A major upgrade to the Resources section of this website means you now have access to over 1,700 pages of up-to-date, high- quality content about things like tax, marketing and accounting. The upgrade means you no longer have to login or register, so can go straight to the stuff you are interested in. But please note that if you have - – - read more >

PRIME has produced a short, very simple leaflet aimed at people who have not thought about self-employment at all before – at least not as something that they themselves could do. Called Puzzled about self-employment? it is available as an eight-page A5 leaflet suitable for mailing and display in places like libraries, and as a - – - read more >

To make its material more accessible, PRIME is having its most popular booklets and guides redone as downloadable PDFs that can be printed out on ordinary A4 ink-jet and laser printers. We are taking the opportunity of also having large-print versions made, with a minimum text size of 16 point (the industry norm is 10 - – - read more >

Here’s a list of some common questions you are likely to be asked when the time comes to sell your business. You really need to start considering these questions long before the sales process starts – sometimes years in advance, so you have fixed the problems as far as possible. That way the sale will - – - read more >

PRIME has updated its popular free “Working for YOURSELF guide, which explains sales, marketing and preparing a business plan in a practical way for people setting up their first business. You can download it as a PDF immediately here, while we are getting this new paper version printed. We do still have some paper copies - – - read more >

The printed paper version of “Working for YOURSELF – a practical guide to sales, marketing and preparing a business plan for people aged over 50″ is now available. You can still download the guide as a PDF. We can send PRIME business club members a hard copy, just email us your details and we’ll post you - – - read more >

If you’re reluctant to sell you are not alone – it is something many people feel when starting in business. But it’s one of those things that disappears with practice – and in particular as you relax and develop your own style. Here are some tips taken from “Working for yourself”, a new guide from - – - read more >

There are several free on-line directories that are useful both for finding services you require and for researching the local competition. Near.co.uk is a good example, and one of the simplest and quickest to use. It provides a straightforward list of businesses by type and town. For example: Wedding services near Widnes Chain saws near - – - read more >

If you are thinking of becoming a self-employed sales person, distributor or agent then it’s worth reading the Trading Schemes Guide on the Department of Trade and Industry’s web site. It gives an idea of some of the pitfalls, and what is and what is not currently permitted. You need to be aware that in - – - read more >

The printed paper version of PRIME’s brief guide to Working Tax Credit for the 2007 to 2008 financial year is now available. You can still download the guide from here as a PDF. We can send a paper copy to PRIME business club members, just email us your details and we’ll post you a free copy. - – - read more >

Introduction to business grants and loans Grants to ordinary businesses are relatively rare in the UK, and vary from place-to-place and time-to-time. There has to be a reason why a grant-giving body would want to support you – for example to regenerate a particular run-down neighbourhood, to encourage the survival of some craft skill or - – - read more >

PRIME has issued a revised, shortened and updated guide to franchising that you can download for free from here. Buying a franchise – a brief guide to the over 50s from PRIME 2007 is based on a much longer research report we published in October 2005 which contained results from polling nearly a thousand people - – - read more >

Download and print out Ideas for Business, a free workbook from PRIME. It’s based on a successful series of live workshops we’ve been running around the county. The workbook takes as its starting point your individual interests and experiences. After all, if you are over 50 you should have plenty to draw on. You can - – - read more >