Garfield has been registered for VAT since 1 April 2017. His business is situated in Great Britain. His partly completed VAT computation for the quarter to 31 March 2024 is shown below. The figures in brackets refer to the notes which follow.

Note 1: Discounted sale On 10 February 2024, a sales invoice for £4,300 (before VAT) was issued by Garfield in respect of a standard rated supply. Garfield offered the customer a 10% discount for payment within 14 days and the customer paid within the 14-day period. This invoice has not been taken into account in calculating the output VAT figure of £22,500, and this is the only sale for which Garfield has offered a prompt payment discount.

Note 2: Equipment During the quarter to 31 March 2024, Garfield acquired some new equipment at a cost of £12,400 (before VAT). This equipment was imported from outside the UK and Garfield provided his VAT registration number to the overseas supplier.

Note 3: Bad debts On 31 March 2024, Garfield wrote off three bad debts. Details are as follows:

Note 4: Entertaining During the quarter to 31 March 2024, Garfield spent £960 on entertaining his overseas customers. This figure is inclusive of VAT.

Note 5: Motor expenses The motor car purchased on 1 January 2024 is used 60% for business mileage. During the quarter to 31 March 2024, Garfield spent £1,008 on repairs to the motor car and £660 on fuel for both business and private mileage. Both of these figures include VAT.

Additional information Garfield does not use the cash accounting scheme, the annual accounting scheme or the flat rate scheme, but he has read that the use of these schemes can be beneficial for small businesses such as his. His VAT exclusive annual turnover is currently £450,000. He pays for most of his purchases and expenses on a cash basis but allows many of his customers 30 days credit when paying for sales.

Required:

(a) Calculate the amount of VAT payable for the quarter to 31 March 2024.

(b) State which VAT schemes Garfield is currently permitted to use and explain which ONE of these schemes would be the most beneficial for him to use. (ACCA)