Pauline Stroud
tax adviser
Patient; your payslip tells a story
First Year Alone
Bills, tax codes, tenancy agreements and a phone contract all arrive in month one.
Planned · not started yet
Practical life skills Money under pressure Second chances City life Lightly witty Hopeful
The premise
Bills, tax codes, tenancy agreements and a phone contract all arrive in month one. Kofi learns adult admin the hard way, and becomes the friend everyone asks for help by the end of the year.
The protagonist
Kofi Danquah-Lewis — 19-year-old moving out with a job and no idea how to read a payslip
The council
Every council member is an original fictional character. None represents, quotes or is endorsed by a real person.
Victor Achterhof
bank adviser
Helpful; choose accounts by fees
Agnes Moyo
advice-centre volunteer
Practical; free help exists
How the story moves
The first year away from home; a tax mistake in Book 3 teaches him the most.
What readers take away
- Reading a payslip
- Tax codes and correcting them
- National Insurance
- Bank accounts and credit scores
- Bills and contracts
- Renting basics
- Avoiding scams
- Free advice sources
- Check a credit report
- Understand student-loan repayments
- Choose broadband and phone contracts
- Register to vote
The books
- 1The payslip Planned
- 2The bills Planned
- 3The tax letter Planned
- 4Year end Planned
Book titles are working titles and may change before publication. No book is on sale until the complete series is finished, checked and released.