Dental practice startup advice
Starting a practice (squat or acquisition) is a financial and regulatory exercise as much as a clinical one: CQC needs a viability demonstration, banks lending against goodwill want defensible assumptions, and the structure you set in month one (sole trader, ltd, LLP, partnership) has tax consequences for the next decade. We match you with an accountant who has done both squats and acquisitions in Harrow and won't under-forecast associate costs or over-promise patient ramp-up.
What a specialist actually does.
- 01Entity structure advice (sole trader, Ltd, LLP, partnership)
- 02Business plan and first-year financial forecast for bank or CQC submission
- 03Acquisition due diligence — including reviewing the seller's accounts
- 04Squat-specific cash-flow modelling (the first 18 months are the hard ones)
- 05Initial bookkeeping and practice software setup
- 06CQC financial viability demonstration
Who this is for.
- Associates planning to buy their first practice
- Experienced owners opening a second site
- Dentists setting up a squat from scratch
- Partners buying out a retiring principal
- Overseas-qualified dentists establishing a UK practice
How pricing works.
Startup work is usually a project fee — business plan, forecast, and structural set-up — followed by a rolling engagement once the practice opens. Some accountants offer a staged fee tied to CQC approval and opening milestones. Quoted before work starts; discussed honestly against the likely ROI.
We don't publish fake "£X/month" tables. The accountant you're matched with quotes directly, and you see the fee before any work starts.
About startup advice.
Should I set up as a limited company or a sole trader?+
Depends on your other income, your plans for the next 5–10 years, and how you'll take money out of the practice. A limited company can be tax-efficient for retained profits but adds admin and pension complications. A sole trader is simpler but caps your tax flexibility. A specialist models both against your specific numbers — the answer is rarely the same for two dentists.
What does CQC actually want to see financially?+
CQC wants evidence the practice is financially viable — typically a 12–24 month cash-flow forecast showing you can meet obligations, a capital position that covers start-up costs, and named sources of funding. The numbers don't need to be audited, but they do need to be credible. A specialist producing this has done it dozens of times and knows the format assessors expect.
How realistic are squat financial forecasts?+
Most first-time squat forecasts are too optimistic on patient ramp-up and too pessimistic on first-year costs — both wrong, in opposite directions. A specialist benchmarks your assumptions against actual squats they've seen open in Harrow and nearby. The realism matters when the bank pushes back.
When should I talk to an accountant in the startup timeline?+
Before you sign anything. Ideally at the point you are seriously considering a specific practice (acquisition) or premises (squat). The structural decisions happen early, and reversing them after the fact is expensive.
Startup advice across UK cities.
Dedicated city pages with local context for the 0 UK cities we cover. Service is delivered nationally — these pages exist for the markets where startup advice demand is concentrated.
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