We want you to get the most from your software and to ensure this, we release regular updates and improvements.

These updates include:
•    Legislative changes
•    Improvements requested by customers
•    Software fixes
To fully benefit from these updates, you should turn on the auto updates option in your software. Read more >>

To quickly check if you need to install an update or service pack, click Help > Check for updates in your software.

Sage 50 Accounts 2012 Service Pack 1 has recently been released. Read more >>

Sage 50 Payroll Annual Licence Plan

This is a new Sage 50 Payroll proposition offering for businesses with up to 25 employees (including leavers in that year).

The software is the same as the current Sage 50 Payroll offering however customers will buy it on an annual licence plan.

There are 3 annual licence plans available – Explore, Exchange and Extra. All are designed to meet the specific needs of small businesses at competitive prices.

New Sage 50 HR

Sage 50 HR is a simple and intuitive HR solution that keeps all employee data at the users’ fingertips. It’s benefits include;
• Quick and easy entry of employee’s holiday and absence
• Up to date performance details and development needs for employees
• Automatically and easily create statements of employment for employees including working hours, holiday entitlement and notice periods
• Comply with legal requirements by attaching documents such as work permits, right to work and CRB checks to an employee record.

What’s new guide – Sage 50 & 200 Construction v2011

Sage 50 & 200 Construction 2011 (v15) are scheduled to launch in August 2011. The latest version has been revamped to improve usability of the product and enhance the look and feel, so it’s easier to use. This follows the update to the Client Billing User Interface in recent years and in this version we have improved the processing of purchase documents to follow suit. These updates tie in with our core strategy and link in with the key themes of improving usability and information management.

Enhancements to individual purchase areas

All Purchase forms now have buttons and transaction entry is made via tabbed dialogue boxes.  New buttons have been added and some menu items have been removed and added to the input screens. New document messages are shown and highlighted in orange or red at various levels of the transaction entry screens.
Status indicators include:
•     Account on hold
•     Cannot modify checked invoices
•     Certificate printed
•     CIS verification required
•     Contract complete
•     Document posted
•     Document status = complete
•     Max retention exceeded
•     P/order status = complete

This means a much more flexible and user friendly system, which provides:
•     Simplified processing
•     Improved menu structure (easier to find what you need)
•     Status indicators provide important information to the user about Contracts, Documents, Users, Suppliers or Subcontractors.

Purchase orders:
•    Copy button: allows the user to copy another document of the same type
•    Reverse button: allows the user to create a reversing document from one selected, e.g. this button will create a Return note from a selected Purchase order.
•    Complete button: allows the user to easily set and unset the Complete status at document level
•    Print button at detail level: allows the user to print the document when creating detail lines
•    Auto generate check box: available by Contract at header level.  This will enable the user to easily generate a document for all variation items against the supplier selected.  Selecting this will also activate an Auto tab where the user can select various options to generate the document
•    Stock tab at detail level (when linked to Sage 200 but not the Sage 50 Accounts range): shows the user the location of a stock item
•    Summary tab at detail level: summarises information of the complete transaction

Deliveries:
•    Reverse button: allowing the user to create a reversing document of a selected one
•    Auto generate check box: available by Purchase order at header level. This will enable the user to generate a document for undelivered items against the order selected, please note you do not need the PO functionality from Sage 50 Accounts Professional to use them in Sager 50 Construction.
•    Print button at detail level: allowing the user to print the document when creating detail lines
•    Stock tab at detail level (when linked to Sage 200 but not Sage 50 Accounts): shows the user the location of a stock item
•    Summary tab at detail level: summarises information of the complete transaction

Work orders:
•    Auto generate check box: available by Contract at header level.  This will enable the user to easily generate a document for all variation items against the supplier selected. Selecting this will also activate an Auto tab where the user can select various options to generate the document
•    Print button at detail level: allows the user to print the document when creating detail lines
•    Stock tab (when linked to Sage 200 but not Sage 50): shows the user the location of a stock item
•    Summary tab at detail level: summarises information of the complete transaction

Purchase invoices:
•    Copy button: allows the user to copy another document of the same type
•    Reverse button: available for Invoices & Credit notes – allows the user to create a reversing document from one selected, e.g. this button will create a Credit Note from a selected Invoice.
•    Check button:  enables the user with the required status to easily check or uncheck the document to allow posting
•    Auto generate check box: available by Purchase order at header level. This will enable the user to generate a document for items against the Purchase order selected
•    Release button at detail level: allows the user to release retention on posted Invoices on items with outstanding retention
•    Print button at detail level: allows the user to print the document when creating detail lines
•    Deductions tab: shows information
•    Stock tab at detail level (when linked to Sage 200):  shows the user the location of a stock item
•    Summary tab at detail level: summarises information of the complete transaction

Nominal transactions:
•    Copy button: allows the user to copy another document of the same type
•    Reverse button: available for Bank transactions (when linked to Sage 200) – allows the user to create a reversing document from one selected, e.g. this button will create a Payment from a selected Receipt.
•    Print button at detail level: allows the user to print the document when creating detail lines
•    Stock tab at detail level (when linked to Sage 200): shows the user the location of a stock item
•    Summary tab at detail level: summarises information of the complete transaction

Timesheets:
•    Copy button: allows the user to copy another document of the same type
•    Hold button: allows the user to place the timesheet on hold to prevent posting
•    Print button at detail level: allows the user to print the document when creating detail lines
•    Stock tab at detail level (when linked to Sage 200): shows the user the location of a stock item
•    Summary tab at detail level: summarises information of the complete transaction

Over three hundred fields have been increased in size to allow input of more characters.
Main areas affected are address and contact fields and posting reference fields which are now bought in line with the accounting systems.
Reports and layouts have been altered to reflect the new field sizes.
Other key fields are:
•    Line type – now 10 characters
•    Item reference -  now 30 characters
•    Unit of measure – now 10 characters

Therefore contact and posting reference fields: Data passed between Construction and the accounting system will no longer risk being truncated due to smaller field sizes in Construction. Line type, item reference and unit of measure fields: The increase in these field sizes means the references can be more detailed to aid clarity and improve reporting.

In January 2012, the Irish RCT scheme will change to include a new tax rate of 20% in addition to the existing rate of 35%. New fields on the HMRC/RCT tab (within Accounts parameters) have been introduced to allow the entry of the new tax rate.  Within S/C Data, a new CIS type “R” has been added to represent the reduced tax rate. The calculation of tax on a purchase document will be based on these two fields being changed accordingly.

Compliance with the new RCT tax scheme being introduced by the Revenue from January 2012.

Valuation detail line totals are now calculated by applying the percentage uplift to the quantity field and then multiplying the new quantity by the estimated rate to get the line total. Previously Construction applied the percentage uplift to the line total and then divided this by the estimated rate to get a new quantity, resulting
in rounding errors in the quantity field because the line total is only stored to two decimal places. When a valuation has been calculated Construction will identify all top level printable composites where rate * quantity does not
equal the line total. For these composites it will apply a rounding adjustment to items within the composite in order to make the composite total equal rate * quantity. This means that the rounding adjustment applied at document
or sub-valuation level has to exclude items contained within any composite (not just top level printable composites) to prevent the introduction of more rounding errors in top level printable composites. If there are no items outside of a composite then Construction will not be able to perform document/sub-valuation level rounding If the user has made an amendment at section or composite level then this rounding adjustment will only be performed on items
contained within the section or composite. A top level printable composite is defined a composite not contained within another composite that has its print flag set. Note that composite rounding is only performed if the contract
option flags have been set so that recharge composite total = rate * quantity. If composite rounding is disabled then rounding adjustments applied at document and/or sub-valuation level can be applied to any item on the document which includes items contained within a top level printable composite.

Quantity Rounding: When applying percentage uplifts to client billing documents the quantity will now show a more sensible rounded number i.e. adding a 10% uplift to a line with quantity of 5 will produce 5.5 rather than, for example,  4.9999.

Composite Rounding: Composite line totals will now be rounded to the expected value of unit rate multiplied by quantity.

When generating a new sales document or amending an existing one, the VAT total for the document is calculated by summing the VAT of all the individual detail lines. This can cause rounding errors as the line total for VAT is stored to 2 decimal places. To solve this Construction now sums the VAT on all the detail lines and compares this to the net total x VAT rate on the document header. If the two differ then the difference will be applied as a rounding adjustment in the same way as the document gets adjusted for net, discount and retention.To utilise VAT rounding a new flag has been introduced within System Parameters>Job Costing “Include VAT in rounding” which must be checked. Note that rounding can also be disabled when creating or amending a sales document by selecting the “Don’t apply rounding adjustments” flag in the advanced screen. The rounding will occur when creating or amending documents headers or when amending the details or sections of a document.  If a single variation, VAT rounding will be performed when the user returns to the document list, if a multi variation then it will occur when returning to the sub-valuations list.
Rounding will only be applied if there is just one VAT code in use. Note that if creating a sub valuation then the one VAT code restriction will apply just to the sub-valuation being created or amended.

Sales documents will print with the expected VAT total without rounding errors. Previously a sales document with lots of items on it that had a total of £600 might have had a VAT value of £119.99 Now the VAT will be rounded to £120.00

A new Clients workspace has been created that will work on the Sage 200 Mobile solution. This workspace can be used as a starting point for anyone wishing to create their own Construction mobile workspaces and utilises two new queries that return a smaller amount of data, in order to be compatible with the mobile solution The existing content parts have also been modified so that they will work on the mobile solution. Please refer to the Sage 200 Mobile Setup Guide, located on the Sage 200 DVD on steps required to install the Sage 200 mobile solution. In line with improvements that have been made in the Sage 200 client, we have increased the speed of our existing workspaces.
Various improvements have been made to the way the Construction features and targets are seen from within
the Sage 200 SA tool; the Construction workspaces are now accessed through their own feature group. Also the “by document” orphaned workspace only features are now available within the appropriate documents type feature group. Finally, if no Day Works features are enabled for a role within the SA tool, the appropriate users will no longer
see an empty Day Works stack bar item from within the Sage 200 Client.

Enables you to set up your own personalised Construction workspace and access critical business information on the move. Smarter, faster access to information anywhere, anytime. Allows easier analysis of data.

Sage 50 & 200 Construction 200 (v15) release – due end of August 2011

The release is still on track for delivery at the end of August and contains the following high level features:

• Improved processing of purchase documents
• Field size increases
• Client billing improvements
• Accommodates new Irish RCT scheme starting January 2012
• New Construction workspace so customers can personalise their dashboards and reports and access business critical
• information on the move

Sage are currently testing Sage 50 Construction 2011 (v15 of Construction) against Sage 50 Accounts 2012 to ensure Construction customers who integrate with accounts will be able to use the latest versions of Sage 50 Accounts.

IMPORTANT:  Customers will need to update to Sage 50 Construction 2011 in order to take advantage of the new Sage 50 Accounts 2012 features.  Running Sage 50 Accounts 2012 with earlier versions of Construction may cause issues with posting.
For further details about the release please see our Sage 50 Construction Features page or contact us.

What is Sage 50 Accounts 2012 ?

Sage 50 Accounts 2012 is the market-leading accounts software that makes managing your customers, suppliers and day-to-day finances as easy as possible.

From invoicing customers and paying suppliers, to managing VAT returns and year-end accounts, it helps you manage all the different areas of your business. By keeping things simple, it frees you up to focus on your customers and your business.

Managing Your Customers and Suppliers
Keeping track of your finances isn’t just about adding up the numbers every day. It’s data that can tell you a lot about your business. For example, who are your best customers? Or who buys what and when and how often?

From the suppliers who always deliver when they say they will to the effect of offering a discount on a line or item,
Sage 50 Accounts 2012 helps you make sense of your business.

As you record the information you need to keep your accounts straight you can build up a better picture of your customers and suppliers. How you use that information is up to you. Sage 50 Accounts puts it at your fingertips.

Managing your  accounts and finances
It’s easy to stay on top of your everyday business finances, keeping track of everything from VAT to budgets with Sage 50.

Are you covering your costs? What payments are due? Who do you need to chase for payment? Sage 50 helps you to keep your cash flow moving.

You’ll find the information you need to prepare, generate and submit your VAT returns online all in one place, making it easy to deal with HM Revenue & Customs. And with things like profit and loss and balance sheet reports available at the touch of a button, you’re always in control of your business.

Easy to get going: and keep on going
There’s a simple set up wizard to help you get up and running. Plus guides and videos within the software will talk you through exactly what you need to do and show you how  to do it.

Sage Cover
With 45 days free telephone and online support, Sage support are on hand to get you off to a great start with your software. And if you want to extend that, there are a number of support options through Sage Cover services.

Easier business on the go with new Sage 50 Accounts Mobile
Sage 50 Accounts Mobile gives you live access to your accounting information on your mobile device so you can keep up to date with your finances when you’re out and about.

It’s a free mobile application that’s simple to use and set up with your desktop software, even if you don’t have an in-depth knowledge of accounts.

Use it to get a quick overview of customer, supplier and financial details. Or get more in depth information about
individual accounts and create things like sales orders, quotes and invoices – ideal for those of you who do business on the go.

Currently available for Apple iPhone/iPod Touch at Apple App Store and Blackberry at Blackberry World.

Set access rights, so mobile users see what they need to, but don’t mess up your key data.

Why Sage ?
We’ve been delivering software, services and support to help businesses with their day-to-day challenges for 30 years. More than 80,000 UK businesses choose Sage to help them. And hundreds of thousands use Sage 50 Accounts, making it the market leading accounts software. Our support teams talk to our customers every day. So we get to learn what’s going on in your business, what your concerns and challenges are. The business world is always changing so we adapt our software and services – whether that’s to keep up with the latest legislation, or introduce new technology,
like Sage 50 Accounts Mobile. By listening to our customers and adapting to changing business needs, we aim to
help you meet your challenges now and in the future.

See the following pages on our online shop for pricing Sage 50 Accounts 2012 – Sage 50 Accounts Plus 2012 – Sage 50 Accounts Professional 2012

Get up and running:
Easy to set up and use – IMPROVED in 2012
View video demos
Learn in practice mode
45 Days free telephone support
Easily correct mistakes (plus and professional only)
Free email and web based support  – 45 days
Free e-learning  Chargeable Chargeable Chargeable
Support for Virtual Environments
Online Registration & Activation – NEW in 2012

Manage your Customers:
Find contact details quickly and easily
Create quotations and invoices
Integration with ACT! – IMPROVED in 2012
Know how much profit you will make on each quote or invoice before you commit
Apply flexible discounts to win business
See who owes you money and when it’s due
Record Till Takings***  Quick
Record Cash Sales***

For detailed product information please see Sage 50 Accounts 2012 – Sage 50 Accounts Plus 2012 – Sage 50 Accounts  Professional 2012

Manage your Customers:
Receive and process card payments*
Sage Pay- Pay Now  Button on invoices*
Integration with Web Stores
Manage individual projects and costs (plus and pro’ only)
Manage your sales orders (Accounts Professional only)

Manage Your Suppliers:
Find contact details quickly and easily (plus and pro’)
Record purchase invoices in batches (plus and pro’)
Manage purchase orders (Professional only)
See  who you owe money to and when it’s due
Manage your finances
Share information electronically with your Accountant
Keep track of money going in and out of your business
See your cash position at a glance
Prepare VAT Returns
Annual Accounting
VAT Cash Accounting
Irish VAT Cash Accounting

Manage Your Suppliers:
e-VAT submissions
e-payments
Credit from Invoice
ECSL Changes – Sales List
Reverse Charge VAT
Flat Rate VAT
Irish VAT return file available – Update
Audit preparation
Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet reports
e-banking
Bank reconciliation for up to date figures
Export your information to Microsoft Office
Control budgets for key areas of your business
New File Import
Support for Charities
Convert currencies for foreign trading
Lock Date – NEW in 2012
Chart of Accounts – IMPROVED in 2012
Annual Return of Trading Details (Ireland) – NEW in 2012

Manage your business
Keep track of your products and services
Control your stock • • (advanced features in Sage 50 Accounts Professional)
Barcode creation
Understand what sage services are available.
Report Browser
Multi-user ready* 2 2 10
Multi-company
Manage components and assembled products
Integrates with Sage Additions**
Construction Industry Scheme ready*
Integrates with Sage 50 Forecasting
Integrates with Sage Construction*
Integrates with Sage 50 Retail Solutions* (plus and pro’ anly)
Integrates with Sage 50 Manufacturing* (Accounts Professional only)
Integrates with ACT! – IMPROVED in 2012
Integrates with Sage Pay
Manage your time with integrated diary and reminders
Record e-bay transactions**

Manage your business
Anytime / Anywhere access via Sage 50 Mobile – NEW in 2012
Direct Payments (International) – NEW in 2012
Quick Search – NEW in 2012
Quick Print using Default Layouts – NEW in 2012

*Additional purchase required
** Additional purchase of Sage Additions required. These are products developed by the Sage Developer Community (not Sage) that integrate with some Sage products.
***Quick indicates there is a dedicated entry form to simplify the data entry process for either cash or till takings. These forms are designed to simplify the data entry process
for owner managers who are unfamiliar with accounts software.  These activities are completed directly into the bank accounts in all other products.

Would you like to find out more?
Call o845 2576905 or Contact us to talk about how Sage 50 Accounts 2012 could benefit your business

Sage 50 Accounts 2012 Available from August

This years release is set to make quite an impact with it’s new features and improved speed. Also, if you buy a copy of Sage 50 Accounts, Sage 50 Accounts Plus or Sage 50 Accounts Professional this month you will receive the current version 2011, but you can call in to Sage and ask for a free upgrade to version 2012 as soon as it’s released next month.

Probably the single improvement which most people will benefit from if you have multiple users and/or companies and particularly other accountants who have been known to run enormous volumes of client data on a single implementation, is the vast improvement in the speed at which the software can process data. This substantial improvement in the underlying technology has enabled all round improvements in the performance of the software (although please bear in mind that as always, the faster your server, PC’s and IT infrastructure, the faster the software will perform, so be sure to check the latest minimum and recommended hardware and software specifications). Provided you have adequate hardware you will experience quicker sorting, filtering and searching along with reports being generated mush faster too.

Sage’s new mobile App now allows remote access to your Sage 50 Accounts 2012, so you can check critical business data on the fly. Ideal for field based employees or homeworkers who do not need full accounts access. Sage Mobile allows users to:

Documents can even be created, so quotes, invoices or sales orders can be created on the go. The data is real time, so you can be sure you are always working with the latest data, the way you use to view this can also be customised to suit your own requirements and preferences, keeping the screen as simple and concise as possible. Stock options can also be accessed, so sales people can view top selling products and products by customer, useful information to have on hand whilst in a meeting, this combined with the Google maps and access to suppliers websites makes Sage 50 Mobile an indispensable tool for not only finance and accounting staff but also management and sales departments. It is available for both iPhone and Blackberry.

Not only is the speed improved and the ability to access from handheld devices, but there are also several new features, including:

Improved Chart of Accounts
The improved flexibility in the chart of accounts in Sage 50 Accounts 2012 includes standard structures for an even wider range of businesses allowing you to get up and running much faster.

Lock Date
A period can now be locked down completely, so although other system users can continue to process documents and imput data as normal, they are prevented from posting to the locked down period.

Quick Printing
Define standard document layouts to be automatically used for different situations to increase efficiency and save time.

Please note not all features are available in every version, however Sage 50 Accounts Professional, being the top end product does.

For more information on this or any other products please call on 0845 2576905 or use the contact form and we will get back to you. Or for pricing please visit our online Sage 50 shop

We are pleased to announce that the new versions of Sage Manufacturing and Construction products will be released on the following dates:

Sage 50 Construction 2011 (v15 of Construct) – end August 2011
Sage 200 Construction 2011 (v15 of Construct) – end August 2011
Sage 50 Manufacturing 2011 SP1 – end August 2011

Highlights of the releases:

Sage 50 Construction 2011
• Improved processing of purchase documents
• Field size increases
• Client billing improvements
• Accommodates new Irish RCT scheme starting January 2012

Sage 200 Construction 2011
• Improved processing of purchase documents
• Field size increases
• Client billing improvements
• New Construction workspace so customers can personalise their dashboards and reports and access business critical information on the move
• Accommodates new Irish RCT scheme starting January 2012

Sage 50 Manufacturing 2011 SP1
• This service pack will contain bug fixes only

Sage are currently in the process of testing the new releases of Construction and Manufacturing with different versions of the products and expect this to be complete at the beginning of August. At that point we will be able to confirm the compatibility of previous/current versions.

If you have any queries in the meantime, please let us know.

We have been sent a notification today that Sage will discontinue support for Sage 100, here is what they have said:

Line 100 will reach its End of Mainstream Support on 30 September 2012.
Currently, we offer full Mainstream Support for Line 100, via SALP or Sagecover, which includes legislative software updates for customers and access to Technical and Developer support for Business Partners. From the effective date of this change, 30 September 2012, we’ll be changing the type of support offered for Line 100.
At this time we’ll move into a phase of Extended Support meaning whilst we’ll still provide technical support, enable strings and the facility for existing customers to add users or modules to their systems, we’ll stop producing software updates related to Line 100, we’ll no longer guarantee that Line 100 will be legislatively compliant and we’ll cease to offer support for Line 100 through the Mid-Market Developers Programme.
The table below shows the summary of the changes that we will be introducing:
Mainstream Support to 30 Sept 2012 Extended Support from Oct 2012
Product available for sale (additional users/modules only, no new site licences) Yes Yes
Enable strings (provided to BPs for their linked customers who meet the eligibility criteria) Yes Yes
Technical Support (provided to BPs for customers with a valid support contract, and to a small number of customers who are linked directly to Sage) Yes Yes
Developer Support (offered to BPs and customers with an up-to-date subscription to the Sage Mid-Market Developers Programme) Yes No
Legislative Updates (provided by Sage to maintain legal/fiscal compliance) Yes No
Hot fixes/ Bug fixes/ Patches/ Service packs (provided by Sage for recognised defects) Yes No
Wish list/defect log (open for the registration of defects) Yes No
Why are we making these changes?
These changes will allow us to concentrate our Research & Development and Support resources on the Sage 200 Suite, which has more advanced software features and customisation tools, and which is Sage’s primary solution for mid-sized businesses.
Line 100 started life at Sage in 1992 as our product of choice for mid-sized businesses requiring a sophisticated accounting business suite with highly customisable features (for example: multi-currency, multi-company, multiple stock locations and budgeting by cost centre and department) which could be tailored by BPs and Developers to meet customers’ needs.
The product has since evolved into MMS (in 2003) and Sage 200 (in 2007) and many customers have migrated to these newer solutions, but there are still around 2,500 businesses using Line 100 today.
The technology platform upon which Line 100 was built is becoming more costly and difficult to support, and the operating systems which work with Line 100 are reaching the end of their respective life cycles. By introducing these changes, we will enable our R&D and Support teams to focus on current and future technologies, and pave the way for the next generation of Sage 200.
Furthermore, we are committed to ensuring our customers get the most benefit from their Sage systems – by working with customers to prepare for changes in supported software platforms, or forthcoming changes in Government legislation, we can help you to plan for the future.

As we’re getting nearer to launch we are now able to share information around the system requirements for the Sage 200 Suite v2011 release.

Windows XP
For the v2011 release, we cannot install the server elements of the Sage 200 Suite on Windows XP.
Windows XP is still supported for the client elements of the Sage 200 Suite.

Supported Browsers
The following browsers are supported for elements of the Sage 200 Suite:
• Internet Explorer v8
• Internet Explorer v9
• Firefox 3.6.3

Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6 is not supported for the Sage 200 v2011 release. Later versions of Internet Explorer offer considerably improved security and performance features which enhance the browser-based elements of the Sage 200 Suite. Support for other browsers may be confirmed nearer to release date.

Microsoft Office 2010
Microsoft Office v2010 has been supported since the release of Sage 200 v2010 service pack 1.