Area Focus: Coventry - Mid Warks - North Warks - South Warks - Rugby
Coventry & Warwickshire in business
New partnership sees four new gins on sale at local hotel are using the very best natural ingredients. We don’t add sugars or additives to our product and, coupled with using the best still, it creates a really smooth drink for our customers.” Luke added: “It’s going phenomenally well at the Holiday Inn in Kenilworth and, when you talk about local suppliers, we are literally a couple of miles down the road – you could walk here if you wanted to! “We’re really pleased to be here and it’s great to see it proving so popular.”
Luke Weetman, Hazel Pilling, Georgina Mitchell, Richie Bartle
A hotel in Kenilworth is serving customers with four brand new gins – and they are being distilled just a couple of miles away from the venue! Holiday Inn Kenilworth is offering the four gins from the Heritage range, which are made by East Chase Distillers based at East Chase Farm, off Chase Lane. The two companies began working together after being introduced by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce and it is already proving to be a perfect match. The hotel, which has recently refurbished its public spaces, is stocking Heritage’s London Dry, Citrus Orange, Rhubarb & Apple and Summer Fruits flavours and has already put in an order for more bottles just four weeks after they initially went on sale. East Chase Distillers is the brainchild of Kenilworth School friends Luke Weetman and Richie Bartle and, after several years in the planning, they launched in November 2022.
The Distillery opens every Friday night to the public but is also producing gins for the corporate market. A new flavour, Winter Berries, is set to launch later this year and rums, whiskies and brandies will follow. And Luke and Richie are delighted to see the products on offer at such a prominent hotel in Kenilworth. Richie said: “We both decided we wanted to move into distilling over a chance conversation in a bar around seven years. “There were a few hurdles in the way of us being able to launch – one being Covid – but we have overcome all of those and have invested in the best possible still from Germany and we’re making sure we use the very best ingredients. “Gin distilling is quite a crowded market and there are some good ones in Warwickshire so we’ve had to differentiate ourselves. “Part of that is the story behind the gins we are producing but also the fact that we
Georgina Mitchell is the business development manager for Bowling Green Asset Management, which operates the Holiday Inn Kenilworth. She joined eight weeks ago and immediately reached out to the Chamber. Georgina said: “I was keen to network and to buy locally and when I spoke to the Chamber they suggested I talk to East Chase Distillery and I am delighted I did. “I’ve only been in post for a couple of months but I see the importance of embedding yourself locally and there’s nothing like working with great suppliers to do that and we’re grateful to the Chamber for introducing us.” Hazel Pilling, membership manager at the Chamber, said: “It’s great to see two local businesses working together in this way and that’s what belonging to the Chamber is all about. I think we can all raise a toast to that!”
For more information on becoming a member of the Chamber go to www.cw-chamber.co.uk
New state-of-the-art domiciliary care suites unveiled at Warwickshire College New state-of-the-art domiciliary care suites to support the development of students seeking careers in the health and social sector have been unveiled at two Warwickshire colleges. WCG (Warwickshire College Group) has invested a total of £130,000 in the facilities at Rugby College and Royal Leamington Spa College. The care suites have been funded by the Government’s Strategic Development Fund and will enable students to replicate the professional environment they would experience after completing their college course. The facilities will be of benefit to all health and social care students at Rugby College and Royal Leamington Spa College, including in the delivery of T-Levels and adult-learning courses.
another which mirrors a care home or small residential flat.
The college group also plans to use the facility to help businesses in the health and social care sector to develop and upskill their staff. Royal Leamington Spa College has two separate care suites on site, with one which replicates a hospital ward setting and
Tracy Gibson, Head of Department for Health and Social Care at Rugby College, said: “Having these care suites across two of our
www.cw-chamber.co.uk
Businesses in mid-Warwickshire have been urged ask for support if they are unable to find people with the right skills to help them grow. Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce held its mid-Warwickshire branch meeting at the Holiday Inn in Kenilworth and a range of topics were discussed. The event was chaired by Chamber president Tom Mongan and heard how businesses across the area are faring in the current climate. Skills remains a key issue for many and the meeting heard from Heather Docksey, of Warwickshire County Council, who explained how Warwickshire Skills Hub can support businesses in their search for staff. Tom Mongan said firms should ask for help if they are unable to fill roles that will support their growth. He said: “We were extremely grateful to Heather for joining us at the branch meeting and it was great to hear that there is some incredible support on offer.
“They can talk to the team at the Chamber if they need advice and, also, see how the Warwickshire Skills Hub can support them as they offer a very wideranging service.
The second room includes a kitchen area, lounge area, dining area, shower and toilet to replicate a care home or small residential flat setting.
The funding has also enabled WCG to invest in a new virtual Metaverse learning platform, which will allow students to navigate around a virtual hospital ward. The college is also planning to use the virtual learning environment in marketing to potential students.
Ask for help if you are struggling to recruit, Warwickshire firms told
“I’d urge businesses who want to grow – but can’t find the right people – to speak up and ask for help.
The hospital ward features two adult beds and a child’s bed, with one area looking more like a paediatric ward. It includes a seating area for students, flexible study space, mannequins, and a hoist and pull chord to give the students a realistic experience of the hospital environment.
While the health room at Rugby College is a new hybrid-suite, combining the hospital and care home training suites in one room, enabling training on working in both environments in one compact space.
Marie Stephenson (Chamber), Rob Harrison (Glued), Tom Mongan (Chamber), Heather Docksey (Warwickshire County Council).
colleges in Warwickshire enables us to give students a more realistic idea of what they will face when they are out in employment. “The care suites replicate the environments they will experience after leaving the college or heading out on work placement. “We are looking to offer training to upskill existing workers in the care sector too at this facility and provide adult-learning courses for those people.”
To find out more about studying health and care courses at WCG visit www.wcg.ac.uk/study
“It’s great that they are looking at different ways to help solve the skills crisis but also looking at how they can support people who may have barriers to employment find work.” The meeting also discussed more longterm solutions for the skills issue. Tom added: “There were lots of views on skills and how we train and equip people for the future of the workplace. “The Chamber has done some great work on the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) and, with this being given the green light recently, it could be the first step on the way to solving an issue that has been around for many, many years.”
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