Advisory & Special Projects

Focused expertise. Flexible support. Results when it matters.

Acquisitions, exit planning, business turnarounds, system implementations, major restructures.

These are the high-stakes moments where the wrong financial decision can cost your business hundreds of thousands of pounds, and the right one can transform its future.

At Lock & Ledger, we provide project-based and advisory fractional Finance Director support for UK SMEs navigating these critical transitions.

We've managed successful acquisition integrations in retail, prepared manufacturing businesses for sale with full due diligence readiness, and delivered financial oversight on £5m+ capital expansion projects.

Whether you need an experienced finance leader for 4 weeks or 12 months, we bring ACCA-qualified, commercially focused expertise to your most important decisions, without the cost or commitment of a full-time hire.

Based in Somerset, supporting SMEs across manufacturing, retail, construction, energy and services throughout the South West and UK-wide.

How We Deliver

Project-Based Engagements

Structured support tailored to your specific challenge or initiative—flexible by scope and duration.

Exit-Readiness Assessment

Preparing your business and numbers for a successful exit, including identifying risks, improving margin, and strengthening controls.

Owner / Director Advisory

Acting as a sounding board for founders and leadership teams during high-impact decisions.

Due Diligence & Financial Modelling

In-depth reviews, financial forecasts, and investment appraisals for acquisitions, divestments, or funding rounds

Change Management & Transformation Support

Supporting or leading operational change projects across finance, systems, and people.

Fast. Focused Support When You Need It

We step in when your business is facing a challenge, change, or growth event that needs financial leadership.

Whether that’s for weeks, months, or the duration of a project.

Business Turnaround & Recovery Planning

We help you stabilise cash flow, restructure costs, and rebuild profitability with a focused recovery strategy tailored to your business model.

Project-Based Financial Oversight

We take ownership of key financial workstreams in business-critical projects, such as launches, expansions, restructures, or system rollouts.

Benefit: Immediate expertise on tap to solve urgent challenges or capitalise on major opportunities.

Strategic Insight for Complex Decisions

When the stakes are high, you need more than management accounts, you need real financial insight, risk assessment, and scenario planning to support smart, strategic choices.

Acquisition & Integration Support

We manage financial due diligence, integration planning, and post-deal alignment, helping you acquire or merge without disrupting business as usual.

Exit & Succession Planning

We prepare your financials and operational controls for sale or succession, ensuring your business is exit-ready, credible, and investor-attractive.

Benefit: Informed, confident decisions at key turning points in your business journey.

Transformation that Sticks

We lead or support major improvement projects where financial systems, people, or processes need to change. Whether you're introducing new tech, re-engineering your finance team, or overhauling reporting, our focus is on lasting, scalable improvement.

ERP & Finance System Implementation

We lead the finance side of ERP or software projects, ensuring setup, migration, and controls are implemented properly from day one.

Process Redesign & Performance Frameworks

We build better ways of working. From SOPs and reporting packs to KPIs and dashboards, so the business runs smarter every day.

Benefit: More efficient operations, stronger controls, and better long-term performance.

Year End Accounts & Audit in Action

Every business hits critical moments - but the goal is always the same: clear thinking, strong financial leadership, and decisive action when it matters most. These projects show how we've helped SMEs across manufacturing, retail and energy navigate acquisitions, exits, and major growth initiatives, bringing senior expertise to high-stakes moments without the cost of a full-time hire.

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Retail - Paint Shop Acquisition

We led financial due diligence, managed the integration of systems and operations, and aligned post-deal reporting - cutting duplication, protecting ROI, and giving the leadership team a single, integrated business from day one. Read the full case study →

Manufacturing - Strategic Exit Planning

We prepared a manufacturing subsidiary for sale, driving valuation clarity, building forecasting models, and getting the business due-diligence ready, supporting a successful exit and maximising value for the owners. Read the full case study →

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Renewable - 5 Year Growth Plan

We built a scalable 5-year strategic growth plan including ISO certifications, CRM implementation, KPIs, budgets and forecasts - giving the leadership team a clear financial roadmap to scale with confidence in a regulated sector. Read the full case study →

Common Questions

1. When should I bring in advisory or project-based finance support?

The best time is before a critical decision, not after. If you're considering an acquisition, planning an exit, launching a major project, restructuring, or facing a challenge that's outside your day-to-day finance function, advisory support pays for itself quickly. We bring senior-level thinking, structure the financial work, and help you make confident decisions backed by solid analysis, without committing to a full-time hire.

2. What's the difference between advisory support and a fractional Finance Director role?

A fractional FD role is ongoing - embedded in the business, supporting day-to-day finance leadership over months or years. Advisory and special project support is focused and time-bound - built around a specific challenge, opportunity, or transaction. Many clients use both: a fractional FD for ongoing leadership, with advisory engagements layered in when something significant happens.

3. Can you support an acquisition or sale process from start to finish?

Yes. We provide end-to-end support across acquisitions, mergers and exits - from initial due diligence and financial modelling, through deal structuring and negotiation support, to post-deal integration or handover. Because we're independent and outcome-focused, we sit alongside your accountants, lawyers and brokers as the financial lead in the room - protecting your interests at every stage

Is Advisory & Special Project Support Right for You?

You don’t always need a full-time Finance Director, but when you’re:

Making a big decision and want an expert second opinion
Facing a challenge that requires strategic financial thinking
Launching a new project or product line and need structured oversight
Preparing for sale, investment, or restructuring
Trying to fix something that isn’t working but can’t identify why

That’s when our advisory and project-based services deliver the most value.

With Lock & Ledger, you get high-level expertise with the flexibility and speed to move when your business needs it most.