Agricultural Accountants in Cheshire

Written and reviewed by the Agricultural Accountants editorial team. Last reviewed 27 July 2026.

Cheshire is one of England's densest dairy counties. The heavy grassland of the Cheshire Plain carries a high concentration of dairy herds, the county gave its name to a cheese, and beef and some arable sit alongside. It is dairy country almost by definition.

That makes the herd basis and milk-price averaging the everyday work, and the dairy-specific questions the ones that matter most.

Dairy Herds and the Herd Basis in Cheshire

For a Cheshire dairy farm the herd basis is often the single most valuable election, keeping the milking herd out of the trading account so that building it up is capital and a future sale can fall outside trading profit. It has strict time limits, and it is exactly the relief a general accountant is most likely to overlook, as our guide to averaging and the herd basis explains.

With milk prices as volatile as they have been, two-year and five-year averaging sit alongside the herd basis to keep a run of uneven years from wasting allowances or pushing a good year into a higher band.

Cheese, Diversification and Succession

Farms that make Cheshire cheese or add value on farm cross into food production, which brings VAT on mixed supplies and a trading business that can attract Business Property Relief. That relief matters at succession, and it now shares an allowance with the relief on the land.

At the current £2.5 million per-person position, most family dairy farms are under or near the allowance, but the calculation depends on the value of the land and the herd, which is set out in our guide to farm inheritance tax.

What we do for Cheshire business owners

Accountants for Farmers

The everyday accountancy for a working farm, done by someone who knows farming, not a high-street generalist.

Farm Accounts and Returns

The annual accounts and return for the farm, prepared from your records and filed on time.

Succession and IHT Planning

Working out the inheritance-tax position on the farm and planning the succession, at the current £2.5m position.

Rural Business Accountants

For estates and diversified farms where the income is mixed and the reliefs need protecting.

Making Tax Digital

The Making Tax Digital software set up and the quarterly updates filed, so the deadlines are not yours to carry.

Common questions

Is the herd basis worth it for a Cheshire dairy farm?

For most it is, because it treats the milking herd as capital rather than trading stock and can change the tax on a future herd sale or reduction significantly. The election has a deadline, so it is best decided early with advice.

We make cheese on farm. Does that change our VAT?

It can. Cheese is food, which is generally zero-rated, but selling a mix of products and any catering brings standard-rated supplies too, so the VAT has to be apportioned. It is worth setting up correctly rather than running on a rough split.