications. Its SIMs help businesses connect devices in locations where relying on a single mobile network may not be suitable.

https://www.keysim.co.uk

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Self Assessment: Start Early and Give Yourself Less to Worry About

Running a business brings plenty of deadlines, but the annual tax return can be one of the most daunting. 

If Self Assessment is already hovering at the back of your mind, making a start now could help make the coming months considerably less stressful.

Ahead of World Mental Health Day on 10 October, HM Revenue and Customs has revealed that more than 26% of respondents to an HMRC-commissioned survey experienced anxiety as tax or financial deadlines approached. The survey explored the digital habits of more than 5,200 customers.

For sole traders, freelancers and other people completing Self Assessment, the message is straightforward: give yourself time.

The main deadline for submitting your online tax return for the 2025–2026 tax year and paying any tax due is 31 January 2027. Those using paper returns generally have an earlier submission deadline of 31 October 2026.

January might feel comfortably distant, but Christmas, busy trading periods and everyday responsibilities can soon eat into that preparation time.

HMRC’s Chief Customer Officer, Myrtle Lloyd, encourages customers to tackle their returns in manageable stages, using the guidance available on GOV.UK.

That is a sensible approach. You do not have to complete everything in one sitting. A few practical steps can help:

Gather your records. Bring together income details, invoices, receipts and other relevant documents before you begin.

Make a start. You can save your progress and return to the online form, allowing you to work around other commitments.

Check carefully. Give yourself time to spot missing information and check that income and allowable expenses are recorded correctly.

Plan for payment. Knowing your bill earlier gives you more time to organise your finances.

Filing early does not bring forward the usual payment deadline. Eligible customers can also use HMRC’s Budget Payment Plan to make weekly or monthly payments towards their next bill. This is an advance payment arrangement, so any outstanding balance still needs to be paid by the deadline.

Some customers who already pay tax through PAYE may be able to have a Self Assessment bill of less than £3,000 collected through their tax code. To use this option, online returns must be submitted by 30 December 2026, and HMRC’s other eligibility conditions must be met.

Customers using Making Tax Digital for Income Tax should also remember that their 2025–2026 Self Assessment return is still required.

Unsure whether you need to file? Start with the Self Assessment checker on GOV.UK.

Here at That’s Business, we think setting aside a little time now is a worthwhile investment. Even gathering your paperwork today could make January feel much more manageable.

Is It Time Councils Sold Street-Name Sponsorship?

Could your local High Street become “High Street: Sponsored by Smith & Co”? 

It might sound strange, but perhaps councils are overlooking a potentially valuable source of income.

Local authorities are constantly looking for ways to raise additional revenue without simply increasing charges or putting further pressure on council taxpayers.

So here's an idea: why not sell sponsorship of street names?

We already accept sponsored football grounds, sporting competitions, festivals, theatres and countless other public events and spaces snd roundabouts. Businesses spend substantial sums putting their names in places where people will see them.

Street signs are certainly visible.

Importantly, we're not suggesting that historic street names should disappear or that residents should suddenly find themselves living at a completely different address.

Instead, the existing street name would remain, with a smaller sponsorship panel underneath:

CHURCH STREET

Sponsored by Bloggs & Co

That distinction is important. Actually renaming streets could cause problems for residents, businesses, postal services, emergency services, mapping companies and numerous databases.

Adding sponsorship should be considerably simpler.

It doesn't have to be big business

This could also be about much more than multinational companies buying prominent locations.

Local businesses could sponsor streets near their premises. Football, cricket and rugby clubs might sponsor nearby roads. Rotary and Lions clubs, chambers of commerce, historical societies and other community organisations could participate.

Imagine a local history society sponsoring an historic street and using a small QR code on the sign to direct visitors towards information about its past.

Suddenly street sponsorship becomes more than advertising, it becomes part of promoting the town.

Let the market decide the price

Not every street would have the same value.

A busy town-centre shopping street would clearly be worth considerably more than a residential cul-de-sac. Councils could create sponsorship bands, perhaps ranging from relatively modest sums for less prominent locations to substantial annual agreements for major streets, squares and pedestrian areas.

Contracts might run for one, three or five years.

Councils could also ring-fence some of the income. Imagine signs stating that sponsorship revenue helps pay for flower displays, street cleaning, public toilets, Christmas lights or maintenance of parks.

Residents could actually see where some of the money was going.

There would need to be rules

Clearly, councils couldn't simply accept money from anyone.

There would need to be restrictions on inappropriate or controversial advertising, protection for historically important signs and sensible limits on the size and appearance of sponsorship panels.

Residents and traders should also have a voice, particularly where prominent or historic locations are involved.

But these are practical issues rather than reasons to dismiss the entire idea.

Local government needs imaginative new revenue streams.

Selling the legal names of our streets might be a step too far.

Selling discreet sponsorship underneath those names, however, could be an idea whose time has come.

Would you be happy to see your street sponsored if the money helped pay for local services – or would you regard it as commercialisation gone too far?

Tell That's Business what you think.

To Start Up or Not Start Up? Asking the Right Questions Before Taking the Leap

“I can do that.” It is a thought that has launched countless business ideas. 

But being able to provide a product or service and building a sustainable company are different challenges.

For anyone contemplating the leap into self-employment, a book by entrepreneur and executive Pantelis Velentzas encourages a pause before committing money, time and energy.

To Start Up or Not Start Up?, published by LID Publishing, explores the questions aspiring founders should ask before turning ambition into action. Its central message is straightforward: enthusiasm matters, but it needs to be matched by preparation, clear thinking and an honest understanding of the journey ahead.

The book groups its questions into seven areas: mindset, opportunity, strategy, money, team, systems and context. Together, these offer a framework for examining both the business proposition and the person preparing to lead it.

Is there a worthwhile opportunity? What resources will the venture require? Who should be involved? And does growing bigger necessarily mean becoming more successful? These are practical considerations that can easily disappear beneath the excitement of launching something new.

Velentzas draws on two decades of experience founding and scaling ventures across European markets, alongside senior executive roles at Hellenic Duty Free Shops and Avolta. His business background includes franchise, distribution and representation partnerships involving brands such as Victoria’s Secret, Hershey’s, Superdry and Korres.

He describes the book as the one he wishes he had read before his first start-up. Rather than offering a rigid checklist, it is intended to support structured reflection on the forces that help businesses succeed or quietly undermine their progress.

His experience also challenges the assumption that every company must pursue rapid expansion. Some businesses achieve success through stable, profitable income while deliberately choosing to remain small. Others may benefit from strategic growth, while some ideas are best reconsidered before substantial commitments are made.

That is a useful perspective for first-time founders, existing small business owners considering expansion, and students exploring entrepreneurship. Investors, enterprise educators, accelerators and incubators are also among the intended readership.

For That’s Business readers, the appeal lies in its emphasis on making a considered decision. Starting a business can be rewarding, but deciding how, when and whether to proceed deserves attention.

Sometimes, the strongest entrepreneurial move is to start confidently. Sometimes it is to grow carefully or stay small. And sometimes, having asked the difficult questions, it is to walk away with your resources intact.

https://lidpublishing.com

Can AI Help Small Businesses Build Stronger Brands?

AI can produce a business name, logo and website in remarkably little time. 

But turning those ingredients into a brand that customers recognise, trust and return to requires more thought.

That is the challenge behind The Playbook for AI Brand Building, launched by Andy Parton, (PICTURED) founder of London AI marketing consultancy Destreza.

Designed for founders and lean marketing teams, the Playbook aims to make the structured brand-building methods used by major businesses accessible to companies with smaller budgets.

Parton brings more than sixteen years of brand-building experience, including roles at Diageo and BAT, alongside more than six years working with AI in marketing.

His central argument is straightforward: promising businesses often struggle because important research, strategy and planning decisions are overlooked. Faster content production alone cannot fill those gaps.

The Playbook begins by learning about the founder and their venture, tailoring examples, calculations and AI briefs to the business. According to Destreza, it can draw on 1,650 possible configurations.

Four foundation modules introduce marketing principles before users work through ten stages: Evidence, Insight, Strategy, Brand, Identity, Connections, Design System, Launch, Retention and Performance Cycle.

Each stage combines learning with practical tasks. Users give prepared briefs to their own AI assistant, such as ChatGPT or Claude, to help research markets, develop models, generate insights and create content.

A useful feature is the instruction for AI to source, date and label claims according to their reliability. That encourages founders to examine the evidence behind recommendations before making consequential decisions.

As they progress, users compile a “Launch Book”, bringing together their decisions, supporting evidence, resulting assets and launch requirements.

For small businesses, the appeal is clear. Many founders have products or services but limited access to marketing support. A structured workflow could help them identify weaknesses earlier and spend their resources more carefully.

However, the launch material’s headline failure statistics draw on different populations and research. They should not be read as a direct comparison or a guarantee of success.

Destreza says the Playbook costs less than its cited £2,500 senior consultant day rate. Buyers need their own AI assistant subscription, so should check the full costs before purchasing.

A free trial requires no payment card and includes the introduction, personalised setup and Stage 01. A 14-day money-back guarantee is advertised.

For founders curious about bringing more discipline to their brand development, that offers a practical starting point.

Find out more at theplaybookfor.ai.

Are Your Disabled Toilet Facilities Up to Standard?

Many businesses proudly display the familiar wheelchair symbol on the door of their accessible toilet.

But when did you last actually go inside and look at the facilities from the point of view of somebody who needs to use them?

Providing an accessible toilet isn't simply a matter of fitting a wider door and a couple of grab rails. 

Poorly positioned equipment can turn what is supposed to be an accessible facility into an obstacle course.

Can people actually reach everything?

One surprisingly common problem is the hand dryer or paper towels are mounted far too high. It might be perfectly convenient for an able-bodied person standing at the basin, but what about somebody using a wheelchair?

The same applies to the soap dispensers, mirrors, toilet paper and emergency cords.

Then there's the washbasin itself. Can a wheelchair user comfortably get close enough to use it? Is there sufficient space underneath? Are the taps easy to operate for someone with limited dexterity?

A beautifully fitted washbasin isn't much use if the person it was supposedly designed for cannot reach it.

Don't use it as a storeroom

Another complaint frequently made about accessible toilets is that they gradually become unofficial storage cupboards.

Cleaning equipment, spare chairs, boxes, highchairs and stock can creep into the room because there appears to be plenty of unused floor space.

Except that space isn't unused.

It is there to give wheelchair and mobility-aid users sufficient room to manoeuvre and transfer safely.

That red emergency cord matters

Emergency pull cords are another area worth checking.

They should be readily accessible to somebody who has fallen to the floor. Yet cords can sometimes be tied up, shortened or tucked away because somebody thinks they look untidy.

An emergency cord that cannot be reached in an emergency isn't doing its job.

Try looking at the room differently

Business owners and managers could carry out a simple accessibility audit.

Either ask a disabled friend to check it out, or sit in a chair and look around the room. Can you reach the soap, taps, dryer and toilet paper without standing up? Is the mirror usable? Could you get alongside the toilet? Could you reach the emergency alarm from floor level?

Better still, ask disabled customers and staff what works and what doesn't. Lived experience can identify problems that somebody following a checklist may never notice.

Accessibility also extends beyond the toilet itself. Is the route to it genuinely accessible? Is the doorway obstructed? Is it kept unlocked and available, rather than requiring customers to embark upon a hunt for the member of staff holding the key?

Accessibility is about people

Businesses can spend considerable amounts of money installing accessible facilities, only to undermine that investment with something as simple as putting the hand dryer six inches too high.

Good accessibility shouldn't be regarded as an inconvenience or a box-ticking exercise. It means considering how real people with different levels of mobility, strength, reach and dexterity will actually use your premises.

So here's a worthwhile challenge for every café, pub, restaurant, shop, office, hotel and visitor attraction:

Go and inspect your disabled toilet today.

Not while standing up and assuming everything looks fine.

Look at it from the position of the people it is actually intended to serve.

You might be surprised by what you discover.

That's Business believes good accessibility is good customer service, and often relatively small changes can make an enormous difference.

Why did I write this post? I visited a restaurant, checked the disabled facilities and thought: "No! This just will not do!"