Budget briefing for clubs by Swim England independent tax advisor Richard Baldwin

Last week, the UK government outlined their budget for the next term following the general election in July.

Here, Swim England’s independent tax advisor, Richard Baldwin, shares the major changes that could affect aquatic clubs.

1. National Insurance contributions.

Employer National Insurance Contributions (NIC) will go up from 13.8% to 15% from 6 April 2025.

The increase in the Annual Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500 may mitigate (and in some cases eliminate) the NIC cost e.g. for those small clubs with few employees.

Low wage sectors, typically in the not-for profit sector, will be impacted more significantly. Clubs with employees should consider the impact now.

2. National Insurance Contribution exemptions.

There are no NIC exemptions for charities – see the news headlines indicating an estimated £1.4 billion per annum additional NIC for charities.

3. Increase in national living wage.

The increase in the National Living Wage by 6.7% to £12.21 per hour from April 2025 may increase wages for some clubs with employees.

4. Corporation Tax

HM Treasury has published a Corporate Tax Roadmap – it seems that the intention is to simplify corporation tax particularly for smaller entities such as sports clubs (which are mentioned in the document). Aquatics clubs may be affected by this in due course.

5. Tax compliance for clubs

Anti-abuse proposals on tax compliance for Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) and charities may result in the withdrawal of tax benefits for those who fail to file corporate tax returns or file them carelessly.

This follows a consultation last year and these proposals will need to be looked at carefully. HM Treasury estimates that these proposals will generate £20m in 2025/26, rising to £35m per annum over the following three years.

6. ‘Closing the tax gap’

Significant additional resource is being invested in HMRC to ‘close the tax gap’.

There is a great focus on tax avoidance so clubs need to make sure they file their corporate tax returns and deal with PAYE correctly. For example some coaches may be treated as self-employed when their true tax status is as an employee.

7. Financial thresholds

There have been no increases in financial thresholds that would benefit clubs.

It’s also worth considering pool operators, who clubs hire facilities from could be significantly impacted by the announcements made in the budget.

If you need further tax guidance for your club on any of the subjects above, please contact the Swim England Clubs team.