News

Healthy win for Atrium

Leigh Hunt (CityFibre), Kerry Malik (Atrium), Chris Nagle (Chamber), Liz Lawrence (Atrium)

A social enterprise in Coventry that supports people with serious health conditions has been given a technological boost thanks to a ‘secret sign-up’ by a member of its team.

Kerry Malik had only just returned to Atrium Health from maternity leave when she registered for a competition on the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce website to win £1,000 worth of tech items through high-speed fibre operators CityFibre.

Atrium provides essential rehabilitation for those with long-term heart, lung and circulation problems, initially through NHS referrals but then through memberships to its gym and rehab services, which also includes social activities.

Kerry returned to her role as executive assistant in October 2021 and one of her first tasks was making sure the organisation was making the most of its Chamber membership.

She spotted a chance to enter the CityFibre competition and was delighted to receive a recent phone call to say Atrium had won.

Kerry said: “There’s lots of support and opportunities on offer through the Chamber and I was looking at their website and saw the chance to win £1,000 worth of tech.

“For a social enterprise like us, that was too good an opportunity to miss so I entered. I didn’t tell anyone about it and didn’t think much more of it.

“Then, out of the blue, I got the call from Chris Nagle at the Chamber to say we had won. I couldn’t believe it and it was a big surprise for everyone.”

Atrium has now taken delivery of five Galaxy Tab A8s, two headsets and two digital timers that make up the £1,000 offered by CityFibre.

“As a social enterprise, we have to give careful consideration is given to all expenditure,” added Kerry, “so we wouldn’t have been able to go out and buy these items but we know they are going to make a big difference to the team that work here and to our members.”

Leigh Hunt, Regional Partnership Director at CityFibre, said: “We are thrilled that Atrium Health entered and won our competition with the Chamber.

“They do fantastic work in helping to rehabilitate people with serious, long term medical conditions and we are delighted that this prize will play a part in helping them to do that.

“For our part, we wanted to give something back to the city through the Chamber and continue to highlight and raise the profile of what CityFibre is doing to bring the fastest and most reliable broadband to homes and businesses in the region through a range of Internet Service Providers (ISPs).”

Chris Nagle, events, communications and marketing manager at the Chamber, said: “It’s great to see two member companies being brought together in this way. It is a wonderful gesture from CityFibre and we were all delighted for Kerry and the team at Atrium Health.”

In addition to the tech prize, Kerry also won dinner for two at the Telegraph Hotel.

Chamber Talks Business –

new podcast launched

A new podcast will reveal the story behind some of the region’s leading business figures.

The recently launched Chamber Talks Business podcast will feature in-depth interviews of people from a variety of sectors, finding out about their business success, what drives them and discovering any tips to running profitable ventures.

The pod is a new initiative of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce – and its head of policy Sean Rose is the man firing the questions.

Sean said the idea was to present a more rounded view of leading lights in the local business community.

He said: “The Chamber has a high media profile and we often quote leading members on a variety of topics, but they are all issue or business-led.

“All those people have forged successful careers here in Coventry and Warwickshire and we thought it would bring a higher level of insight if we were able to really explore what makes them tick, and how they have achieved their business success.

“Podcasts are the ideal way to do that and allow a far more informal – and often productive – interview setting. I have really enjoyed the first couple we have recorded and hopefully people will find them as interesting to listen to.”

Chamber Talks Business is recorded at 1 Mill Street’s state-of-the-art studio in Leamington, which plays host to Wasps, Warwickshire Cricket Club and the Cycling GK, which features Watford’s Leamington-born goalkeeper Ben Foster and now has more than a million subscribers.

Nigel Shanahan, who founded 1 Mill Street with his wife Dessie, said: “We are delighted that the Chamber, which has been the voice of businessfor more than a century, has recordedits podcasts from our studio.

“Everyone has people they admire and look up to in business, and hopefully the podcast will give some insight into what makes business leaders tick, and hopefully inspire people in their careers.”

The first business figure to be interviewed is Steve Harcourt, director of Prime Accountants Group. His interview was released on February 21 and can he heard on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or can be found on the Chamber’s Website.

Steve Harcourt (Prime Accountants Group), Tom Mongan (Chamber president), Nigel Shanahan (1 Mill Street), Sean Rose (Chamber)

Help us bring down the cost of doing business, Chancellor urged

Industry leaders in Coventry and Warwickshire have joined the urgent plea to the Chancellor to help ease the cost of doing business in the wake of a new survey.

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has surveyed more than 1,000 firms on the back of the current economic climate and 73 per cent say they will be increasing their prices due to rising costs.

More than three in five (62 per cent) have cited soaring energy bills as a major factor while 63 per cent say its due to an increase in wage bills.

Rising raw material costs and domestic taxes were also factors.

In response to the new research, BCC director general Shevaun Haviland has written to Chancellor Rishi Sunak warning of the dangers facing firms and that call is being backed by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce.

The BCC has outlined a five-point plan which, if implemented, will help businesses to weather the current conditions and keep price rises under control.

These measures include a temporary energy price cap for small businesses, extending the Chancellor’s energy bills rebate scheme for households to smaller businesses and delaying the planned National Insurance rise by a year.

Sean Rose, head of policy at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “Rising costs are having a major impact on businesses across the region and that is evidenced in this new survey from our colleagues at the British Chambers of Commerce.

“We are right behind the call from the BCC to the Chancellor to look at every option available to help reduce the cost of doing business for our members to help them overcome the barriers they are currently facing.

“With Covid-19 restrictions lifted, this should be a time for businesses to be focused solely on growing again but rising costs are making life difficult and that’s why we are calling for this support.”

BCC director general Shevaun Haviland said: “Without help from the Treasury to weather this storm many businesses, especially smaller ones, will be faced with a nearly impossible situation that will leave them with little choice but to raise prices.

“Our research has shown that businesses were drowning in rising costs even before the energy crisis began to bite. This latest data reveals that companies are now also under extreme pressure from spiralling gas and electricity bills as well as increased wages. "The majority are having to raise prices in response, though many are also being forced to scale back planned investment or cut other costs from their balance sheet.

“The Chancellor must implement our fivepoint plan to give firms a chance to stabilise without having to seriously increase their prices, cut jobs or the investment that is so vital to sustaining our economic recovery from Covid.

“Unabated, the surging cost pressures produced by the cost-of-doing-business crisis will continue to lead to increased prices and fuel the cost-of-living crisis currently being faced by people across the country.”