Got to agree, umbrellas are a waste of money. Freeagent is really good (one or two small annoyances, but nothing that matters). They have a list of partner accountants who are freeagent friendly; I went for a local accountant who is a one person shop. A contracting friend of mine suggested local over chain. I met with the accountant and I'm really happy with her advice and charging structure; she help me organise starting the business reg for VAT, CORP tax and do some cashflow projections to minimise tax etc. I don't pay anything to her month to month but she is available to deal with any ad-hoc queries and will do the tax return at the end of the year. Freeagent allows my wife to do the bookkeeping, payroll and invoicing without the monthly involvement of an accountannt, then the accountant can get involved at the year end.