C&W in Business May 2016 by Benham Publishing Limited

Issue 53

May / June 2016

The cloud brings a silver lining - page 20

DON’T RISK FACING PENALTIES!

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Foreword

CONTENTS May - June 2016

Avoiding the distractions

Go for Growth

4-5

Service of the month

News

Events

8-9

Dear Member, Well, in my view, there is too much going on that could cause instability in our economy, not least the EU referendum on 23rd June, changes in local Government, changes in the funding and delivery of enterprise and skills support and much more. So, my message is, wherever possible, keep your eye on the prize and "Go for Growth" (focus on sustaining and growing your own business and/or being successful in what you do) and try not to get too distracted with everything else. Also, let's talk up all of the real positives about our locality, not least the energy that is building-up around our Coventry (and Warwickshire) City of Culture bid, which I am delighted to say has the full support of your Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce. I am always pleased to see the positive messages that come through our quarterly economic survey work, whether it is more businesses forecasting increased domestic orders, increased exports, more staff, strengthening business confidence and/or strong investment decisions. Our quarterly economic survey (which forms part of a national British Chambers survey) is critical for highlighting the trends in business, forecasting what might happen in the coming months and influencing decisions such as interest rates. If you do not take part in our quarterly economic survey, you should do so by 13th June. We will be offering various options for you to complete this vital survey starting from 23rd May.

One thing that our survey is highlighting, at the moment, is skills & recruitment challenges and if this feels relevant to you then you should get in touch with Coventry Warwickshire Chamber Training who will be able to help. Key dates for your diary are the Chamber Economic "Go for Growth" Conference on 14th October and our next Trade Expo on 4th November 2016. Both events will be packed full of b2b and b2c networking opportunities, great speakers, business support and are events not to be missed.

Chamber Training

International Trade

Corporate Members Business Support

News

Legal & Finance

16-17

Property

18 -19

Profile

20-21

Policy

Skills

As your Chamber of Commerce, we want to do everything we can to showcase the very best of business here in our locality and this includes encouraging your business to think about applying for a Queen's Honour, if this is something of interest, get in touch with me on 02476 654321 and we will seek to help. So, lots of great things happening at a time we should be talking-up our economy, not being drowned by feelings of uncertainty.

Around the region News

Kind regards Louise Mrs L Bennett-Bayliss OBE, DL Chief Executive

24-31 32

Focus on Conference and Event Venues

33-36

News

40-43

President & People

44-45

New Members

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

12-13

Go For Growth ‘16 Campaign

CONTACTS At the Chamber

News desk

Members are encouraged to send any news about their firm - new orders, staff, new products, expansions or relocations - for publication in C&W in business. Whilst every effort will be made to publish submitted articles, we cannot guarantee inclusion. Send them to: news@cw-chamber.co.uk Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Chamber House Innovation Village Cheetah Road Coventry CV1 2TL T: 024 76 65 4371 F: 024 76 45 0242

Businesses urged to look out for changes

At the publishers

Publisher

Ian Fletcher

Benham Publishing Limited 3tc House, 16 Crosby Road North, Crosby, Liverpool L22 0NY 0151 236 4141

Advertising Contact Karen Hall karen@benhampublishing.com 07801 788880 Production Manager Mark Etherington Accounts Director Joanne Casey Media Number 1440 © Benham Publishing 2016 C&W in Business is produced on behalf of Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce by Benham Publishing Limited and is distributed to members free of charge. Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information contained in C&W in Business, neither Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, nor the publisher can accept responsibility for any omissions or inaccuracies it contains. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Chamber. C&W in Business is printed and distributed by Headley Brothers Limited The official publication of the Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce

The official publication of the Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce 4

As part of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce’s Go For Growth campaign, it identified forthcoming changes in business taxation from April 2016 as a potential barrier to growth. Anne Rose, of strategic partner Burgis & Bullock, has been through the changes to help business owners prepare. “As most people are now aware, the Chancellor’s recent budget introduced a number of changes and new measures in various areas of tax, many of which will impact SMEs in our region,” she said. “However, a number of these don’t actually take effect until 2017. But what of the measures announced in previous budgets that actually come in from April this year? Below is a summary of some of the key changes scheduled for the different start dates.” From April 2016 • Significant changes to the taxation of dividends, increasing the overall tax burden for many business owners who traditionally may have adopted a strategy of taking lower salaries and paying out higher dividends. There are winners and losers under this regime depending on the level of dividends paid and it is important that individuals take advice to understand how they will be affected and to enable them to plan their remuneration package. • As a follow on from the dividend changes, companies will also pay tax at 32.5% on loans to directors that are left outstanding for more than nine months after the year end. This is an

increase from the existing 25% charge and whilst refundable after the loan is repaid, can have a significant cash flow impact for some businesses. A review of loans to directors would be recommended. • Changes to the taxation of distributions on liquidations affecting business owners seeking to exit their business and obtain the benefit of entrepreneur’s relief. This will particularly affect business owners who run a number of businesses of a similar type in different corporate entities and other vehicles and who seek to close down one of their businesses and extract funds in a tax efficient way. Again planning is key, particularly for anyone thinking of retiring or winding up their business in the short to medium term. • Reductions in the rates of capital gains tax to encourage investors to put funds into private companies. • An overhaul of the requirements for employers in respect of expenses and benefits paid to employees:

no more P11D dispensations and the introduction of a trivial benefits regime being two parts of these reforms. Overall these changes are to be welcomed and will simplify a number of reporting requirements for employers, but it is important to understand the changes and what needs to be done. • And not a tax as such, but a significant cost to many businesses is the introduction from April of the new National Living Wage, initially set at £7.20 for over 25s. • Increases in stamp duty payable on residential property purchased inside a company. From April 2017 • Reforms to business rates, removing 600,000 smaller business from the system completely. • A further reduction to the corporation tax rate to 19%. • Greater flexibility for SME businesses in the utilisation of losses arising in different parts of the business.

“As most people are now aware, the Chancellor’s recent budget introduced a number of changes and new measures in various areas of tax, many of which will impact SMEs in our region.” www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Policy Go For Growth ‘16 Campaign

Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Company extends global reach

Angus Longward (far left) and Mick Page (centre) with Instarmac colleagues Sarah Smith, Natalie Clifford and Matthew Kinson.

A Tamworth-based manufacturing business is celebrating after widening its global presence in over 40 different countries. Instarmac Group, based on Birch Coppice Business Park, specialises in the manufacture and distribution of bitumen and cement products, and is now supplying or licensing their exclusive UltraCrete products to local authorities all over the globe, from Europe to Africa to Asia and to the Americas. UltraCrete offers a range of repair materials that have been used to carry out highway maintenance, such as filling in potholes, installing manhole covers and general highway maintenance around 400 local authorities in the UK have used UltraCrete for over 35 years. Looking to build upon their strong UK presence, Instarmac began working with the UK Trade and Investment Team (UKTI) at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chambers of Commerce around fourteen years ago. Angus Longward, Export Manager at Instarmac, believes the advice given by the UKTI has helped the business to grow. Angus said: “Although we had a unique product that we knew other people around the globe needed, UKTI helped us to overcome a variety of obstacles to be able to go out there and find overseas partners. “We were provided with Overseas Market Introduction Service reports which helped us to identify which markets would work best for us. We were also provided with a selection of recommended partners to begin working with. “Not only this, but the overseas UKTI offices also provided valuable local insight to help overcome differences in language, culture and currency when negotiating partnerships. www.cw-chamber.co.uk

“Receiving funding support to be a ble to exhibit abroad has also helped us to recently expand and licence and distribute our product in countries like Canada and Malaysia.” Such is Instarmac’s growth, they were recently placed 38th in the Sunday Times Top 100 Small Companies to Work For an award they have won for the previous six years. They also came 156th in The Sunday Times fastest growing companies in 2013, and last year turned over £44 million. Instarmac’s trading performance is welcome news for the Chamber’s ‘Go For Growth 16’ campaign, which aims to ensure the region hits is growth potential in 2016. Mick Page, international trade advisor at Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, added: “This is a great example of a company that has overcome obstacles and evolved with growth over time, providing much needed support to roads and infrastructure around the globe. “They’ve shown long-term commitment to growing their company, and this shows what can be done if firms use the help that is available from the UKTI.” Instarmac was founded by Charles Hudson in 1977 when he purchased a pothole material from inventor Tiny Draper after seeing it on the BBC’s Tomorrow’s World television show. Over the next 20 years production increased and additional brands and product ranges were added, covering highway maintenance, urban regeneration, tiling, flooring and internal finishing solutions. For more information on international trade support, call the Chamber on 024 7665 4321.

Service of the Month

Chamber HR Chamber HR is a national scheme provided by Qdos Consulting which has been an accredited British Chambers of Commerce service for over 10 years. The service is offered by the majority of UK Chambers and over 34,000 businesses have access to the services.

• On-line HR healthcheck - easy to complete with an instant response • My Account area to store your frequently used documents • Latest news & legislation updates

Chamber HR offers members easy access to essential support for employment law and human resources issues through 2 platforms: • Chamber HR advice line • Chamber HR website

The Chamber HR service is included in your membership fee - because your Chamber invests in this service so that your business has access to support and protection when it needs it most.

Key features of Chamber HR Advice Line • Our Advice Lines are manned by specialist HR advisors • Unlimited calls - call as often as you like • Hand-holding support - advisors offer comprehensive support to guide you through difficult situations • Practical advice - advisors offer practical advice that is easy to understand

Website • Huge document library with over 550 downloadable template documents • Includes a basic contract of employment and employee handbook

PLUS - IT'S ALL FREE

You can call the Chamber HR advice line about anything related to employment law or HR. The advisors can help you with any issues or problems you have, but are also happy to answer any questions you have, no matter how trivial you may think they are.

Why you need to use Chamber HR Every business needs to manage its employees because your people can be your biggest asset - they can help your business thrive..... but they can also be your greatest liability. Employment disputes are stressful and time consuming, and they can completely distract you from achieving your objectives.

However, if you use Chamber HR you will: • Save money - there is no need to have a separate lengthy support contract to cover your basic HR requirements Chamber HR is free to access • Peace of mind - help and advice is only a phone call away - you're never alone

• Manage your employee relations don't be distracted by HR or employment matters, let Chamber HR take the strain

In a fast moving world, how productive is your business? How productive are you? How would we work together to achieve your goals? We would start by focussing on the key factor that's going to create further success in your business and life - YOU! Using a unique combination of business coaching & technology, I clearly identify how YOU operate. And thus how your business operates. I help business leaders grow and thrive, so that their businesses can grow and thrive… faster and bigger.

“I help business leaders grow When you started out on your journey as a business leader, you were probably innovative and had a clear set of personal goals that drove you forward. Over time the traits that helped start your journey may have become swamped with firefighting and day to day procedures. Has that fantastic vision you were heading for become cloudy and fallen out of sight? Do you want to take hold of that vision again? Do you feel excited at the idea of re-lighting the fire that first started your business? If so, how do you do this? Let me introduce myself. My company is called TC Gill Coaching and I am an Associate Coach of The Coaching Experience. I work with established business owners running companies with six to eight figure turnovers.

and thrive, so that their businesses can grow and thrive.” Through our unique Business Leadership Profiling tool, together we will identify what's currently working well and, most importantly, what's not! I then use this information to create key coaching targets that shift you to high performance leadership. We will work together to turn your business into a "High Performing Business" With over 20 years of experience working in industry I have developed an understanding and passion for how businesses can create productive and energised work environments.

“frustrations that go with a growing business.”

Like many business leaders I imagine you have issues such as: • a lot of frustrations that go with a growing business. • lack of awareness within the business around ongoing issues. • and finally, lack of action around that awareness to address those issues.

My vision is ultimately to increase the creativity and profitability, and well-being of your business, for the betterment of both the business itself and the people within it.

Through my unique combination of tools and coaching, we work with you to address these.

Businesses can be productive, profitable and positive places! By using my unique combination of business coaching, and technology (Business Leadership Profile) I enhance businesses - and I get results - using the assets and people you already have.

In fact, ultimately, what it all boils down to - and what I feel you really want - is to have a great lifestyle. I continuously hear from business leaders: • "I want to kick back a bit" • "I want more time to myself" • "I just want my people to get the job done" But you still want a growing business and somehow be less hands on. In my experience there’s a lot I can do with you. Together we can: • raise the awareness around how you operate (the business owner/company leader). • develop new strategies around the people within your business • refine the work environment to enable your people to be more productive

Thus creating a win/win opportunity for everyone involved.

“productive, profitable and positive.”

To find out more about TC Gill Coaching and how I can help you to improve your business, contact me on tc@tcgill.com / 07977 007350 to arrange a free, informal discussion about what I do, how it works and how it can apply to you and your business.

Mr TC Gill (BEng Hons) CPCC High Performance Business Development Coach e: tc@tcgill.com t: 07977 007350 w: tcgill.com

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Coventry & Warwickshire in business

News

sponsored column

New £5.8m redevelopment of Pershore College officially opened

TV gardener David Domoney officially opened the £5.8m redevelopment of Pershore College at a celebratory event with students, staff, local businesses and stakeholders. David, who presents ITV’s Love Your Garden, and is a former student of the college, cut the ribbon to officially open the new contemporary glass building which includes a spectacular Collections House, teaching rooms, laboratory, higher education suite and business conference zone as well as a new library area and reception featuring a ‘living wall’. Guests were treated to tours of the college, as well as a chance to try the Pershore College range of juices and ciders and the microveg, microleaves and edible flowers the college supplies to the Michelin-starred Fera at Claridge's. The new facility was constructed by Deeley Construction, part of the Deeley Group, and has transformed the college.

Features of the new building are: • State-of-the-art Collections House where exotic plants can thrive, featuring permanent and seasonal collections. The Collections House is environmentally controlled through a sophisticated electronic management system to control ventilation, humidity, heating and lighting. In addition to protecting and enabling the plants to flourish in a semi-Mediterranean climate, the systems are readily accessible to students as a living demonstration of modern greenhouse technology • STEM centre (science, technology, engineering and maths) and agri-tech lab where students will be able to learn about the newest innovations in the field, such as sustainable horticulture, aquaponics (an enclosed sustainable system where fish and plants grow together without the need

for additional chemicals) and the use of UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) in supporting horticulture processes in growing techniques • New higher education suite for students on degree programmes, including animal science, veterinary nursing, horticulture and arboriculture • New library • Conferencing facilities and event space Warwickshire College Group Principal and CEO, Angela Joyce, said, “Over the past year Pershore College has seen probably the biggest change in its long history with the construction of this spectacular building and a refocusing of our curriculum. We have embarked on a fresh, dynamic journey to meet the demands of our new world and support key national priorities through the delivery of skills, education and training. “This building is a visible landmark of this ambition. This investment will give all of our students - whether they are studying animal welfare, veterinary nursing, arboriculture or horticulture - an innovative, technologically-enhanced environment to inspire and give them the skills needed for industry today.” David Domoney said, “The horticultural industry is phenomenal. It offers a diversity that transcends other industries by the variety of our specialisation. As educated horticulturalists we can become scientists, growers, educators, retailers, artists, designers, architects, landscapers, photographers, broadcasters, writers, pioneers and entrepreneurs. The opportunity to control your destiny from an education here at Pershore College is phenomenal.

Leading UK Enterprise Zone, MIRA Technology Park, breaks ground on Phase Two of development MIRA Technology Park, the 1.75 million sq. ft. Enterprise Zone in Nuneaton, has begun work on Phase Two of its development, with the construction of a third multi-use building on the site. The 27,200 sq. ft. building, ‘North West 3’, represents an investment of almost £7 million by the HORIBA Group and will house a number of global tier-one companies within the six secure facilities within the building. The announcement follows the completion of Phase One of development in February, with the construction of key infrastructure on the site, which has paved the way for Phase Two of the development including the East, South and Centre Sectors of the Technology Park. This new building is located in the North West Sector of the Park, and compliments three other multi-tenant buildings constructed for various companies, alongside bespoke facilities created for Swedish company Haldex, and for Aston Martin. www.cw-chamber.co.uk

The new facility – being built by local construction company Deeley Construction – is due for completion in November this year, and, when fully let, will accommodate 140 staff, with many of these roles being new jobs to the MIRA Technology Park site. Total jobs created at the Enterprise Zone stand at almost 450 since 2010 and this is expected to rise to over 2,000 jobs as the Park nears completion in 2025. Terry Spall, Commercial Director at MIRA Technology Park, said: “Phase Two of MIRA Technology Park is now well underway with the construction of North West 3, which will create much-needed space for new and expanding businesses to join us on site. We are also expecting to be breaking ground on a further three new buildings this year. “The construction of North West 3 further demonstrates HORIBA’s

commitment to accelerating the growth of this automotive technology cluster and the job creation potential of the Enterprise Zone, and we’re looking forward to this next stage of development.” MIRA Technology Park is set to be completed by 2025, and is rapidly gaining global recognition as a leading automotive technology cluster and is gaining broader interest as a strategic transport sector R&D location within the EU.

From April 2016, rules are introduced which require companies to keep a register of people with significant control (PSC register). In addition, the details of people with significant control (PSCs) will have to be filed with Companies House from 30 June 2016. A PSC is defined as an individual that: • holds, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the shares or voting rights in the company; or • holds the right, directly or indirectly, to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors of the company; or • has the right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant influence or control over the company; or • where a trust or firm would satisfy any of the above conditions, any individual that has the right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant influence or control over the activities of that trust or firm. The details of the individuals which need to be entered on the PSC register include: • name and address • usual residential address, country of residence and nationality • date of birth • date when they became a PSC • the nature of their control over the company. Failure to comply with the requirements of the PSC regime could lead to the company or directors, or identified PSCs committing a criminal offence. The company and its directors could face a fine or imprisonment or both. Individuals wishing to discuss this further should contact David Thomas or Paul Spencer on 02476 257481 or dt@sgduk.com/ps@sgduk.com. For more information please visit our website www.sgduk.com

Events

Speed was everything at a networking event in Coventry He said: “We are delighted to be holding this event with the Chamber, as a Strategic Partner we see great benefit in being able to meet businesses in this way. “The Chamber has, this year, launched a Go For Growth campaign and internet speeds are absolutely vital to all companies that are looking to work more efficiently. “I have met so many companies who have told me that their growth is being hampered by poor internet connectivity which is preventing them from being able to take advantage of all the technologies

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce joined forces with CityFibre, the company delivering ultrafast internet speeds to businesses through the Coventry CORE, to hold a speed networking event at the Belgrade Theatre.

More than 40 companies attended and were given a minute at a time to tell their table all about their business before the whistle was blown for them to move on. Brett Marshall, of CityFibre, told the group that upgrading to ultrafast internet would help them to Go For Growth.

that are revolutionising the way companies do business. “The message to companies in Coventry is that you can make the most of pure-fibre which can help you drive efficiency and growth in your business.” Bethany De Thierry, of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “It was a very well attended event. It gave companies the chance to hear more about CityFibre but also the opportunity to network and do business with one another.”

“The Chamber has, this year, launched a Go For Growth campaign and internet speeds are absolutely vital to all companies that are looking to work more efficiently.”

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Events

Coventry & Warwickshire in business sponsored column

Tax-efficient investment strategy in a low interest rate environment This is a difficult time for investors. With the base rate still at 0.5%, and unlikely to rise significantly for some time, returns from cash are often negative in real terms. At the same time world markets are very volatile. Investment in equity-based options have generated negative returns for most in recent months. So where can investors go? The fundamentals haven’t changed. Understanding risk and capacity for loss is the first consideration. Any discussion on investment options can only take place once this has been established. Equally important is the tax treatment of investments. Ensuring that the structure being used is able to utilise any tax allowances or reliefs, where possible, can have a big effect on the net return enjoyed. Higher rate tax can bite into returns. So simple measures such as investing in the name of a basic tax-ratepaying (or even better non-tax-paying) spouse can improve returns significantly. In addition, given that we now have a 0% band on the first £5,000 of interest income, and a personal savings allowance from 6th April 2016 which will take a further £1,000 of interest income out of tax in certain circumstances, getting professional advice on your investment strategy is more important than ever. The rules relating to what income falls within what band are complex, so tax planning advice will be needed to take full advantage of this opportunity. And rest assured that even in this low interest rate environment, there are still savings options available that can provide strong returns, provided investors understand exactly what they are investing in. Why not let us help you to find the right balance? If you would like to discuss your own tax-efficient investment strategy, contact Dafferns’ tax partner Brian King: brian.king@dafferns.com or Tel: 024 7622 1046 Dafferns Financial Services is an Appointed Representative of Greyfriars Asset Management LLP, which is authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Training

‘Good’ News from Ofsted for C&W Chamber Training Apprenticeships

Accountancy Apprentice announced as finalist for FirstPro Young Professional Award Congratulations to Balpreet Bains for reaching the final of the FirstPro Awards 2016 in the Young Professional category. Coventry & Warwickshire First’s FirstPro Awards recognise exceptional professionals in Coventry and Warwickshire, showcasing the depth and breadth of talent within the region. An award for individuals, each category celebrates the leading professional within the relevant sector. Balpreet has come on leaps and bounds at Stewart, Fletcher & Barrett after applying for an apprenticeship with C&W Chamber Training in 2013, and is now the auto enrolment specialist at SFB. Balpreet continuously goes above and beyond for her clients and her employer. Of her own accord she regularly works extra hours to better her client’s experience. She has also developed keen sales and networking through attending many local networking groups and has developed some superb relationships with Coventry & Warwickshire businesses. Balpreet now runs the AE department and looks after all of SFB’s client base that auto enrolment is applicable for and as such is the face of SFB to many clients. She visits clients on a daily basis to train them on payroll software, ensure they are running their business costeffectively and they are compliant to all rules and regulations thus avoiding unnecessary fines. In addition to this, Balpreet is also a key member of the SFB Coventry team. As well as auto enrolment advice, she provides accounting services to SFB’s Coventry based clients and wins work for the team in that area driving SFB forward. Balpreet’s contribution to the local community is immense. She is a volunteer helping the homeless and providing food and hunger relief to those that really need it, two days a week, feeding 300+ at a variety of local venues. Balpreet is a credit to the younger generation of people in business from the Coventry and Warwickshire area. Her dedication and commitment in all that she does, whether in her career, community or hobby, is a shining light in the district.

Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber Training are celebrating their recent Ofsted inspection which confirmed they are still a 'good' training provider (February 2016). Ofsted’s goal is to achieve excellence in education and skills for learners of all ages, and in the care of children and young people.

Sentiments from the Ofsted inspection include: • The experience that apprentices have and the extent to which the needs of employers are very good. • Apprentices make good progress and develop valuable employment and technical skills, as well as confidence at work.

• All parties collaborate well to meet workplace needs. • Employers are invited to discuss skill requirements and their industry requirements. • Support for apprentices is good. • The majority of employers are fully involved in the planning, target setting and reviewing progress. • Employers effectively set targets which meet the needs of business. • Employers work very closely and productively with to ensure that apprentices receive good opportunities to expand their experience and gain their qualifications. Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber Training aims to consistently deliver outstanding teaching and learning. The methods implemented to achieve this include high quality differentiation, timely and constructive written feedback, deployment of technology and ensuring that learning sessions are dynamic, well planned, creative and contain the clear development of vocational skills. This is verified through robust observation practices which critically analyse strengths and areas for development. In a recent FFE survey employer satisfaction came out at 93% and learner satisfaction at 92%. This feedback maintains Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber Training’s position as a leading local provider of training and education. Employers are critical to the success of the apprenticeship programme. Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber Training take partnerships with employers very seriously and work together to build skilled workforces that contribute to business success. To see the full Ofsted report, please visit www.cw-chambertraining.co.uk and search for Ofsted.

National Grid bright sparks benefit from Apprenticeship Scheme In June 2013, National Grid partnered up with Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber Training to deliver apprenticeship training to upskill staff members. Since then the partnership has really paid off and to date National Grid has had 57 apprenticeship achievers, with 88 people currently on programme and two members of staff taking the Foundation Degree in Leadership and Management at C&W Chamber Training. Kim McMahon who manages the partnership for National Grid explained her reasoning for initiating the apprenticeship partnership. “Whilst working in Shared Services, someone asked my opinion with regards to the NVQ qualification. The year before I had worked with a young girl, who had enrolled on an NVQ programme with an external provider. She had failed her

exams whilst at school and so she jumped at the chance to finally get some qualifications whilst at work…“ “That’s the bonus, Kim” she enthused, “I am earning & learning, what could possibly be better” - so Kim made enquiries, held lengthy discussions with Senior Managers within Scheduling and Dispatch to gain their support, arranged for a reputable and recommended provider, C&W Chamber Training based in Coventry, to come in and talk to us about the new NVQs. The National Grid apprentices have given some glowing feedback about their experiences, including… National Grid Apprentice Nicola Anstee (Scheduling & Dispatch) said “I learnt a lot of techniques and gained knowledge that I have been able to apply to my job at National Grid along with passing learning on to colleagues around me. I enjoyed the course so much I decided to continue and have since started the NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration.” Foundation Degree student Rob Lowe (Maintenance) added “Having left school

many years ago with little to no qualifications, when an opportunity to gain some qualifications was offered I was keen to take part. Understanding the importance of development and looking to my own future progression I looked at exploring the option of obtaining a degree in Leadership and Management. I approached my line manager who was supportive in my development idea and agreed for me to seek the appropriate course. I strongly advise embracing any opportunity you are offered to enhance your own professional development.” For more information about how you or your organisation can benefit from partnering up to deliver funded apprenticeship training contact our Business Development Team on 02476 231 122 or email enquiries@cw-chambertraining.co.uk

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Coventry & Warwickshire in business

International Trade

sponsored column

USA mission a success

Members of the delegation including Ajay Desai (2nd left) and Louise Bennett (5th left)

A mission to the USA led by the international trade hub in Coventry and Warwickshire has already landed more than £4million worth of sales for UK games businesses. The UKTI international trade team, based at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, took 48 businesses to the Games Developers Conference in San Francisco and already 27 of the firms are reporting new business.

It already totals more than £4million and is set to rise as links between the games industry in the USA and the UK have been strengthened on the back of the trip. The mission gave companies the chance to meet and network with a range of businesses – including Nintendo, Disney, Google, Apple, Microsoft, Sony and Oculus through to smaller companies. Although the visit was led by the Coventry and Warwickshire team and included companies from across

the West Midlands region, firms from around the UK also joined the delegation. Ajay Desai, Head of International Trade at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “It was a great visit which took place in March and has already achieved outstanding results for the businesses involved. “We always say that orders might not necessarily come through this quickly so to have generated £4million plus of sales for UK plc already is a great achievement. “The Chamber has been outlining the importance of overseas trade for many years and, at the start of 2016, made it a key pillar of its Go For Growth campaign. “The success of this mission shows that companies that make full use of the support of the UKTI team at the Chamber’s International Trade Hub give themselves a great chance of achieving overseas success.” Louise Bennett, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce – who also attended the mission, added: “It was a very worthwhile trip to a market that will become increasingly lucrative for this region. “I had an excellent meeting with the chief executive of the Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce and it has really helped to strengthen our ties with such a major international business region.” For more information on trading overseas call 024 7665 4321.

Chief executive meets Chamber team A leading figure in the UK’s drive to do more business overseas has met the team in Coventry and Warwickshire that has helped the region become a major exporter. Dr Catherine Raines, who became chief executive of UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) last September, visited the international trade hub at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber delivers UKTI support to businesses across the city and the county and its international trade team is part of the wider success in the West Midlands that saw exports increase by 0.8 per cent in 2015. The area is now the third biggest exporting region in the country amounting to close to £29 billion in export values. Ajay Desai, who heads the international trade team at the Chamber, said: “It was great to welcome Dr Catherine Raines to the Chamber in Coventry and Warwickshire. “We have a great team here who are delivering support to companies on a daily basis, helping them to export right around the world and they were delighted to hear from Catherine. “The message is that we still need more businesses to explore the possibilities of exporting to ensure that they, as well as the wider economy, continue to grow.

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“At the start of 2015, the Chamber launched a Go For Growth campaign and exporting is a major part of that. It’s proven that companies that export are more likely to grow, take on new staff and sustain themselves for the long term.” Louise Bennett, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, added: “I am extremely proud of the work the international trade team

does here at the Chamber and, as we continue to stress, it’s vital that more and more companies tap into the support available. “International trade is vital to the growth of our economy and the benefits to individual companies are potentially huge.” For more information on exporting, call the Chamber on 024 7665 4321

Do you have ‘Happy Ears’?

The Story ‘’You’re close to making the sale, but I have to talk with some other people,’’ said Mary, watching for the reaction from Tim. ‘‘That’s good to hear,’’ responded Tim with a sigh of relief. ‘’What you are proposing looks good, but I’m not sure of where our budget will be this year.’’ ‘’Does that mean there is a chance of doing business?’’ Keep it positive, thought Tim, positive. ‘’Considering all of the proposals that we have seen so far, yours certainly has top consideration.’’ Mary figured that if she kept up this barrage of meaningless phrases, Tim would eventually leave feeling just like the last salespeople – with positive feelings and absolutely no commitment on her part at all. ‘’Is there anything else, Mary, that I could do to help you make a decision?’’ ‘’Tim, let me be honest with you,’’ responded Mary, ‘’If I have my say, then there is a good chance that we could do business.’’ ‘’My company would certainly work to meet your needs,’’ responded Tim. ‘’It appears that every opportunity is open to you. I don’t think you have to worry about where we will go with this. You have our top consideration.’’ ‘’I can’t tell you what that means to me. I am looking forward to hearing from you.’’

The Result Tim was promised nothing, but left feeling good because he thought he was promised something. Mary avoided commitment and politely got rid of another salesperson. How to stop ‘Happy Ears’ and close more sales? Attend Neil’s 2-hour workshop, as our guest, please email or call us for further details. ••• Written by Neil Liddell of Sandler Training. Providers of Sales and Management Training E: nliddell@sandler.com T: 0845 0573563 M: 07547 227442 www.central.sandler.com ••• (left to right): Ajay Desai, Christine Hamilton (UKTI), Dr Catherine Raines, Louise Bennett

Corporate Members

Say No to Lightbulbs!

Rebrand for successful company

The Directors of Kenilworth based Absolute HR Solutions have announced that due to the increased services the company now offers, they have made the decision to re-brand to Absolute Works" The business has seen rapid growth since inception 4 years ago from a sole employee to a team of ten. They continue to recruit high calibre individuals to support the demand of new and existing clients who are looking to outsource their HR requirements either in totality or for advice and/or projects. Joy May (CEO) says that the growth of the company has been incredible and the decision to rebrand is due to the increased additional services the Company can offer in addition to HR. They now have the expertise to offer a variety of additional services which include, Recruitment, Consultancy, Coaching for SME’s, Health & Safety, Training & Development and Business Support including the option to use a bespoke HR Portal developed by the team at Absolute Works.

The Energy saving lightbulb has been around since the late 90s and they have become the “go-to” solution for most businesses looking to reduce energy costs and CO2 emissions. But did you know that there is an alternative solution? A solution that is quicker and easier to install. A solution that can save you thousands of pounds. Introducing the Variable Speed Drive (VSD) or Inverter Drive as it is sometimes known. Does your workplace run an HVAC system? Does your workplace run a motor or pump application? Then installing an ABB VSD will make a real difference to your business. The speeds of motor or fan processes are often controlled through dampers or valves and although this slows them down the energy use stays constant as the motor still runs at full speed. It’s the equivalent of driving your car with your accelerator foot to the floor and using your handbrake to control the speed, which makes no sense at all, and costs you more to run. Installing a VSD to sit between your power source and your application will mean that the speeds are varied infinitely according to your process requirements. It also means that your energy usage is varied according to use. Installing an ABB VSD will reduce wear and tear on your equipment, reducing your maintenance and extending the reliability of your process. We have seen businesses from across a wide variety of sectors save thousands on their energy bills each year. Introducing an ABB VSD will bring you significant costs savings, and payback on your drive investment is usually between 1-2 years.

Sentridge Control has been providing energy solutions to businesses for 30 years. We appreciate it can be hard to believe the potential savings that can be made and so we offer a free noobligation Energy Audit to help you understand the cost and energy saving benefits a Variable Speed Drive can bring to your business. To book your free Energy Audit, please contact us on 024 7655 3303 or email sales@sentridge.com

Sentridge Control is a Coventry based engineering firm, whose clients include BMW, Amtico, Marley Tiles, Lafarge, Severn Trent Water and Cemex. The company provides automation and control solutions to businesses across the Midlands. Experts at saving energy and improving production processes, Sentridge is responsible for reducing its client’s energy bills by thousands of pounds each year. For more information visit www.sentridge.com

“We have seen businesses from across a wide variety of sectors save thousands on their energy bills each year.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Corporate Members

National recognition for organisation

A social enterprise has received national recognition for its dedication in employing ex-members of the armed forces. The British Forces Resettlement Services helps thousands of military leavers during their transition to civilian life every year. The organisation, known as BFRS, has now itself been awarded an Armed Forces Covenant Employer Recognition Scheme Bronze Award. This acknowledges employers that pledge their support to the armed forces community and are committed to taking on reservists, veterans, cadet instructors and military partners. BFRS was set up by Harry Dean in 2009 to help facilitate a smooth and effective transition from the military back into the commercial world at the end of service.

Harry was a soldier who joined the Army (Royal Artillery) in 1968 as a Junior Leader at the very early age of 15 and spent two years training at Gamecock Barracks, in Bramcote, Nuneaton. It was there that he learnt military skills, leadership training and a confidence that can only come from the military, all of which stood him in good stead not only for his 30 year army career, but also beyond into his second career as an entrepreneur. It was this background that inspired him to create BFRS, which is based in Leicester and also has a registered office in Nuneaton, in 2009. Harry, who is a corporate member of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “We help and support members of the armed forces community,

particularly those leaving the armed forces, in a number of ways. “We run exhibitions and career transition events across the UK and have platforms that enable the commercial world to communicate with the ex-military world. “We also run various online functions including a course board which provides information on training and a job board as well as support with interview practice and CV writing. “Leaving the military can be a difficult process if you don’t have the correct support you need, it can also be hard to identify transferable stills and put these down on a CV. “We already have a number of companies that recognise the skills that former members of the armed forces have to offer. These include British Gas, Asda, Eddie Stobart, Heathrow Airport and Birmingham Airport. “We are constantly looking to engage with other organisations who would like to find out more about employing members of the armed forces community.”

Harry’s first connection with the Chamber came during his first job outside the military at the Sandwich Factory, in Atherstone. He was in the role of Training and Resource Development Manager and was instrumental in the business joining the Chamber. It was a business planning course run by the Chamber that helped give Harry the skills that he needed to set-up his own recruitment operation Gemini Resourcing UK Ltd. During this time, it became more apparent that military leavers were not getting the best support and Harry saw an opportunity to give something back and set up BFRS. Harry said: “I have been a member of the Chamber since 2002 and have had tremendous value from it over the years. “A business planning course from the Chamber helped me set up my first business, which ultimately led to me creating BFRS. “It now provides me with excellent networking opportunities and the chance to develop relationships with businesses in the area.”

“BFRS was set up by Harry Dean in 2009 to help facilitate a smooth and effective transition from the military back into the commercial world at the end of service.”

Appliance care firm raises £14,000 for Abbie’s hideaway Employees at Domestic & General’s Bedworth office have been baking, holding fundraiser days and taking part in sporting challenges to raise £14,000 for their chosen charity this year. As a result of the funds, appliance care firm Domestic & General has raised for Abbie’s Hideaway in the last year, it will mean 105 children and their families will be able to take some much needed respite from having a terminal illness. Abbie’s Hideaway provides free holidays for families caring for terminally ill children. It was set up by Melissa Ginns and Ian Mustard following the loss of Ian’s 16-year-old daughter Abbie from acute promyelocytic leukaemia in 2013. The Leicester Street office has been rallying to raise the funds and awareness of the charity throughout 2015/16. Tracey Naughton, Bedworth site lead at Domestic & General, said: “ The partnership is a cause close to our hearts with the charity doing some great work in our area, we are delighted to have

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raised enough to cover the charity’s running costs for three years.” The ‘hideaway’ is a purpose-bought caravan in Mablethorpe where families can spend quality time together on holiday. A fundraising fete held by Domestic & General for the charity saw employees invite members of the public to attend and donate money through a number of stalls and activities, such as bric-a-brac, cake sales, book and CD sales, as well as firm fete favourites, hoopla, tombola and a children's lucky dip. The fete alone raised £2,100. Ian Mustard, director of Abbie’s Hideaway, said: “We are astounded by the level of generosity in terms of time and effort by the staff and the immense kindness shown by the board topping up the already magnificent sum raised by the staff. “The team at Abbie's Hideaway will always be eternally grateful and like to consider the D&G team as friends, when we were low we felt we had an army behind us, that's the strength they gave and will never be forgotten.”

Business Support

Crocotta and the Chamber of Commerce: An important and positive lesson in Business Strategy Development

Looking at the bigger picture

By James Murphy

Moral of the day: Your Chamber of Commerce is an invaluable tool in the definition, development, expansion and very survival of your business. I learned that positive and necessary lesson in 2015, when I was helping to advise the CEO at CROCOTTA RESEARCH AND DEVLOPMENT LTD. Crocotta had a good year in business. I helped their media profiling. We thereby brokered ‘the big one’: selected as providers on a critical contract for the EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY. It was great news and most rewarding work. European Space Agencies do not come around every day, even if they constitute your flagship project. Equally, there will be companies both big and small that cannot believe a small outfit pulled off such a big contract.

A Nuneaton photographer is looking at the bigger picture after launching a new business. Charlotte Portlock, a 25-year-old photographer, decided to swap working for someone else to become her own boss after being employed by a Birmingham media company for five years. Charlotte’s Photo Studio, which is based at Chilvers Coton Craft Centre Nuneaton, was established with the help of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, when Charlotte met an advisor by chance at an enterprise event. The studio has since expanded and Charlotte now offers a wide range of services, from family and dog portraits to wedding photography and packages. Charlotte said: “I’ve always been interested in pictures and cameras, ever since I was little but it was only several years ago that I really grew a passion for photography. Back then, I didn’t have

the time or equipment to pursue it and I mostly considered it a hobby. “Meeting my advisor and Enterprise Coach Margaret Bull at the event really changed my life. I’m now my own boss so I determine the direction of the business and choose the type of photography styles. “I had no experience of running a business, so I was starting from scratch.

However I’m in a place now where I’m able to expand my services, and grow the business more. “Margaret mentored and assisted me with everything from my business plan, cash flow, pricing structure and time management. Running my own business was an entirely new concept to me, I would have been lost without the support from the Chamber.” Margaret Bull, Enterprise Coach and advisor at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “Charlotte is a great example of someone who wants to pursue their passion, but needs the right resources to start the business. “We ensured that Charlotte took small manageable steps to achieve her goals of setting up a business and I would urge anyone starting a business to consider coming to the Chamber for help as we have a team of people who are ready to offer advice, support and sometimes just a sounding board to help get you started.” For more information on starting a business contact the Chamber on 024 7665 4321.

“Margaret mentored and assisted me with everything from my business plan, cash flow, pricing structure and time management. Running my own business was an entirely new concept to me, I would have been lost without the support from the Chamber.”

We needed to be calmly focused but clear in our redefinition of what the company could do and where it would go in 2016. Rather than limit scope in a panic, it was crucial instead to EXPAND services offered, whilst making clear that each area remained distinguished and divided. The Chamber provided dedicated, one to one help, thereby ensuring we branched out with ambition but realism. There is a most reassuring and inspiring, constant network of accessible advice. They can help in tailoring the contacts YOU require. Bespoke-Business -Building. Thank you: Hazel Pilling and Ange Lennox! Of course, it’s not a magic wand but it’s a business equivalent of a Fairy Godmother. You will still have to network like mad but at least you will KNOW that you are looking in the RIGHT places; with contact platforms designed by a provider you can TRUST. The rest is down to you and a small matter of luck / timing. In an uncertain business world, the Chamber IS certainty itself. So what are you waiting for?

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

News

PR agency manufactures brighter future with new partnerships

As the economic forecast for the UK manufacturing industry look set to improve over the coming months, one national PR and marketing business has aligned itself even closer to the sector. Bridge PR & Media Services, which has a long standing reputation within the manufacturing sector has further increased its presence and relationships in UK manufacturing after agreeing a deal with yet another manufacturing business and strengthening a number of strategic alliances with key industry bodies. At a time when it has become an affiliate member of both the manufacturer’s organisation EEF and the Manufacturing Technologies Association, Bridge has also agreed a deal to manage PR and marketing for temporary building specialist, and UK manufacturer, Spaciotempo.

The deal will see Bridge handle trade press for the company across the manufacturing, warehousing and automotive markets, together with digital services including social media support. It’s the first contract that sees Bridge deploy its recent trade partnership with search optimisation specialist KW Solutions. And as a number of manufacturers now move to embrace servitization, Bridge PR is also keen to explore the ways it can deliver added value to its clients, working closely alongside the Aston Centre for Servitization Research and Practice: the world’s first and only centre dedicated entirely to understanding and promoting servitization within the global market. Bridge PR Managing Director Denise Taylor said: “Having worked with a number of national manufacturing clients we are

familiar with the industry, and the ways in which we can successfully leverage the profile of manufacturers using a number of strategic PR channels. However, by aligning with a number of key manufacturing industry bodies and institutes we will be able to further expand our knowledge, which will enable us to deliver even greater value to our own clients. “A number of businesses we work with are already receptive to the ways in which servitization can benefit both them and their customers, having worked alongside the Aston Centre for Servitization Research and Practice. So, as Industry 4.0 and the circular economy now also begin to gain traction amongst UK manufactures, our partnership with manufacturing trade bodies will ensure both Bridge and our clients remain at the forefront of such trends.” Rachel Baker Marketing Manager at Spaciotempo, said: “As a business which sources innovative ways to deliver temporary building solutions, we needed the support of a PR agency which understood not only our business, but the wider manufacturing industry and our key supply chain markets. Having worked within the supply chain space for over 20 years, what really struck us about Bridge was their vast industry knowledge. We are looking forward to the ways in which we can now combine our knowledge to really raise the profile of Spaciotempo in a number of key markets.”

Technology firm celebrates growth A growing technology consulting business in Coventry has tripled its turnover and work force over the past year following a successful reinvention. HeadTech Solutions, based at the University of Warwick Business Innovation Centre in Binley, has grown its headcount from three to 10 people following a business review that has seen the firm adapt to offering a seamless technology service for businesses. Last year saw a major contract signed with global recruitment firm Talent International to provide support for its IT operations across the globe, which has also helped to boost the development of the business. Phil Hynes, managing director at HeadTech Solutions, began his business from his kitchen table three years ago at home in Binley, and says his vision for the future is a lot different to what it was back then. He said: “When starting out, I very quickly realised that just existing as an IT support company by fixing equipment and offering telephone and email support for clients wasn’t enough to stand out in a crowded market, so I went back to the drawing board. “Instead, we are now a technology consulting business that listens to customers’ individual needs by providing technology plans to suit their requirements, whether it is fixing or maintaining hardware, building an online system or helping with IT security and backing up important files.” Other services now provided include technology asset reviews, identifying the

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pros and cons of upgrading hardware and software, adopting cloud based solutions, a 24/7 helpdesk, as well as providing dedicated software development teams to create and build bespoke online software systems at the company’s data centre in Coventry. Phil added: “IT support and software subscriptions can be quite expensive for businesses if they don’t address why they need each of these services , so by having a seamless technology provider it can help identify where your money is being spent and the value this has to your business.” Penny Robb, Manager of the University of Warwick Science Park’s Business Innovation Centre, said HeadTech

Solution’s expansion since 2013 has been remarkable. She said: “HeadTech Solutions has come a long way since it was founded on a kitchen table three years ago and is a shining example for other aspiring business owners out there. “The Business Innovation Centre has proved to be the perfect base from which to grow for the company and is another example of a firm coming to us in its every early stages and growing to be a very solid business. “I know they have further expansion plans and being based here will be the perfect springboard for that growth.”

sponsored column

What is the Dark Web - and does it pose a Risk to Your Business?

Anyone who has had a PC or a network infected with a virus such as Crypto Locker will know the pain it can cause. But did you know that the likelihood is that the malicious code (known as Malware) has come from the Dark Web, after the link that was inadvertently clicked from within a targeted e-mail created a connection to a Ransomware site. You may have heard the term “The Dark Web” but do you know what it is? Simply put it is collection of websites that are publicly visible, but have the IP addresses of the servers hidden. This means while they can be visited by anyone, it can be impossible to work out who owns them. Sites on the Dark Web will hide their identity by masking their IP addresses using the Tor encryption tool. However by using a Firewall such as a Dell SonicWALL you can block access to Tor sites from within your business, cutting off the Dark Web and the risks that it poses to your network and important business data. The UK government has a dedicated cybercrime unit to tackle the Dark Web, but it is a battle that may never be won, no matter how hard they fight to track down the culprits. To learn more about how to protect your business call the team at Zenzero on 0333 3209 900 or visit our website: http://www.zenzero.co.uk/sonicwall/

Zenzero Solutions are a Microsoft Gold partner, based on the Warwick Technology Park

Legal

Lots to celebrate for Hassle Free HR Limited Hassle Free HR Limited, a Coventry based HR Consultancy, have lots to celebrate: They are approaching an important milestone: their tenth successful year of trading, with year on year growth, since the Company’s formation in June 2006. They are also celebrating the recent promotion of Kirsty Denslow, to HR Advisor, following Kirsty’s successful attainment of the CIPD’s Advanced Post Graduate Diploma in HR Management. Kirsty’s hard work and determination to become an Associate Member of the CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development) will enable the Company to increase their services to their retained clients and to further expand the business. With this in mind and to support their growth and expansion plans Hassle Free HR are also celebrating their recent relocation to 1160 Elliott Court, Herald Avenue, Coventry

LLP

conversion is announced LDJ Solicitors have converted from a traditional partnership to a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) with effect from the 1st April 2016. From this date, the firm's registered business name will be LDJ Solicitors LLP. However, they will still be known as, and trading as, LDJ Solicitors. The firm will continue to use the term "Partner" to describe its owners but any reference to a Partner will mean a Member of LDJ Solicitors LLP. The principal reason for the conversion is to ensure the firm operates its business in a modern and efficient way and the new corporate structure will help the firm achieve this and its long term objectives. The change will not affect any services or relationships with clients and it will not result in any changes to employees or day to day operations.

Business Park, CV5 6UB. ‘The new office facility and location will provide us with a better platform from which to further grow our business over the next ten years,” said Elaine Hedley, Senior HR Advisor. Hassle Free HR specialise in the employment law side of HR, providing outsourced HR advice, guidance, training and HR contracts and policy documents to their retained clients in the

SME sector, across the West Midlands and beyond. ‘To assist with our future growth plans we have also recently joined the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce and we are really looking forward to being part of the Chamber community and connecting with other members at the Chamber’s many networking events,” said Elaine.

“The new office facility and location will provide us with a better platform from which to further grow our business over the next ten years.”

Wills must include a digital legacy, says solicitor A ‘digital legacy’ should be an integral part of the instructions within a Will, says Natalie Smith, an associate in the private client team at law firm Lodders. “The use of social media, cloud storage, online banking accounts, emails and an array of digital platforms and accounts, continues to grow,” said Natalie, a specialist in writing Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney, probate and tax planning, and a fully qualified member of STEP, the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.

“Whilst we are creating personal digital assets at a record pace, the laws governing them have not developed alongside, and it remains unclear where the notion of digital assets fits among other traditional concepts of property, especially when it comes to a Will. Nor is there any UK case law to shape what happens to someone’s ‘digital estate’ and its contents after they die. “It is vital that people ensure their Wills include information for executors

specifically about their digital, online presence, and this is something that must be seen as of equal importance as a life insurance policy or other investment.” According to recent figures from Ofcom, 72% of adult internet users have a social media profile. Facebook has 31 million (60% of the population) users in the UK, Instagram has14 million active users each month, whilst globally Twitter has 320 million active users each month.

“It is vital that people ensure their Wills include information for executors specifically about their digital, online presence, and this is something that must be seen as of equal importance as a life insurance policy or other investment.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Finance

Strong management team Are VAT key to maximising value Inspectors about to become Extinct?

This was a question posted at the recent Budget Briefing held by local accountants, Burgis & Bullock in Coventry. The issue was raised in the context of the forthcoming EU referendum and looking at the potential impact a vote to leave the EU might have on UK VAT and the associated administrative burden placed on local businesses.

left to right – Jamie Johnson (Moore Stephens), John Wyn-Evans (Investec Wealth & Investment), Ross Northall and Paul Fenner (both Moore Stephens)

Business owners jeopardise their own retirement plans by concentrating on building up their profits – but not their management team. Paul Fenner, partner at leading national and regional accountants Moore Stephens, believes many business owners have their eye on the wrong prize as they prepare to sell their companies. Paul Fenner, who works out of Moore Stephens’ Birmingham office on Calthorpe Road, said an increasing number of business owners looking to exit their companies focus on the financial figures first, when establishing a strong market and management team should be top of the priority list. He suggested to a meeting of business owners from the city that they had to establish an effective management team up to five years before exiting the company to have a much better chance of maximising value on sale.

“The decision of when to sell your business is not one which is taken lightly and involves the consideration of a multiple of factors,” he said. “Owners need to be thinking at least three, if not five years ahead, before looking to exit to get everything in place. “Establishing a strong management team which has quality, clearly defined roles and good credentials is one of the most important factors owners need to get right in order to maximise value. “In terms of the key ingredients, it’s often the market, management and then the numbers. After all, if you have got a strong market and a strong management team the numbers will come. Too many businesses now focus too much on getting the numbers and the hockey stick projection first.” Moore Stephens hosted a succession planning round table in partnership with Investec Wealth & Investment for owner

managed businesses based across the Midlands. The session looked in depth at how and when to sell a business, the different structures of sales from MBOs and Vendor Initiated Management Buyouts (VIMBOs) to trade sales, obtaining funding, along with tax implications to consider and where to invest funds when the sale has gone through. Paul added: “It can be emotional for business owners after they’ve sold a company which has been a massive part of their life. It can almost feel like a period of mourning. “There is a multitude of questions to consider ahead of the sales process and the session was a good opportunity for Moore Stephens and Investec to shed light on considerations owners need to address and options available for the future.”

Gill Yates, head of VAT at Burgis & Bullock, said: “Whilst VAT is based to a large degree on Directives issued by Brussels, it is actually enshrined into British Law. Whilst it is possible that VAT would be abolished should the UK vote to leave the EU on 23rd June, it is unlikely that would occur. This is not least because it raises a significant amount of tax for the UK Exchequer which would need to be replaced by another source. This in itself would be costly, and add further disruption to businesses at a time when they are likely to already be undergoing significant change. “What is much more likely, however, is that the UK would regain total control over rates of VAT and what goods and services were subject to VAT at all. It is theoretically possible that chocolate could be reclassified as an ‘essential food’ and the VAT rate slashed accordingly, although quite how this would sit alongside the new “sugar tax” is difficult to imagine” The conclusion reached was that VAT is unlikely to be axed should the UK vote for Brexit in June and that the VAT-Man (or woman) is here to stay for a good while longer.

Midlands Manufacturing apprentice on track for global achievement A Midlands manufacturing apprentice has set himself the ambitious goal to become the youngest ever Chartered Management Accountant in the world by the time he reaches the age of 22. Twenty-year-old Tom Meredith may have only joined Midlands based design engineering expert MarchantCain in December 2013 after dropping out of his A-Level qualifications, but already he has been appointed to the role of Finance and Purchasing Manager and has ambitious plans to complete his CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) training before he reaches the age of 22. In order to become the youngest ever Chartered Management Accountant in the world, it is understood that Tom needs to complete his training with at least three

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years’ experience working in an accountancy role for a professional business, something which he will have experienced with MarchantCain by the time he reaches his 22nd birthday. Director of MarchantCain, Pamela Cain, is in no doubt that Tom will reach his ambitious goal, and has been considerably impressed with his development since he joined the company as a quiet teenager three years ago. She said: “Tom’s contributions to MarchantCain have been invaluable and he’s a great example of the benefit that apprentices bring to the UK manufacturing sector. Within just six months of joining us Tom took on full responsibility of our bookkeeping, accounting and purchasing and has continued to develop his knowledge of such tasks since.”

Already Tom has cemented his role at MarchantCain, a business which recently expanded its operations to Germany. He was influential in his recent role overseeing the purchase and implementation of the company’s new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, and helping to aid adoption throughout the company. The project has enabled MarchantCain to strengthen its partnership with Jaguar Land Rover, and scale up production to accommodate increases in volume. Tom said: “I was never really what you would call a classroom learner. When I started A-levels I didn’t know what I wanted to do as a career and was desperate to get out into industry and experience what working life is really all about. MarchantCain has given me this life experience and fully supported my career

goals, and as a small company has given me opportunities that I would not have been granted elsewhere. I have found a career I really enjoy that I probably wouldn’t have had if I had just gone to university.”

Property

Stepnell starts on new Leicester HQ for my home move High-speed internet helps transform Stoneleigh Park Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire has undergone a dramatic connectivity transformation since management of the campus-wide network was taken over by WarwickNet back in August 2013. By using a mixture of technologies, a wide range of connectivity solutions have been made available to the 70 businesses on Stoneleigh Park: from superfast broadband up to 100 Mbit/s to gigabit leased lines. To date, WarwickNet has helped more than 75% of the organisations operating from the site to speed up their connections – a major part of the science park’s strategy to become a centre for rural sciences, sustainability, innovation and business. Colin Hooper, estates director at Stoneleigh Park, said: “Back in 2013, the park’s tenants were suffering from critically low broadband speeds. Following a competitive tender process, we appointed WarwickNet to supply a high-quality, cost-effective service and have been extremely impressed with the results. WarwickNet has listened to our customers and provided them with tailored solutions which suit each of their needs – allowing Stoneleigh Park to once again become an internationallyrenowned centre for agriculture, rural, business and science innovation.” Ben King, CEO at WarwickNet, said: “There are a huge variety of businesses operating from Stoneleigh – incorporating everything from the Association of Drainage Authority to the National Farmers’ Union. In order to provide every organisation with the capabilities they require we deployed fibre-to-cabinet, fibre-to-premises, subloop unbundling and vectoring. We’ve received extremely positive feedback from all of our customers and will continue to work with the remaining organisations to find the best solutions for their businesses.” WarwickNet is a national company specialising in supplying high-speed connectivity to struggling businesses on business and science parks.

Artist’s impression of My Home Move’s new headquarters, under construction at Grove Park, Leicester.

Construction specialist Stepnell has started work on a new national headquarters in Leicester for My Home Move, the UK’s leading provider of mover conveyancing services. Brackley Property Developments are developing the purpose-built offices at Grove Park, Enderby. The £6 million building, designed by Leicester-based architects Stephen George & Partners LLP, will create state-of-the-art offices for My Home Move’s professional support staff and conveyancing teams. The Nottingham office of construction company

Stepnell has been appointed to the £2.9 million construction contract to build the steel-framed new facility, creating 20,600 sq ft of flexible, modern office accommodation over three storeys. The new offices are set to be completed in November 2016. The purpose-built accommodation will enable My Home Move to bring all of its Leicester-based employees together on one site and accommodate its growing workforce; following continuing business success, the company recently announced plans to recruit over 100 new members of

staff during 2016. Last year, My Home Move helped over 50,000 people buy, sell or remortgage their homes. Designed and built to the highest energy efficiency standards, the new Grove Park building will achieve an A-rated Energy Performance Certificate. Doug Crawford, chief executive officer of My Home Move, said: “Over the past few years My Home Move has experienced incredible growth to become the UK’s leading conveyancing provider. This new development is just part of our journey towards revolutionising the way conveyancing can be accessed and delivered, as we strive to provide a service at the forefront of innovation.” Stephen Pedrick-Moyle, joint managing director, Brackley Property Developments, said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity of working closely with both My Home Move and Stepnell in the delivery of this prestigious new office building on the hugely successful Grove Park.” Stepnell operations and commercial manager Thomas Sewell said: “This impressive new office building will provide a superb working environment for My Home Move’s expanding team, enabling them to continue to provide the cuttingedge conveyancing services and exceptional customer care which have earned the company its reputation. We’re delighted to be bringing our own expertise in delivering high-performance buildings, built to the most exacting standards, to this exciting scheme.” The project will create training opportunities for the local community with Stepnell set to provide work experience placements on the development for construction students at Leicester College as well as work placements for local people organised through business charity Leicestershire Cares.

Ensuring your property sale goes smoothly Ashfords Independent Estate Agents is a family business established more than five years ago, covering all of Coventry and based in offices on New Union Street in the City Centre. The owners, husband and wife Sean and Cheryl Doyle, pride themselves on providing a professional personal service to all their customers, whether rentals or sales. A number of their new instructions come from referrals which highlights Ashford’s high level of customer service from instruction to completion. With accompanied viewings, feedback on all viewings within 24 hours and frequent property updates they keep you fully informed about how your property sale is progressing. Ashfords believe in offering a professional yet friendly service that is value for money. They place great emphasis on advertising to ensure your

property gets maximum exposure and, consequently, sells for the best possible price. Your property would be advertised on Rightmove, Zoopla, PrimeLocation, in the Coventry Telegraph and Coventry Observer, in the company’s branch window and on its website. In addition to this they are also offering a free enhanced marketing pack which includes a FREE energy performance certificate, floor plan and premium listing on Rightmove. Ashfords can also offer free independent financial advice and solicitor quotes if required. When the property

chain comes together they then progress your sale on a regular basis to ensure a smooth stress free completion in the shortest possible time. Ashfords pride themselves on making your home move as stress-free as possible by providing help every step of the way.

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Property

Strong first quarter at Property Agency

Drake Howard Property has had a busy start to 2016 and will need the full attention of Martyn Howard and new surveyor Marie Farrell, who joined the team in January, to service client business.

In December, following completion of purchase of the freehold office investment at Brandon Court, Binley, for a figure in the region of £5m, REI Plc has retained Drake Howard as managing agent.

Brandon Court has tenants in Yazaki, Saint Gobain, Safestyle Windows and Minitab, with Tri-Distribution added immediately preceeding the sale. Joint agents Drake Howard Property and Avison Young letting the last office unit to achieve full occupancy on the estate. Martyn Howard firmly believes good management over many years cemented the strong mix of tenants and excellent sale return on disposal of the investment. “To see the focus of our strategies come together in the disposal campaign is just great! It is equally rewarding for a purchaser to recognise the value added by our hands-on approach. We have been retained to continue in our role and further improve the asset.” A few weeks later, at the beginning of February, Quantum Imaging Ltd put pen to paper on a 5 year lease on 4,225 sq. ft. of remodelled ground floor office space at 2020 House Middlemarch. A successful outcome to a near a six figure outlay by owner Phocas Software, not to mention the agents project supervision and marketing endeavours.

“What a transformation of this space! It was difficult to convince prospective tenants of the potential, for what was being used as tired workbench / assembly space. However, Quantum were convinced of the vision and new toilets, break-out area, shower room and boardroom rearrangement created a brand new working environment.” In March, a new client placed properties in Coventry, Northampton and Daventry into our management portfolio. Simultaneously, the tenant of the 10,000 sq. ft. Northampton office building has been signed to a new 10 year lease. The principal tenant in Coventry offices has entered into a new 3 year lease and discussions are on-going with the 22,000 sq. ft. industrial unit occupier. April saw yet another client join the management fold and marketing campaigns for industrial units at Kineton and in Coventry, kicked into gear. Added to regular income generated from sales & lettings, rent review, rating, survey and dilapidations work, the practice is now faced with wonderful problems of investment in new software and staff to keep pace with growth.

Property investment market white hot

Demand for commercial property investments is extremely strong in 2016 with a surge of investors chasing each property which comes to the market. This is particularly the case in the secondary market, for lot sizes between £0.5m and £2.5m. Cash which is not earning on the money markets with base rate held at a historic low for such a long time has investors turning to ‘bricks & mortar’ at an uncertain time for stocks and shares. GDP is forecast to decrease in the coming year and the impact of the China economy slow down and Brexit effect is anchoring the FTSE. www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Investors seem to be quite prepared to take increased risk to acquire property as a consequence. High prices are paid irrespective of location and income security. The auction houses report 90% to 95% success rates in the sale room and nearly all private treaty sales end at ‘best bids’ in the market place. As an example, Drake Howard Property recently chased an industrial investment in a secondary location for a client. Let to three tenants of poorer financial status; secured on leases with no more than 2 years remaining and; slightly over-rented. The property went to best bids and our offer of £820,000 was topped by some margin. The successful purchaser paid significantly in excess of £900,000 to show a return of 7.2% after costs. Prime industrial yields in the Midlands are at 6.0% to 6.5% for secure income. At the subject property, the return will fall to 4.6% if a break clause is exercised under one of the leases later in the year and the asset will further suffer, if either of the two remaining tenant businesses falter. Prudence suggests investors should not abandon principles of good investment to such a degree. There are alternative avenues to securing property assets which will be stronger in the medium to long term. Drake Howard Property is able to explore these avenues with its retained clientelle.

Space Available To Let 1 Leofric Court, Binley • 960 – 2,135 sq ft • Self-contained office • Let as a whole or by floor

Progress Way, Binley • 3910 sq ft Workshop & Office • 450 sq ft Mezzanine • Secure Yard

7 & 8 Brook Business Park, Kineton • 3809 sq ft & 4855 sq ft Warehouse/Industrial Units • Top Specification Units • Close J12 & Jaguar at Gaydon

The cloud brings

As Paul Blore welcomes C&W in Business to the Netmetix office, in Coventry, he smiles but it’s through a grimace of pain. “I’ve hurt my back,” he says. “Four of our neighbours’ cows escaped over the weekend and I was helping to retrieve them. One got stuck and I pulled my back trying to pull it free.” It’s not your standard interview pre-amble but while Blore has built a successful company in the very technical world of IT, he makes sure, for reasons that will be explained later, he lives a full and active life away from work. If that means catching cattle for his neighbours, he’s more than willing to muck in.

Despite that, clients of Netmetix are left in no doubt just how seriously the firm takes its day-to-day business. It’s a company built on service and the highest technical standards and that has seen it enjoy a 100 per cent customer retention rate since it built its first cloud platform five years ago. “We are not a sales company,” he said. “All of our work comes from referrals and we see the Chamber as a great way to meet other businesses. “We have, to date, been quite a closely-kept secret. We are good at what we do, very technically competent and we don’t lose customers for that reason. Every customer who came onto our cloud platform from five years ago is still with us.

“We’ve got a great team of people working for us and we have a clear strategy for where we want to go. All of our technical team have it written into their contract that they go through a quarterly certification exam process. “We specify external exams that they need to take. They do the training in their own time, we pay for the exam and if they pass they get bonuses, and if they don’t we take money off them – so it really focuses the mind. Thankfully, we’ve never had to do that but it does ensure that our technical team are right at the top of their game because we live or die by our technical competence. “Our business comes from word of mouth and providing a great service is how we get those recommendations.

“All of our agreements with clients are monthly and they have 30 days’ notice to quit. We want customers to stay with us because they want to, not because they are tied into a longer contract. That ensures we stay on top of our game. “Service underpins everything we do and that’s the reason for our 100 per cent retention rate.” Netmetix began life 15 years ago as a CAD solutions provider – largely to the construction industry. But as time went by, the firm found it was providing more and more IT services – from connecting PCs to installing servers. In 2007, the CAD side of the business was sold and the company decided to focus purely on the networking and infrastructure side. “It was all going okay and 2008 was good,” said Paul. “We pretty much doubled that side of the business. The recession then came along and knocked everything pretty flat and it stayed that way for a couple of years. “On the horizon, people had started to talk about the cloud. We started crystal ball gazing because at that time our main business was with onpremise servers, storage and support and we figured that if the cloud really did take off, as everyone was suggesting, we wouldn’t have a business model. “So we built our first cloud platform about five years ago and got some clients on board with that. “We built it in an innovative way so that we were providing it for a fixed fee, per user, per month – all the software, licensing, support, backups, email, anti-virus and infrastructure was included. “That was going well and we built a second generation platform a couple of years later and then about 18 months ago we moved onto our third

“We have, to date, been quite a closely-kept secret. We are good at what we do, very technically competent and we don’t lose customers for that reason. Every customer who came onto our cloud platform from five years ago is still with us.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Profile: Paul Blore

a silver lining generation which uses Microsoft’s Global Azure platform. We are now a leading partner with Microsoft on providing those cloud services. “We don’t really have a particular sector that we concentrate on. We have a good spread in professional services – solicitors, accountants, recruitment agencies, that type of thing. “There are a fair few manufacturing companies too so it’s a pretty broad spread. What we typically do now is migrate entire infrastructures into the cloud so if a company has servers, PCs and storage, we are moving all of that across.” Despite the growth, Blore still sees plenty of potential for expanding the customer base as more firms wake up to the benefits of the cloud – and have some of their fears allayed. “We are still in the early days of cloud adoption,” he said. “Security is still at the forefront of most people’s minds when it comes to the cloud. As a consequence of that, we have become specialists in security too because the first question people ask is: ‘is my data safe?’ “People still want to touch and feel a product so the first thing we have to address are security concerns. “They often think that their data is safer in a physical server where the opposite is actually true. Microsoft is spending tens of millions of pounds on security for the cloud – how many SMEs could get anywhere near that? “It’s still a Windows server – it’s just connected on the internet and Microsoft has got the highest level of security sitting in front of it where most SMEs will have a £200 to £300 firewall as their only protection.” And because it’s cloud computing, there are no geographical boundaries to growth.

“Our clients tend to be in the Midlands region,” Paul said, “but we do have customers all over and cloud computing opens that up – it really doesn’t matter where they are – they could be in Sydney. “Fundamentally, all you need is a reliable connection and a device to access all of your data.” So what’s the story in this region? “Connectivity in Coventry and Warwickshire is patchy,” he said. “It tends to be not so good in places where you’d expect it to be of a high standard where there are lots of businesses. Bayton Road, for example, is a bit of a black spot. “That doesn’t rule our services out there. We just need good connectivity – it doesn’t necessarily need to be fast. A good ADSL connection would be fine for a 50-user company, we just need to know it’s reliable. We’ve even had situations with companies where we’ve used 4G. “If there’s fibre nearby, you take it, of course you do – it’s a no brainer – but we don’t need big bandwidth, we just need it to be stable.” The potential for growth hasn’t stopped Paul, who started his career as an apprentice with Plessey in Beeston, making sure he has a life outside work – including a passion for classic cars and travel. He moved over to work for a company in Coventry just before the turn of the century and when that was bought out, he launched a business with two fellow directors. And it was during that time that he was dealt two life-changing blows that have helped shape the subsequent 15 years. “In 2000, I was diagnosed with cancer and then my co-directors did a runner! It all got a bit messy,” he said.

“When I’d just completed my last dose of chemo, we came back after Christmas ready to go with the business again, there was a major issue with credit card fraud at one of our customers leaving us with a £40,000 debt– that was the final nail in the coffin for the firm. “We paid everybody off, wound it up and it gave me the opportunity to go my own way and set Netmetix up. “We started trading from February 2001 and we are still here! They say

About Paul Blore Date of birth: Birthplace: Married: Children: Hobbies:

Favourite book:

“People often think that their data is safer in a physical server where the opposite is actually true. Microsoft is spending tens of millions of pounds on security for the cloud – how many SMEs could get anywhere near that?”

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger. Unless you’ve been through something like that, it’s very easy to immerse yourself in the business. “But you can’t lose sight of what it’s all about. We are very serious about what we do but it can’t be at the cost of everything else. You need to have a life outside of the business. “And everything’s fine from a health point of view now, so life is good… apart from my back.”

Favourite film: Last holiday: Car: Favourite gadget:

13/07/1961 Nottingham Yes, 26 years. Yes, one daughter, Charlotte. Classic Cars, Horse Riding, Clay Pigeon Shooting Haynes P-51 Mustang Workshop Manual “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy Classic Car Tour to Tuscany Range Rover iPad 21

Policy

Keeping a firm eye on the figures

Event highlights divided opinions on Brexit much spin and hype around the Brexit debate so we thought it would be good for people to hear first-hand from those involved in the issue, but to also be presented with some hard economic facts. “It was a lively debate – which could have run on for hours longer! It is clearly a major decision we are being asked to make on June 23, and hopefully the session brought some clarity to those who attended.” Louise Bennett, chief executive of the Chamber, said business – like the general public – was still divided on the issue. She said: “The Chambers have stayed neutral because of all the conflicting views and evidence that is out there at the moment, but what we are very keen to do is to help provide business with information and access to decision makers so that they can be provided with the facts which will allow them to make an informed decision on June 23.”

Unemployment remained flat across Coventry and Warwickshire in the month to March – and business leaders say they are keeping a firm eye on the figures.

Between February and March there was a small drop in the claimant count in Coventry from 4,420 to 4,365, with a slight rise in Warwickshire from 3,460 to 3,480. Louise Bennett, the chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “We saw a rise in unemployment across Coventry and Warwickshire in the past two months so to see a slight fall – albeit a very small one – across the region has hopefully addressed the slide. “Nationally, unemployment has risen in the quarter to February so whatever figures you go by, it’s clear that we all have to keep a firm watch on the trend in the jobs market because we can no longer expect to see unemployment falling at the rate it has been. “As part of our Go For Growth campaign, we have identified that there are barriers to business growth and we must do everything we can to remove those and help companies to expand. “In this area, the city and the county have held up strongly in the face of lots of global challenges but we must make sure that we continue to talk to business to ensure they feel they have what they need to be able to grow. “Our latest Quarterly Economic Survey showed that there is still confidence among businesses across the region – in both the service and manufacturing sector – and that many are looking to grow their staffing levels. “That’s positive to see but as the last few months’ unemployment figures show, there is absolutely no room for complacency. “It’s also clear from what we hear from businesses locally and nationally, through the work we undertake with the British Chambers of Commerce, that a skills shortage is hampering businesses’ productivity. “Training and development – as well as equipping young people with the skills they need through education – are, therefore, vital to achieving stronger growth.”

Front (from left): Louise Bennett (Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce), Simon Richards, Sean Farnell (Burgiss & Bullock), Chris White MP. Back (from left), Tony Homewood, Ian O’Donnell (FSB), Professor Glauco De Vita, Ben Wesson

The “stayers” just had it over the “leavers” at a major EU debate held in Leamington Spa. About 100 members of the public and businesses attended the event at the Leamington Town Hall to hear the two sides of the Brexit debate – and the vote went the way of remaining in the EU. The session was organised by accountants Burgis & Bullock and sponsored by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce and the FSB.

Warwick and Leamington MP Chris White was joined by businessman Ian Baxter and Labour’s Ben Wesson to argue the case for remaining within the EU, while UKIP MEP James Carver, had campaigners Simon Richards and Tony Homewood putting forward the argument to vote to leave on June 23rd. The economic scene had been set by Glauco De Vita , a Professor of International Business Economics at Coventry University. Sean Farnell, of Burgis & Bullock, chaired the debate, and said: “There has been so

On the up

She said: “With the recession still fresh in the memory and a range of pressures on business across our patch, it’s positive news that the economy continues to grow. “Of course, we all want to see stronger growth – particularly in the construction and manufacturing sectors as, once again, it’s the service sector that is proving to be more robust nationally. “That’s precisely why we launched a Go For Growth campaign at the start of the year. We could see from what businesses are telling us both in surveys and anecdotally that there is potential for growth but also pressures on them that could stand in the way of that.

The latest economic growth figures are aligned with the mood of many firms across Coventry and Warwickshire, according to business leaders. GDP grew in the first quarter of 2016 by 0.4 per cent – in line with many forecasts, but slightly down on the 0.6 per cent growth in the final quarter of 2015. Louise Bennett, the chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, gave a cautious welcome to the figures.

“We have seen with the unemployment figures for this region at the start of this year that they have been quite mixed and that helps us to form a bigger picture of what is happening in our economy. “That is why news of the Jaguar Land Rover expansion is so vital to this area but we also need to see new development for our small and medium sized who tell us they want to expand but can’t find the appropriate space. “There are also a whole host of issues from skills to infrastructure that are impacting on our growth and it’s vital that these are addressed to help businesses to achieve their ambitions for expansion.”

Businesses are cautiously optimistic Businesses in Coventry and Warwickshire are still cautiously optimistic going into the second quarter of the year – despite a range of pressures. The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce has just completed its first Quarterly Economic Survey of 2016 – three months after launching its Go For Growth campaign at the end of 2015. The Chamber focused its first two months of the campaign on export trade and both service and manufacturing sectors in the region are reporting increases in overseas trade in the first quarter of 2016. More than 70 per cent of manufacturers said exports were up compared with 53 per cent in the final quarter of last year. In

the service sector, 30 per cent of firms trading overseas saw a rise in sales compared with 23 per cent in the final quarter of 2015. A quarter of companies in the service sector say overseas orders for the next three months are up – compared to 27 per cent in the last quarter – and in manufacturing, 53 per cent are reporting an increase in overseas orders for the next three months compared to 50 per cent three months ago. Domestically, the picture is slightly more mixed – with 55 per cent of manufacturers seeing an increase in orders for the next three months compared to 41 per cent in the last quarter while 54 per cent of service sector businesses have seen an increase compared to 57 per cent at the final quarter of 2015.

Despite those figures, it’s the service sector that remains most likely to recruit – with 46 per cent of businesses saying they will increase their workforce compared to 33 per cent three months ago. In manufacturing, just over a third of companies will be looking to increase their headcount – down on the 42 per cent from the final quarter of 2015. Overall, 73 per cent of companies across Coventry and Warwickshire are expecting turnover to go up over the next 12 months – that’s down slightly on the 76 per cent from three months ago. Louise Bennett, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “Looking at the survey, there is still a general sense of optimism but the statistics are quite mixed and it’s certainly right that we should keep a

cautious eye on what is happening domestically and internationally. “It was very pleasing to see so many companies who export from this region reporting an increase in sales in the first quarter of the year and we will continue to push the message of how important trading overseas is for business. “Everything from the debate around the EU through to issues with recruiting staff are putting pressure on business and, as we identified when we launched Go For Growth, could all impact on companies’ plans for expansion. “Since the launch of the campaign, we have seen companies coming forward and feeding in issues that could stifle their growth and certainly digital infrastructure and having the right property to grow into have been highlighted.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Skills

Apprentices meet government apprenticeship adviser at CBI event

Apprentices who train with Warwickshire College Group met Nadhim Zahawi MP, Apprenticeships Adviser to the Prime Minister, at a CBI West Midlands event in the run up to National Apprenticeship Week in March. More than 80 business leaders attended the CBI West Midlands Apprenticeship Reform event which was hosted at Royal Leamington Spa College on Friday 4 March, where Mr Zahawi was the keynote speaker along with Pippa Morgan, the CBI’s Head of Education and Skills. Warwickshire College

Group Principal and CEO Angela Joyce also spoke at the event, showcasing the college group’s achievement in delivering apprenticeships - over 2000 apprentices train with the college every year. Five apprentices were invited to meet Mr Zahawi, also a local MP for Stratfordon-Avon, before he spoke at the event. They were Sofi Buzzard, a higher apprentice in engineering at Jaguar Land Rover, Emily MacFadyen, Digital and Social Media apprentice at Solo Trading, Stratford and three apprentices from Warwickshire College Group - Mark Treadwell, Social Media Apprentice, Joe Fletcher, Accounting Apprentice and Ryan Ward, Finance Apprentice. Mr Zahawi said, ““The apprentices I met at Warwickshire College Group were inspirational examples of what young people can do when given a chance.

It’s always fascinating to speak to apprentices themselves to hear directly about the opportunity they have and how they’re getting on. “Apprenticeships are such a brilliant pathway to so many amazing careers, whether you’re thinking about marketing, automotive design, law, software design or any one of the hundreds of other options. I’d urge young people to fully consider what the best option is for them, and whether an apprenticeship might be the best route to go.” Mark Treadwell, 20, from Stratford said, “It was really good to meet Mr Zahawi - he asked about my apprenticeship and how long I’d been at doing it so I explained I’ve been here for three years as I completed a Level 2 apprenticeship in Marketing before moving on to the Level 3 apprenticeship in Social Media. I think apprenticeships are a great route into the workplace - you get so much training and experience, and you’re getting paid at the same time.” Following his meeting with the apprenticeships, Mr Zahawi gave a speech to the CBI members followed by a Question and Answer session.

College partners with BT Fleet on unique apprenticeship scheme Warwickshire College Group has expanded its apprenticeship provision by successfully securing the training provider contract for BT Fleet motor vehicle apprentices. BT Fleet is the specialist fleet management arm of the BT Group and manages more than 75,000 vehicles for high profile clients including the AA, National Grid and Thames Water as well as the Openreach fleet. The 34 BT Fleet apprentices with Warwickshire College Group are all studying on an apprenticeship framework specifically designed for the company. Unlike many other apprenticeships in the industry, BT Fleet motor vehicle apprentices receive the technical training required to maintain,

service and repair not just cars, but also commercial vehicles, on the three and a half year training programme. The apprentices - 20 Level 2 Intermediate and 14 Level 3 Advanced - are based at BT Fleet dealerships across the UK but travel to study at Warwick Trident College on a block release programme. While they are studying, they stay at the student accommodation at Moreton Morrell College giving them a ‘university campus’ experience unique to this apprenticeship. Mark Wolfe, Director of Garage Services UK said, "Qualified technicians are the heart of our company and by investing in training apprentices we can ensure we have a supply

of qualified people for our future workforce.” Peter Husband, Group Vice Principal Apprenticeships and Innovation at Warwickshire College Group said, “We’re absolutely delighted to be chosen as BT Fleet’s training provider for their bespoke motor vehicle apprenticeship scheme. At Warwick Trident College the apprentices have superb facilities and high-quality teaching, and the fact that we can offer the apprentices the ‘campus life’ at Moreton Morrell means they have a unique experience while they are on block release with us.” The BT Fleet apprenticeship scheme is now open for applications. For more information go to www.btplc.com/careercentre.

Organisation will help young people A nationwide organisation set up to inspire and motivate young people about their career choices has been on a fact-finding mission to Coventry and Warwickshire. The Careers & Enterprise Company, a government funded organisation, has been launched to prepare young people for the world of work by improving the consistency and quality of careers and enterprise provisions in schools and colleges. The organisation is providing funding to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) to appoint Enterprise Coordinators – full-time employees who will work with schools and colleges in each region, providing a simple overview of local employers and career and enterprise services. They will be supported by Enterprise Advisers – local senior business volunteers who are linked with a school or college to help build employer engagement and careers and enterprise plans. The Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) is working www.cw-chamber.co.uk

with 20 schools and colleges across the area to encourage businesses from the private and public sector to provide inspiration about the opportunities available post-education. Claudia Harris, Jan Pinkerton, Jo Sandford and Julia Armstrong from The Careers & Enterprise Company along with Chris Brockhurst from the Department for Education visited Stratford upon Avon School in Alcester Road, Stratford, to meet head teacher Neil Wallace and careers manager David Wallace to talk about their careers provision. They then travelled to the Coventry and Warwickshire Growth Hub in Cheylesmore, Coventry, to meet its managing director Craig Humphrey and Careers England chief executive Steve Stewart to discuss their work and national developments.

David Wallace from Stratford upon Avon School said careers and enterprise spirit was evident in projects, events and competitions organised for years seven to 13. Rachael Stewart, skills executive at the CWLEP, said encouraging greater partnership between schools, colleges and businesses was vital in improving careers provision in the area.

Seeking out the next generation Local technology business The Emerald Group launched their first venture to prepare our children to run the businesses of the future. Tiny Techs is an initiative aimed at getting young children between the age of four and seven-years-old excited by technology and learning basic problem solving. In the first session, the children were introduced to microcontrollers, which are small, single circuit computers. By building simple robots they learnt how microcontrollers can co-ordinate motors in order to create movement. By the end of the session they had made their robots dance using a basic computer program. In the next session, Emerald hope to move onto showing how microcontrollers can control light and sound, too. Tiny Techs was set up by The Emerald Group CEO inspired by her own daughter and her nieces and nephews. Sarah Windrum said: “There are a lot of initiatives focused on teaching children to code but I believe the most important skill our children can learn for the future is how to identify problems and how to use technology to build solutions. “By building a robot and programming it to dance, the children saw how building anything always begins as raw material and goes through several cycles before it becomes a finished article. Coding was certainly a part of the building process but not the main focus.” Currently funded and run by volunteers from The Emerald Group, the business are keen to encourage more young people to take up a career in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) by capturing their attention and imagination. Emerald also hope it will enable the accompanying parents to identify their own transferable skills to help them find new careers in STEM roles. The demand is there to see. “Our first session was fully booked with no advertising,” said Simon Wilks, Emerald’s Technical Director or ‘RobotMan’ as he is now known. “We’d love to see it grow and give more children the opportunity to experiment with building technology.” Sarah Windrum said: “We have so many ideas from learning more advanced programs to using application processors like the popular Raspberry Pi. Tiny Techs is about a way of thinking to equip children for the future. We also would love to expand our age range. But to do all this, we need more support and more funding.” If you would like to help with this initiative, please contact Sarah Windrum at The Emerald Group: 01926 452 462

Area Focus: Coventry

State-ofthe-art line installed

Advice centre opens

Global equipment solutions provider Terex Construction has installed an innovative new site dumper production line at its UK manufacturing facility in Coventry. Featuring eleven stations, the recently commissioned line is already helping the team exceed quality and customer delivery targets. The bespoke production line has been specially developed by Terex as part of an ongoing commitment to continuous operational improvement. It provides real-time awareness and visibility of unit progress through the line via visual and audio signals, offering a systematic procedure to further improve the production process. More efficient space and height optimisation means the system fills a 40% smaller footprint compared to the previous line, despite boasting a significantly higher unit production capacity. Neal Nowick, General Manager at Terex Construction’s Coventry facility, said: “Combining our experience of the wider automotive supply chain and the values of high performance, partnership, planning and operational excellence – outlined within the Terex Business System (TBS) internal framework - we have been able to develop a completely bespoke production line for the manufacture of site dumper units. “Alongside enabling us to reduce production time, minimise unit defects and deliver an even higher quality end product, as a mixed model line we are now able to manage production to meet the exacting build needs of our customers in a more efficient manner. Developed to provide real time material, production and information synchronisation, the new line provides a complete view of the production process, allowing us to maximise factory efficiencies.” In addition to the new site dumper production line, Terex Construction has also announced an even stricter quality standard to ensure all units leave the facility in site-ready condition.

A new advice centre to provide help and support for people wanting to find information about jobs, training or education has been launched in Coventry thanks to government funding. SThe City College Coventry Advice Centre in Swanswell Street has been officially opened after receiving £80,000 funding from the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) as part of the Growth Deal project. Members of the CWLEP joined tutors and students at the launch of the new hub which

is open between Monday to Friday, 9.30am-5pm, and 6.30pm every Wednesday. The funding has created a new entrance off Swanswell Street leading to a reception and assessment area which links to a flexible training room for individual learning and groups of up to 20. The free service is available to everyone including City College Coventry students and residents in nearby Hillfields and surrounding areas. City College Coventry staff will give advice on writing CVs, completing job application

forms and interview preparation as well as provide information on the training and educational courses available to improve employability and support learners to improve their English, maths or ICT skills. The centre will also provide a link between job-seekers and advertised vacancies. This is among an overall £89.4 million Growth Deal package for Coventry and Warwickshire announced by the government and is part of the CWLEP’s priorities to grow talent within the area. Jonathan Browning, chairman of the CWLEP, said improving the skills of people of all ages was vital to the long-term economic prosperity of the area. “The funding from the Growth Deal has led to the opening of this great new resource which will benefit the unemployed as well as employed people who are considering changing careers or want to improve their career prospects by finding out more about training and education courses,” he said. Jo Lawrence, Assistant Principal from City College Coventry, said: “This investment gives us the ability to literally open our doors to more people, at more times, for more essential services. “My hope is that local residents drop in for a few minutes and begin a journey that can transform their future employability. Whether that’s developing basic skills or maximising an existing talent, we’re here for all stages of the journey.”

University’s industry link up spawns cyber security spin-out Cyber security specialists at Coventry University in partnership with industry counterparts have created a new commercial venture to tackle virtual threats in the computer connected Smart Cities of the 21st century. The University and Crossword Cybersecurity Plc – an ISDX listed tech transfer company – joined forces last year to investigate early warning systems for cyberspace through ‘target-centric network monitoring.’ As a result of this partnership a new company called CyberOwl Ltd has now been created to test and develop cyber threat alert raising for commercial use. Coventry University has assigned intellectual property rights to CyberOwl to carry out this work and Mercia Fund Management has provided seed funding. Using ‘Bayesian analytics’ to attribute threat levels and to assess the probability and risk of certain types of attack, CyberOwl’s work will focus on creating an

early warning system to detect breaches such as insider attacks and to develop appropriate counter attacks and evasion techniques. This work is based on research shortlisted for the Lloyd's Science of Risk Prize 2015 under the 'Cyber Risk' category. Dr Siraj Ahmed Shaikh, Reader in Cyber Security at Coventry University and Director of CyberOwl, said: “It is vital that leading edge British cyber security research has real world impact and the work we’re doing here is directly applicable to the so called Internet of Things of networked applications and devices that we rely on in our increasingly connected communities. “Our new venture with Crossword will help ensure that modern digital systems can take advantage of major advances in the very large scale network monitoring approaches that we have pioneered at Coventry University.” Tom Ilube, Crossword’s CEO, said: “We are delighted to be working with Coventry

University and Mercia Fund Management on CyberOwl. Target centric network monitoring addresses emerging cyber security challenges in the projected £275billion Smart Cities sector and CyberOwl will take this breakthrough research to market.”

New ‘serious’ computer game brings benefits to children with ADHD Coventry University’s internationally renowned Serious Games Institute has been working with researchers in Belgium and the Netherlands on a new ‘treatment’ to help children with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and results of the research trial have shown a significant improvement in children’s behaviour. The treatment comes in the form f an Internet based game, called ‘Plan-It Commander’ which the research

showed helps players develop skills to cope with daily life challenges, in particular, time management, organisation and social skills. Testing of the game involved 170 children, mostly boys, aged between eight and twelve years old. Parents and teachers of the children were asked to fill in questionnaires about the children’s behaviour, their capacity to concentrate on tasks, self-control and other factors, before and after ten weeks of playing the game.

The results showed that the children with ADHD who played Plan-It Commander for ten weeks, around three times a week, alongside their usual treatment, was found to have significantly improved behaviour in the real world as reported by parents and teachers. Pamela Kato, Professor of Serious Games at Coventry and co-author of the study, explained: “We were happy that the game proved to be helpful to young children with ADHD in addition to their

current clinical treatment. While having fun playing the game, the research showed that they were improving daily life skills known to be important at school and also in their social lives.” Lead author of the research, Kim Bul, joined the Serious Games Institute at the start of April this year, having previously been at the Yulius Academy (scientific department of Yulius Mental Health Care) and University of Applied Sciences in Rotterdam.

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Area Focus: Coventry

Multimillion pound design centre to bolster UK innovation in transport A new multimillion pound centre of design excellence to support UK innovation in the transport industry and boost efforts to bridge a shortfall in essential creative skills will be opening at Coventry University in 2017. The announcement of the National Transport Design Centre (NTDC) comes as a new report from the Automotive Council UK identified a need for improved education provision for the vehicle design sector to meet urgent demand for creative roles such as modellers. The NTDC – whose construction has already started on Coventry University’s Technology Park – is being funded through the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and the government’s multimillion pound Local Growth Deal, with an initial £7 million contribution. Features of the NTDC, which forms a key facility for the University’s existing Centre for Mobility and Transport, include:

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• a six metre interactive power wall which allows users to explore detailed design and engineering concepts in virtual reality; • advanced clay milling facilities for creating physical models of vehicles; • a projection mapping system which can cast digital images onto 3D objects below, helping designers to assess how multiple options would appear on fullscale models. The centre is set to address many of the Automotive Council report’s recommendations, with key areas of focus including undergraduate and postgraduate education in transport design, research projects in collaboration with industry, and support for the UK’s high-value manufacturing sector and its supply chain to improve design capability. David Wright, director of strategic initiatives at Coventry University, said: “In a global transport industry that is increasingly seeing cost-saving

engineering collaborations between competitors, design remains one of the most important ways manufacturers can make themselves stand out. “Britain, and indeed Coventry as a city, has always been a leader in this field, but what is clear from the Automotive Council’s latest report is that creative skills like design and modelling will soon be in short supply if an ageing workforce retires without capable graduates and trainees coming through. “Our aim with the National Transport Design Centre is to meet this demand for specialised skills, building on Coventry University’s existing expertise in transport

design with a range of new courses and research programmes.” Jonathan Browning, chairman of the Coventry and Warwickshire LEP, said: “ The creation of the National Transport Design Centre, funded by the Local Growth Deal, brings advantages in many aspects. “It underlines Coventry and Warwickshire’s place at the forefront of cutting-edge transport research and development and design, and is another example of the area’s world class ability to combine creative and technical skills to stimulate further investment in the future of our economy.”

Area Focus: Coventry

City prepares for festival

MTV crashes Coventry MTV UK has announced that Sigala and Fleur East will join Chase & Status, Kaiser Chiefs and Tom Odell on Day One of MTV Crashes Coventry at the Ricoh Arena. Get ready for stadium-shaking performances from these incredible acts as they take to the stage on May 27th. Hotly-tipped Sigala has already had a Number One single with ‘Easy Love’ while follow up ‘Sweet Lovin’ charted at Number Three and kept its place in the UK singles chart for over two months. Sigala said: “This is wicked, I can’t wait to crash Coventry! There is already a great line up, so I’m really excited to get up there - it’s going to be a mad one!” After her X-Factor experience, Fleur released her own monster hit ’Sax’ which soared into the Top Three of the UK singles chart and stayed in the Top Ten for seven weeks. 2016 is all about her de-but album ‘Love, Sax and Flashbacks’, an album packed with dance-floor ready crowd favourites which are sure to get the party started in Coventry. Fleur East said: “Come on Coventry, let’s do this! I can’t wait to get out there for my first MTV Crashes, it’s going to be great!” MTV Crashes Coventry will be broadcast on MTV’s flagship UK music TV channels, shown in more than 35 countries. For further information on the event, head to www.mtv.co.uk/mtv-crashescoventry with tickets on sale now at www.ricoharena.com. Individual day tickets are priced at £10 and combined two-day tickets are now on sale through the link above. MTV Crashes Coventry is sponsored by Emerge Energy drinks.

Laura McMillan (front, centre) with a range of artists and performers from the city

Coventry’s diverse cultural scene is set to be given its biggest ever showcase at this year’s Coventry Godiva Festival. As part of the bid for UK City of Culture in 2021, one of the festival tents will be dedicated to Coventry’s art and culture on Sunday, July 3, with a host of performances throughout the day in order to give festival goers a flavour of the outstanding talent the city has to offer.

And local artists, groups and performers are being urged to put themselves forward to be part of the day. The team behind the bid are in the process of recruiting professional producers to formulate the ‘Coventry’s Got Culture’ event and they want the programme to be filled with a mix of performing artists who will breathe life into the tent throughout the day.

As well as performers, the bid team also want to involve artists who will help to ‘dress’ the tent and turn it into a live work of art. It’s the first major public event staged by the team behind the City of Culture bid since the city decided to enter the competition. Laura McMillan, City of Culture Trust manager, said: “The time is right to really take the bid to a place that brings the whole of Coventry together – and the Godiva Festival is definitely the right place to do that.” A form is available from the City of Culture website that will allow artists to detail what they would bring to the festival and that would be followed by a meeting with the producers for the event. The deadline for proposals is Monday, 9 May at 9am. The application form and further information can be downloaded from www.coventry2021.co.uk. Coventry City Council, The University of Warwick, and Coventry University are Principal Partners of the bid and are providing significant support. The Ricoh Arena is main bid sponsor while Jaguar Land Rover was the first bid event sponsor to be announced.

The Godiva Festival takes place from Friday, July 1, to Sunday, July 3.

Huge boost for culture bid Coventry’s bid to become the UK City of Culture in 2021 has been given a “massive boost” with the announcement that the Ricoh Arena is to be the official Bid Sponsor. Wasps and the Ricoh Arena have agreed a significant financial investment to back the city’s bid right through until the end of 2017 when the successful host city will be announced. The agreement will see the Ricoh Arena supporting the bid in a number of ways – on top of the major financial backing – including hosting dedicated events and helping to promote the bid to visitors at key dates including concerts, the MTV Crashes Coventry weekend and the Mela Coventry. If the city is to be successful in winning the bid, it could bring an economic uplift of around £80 million-£150 million in the leadup to and during the year. David Burbidge, the Chairman of Coventry City of Culture Trust, said the backing of Wasps and the Ricoh Arena is a key part of the campaign. “This is fantastic news for the UK City of Culture bid but also for the city,” he said. “The Ricoh Arena is a national and international venue which draws a wide range of artists and performers and also attracts audiences from across the UK and beyond.

ensure we deliver the best possible bid for Coventry. “We have been bowled over by the level of support shown by the people of Coventry with around 80 per cent backing our bid, so to have influential companies such as Wasps also lining up behind us is a massive boost. “We are looking forward to working with the team at the Ricoh Arena as we formulate our bid submission.” David Armstrong, Group Chief Executive of Wasps which owns the Ricoh Arena, said: “We attended an event staged by the Coventry City of Culture Trust team in the city centre and were really impressed with what we saw and heard. “The City of Culture is a fantastic opportunity for Coventry to highlight what it has to offer and also its enormous potential, and so too for the Ricoh Arena. This is another big step in the development of our strategy where we aim to extend our reach across the whole community and be the venue of choice for music, entertainment and cultural events in the Midlands.

“We are relative newcomers to Coventry and maybe have the advantage of seeing the city with fresh eyes and we have genuinely been impressed with the ambition and positivity of everyone we have encountered. “Coventry has certainly embraced us and our strategy of bringing exciting new events to the city, and just in the past few weeks we have been able to announce a wide variety of music events including Bruce Springsteen, Rihanna, MTV Crashes Coventry, Mela Coventry and Jess Glynne, all of which fit into that bracket. “Just bidding for UK City of Culture will allow the city to highlight its cultural energy and diversity – but we want Coventry to win with the Ricoh Arena at the heart of the bid and are glad we can help in that quest.” Coventry’s bid will be submitted to the Departure for Culture, Media & Sport in 2017, which is likely to shortlist up to four top cities. Coventry would discover whether it has been successful in late 2017 in an announcement made as part of Hull’s year as only the second UK City of Culture.

“Its support as our main Bid Sponsor is a massive boost and will help us reach that audience and underline what the city has to offer and why we think we should become UK City of Culture in 2021. “Not only will that be a huge practical help, but the backing of Wasps and the Ricoh Arena emphasises to the city and other key players nationally that we have a highly creditable bid which has widespread backing and support. “But this is just the beginning of our fundraising efforts – we need as many businesses as possible to come on board to

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Area Focus: Coventry

Godiva Gathers region’s artists and leaders to back City of Culture bid

Stuart Croft (University of Warwick), Faye Abbott (Coventry City Council), David Burbidge (Coventry City of Culture Trust), Laura McMillan (Coventry City of Culture Trust), Ian Dunn (Coventry University).

Imagineer’s 20ft tall mechanical Godiva symbolically welcomed the region’s business and civic leaders to a special event at the University of Warwick’s Warwick Business School. Guests were treated to performances from artists and groups from across the city that demonstrated some of the strengths of Coventry’s ambition to win the bid to be the City of Culture for 2021. The event, designed by Vortex Creates, also included performances from The Chinese Orchestra, Ruder than U, Celtic Feet and Iain Lauchlan. Coventry City Council, The University of Warwick, and Coventry University are Principal Partners of the bid and are providing significant support including the hosting of the event to build further business engagement in the bid.

David Burbidge, Chairman of the Coventry City of Culture Trust thanked the City Council, The University of Warwick and Coventry University for their agreement to become Principal Partners and said: “There is a great feeling developing in the city regarding our bid for City of Culture. People are beginning to see the very positive difference it can make to Coventry. “This gathering comes hot on the heels of the announcement that the Ricoh Arena will be the official Bid Sponsor in the run-up to 2021 and I know that that generosity will also encourage more companies to support the bid. “It’s vital that our city gets as much financial and other support for the bid as possible and this event was designed to let everyone know how they can come on board and help.

“There are opportunities for smaller companies to support us financially by the way we are structuring the sponsorship packages as well as the more substantial backing such as that which we have seen from the Ricoh Arena. “We were very grateful to Warwick Business School at the University of Warwick for hosting this event and for giving us the platform to deliver this message to many key figures from this region.” University of Warwick Vice-Chancellor Professor Stuart Croft VC said: “The City Council and both of our city’s universities were very quick to respond to the call to support this powerful bid to make Coventry the UK city of Culture for 2021 by serving as Principal Partners of the bid. “Both myself and Coventry’s ViceChancellor John Latham are already very aware of just how much culture and creativity is packed into Coventry, and this bid gives us an ideal opportunity to help our city to showcase that to the rest of the world.” Professor Jonothan Neelands from Warwick Business School added: “The City of Culture competition gives us the chance to bring together local government, the business community and the Universities to support the people of Coventry in building a more prosperous, vibrant and attractive city in which to live, work and study. This is a great opportunity to build lasting partnerships and to dream big for Coventry’s future.” For more information on how to back Coventry’s bid for UK City of Culture, email Michael Mogan at michael.mogan@coventry2021.co.uk

Celebrity support for sporting event Major sports stars and celebrities have signed up to support a charity event organised by a Coventry firm to raise money for injured soldiers and their families. The star-studded golf day and gala dinner will take place at Staverton Park De Vere near Daventry on Thursday 14 July. Guests will include snooker world champion Stuart Bingham, sports promoter Barry Hearn, EastEnders actor Jake Wood who plays Max Branning and a host of professional darts players. It is organised by The Wigley Group, a Coventry-based commercial property, risk and facilities management company and will bring together more than 200 business people from across the region. The event is now in its fourth year and the company has raised more than £43,000 for Parachute Regiment charity Support Our Paras, which provides support to injured soldiers and their families. The golf balls for the open tournament will arrive in dramatic style - parachuted in by skydivers from Red Devils parachute team. This year the theme of the gala dinner will be a tribute to Coventry-born darts legend Steve Beaton, nicknamed the Bronzed Adonis, to mark the 20th anniversary of his world championship victory. Robert Wigley, managing director of The Wigley Group said: “This event has now become a regular fixture in the calendar and it’s fantastic to see so many celebrities signup to be part of the day.

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“With the golf open followed by a gala dinner it is an action-packed day with plenty of opportunities for people to get involved, win raffle prizes and bid for sports memorabilia. “It will also be a great chance to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of Steve Beaton winning the world darts title. Steve is from Coventry and has had a fantastic career in darts and it’s great to be able to mark his crowning glory in the sport. “We’ll have a huge stage for a knockout darts tournament at the dinner and with the number of top professionals attending it will be an evening of top quality darts. “But most importantly, we are proud to be to continue our long-standing relationship with Support Our Paras which provides vital support to injured soldiers and their families at a time when they need it most.” Other VIPs at the event will include darts players Wayne Mardle, Kevin Painter and Colin Lloyd and the action on the oche will be overseen by top referees Russ “The Voice” Bray and George Noble. The world of boxing will be represented by Spencer Oliver, Mickey Cantwell and Darren Barker who will join snooker champions Mark Selby and Sean Murphy. John McDonald, who is a former Paratrooper, TV sports

announcer and The Wigley Group charity ambassador, will compère the event. John has championed the work of Support Our Paras for more than 30 years and knows the challenges injured soldiers and their families can face when adapting back to civilian life. He said: “Often these are young men who have their whole life ahead of them and they suddenly find that they have severe lifechanging injuries,” he said. “The Wigley Group has shown a wonderful commitment to Support Our Paras and I know the money raised at these events makes a huge difference to the lives of injured soldiers and their families. “The support and generosity of everyone who attends these events is always staggering and I’m delighted that we’ve been able to put together what looks to be the biggest and best event yet.”

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Computer Systems Health Check alerts!

Have you noticed how many articles and reports there are in the media about our health? How we should have our ‘5 a-day fruit and veg’, how much water we should drink, how we should stop smoking, how we should take at least 30 mins exercise every day etc.? Well I have to admit, I am one of those individuals that takes note of those health warnings and I also have to admit I’m also an IT Director. So, how are those two things connected? It occurred to me, as I was out on my morning run, that every business should treat their IT system as a living body that allows the effective running of their company. Like the body the IT system is open to catching viruses and many other serious infections that can bring the ‘IT body’ to a total stand still or shut down regardless of the ‘antivirus system’. Like our own bodies, regardless of the many health concoctions we might take there is always that ‘one bug’ that gets through and brings us to our knees. The ‘IT body’ is exactly the same, there is always some new bug waiting to attack. So, over the coming months in this column, I will be making you aware of some of those bugs that are lurking and waiting to attack. In the meantime though, if you really want to keep you ‘IT body’ in tip-top shape, give me a call and I’ll be happy to give your ‘IT body’ the same TLC as I give my own. I’m off for my morning run…. Phil Hynes Director HeadTech Solutions

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Area Focus: Mid Warwickshire

Thirty years of ownership for the Young Family Businesses urged to speak up on plan Businesses have been urged to make their voice heard on the plan for Warwick District– and not wait until it’s too late. The plea was made as the MidWarwickshire branch of the Chamber of Commerce had the plan – which will shape the area through until 2029 – outlined to them by Dave Barber of Warwick District Council. It includes plans for 17,000 houses between 2011 and 2029 and an updated infrastructure delivery plan – including everything from highways to hospitals. The amount of employment land required was also on the agenda at the meeting held at the Holiday Inn in Kenilworth. David Myskow, chair of the MidWarwickshire Branch of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said it was vital that business fed back on all aspects before the deadline of April 22. “The headlines surrounding the local plan always seem to focus on housing numbers and locations, but certainly our members put equal importance on the development of infrastructure and local facilities which will support the new developments,” he said. “The Chamber is undertaking a Go For Growth campaign this year and we have recognised for some time now that the shortage of quality space is one of those local barriers to growth and, we hope, once the plan is signed off, this will start to address that issue. “The trends suggest we are going to need more office and research and development space as well as general manufacturing and industrial units. “If business wants to shape the area in a way which will allow that growth, it is vital that people feed back to the council. “There were some strong view expressed at the meeting, but they need to be aired to the council if they are to be taken into account. “I would urge any business which wants to have its views taken into account and feels strongly about any aspect of the plan to make its voice heard.” Details of the plan are available at http://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/2041 0/new_local_plan

The employees from Warwick Printing Company Ltd joined the Young Family to celebrate thirty years of their continuous ownership of the business in April. In 1974, John Young joined the firm as General Manager with the main objective of developing new business opportunities - the focus being magazines, journals and

short run books - which has remained a core part of the work produced by the company. On 1st April 1986, he became owner of Warwick Printing through a management buy-out. He said: “Over the years there have been some very difficult times for the print industry but we have worked very hard at developing and maintaining our relationships with customers,

some of which we have served for over 25 years. “I am very proud of this familyrun business, which has grown to be one of the leading print companies in the Midlands, currently employing 65 people from Warwickshire and several surrounding counties. “My wife Gill joined me in the 1986 management buy-out and became director and company secretary of Warwick Printing. My youngest son Paul joined in 1985 as an apprentice in the prepress department. After 28 years as a skilled prepress journeyman, he cooperated in the creation of the digital printing department of which he is now a co-manager. “My other son Alan joined as a prepress apprentice in October 1986 and he remains a senior member of the department and recently commenced a course in works management. “I was extremely delighted when my grandson Luke first came here as an apprentice to learn about

the industry from the ground up, then my daughter-in-law Tracey joined in accounts just last year.” Throughout 2016 the company is celebrating 70 years of continuous operation. From humble beginnings just after World War Two when they printed in small premises behind a bookshop in the centre of Warwick to their current facilities in Sydenham, Leamington Spa, the company’s underlying principle has always been to ensure financial strength and stability with the continuous reinvestment of profit. The company was founded by Moric Schwarz, a Czechoslovakian Jew who escaped to England during World War Two. Using the experience he had in the printing industry, he set up Warwick Printing.

r1se to offer Marketing Support to leading emergency services exhibition

r1se has been selected to provide marketing support to the prestigious Emergency Fleet Exhibition which is celebrating its 43rd year. The well-known and respected show which runs alongside the National Association of Police Fleet Managers´ Conference, is attended by senior members of the emergency services. The event takes place at the Telford

International Centre between Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th June 2016. The event is widely recognised by the motor industry as one of the foremost police and emergency service transport shows in Europe. It attracts a wide variety of exhibitors and major vehicle manufacturers such as BMW, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Jaguar Land Rover,

Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Vauxhall, Volvo and Volkswagen Group showcasing a full range of vehicles for use by the three main emergency service providers. The exhibition has recently expanded and started to draw delegates from outside of the emergency services sector such as governmental departments and local authorities. r1se will be assisting with the production of marketing collateral, social media management and assisting with creating awareness of this exciting event. Additionally, r1se will also be in attendance of the exhibition and showcasing the range of marketing support services that it offers. Leon Hidderley, Marketing Manager at r1se said “this is an incredible opportunity and we are delighted to be selected for this assignment. Having attended the event previously as an exhibitor

I was impressed with the quality of the attendees and delegates. I am very much looking forward to working alongside Joanna in the future”. Joanna Neale, Event Manager for the Emergency Fleet Exhibition, said “ It is great to have Leon on board for this project, his extensive knowledge of social and digital marketing will help us promote the Emergency Fleet Exhibition to a much wider audience. I look forward to working alongside him on this interesting new assignment and wish him the best of luck” R1se is a Kenilworth based marketing agency which started life in January 2016. Offering marketing support to smaller businesses at a competitive price. R1se offers a variety of services including marketing consultation, training, search optimisation, web development and graphic design.

Freehold properties prove popular in Leamington Town Centre Three freehold commercial properties for sale in Leamington town centre went under offer within weeks of going on the market. The buildings, in the prime shopping areas of The Parade and Warwick Street, were marketed by commercial property consultants ehB Commercial. Simon Hain, a director of ehB Commercial, said: “It is very unusual to get freehold properties coming on the market in Leamington. These buildings, all with upper floors, offer opportunities for development and investors the chance to snap up a town

centre building for less than £500,000.” Demand for retail properties in Leamington is continuing to grow, particularly in the town’s retail hot spots, according to Mr Hain. HE said: “Leamington has long been among the top shopping destinations in the region and has enjoyed increasing popularity with retailers, especially those wanting to open independent shops. “Also, along with Warwick, the town has become increasingly popular with ‘foodies’ for its restaurants and cafes, which has led to a surge in demand for suitable properties.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Area Focus: North Warwickshire

Rugby manufacturer sets up a site at Europe’s largest R&D facility

A Rugby-based manufacturer who specialises in developing lightweight parts for the automotive industry has moved into HORIBA MIRA Technology Park near Nuneaton to extend its research and testing facilities. The Autins Group has taken a lease on 3000 sq. ft. premises at MIRA to set up an R&D facility. The Autins Technical Centre is expected to be up and running by the summer with accreditation to UKAS standards expected by the second quarter of 2017. The facility will then be able to offer materials testing commercially to companies

from a range of industries, including automotive. Jim Griffin, CEO of The Autins Group, said: “HORIBA MIRA offers research and testing facilities which are second to none. It is well located for our three local sites as well as the thriving Midlands automotive industry and so seemed the ideal place to develop our R&D capabilities.” The new site will be headed up by Dr Kathryn Beresford, who is chief technical officer at the Autins Group. The company will initially carry out testing on the site for products made at their Midlands factories as well as for sites in

Sweden and Germany. It will also be a hub for research on new lightweight materials with thermal and acoustic properties. Based at Central Point One near the M6, The Autins Group has more than tripled its workforce since 2012 as part of an ongoing expansion programme and investment in new technology which includes the development of an R&D facility. Jim said: ““We have had a period of rapid growth at Autins and we plan to keep on expanding and innovating. “Setting up a site at MIRA is the next logical step and will enable the company to develop more advanced lightweight solutions for a whole range of products and industries.” HORIBA MIRA Technology Park is Europe’s largest automotive technology cluster and is gaining global recognition as the premier location in Europe for automotive, R&D, engineering and testing. Dr George Gillespie OBE, CEO at MIRA, said: “Autins is an innovative and successful organisation and is making a great contribution to the low carbon agenda with its lightweight insulation products. They are amongst good company within the park and by choosing MIRA as the new location for its R&D operations, Autins will be able to take advantage of the many services and facilities the park offers, whilst positioning themselves in the heart of the automotive industry.”

Accolade for company Atherstone based Profab Access Ltd, a small family based manufacturer of

access panels and riser doors, supported by grants from Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, has been named as a leader in people management practice globally. Shortlisted for Manager of the year in the Investors in People Awards, this category recognises the everyday manager that has gone the extra mile to support their team to develop, improve and succeed. The Awards, which received over 300 entries internationally, celebrates the best people management practices amongst Investors in People accredited businesses. Adrian Allbrighton MD, was shortlisted for his achievements in People Management. Assessors stated: “Well done…Adrian sounds like an exceptional Managing Director, with the interests of his people

and the company close to his heart. The application is strong, articulating through examples, the various attributes demonstrated by Adrian and the initiatives he has promoted, including the challenging relocation to a larger factory and the Team Leading programme. The outcomes are impressive, with 220% increase in turnover as a headline.” Helen Perry, Finance Manager, who applied secretly, on Adrian’s behalf, said “It is a privilege to be shortlisted for this award; a clear indication of the dedication and hard work the team has invested in the business. Adrian is a stand out Manager of people, he is selfless in his approach, always strives to bring out the best in us, stays calm and guides his team with him. I couldn’t be more delighted that he is being recognised.” Paul Devoy, Head of Investors in People, said: “We have been overwhelmed by the

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remember on the telly, teams of 6-10 members, all lined up with a fun filled and soaking challenge to get over large bouncy, wet and foamy filled inflatable’s. This sounds easy, but I have to say it was one of the most fun and exhilarating things I have done in many years. Registration is £100 and each team needs to raise a minimum of £500 in sponsorship. Support to the Mary Ann Evans Hospice is a real motivator too. “I would urge anyone to have a look at the photos from last year’s event by looking at the Hospice Facebook pages, where the clear joy on everyone’s faces says a thousand words. Also have a look at some of the quotes from people after the event.

Paul Carvell, chair of the North Warwickshire branch of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce. It’s been a very busy, positive first quarter for businesses in this region. At the start of the year, the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce launched a Go For Growth campaign in order to build on the confidence shown by firms across the area coming into 2016. Our first quarterly economic survey of 2016 has shown that firms remain cautiously optimistic about the future in spite of a range of pressures both at home and overseas. What was particularly pleasing about the survey was a high percentage of firms in both manufacturing and the service sector saying export sales were up. I said when I became president of the Chamber that I wanted more companies across our area to see the benefits of exporting – both to themselves and to the wider economy – and this is a point I will continue to emphasize. With Export Week fast approaching, I cannot stress just how great the support is from the UKTI team at the International Trade Hub at the Chamber. I know there are many firms in the north of the county who tap into the help on offer and I can only encourage more of you to do so. As we said when we launched Go For Growth, the idea was to not only highlight positive news from companies in the area to find out how they are expanding but also to raise issues that could be barriers to growth.

calibre of entries received for the Investors in People Awards. It’s fantastic to see so many organisations nominated for outperforming in their sector, demonstrating great people management practice and a commitment to staff development.” The winner is to be announced in June.

Hospice seeks support Come on then all you eager 'fun lovers' out there, the Mary Ann Evans Hospice is looking for teams to come and join in their 25th Anniversary Hospice 'It’s a Knockout' challenge on Tuesday 12th July, 6pm at the Nuneaton Rugby Club. If you like fun and games, water, foam and don’t mind getting very wet then this is just the fundraising challenge for you and your team. Hospice supporter and Chamber member Neal Lowe said: “The Round Table have taken part for the past couple of years in this great event, it is a really good team building fun event, with a good bit of team rivalry too. The challenge for the Hospice is just like you

Positive news for businesses

Get your family, friends and colleagues together and ring 024 7686 5439 for your registration form!” Jacqueline Leake, Fundraising Manager at the Hospice, said: “On the evening teamwork is the key to winning the most points and we have a special prize for the team with the best joker/mascot. Motivational, rewarding, hilarious, team building and the chance to support a good local charity, these are just a few of the reasons why you should choose to take part in Mary Ann Evans ‘It’s a Knockout’ 2016. Teams need to raise a minimum of £500 in sponsorship money that is in addition to the £100 deposit for admin and t-shirt costs.

We held a very positive meeting with our branch committee and Nuneaton & Bedworth Borough Council and they outline plans for 52 hectares of employment land and more than 5,000 new jobs. It was extremely interesting to hear about those plans and, as a Chamber, we are behind the agenda for the growth of our region – as long as everything is joined up and that the infrastructure of the area (from roads to schools) is planned in a way that can handle the growth. There were also discussions around potential new plans for the town centre in Nuneaton and, again, that is something we, as a Chamber, will be keeping a very close eye on because we believe that is of major significance for the region. Finally, I would just like to say to any companies in the area who are growing or, indeed, feel they need help to remove a barrier to growth, that they should get in touch and we will do all we can to help. So please drop me a line on Paul@sfb.uk.com

Area Focus: South Warwickshire

Local chef named Roux Scholar 2016

Hedge funding for small business Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber members ERS Office Supplies prove that you don’t have to be in big business to be successful hedge funders. Sunday 20th March saw the ERS team supporting the Forest of Hearts in their aim to plant 1000 metres of new hedgerow, to surround the 5-acre edible forest garden under development in Snitterfield. “It’s great to have the chance to support a local charity” said Rob Williams, Managing Director. “We’re always drawn to something a little unusual, and being involved with the forest’s hedge planting scheme really appealed”. Bidford-on-Avon based ERS are in good company too as the likes of Persimmon, Jaguar Land Rover and National Grid have also sponsored projects at the Forest of Hearts. “It’s important for us to be able to make a difference in the local community”, said Rob, who is also heavily involved with St. John Ambulance. “We’re small in relation to the other sponsors, but this just shows that businesses of any size can make a difference”. The company will be the proud sponsors of 30 metres of new edible hedgerow that will provide a haven for wildlife and biodiversity.

A former Stratford-upon-Avon College catering student has won this year’s prestigious Roux Scholarship. Having battled it out against some of the best young chefs in the country, 27-year-old Harry Guy, originally from Leamington Spa, was named Roux Scholar 2016. The final of the contest was held at Westminster Kingsway College in the heart of London, with Harry being announced the winner at an awards presentation at the

Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hyde Park. The six finalists were asked to create and present Norfolk black chicken en croûte, with cardoon gratin and a tarragon sauce. The chefs had three hours to prepare and cook the dish in front of the judges - who included the worldrenowned Alain and Michel Roux Jr and TV favourite James Martin - and were under even more pressure as they were not given the recipe and ingredients until 30 minutes before the start of the competition. Harry made up his mind at the age of 14 that he wanted to become a chef, while working in a kitchen as a pot washer; so, after attending North Leamington School, he decided to study at the College for two years on its Advanced Culinary Skills course. He said: “I knew I wanted to study at Stratford College due to its great reputation for hospitality and catering courses.”

Currently Support and Development Chef across the Eden Hotel Collection, Harry has previously worked at the Michelin star restaurant at Malory Court Hotel in Leamington Spa and at the famed L’Enclume in Cartmel, Cumbria - where he was mentored by Mark Birchall, himself a previous Roux Scholar - and has also realised his dream of developing his skills by working in France. He is no stranger to the competition, having last year made it through to the regional finals. Harry said: “To win the Roux Scholarship is a massive achievement. It's something I have worked very hard towards and to finally accomplish it feels amazing. To be named a Roux Scholar and to be on that elite page of 32 other chefs is incredible. It's a gateway to a great future in my career.” Tony Davies, Catering Lecturer at Stratford-upon-Avon College, said: “Harry was always a keen student wanting to learn as much as possible; you could tell from the start of his time at College that he would go far in the catering industry.” In addition to invaluable advice and support from the Roux family, Harry receives £6,000 and the experience of being trained for up to three months at a three star Michelin restaurant anywhere in the world.

Ex-apprentice reigns behind the scenes A former apprentice at Stratford-uponAvon College has risen from trainee to manager in three short years. Callum Graham, 23, from Kineton in Warwickshire began a year’s training under the College’s apprenticeship programme in September 2011, working as a Technical Theatre Apprentice in Lighting, Stage and Sound with their Technical team. At the end of his training programme, he was immediately offered a permanent position and quickly progressed from Trainee Technician, through Technician, to Technician Instructor. His rise to the top did not stop there, however; since September of last year he has been working at Stratford ArtsHouse as Technical Manager. After finishing his A levels, Callum decided, like many other students, against going on to University and opted instead for learning in a full-time working environment. A preference for hands-on, work-based training over

academic studies was not the only reason for his decision. Unlike university graduates who often find difficulty in obtaining that allimportant first job, many apprentices - as in Callum’s case - are offered permanent employment by the company with which they have trained. He said: “I saw an apprenticeship as an opportunity not only to gain a qualification but as a way to improve my employability and secure a greater chance at a guaranteed job. Everyone I know who has completed an apprenticeship is still employed in their chosen field.” Callum sees two other major advantages in taking up an apprenticeship. Training is tailored to the needs of each individual apprentice, with a choice of units to complete, and written work - far from being theoretical as is the case when learning in an academic environment directly complements specific areas of the

role the apprentice is actually carrying out. Moreover, in common with all apprentices, Callum not only avoided the spiralling cost of university tuition, but immediately began earning a guaranteed wage. He is quite clear about the financial benefit: “It’s also a chance to start earning money. I often joke with my friends who have now left university about how I haven’t built up huge amounts of debt!” However, ambitious, hard-working Callum is not content with just one T echnical Manager position! In addition to his role at the ArtsHouse, he has also worked as Technical Manager for a company called Green Side, a venue provider for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival – last year he had responsibility for the design and construction of five venues for an incredible 142 different companies performing at The Fringe.

Warwick’s own globe dishes up a taste of Shakespeare for 400 celebrations

One of the oldest pubs in Warwick, The Globe in Theatre Street, has been chosen as the ‘Official Restaurant & Rooms Partner’ for Warwick’s Shakespeare 400 celebrations. With a vast range of celebrations across Warwickshire, its county town will be playing a major part in ensuring that everyone has a thoroughly entertaining time. These celebrations include a notable exhibition, ‘Shakespeare 400: History, Heritage & Faith’ curated by Shakespeare scholar Alycia Smith-Howard at The Collegiate Church of St Mary, which will provide visitors the rare opportunity of seeing the Shakespeare First Folio (1623) courtesy of the V&A Museum and a first edition of the King James’ Bible (1611) courtesy of Cambridge University. In tandem with the three month exhibition there will be keynote events featuring

theatre and music performances, film screenings with noted celebrities and scholars in conversation. To mark their partnership with Warwick’s Shakespeare 400 season, The Globe is hosting a series of A Taste of Shakespeare culinary events to coincide with the keynote events during the exhibition at St Mary’s. Eager for visitors and locals to experience Shakespeare from a fresh perspective, Ryan Smith, The Globe’s General Manager, his Head Chef Phill Allott and Bar Manager Chris Hawkes have been collaborating with leading chef and food historian Alan Deegan, the co-author with Shakespeare scholar Alycia Smith-Howard, of ‘The Food of Love: A Taste of Shakespeare in Four Seasons’. Ryan said: “Phill and Chris have selected 16th century dishes and ‘tipples’ which have been adapted for the 21st Century palate.”

Alan added: “It’s always exciting for both the chefs and their guests to discover the rich tapestry of the menus of the Bard. For Britons of that time, food was literally a voyage of discovery as more and more food products were arriving from the New World such as tomatoes, turkey, kidney beans and potatoes.” The Globe first provided lodgings, with food and drink in 1788 for both locals and those taking one of the many coaches that came through Warwick at the time.

Shakespeare 400: History, Heritage & Faith at St Mary’s Church, Warwick runs to the end of June. For details of events visit www.stmaryswarwick.org.uk

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Area Focus: Rugby

Welcome for growth plans Rugby’s plans to Go For Growth have been welcomed by business leaders in the borough. Sarah Alexander, the development strategy manager at Rugby Borough Council, presented to the Rugby branch of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce. She told firms that the ‘preferred option’ for the area’s local plan covering 2011 to 2031 included 12,400 new homes and 96 to 104 hectares of employment land. Alexander said that meant 5,200 additional houses and 20 more hectares of employment land had to be allocated on top of what had already received planning permission. She also listened to concerns from Chamber members around infrastructure and also a lack of industrial/warehouse space for very small and start-up companies. Sarah said: “Although the original consultation period is over, we will come

back out in the summer with much more detail and that will give businesses another opportunity to have their say. The idea is to have a final plan to be signed off by council members by next summer. “All that said, we are still listening to what residents and businesses are saying and it was reassuring that many of the concerns expressed in the Chamber meeting were similar to those that we have heard already. “As a council, we are alive to the benefits of growth, we recognise how important it is to the town and the borough but we also realise that it has to be sustainable.” Glenn Bourne, the chair of the Rugby branch of the Chamber, said the council’s plans echoed the Chamber’s Go For Growth campaign. He said: “It’s great to hear the council talking about a strategy for growth and how housing growth must be balanced by employment land.

“A couple of members at the meeting raised their concerns that they couldn’t find the right space to allow their businesses to grow and that was addressed directly by Sarah who said that would be incorporated into the local plan. “At the start of the year, the Chamber launched a Go For Growth campaign to highlight positive news in the region but also to help raise the profile of some of the barriers to growth that businesses face. “This is precisely what the campaign was

Manufacturer to reveal new lightweight material at Midlands expo

Award-winning manufacturing company The Autins Group will be unveiling a new product for the first time at this year’s Made in The Midlands business expo in May. The company, who develop and manufacture lightweight thermal and acoustic materials for a range of industries

including automotive, marine and aerospace, will be offering visitors a sneak preview of their latest lightweight insulation material Neptune. The event takes place on Thursday 12th May at the GTG Training and Conference Centre in Wolverhampton. Jim Griffin of The Autins Group said “Despite being a global operation, The Autins Group is proud to have its manufacturing roots firmly in the Midlands. This event seemed the perfect place to show our new product for the first time. As the exclusive UK manufacturer, this is the only place where people will be able to see Neptune for themselves.” The Autins Group stand will include demonstration samples of products made from Neptune as well as rolls of the lightweight fibre which can be used to improve thermal and acoustic properties for applications in a range of sectors from automotive, rail, marine and aeronautical through to clothing manufacture.

The Made in the Midlands exhibition has been running for seven years and having relocated to a new venue, the 2016 event looks likely to be the biggest yet. More than 100 companies will be exhibiting and over 1000 visitors are expected to attend. The Autins Group (www.autins.co.uk) are Gold members and were named Company of the Year at the Made in the Midlands annual awards two years ago. They received the accolade in recognition of the company’s rapid growth and investment in technology. During the Past five years, Autins has expanded from one UK site, setting up operations in Sweden and Germany to service customers across the world. A dedicated R&D centre is also due to open in Warwickshire later this year. The company now employs up to 200 staff at its Rugby headquarters.

Graduates on the rise at rugby based company The print industry is often portrayed as declining and slow to adapt and evolve with the growth and influence of technology. Strategic document outsourcing providers, Datagraphic, based in Rugby and Prolog Print Media, based in Chesterfield, take exception to that view, as Group Managing Director, Glyn King, explains: “Our business has transformed over the last decade. When technology started to disrupt print, we sought ways to join the disruption. We invested in equipment, technology and people to present documents in print and online.” Glyn continues: “The investment I’m most proud of is our graduate programme, that makes up 10% of the workforce. Experience is invaluable, but so too are fresh ways of thinking. The talented people we’re employing aren’t attracted to the traditions of the print industry, they’re drawn by the chance to influence where it’s going. As a business we’re prospering because we recognise this, and make investments in people and technology to enhance our service offering.”

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Together Datagraphic and Prolog Print Media have recruited seven graduates over a three year period. The first to join (the marketing team) was Steve Lovell. Steve comments ”After finishing my Marketing and Advertising degree at Lancaster University, I was really keen to return home and put what I'd learnt into practice. When looking for career opportunities, Datagraphic offered a friendly and nurturing environment coupled with the ability to be creative and put forward new ideas. It also provided me with the opportunity to work in an industry that was very alien to me at the time - print. As an ambitious yet slightly apprehensive graduate, this felt like the perfect way to begin my career. Steve continues “Three and a half years on, the skills and experience in marketing that I have developed, together with a solid understanding of the print industry, have become invaluable to me as a young professional.

Since Steve has been working with Datagraphic, he has seen a handful more graduates join the team either in Rugby or the Chesterfield office. Steve interviewed all fellow graduates at Datagraphic and Prolog Print Media for their thoughts on joining the printing industry and their life after graduation. You can read the full interviews here www.datagraphic.co.uk/print-needstalented-graduates

designed for and we look forward to seeing the more detailed plans and how they might solve some of those issues in the medium term. It would also be good to explore some short-term solutions too in order to ensure businesses can meet their demand for growth now.”

Company sponsorship helps young engineers to victory

Sponsorship from a Warwickshire manufacturer helped students at a local academy win four categories in the regional finals of a prestigious international engineering competition. The team of four students from the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) Academy for Young Engineers took home four trophies from the Central England final of the F1 in Schools competition. The event, which took place at Shireland Collegiate Academy in Birmingham, saw the team take first place in the categories of Fastest Car, Best Engineered Car and the Innovation Award, as well as winning first place overall. F1 in Schools runs across 44 countries and is open to entrants aged from 9 to 19. The competition aims to change perceptions of STEM subjects by creating a fun learning environment for young people to develop their understanding of careers in engineering, science, marketing and technology. The students use CAD/CAM software to collaborate, design, analyse, manufacture, test, and race miniature compressed air powered balsa wood F1 cars. The WMG team is sponsored by Rugby-based manufacturer Automotive Insulations (AI), part of the Autins Group. AI develop and manufacture thermal and acoustic insulation materials and components for the automotive industry. “It’s important to support projects and organisations which develop key skills that the manufacturing and engineering industries need to maintain growth and their position in the global market,” comments Jim Griffin, CEO at the Autins Group. “We have a reputation in the UK for developing new technologies and the next generation of engineers will play a vital role in this. In fact, many of these young people will probably be working with technologies that haven’t even been invented yet.” As an employer partner, Autins works with the Academy in a variety of ways, from providing sound insulating panels for the engineering hall and public areas, to helping recruit staff. The company is also the first partner employer to take a WMG Academy student as an apprentice. WMG Academy for Young Engineers aims to provide a more practical, hands on approach to education by putting real, business-focused problems and challenges at the centre of the curriculum. The idea is to better prepare students for the practical demands of the world of work and further/higher education.

News

Recognition for invention A machine invented by D-Drill managing director Julie White has been highly-commended at an industry awards ceremony.

High ranking for area

Julie, a former businesswoman of the year, came up with the idea for the DKerb when the company was asked to cut kerbs to 45 degrees in-situ. When she scoured the international markets for the machine to do the job and nothing materialised, Julie and her father, Peter, designed, developed and created the D-Kerb. It has already worked on range of projects – including an early phase of the Cycle Superhighway in London – and its early successes were recognised at the Construction News Specialist Awards 2016. The company was highly commended in the innovation category at the ceremony in London that brought together hundreds of people within the construction industry. The judges commented: “This was a confident, illuminating presentation that clearly demonstrated the innovation’s journey from conception to delivery. It also addressed the judging criteria across the board. “Judges noted that D-Drill has developed a focus on innovation after previously searching for a solution globally. Further demonstrating their commitment to innovation and returning with the impact of the Kerb Cutting machine at future awards will make them a contender once again.” Julie said: “We are delighted to receive such recognition from the industry. The D-Kerb machine is really still in its infancy but the interest in its ability to cut kerbs in-situ to 45 degrees is phenomenal. “The cost, time and environmental savings it will deliver because we can do everything in-situ are huge. “To take this from an initial enquiry, to designing and producing a machine, to getting it passed by Highways and Transport for London and then to be contracting with the machine all in less than two years is a real achievement. “Ultimately, I am just very proud that a machine invented by my dad and me is making a real difference to the industry and that Construction News felt it needed to be commended in this way.”

Coventry and Warwickshire has ranked highly in a report comparing cities across Europe and the UK for its business friendliness and economic potential. The results of the fDi Magazine’s European Cities and Regions of the Future 2016/17 report were revealed at MIPIM – the world’s largest commercial property show which is taking place in France this week. Coventry and Warwickshire has been voted seventh in the Small European Cities of the Future 2016/17 for business friendliness, ninth for economic potential among Local Enterprise Partnerships of the Future 2016/17 and seventh in the top ten of Local Enterprise Partnerships of the Future 2016/17 for business friendliness. Jonathan Browning, chairman of the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP), said the results were extremely positive for the area’s medium and long-term economic prosperity.

“The CWLEP prides itself on attracting inward investors to the area and one of the key aspects as well as our fantastic location, high-skilled workforce and state-of-the-art facilities is our business friendliness,” he said. Cllr Ann Lucas, at the time leader of Coventry City Council and board director at the CWLEP, was presented with the

fDi awards on behalf of Coventry and Warwickshire at an awards ceremony in Cannes. She said: “For Coventry and Warwickshire to be ranked so highly compared to other European and UK cities is a fantastic achievement and I was delighted to receive the award on behalf of our area. “This underlines the great ambassadors we have working on our behalf to attract businesses whether global giants or SMEs in all sectors and this report will help us to build on our national and international reputation particularly among the automotive, engineering and digital gaming sectors. “These findings bode well for our future economic prosperity at attracting inward investors which is our major reason for attending MIPIM each year because we want to continue spreading the message about Coventry and Warwickshire being a fantastic place to base businesses.” The Coventry and Warwickshire MIPIM Partnership is made up of private sector companies and organisations who fund the area’s presence at the event. The partners are: Friargate, Jaguar Land Rover, the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, Barberry, Study Inn, CEG, the Coventry and Warwickshire Development Partnership, HORIBA MIRA, Coventry University, University of Warwick, CityFibre, Wasps, Deeley, Downing and Complex Development Projects.

“This underlines the great ambassadors we have working on our behalf to attract businesses whether global giants or SMEs in all sectors and this report will help us to build on our national and international reputation particularly among the automotive, engineering and digital gaming sectors.”

Cooper solutions 80,000th nationwide trade auction goes continental Cooper Solutions has announced that the 80,000th vehicle has been listed on its FullAuction trade vehicle website. More than 1600 franchised dealers throughout the UK use one or more of Cooper Solutions range of dynamic webbased solutions. FullAuction allows dealers to remarket part-exchange vehicles efficiently whilst generating a very healthy profit stream. The recent addition of FullAppraisal, a tablet optimised used car appraisal solution has not only remedied a significant dealer risk area, but also enhanced customer perception, consistency and quality.

The 80,000th car to be launched, a Bentley Continental GT, was listed on the site by Chariots Specialist Cars. Nick Harris, Sales Manager for the Kettering-based dealership, said: ‘FullAuction is a great system, we’ve had huge success selling stock quickly and profitably; it relieves the pressure of remarketing vehicles. We can appraise and list cars quickly, attract buyers nationwide, making it an efficient and cost effective process.’ Barry Cooper, Managing Director of Cooper Solutions said: ‘We are thrilled to reach this milestone as we approach the 15th anniversary of the founding of our business. Our objective is to improve

franchised dealer processes, performance and profitability in many areas of their business, and nothing we do can make a dealer as much money as FullAuction has since 2011. “It is the future of dealer remarketing because the business model is so much more efficient than trading or physical auction. Our transaction costs are 9 times less than physical auctions, so the dealer makes most of the profit, rather than the auction house. Chariots Specialist Cars is a great user of FullAuction and we were delighted they listed the 80,000th car. We will reach 100,000 sales soon and will continue to develop our system and marketplace. The future is very bright..”.

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Focus on Conference and Event Venues

Why venues can help with the human touch

The events industry contributes more than £58 billion to UK GDP, according to recent research, and much of that activity is happening in Coventry and Warwickshire which is particularly well catered for with high quality venues. Driving the sector’s success in the area is a wealth of offerings, whether it be corporate events at sports stadiums, exhibitions at hotels or seminars at conference centres. Each one is feeding into a growing industry. According to MPI’s UK Economic Impact Study into the national sector several years ago, the meetings industry value of £58.4 billion dwarfs a number of other sectors and employs many hundreds of thousands of people. But why are such events so popular with business? Part of the reason is that, in an age that seems increasingly reliant on technology, corporate entertainment and conferences remain a key business tool.

The main reason is that they help companies to maintain personal relationships with their clients and the unique characteristics of many of the Coventry and Warwickshire venues contribute to that. From the Ricoh Arena to hotels, conference centres to business parks, castles like Warwick to stately homes, the area has somewhere to meet any need. All recognise that, in a fast-moving age dominated by the Internet, texting and Cloud Computing, the personal touch remains highly valued because it is often when client and customer are together, and relaxed, that business is done, that relationships are forged and deals struck. Creating that kind of environment takes many forms. For most companies, it often revolves around hospitality, be it sporting events, a trip to see Coventry FC play or maybe the Wasps rugby union team, or perhaps a trip to the races or a day at the cricket.

However, there are other options for the more adventurous, daytrips, teambuilding events, extreme sports challenges, or for the more cultural, events such as trips to the theatre; Stratford is, after all the home of Shakespeare. The venues and experiences may be diverse in nature but the key to them all is that they represent time spent away from the office and a sense that the company staging the corporate hospitality event truly values those whom it has invited, that their presence is seen as important. Those companies that are prepared to invest in corporate entertainment do so because they can see something to be gained from showing clients and staff alike that there is life after work. And that can pay dividends. Conferences are important as well, bringing people together in a manner which allows relaxed networking. So what are you looking for if you are trying to organise an event? Well, one of the key factors is a good location, somewhere be it a hotel, specialist conference centre or other venue, that is easy to reach and that looks attractive for delegates. When assessing the venue you are looking for a number of other important factors. Can the venue cope with the numbers expected to attend, has it got a good meeting room, will it provide equipment like projectors and Internet access, are the staff friendly and flexible in helping you meet your needs? If the answers to those questions are yes then the event is likely to be a success.

The good venues are the ones that can tailor themselves to providing the exact needs of the event organisers. The first consideration is the nature of your event. Do you need a large hall or will something a little more intimate work? Is it formal or informal? They are salient questions because atmosphere is important to the success of exhibitions and getting it right matters. Whatever the choice, it is vital that visitors can easily understand the layout and find their way around with the minimum of fuss. Large conferences and exhibitions can be bewildering events so adding to visitors’ problems with poor layout can only detract from the success of the event. In a world where business people feel more pressured than ever, wasting time getting lost is unlikely to foster much in the way of goodwill. One of the other things that makes a conference or exhibition successful is a sense that something is happening so it is useful to have staged areas for demonstrations and performances, or for companies to show their products at work. Such activities, with the interest they attract, makes an event feel like it is alive. All good events have a touch of theatre about them. It’s what singles out the poor ones from the good ones. Coventry and Warwickshire is second to none as it combines great people with great venues. Whatever your budget or requirements, it has the ideal location and some of the best are featured here.

“Those companies that are prepared to invest in corporate entertainment do so because they can see something to be gained from showing clients and staff alike that there is life after work.”

EVENTS FIT FOR A KING OR QUEEN From the small and intimate to the grand and gracious, hold your next event in the aweinspiring surroundings of Warwick Castle.

Our dedicated in-house Event Managers and Chefs will ensure the event exceeds your expectations; from Mediaeval Team Building to epic Themed Dining, forge your own piece of history by hosting an event to remember in the truly unique setting of Warwick Castle.

Dinners and Receptions Feasts and Banquets Conferences and Team Building Family Fun Days Afternoon Tea Marquee Events Weddings Family Fun Days

For more information visit www.warwick-castle.com/events • events@warwick-castle.com • 01926 406660 www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Focus on Conference and Event Venues

If you are looking for the ultimate venue to host an event, then Coventry and Warwickshire has some world class offerings to choose from. Whatever your budget or requirements, formal or informal, historic or modern, Coventry and Warwickshire has the ideal location and some of the best are featured here: Nettle Hill

London`s O2 and The Fusion Festival in Birmingham, exhibitions such as Gadget Show Live, Goodwood Festival of Speed and Motorcycle Live, television shows including X Factor and Keep It in The Family and theatre shows up and down the country. But it`s not just high profile events the company is involved with, they regularly provide staging for schools and colleges, amateur theatrical societies, drama and dance academies and sports social groups.

NAEC Stoneleigh

Since moving to larger premises in 2014, The Revolving Stage Company have not only increased their range of revolving stages but due to high demand, have manufactured static staging. The REVDECK staging range is a modular aluminum stage deck and is stocked in various shapes and sizes, it also has a class leading load capacity. The decks are available for dry hire or can be delivered and installed for any event. The aesthetic design of the deck means it can be used without c overings or fascia’s. Nettle Hill is a top-tier venue based in 7 acres of countryside between Coventry, Birmingham and Leicester. With easy access from the M6, M1 and M69 you feel miles away from the city but yet you’re just around the corner. We try to keep the grounds as natural as possible to encourage the wildlife to grow all around the site, making Nettle Hill a beautiful retreat away from the busy city. We offer a range of rooms that will meet all your meeting and event requirements. Working with you to provide the right set-up for your event and giving you an experience you will never forget. With rooms varying in sizes for groups of 2- 100 to accommodate your individual business and meeting needs.

As well as having a very strong market in the UK, The Revolving Stage Company has seen sales increase in countries such as Norway, Finland and United Arab Emirates. 2016 is already looking very promising with many repeat orders confirmed and some exciting new projects in the pipeline in both the hire service and for bespoke design and manufacturing. For further information call 024 7668 7055 or visit www.therevolvingstagecompany.co.uk

Sherbourne Park

With Day delegate rates starting from £25.00 and room hire from £60.00 we are able to cater for all budget requirements. For further information call 02476 621 899 email:enquiries@nettlehill.co.uk or visit www.nettlehill.co.uk

Our operations team are hugely experienced and will work with you to ensure your requirements are met and your expectations exceeded. Working alongside them, we have an in-house catering team, whose breadth of ability spans everything from sandwich buffets to gala dinners, so we can deliver your catering requirements how you want them, when you want them.

The Revolving Stage The Revolving Stage Company has seen 2015 as another busy and successful year and we’re once again selected to provide revolving stages for some of the major events of the year ranging from concerts like The Jingle Bell Ball at Sherbourne Park is the ideal location for corporate entertaining. Have exclusive use of the house itself or our self-contained meeting / dining suite with in-house chef. Our three croquet lawns provide scope for novel teambuilding events. Croquet is fun and inclusive and can be played by men and women with absolute equality. Hire the house to entertain overseas visitors in style or to come back and relax in. Easy access to local transport links saves valuable travelling time. We offer a flexible timetable to suit your requirements and enjoy over 1000 acres including woodland and the River Avon for recreation. For further information call our events team on 01926 624 215 E-mail:sherbournelcsa@aol.com or visit www.sherbournepark

NAEC Stoneleigh, (previously known as the NAC), has quickly established a reputation for flexibility and service which is second to none. A number of purpose built indoor spaces can accommodate as few as 10 meeting delegates to as many as 3000, while exhibition organisers new and old return year after year to benefit from the unique mixture of indoor and outdoor space. Boasting in excess of 21,000 sqm of indoor space and 800 acres of adaptable outdoor areas, all serviced by private roads and hard-standing, there is an abundance of opportunities to add value to your event or conference through free parking, easy access, team building events and experiences or simply good old fashioned fresh air.

And with a network of high quality local suppliers, you can be assured that you are supporting the local economy and keeping transport and the associated environmental impacts to a minimum. With millions spent on refurbishment and improvement, and LaSalle - the site landlords - having spent many times more on regenerating the Stoneleigh Park site on which NAEC Stoneleigh sits, the facilities and services available to you and your business continue to grow. NAEC Stoneleigh merges the heritage of agriculture and the Royal Show with modern investment and technology, to create a wide range of event spaces – the potential for your event is limitless. To find out more or to book your event, call our event services team on 02476 696 696 or email sales@stoneleighevents.com.

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Focus on Conference and Event Venues

“The good venues are the ones that can tailor themselves to providing the exact needs of the event organisers.” Warwick Castle

The rich and vibrant story of Warwick Castle spans over 1100 years which makes it a truly exceptional venue to host an event. At the heart of Warwick Castle lies the 17th Century Great Hall, steeped in history and boasting an impressive

collection of artefacts. This spectacular room is perfect for weddings, formal dining and themed dining. For more intimate events clients can choose from the lavish interiors of different State Rooms each with their own style and heritage. In the warmer months 64 acres of capability brown landscaped grounds provide the perfect setting for drinks receptions, BBQs, Family Fundays and marquee events. From epic battles to ancient myths we’ve drawn on a thousand years of jaw-dropping history to create themed dining experiences like no other. History is brought to life by a unique combination of hearty food and drink and enthralling entertainment, all set in authentic surroundings. Our Georgian Coach House provides the ideal venue for a business meeting. Swap or combine a meeting with unique Team Building activities from authentic Mediaeval Knight School to utilising the very latest technology to conquer the Castle. Warwick Castle affords you complete flexibility to create an exceptional event for even the wildest of imaginations. For more information visit www.warwick-castle.com/events events@warwick-castle.com 01926 406660

Valiant Office Suites Valiant Serviced Office Suites is a Business Centre in Rugby located 1 mile from the M6 and 5 miles from the M1 who provide a complete solution for small and large meetings, presentations , seminars, training and interviews all set in an impressive and professional environment. Our on site conference & meeting room facilities allow you to conduct your business in the most professional manner and our team of dedicated staff will make sure that all of your requirements are catered for. Along with our meeting room services we also provide Serviced Offices to over 30 buisnesses and Virtual Office services, all of which our excellent would be happy to discuss with you. To book meeting rooms email reception@valiantofficesuites.co.uk or visit www.valiant-officesuites.co.uk

SHERBOURNE PARK Impressive Grade II listed Georgian house The perfect venue for corporate events

Facilities include: • Exclusive accommodation in the house itself • Private self-contained meeting / dining suite / in-house chef • Three croquet lawns ideal for corporate team-building • Heated swimming pool June-August • Tennis Court • Choice of Marquee sites • Parking for up to 250 cars • Easy access to the M40, NEC, airport and rail network Within 20 minutes of Birmingham Airport and NEC Sherbourne Park is a perfect centre for entertaining visitors to exhibitions and from overseas. _________________________________________________________________________ Sherbourne Park, Warwick, CV35 8AP 01926 624 215 e-mail:sherbournelcsa@aol.com website www.sherbournepark.com www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Focus on Conference and Event Venues

... a little bit of something different … Me e t • D in e • R e la x • In flu e n c e

• 10 distinctive meeting and syndicate rooms • Free parking • Bar facilities • Free Wifi

• Stunning Warwickshire countryside view • Excellent customer service • Convenient location close to M6, M1, M69 & A45

Get in touch:- 02476 621 899

Nettle Hill Brinklow Road Ansty Coventry CV7 9JL

www.nettlehill.co.uk

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The region’s leading provider of Cloud computing solutions When it comes to cloud computing for businesses, IT support, networking and IT solutions within Coventry, the West Midlands and the wider area, Netmetix IT consultants are a provider of excellence. Is your business missing out with outdated and inefficient IT infrastructure? Do you need on-site assistance to ensure your business IT systems are optimised with minimal downtime? That’s where we can help, with our professional IT management service out of Coventry, providing you with a highly skilled IT consultant. What is the cloud? Where is the cloud? Are we in the cloud now? These are all questions you've probably heard or even asked yourself. The term "cloud computing" is everywhere.

In the simplest terms, cloud computing means storing and accessing data and programs over the Internet instead of your computer's hard drive. The cloud is just a metaphor for the Internet. For it to be considered "cloud computing," you need to access your data or your programs over the Internet, or at the very least, have that data synced with other information over the Web. In business, you may know all there is to know about what's on your side of the connection, but you may never have any idea what kind of massive data processing is happening on the other end. The end result is the same: with an online connection, cloud computing can be done anywhere, anytime.

Netmetix are a highly experienced IT consultancy based in Coventry, working with business clients across the West Midlands and the UK. We offer every aspect of IT support and have been in the area of business to business IT support for over fifteen years. Our highly experienced IT consultants are fully trained and brought up to date with the latest advancements in business IT. As you know, modernised IT systems are often the key to running an efficient business, so we ensure that our team have the expertise to advise or manage any IT solution or infrastructure that your business could need.

4 Sycamore Court, Birmingham Road, Allesley, Coventry CV5 9BA www.netmetix.net • enquiries@netmetix.net • 024 7640 8100

Education and Development

Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Why study an MBA? Aston Business School MBA student Alex Drago is big on education. He has spent much of his life delivering informal education programmes. Now he has chosen the Aston MBA to help him translate this experience to a new career. Before joining the Aston MBA, Alex was an explorer manager at Historic Royal Palaces, and previously an education manager at the Tower of London.

Where does your passion for education come from? We often think of education as assessments, exams, and certificates, but for me it runs so much deeper than that. Education is really about personal transformation; it's an opportunity to understand more about your world and your part in it. I'm always interested in doing more of it, whether formal or informal. With that sort of a perspective, it's easier to remember that education is a privilege.

Tell us what makes Aston Business School unique. As a cohort, we’ve benefitted from hearing from industry experts who bring additional insight and add multidimensional perspectives. It’s a genuine privilege to hear them speak and to ask them questions. The cohort is also tremendously diverse, with so many different countries, backgrounds and experiences represented.

And it’s always interesting and often challenging to have your long-held assumptions tested by such a diverse group. But there’s also a recognition that becoming a better business leader is also about better understanding yourself, so we’ve been encouraged to look inward and better understand our own strengths and to amplify them, as well as identify areas that need development. Very few schools can match this combination of experience, so it's a great privilege to study for an MBA at Aston.

What are you hoping to gain from your MBA? I wanted a mid-career change, and I'm keen to use my skills and experience to work at a more strategic level. A transformative consultancy or organisational development role would suit my skills and experience perfectly. I knew that the MBA was a highly respected qualification that would not only build on my past knowledge, skills and experience, but also add to this portfolio, making me a more attractive proposition to future employers.

The Aston MBA is delivered across Full-Time, Online and Executive Part-Time study routes, all designed to give you the edge to succeed. To find out more, contact our MBA recruitment manager at mba@aston.ac.uk or call 0121 204 3100.

“Aston offers high-quality teaching with genuine experts in their field, who provide excellent resources. They are also genuinely helpful and supportive, and really want you to succeed.”

“The cohort is also tremendously diverse, with so many different countries, backgrounds and experiences represented. And it’s always interesting and often challenging to have your long-held assumptions tested by such a diverse group.”

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News Terex Construction appoints new UK General Manager

Catering apprentice set for bright future

Global equipment solutions provider Terex Construction has appointed Gregg Horne to the role of General Manager for its UK facility in Coventry. With more than 28 years’ experience within the Terex group – spanning the Fuchs, Powertrain and Trucks divisions – he brings a wealth of experience from across the construction industry. Committed to further driving global growth of Terex Construction’s marketleading range of site dumpers, backhoe loaders and compaction rollers, Gregg Horne will use his extensive experience to lead the Coventry facility and closely monitor market trends to exceed customer expectations. This will include an emphasis on further expanding the Terex distributor network to increase global product access and ensure the highest possible levels of customer satisfaction. He takes up the mantle from Neal Nowick, who moves to a new role as General Manager of Terex Environmental Equipment (TEE) in the USA. Neal said: “With nearly three decades’ experience within the Terex group, Gregg has an exceptional record in leading operations and pushing the boundaries of possibility. With a strong pipeline of new products and ongoing R&D activity, Terex Construction’s Coventry operations will continue to grow. Gregg will play a key role in this journey, leading global strategy and further expanding the brand’s market share worldwide.” Gregg said: “Terex is a brand with strong heritage, a loyal distributor network and great product innovations. Taking up the role of UK General Manager is therefore a highly exciting opportunity. In the coming months, I look forward to ensuring a smooth leadership transition, before implementing a number of new initiatives to better understand the voice of the customer.”

Terex Construction launches two new Site Dumpers Global equipment solutions provider Terex Construction has announced new additions to its heavy-duty site dumper portfolio. Featuring nine tonne payloads and swivel skip functionality, the TA9S and TA9SP will be available worldwide from June 2016. With Synchro Shuttle transmission, the TA9S is perfectly suited to working on tight construction sites and provides class-leading tipping and slewing cycle times. Combined with swivel configuration, this makes the site dumper flexible enough to work in the most restrictive conditions. Mark Royse, Product Manager – Site Dumpers and Compaction Rollers at Terex, is confident that these new model additions place the Terex site dumper range at the forefront of the marketplace.

Aubrey Allen apprentice Conor Barron (left) with Head Chef Russell Blackwell

A new apprentice at Aubrey Allen Caterers is off to a flying start in his new career, learning all about this growing industry. Level 2 Professional Cookery Apprentice Conor Barron is already taking on increasing responsibility within the company. Conor, aged 20 from Kenilworth, decided on the apprenticeship training route after finding that university didn’t suit him. Having started studying Engineering at Cardiff University in 2015, he soon realised that he was enjoying neither the course nor the learning environment. He had, however, enjoyed cooking from an early age, so went to an open event at Stratford-upon-Avon College where they explained the opportunities available to apprentices.

He said: “The job here at Aubrey Allen definitely looked the best. It was the first apprenticeship I applied for and I got it. I really enjoy it here and the people are all so nice. I do a lot of prep for the other chefs. Chopping potatoes, getting veg ready. It’s great to feel like part of the team even at this early stage. Although waking up 6am is still hard to do!” This style of on-the-job training is much better suited to Conor. He said: “I’ve always learnt better by doing things rather than sat in a lecture hall with someone talking at me. It’s a lot more personal too. Whereas at uni you don’t really get to know any of your lecturers, here everyone works as a close team. I love learning new things and learning news ways to get tasks done.” Aubrey Allen is an events company so deals with catering on a large scale.

Local company sets up fifth site for new manufacturing venture Warwickshire based manufacturer the Autins Group is setting up its fifth site in Europe as part of a venture to bring a new high performance insulation material to market. The company make lightweight thermal and acoustic materials for industry. Autins has taken out a lease on a 47,000 sq. ft. factory at the Birch Coppice Business Park in Tamworth. The site will be home to Solar Nonwovens Ltd., the latest company in the Autins portfolio. Solar Nonwovens will be manufacturing lightweight micro-fibre Neptune at the new factory, using innovative technology brought in from Korea. As part of a £4 million investment in the site, Autins has shipped over a new high tech machine from Korea which was transported in 14 containers, arriving at Tamworth in April.

Autins’ CEO Jim Griffin believes this is a significant milestone for the company. “We are delighted to have found a suitable site for Solar Nonwovens to start producing Neptune,” he said. “With such large and sophisticated hi tech equipment, it wasn’t easy to find a unit that fulfilled all our production needs.” Solar Nonwovens aims to have saleable production up and running by the autumn, with full production of up to three lines in 2017. Neptune can be used to make products quieter and more thermally efficient in numerous sectors including automotive, rail, marine, agriculture and apparel. Jim added “Neptune is a really exciting product offering superior acoustic, thermal and lightweight properties for a range of applications. As the exclusive European

suppliers, Birch Coppice will be the only site where Neptune will be manufactured anywhere across the UK and the continent.” Such are the demands of producing Neptune that a special two mega-watt substation is being constructed alongside the Solar Nonwovens unit. The move tops off an exciting period of growth for the company who are also in the process of establishing a research and development facility at HORIBA MIRA Technology Park in Warwickshire. The Autins Group has sites in Sweden and Germany as well as its headquarters in Rugby. Best known for developing materials for the automotive and marine sectors, customers include Bentley and JLR. The launch of Solar Nonwovens marks the company’s expansion into new markets.

Hereward learners to experience the world of mission critical communications Hereward College is working with national mission critical communications company, Airwave, to deliver supported internships to its learners. From September, four young people from the college will take part in the 12 month study programme at Airwave’s Rugby offices in the areas of IT, customer service and security. Supported internships are a platform for young adults with additional needs to develop work based skills and gain a qualification in a structured way. They work alongside a Job Coach who provides support and direction throughout the placement.

The college already has established supported internship programmes running with National Grid and University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) and has recently been awarded the Fair Train Gold Standard Award for work experience. Jon Clugston, Hereward's Vice Principal for Student Independence & Progression said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Airwave and move forward on what is proving to be a very successful programme providing employment opportunities for young people with disabilities. “Statistics show that young people with learning disabilities only have a 7%

likelihood of finding paid employment and the college is committed to providing high quality work experience schemes to ensure that all our learners can further develop their skills and experience in order to reach their potential.” John Lewis, Airwave’s Chief Operating Officer said: “Airwave is fully committed to being inclusive as an employer and to working closely with organisations such as Hereward College to give these young adults opportunities to learn. We are looking forward to welcoming our new interns and contributing to their development.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

News

Owner of The Globe in Warwick rated ‘exceptional’ by Sustainable Restaurant Association

The staff and directors of Oakman Inns & Restaurants, which owns historic coaching inn, The Globe, in the heart of Warwick, have announced that all 15 pubs in the Oakman Collection have been awarded the highest possible status of Three Stars from The Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA). Oakman Inns is only the second pub group to achieve three-star status and join the ranks of restaurateurs such as Raymond Blanc (The SRA President), Rick Stein, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Thomasina Miers, and Antonio Carluccio, all of whose restaurant companies have achieved this accolade. The SRA scheme operates under the banner of the SRA’s Food Made Good programme, a marque aimed at showing customers that SRA members are passionate about serving great quality food in a way that isn’t costing the earth. The rating is based on an holistic assessment of each business, covering

14 key-areas that consider best sustainability practice under the headings (or pillars) of Society, Sourcing and Environment. Among the many high scores that led to their three-star recognition, Oakman Inns’ CEO Peter Borg-Neal is especially proud of his team’s work under ‘Society’ and their overall score of 98%. The judges commented on the comprehensive employee induction and training programmes that include

developing skills in, for example, wine and cellar management, as well as graduate and management training programmes. They also praised Oakman Inns for providing customers with healthier options by offering smaller portion sizes at a reduced cost and healthier cooking methods, such as steaming. Oakman Inns also received a score of 98% for their community engagement programme where they continue to support local charities and work closely with the Springboard Charity. In addition, the company organises networking breakfasts for local businesses and invites school children to come and learn about how food is produced. Oakman also supports a growing number of minis and junior rugby teams at local and regional sports clubs and last year organised the inaugural Oakman Cup, a minis and junior touch rugby competition at Allianz Park. Peter Borg-Neal said: “2016 will be our fourth year of membership and everyone working with and for us has joined our efforts to make each and every one of the Oakman Inns a sustainably beneficial part of the local area and community.” Oakman’s Chef Director, the awardwinning Ross Pike, said: “We’re developing more supply lines to support the work we already do in sourcing food products that meet our free range, fair-trade, local and/or seasonal requirements. It’s those standards we set that our customers have come to expect.”

“Oakman Inns also received a score of 98% for their community engagement programme where they continue to support local charities and work closely with the Springboard Charity. “

Securing a future for our trees

Like it or not house-building continues to remain firmly at the heart of the Government’s long-term economic plan. There are 240,000 new dwellings planned to be built in 2016, with 80,000 of those in Warwickshire alone.

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However, this doesn’t necessarily mean obliteration of all things green in our urban and rural environment. Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber members Wharton Tree & Ecology Consultants are helping ensure trees remain a permanent, and valued, part of our urban and rural spaces. A large proportion of Wharton’s work involves advising on tree retention for new development schemes and tree management for public health and safety. Peter Wharton, Managing Director, said: “When retained or planted in the right

places and properly managed, trees enhance the enjoyment of the places in which we live, work and play. They also provide many environmental, sociological and economic benefits. Our priority is ensuring trees and ecology are seen as assets, rather than hindrances, to development.” The high level of new housing and commercial site developments, alongside private house extensions, is aiding growth in the industry. Wharton Tree & Ecology Consultants are no exception. Peter said: “The past 12 months have seen us go from strength to strength. We recently expanded our portfolio to offer ecology surveys and are now growing our team of consultants.”

James to compete in Invictus Games Patron of the Invictus Games Foundation Prince Harry has unveiled the UK Team for the 2016 Invictus Games, sponsored by Jaguar Land Rover, and it includes Rugbyborn, Coventry resident James McGill. He will compete in track and field and swimming at the Games on 8th-12th May in Orlando. A former Grenadier Guard, James was medically discharged from the Army after an explosive device was activated while he was in Afghanistan. After rehabilitation, he began working at Jaguar Land Rover in Whitley where he was encouraged to try out for the Games. More than 180 military personnel and veterans trialled ten sports for one of the 110 places available in the UK Team. The selection process was based on the benefit the Invictus Games will give an individual as part of their recovery, combined with performance and commitment to training. When the team congregated for the first time at Buckingham Palace, Prince Harry took time to congratulate James. James joined Jaguar Land Rover in July 2015 and was encouraged to take part in trials along with other former and serving armed forces personnel colleagues, demonstrating the company’s strong commitment to actively employing former military. He said; “I am hugely excited to be selected for the UK Team for the 2016 Invictus Games. The journey to selection has been tough, with so many great competitors in the mix, but the Invictus Games has given so many former and serving men and women a renewed focus and set of goals which should never be underestimated. “I am very proud to be selected and represent the UK, and equally proud as a Jaguar Land Rover employee. The support Jaguar Land Rover gives to the UK Team and Invictus Games makes this all possible. Rehabilitation is a very personal thing but to be in employment and have a focus and support from a company like Jaguar Land Rover is one of the reasons I am able to be here today and look forward to competing in Orlando in May.” Since 2013, Jaguar Land Rover has hired more than 200 former servicemen and servicewomen, working closely with the Career Transition Partnership, the Ministry of Defence's official provider of Armed Forces resettlement. Jeremy Hicks, Managing Director of Jaguar Land Rover UK, said: “There is a close alignment between Jaguar Land Rover’s values and the vision of the Invictus Games, that inspiring performances and passionate, unstoppable persistence enriches people’s lives.”

News

Global technology group moves UK headquarters to Warwick

Leamington dad to take on a mammoth 4,000 mile bike ride Martin Haywood celebrated his 50th birthday earlier this year and knew he wanted to do something to mark the occasion. But rather than having a party, the dad-of-two put into motion his plan to cycle thousands of miles around Warwickshire – the equivalent of riding to Uganda. The finance director says the ride is a way to raise money for an orphanage in the poverty-stricken African country but also to recognise his recovery from testicular cancer. Martin was diagnosed in 1998, just ten days after his twin children were born. He quickly had to undergo an operation to remove the tumour and had years of radiotherapy and check-ups. He said: “When I was diagnosed I was in complete shock, it was like someone had dragged the carpet from beneath me. I realised then how often we take our health for granted. “My 50th birthday is a very special milestone for me and it has been my intention to mark it for several years. It is also an opportunity to give something back which is of significance.” Martin’s church - St Paul’s in Leamington - works alongside the Ugandan charity Nzirambi Orphans Talent Development Centre, which helps disadvantaged children in the country. He hopes to raise some £50,000 by undertaking the ride, which will fit around a full-time job and family life. The challenge will last from the end of April until the start of July, with Martin cycling around 400 miles a week. He said: “I chose this time of year to capitalise on maximum daylight hours and plan to cycle in the morning and evening. “Evans Cycles in Leamington are maintaining my bike for the ride and it’s a massive weight off my mind to know my bike has been checked by a mechanic. “I have a rest day every 11 days and with the maintenance I can just get on and continue riding early the next morning.” To make a donation or find out more about the ride or the charity visit www.execlounge.com/notdec4000

Nicholas Evans (centre), a director of ehB Commercial, with Semcon’s country manager at Semcon Product Information UK, Torsten Sundin (right) and Paul Atkins, Semcon business support manager

International technology company Semcon has relocated its UK headquarters to Warwick. The Swedish giant, which was based at Kineton in Warwickshire, has moved its 115-strong UK team to a new purpose-built facility on Tournament Fields. Semcon is a global company providing engineering services and product information to help companies develop products in such industries as automotive, life science, telecommunications and energy. The group has 45 sites on three continents with more than 3,000 employees. Its services include all kinds of challenges within technology

development, such as product development, product information, quality, training and methodology development. Torsten Sundin, country manager at Semcon Product Information UK, said: “We had outgrown the facility at Kineton, where we were separated across several buildings. At our new location we are all under one roof, which means greater advantages for our staff in terms of shorter communication paths and a greater opportunity to easily work together.” Nicholas Evans, a director of Leamington commercial property consultants ehB Commercial, which acted for Semcon in acquiring the building, said: “The building has extremely modern facilities and has been customised for even better service.

It also provides a more efficient workspace for Semcon’s staff and gives us potential to expand in the future with excellent customer service. The location is excellent, close to airports and to the M40 between London and Birmingham. Several of Semcon’s customers are located in the area. The new site will house Semcon’s workshop technical authors, graphic illustrators and animators, method technicians, owners’ information authors and product development engineers in several specialist fields. There are also such business support functions as IT, HR, finance, translation coordination, business development and project management.

Creative agency grows team through CWRT Start-Up Loan Thanks to a start-up loan of £20,000 over a five-year period received from Coventry and Warwickshire Reinvestment Trust (CWRT), the Aurameir Creative Agency has expanded its team. Business owner Leocadia Foya said: “Clients I had worked with on a freelance basis were approaching me asking for more work and services that I was unable to offer at the time. So I decided to set up in April of 2015, and test traded with a full service creative production offering, so videos, photography and more. It worked, so I then approached CWRT for business support and finance.”

Thanks to the funding support provided by CWRT, Leocadia has been able to expand her business in ways that were out of reach previously and now employs a growing team to increase the company’s productivity. Leocadia said: “My main aim was to seek investment to obtain the capital equipment and premises that were needed for the business to grow. This gave the company assets, provided flexibility and allowed us as a company to take on larger projects. “I have always wanted to have my own business. Working with my team has provided the perfect opportunity to service

the needs of existing and new clients. The digital market is dynamic and I believe that this is the perfect time to expand and seek investment to take the business forward.” Sheridan Sulskis, Start-Up Loans Officer at CWRT, said: “Local start-up businesses like Aurameir Creative Agency often require assistance to continue beyond their initial successes, but few are aware of the range of support services available to them. Whether you need financial assistance or business advice, CWRT has a dedicated team on hand to give you the help and mentoring you need.”

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Coventry & Warwickshire in business

News

Tech Central: working together Local technology business owners Warwickshire County Council and Warwick District Council have joined forces to showcase Warwickshire as a hub of innovation to rival London’s Tech City. The group kicked off with a social event in Leamington followed by a code-sharing ‘Codeoke’ session. In the summer, they plan to launch workshops run by businesses supporting the tech community including legal firms, branding, marketing, and growth specialists. “Tech Central began to evolve after being at a networking event in London and hearing for the 100th time that nothing exciting in technology happened outside of Tech City,” said Sarah Windrum, CEO of The Emerald Group, is part of the founding team. “We need to change this perception so I spoke to the District and County Council and got in touch with local business owners in the technology sector. We have such a range of talent from games developers to cyber security experts and we all felt it was time the world knew about us.” Chris White, the MP for Warwick and Leamington, opened the launch event and spoke enthusiastically about the venture.

“It was great to see traditional businesses like Baxi networking with start-up software development companies and all discussing creative new ideas. It reminded me how important it is for every business to innovate and we have all the skills and talent we need right here.” Warwickshire County Council works extensively with many businesses in the digital sector. Council Leader, Izzi Seccombe, said: “Tech Central is all about collaboration and I am delighted that local government, education, and businesses are working together to expand the digital economy. We are already working on some exciting new projects, especially in skills, and our role is to ensure we provide a supportive environment for all businesses to grow.” Warwick District Council leader Councillor Andrew Mobbs said “We have long supported the nationally-important games development cluster in Leamington Spa, and it is really positive to see this work being spread to the wider tech sector. Our District has a culture of innovation that we are proud to foster and support and look forward to a positive and successful relationship with the partners involved in the Tech Central project.”

Grants support community groups More than £115,000 has been awarded to community groups across the West Midlands in the first quarter of 2016 by a regional grant-giving body. The Heart of England Community Foundation, based in Coventry, manages a range of funds on behalf of companies and trusts across the area and awards that money to groups and organisations who make a lasting difference to their community. The Heart of England Community Foundation has its roots in Coventry, Warwickshire and Solihull and now also delivers funds across Birmingham and the Black Country too. Between January and March, £115,816 was granted to a range of groups including football clubs in Coventry through to the Leamington & Warwick Seas Cadets. A Painting for Pleasure project in Warwick also received funds while a project to provide non-contact boxing sessions for children in Solihull also received a grant. Tina Costello, CEO of the Heart of England Community Foundation, said:

“We were delighted to award so many grants to groups across the region. “Some of them amount to less than £500 but it’s great to see the very lasting and positive difference they make to the individual groups. “It can be something as simple as upgrading a local grassroots football team’s changing rooms through to projects that support people with mental health issues. “It really is about funding groups and organisations that might, otherwise, not get the funding they need and, with a bit of support, they can make a very positive difference to their local community. “The companies and organisations for whom we manage funds are always really interested to see where the money goes in their local area and how the communities benefit and it’s great to have been able to award such a substantial overall amount in the first quarter of 2016.” For more information on the Heart of England Community Foundation, log onto www.heartofenglandcf.co.uk

Safety pledge is launched

Global equipment solutions provider, Terex Construction, has announced its growing commitment to safety in the product development process.

Launched at the BAUMA exhibition, the pledge – launched by a video – commences a process to ensure the highest levels of safety in the design and build of all compact equipment. As part of the pledge, each new Terex product from Coventry, UK, undertakes rigorous field trials after initial concept development. This gives engineers the opportunity to judge the suitability of the design and to analyse a product’s safe operation in real-world scenarios. Feedback from post-development trials will be taken into consideration when refining the design, such as analysing how the products are used on site and ensuring that they meet the precise expectations of users. Specialist features, such as driver monitoring technology, boosted brakes and equipment to prevent uncontrolled movement, are then integrated to ensure the highest levels of operating safety and prevention of accidents on site. Finally, multiple safety and quality checks are undertaken throughout product build, with Terex developing www.cw-chamber.co.uk

a bespoke production line as part of an ongoing commitment to continuous operational improvement. The line provides real-time awareness and visibility of unit progress through visual and audio signals, offering a systematic procedure to further improve the production process. Allison Tucker, Global Product Marketing Manager at Terex Construction, who spearheaded the initiative, said: “Terex has always had a strong commitment to manufacturing the safest machines in the industry without compromising on performance. Our new pledge is the latest reiteration of that commitment, helping to meet customers’ needs, while utilising every part of the development and production process to guarantee the highest levels of equipment safety.” Dale Camsell, Group Regulatory Compliance Manager, makes sure that all global product teams are aware of the latest international standards and regulations. He Camsell added: “Ensuring that the equipment we produce complies to international standards and regulations is a key corporate commitment. Our product range has all the necessary legislated features to guarantee safe and efficient operation.”

President & People

Why it makes sense to persevere with exporting It was an honour to chair the Global Opportunities Summit held at the AMTC on 21st April. More than 200 people had the privilege of hearing from some fantastic speakers. Delegates heard from William Butler-Adams OBE (CEO of Brompton Bicycle), Fraser Doherty MBE (founder of SuperJam) and Sue Mortimer (Head of Trade Services at UKTI) who spoke about the importance of doing business abroad. In fact, recent figures show that firms who export do better than those who don’t. Key findings from a UKTI survey revealed that 85% of clients said exporting led to a ‘level of growth not otherwise possible’. Additionally, exporting is linked with innovation and is viewed as exciting, which means that exporting firms aren’t facing the same recruitment issues that a number of businesses are encountering.

Dear member, The past couple of months have been a busy time for me, as your Chamber president.

My own experience has shown that there are always a few knocks to be taken when exporting, but as with everything learnt in life, our biggest lessons are from our failures. That’s why events like the Global Opportunities Summit are so important, as it provides a platform for sharing experiences and allows you to seek valuable advice from UKTI, to ensure that your future exporting risks are minimised. Remember, you can’t sell to someone, if they don’t know you are there.

I have enjoyed attending a number of ‘Meet Your Chamber’ events. The event held at Mallory Court on 8th April was a particular success and it was great to meet so many local chamber members.

It is often better that you don’t limit all your exporting to just one geographic area. The team at UKTI are here to help you to export to any part of the globe. The more areas that we export to, the more secure we will be! A lot of firms start off

their exporting in one location and slowly spread around the globe, which mirrors the ‘flywheel concept’ described by Jim Collins in his book ‘Good to Great’.

Part of the ‘Go for Growth’ campaign is about managing the difficulties that businesses face and optimising opportunities.

I read with interest, the latest British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) survey. It worryingly shows a fall in confidence, compared to previous quarters. This could be linked to the EU debate, but it’s more likely that other events across world are contributing to this. For example, the slowdown in China, recent sanctions against Russia and the current EU immigration problem. However, the UK economy is growing, and at a faster growth rate than most of the other developed countries.

On 26th April, I attended the Presidents Assembly, where I had the pleasure of meeting presidents from the other 51 Chamber of Commerce’s across Britain and was involved in an interesting discussion about the role the British Chambers of Commerce should play for the chamber network in the future. It was also a great opportunity to hear what other chambers are doing and was encouraging to see that our Chamber is at the forefront, when you consider the support that is offered to our member firms.

I was also interested to hear the comments made by Dr Adam Marshall, Acting Director General of the BCC, on the recent UK labour market figures published by the ONS. Adam said, “Businesses are facing a growing skills shortage that poses a genuine threat to future productivity and growth. Unemployment is low by historic standards and our own survey work confirms that the percentage of firms reporting recruitment difficulties is close to an historic high, with firms facing a real struggle to find staff with the right skills. We need to encourage investment in human capital and staff training, as well as ensuring that school leavers are equipped with the skills that firms will need to compete successfully in an increasingly global marketplace.” It is fantastic to see that our chamber is already trying to address these issues.

Moving forward, I am delighted to be attending the forthcoming EU Parliament trip to Brussels. The overarching theme will be what the EU brings to British Businesses and the upcoming referendum. This will be the last chance before the referendum for your Chamber to experience the European Parliament and learn more about it ahead of the big vote. The ‘European question’ remains a key topic of conversation. The Chamber’s position is clear. We represent business and our views cover all aspects of this role. We are here to inform members between now and the referendum. The decision we are all being asked to make is not just for now, but for future generations. Paul Carvell

Suzannah joins law firm Midlands law firm Wright Hassall has expanded its public sector commercial offering with the appointment of an experienced procurement solicitor. Suzannah Lucas has returned to her Warwickshire roots to join the Leamington-based firm as a senior associate. The 31-year-old, who was educated at King’s High School in Warwick, joins Wright Hassall having previously worked at a major Birmingham firm and most recently in the in-house commercial law team at the Ministry of Defence (MoD). Her time at the MoD included a secondment as a legal adviser at OCCAR – an international organisation set-up to achieve commercial best-practice in international defence projects. Suzannah has strong experience of procurement regulations, complex contracts and regulatory requirements and adds further strength to the firm’s highly-rated Outsourcing, Technology and Commercial team.

She will play a key role expanding Wright Hassall’s procurement offering, advising blue-chip corporate clients, charities and not-for-profit organisations, the public sector and housing associations on all aspects of procurement law including The Public Contract Regulations 2015, what Brexit could mean in relation to procurement processes and all aspects of major outsourcing projects. Suzannah said: “Wright Hassall is a highly-regarded firm which I’ve known for some time so I’m delighted to have joined.

“The opportunity to become part of a firm which has a strong reputation for the quality of its work and reputation for managing big projects really appealed to me and I believe my commercial and outsourcing experience make me a good fit for Wright Hassall.” Pete Maguire, partner in the Outsourcing, Technology and Commercial team at Wright Hassall, added: “Suzannah has vast experience across a wide range of the firm’s key sector specialisms and it’s a great coup for Wright Hassall to add her to our team.”

Coventry & Warwickshire in business

President & People

Leader Communications strengthens its team with two new staff appointments

Award-winning Warwickshire agency Leader Communications has bolstered its PR and Design teams with two new staff appointments. Mark Mclachlan has been appointed as Senior PR Account Manager and Sophia Sewell as Junior Graphic Designer and Artworker at Henley-inArden -based Leader Communications. Both will work across a number of key client accounts including the automotive, leisure and tourism, B2B, charity and education sectors. Mark has many years of experience working in both PR agencies and inhouse communications teams, having previously held senior management roles at national organisations Garden Organic and World Wildlife Fund,( WWF-UK).

On the agency side Mark has substantial experience working for automotive sector clients, a specialism which will continue at Leader Communications where he will work on the Dymag and Coventry Motofest accounts. Sophia graduated in 2015 from Southampton Solent University with a 2:1 (BA) Graphic Design degree and since joining Leader has worked on a number of high profile design projects.

Those projects have included working on the brand roll out for the Heritage Motor Centre, under its new name of the British Motor Museum, with Sophia involved in designing various merchandising and advertisements developed for the opening of the newly refurbished museum. James Holden, Leader Communications Managing Director, said: “We are pleased to welcome Mark and Sophia to our team here at Leader Communications. “Mark brings with him substantial experience and knowledge gained from working in senior communications roles over the years and his appointment will serve to further strengthen our already impressive PR team. “Sophia joins us from Southampton University where she excelled on her Graphic Design degree course. With her creative and detailed approach to work she is already making a strong addition to our design team.” Leader Communications is an awardwinning consultancy, with a turnover in excess of £750,000. Originally founded by Managing Director James Holden’s father Bryan, it employs six client facing directors, each specialists in their field, plus a hub of support staff working from a rural headquarters just south of Henley-inArden, in the Warwickshire region.

“Mark brings with him substantial experience and knowledge gained from working in senior communications roles over the years and his appointment will serve to further strengthen our already impressive PR team.”

New Partner at LDJ Solicitors LLP

LDJ Solicitors LLP have announced the promotion of Preya Gohil to Partner at LDJ Solicitors LLP having been a Solicitor at the firm since 2014. Graham Ridgway, Managing Partner, said "Preya joined the firm to head up the Private Client department at our Hinckley office and over the last two years the department has gone from strength to strength under her leadership. The existing Partners have recognised the qualities and skills Preya brings to the firm and it was a natural progression to offer her Partnership. She has already proven to be a great asset to the firm and she will be an excellent addition to the Partnership". Preya said "I am delighted to have been made Partner with such a long standing firm as LDJ Solicitors and I look forward to assisting the firm even more in my new role as we plan for a long successful future. It feels great to be a part of a firm that has a genuine presence in the local community and being part of a team with a wealth of experience behind them". Preya specialises in Wills, Powers of Attorney, Probate Administration, the Creation and Administration of Trusts, Court of Protection Applications, Inheritance Tax planning and managing Tax affairs.

Finance provider makes appointments Following a record year that saw CWRT, a Midlands-wide responsible finance provider, reach its £5 million lending milestone, and issue more than 100 start-up loans, the business lender has expanded its team with two new loan officers. Ally Evering, Commercial and Start Up Loans officer, and Leah Blocksidge, Start Up loans officer have joined the team to manage the increasing demand for finance and business support for companies, both locally and nationwide. They will be based with the team at the epi-centre of business support and growth in Coventry, the Coventry and Warwickshire Growth Hub. Ally has more than 15 years’ experience in asset finance, while Leah is a specialist in start-up loan funding, as she previously spent two years at another Start Up Loan delivery partner. The duo is responsible for increasing the volume of businesses applying for loans, and speeding up the application process.

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

CWRT has seen the number of applications for loan funding grow over the last year. Companies are buoyed by the economic recovery, and are looking for a convenient and competitive alternative to a business bank. Although CWRT was originally established to provide financial assistance within the Coventry and Warwickshire region, it has now become a national lender, with start-ups across the UK accessing its affordable business loans. Both loan officers will be attending local networking events, and are especially interested in encouraging applications from female led businesses. Mike Musson, Chief Executive of CWRT, said: “We are growing our team at an exciting time for CWRT – we have expanded the Start Up Loans Programme nationally, we are about to launch our new Inclusive Enterprise Programme, and we have grown our pot of commercial loan funding for existing businesses based in Coventry and Warwickshire.”

New Members

Welcome to new members Corporate Members The Absolute Works

HBT Communications

Domestic and General

The Business Centre, Kenilworth CV8 2GY dera.wyatt@absolutehrsolutions.co.uk 01926 748040 www.theabsoluteworks.co.uk

HB House, Foleshill Enterprise Park, Courtaulds Way, Coventry. CV6 5NX z.hussain@hbtcommunications.com 02476 867400 www.hbtcommunications.co.uk

Leicester House, 17 Leicester Street, Bedworth. CV12 8JP julie.hadley@domesticandgeneral.com 08082 562822 www.domesticandgeneral.com

Home Delivery Services

PROSPA (UK) Ltd

27 Arlon Avenue, Nuneaton CV10 0JY louise@hdslimited.net 02477 670832

88 High Street, Hillmorton, Rugby CV21 4EE ron@prospa.org.uk 07970 784482 www.prospa.org.uk

GTG Training Limited Bearing Drive, Wolverhampton WV11 3SZ jeanette.breckles@gtg.co.uk 01902 308090 www.gtg.co.uk

KB Transport Solutions Limited

Eastlands Business Centre, St Peters Road, Rugby CV21 3QP nick@whiteside-media.co.uk 01788 555003 www.whiteside-media.co.uk

Units 19-21 Henley Road Industrial Estate Coventry CV2 1ST charlotte@kbtransportsolutions.co.uk 02476 617140 www.kbtsltd.co.uk

Billesley Manor Hotel

LRM HR Consultancy

Rybrook BMW

74 Stratford Road, Warwick CV34 6AT erogersmills@gmail.com t. 07712 052403

Heathcote Lane, Leamington Spa, CV34 6SP kedwards@rybrookbmw.co.uk 01926 333888 www.rybrookbmw.co.uk

EBC Group

Billesley, Alcester, Stratford Upon Avon B49 6NF mkerkeni@thehotelcollection.co.uk 01789 279955 www.billesleymanor.co.uk

221 Hagley Road, Halesowen B63 1ED Louisa.Turley@ebcgroup.co.uk 01215 854400 www.ebcgroup.co.uk

Wroxmark Ltd

Quattro Recruitment Limited

Rion Equipment/Autocare

26 Athena Court, Athena Drive Warwick CV34 6RT dawnw@quattrorecruitment.co.uk 01926 311222 www.quattrorecruitment.co.uk

Ashford Estate Agents 5 Union Street, Coventry CV1 2HN sales@ashfordsestateagents.co.uk 02476 630848 www.ashfordsestageagents.co.uk

Whiteside Media Limited

6 The Leys, Stratford Road, Wroxton, Banbury OX15 6QW info@wroxmark.com 01295 738533 Alma St, Smethwick B66 2RL export@rionequipment.co.uk 07970 608953 www.rionequipment.co.uk

The Pilates Place Sheldon House, Sheep Street, Shipston On Stour CV36 4AF peta.davies06@btinternet.com 07581 237278 www.pilatesplace.org

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Coventry & Warwickshire in business

Events Chamber Member + VAT

CWT Training Dates 2016

Non-Member + VAT

Duration

June

July

August

Customer Service Essentials

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Account Management

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Effective Communication

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Conducting Team Briefing / Buzz Meetings

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Negotiation and Persuasion Skills

£215

£240

Full Day

Building the Team

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Motivating the Team

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Microsoft Excel Advanced Plus

£110

£140

Full Day

Microsoft Excel Intermediate to Advanced

£110

£140

Full Day

Setting Goals and Targets

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Training and Coaching the Team

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Time Management and Delegation

£215

£240

Full Day

Managing Difficult People

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Understanding Discipline in the Workplace

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Import Procedures

£260

£295

Full Day

Understanding Budgets

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Problem Solving Skills

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Branding for Business

£120

£140

Half Day AM

Communicating Assertively

£95

£120

Half Day AM

Complaint Handling

£95

£120

Half Day PM

Microsoft Excel - Basic to Intermediate

£110

£140

Full Day

Inspirational Leadership

£240

£280

Full Day

Project Management

£240

£280

Full Day

Managing Change in the Workplace

£215

£240

Full Day

First Aid at Work (Accreditation for First Aiders)

£210

£235

3 Full Days

8, 15, 22

Making Business Decisions

£240

£280

Full Day

Microsoft Excel - Intermediate to Advanced

£110

£140

Full Day

Course dates for the quarter are shown above, please contact CWT Chamber Training on 024 7623 1122 or visit www.cwtcov.co.uk for other course dates and further information

Events Chamber Networking Thursday 19th May 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm Costco Wholesale, 51 Torrington Avenue, Coventry, West Midlands, CV4 9AQ Free to attend Chamber networking a fantastic way to create new business leads and build long-lasting business relationships. Join us for this free networking session and expand your business network.

Top tips for Networking Skills Wednesday 25th May 8:00 am - 10:00 am Stewart Fletcher and Barrett Offices, Manor Court Chambers, Townsend Drive, Nuneaton, Warwickshire, CV11 6RU Free to attend Businesses are progressively using social media tools as a means of growing their network of business contacts, however many professionals still tend to prefer the tried and tested face-toface networking with the potential for building quality relationships. Hear from a panel of speakers who will teach you how to successfully build and develop relationships and grow your network.

www.cw-chamber.co.uk

Business is good for Women Networking Lunch & Exhibition

Queen’s Award for Enterprise – Chamber Networking Masterclass Thursday 7th July 8:30 am - 10:30 am

Monday 13th June 11:00 am - 2:00 pm Ardencote Manor Hotel, The Cumsey, Lye Green Road, Claverdon, Warwick, CV35 8LT £30 + VAT member rate £100 + VAT to exhibit

Tuesday 14th June 8:30 am - 12:00 pm Simulation Centre, Coventry University Free to attend

Join us at this high profile networking lunch and take the opportunity to share knowledge, raise your company profile and debate the issues around the Women in Business agenda. This event will provide excellent networking opportunities and the chance to hear from inspiring and motivational speakers over a delicious two course lunch.

Confirmed speakers; Sarah Perry, Managing Partner Wright Hassall Christine Hamilton, Acting Regional Director UK Trade & Investment West Midlands

The Queen's Awards for Enterprise are highly prestigious awards for outstanding achievement by UK businesses in the categories of Innovation, International Trade and Sustainable Development. The Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion is awarded to individuals who encourage entrepreneurial skills and attitudes in others. The awards are made annually by Her Majesty The Queen, and are only given for the highest levels of excellence. They are judged to a demanding level and winners receive a number of benefits and worldwide recognition. Previous corporate winners have come from a diverse selection of business sectors and have included large and small businesses. Recipients of the individual award have been from varied social and professional backgrounds.

•••••• As a Chamber member you can exhibit at any of our events for just £50 + VAT. Stand out from the crowd and book your stand today. Find out more information or to book a place please see the events pages at www.cw-chamber.co.uk or contact events@cw-chamber.co.uk ••••••

The Millers hotel, Twycross Road, Sibson, Warwickshire, CV13 6LB Free to attend Chamber networking is the perfect way to create new business leads and build longlasting business relationships. Join us for this free networking event and grow your business contacts. Don’t miss out on this fantastic networking opportunity!

Chamber Networking Wednesday 13th July 9:00 am - 11:00 am Squab Hall, Harbury Lane, Bishop's Tachbrook, Bishops Tachbrook, Warwickshire, CV33 9QB Free to attend Chamber Networking is the perfect way to generate new business leads. Don’t miss out on this fantastic networking opportunity!

Speed Networking Tuesday 19th July 9:00 am - 11:00 am Ettington Park Hotel Alderminster, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. CV37 8BU Free to attend Speed networking is a fun and fast-paced way to grow your professional network. This popular event is ideal for generating new leads and creating long-lasting business relationships.