C&W in Business Sept 24

Skills for Life

Tracey Ashfield, Ashorne Hill’s Partnerships Manager, on training, travel and transferrable skills.

Page 20 and 21

7th December TH

DRINKS RECEPTION | THREE-COURSE MEAL RAFFLE | AUCTION | ENTERTAINMENT

Prices start from £80

SCAN HERE FOR DETAILS

Dear Member,

I hope you all had a good summer and now that the children are back at school, and a sense of routine returns, we are all ready to get ‘back to business.’

Firstly, we are excited to have announced the inaugural Coventry & Warwickshire Business and Community Awards, presented by your Chamber of Commerce. These are not going to be your usual awards as we are planning something very special. We are really pleased to be partnering with the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, to deliver a memorable moment in time for Coventry & Warwickshire, celebrating business and community, but more importantly the culture, music, food, and the people of our region. Entries will open in late September so keep your eyes peeled to our comms and socials for more information!

The front cover and feature interview of this edition is with one of our newest Business Influence Partners, Ashorne Hill. A well-established business in our patch. Ashorne Hill is a leading provider of learning, development and training and is also a beautiful venue for meetings and conferences. We have chosen Ashorne Hill as the venue for our forthcoming Green Futures Expo & Summit, as they are making great strides in their Net Zero and responsible business journey. I hope

you can join us on the 19th September to understand how you can progress your own Net Zero journey.

I recently took the time to meet up with Stephanie Kerr, who leads the Leamington BID, to understand the changing nature of our high streets and how our retailers, hospitality businesses and attractions are fairing in our cities and towns across the region. Since the pandemic, trading conditions have been tough, with more people now working from home, costs increasing, and BIDs are having to work harder than ever to drive footfall and spend. Have a read of my visit with Stephanie on Page 5.

Since the general election in May, we have been continuing to work with the new government on the big business issues which really matter to you.

It’s all eyes on the Autumn Statement and there are nerves over what tough decisions the Chancellor will make.

It feels like a long time since we saw real optimism from a government and patience is wearing thin with residents and businesses. Here’s hoping for a budget based on growth and investment and alongside, an extension to the LSIPs, to see flexibilities to the apprenticeship levy, tax incentives for businesses to work with schools, immediate changes to the planning processes, huge investment in our national and regional

infrastructure, quick movement on the industrial strategy and an explosion under the business rates systems. This will be a great start.

Finally, we have a bumper autumn of events planned so please do check in with the Chamber Events Team and join us at as many events as you can. Here’s just a taste of what we’ve have going on:

• International Trade Summit, 11th October, Holiday Inn Coventry

• B2B Expo Coventry, 23rd October, Village Hotel Coventry

• Transform AI Conference 2024, 23rd October, The Slate, University of Warwick

• AGM & Annual Business & Economic Conference, 8th November, IXL Events Centre

I look forward to seeing you at many of our events this autumn!

The official publication of the Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce

CONTACTS AT THE CHAMBER

News desk

Members are encouraged to send any news about their firm - new orders, staff, new products, expansions or relocationsfor 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 654321

F: 024 76 450242

AT THE PUBLISHERS

Publisher Ian Fletcher

Benham Publishing Limited

Aintree Building, Aintree Way, Aintree Business Park, Liverpool L9 5AQ

T: 0151 236 4141

F: 0151 236 0440

admin@benhampublishing.com

www.benhampublishing.com

Advertising Contact Karen Hall

karen@benhampublishing.com

T: 07801 788880

Production Manager

Mark Etherington

Accounts Director Joanne Casey

Media Number

2067

© Benham Publishing 2024

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.

King’s Speech support from businesses

The Chamber has backed the Government’s commitment to growth – and says firms are ready to meet the challenge of delivering a stronger economy.

The King’s Speech – announcing the new Government’s first legislative programme –vowed to take the brakes off the UK economy by speeding up planning, enhancing skills and creating an industrial strategy.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said the speech echoed much of what companies in the region had been calling for in the run up to the General Election.

He said: “There is absolutely no doubt that the Government is moving at speed and businesses like the sense of urgency – there is no time to lose in getting our economy moving again.

“It has been stagnating for many years and while Covid and its aftermath have had an impact, many of the fundamental issues were already there and have been exacerbated by global issues.

“When we looked towards the election, we wanted a focus on skills to equip the economy with the workforce of the future. We wanted the Government to make it easier and less costly to business and we wanted a planning regime

that, while providing the necessary checks and balances, allowed us to get on and build the homes, infrastructure and commercial property we need.

“We’ve fed this back directly and also through the British Chambers of Commerce and it feels like the new Government has listened.

“Of course, bills on the statute book do not deliver growth. The actions and the work that comes after is what will help businesses to grow and, in turn, move the economic dial in the right direction.

“But the sentiment around sustainable growth and – crucially – stability is something that we welcome after so many years of uncertainty.”

Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “The commitment to an industrial strategy could put in place a framework to unleash the pentup ambition of British business to grow the economy.

“If we use it to make green innovation a key driver of that growth, and link it to a coherent plan around skills, trade, devolution, and AI, then the possibilities could be endless.

“Billions of pounds of private investment have been held back by businesses which have been

watching and waiting for long-term certainty in the economy.

“The Government’s clear intention to speed up the planning system for large scale infrastructure can feed that business confidence, if it can be delivered. Measures to increase business resilience, reform of the apprenticeship levy and legislation to support sustainable aviation fuel could also boost the economy.

“Placing decision-making and funding in the hand of the people closest to their local economies, and the issues they face, while increasing a collaborative approach will also be welcomed.

“There are still big issues that need to be addressed. Improving our trade relationship with the EU will not be straightforward, and there will need to be detailed consultation with business on the Plan to Make Work Pay.

“But there is much in today’s speech which shows the voice of business has been heard and that Government is introducing measures that benefit firms and help unlock investment.

“We want to work in partnership with the Government to make this happen and shift the economy out of first gear to get it motoring again.”

Supporting Warwickshire’s businesses a key priority

An engineer who set-up his own business in Warwickshire after being left money in his dad’s will is geared up for a brighter future after making a major investment.

Mario McLaughlin was left £20,000 in the will of his late father, James, which he decided to invest in launching MJ Classic Engineering in Slingsby Close on the Attleborough Fields Industrial Estate in Nuneaton.

The business specialises in providing bespoke manufactured components for the defence, motorsport, and packaging industries as well as classic vehicles.

After speaking to John Fitzgerald from the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, he signed up to The Start-up programme which offers one to one bespoke business advice and also online and face-toface workshops that is part-funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and Warwickshire County Council.

That led to Mario joining workshops focused on marketing and social media as well as financial planning which gave Mario and Michelle, who joined her husband’s business last September, the confidence to invest £30,000 in a VMC machine which cuts materials from plastic to steel to help the business expand.

He said: “I have always wanted my own tool shop and I have loved working in engineering for the last 30 years.

“When my dad passed away, the money he left me in his will helped me to set up with two machines – and no customers!

“My first customer had a motorbike he wanted customising and he told someone else and word gradually spread and I know a lot of people having been in engineering for a long time.

“We work with household names in the automotive and manufacturing industry and are gaining increasing work from the pharmaceutical sector including producing tiny camera holders for ears for MND research and we are producing stainless coffin pins and adjustable stops which hold the coffins in place for two well-known funeral directors and hearse manufacturers.

“John from the Chamber got in touch to let me know the Chamber was looking to help small businesses and mentioned the online courses.

“We bought a CNC lathe a couple of years ago but the other older machine was too slow to keep up so we were looking at buying a VMC machine which is a fully automated milling machine and attending the financial planning workshop gave us great confidence in buying it and will be instrumental in us moving forward.”

Michelle McLaughlin added: “John has really opened our eyes to how other people view our business on our website and social media.

“We are still working through his advice and some of it is saving time in terms of linking Facebook to Instagram and others are saving us money through carrying out more of the basic accountancy tasks ourselves.”

John Fitzgerald, Start-Up business advisor at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “I think it’s really important to listen to businesses because that is how you help people. I listened to Mario and Michelle about how they got to this stage of their business, where they wanted to go and what they wanted to do.

“I could then suggest which of our workshops was most suitable from the Start-Up Programme because it is incredibly important to dedicate time into working on the business instead of just working in the business.”

The support was delivered by Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce is delivering free-funded

on behalf of Warwickshire County Council and Warwickshire’s five District and Borough Councils. The support is part funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (via Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council), and Warwickshire County Council. Councillor Martin Watson, Portfolio Holder for Economy at Warwickshire County Council, said: “Supporting Warwickshire’s businesses is a key priority for the County Council. It is great to see the positive impact the Start-Up programme and the tailored support and skills can provide to newer businesses; this is demonstrated through the advice and workshops provided to MJ Classic Engineering and the benefit this had on their business.”

Carol Ingleston, Economic Development Officer at Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council, said: “Nuneaton and Bedworth Council is committed to growing its local economy and supporting businesses to ensure they achieve their true potential.

“I was delighted to be able to see the impact that the business support offered by us, Warwickshire County Council and Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce has had on MJ Classic Engineering.

“The tailored support and expertise that the Business Growth Warwickshire programme provides is second to none. The scheme has had a huge impact across the borough.”

From the left, Mario and Michelle McLaughlin (MJ Classic Engineering),

Carol Ingleston (Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council), John Fitzgerald (CW Chamber of Commerce), Rebecca Corr (Warwickshire County Council) and Kalie Sahota (CW Chamber of Commerce)

Chamber CEO visits Leamington BID

Protecting the future of the high street

Chamber chief executive Corin Crane has been in post for more than two years and loves to travel the length and breadth of Coventry and Warwickshire – often on his bike!

This month, he headed to Leamington to catch up with Stephanie Kerr, the executive director of the Leamington Business Improvement District (BID) and chatted about everything from what makes a great town centre through to the thorny issue of business rates.

Corin Crane (CC): So, how long have you been doing this job?

Stephanie Kerr (SK): It’s coming up to 14 years.

CC: You must have seen so many businesses who have got it right and so many who have got it wrong. What is the magical sprinkle of dust for those who got it right?

SK: The businesses that thrive recognise that they need to offer something distinctive and of good quality. Customer service is key. I call it the welcome. If you are a leisure sector business you need to make people feel like they have just arrived home when they walk through the door. A new business needs to see their journey over a three-year strategy, and build a community around their business. We can help them build that community quicker than they could on their own and help them to hit the ground running. I’ll also help businesses behind the scenes to overcome some of the challenges they might be facing. It’s great to introduce you to two new independent businesses today - Gamefinity and Corner Cottage Bakery, who both bring some magic to town.

CC: You also put on events to draw people in to the town centre too.

SK: Yes, we have a range of events and festivals aimed at showcasing the town’s offer that we’ll get businesses along to, such as the Food and Drink Festival. If they are not able to attend, we’ll promote them at the event too. We also provide the enhancements that you see around town such as the wonderful hanging baskets, bunting and soon, new Christmas lights.

CC: The BID was voted back in again last year, what sort of annual budget are you working with?

SK: Our income from the BID levy is around £280,000 per year, and we generate some additional revenue from grants and events.

CC: And I bet there’s a lot of pressure on that budget.

SK: Our income has reduced in the time that I’ve been in this role because the ratable value of properties, which is set by the Valuation Office Agency, has been reduced. BIDs’ income is based on the ratable value of the properties within its area. And, if a retail premises is turned into offices, we lose income there too. We’ve had to do more with less but that’s just like a lot of businesses.

In the future, I’d like to invite more office-based businesses into the BID because the work we do benefits everyone. They can contribute on a voluntary basis but I’d like to formalise that.

CC: I love the BID model. To me it feels like community ownership but when you are conducting the vote, in an environment when people are already complaining about business rates, trying to convince them that it is an investment rather than an extra tax must be quite a job?

SK: It is. We work hard to try to demonstrate value and this can vary from business to business. We ask businesses to work with us as closely as they can to draw out the value. Some businesses will find that they fund the levy cost just from the Food & Drink Festival alone. For others, featuring on the website, Love Leam App or little book of offers is important. For some, it might just be the enhanced look of the town – hanging baskets, Christmas lights, the broader placemaking – or the partnership work and lobbying

we do behind the scenes on crime prevention, antisocial behaviour and cleanliness.

CC: A levy is different to a tax. You have to show that value.

SK: Yes, every five years businesses have a decision to make when they go to ballot on the BID. We consult very heavily. We write a new business plan and make sure what we are doing is of value to businesses and balance this with affordability. The levy is carefully set so we can do what we set out, but nothing more.

CC: So, you create that plan through consultation and partnership and it feels like a manifesto then that you can deliver against over the next five years. Get it right, and they’ll vote for it.

SK: Yes, every business can contribute to the discussion and the plan through surveys or through meeting me or the team. That way we can get the most buy-in possible. Business owners or managers can also consider joining our voluntary board of directors and be more involved in decisions.

CC: Is it right that your background is in town planning?

SK: Yes, my original training was in New Zealand in resource and environmental planning, which is town planning over here. I’ve worked in various countries as a development planner and, for the four-and-a-half years before this job, I was in a strategic planning role. Understanding the eco-system of a place is really where I come from. Everything impacts everything else. It’s all connected. If you change one thing, it has a knock-on effect elsewhere.

CC: Is there are difference between the academic approach to what a good place looks like compared to the practicalities when you are in a town like Leamington?

SK: That’s an interesting question. Here in the UK, the Government has been tweaking the national planning system for town centres. The planning use class order was diluted during Covid and for years now we’ve been waving the red flag around out-of-town shopping centres and the impacts of their expansion on town centres. As planners, we know it’s important to curate town centre spaces and to make it a community centre. We have to protect our core offer and, in some ways, local authorities are unable to do that now due to national policy changes. We can’t give up on doing everything we can to protect and support town centres.

CC: I wanted to ask you about business rates too, something that Governments have promised to review for many years and feels like it might finally be happening.

SK: I would like to work with the Chamber on this as we head towards the next Budget. It’s a huge threat. At the moment, the vast majority of our retail and leisure sector businesses in our town centre are benefiting from 75 per cent rates relief. If the new Government doesn’t continue to support that, it is going to be very difficult for them. We need to be speaking out about this now so they understand the critical importance of that rate relief even before they get to reviewing the wider business rates system.

It was 75 per cent this year and last year and at one point was 100 per cent during Covid. Businesses haven’t been paying full rates for years now and if suddenly they were it could be disastrous for them.

CC: The Autumn Statement will see the lines drawn in the sand for the what the Budget looks like for the next five years so we’ve got to do something now. Labour have promised a revolution on this and how you level the playing field between online businesses who don’t pay rates and businesses like those here in Leamington who do.

SK: The business rates system is a megalith of a system that you can never make 100 per cent fit for purpose but, as the retail and leisure sector has evolved, it’s become even less fit for purpose. It has to be looked at carefully but until they come up with an equitable system, they have to keep the current relief in place.

CC: That’s right. The Government can’t see an opportunity to raise some revenue by removing the relief because it could really impact high streets. Freeze the current arrangements and then look at what can be done in terms of business rates in the long term to protect wonderful town centres such as this.

Moving to a cheaper, greener energy system

From those polled, 45 percent say that the changes they have made have saved them money, with 40 percent believing that becoming more sustainable has attracted more customers, as well as enhancing their reputation within the local community (44 percent).

A recent poll of small businesses showed that nearly two thirds1 of Britain’s business owners and senior decision makers think it’s important to embrace environmental issues, with many also seeing financial benefits as a result.

consumption – which is good for budgets, as well as the planet.

Whether you own or rent your business premises, you may be eligible for a smart meter, and if you are renting, but pay your own energy bills, you can ask your supplier to install one3

With running costs remaining a concern for many small business owners, one in three polled2 say they are keeping a closer eye on their energy bills. When it comes to managing energy usage and costs, one small step small business owners can take, is to get a smart meter installed. They are the next generation of gas and electricity meters that are being installed in small businesses and households in Great Britain, replacing traditional meters.

When it comes to running a business, even making small changes and improvements can make a big difference, whether it’s saving money or being good for the planet. Getting a smart meter can help owners to understand exactly how much energy they are using and help them to control energy costs. A smart meter can also help identify ways to reduce energy

SMART METER BENEFITS

Smart meters have lots of benefits for small businesses, including:

• Accurate billing: smart meters measure energy usage in near real-time, so no more manual readings or estimated bills. This means you only pay for the energy you use, which can help with managing cashflow

• Control: the data provided by smart meters can give you more control over your business’ energy spend, helping you monitor energy usage and identify where cost savings can be made

Access to historic energy usage data: small businesses with a smart meter can request free access to 12 months

of data from their energy supplier. This could help with budgeting and reduce bill shock. It could also help you plan for your next bill by identifying any trends or patterns in your energy use across the year

As well as helping to give you more control of your business budgeting, smart meters are playing an important role in Great Britain’s energy infrastructure upgrade, as we continue to increase our use of cheaper, greener renewable energy sources.

The data smart meters provide is key to this innovation, and will enable us to buy, store and consume energy differently to the way we do today, gathering the information the energy networks need that will help the energy system better manage supply and demand. This will make the whole system more efficient and able to use more renewables such as wind and solar power.

So just by having a smart meter installed, you’re helping to create a smarter, greener energy system that will benefit Britain, the planet - and you.

What Small Business Owners are doing to become more sustainable:

1. Turning off equipment when not in use

2. Recycling old IT equipment

3. Creating a recycling policy

4. Keeping a much closer eye on energy bills

5. Replacing lights with LED alternatives

6. Using environmentally friendly products eg for cleaning

7. Reusing plastic carrier bags

8. Going paperless

9. Using local suppliers

10. Using eco-friendly/ biodegradable packaging

“By helping them to take steps to be more efficient with their energy use, smart meters can have a positive effect on a business’ carbon footprint, as well as helping them save money.”

Source: Perspectus Global, July 2024, 500 SME owners and senior decision makers across Great Britain

Connectivity at your fingertips with Pink Connect

In a world where connectivity is key, businesses must prioritise speed and reliability in their mobile contracts. Pink Connect specialises in meeting the needs of businesses, offering plans tailored to professional communication requirements.

Partnering with top network providers like EE, Vodafone, Three and O2 ensures extensive coverage and seamless connectivity for users.

Pink Connect specifically tailor their plans to address the unique demands of businesses,

offering a range of features and benefits that cater to the communication needs of a professional setting.

With advanced security measures in place, businesses can explore new opportunities and ensure data stays secure, says Pink Connect, whilst increasing your business productivity and staying connected on the go.

Pink Connect is ready to assist in selecting the ideal package for your business and can be contacted on tellmemore@pinkconnect.com.

Ashorne Hill, enhancing team development through Psychometrics

At Ashorne Hill, we provide the latest psychometric tools to help learners identify their strengths and areas for development to ensure they unlock their full potential. Our Insights Discovery® sessions help organisations understand and develop their employees on a deeper level through in-depth psychometric profiling features, the four-colour energies, and facilitated sessions with our learning professionals.

Individuals who begin their Insights Discovery® journey will learn how others work and reflect and adapt their own working styles to create an effective working

environment. These sessions are a chance for organisations and their employees to collaborate, communicate, and network with each other and provide further insight into their strengths and improvement areas.

Organisations that use psychometric testing can build a better understanding of their employees to create a positive workplace culture. Having a deeper insight into how their workforces prefer to work as individuals and as part of a team will significantly help companies recognise how their values and behaviours align with their wider teams.

Our collaborative approach at Ashorne Hill allows individuals to understand their Insights Discovery® profiles, explore the Insights wheel and its meaning, receive personal coaching, and develop an action plan to take into their job roles. We support organisations and their teams through a variety of specific programmes that target teamwork, leadership development, change management, and sales effectiveness. By using Insights Discovery®, organisations will be able to successfully navigate future challenges and changes in the workplace and equip their teams with a better understanding of themselves and others.

Is your organisation considering using Psychometrics to enhance their team development?

Ashorne Hill has an offer for Chamber members: Receive 25% off our Insights Discovery Workshop when booked before 29th November 2024.

Find out more by visiting: https://ashornehill.co.uk/learning-cb/ or contact us on learning@ashornehill.co.uk

Here’s what one of our clients had to say about our Insights Discovery Workshop:

“We took our team of 50 leaders ranging in experience from brand new in leadership to those with over 30 years under their belts through the Discovery to Insights session. We have been thrilled with the engagement and hunger to develop further from those involved. I have been part of many conversations where people have been able to use what they learnt in Insights to improve a relationship at work. Our teams have uncovered a new way of communicating through a better understanding themselves and others personal learnings and preferred communication methods. The sessions themselves are fun as well as informative and self-reflective and the facilitation is first class.”

Katie Bannister, JLR Change and Strategy Manager

College students achieve outstanding success in exam results

A college group in the Midlands is celebrating the outstanding achievements of its students after receiving an exemplary set of course results.

WCG (Warwickshire College Group) received results for learners across all six of its colleges for A Level, BTEC, City & Guilds Technical, Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) and T Level courses.

Students have received results at Royal Leamington Spa College, Rugby College, Warwick Trident College, Moreton Morrell College, Pershore College and Evesham New College.

The 2023/24 academic year saw the first set of students complete T Level courses at the college group, with a 93.3 per cent pass rate, in courses including computing, construction and engineering.

Students have also completed a wide range of BTEC courses, including agriculture, Early Years, sport, Esports, animal management, equine management, business and many more.

The college group has marked 100 per cent completion rate for Level 3 City and Guilds

qualifications in floristry, delivered from Moreton Morrell College.

A Level courses delivered from Royal Leamington Spa College and Rugby College include a 100 per cent pass rate in subjects including criminology, law, psychology, business, and economics, with over 90 per cent pass rate for sociology and English literature.

Simon Philpott, Assistant Principal at WCG, said: “This year we have demonstrated strong performance across a wide range of qualifications at our colleges in Warwickshire and Worcestershire.

“Our students can now look forward to a bright future with these qualifications under

Counselling and Psychotherapy course gains accreditation

A foundation degree course which is helping to train and develop psychological counsellors across the Midlands has been accredited by a leading professional association.

Counselling and Psychotherapy (FdSc) at Warwickshire College and University Centre (WCUC) has been awarded accredited training recognition by the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS).

Graduates from the course will now have fulfilled the training requirements for the Accredited Register of Counsellors.

WCUC is the higher education arm of college group WCG (Warwickshire College Group) and the newly accredited course is delivered at Royal Leamington Spa College in Warwickshire and Pershore College in Worcestershire.

The NCPS is a not-for-profit professional organisation which ensures that all of its registrants are safe, competent and ethical practitioners.

Courses accredited by the NCPS have been through a full assessment and inspection to ensure they meet the standards for training and education set by the professional association.

Course graduates are recognised as being safe, competent and ethical practitioners who can maintain personal boundaries, use professional supervision and develop skills in ethical decision making.

their belt, whether that be pursuing higher education options or making an immediate contribution to the workforce.

“We are proud to deliver courses which develop skilled individuals who have the knowledge and practical experience to excel and thrive in the job market by meeting the needs of the modern economy.”

James Stacey, Head of A-Levels at WCG, added: “This is the culmination of two years of hard work and each student has worked really hard and shown great resilience to get to this point.

“Whether they are moving into employment, an apprenticeship or on to Higher Education, we look forward to following their next steps and everything they go on to achieve.”

WCG provides help and advice for all students, whatever their grades, and can offer guidance on all the options available to students receiving their results. WCG’s Careers Advice team can be reached on 0300 456 0048 and the group’s Higher Education clearing line is 0330 135 6840.

Once students have completed the course at WCUC, they are able to join the NCPS’ register of practitioners.

Last year 60 students were enrolled on the course across Pershore College and Royal Leamington Spa College.

Gaynor Boileau, HE Subject Leader for Counselling and Psychotherapy at WCUC, said: “This accreditation is recognition of the high standards we set in delivering the course and supporting our students to develop into well-rounded and excellent professionals.

“Having the accredited mark from the NCPS is fantastic for our staff and our students, it will enable students to join the professional register after completing their course with us and give them a great foundation to start their careers as counsellors and therapists.”

To find out more about studying Counselling and Psychotherapy (FdSc) at Warwickshire College and University Centre (WCUC), visit www.wcuc.ac.uk

Coventry and Warwickshire partnership launches new event to boost business for hospitality sector suppliers

Coventry and Warwickshire’s diverse range of hospitality sector suppliers will have a chance to boost their business at a new region-wide event.

The Coventry & Warwickshire Food and Drink Showcase will be held on Tuesday, September 24 at Warwick Racecourse, and aims to encourage businesses to discover and use local suppliers.

It’s the second major event to be organised by the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP).

It will provide opportunities for exhibitors to meet buyers and decision makers from hotels, venues, attractions and other industry suppliers.

More than 35 exhibitors are set to feature, including a range of independent food and drink producers; from distillers, vineyards and breweries, to beekeepers and chocolatiers.

Many are also all part of the growing Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Producers Network. The collaboration supports this important sector, through the creation of strong local peer support networks, industry events and business support.

Experts will also be exhibiting and highlighting services that can help to grow and develop hospitality businesses, including marketing companies, AV suppliers and business support services.

It is a hybrid event, with the morning a closed event for business-to-business networking, sales and peer-to-peer support. There will be workshops and talks from experts, including Mark Farr from Purple Planet Packaging, and food demonstrations on a live stage.

The showcase is being hosted on the day of the Grand Season Opener at Warwick Racecourse. From 1pm it will switch to a public event giving producers the opportunity to sell to hundreds of racegoers.

The Food and Drink Showcase is hosted by Destination Coventry, Shakespeare’s England, Warwickshire County Council and Coventry City Council.

Business support advisors will be present throughout the day to help signpost hospitality businesses to funding and support available.

This event merges the Coventry & Warwickshire Food & Drink Showcase and the Coventry & Warwickshire Meet the Supplier Event.

Colleen Muldoon-Taylor, Business Development Manager at Destination Coventry, said: “Hospitality businesses across our region are always searching for local hero products to help their offer stand out from the crowd.

“We are proud to be collaborating with our partners to host an event which will cultivate and enable further partnership working across Coventry and Warwickshire.

“At the last Meet the Supplier event, one hospitality business made connections with four food and drink producers. Their products now feature across the operator’s venues.

“The hybrid nature means that exhibitors will get the chance to showcase their products to two distinct audiences, creating meaningful connections and building

business leads in the morning, and then the opportunity to sell direct to the public in the afternoon.”

Darren Tosh, Operations and Marketing Director at south Warwickshire’s tourism board Shakespeare’s England, added: “South Warwickshire is blessed with an array of independent and award-winning food and drink businesses who are well known among consumers locally and from afar – and this event provides a fantastic opportunity for them to expand even further with corporate partnerships.

“Consumers are seeking memorable experiences, which presents a real opportunity for hospitality suppliers to shout about the story and uniqueness of their products - whether it is inspired by history, made in a unique way or is adopting a new approach.

“We are excited at the prospect of hospitality firms from across the wider Coventry and Warwickshire patch collaborating so that our region’s products – and the local economy – can reach new heights.”

Launched in 2022, and supported by VisitEngland, the Coventry & Warwickshire LVEP sees the region’s two leading tourism bodies and local authority stakeholders work in partnership to promote and support tourism businesses.

Councillor Jim O’Boyle, cabinet member for jobs, regeneration and climate change at Coventry City Council, said: “The hospitality and food and drink sector is really important in Coventry and across the wider region and it supports a range of jobs directly and in the supply chain.

“Events like this are a great opportunity for businesses to showcase what they do and in a double opportunity here they get to do this to the trade and to members of the public. It really is a win, win. I wish everyone a really successful event, and I am pleased that we are working so closely with Warwickshire County Council to help ensure this sector thrives and grows.”

Councillor Martin Watson, portfolio holder for Economy at Warwickshire County Council, said: “The food and drink showcase is a great opportunity for local suppliers to demonstrate their range of produce, knowledge and expertise in this field. It’s great to see a local Warwickshire venue working with our partners to deliver this great event.

“As a region we have an excellent range of suppliers of food and drink, and they are vital towards our economic growth. The showcase event is a great opportunity to raise the profile of what Coventry and Warwickshire has to offer across this important sector, helping to support our local economy.

“The work with our partners at Coventry City Council to develop the Coventry and Warwickshire Producers Network has proved invaluable in helping suppliers connect, collaborate, access business support services and grow.”

Members of the public seeking to attend the showcase in the afternoon will need to be ticket holders for the Grand Season Opener at Warwick Racecourse.

Coventry & Warwickshire Business & Community Awards 2025

A new awards programme that celebrates the best of business and wider contributions to the community in Coventry and Warwickshire is being launched this autumn ahead of a first ceremony in the spring.

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce has developed the Coventry & Warwickshire Business & Community Awards 2025 to celebrate innovation, global success and growth as well as inclusivity and commitment to the community.

Entries for the ten award categories will open in September, before a shortlist is drawn up by a team of judges ahead of a glittering ceremony at the Belgrade Theatre next March.

The awards have been designed to celebrate everything that is great about the region and, as well as being an opportunity

for businesses to apply for an award, the event will also utilise the services of local suppliers including for food & drink and entertainment.

A launch event will take place at the end of September when the full list of categories will be announced, and the application process will be opened.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said the awards would reflect the broad business base in the region and would celebrate commercial success as well as social value.

He said: “We’ve been talking for some time about bringing an awards event to Coventry and Warwickshire that champions the brilliance of our businesses and those who do amazing work in our communities.

“And we’re thrilled to be launching the Coventry & Warwickshire Business & Community Awards 2025 because they will do exactly that. It will be an awards event, but with a difference.

“We want to be able to attract the biggest companies in the region right through to grassroots organisations to be part of it. Business growth means more jobs, more investment and a stronger regional economy and that should be felt right across our communities so it’s something we have to highlight and celebrate.

“We’ll be announcing details of our launch event very soon, but this is not going to be an awards ceremony for an exclusive club –we want to celebrate everything that is great about Coventry and Warwickshire in the lead up to the event and on the night too.

“This is a fantastic region in so many ways – and we’re going to shout about it!”

The Belgrade Theatre will host the awards ceremony and has also joined forces with the Chamber as a partner on the event.

Neil Murray, Belgrade Theatre Interim CEO, said: “We are delighted to work alongside the Chamber and to support this important event. As a venue and an organisation in the heart of Coventry, that’s worked so closely with its varied businesses and communities since 1958, we’re incredibly proud to play host to this inaugural ceremony. We welcome the opportunity to show off our extraordinary building and also, hopefully, to give a flavour of the range of work that happens here and in our neighbouring communities. We look forward to extending a warm Belgrade welcome to everyone next spring.”

With

Tiger Events offers a comprehensive range of services, including:

Proven Success

With a 100% client satisfaction rate, Tiger Events boasts a portfolio that includes successful collaborations on a wide variety of high-profile events Their experience and dedication make them a trusted partner for creating memorable experiences while driving both financial and operational success.

“Their passion, dedication and attention to detail is what drives their perfection and precision in event delivery.”

ontact us today to scover how we can rn your next event to a roaring success!

International Trade

Go global!

Firms in Coventry and Warwickshire will be shown how they can boost their bottom line by trading globally at a major event this autumn.

Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce is holding an International Trade Summit on Friday, October 11, at the Holiday Inn in Walsgrave to offer practical advice and tips on doing business overseas to help boost exports, which research from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) shows are static.

The Chamber wants to encourage more companies from across the region to trade internationally from France to Finland and from Asia to Africa because of the benefits it brings to both the individual businesses and the wider economy.

Delegates will hear from a range of speakers and will also be able to take part in live link-up sessions that can help to develop trade links with the Middle East & Asia, Europe and Africa.

The event will also explore some real-life stories of local exporters who have achieved success as well as updating on the latest information on what Government support is available for overseas trade.

Lloyds Bank is the headline partner for the event and will deliver a session on how to identify export markets and ensure a business has the working capital to be able to grow international sales.

Independent Freight and GWCI Consulting are also partners for the event and it should

all add up to a practical, easy-to-understand guide to exporting from experts in the field and those who are already doing it.

Corin Crane, chief executive of Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said:

“Trading overseas is of huge importance. The evidence tells us that businesses that export have a much better chance of growing, a better chance of survival and are much more productive in everything that they do.

“It is fair to say that the past few years haven’t been easy – with Brexit and Covid –when it comes to international trade but it’s time to really grasp every opportunity that doing business overseas can bring.

“Our summit last year proved to be extremely popular and we had businesses wanting to book on for this year straight away because of the very practical and informative nature of the event.

“We want to remove some of the hurdles and psychological barriers that businesses who have never exported face and once they realise they can do it and that there’s support out there for them, they will never look back.

“Equally, we want to show those businesses that already export into one or two markets that there is whole world of opportunities available to them and our live link-up sessions will be a really exciting way of doing that.

“It should be a great event but, more importantly, we want it to have a genuine impact on the number of businesses from our region who are selling the amazing goods and

services we have to offer to the rest of the world.”

Liam Smyth, Director of Trade Facilitation at the BCC, will be a guest speaker at the event. He said: “International trade is the lifeblood of our economy and Chambers are integral to making that happen. Accredited Chambers facilitate around £16bn of trade annually and are recognised experts in helping firms export.

“We firmly believe that international trade can make every business a better one. The world of trade is in constant flux; fresh markets are emerging, digitalisation is accelerating, and more sustainable goods and services are being developed.

“There has never been a better time to get involved. This trade summit is a great chance for businesses to find out more and explore the opportunities ahead.”

For more information or to book on go to https://www.cw-chamber.co.uk/events/ international-trade-summit/

First Volvo Aero hits the streets of Birmingham through its global solutions

Volvo’s new FH Aero truck will soon be hitting the roads of Birmingham for the first time emblazoned in LTS Global Solutions colours as it joins the Coleshill company’s fleet of vehicles.

The Globetrotter Aero, which is part of the FH range has a unique aerodynamic design and boasts a potential 5% fuel saving, is the first of the new flagship vehicles to be supplied by Hartshorne Group – a Volvo Truck dealer with which LTS has had a relationship for a number of years.

It is an exciting addition to the LTS Global Solutions fleet and one which continues the company’s continued commitment to further increase fuel efficiency and reduction in carbon footprint.

The new Volvo FH is highly efficient whilst at the same time ideally suited for long haul tasks. Unique in design, the front of the Volvo FH Aero cab has been extended by 24 centimetres which has created a more aerodynamic cab as well as providing better driving stability.

It is also fitted with a Volvo camera monitoring system eliminating the need for external cameras and screens. The system also further contributes to fuel saving whilst at the same time opening the visual field for the driver, improving driver safety and that

of vulnerable road users. Crucially it is also effective in rainy and dark conditions as well as direct sunlight.

Additional features include Volvo’s new turbo-compound diesel 460hp engine, I-Shift which makes driving smooth, comfortable and efficient, drag free disc brakes which further reduce costs and carbon footprint, Volvo’s I-see technology and a tyre monitoring system.

LTS Global Solutions which this year celebrates its 25th anniversary, is a leading

logistics and supply chain management company and operates from its state of the art 133,000 sq ft Logistics Centre of Excellence facility at Prologis Park based at Hams Hall. The new Aero will also feature LTS’ new distinctive livery to mark its business milestone.

Established in 1999 and undergoing a successful management buyout in 2020, the company has an impressive pedigree and prides itself on delivering end-to-end transport, logistics and supply chain solutions to its customers.

LTS Global Solutions has continued to go from strength to strength and today operates a modern fleet comprising more than 60 vehicles from vans through to 44 tonnes all of which are Euro 6 compliant.

The forward-thinking company has also taken a robust and data-led approach to reducing its operational carbon footprint and has recently achieved Planet Mark Business Certification which certifies and recognises progress in reducing carbon emissions across Scopes 1, 2 and core elements of Scope 3.

To promote this achievement, LTS Global Solutions has incorporated the Planet Mark logo on both its new electric vehicle as well as the new Aero.

(United

Warehousing

Awards for Excellence.

Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK was crowned the winner in the Infrastructure category at the recent UKWA Annual Lunch & Awards held in London. The UKWA Award for Excellence in Infrastructure celebrates the achievements of an organisation that has opened a new or improved logistics building or development that brings additional capacity to the market.

The award win showcases the company’s brand-new, sustainable warehousing development in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, that was officially opened in April of this year and brings almost one million square feet of highquality warehousing capacity, to the market, and provides significant new employment to the local area.

The two warehouses are certified ‘BREEAM Outstanding’ with over 160,000 pallet spaces and 130 dock doors and are ideally situated in the heart of the ‘Golden Logistics Triangle’, a prime location nearby the M1, M69, M6 and M42, which is ideal for quick and easy access to all the major transport links and parcel hubs, thereby allowing businesses to benefit from later order cut-off and collection times.

Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK offers companies dependable and flexible solutions, providing B2B and B2C warehousing, customs bonded warehousing, fulfilment, value-added services, returns management and distribution for a variety of multi-channel retailers and high-profile UK and International brands, across a range of sectors.

In addition to this award win, Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK were also winners of the UKWA Award for Excellence in Sustainability last year, for its pioneering sustainability measures at the Nuneaton Campus, highlighting how the company is focused and committed to energy efficiency, carbon reduction and implementing environmental initiatives.

Harry Wheelhouse, Business Development & Marketing Director at Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK, commented: “We are immensely proud to have won the 2024 UKWA Award for Excellence in Infrastructure for our brand-new facility in Nuneaton that brings almost a million square feet of ‘BREEAM Outstanding’ certified warehousing capacity to the market.

And with our award win at last year’s UKWA Awards in the Sustainability category too, we couldn’t be more thrilled that our efforts and dedication have been recognised once again by such an important industry association, which confirms how we stand out amongst our competitors to be a market-leading and awardwinning logistics provider.”

For more information on Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK and its award-winning Campus in Nuneaton, please visit https://www.rhenus.group/uk.

Corin Crane hosting the 2023 International Trade Summit

HSBC UK supports advertising agency to open new HQ

A Birmingham advertising agency has opened a new headquarters in the city’s Jewellery Quarter with the support of a £380,000 funding package from HSBC UK.

BBJ&K Limited received support from HSBC UK’s face-to-face Business Banking team, which operates locally across Coventry, Warwickshire and the wider West Midlands.

The funding enabled BBJ&K, who were previously based in a leased office space, to purchase a 2,500 sq. ft. four-storey building featuring neon signs, a dedicated canteen area and meeting room spaces.

In addition, the new site now houses the agency’s employees and will be a base for clients to visit the company. The funding from HSBC UK is also further supporting the company’s growth, with the hiring of four new members of staff.

HSBC supports businesses of all sizes from start-ups right through to Global Corporates operating across the world.

HSBC UK Commercial Banking has a local presence in over 50 markets. Through its Relationship Managers and digital capabilities, it connects entrepreneurial businesses to opportunities.

It meets customers’ day-to-day financial needs by providing cross-border trade and treasury services, helping them become more sustainable, and by giving them access to products and services offered by the HSBC Group.

It has the financial strength to support customers with working capital, term loans and acquisition or project finance, the digital tools to help them manage their finances efficiently, and the expertise to help them raise money from the stock and bond markets.

The face-to-face Business Banking team supports exciting SMEs with complex needs either in terms of debt (greater than £500k) or complexity of product; or if they are fast growing, internationally trading or requiring strategic support due to turnover size.

There are 16 Relationship Managers providing financial help and support to businesses across Greater Birmingham in a team led by Area Director Mark Lupton and Deputy Area Director Tammy Shepherd.

Steve Eames, Richard Swift, Nicole Bradley, Vishal Dattani and Mandeep Kaur are Relationship Managers operating across Coventry and Warwickshire.

It was Steve who provided support to BBJ&K, which works with a range of UK and international clients.

Emma Baxter, Co-founder at BBJ&K, said: “Our new headquarters is a significant milestone in our growth plan as we establish our presence in the West Midlands.

“Employee wellbeing is a cornerstone of our business, and with the support of HSBC UK, we are excited to move into a new office where we can create a more functional working environment, supporting the development of our team and the growth of our business.”

Steve Eames, Relationship Manager at HSBC UK, added: “BBJ&K is an awardwinning business in the Midlands, and it has been a pleasure supporting the company with the opening of the new headquarters as the team continues on its growth journey.”

For more information about HSBC UK, contact: Steve Eames at steven.j.eames@hsbc.com or by calling 07387 246796, Richard Swift at richard1.j.swift@hsbc.com or by calling 07387 247403, Vishal Dattani at vishal. dattani@hsbc.com or by calling 07387 248060, Nicole Bradley at nicole.bradley@hsbc.com or by calling 07584 404319 and Mandeep Kaur at mandeep.johalkaur@hsbc.com or by calling 07384 792624.

Building a better future through more sustainable products

A global building and construction materials provider which has a strong presence in the Midlands is aiming to build a better future through more sustainable products and solutions.

Cemex boasts a proud heritage in the UK, particularly across the Midlands region with around 600 of its 2,000 UK employees working within Warwickshire and the West Midlands.

It has its UK Head Office in Coventry and one of the largest cement plants in the UK based in Rugby, Warwickshire – a site which can trace its operations back to 1826 when a small family business owned by Thomas Walker and his son George Walker started producing lime mortar.

The Cemex global Headquarters is based in Mexico and it has operations spanning North and South America, and across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Now, Cemex offers cement, ready-mix concrete, aggregates, and urbanisation solutions in over 100 markets around the world, and the materials produced by Cemex are the very foundation of society, helping to provide new homes, schools, hospitals, leisure facilities and other vital infrastructure across the UK and beyond. Today, Cemex is committed to achieving carbon neutrality through relentless innovation and industry-leading research and development.

This is driven by its global Future in Action programme with the ultimate aim of becoming a carbon net zero business by 2050.

This is a multi-layered programme in response to tackling climate change and focuses on providing more sustainable products, decarbonising its operations, enhancing biodiversity and promoting a circular economy.

Cemex’s Vertua product range is a portfolio that encompasses building materials such as cement, concrete, mortar and asphalt among others, and demonstrates either a lower carbon embodiment, the use of recycled materials, improved thermal efficiency or increased water conservation and design optimisation.

At its Rugby cement plant, Cemex is using an alternative fuel made from non-recyclable waste to help produce more sustainable cements.

By using this innovative and pioneering Climafuel® solution, it has significantly reduced the use of traditional fossil fuels in cement production, which has contributed to a reduction of 47 per cent in carbon emissions across its European operations since 1990.

Cemex is also at the forefront of the circular economy in the construction value chain, and through its Regenera sites is increasing the use of recycled construction waste to produce concretes with recycled aggregates in order to reduce the impact of single-use materials.

Martin Casey, Director of Public Affairs, Communications and Social Impact at Cemex EMEA, said: “Due to being large landowners and leaseholders, Cemex is uniquely placed to benefit nature and we take our duty as

responsible stewards of the land we quarry extremely seriously.

“Our longstanding partnership with the RSPB has seen us develop over 1,500 hectares of land as part of restoration work at our quarry sites which aims to enhance biodiversity, allowing plants and animals to flourish as we seek to leave a positive lasting legacy on our world.

“In Mexico, our El Carmen project includes the preservation of the biodiversity of 55 thousand hectares of land, where around 12 million tons of CO2 are stored.

“We have also reintroduced the American bison to the area as a critical species in ecosystems which favour the restoration of grasslands to generate greater CO2 capture.

“Alongside our efforts to tackle climate change, Cemex supports businesses small and large, from independent professional builders working on home renovations through to industrial construction and civil engineering infrastructure projects.

“Encompassing the homes we live in, to the facilities we use for recreation and leisure, and the infrastructure that gets us from A to B, we aim to help improve quality of life and build a better future through the provision of more sustainable building and construction materials across the UK and beyond.”

For more about Cemex, visit https://www.cemex.com/

The Cemex plant in Rugby.

Deputy Area Director Tammy Shepherd, Relationship Managers Steve Eames, Vishal Dattani and Mandeep Johal Kaur, and Area Director Mark Lupton.

Business Engage Profiles

McDonald’s franchise focuses on making a difference

A McDonald’s franchise in Warwickshire which is committed to its employees, customers and the wider community has launched a number of collaborative schemes to make a difference in its local area.

People Arches Limited began running the McDonald’s on Emscote Road, which borders Warwick and Leamington Spa, in December 2023.

Under the leadership of Director Dawood Ibtehsam, the restaurant has a diverse workforce of 81 employees, all aged between 16 and 64, spanning 17 different nationalities.

Dawood, who has a background in operations management, logistics, commerce and supply chain, was keen to ensure the restaurant strives to create a positive and lasting impact on the area it serves, and has worked with his team to develop a number of initiatives to support the local community.

One of its key partnerships is with Coventry and Warwickshire Mind, where People Arches Limited focuses on providing mental health support to both employees and customers by welcoming the charity’s support truck to the restaurant once a month.

The team is also dedicated to keeping the community clean and safe, and conducts regular “Trash Walks” which have seen

employees walk 1,000 miles and collect almost 500 bags of litter from the streets of Warwick and Leamington Spa.

People Arches Limited worked with the local council to identify the areas most in need of support. The walks now take place three times a week.

In addition, the franchise collaborates with Warwickshire Hearts to provide essential CPR training to locals, offering its space for life-saving training to help equip the community with vital skills.

Finally, People Arches Limited donates to its local foodbank once a month, ensuring that those in need have access to essential supplies.

Dawood said: “At People Arches Limited we believe that a successful business goes beyond serving great food. Our mission is to be a people-centred company that deeply cares for our community, our customers and our employees.

“Through our commitment to hospitality and community service, we strive to create a positive and lasting impact on the areas we serve.

“Our restaurant is more than just a place to enjoy a meal - it’s a hub for community engagement and support.

“We’ve made it our goal to offer a unique and welcoming experience for all our guests. With a friendly bunny mascot, face painting for children and engaging

merchandise, we aim to create memorable moments that keep our customers coming back.

“But what truly sets People Arches Limited apart is our deep-rooted commitment to the Warwick and Leamington Spa communities.

“We believe in leading by example, and that’s why we’ve partnered with several local charities to give back in meaningful ways.

“All of these initiatives have been chosen by members of the team who are all keen to do the right thing for our community.

“We understand that a strong community makes for a stronger business, and we are proud to be a part of the fabric of Warwick and Leamington Spa.

“Since taking over the restaurant in December last year, People Arches Limited has seen growth in both sales and customer satisfaction.

“Looking to the future, we remain committed to deepening our community impact, exploring new ways to engage with our customers and continuing to grow within the McDonald’s brand.”

Expansion plans for commercial insurance broker

A commercial insurance broker covering the full spectrum of trades and industry sectors is expanding its team after a period of organic growth.

Kingsway Insurance has taken on three new members of staff during the last three months, and is actively recruiting for more after recommendations and networking has seen the company grow rapidly.

The family business was established in Lutterworth in 1959 and works with companies across Coventry and Warwickshire, the wider Midlands and across the UK.

While still trading individually as a family business, Kingsway Insurance became part of the billion-dollar company Brown and Brown in 2022 - one of the largest and most respected independent insurance brokerages in the world.

It offers a range of competitive insurance products for any commercial business, including wholesalers, retail and leisure

businesses, contractors and the motor trade.

The broker also has a particular specialism in manufacturing and engineering insurance products and has a large number of clients within the industry.

One of the unique services provided by Kingsway Insurance is motorsport insurance, with the company being the only UK broker to offer motorsport insurance through Allianz Insurance.

It is now looking to recruit for new sales and administration roles and is looking for people of all levels of experience to join the business.

Adam Birrell, of Kingsway Insurance, said: “We pride ourselves on being insurance and risk experts who take the time to understand our clients’ businesses, offering the kind of bespoke personal insurance service that is increasingly becoming a rarity.

“We’re a family business, but can still offer competitive prices which really helps to set us apart and has seen us grow organically.

“We work with a range of businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire and the wider Midlands, but we also work with businesses right across the UK.

“Thanks to this continued success, we’re now looking to expand our team to support this growth and future-proof the business.

“We’re looking for people at any level, and can provide the relevant training for the right people.

“Of our three most recent hires, one person is an apprentice and one has made a complete career change and we will be funding his insurance exams – so it really is all about having the right attitude and enthusiasm for the role.

“We’re really excited about continuing this momentum and expanding our client base

further by supporting even more businesses across the area.”

Kingsway Insurance is offering Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce members 10 per cent off business insurance by contacting Adam Birrell and quoting the code Members10.

Further information about the company and the insurance services available can be found by visiting https://kingswayinsurance.co.uk/

Dawood Ibtehsam (second from left) with some of the team.

Summer School Success!

Each year Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Training run a Summer School over a four-week period for individuals to explore Accountancy, Business Administration, Early Years Care and Hairdressing workshops alongside CV writing and interview technique sessions to increase their employability skills.

Many of our Summer School attendees have successfully secured employment, thanks to the programmes focus on key skills and insights into the world of work. Several students have found employment in early years care settings and accountancy firms.

One attendee, Joseph, a recent school leaver eager to enter the accountancy field, has been offered a position at Walker Thompson Accountants with the support of Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Training. Joseph participated in our Accountancy Summer School Programme, where he engaged in workshops on bookkeeping, financial information management, problem-solving and employability skills. These experiences were important in preparing him for his new role. Joseph says: “I decided to attend the accountancy Summer School at Chamber Training to help me learn the basic accounting principles such as bookkeeping and employability skills such as interview techniques and communication skills.”

“The team at Chamber Training have been very helpful in the early stages of finding me an apprenticeship and have supported me to achieve getting a permanent job position at Walker Thompson. I am extremely excited to start my career and am looking forward to attending college one day a week!”

“My goal is to become a Chartered Accountant and Chamber Training have helped kick start my career with an apprenticeship. My family have a history of working in the accounting sector and so therefore I am extremely happy to start working in this field.”

If you are looking to find out more information, then please call 024 76231122 or email enquiries@cw-chambertraining.co.uk

Fully funded Training Budget worth up to £8,750 available to Warwickshire SMEs

Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Training is working in partnership with the Warwickshire Skills Hub to make fully funded training more accessible to SMEs across Warwickshire.

The Skills Escalator Fund enables SMEs to receive up to £3,750 worth of training to upskill 5 of their existing employees. With the fund aiming to promote growth and a diversification of skills within the workplace.

Chamber Training are offering an array of highly rated and dynamic training toolkits including:

Business Skills

• Management Skills

• Team Leading Sales and Marketing

Digital Skills

Warwickshire Skills Hub are also offering additional funding for staff aged 50 and over. This 50+ fund aims to evolve knowledge and skills through £1000 worth of funding each for up to 5 employees. This can also be used towards Chamber Training’s Toolkits.

An SME taking advantage of both funds could have access to a fully funded Training Budget worth £8,750.

Vicki Haslam, Business Skills Support Service Team Manager at Warwickshire Skills Hub, says:

“We are delighted to be able to offer funding support to Warwickshire SMEs wishing to develop their workforce. With so much innovation in the county at the moment it is important for businesses to invest in training and development for their workforce. We recognise the challenges faced by SMEs to fund skills development & the fund has been very well received by employers countywide. We have been thrilled to see training partnerships with local providers such as Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber training are embracing the opportunity to meet business demand & support growth”. If you are interested in finding out more information, then email enquiries@cw-chambertraining.co.uk or call 024 76231122.

Double Reason to Celebrate

Two apprentices from Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Training have successfully completed their AAT qualifications within Leigh Christou Accountants!

Leigh Christou Limited was established as a firm of accountants in 1983 and the firm has continued to build on its enviable reputation for providing excellent advice and first-class service to both

business and personal clients for over 40 years.

Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce Training works closely with Leigh Christou Accountants helping to develop many individuals within the accountancy sector through an apprenticeship including Sumaya Miah and Luke Girling that have successfully completed their AAT qualifications.

Sumaya and Luke achieved exceptional results in their final exams and can now proudly add the ‘AAT’ designation to their names. The team at

Leigh Christou are excited to see them advance their careers and are fully committed to supporting them as they consider pursuing their ACCA qualifications.

Chris Christou, Senior Director, at Leigh Christou said: “We could not hope for two more capable team members to enhance our team and provide us with progression. We value all of our staff and are proud to have another success story to add to our long list of staff achievements over the years. Well done Sumaya and Luke!”

Leigh Christou Staff take on Coventry Cathedral

Accounting Staff at Leigh Christou are taking their fundraising to new heights, (literally) this time with an abseil down Coventry Cathedral on Saturday 28th September 2024, all in support of the Myton Hospice. They hope this adrenaline rush activity will raise as much money as possible for the charity, which offers compassionate end of life care and provides support

to thousands of people and their families.

Every penny raised helps keep their services free of charge to their patients and their loved ones, so please show your support to the Leigh Christou accounts staff who are facing their fears and taking on this brave challenge.

To donate, please scan the QR code.

Vicky Haslam (left) and Sally Lucas (right)

(Left) Sumaya Miah and (Right) Luke Girling

Joesph Papp

Switched On Electrical Lighting Upgrades

Switched On Electrical have been trading for 20 years founded by Director Paul Southwell in 2004. We are based in Coventry and look after a wide range of industries including over 40 local schools, many offices, units and industrial premises. We offer many services from electrical inspections to full installations, repairs and maintenance, energy reduction solutions and lighting upgrades.

We are finding that many customers are not aware of the phasing out of fluorescent tubes and other older style lamps. The changes to the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (RoHS) came into force on the 1st of February 2024. As a result of this planned phase-out, new T5, T8, and compact fluorescent lamps can now no longer be placed on the market. While existing supplier stocks of these lamps are still currently available, they can no longer be replenished once depleted. Prices of these tubes are already starting to increase.

Now is the time to start thinking about replacing light fittings with LED before the stocks vanish.

Upgrading the existing lighting to LED especially with the addition of occupancy sensors can drastically reduce energy costs. With the savings on electricity alone, an organisation’s

return on investment is typically within 1.5 - 3 years depending on the type and quantity of fittings. We have been working closely with our customers to help reduce their energy consumption and therefore their carbon footprint.

We have been upgrading lights in many offices, warehouses, units and schools recently.

We have recently upgraded the lighting in a warehouse with 92 low bay fittings. These lights were on all day regardless of occupancy or the natural light level. The old lights were 250W each and we replaced the fittings with 100W LED complete with PIR sensors. Now the lights are only on when there are staff in the area and the natural light level is low. This resulted in an approximate energy saving of 87% in this area. This company also benefitted from gaining a green energy grant through their local council and the grant paid for 50% of the upgrade. See your local council for current available grants.

For more information on how Switched On Electrical could help reduce your carbon footprint with lighting upgrades, please contact us on 024 7695 4321 or visit our website s-o-e.co.uk

Supporting manufacturing companies on their journey to sustainability

Knowing where to start with sustainability is the most common challenge faced by manufacturing companies. Just thinking about the process can often raise more questions than answers creating an immediate barrier to progress. This is exactly where we can step in and provide support.

EN:ABLE SUSTAINABILITY

is an innovation consultancy that supports product manufacturers who recognise the importance of sustainability and want to make changes, but lack the time, resources or knowledge to make meaningful progress.

We can help you with:

• Identifying environmental improvements to products and packaging.

• Assessing concept ideas from a sustainability perspective.

• Researching materials, innovations and processes to support R&D.

• Embedding circularity into your business model.

Got ideas but no time to action them?

If you’ve already identified your specific goals but are short on time and expertise to implement them, we can help you move things forward. We offer research to support product development, product analysis and strategy development. Our knowledge is your shortcut to making things happen.

Starting from scratch and need ideas?

Our kickstart program is ideal for companies at the beginning of their sustainability journey. This online session helps you map out the opportunities and challenges within your current product lifecycle, highlighting the areas to focus on and activities to consider.

Sustainability can also save you money!

There is a perception that becoming more sustainable is costly, but there are actually numerous opportunities to save and even generate money through innovation. More informed material selection can reduce your landfill tax burden, as can reclaiming components and materials to feed back into the manufacturing process. Increasing circularity often means fewer components need to be manufactured from scratch, which reduces energy costs, resource use and transportation.

Sectors we work in:

• FMCG

• Electronics

• Consumer Electronics

• Personal Care

• Healthcare

• Aviation

"I’ve been working in sustainable innovation for 25 years, helping businesses and organisations across a broad range of industries to reduce their environmental impact. With a background in industrial design and a PhD in Sustainable Innovation, I can help you to generate ideas, plan the strategy and get on with taking action."

Dr Vicky Lofthouse

Summit to look out for on the road to net zero

A major event to help businesses in Coventry and Warwickshire take the next steps towards a greener future is being staged this September.

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce is hosting the Green Futures: Expo & Summit at Ashorne Hill in Leamington on Thursday, September 19 from 10am until 2pm. The event is being sponsored by Purple Planet Packaging, which offers sustainable food and beverage products to a range of clients.

The event will give businesses who are supporting the transition to net zero the

opportunity to exhibit and showcase their products and services to companies and organisations across the region.

It will also hear from experts who will offer their insights on how firms can tackle the challenge of moving towards net zero and how it can enhance their business.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “There is a real appetite from businesses to do everything they can to support the net zero agenda but where companies are, currently, varies massively.

“Some are making rapid progress but, for others, the intent is there but they just don’t know where to start – which is completely understandable.

“This event is designed to help companies who are offering green solutions to showcase what they can do to help fellow businesses but also for all of us to hear from experts on what all of us can be doing to take the next steps towards net zero wherever we are on that journey.

“It can be difficult to get started and can, sometimes, feel overwhelming because it feels like such a big thing to have to deal

with. This event will help to cut through that by connecting people and making it as easy as possible to really get moving. Not only that, it will show how this can bring day-to-day benefits for businesses and boost the bottom line too – as well as the potential support and funding that is out there.

“I’d encourage companies who want to exhibit to get in touch as soon as possible and I’d really advise as many firms as possible to attend on the day to find out more.”

The event will feature two seminars including guest speakers on how businesses can 'begin their journey to a greener future' and how it has impacted their businesses in becoming more sustainable.

The second seminar will be focused more around what grants and funding are available to businesses looking to introduce sustainable practices and products.

For more information or to book a place go to www.cw-chamber.co.uk/greenfutures-expo-summit

invest

&

PYE Management Ltd, a Sustainability Consultancy based in Warwick has recently joined the C&W Chamber of Commerce.

PYE Management works mainly in the highway and construction industry, working on net zero-related topics and is keen to ensure that the service they provide also helps to protect the environment.

PYE Management Ltd since 2021 has, for every client invoice, purchased trees and carbon reduction on their behalf. To date, this means around 1,250 trees and 72 tonnes of carbon reduction. PYE Management has now invested in a local tree company, Oblong Trees, and has purchased a plot near to Bishops Tachbrook, where any purchased trees from January 2024 will be planted. Around 120 trees are expected in the plot, once filled, then another plot locally will be identified. It is anticipated that the 120 trees in the plot will sequest 58.40 kg of CO2. The carbon savings are then offered to the client for them to use for their own carbon reduction targets. PYE Management does not charge for this, and the costs are all covered by PYE Management Ltd – the company’s “small way of trying to reduce our impact on the environment.”

Why Advertise in Coventry?

Strategic Placement for Maximum Exposure

We offer premium advertising and sponsorship platforms along Coventry's busiest routes, capturing the attention of both commuters and residents. Whether it's the heart of the city centre or high-traffic suburban areas, your message will reach thousands daily.

• City Centre Billboards & Digital Displays

• Lamppost and Roundabouts

• Community-Focused Placements in Residential Areas

Targeted Impact across Multiple Channels

Reach your ideal audience, whether you're promoting a product, event, or service. Coventry’s dynamic advertising platforms offer precision targeting for businesses of any size.

And more... Scan the code for further information

Ready to Amplify Your Message?

Let’s chat! Explore Coventry’s prime advertising and sponsorship opportunities. Your brand’s journey to success starts here.

Why you should choose a Conveyancing Solicitor

Buying a property is such a common, albeit expensive, transaction you may wonder whether it is worth paying extra money for a Conveyancing Solicitor.

After all, there are plenty of cheaper options available. However, like anything, if you want high-quality advice and service, alongside the peace of mind that the most expensive purchase you are ever likely to make will not result in expensive problems later down the line, it is well worth choosing a Property Law Solicitor who has extensive experience and expertise. Taking time to understand the property you are buying

One of the advantages of choosing a law firms such as Askews Lega LLP is that they have more time to dedicate to each transaction, mitigating the risk of failing to see potential problems, unnecessary delays in completing the transaction and conveyancing fraud.

Thorough investigation of the property title

Unexpected property title issues can lead to a minefield of problems for new owners. An experienced Conveyancing Solicitor will look into:

Whether there are any rights of way or easements you need to be aware of.

• Any covenants that run with the property. The boundaries of the property.

Any defects in the title.

Third-party rights affecting the property. In older properties, missing an issue with the title can be too easy. This is especially true with covenants, which can run with the property for decades (or, in some cases, for hundreds of years).

Undertaking the necessary property searches

As a minimum, a good Conveyancing Solicitor will advise you to get a: Local land charges search.

• Local authority search.

• Drainage and water enquiries.

• Pre-contract enquiries.

Index map search.

Land Charges Department search (unregistered land).

Depending on the location of the property, you may be advised to obtain other searches related to the environment, mining, or flooding.

Getting the contracts

right

Before the contracts are exchanged between the buyer and seller, your Conveyancer must ensure that the searches have been completed and that the seller has answered any questions asked by the purchaser. Again, one of the advantages of paying a little more for a Property Law Solicitor is that they will have fewer transactions that need their attention. This is crucial because once contracts are exchanged the transaction is legally binding and it will be too late for you to address any problems. Furthermore, you cannot pull out of the sale without paying the seller compensation.

Ensuring that the sale and purchase agreement is drafted correctly is also an essential part of a Conveyancer's work. They will check all the details are correct and that appropriate due diligence has been carried out before the contracts exchange. They will also negotiate completion dates and check over your mortgage offer and contract.

• If you require legal advice for a conveyancing matter, email enquiries@askewslegal.co

Please note that this article does not constitute legal advice.

Warwickshire-based consultancy create new tech-based role

Health, Safety, Quality and Environmental Management Consultancy WA Management have created a new role to help support the development of revolutionary app.

To help support the growth of Under Construction, a project management system app developed in partnership with software agency Image Plus, WA Management are hiring for a new role within their organisation – Digital Consultant.

Joining the existing consultancy team, the new Digital Consultant will take charge of on-site app demonstrations and aiding the customer journey from onboarding onto the app through to on-site implementation. They will incorporate Under Construction into audits and show real-time how the app can improve compliance on site.

Training in both health and safety legislation and the Under Construction app will allow the new Digital Consultant to bridge the gap between construction sites and technology - an area in which the construction industry often find itself behind.

William Whittaker, Director of WA Management, discusses the importance of creating this new role.

“The Construction Industry in the UK is one of the biggest, but it is also the one that struggles most to modernise. This is because the majority of companies are SMEs or Sole Traders. Small construction companies cannot afford expensive software, nor do they have the staff spare to research solutions, or training in technology. But we also know, that not having the correct paperwork, the correct check in place, can cause fatal injury.

By blending tech knowledge with the guiding hand of a consultant, we can help our customers transition to a modern compliance solution.”

Shakespeare Martineau completes major sale for L&Q Housing Trust

Leading full-service law firm Shakespeare Martineau has successfully completed a significant transaction for L&Q Housing Trust on the sale of L&Q Estates to Urban&Civic. The firm’s residential development and planning teams handled all property-related aspects of the sale, which encompassed more than 100 sites within the L&Q Estates portfolio at various stages of land promotion and development.

Acting on behalf of L&Q Housing Trust, Shakespeare Martineau’s team included Joanna Deffley, Barry Fisher, Jack Kelly, Holly Lockley, Paul Harris, Ruth Thoms, Ashley Bhandari, Anthony Chan, Niamh Curran, Saleha Kothiya and Roz Stiles (land); Paul Wakefield and Rachael Coulsting (legal planning); and Amal Kaur (real estate).

Residential development partner Joanna Deffley, who led the Shakespeare Martineau team, said: “We are delighted to have played a role in this significant transaction for L&Q Housing Trust. Our team’s dedication and expertise ensured a smooth process, aligning with L&Q’s strategic goals and supporting Urban&Civic's expansion.

“Managing the property aspects of the sale not only reflects our capability in handling large-scale property deals but also underscores our commitment to supporting the housing sector’s growth and development.”

L&Q Housing Trust – one of the UK’s leading housing associations, owning and managing more than 105,000 homes – purchased L&Q Estates, previously Gallagher Estates, in 2017.

Cashflow is king

Nicholas Gould, Founder of omnigo, describes one of business’s biggest pain points and how his company has a series of solutions.

Under Construction is a personalised, easy to use, and affordable project management system app, conforming to ISO 9001 requirements and aimed at SMEs, and has just recently launched their first release to a select number of customers.

The app has been developed to fill a gap in the market identified by WA Management, as when asked by customers to recommend a digital solution that would fit their needs, none could be found. After more than two years of research, everything currently available was found to be either too expensive, too complicated, or not suitable for the task.

This led to the creation of Under Construction, which will address these barriers that SMEs face to digitising. The app will modernise the H&S paperwork processes – starting initially with forms, both static templates which can be used to generate detailed statistics, and custom-created forms, with future development adding document storage, asset registers, training matrices, operations management, contractor management, and more.

If you are interested in learning more about the Under Construction app, contact WA Management for more information.

Cash, as they say, is king. That doesn’t mean coins and notes, it means having the money in the bank to cover your costs.

Businesses usually fail because of a lack of cash rather than any other fundamental issue with the product or service they offer.

This is even more pertinent for smaller businesses and, therefore, getting money in the bank as quickly as possible is crucial.

I speak to so many companies all the time who find this a real pain point because they can take a card payment at the weekend and not see it hit their account well into the following week.

On bank holidays, businesses are stung by this further because they have to wait one extra day for that money to hit their bank account.

At omnigo, we are a fulfilment partner of dojo - a trusted and well-known platform with one out of every eight UK high street transactions made through a dojo advice.

One of the reasons I like working with dojo is the fact that card payments taken on any given day are in our clients’ accounts the following day – it doesn’t matter if it’s a weekend or bank holiday.

I know businesses who might have a really strong weekend of takings and they don’t want to wait until the following week to go out and buy more stock, they want to get to the wholesaler straight away.

At omnigo, we do offer other forms of support when it comes to helping companies with finances with funding available from £1,000 to £1 million to help businesses invest in growth and move to the next level.

For more information go to https://omnigo.tech/ or drop me a line at ng@omnigo.tech

Shakespeare Martineau acted on behalf of Gallagher Estates in the transaction, which was the largest land acquisition undertaken by a housing association at the time.

Clifford Chance provided corporate and tax advice for L&Q Housing Trust, while Eversheds acted for Urban&Civic.

Skills for life!

Tracey Ashfield, Ashorne Hill’s Partnerships Manager, caught the leisure and hospitality bug as a youngster and has loved dealing with people ever since.

C&W in Business caught up with Tracey to talk training, travel and transferrable

skills.

Profile: Tracey Ashfield

Tracey Ashfield’s parents had the choice of virtually anywhere in the world to settle down and start a family.

But, Tracey, Ashorne Hill’s Partnerships Manager, is thankful they chose to return to Warwickshire because while there are more exotic locations across the globe, she couldn’t be more pleased with the life this region has given to her.

“When I was younger, I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” said Tracey, who was born in Stratford and later moved to Leamington. “I wanted to go into the travel side of things – because my dad always loved travelling.

“He worked in Nigeria and Cameroon and my mum is from the Seychelles. They met in the Seychelles and then they came over to England.

“I feel very lucky. I could have had a very different life living in a tropical climate such as the Seychelles –I am sure it would have had its benefits but I think I’ve had many more opportunities here! My parents had three daughters and we’ve all had great opportunities and we all love what we do.”

At 14, Tracey landed a part-time job that helped to shape her personally and professionally.

“I got a job as a waitress in a restaurant and really enjoyed it,” she said. “It was great to talk to a whole range of people and learn different skills. I think younger people have missed out on some of these opportunities in recent years but I’m so glad I did it.

“It’s great to have friends and be around your peers, but you learn so much in a working environment.”

At 16, Tracey studied travel and tourism at Stratford College, still with one eye on going into the travel sector, and then at 18 took a job on reception at the Courtyard, by Marriott, in Leamington.

As a teenager, she was afforded way more responsibility than she was expecting and her people skills shone through.

“I was given quite bit of autonomy and had to make a lot of my own decisions,” said Tracey. “I had to gain the confidence to deal with customers and that is something that stays with you.”

She stayed at the hotel for five years but, before settling on a long-term career, Tracey had to get the travel bug out of her system.

But, even while she was taking a trip around the world, there was plenty of learning that she would bring into her current role.

“I travelled round Australia, Fiji, Bali, Singapore and India, which was an amazing experience. I would have been 24 when I did that and loved it,” she said. “When I came back, I wanted to stay in the hospitality industry. I saw a job advertised at Ashorne Hill which I decided to go for while I was deciding what I wanted to do and have never left!

“I had a few jobs while I was travelling. When I was out in Perth, I worked in a stadium in the hospitality boxes that overlooked the pitch. At that time, I couldn’t even get the cork out of the prosecco bottle! But everything is a learning curve.

“From mango packing through to working in different coffee shops, it was about developing skills and having someone to take the time to show you what to do and not expecting you to know. If you want someone to be the best they can be, you have to invest the time in showing them and then they will flourish.”

Tracey immediately fell in love with Ashorne Hill and still shares the same passion and drive for the venue – 22 years on!

First and foremost, Ashorne Hill is a learning provider creating transformational learning at all levels and across all sectors.

Profile: Tracey Ashfield

There is a focus on softer, human skills with programmes developed in partnership with businesses and organisations. They can be in person (either at Ashorne Hill or at a client’s own premises), online or hybrid and can range from graduate through to leadership level.

A team of facilitators and associates deliver flagship programmes and also bespoke programmes for everything from SMEs right through to a graduate training programme for Jaguar Land Rover for around 300 to 400 people.

The venue’s surroundings – and its offering – help to entice clients.

It sits within 35 acres of beautiful Warwickshire countryside, and while it’s close to the M40 which makes it easy to get to, the only hum is from the onsite cattle!

It provides a dedicated learning environment. It boasts 40 meeting rooms and 110 bedrooms so is a huge benefit alongside being a learning provider, it also attracts events, private diners and teambuilding exercises.

“We can undertake training across all sectors,” said Tracey. “A lot of our clients come from the automotive, construction and the public sector and we specialise in leadership and management and, also, team development and graduate programmes.

“We get to hear what challenges clients have and help them to solve it. We gear the learners up for the future world of work.

“We take people on a learning journey. We’re not transactional at all. It’s not a tick box exercise or a case of getting a certificate at the end to say you’ve passed the learning. We really put them on a personal journey that continues beyond the programme.

“We like to embed the learning and build connections with people so they can formulate transformational growth. That’s done by focussing on human skills which is important for people and businesses to prosper. We like to offer that as face-to-face learning but we also do digital, blended programmes.

“When people come together they can share knowledge with their peers and use the facilitator to help and guide them and give them mentoring and coaching.

“We are really busy at the moment. The venue is thriving. We want people to come and have an experience rather than just come for the day and off they go. We want guests to create memories and have different experiences. We’ve got the grounds for team building (fun and learning based activities) along with an outdoor classroom which promotes creativity and brain storming ideas.

“There is so much we can do to support events including dining and even an escape room in the cellar!

“We’re so lucky where we are situated. As soon as you come up the drive you get that tranquil, calm feeling. It’s a learning environment that people like to be in and it helps them to self-reflect.

Profile: Tracey Ashfield

Married: Yes, to Richard for 20 years this September

Children: Two

Hobbies: Home DIY and going to musicals

Favourite Book: My dad’s autobiography

Favourite Film: Moulin Rouge

Last Holiday: A rural cottage in Hereford

Gadget: Battery pack for my iPhone

“It’s a pleasure to come to work. I didn’t realise when I came for the interview that I would still be here 22 years later! I think people think they have to move around and go to different places to find the perfect job but they sometimes don’t realise what they have already and I think we are lucky to have so many longstanding members of staff here.”

Part of the offer to clients is an Insights Discovery day, which starts with undertaking a psychometric test to work out their personalities and how they react to certain situations and other people. When an organisation helps its people reveal their individual combination of colour energies, they are better equipped to stay motivated and engaged, whether working individually, in a team or as a leader.

As an earth green, Tracey is very much a people person who puts a huge amount of emotion and feeling into her job and those she works with and on behalf of.

Moving into the role as Partnerships Manager over the past couple of years really plays to that strength.

“In my role, I get to go to a lot of events and by doing that I can bring back ideas of what the rest of the industry is doing,” she said.

“I’m part of the business development team. The main part of what we do is to build client relationships and then be able to bring in enquiries for training and venue bookings.

“I build partnerships with organisations such as the PAs Forum and the Chamber. I get to go to events and awards and promote Ashorne Hill and be introduced to a whole array of clients and customers.

“The PA is usually the gatekeeper of an organisation. They know what’s going on, what the challenges are and what training people might need.

“To be able to build that relationship with them, they can take that to their manager or director and we can collaborate with them and help them.

“We became an Influence Partner with the Chamber and that has already opened a lot of doors for us in terms of building new partnerships and learning from others.

“We’ve got to keep up with what’s happening in the industry and look at trends in learning and development, in the workplace and in the economy, and the Chamber is a good way of doing that and is another opportunity for me to build relationships.”

Away from the office, Tracey has a husband, Richard, who delivers flowers internationally and 14 and 17-year-old sons but none of her training or career experience has prepared her for her latest challenge.

“I’m teaching my 17-year-old to drive so that’s a new skill,” she said. “It takes a lot of patience!”

Getting your business travel on track

How one business saved £1,000 in booking fees, while reducing their CO2 emissions by the equivalent of six return flights to Australia.

Whether it’s for client meetings, training workshops or conferences and events – travel is a necessary part of business life for any growing organisation.

But if you take the train and book through one of the well-known travel management platforms, you’ll likely incur thousands of pounds of booking fees or credit card charges. And managing everyone’s travel can be an admin nightmare.

Alternatively, if you choose to take the car, you can soon rack up the CO2 emissions. And with sustainability at the forefront of everyone’s minds, as well as being a key driving factor in employee engagement, car travel is simply a no-go for most socially conscious businesses.

Thankfully, we have a simple solution. You can find the cheapest rail fares, cut your business travel emissions and avoid those sneaky hidden extra charges by using Just Business – our free online platform for booking and managing business train travel.

One of our valued Midlands based customers has done just that and after crunching the numbers and analysing their data, they couldn’t be happier with the results.

Why? Well, this company made 772 train journeys in a year. If they had travelled by car for each of these journeys, they would have produced a whopping 25.6 tonnes of CO2 emissions. That’s the equivalent of six return flights from London to Australia!

By booking their rail travel with Just Business, they’ve generated just 5.4 tonnes of carbon emissions – almost five times less than if they had travelled by road.

What’s more, the company have been able to save £1,000 worth of booking fees, compared to if they had booked with another travel management platform.

But there are so many other benefits to using Just Business.

With travel costs charged directly to the business, there’s no need for employees to keep paper receipts or claim expenses. E-tickets are also sent directly to their inbox, so they don’t need to queue or print tickets when they get to the station.

Admins have access to all travel booking data and reporting tools in one central place, keeping you in control at all times. Plus, you also have access to sustainability reports so you can track your company’s travel related carbon footprint and compare it against other modes of travel.

There’s no need to search around for the cheapest tickets with Just Business either. We can guarantee the lowest available end-to-end fares across all operators – with no fees, no contracts and no minimum term. The platform is easy to navigate and gives full visibility of all available fares. All ticket types can be made available depending on your own policies.

Unlike with other travel management platforms, you’ll benefit from a personalised service with our friendly helpdesk. We have real human beings on hand to help with any questions or requests. Our Business-to-Business Fulfilment Manager who works on the Just Business helpdesk, says:

“As well as being completely free to access, our helpdesk prides itself on its super speedy turnaround time for replying and solving queries. You won’t need to wait three to four days for a reply because we aim to get back to you within the same day. Our dedicated team is there to support you with all your business train travel needs, no matter how big or small they are.”

Signing up to Just Business couldn’t be easier. We’ll send you a short set-up form where you can provide us with your company details, payment information and account preferences. You’ll then need to give us the details of who in your organisation will have access to book travel, and who you’d like to have admin rights. When you’re happy to go live, we send out login details to all users and they can start booking their rail travel straight away. It’s as simple as that!

So, if your organisation is looking for a more straightforward, cheaper and sustainable way to travel, email sophie.gardner@wmtrains.co.uk or helpdesk@justbusinesstravel.co.uk and we’ll take care of the rest.

Our survey says: confidence is on the up

Business confidence in Coventry and Warwickshire was strengthened in the second quarter of the year – with the potential for more jobs and increased growth for the remainder of 2024.

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce’s latest Quarterly Economic Survey (QES) – a survey of firms in both the manufacturing and service sectors across the region – saw a marked increase in the mood among local companies.

The survey, which is delivered in partnership with Prime Accountants Group, is analysed by the Economy & Skills Group at Warwickshire County Council. From the responses of businesses across the services and manufacturing sectors, it gives scores out of 100 where anything above 50 indicates growth and anything below 50 is negative.

The confidence score in the service sector jumped from 70.7 to 77.1 while in manufacturing it leapt from 59.5 to 80.5 based on the sentiment from businesses.

However, the results did highlight that there are still barriers to growth with service sector companies seeing a slight dip in domestic sales and, also, a slightly weakened performance on the investment and cashflow front.

Economic Outlook:

Overall, 62.4, up from 60.1 Service Sector 61.9, up from 60.9.

In manufacturing, there were improvements across the board – from domestic sales through to international sales and from an employment point of view to investment & cashflow.

All added together, it meant the overall economic outlook for Coventry and Warwickshire had a score of 62.4, which is up from 60.1 after the first quarter of the year.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “It’s pleasing to see that the slight improvement in the outlook at the start of the year has continued as we move through 2024.

“The survey was undertaken before the election so the result won’t have affected confidence but, it might be, that firms believed there would be more stability post-election.

“They will be buoyed by the fact that inflation has fallen significantly and that there is a strong chance that interest rates will start to follow. All that said, we know that everything is still in the balance and while the latest survey is positive there are still barriers to growth that we need the new Government to help us overcome.”

Steve Harcourt, director of Prime Accountants Group and president of the Coventry and Warwickshire

Chamber of Commerce, said: “The economic picture is improving with GDP growing, which pulled us out of the recession at the end of 2023 very quickly.

“Coventry and Warwickshire has a vibrant, innovative and diverse economy which means it is extremely resilient and it’s testament to the whole business community that we have pulled through difficult times.

“The latest QES shows that confidence is increasing and it’s vitally important that the new Government delivers on its promise to support businesses to achieve the growth we all want to see.”

Todd Williams, Business Intelligence Analyst (Economy & Skills) at Warwickshire County Council, said: “Quarter two at a national level dropped slightly primarily due to a deceleration in services output, despite continuing growth in manufacturing output.

“Meanwhile, the latest QES results show the local economy maintaining strong optimism, alongside a significant increase in spare capacity.

“The results show that the overall economic outlook index for Coventry and Warwickshire is exceeding the national trend. Local services businesses are positive about the domestic market, and sentiment about the services overseas market moved towards confidence. The local manufacturing business sentiment continues to strengthen around growth in both domestic and overseas markets.

“Local concerns around interest rates dropped significantly, however input costs remain a significant concern – manifesting as inflation for manufacturing and as labour costs for the service sector. Employment is expected to increase, with ongoing concerns around recruitment challenges.”

Investment & Cashflow

Service

Business Confidence Service Sector 77.1, up from 70.7

Sector 80.5, up from 59.5

Interest rate cut could start to boost investment

The Bank of England’s interest rate cut will provide a confidence boost to firms in Coventry and Warwickshire, according to business leaders.

The Monetary Policy Committee cut rates from 5.25 per cent to five per cent, while the Bank reported an improved growth forecast for the UK economy of 1.25 per cent for 2024.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said:

“Getting inflation down has been a key priority over the past couple of years and now it has hit the two per cent target market – and stayed there – it has given the Bank of England the opportunity to cut rates.

“However, it was still a close run thing within the committee and, therefore, we don’t expect rates to fall much further very quickly.

“That said, the direction of travel will be a boost for businesses and will give them a little more confidence to invest and grow.

“That, together with lower inflation, the improved growth forecast and a stable new Government should really start to feed into a much more positive outlook.

“The Chamber will be holding a roundtable event with the Bank of England’s West Midlands agent in September if any businesses would like to attend and give their assessment of the economy and its outlook.”

David Bharier, Head of Research at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “Today's decision by the Bank to cut the interest rate gives many smaller firms welcome breathing space and could trigger an increase in investment as borrowing costs decline.

“This cut, the first since 2020, became inevitable as inflation has settled at around two per cent over recent months. Our economic forecast expected this cut, as well as a further reduction by December, bringing the interest rate to 4.75 per cent by the end of the year.

“The Bank will be monitoring events closely as global conflicts and trade tensions could still exert price pressures on commodities and the finely balanced 5-4 voting split shows this caution. For UK SMEs, our research shows that inflation remains a top issue for them, albeit down on the peak of concern in 2022.

“A cautious and well-communicated approach from the Bank will support business confidence, which has been steadily increasing in recent months.

“As the Chancellor begins to prepare her Autumn budget, we want to work in partnership with Government to unlock the investment needed to boost economic growth.”

To attend the roundtable with the Bank of England contact Sean Rose at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce at seanr@cw-chamber.co.uk

Steve Harcourt (left) with Corin Crane

Economic growth – the challenge ahead

A panel of business leaders in Coventry and Warwickshire have underlined the challenge ahead to get the economy growing more quickly – but say they are ready to meet the task head on.

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce held an Economy & Skills Breakfast event, sponsored by Prime Accountants Group, at Stratford-upon-Avon College to analyse Government proposals to secure economic growth and to discuss some of the barriers firms had faced over recent years.

Emma Wilks, HSBC’s UK economist, kicked the event off by looking at the economic landscape the new Government has inherited before being joined in a discussion by Jason Aldridge, of Arrowsmith Engineering; Lisa Hughes, of the RSC; Nadia Davies, of Stratford-upon-Avon College; and Paul Guise, of Prime Accountants Group, which was a partner on the event.

Emma said: “It has been a challenging few years for businesses but there is some positivity to report, and although mixed with ongoing challenges, it does appear that we are heading in a brighter direction.

“The growth achieved in the first quarter of the year reversed the short recession at the end of 2023 and inflation has dropped down to the two per cent target from its peak of 11.1 per cent.

“Unemployment is at 4.3 per cent and remains low by historical standards.

“We expect interest rates will come start to come down but they will remain in restrictive territory for some time.

“The number of people who have left the workforce has risen in recent years and has likely contributed to recruitment

difficulties and rising wages. Further to that, we are not forecasting the same levels of economic growth as the Office For Budget Responsibility (OBR).”

Jason said Arrowsmith Engineering, an aerospace company based in Exhall, had been hit hard by the pandemic and the immediate aftermath.

He said: “Material prices were only being held for 24 to 48 hours and wages were spiralling. Our gross profit was hit.

“The only way to grow was to be more productive, but we’ve had to make sure we matched the same incentives to staff that some of the major manufacturers are offering or we would have lost people.”

Lisa added: “There have been serious economic pressures and the RSC has felt those, like every business.

“When it comes to recruitment, there are certain roles here that people see as a vocation but when it comes to business support – finance, HR, IT – we’re competing for talent like any other business and have to make sure we stand out.”

Paul said this was something that was apparent at Prime Accountants and throughout its client base. “You have to show prospective employees your USP,” he said.

“That’s the only way you will draw in staff. There is a shortage of people in the industry and we have to keep making sure we bring on the next generation.”

Nadia said: “What we see here at Stratford-upon-Avon College is that sometimes the jobs that young people want aren’t always the ones that are on offer.

"The career landscape has changed considerably and there is no doubt that employers now have to sell themselves to employees, which was not the case a few years ago.”

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, facilitated the event.

He said: “It was an absolutely fascinating morning, with a hugely insightful panel discussion.

“The Government’s growth agenda is one that businesses support but it’s crucial that we keep talking to and listening to companies of all sizes and sectors to ensure that the issues that are holding them back can be understood and resolved.”

Tackling the skills gaps and shortages in the West Midlands and Warwickshire

A new report says that ‘extensive work and significant progress’ has been made to tackle skills gaps and shortages in the West Midlands and Warwickshire – and outlines what needs to happen next to continue the progress.

The West Midlands and Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan (WMW LSIP) Progress Report has been prepared by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce and signed off by the Department for Education (DfE).

It looks at the key priorities that were set out over a year ago when the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce and Black Country Chamber of Commerce came together to submit an LSIP to Government.

The region had £10.4 million set aside in a Local Skills Improvement Fund (LSIF) to help fund projects that would tackle the priority issues in post-16 education that were drawn up after engagement with more than 1,000 businesses right across the region.

The Chambers and skills providers in the region have been working together to find solutions and start to deliver against those priorities, which include specific skills shortages in engineering & manufacturing, construction, ICT & digital and logistics & distribution.

The research also identified that leadership and management training needed to be increased as well as the need to boost some essential basic skills, alongside wider considerations around elements such as green skills and the need to enhance teaching provision in some priority areas.

The report says that six LSIF projects were developed and are already delivering against their objectives.

That has included everything from investing in new facilities within learning providers across the region through to college staff carrying out CPD hours with employers to enhance their own knowledge.

On green skills, for example, 40 Green Changemakers are already active within 17 organisations across the region to aid with teacher development in this area.

On essential skills, hundreds of learners have already participated in courses after money was invested in the purchase of new equipment to support providers.

The report concludes: “The work of the WMW LSIP and the WMW LSIF Projects are funded through to the end of March 2025, however extensive work and significant progress has already been made against each of the priorities identified by the WMW LSIP.”

The Minister for Skills, The Rt Hon Baroness Smith of Malvern, said: “I welcome the publication of the Local Skills Improvement Plan Progress Report for the West Midlands and Warwickshire. These reports set out progress made on meeting the skills needs of local employers. As well as being a valuable source of information for local skills deliverers, employers and stakeholders, the reports along with the LSIPs themselves, will provide important intelligence for the newly established Skills England.”

Corin Crane, Chief Executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “It is incredible to see the progress the LSIP has made. Skills has been a priority issue for business for many years now and, through this process, we’ve been able to listen to what companies need, what they feel they are missing and then work with providers to find out how we address that.

“By putting business at the heart of it, we can devise solutions based around the needs of the economy. It’s giving opportunities to individuals to obtain the skills they need and, in turn, supporting the growth of our economy.

“As the report says, we’ve made good progress but we know there is still much more to do with all of our partners across the region.”

Henrietta Brealey, Chief Executive of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, said:

"The Local Skills Improvement Plan is all about putting businesses at the heart of post-16 education and training, to ensure that talented local residents can access job opportunities, and local firms have the skilled talent they need to innovate and grow.

"Thank you to those businesses who have taken the time out of their day to help shape the contours of local skills policy. Over a thousand local employers have contributed to the Plan, and to ongoing research to ensure stakeholders have up to date insights on local skills needs.

"As detailed in this latest report, an enormous amount of work is well underway to achieve the ambitions of the plan. We look forward to continuing to work with education and training providers, stakeholders, and local businesses to support them in the delivery of skills provision across the region."

Sarah Moorhouse, CEO of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, said: “This progress report shows the commitment of our local employers and further education providers to improving the skills and talents available in the West Midlands and Warwickshire.

“Focusing on future-proofing the workforce using the cross-cutting themes of digital and green skills, and the potential employees emerging from these training opportunities will greatly improve the ability of businesses in the West Midlands to grow and expand.

“These are exciting developments as we start the new academic year, and at the Black Country Chamber we look forward to continuing to support this work”.

Rebecca Gater, Principal and CEO of Solihull College and University Centre and Lead Provider for West Midlands and Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Fund project, said: "I am proud to see the significant strides we have made through the West Midlands and Warwickshire LSIP.

“This progress report highlights our commitment to aligning education and training with the evolving needs of local employers, ensuring that our region is equipped with the skills necessary to drive innovation and growth.

“By continuing to work closely with businesses, we are laying the groundwork for a thriving economy, supported by a workforce that is ready to meet the challenges of tomorrow."

David Gaughan, Head of Employer Services at West Midlands Combined Authority, added: “A skilled workforce, across the breadth of our economy, is pivotal if we are to deliver economic growth and improve productivity across the West Midlands.

“Through our Employment & Skills Strategy, we have committed to forging stronger links between the skills ecosystem and businesses, so that our residents acquire relevant, in-demand skills that support progression into good jobs. Capturing the voice of employers, and using it to shape our skills offer, is critical to the success of our region.”

David Ayton-Hill, Director of Economy & Place at Warwickshire County Council, said:

“The Coventry and Warwickshire Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) is a crucial initiative that positions businesses at the heart of the post16 technical education and training system.

“By focusing on the cross-cutting themes of digital and green skills, as well as enhancing leadership and management capabilities, the LSIP is set to drive forward both Warwickshire and the surrounding area economic growth.

“The priorities will not only help to ensure that our workforce is equipped with the necessary skills to innovate, grow, and thrive but will also support the ongoing development of a more agile and responsive education and training system. Warwickshire County Council is committed to supporting these efforts, which are vital for providing meaningful employment opportunities, supporting ambitious and inclusive growth through fostering in-work progression for our residents."

The West Midlands and Warwickshire LSIP covers the geographical areas administered by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) – constituted of the seven local authorities of Birmingham City Council, Coventry City Council, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Walsall Council and the City of Wolverhampton Council – and Warwickshire County Council.

The full progress report is available here: https://www.cw-chamber.co.uk/businesssupport/lsip/

Sean Rose (Chamber), Lisa Hughes (RSC), Corin Crane (Chamber), Emma Wilks (HSBC), Jason Aldridge (Arrowsmith Engineering), Paul Guise (Prime Accountants Group), Sandra White (Stratford College).

Pink Connect’s advice on moving premises

Moving premises can be daunting. Turn your uncertainties into answers.

What are you going to do with your IT infrastructure when you move? Will it be plug and play or would it need an expert?

These are common questions that businesses face when contemplating a relocation.

Your IT infrastructure is the backbone of your operations. Any disruption and downtime can cause serious repercussions in the business. Our goal is to help you move your IT, Cloud Telephony and connectivity to your new premises, seamlessly, so your business can carry on performing efficiently.

At Pink Connect, they understand that there are endless uncertainties when coming to relocating your business, that’s why they are here to provide answers to your solutions.

Before your move begins, their engineering team would need to conduct a thorough assessment of your current infrastructure and equipment and view your new location, so they can develop a detailed relocation plan tailored to your specific needs, ensuring that every aspect of the move can be planned and executed proactively.

Moving premises doesn’t have to be difficult.

From setting up internet connections to configuring phone systems, they take care of all aspects of your communication and connectivity requirements.

Whether you're moving servers, workstations or network equipment, Pink Connect has the experience and expertise to handle it all. Where possible, they will move systems to the Cloud. Their commitment doesn’t end once the move is complete. They also provide ongoing support and maintenance services, to ensure that your business continues to perform at its best. Email tellmemore@pinkconnect.com to find out how they can help your business.

Inheritance Tax and making a Claim

If you find yourself without an inheritance that you were expecting, you can consider making a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 (The Inheritance Act 1975). What does the Inheritance Act 1975 do?

If a deceased’s person Will does not make “reasonable financial provision” for you, it may be possible to claim under the Inheritance Act 1975. Section 3 of the 1975 Act states the factors the Court must consider when deciding whether ‘reasonable financial provision’ was provided by the deceased:

the financial resources and financial needs which the applicant has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future; the financial resources and financial needs which any other applicant has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future; the financial resources and financial needs which any beneficiary of the estate of the deceased has or is likely to have in the foreseeable future;

any obligations and responsibilities which the deceased had towards any applicant or beneficiary of their estate; the size and nature of the net estate of the deceased;

any physical or mental disability of any applicant or beneficiary of the estate of the deceased;

any other matter, including the conduct of the applicant or any other person, which

the court may consider relevant in the circumstances of the case.

‘Reasonable financial provision’ does not mean you will get an equal share of the estate. If your claim is successful, the Court will examine the factors listed under section 3 to decide what, if any, amount should be awarded to you.

Who can claim under the Inheritance Act 1975?

• Spouses or civil partners of the deceased. Former spouses or civil partners who have not remarried or entered into a new civil partnership.

Cohabitees, specifically those who lived with the deceased for at least two years immediately before their death.

• Children of the deceased, including adult children.

• Persons who were treated as a ‘child of the family’, for example, stepchildren. People who were maintained wholly or partly by the deceased immediately before death.

If you decide to bring a claim under the Inheritance Act 1975, the onus is on you to prove that the deceased did not make adequate financial provision for you in their Will.

How long do I have to bring a claim under the Inheritance Act 1975?

Any claim must be brought within six months of Grant of Probate. However, the

Court does have the discretion to allow an out of time claim if specific conditions are met.

What award can I get if I succeed in an Inheritance Act 1975 claim?

The Court may award a lump sum payment, periodic payments, or property transfer. Does every case go to court?

It is unlikely your case will end up in court as most claims are settled through alternative dispute resolution methods (ADR) such as negotiation or mediation. It is crucial to consider ADR as if you lose your case in court, you may be ordered to pay the other side’s legal costs which can amount to tens of thousands of pounds.

• If you believe you have been excluded from benefiting from a Will, email enquiries@askewslegal.co

Please note that this article does not constitute legal advice.

Santa spotted on summer holiday – and he’s brought a gift for Chamber members

Santa has been seen on his summer holidays at one of Coventry and Warwickshire’s most popular hotels – and has brought with him an early Christmas present for Chamber members.

Coombe Abbey Hotel is already getting into the festive spirit after welcoming Father Christmas back to the 13th century venue on a well-earned break before he returns to entertain guests throughout the festive period.

And to mark the countdown to Christmas parties and dinners for businesses across Coventry and Warwickshire, he has brought with him a 10 per cent discount on all Christmas bookings for Chamber members – from Festive Afternoon Tea with Carols to medieval banquets and private dining.

Paul Sharp, who will also host “Storytelling with Father Christmas” at St Mary’s Guildhall in Coventry city centre as well as visiting

Coombe Abbey every week from the end of November this year, has raised thousands for charity over the last five years in his festive role.

He will once again be visiting wards and attending Christmas events at Zoe’s Place Baby Hospice, as well as heading to Welford Christmas Tree Farm, where he helps to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis charity, MS Society.

Paul is also helping to raise money for Birmingham Children’s Hospital this year, and said he is looking forward to celebrating the festive season with families across the region.

He said: “It’s brilliant to have the opportunity to work alongside some fantastic institutions and venues in my role as Father Christmas.

“It was brilliant to come back to Coombe Abbey in the summer and try out some of the activities and explore, which I never normally get to do during the Christmas period.

“The hotel is such a wonderful place to celebrate the festive season and I’ve had some lovely interactions with families there over the years, and I’m looking forward to returning once again.”

Visit www.coombeabbey.com/ christmas-2024 for information.

National Express Coventry to trial

fully electric single decker bus

National Express Coventry is trialling a fully electric Volvo bus on Coventry’s roads over the coming weeks.

The single deck Volvo BZL Electric demonstrator can carry up to 75 passengers and is currently on loan to National Express Coventry, where it is operating on the 20, 20A and 20B services between Coventry city centre, University Hospital and Wilson’s Lane. Customers can expect to notice the super smooth and quiet journeys that they’ve become accustomed to on National Express Coventry’s buses, with every one of its 140 double decker buses already being fully electric.

The BZL’s driveline has been fine-tuned to provide very low interior noise and for increased comfort of everyone on board, the vehicle features air conditioning, heating and seatback USB chargers.

Antony Goozee, Bus Strategy and Commercial Director for National Express, said: “Buses are the most used form of transport in Coventry and the wider West Midlands. Not only do our services play a key role in keeping people connected, they are also critical to driving down harmful emissions.

“Getting more people to ditch their cars and switch to travelling by bus is vital to

tackling climate change and we’re proud to be leading the charge in offering sustainable transport choices in Coventry, with all 140 of our electric double decker buses producing zero-emissions at the tailpipe.

“As we look ahead to update our single decker vehicles, it’s great to be working with Volvo to trial their BZL Electric bus and we look forward to better understanding its capabilities and efficiencies under our usual operating conditions.”

Domenico Bondi, Managing Director at Volvo Bus UK & Ireland, said: “I am pleased to see our sought-after Volvo BZL Electric demonstrator entering service with an operator whose legacy spans decades, and which has such a deep-rooted name within the passenger transport sector. With Coventry’s plans to become the UK’s first allelectric bus city by 2025, the city’s ambitions tie nicely in with our own.

“We’re proud to be able to improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide a quieter environment for more and more communities in the UK. I look forward to the continued partnership with National Express, helping to meet our collective goals.”

The single deck Volvo BZL Electric demonstrator features a four-battery configuration offering a total power output

Coventry and Warwickshire businesses recognised for support of Armed Forces community

In the 10th year of the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS), West Midland Reserve Forces & Cadets Association (RFCA) are very pleased to announce the nine winners from Coventry and Warwickshire, which brings the total of ERS Silver holders in the county to 23. The winners are:

• Alliance Medical Ltd

• Coventry City Council

• Driving Academy Global Limited

• George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust Godiva Ltd

• Manufacturing Technology Centre

• My Trusted Wills and Estate Planning LLP

• South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust

• Wigley Investment Holdings

This Ministry of Defence award recognises companies for their support to the Armed Forces community, including Reservists, Veterans, spouses, Cadet Force Adult Volunteers and Cadets. To qualify for the Silver Award, organisations must demonstrate a number of positive measures and policies that actively support members of the Armed Forces community, align their values with the Armed Forces Covenant and employ at least one individual from the Armed Forces community.

West Midland RFCA would like to congratulate all of their 2024 winners. If reading this has inspired you to find out more about the Employer Recognition Scheme, please email Cat Suckling on wm-reed3@rfca.mod.uk or visit www.wmrfca.org.

of up to 376kWh. It is being charged at the operator’s depot overnight using a 40kW DC mobile charger, provided by Volvo.

The vehicle’s regenerative braking system also enables some of the energy that would otherwise have been lost when the bus is decelerating, to be successfully recovered

as free and clean energy to help power the vehicle.

To date, Volvo’s BZL Electric zero tailpipe emission vehicles have been delivered into service in more than 10 countries around the world and are offered in the UK exclusively with MCV bodywork.

omnigo has got your business covered…with three powerful solutions

Card payments

Nicholas Gould was the cover star of the last edition of C&W In Business, and has been inundated with positive feedback on the back of the article that tracked his career and the reason why he established omnigo.

Nicholas joined the Chamber as a Business Influence member to help tell the story of omnigo – as well as to connect with more companies and organisations across the region.

However, he wasn’t expecting the level of interest the double page spread generated.

Bookings

omnigo is an award-winning partner offering dojo machines to take card payments from customers – whether you are a retailer or hospitality business.

The platform that sits behind the transactions is designed to remove many of the pain points that businesses often feel and can mitigate the requirement to have multiple suppliers as you can do face-to-face payments, over-the-phone payments, pay by link, e-commerce, integrated payments, virtual terminals, kiosk payments and QR codes all under the same Merchant ID (MID).

The platform also supplies businesses with realtime data via an app so clients can make up-to-theminute decisions. “You can see, for example, hourby-hour takings, in real time,” said Nicholas.

Payments that are taken on any given day are processed with no intervention or action necessary (no more z reads) and money appears in a client’s account after 6.30am the following morning, seven days a week – whether it’s a weekend or even a bank holiday.

EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR CHAMBER MEMBERS AND ASSOCIATES:

Try the dojo omnichannel platform for a month free of charge, we are so confident you will love our service and support, we will even cover exit fees up to £3,000 per legal entity if you are tied into an agreement.

He said: “My LinkedIn profile lit up with so many clients and contacts liking my post about the article and with lots of people getting in touch with me directly.

“The founders of dojo – which is based near Paddington in London – absolutely loved it too.

At omnigo we can do much more than take payments – it can drive customers through your door too.

It can support bookings – either in-person or online – and it can enhance visibility on search engines such as Google, including an ‘eat now’ feature that shows availability and then converts that into more bookings.

Restaurants are often left out of pocket by noshows, but with the support of omnigo and dojo, that issue can be eliminated by booking through the platform.

Nicholas said: “It’s one of those issues that many restaurants and other leisure outlets thought they just had to put up with, but that is another pain point we can help to resolve for them.

“With our all-in-one system, you can attract, seat, and manage diners effortlessly. Take bookings from Google, your site, or our app, and even launch special offers to get discovered by new customers.

“You can handle all your bookings whether online or walk-ins from any device. The biggest time saver being the automatic table seating and booking deposits that protect your revenue from no-shows.

“If you spot a trend where a certain period might be quiet, you could maybe run an offer in real time to attract more customers.”

“These experiences could be afternoon teas, bottomless brunches or a welcome drink.

They felt it really captured my personality and that of the business.

“Now people know about me and omnigo, I wanted to use this opportunity in C&W In Business to outline some of the services we can offer.”

“Set-up is simple, we do it for you! And with guest profiles, you can keep track of customer preferences, send personalised offers, and turn first-time diners into regulars. omnigo has a bookings specialist that has eight years subject matter expertise – book a call and we will show how beyond the customers, we can make the owner’s and staff's lives better, that’s a win-win!”

EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR CHAMBER MEMBERS AND ASSOCIATES:

We will do a free audit of your business, current practices and your online profile, where we will cover your first two months at no cost, so you can test and see benefits and value of the platform before bookings and service over Christmas and New Year commence.

Business Funding

Businesses looking to invest to grow often need support with finance and, once again, omnigo goes above and beyond.

It offers flexible funding from between £1,000 and £1 million and repayments can be made via a fixed percentage from any card payments received within the business – with no ongoing interest!

Nicholas said: “The application process is simple and decisions are taken very quickly, allowing money to hit the bank within 48 hours of approval. Funding can be used for any purpose connected with your business, so additional stock, expand, hire, revamp or grow.

“If our clients are growing, it’s great news for us too, so that’s why we like to develop personal relationships and strong partnerships.”

EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR CHAMBER MEMBERS AND ASSOCIATES:

Accept the secure banking link or provide three months bank statements or and we will get you an offer amount within 24 hours with no obligation –you draw down when you are ready.

President pops into Purple Planet Packaging

A key business figure has been to find out how a Coventry firm is helping the leisure and hospitality sector across the UK to become more sustainable – and how it has been learning from one of the biggest companies in the world.

Steve Harcourt, the president of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, paid a visit to Purple Planet Packaging – which is based on Seven Stars Industrial Estate – alongside Hazel Pilling, the Chamber’s international trade and membership manager.

Steve and Hazel were given the lowdown on the company’s plans for growth by husband and wife team, Mark and Joanna Farr, who run the business after they purchased it in 2019 and moved it from Cornwall to Coventry.

Purple Planet Packaging sells responsible packaging and containers for the food and drink industry, from cups to food-trays and from cutlery to take-away boxes.

It has recently signed a manufacturing deal with a UK-based company to create its own plastic-free, home compostable cups under a new Planetware brand and

has already secured contracts with the likes of Coventry Building Society Arena to supply around 800,000 cups.

The business has seen turnover surpass the £1.3 million mark and is now looking to kick on with further growth.

Purple Planet Packaging has been supported in a range of ways by the Chamber, including linking Mark into the Amazon Accelerate Programme to give him an insight into some of the processes and ideas from one of the world’s biggest businesses.

Purple Planet Packaging is also sponsoring the Chamber’s Green Futures: Expo & Summit which is taking place at Ashorne Hill in Leamington on Thursday, September 19 from 10am until 2pm.

Mark said: “We were delighted to welcome Steve and Hazel and to talk about our next stages for growth.

“When we started the business, we wanted to get as much help and advice as possible and joining the Chamber was part of that because of its networks but also the expertise and knowledge they have.

“Joanna and I are passionate about Coventry and the wider region and

Chamber welcomes road investment report

The Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce has welcomed a new report by Midlands Connect that outlines 17 road projects across the region that could have a transformational effect.

It includes improvements on the A46 in Coventry and between Stratford and Warwick as well as a range of other projects across the wider Midlands.

Corin Crane, chief executive of the Chamber, said improving the road network was vital in stimulating growth.

He said: “Midlands Connect has set out where it believes investment should be targeted and the priorities for our region when it comes to our roads.

“Of course, we want to see improvements on our own patch but when you look at the wider report there are, for example, calls to improve the A5 which directly affects our members too.

while we want to grow the business for ourselves and for our family, we want to give back. We want to be a business that the city is proud of and one that invests and creates good jobs.

“It was good to chat through those plans but also to talk about some of the challenges you face when it comes to growing because being in business doesn’t run in a straight line as there is always something new to think about – whether its costs going up or trying to recruit key staff.

“So, being able to go on the Amazon Accelerate Programme was great for me and for the business. I just want to learn all

the time and soak up as much information as possible and it was a real eye-opener.

“We see this is very much as a partnership with the Chamber so we are thrilled to be backing the Green Futures: Expo & Summit next month.”

Steve said: “We are fortunate to have so many great businesses here in Coventry and Warwickshire, who are innovating and growing and, in this instance, helping other companies to become more sustainable.

“I was fascinated to hear the back story but also the future of the business and we will do everything we can to support its growth.”

“It’s vital to take a regional viewpoint. Businesses and their staff don’t adhere

to local authority boundaries – they travel across borders and having a road network that is fit for purpose is vital.

“I think everyone would agree that there have been major improvements in Coventry and Warwickshire in recent years and the recommendations in this report would provide a further boost to our region.”

Mike Bull, Programme Director at Midlands Connect, said: “We never recommend a project for funding unless we believe the benefits outweigh the costs. The 17 road projects mentioned in the report have the ability to cut congestion, help create new jobs and homes, as well as improve safety across the region. They are real ‘no brainers’ for stimulating economic growth during this challenging time.

“We will continue to support National Highways and the relevant Local Authorities in making the case for these much-needed schemes to Government.”

Hazel Pilling, Mark Farr, Joanna Farr, Steve Harcourt

Call to action as charity marks 10 years of supporting grieving parents

A Warwickshire-based charity is marking a decade of being a vital support system for grieving parents, helping them during the most difficult time of their lives.

Freddie's Wish is a charity with love at its heart, providing counselling to parents who've lost a baby or child, and educating parents and carers in Paediatric First Aid.

Freddie's Wish was set up in early 2015 after Charlotte Jolliffe lost her son Freddie in December 2014. He died at just 13 months old due to injuries he sustained from a road traffic collision.

This December will mark 10 years since Freddie tragically lost his life, but also 10 years of incredible fundraising and support and the charity is hoping to make this year its best yet.

"I can't believe the support we have received over the last decade and how grateful we are to each and every person and business who has supported us over that time,” said Founder Charlotte.

“The love and support we have been shown has enabled us to grow and expand, saving lives both mentally and physically, and being able to provide that education and support makes me immensely proud and demonstrates what a legacy Freddie's life has left behind.”

The charity delivers First Aid courses, as Charlotte says that CPR being performed on Freddie at the scene gave him the best chance of survival as well as giving the family the chance to say goodbye.

First Aid shouldn't be a luxury, says the charity – it should be something everyone should have access to, enabling it to become a priority and instilling confidence in parents, enabling them to act quickly should a first aid situation arise.

The charity also offers fully funded bereavement support and counselling delivered by accredited counsellors, making this life-saving support accessible to parents whose world has fallen apart. The service is available to all parents who have lost a baby or child, from the moment of conception to any age.

All fundraising is so important to keep the charity delivering these vital services, so anyone who would like to get involved to make the 10th anniversary incredible is invited to get in touch.

See https://freddieswish.org/

Area Focus: Coventry - Mid Warks -

Double success as pair graduate with support from employer

A Midlands construction and development group has continued its track record of developing staff with the graduation of two of its trainees.

Jake Bishop and Josh Hendy have become the latest staff members at the Deeley Group to successfully complete degrees after support from the firm.

Deeley Group, headquartered in Coventry, has a proud history of supporting the development of both its site and office-based teams – with 26 per cent of the firm’s current staff having come through a trainee, apprenticeship or graduate programme.

Jake, site manager, has secured a has secured a BSc First Class Honours in Construction Management, and Josh, quantity surveyor, has completed a BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying & Project Management with a 2:1.

Jake, 30, from Solihull, joined Deeley Group as a trainee site manager in 2019 and completed his degree at Birmingham City University while working as a site manager for Deeley Construction.

He said: “I’ve tried to take every opportunity that presented itself since joining the business.

Now I have graduated, I can focus on carrying out my role full time and hope to be able to continue progressing.

“The support and opportunities the business has given me have been fantastic. They have shown great faith in me and my ability.

“It’s been beneficial to develop my theory and knowledge at university while also learning on the job and being able to put that theory into practice. It has been a five-year process for me, but doing the degree alongside my job on site has been great for my progression.”

Josh, 25, from Stafford, began working with Deeley during a placement year at Nottingham Trent University and chose to stay on, completing his final year of studies part-time. Over three years, he has progressed from assistant to quantity surveyor, supporting a diverse range of retail, healthcare, and education projects.

“My course at university was a sandwich course and I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to join Deeley on placement,” said Josh.

“I really enjoyed that year and the business took me on as an employee part-way through. It was clear to me that I would get great support in my

development through Deeley and the team here would help me to progress.”

Deeley Group is a member of The 5% Club, a group of more than 250 employers committed to developing the skills of young people.

Eleanor Deeley, joint Managing Director at Deeley Group, said: “We place great importance on developing our team, with many senior staff starting as trainees or apprentices. We are committed to supporting staff in their growth, through apprenticeships, degrees and ongoing professional development opportunities.”

Growing Leamington firm sizes up into office just six doors down

A growing consultancy business has been able to stay in Leamington Spa while expanding by moving into new premises just a few doors down from its former base.

AMC Project & Building Consultants was based in Euston Place but found its lower ground floor

office space was becoming too small as its client base, work and team expanded.

The company managed to find its ideal new home just a stone’s throw away – a few doors down the same street – in a deal secured by Leamington chartered surveyors and commercial property firm ehB Reeves.

AMC Project & Building Consultants now occupies the upper floors of its new building at 5 Euston Place, with the ground floor continuing to be let to restaurant and takeaway Plan Burrito, which opened last year.

Andrew Christou, Director at AMC Project & Building Consultants, said: “I set up the business as a one-man band back in 2018 and since then it has grown and grown, to the point where we are now a team of eight people.

“It’s a great building and we are currently decorating, with a view to turning the top floor

into a function room. This will enable us to invite clients into our office for face-to-face events.

“I love the fact that we are based in a town –most firms in our industry are in big cities, and we are one of few of our size which is based in a town. We are able to compete with companies based in Birmingham, and it goes to show that you don’t have to be based in a big city to do that.”

Simon Hain, director at ehB Reeves, said: “It’s great to see a Leamington-based business achieving success in its field and achieving growth. We’re pleased that we could help Andrew to find the right space for the company to grow into while remaining in the town – and even staying in the same street.”

For more information on AMC Project & Building Consultants, visit www.amc-property.com

For more information on ehB Reeves, visit www.ehbreeves.com

Warwickshire firm targets growth after “incredible” first three years

The team at a Warwickshire-based land, development and property firm toasted huge success after the business celebrated its third birthday.

Based at Stockton House, near Southam, Newton LDP has facilitated the transaction of more than £296 million worth of land with a further £148 million under offer.

The business, led by Managing Director Richard Foxon, has also advised on close to 5,000 acres of strategic land, with potential for more than 30,000 new homes, and more than 566 acres of strategic commercial development land.

The team is currently advising on approximately 20,000 acres after a significant growth in rural and agribusiness services so far this year.

With the construction of new homes a hot topic for Sir Keir Starmer’s new Labour government, the future looks especially bright for Newton LDP following the business’s recent anniversary.

But it’s not all planning briefs, land agency and balance sheets for the team, which has also made time to support various charities and community organisations.

Newton LDP are confident a bright future lies ahead after a hugely successful first three years in business

Over the past three years, more than £100,000 has been raised for charity. More than £84,000 was raised for the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution, through Newton LDP’s annual clay shoot, and the team walked 86 miles along Hadrian’s Wall in less than three days to raise more than £19,000 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital. In addition, Newton LDP has also donated in excess of £49,000 of its profits to charitable causes.

Richard said: “Newton LDP has delivered so much to be proud of in our first three years, with many notable achievements as is highlighted by some incredible data.

“The fact we have transacted on more than £296 million worth of land, with a relatively small team, speaks volumes for what we have achieved so early in the company’s journey.

“Everyone at Newton LDP recognises just how important it is to support local charities and community organisations. So, to raise the sums we have, for such worthy causes, is especially rewarding for us all.

“As we celebrate this milestone, we’re delighted by all that we have accomplished to date and know many more opportunities lie ahead.”

Newton LDP expects its team to double in size over the course of 2024, from appointing consultants with decades of experience, to supporting school leavers through a rural degree apprenticeship in partnership with Harper Adams University.

The team looks forward to building on these successes and continued growth throughout the rest of 2024 and beyond.

A taxing qualification – but that’s no problem for Vicky

“Tax is a big subject but I enjoy supporting clients with this specialist knowledge,” explained Vicky. “It’s not just about knowing the numbers; it’s also understanding tax law and how it applies to a client’s situation.

decisions like those. I help them navigate tax law and understand the financial implications of the decisions they’re making.”

It means Vicky becomes a specialist adviser within Pentlands, offering advice and support in all areas of UK tax.

“Our business clients have lots of ideas about what they want to do, whether that’s starting a new company, or changing the way they trade or the structure of their company. At the end of the day, companies are going to pay tax on

Pentlands provides accountancy services and expert advice for business owners of SMEs, working proactively to simplify the complex. From a helping hand with accounts to more strategic advice, they work with clients to manage, grow and maximise the value of their business.

Matthew Lynch (Commercial Director), Josh Hendy, Jake Bishop and Chris Newman (Operations Director).

Andrew Christou, director at AMC Project & Building Consultants, with Simon Hain, director at ehB Reeves

Vicky Begley of Pentlands Accountants is celebrating passing her final exam for The Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) with the Chartered Institute of Taxation.

The professional qualification, which took two years to complete and is internationally recognised, is a gold standard for tax professionals.

Local business forum sets out its priorities

Tackling recruitment challenges and making the county an even better place to work are vital post General Election goals, according to a North Warwickshire business forum.

Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce’s North-Warwickshire Local Business Forum saw representatives from the hospitality industry through to international trade gather in

Nuneaton town centre to discuss the top concerns for firms as a new government takes the reins in Parliament.

Sarah Windrum from HORIBA MIRA, who chairs the forum, said Labour has a “massive mandate for change” on issues including the NHS, with nursing recruitment and social care funding identified as major challenges.

Addressing the drop-off in overseas talent being recruited into temporary and seasonal roles was also discussed as a key issue affecting hospitality businesses in the region.

Ensuring the wellbeing and development needs of staff are met to support retention, and helping young people plot the best path for their careers were also put forward as obstacles facing local businesses.

The meeting was held at Saints Nuneaton, a social enterprise and café which is helping to alleviate poverty and support people into work through a number of initiatives.

Delegates also heard from Love to Ride, a free programme which works with businesses to encourage more people to cycle to work through

cash prizes and rewards, as a way to boost wellbeing in workplaces across the county.

The Chamber hosts Local Business Forums across Coventry and Warwickshire to provide members with an opportunity to find out what is happening on a national policy level, while offering a platform to have a say on the issues affecting local businesses.

Sean Rose, head of policy at the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce, said: “I’d like to thank everyone who joined us for their excellent insights, including the steps being taken to make Warwickshire a great place to live, work and grow a business.

“These meetings give us a chance to look at national trends in a local context, and also explore how we can help address the issues unique to local industry.

“We are always in constant communication with our members to find out the issues most important to them, and our Local Business Forums are a really useful platform to enable discussions across multiple industries and sectors.”

Company transformed thanks to ultra-fast connectivity partnership

Coventry-based construction firm FPM, located on the Charter Avenue Industrial Estate, has recently secured ultra-fast internet connectivity, a significant upgrade that was previously out of reach. This advancement was made possible through a fortuitous meeting at a Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce event.

Robert Villette, Managing Director at FPM, explained: "As our business expanded, we increasingly relied on cloud technology, which placed additional demands on our internet connection. Our existing connection couldn't keep up, leading to slow speeds and outages that hindered productivity and frustrated our team. Initial efforts to find a solution were discouraging due to lack of fibre connections at our location or prohibitive costs, leaving us unsure of how to proceed. However, a chance encounter with René Wheeler from SolaaS IT at a Chamber event changed everything. René offered to conduct a free survey and cost analysis, confident he could address our connectivity issues.”

René, Managing Director at SolaaS IT, added:

"Despite promises of widespread ultra-fast connectivity, many areas in the UK still lack adequate coverage. We specialise in providing a stand-alone solution that is transforming businesses across the country, especially those in remote areas or industrial estates like FPM's location, where traditional internet services fall short.

"Our Starlink service delivers a dedicated internet connection via a satellite dish installed

on the building. This method avoids the need for costly and disruptive infrastructure work, such as digging up roads to lay cables. The installation process is quick and causes minimal disruption."

Robert said the new system had had a positive impact, adding: "Our daily operations have significantly improved, and our new phone system provides us with the flexibility to answer calls as though we are in the office, even when team members may be on site or working remotely. We have the additional benefit of being prepared for the upcoming BT switch-off."

The BT switch-off, which will phase out traditional landlines in favour of internet-based phone systems, represents a major shift in the telecom sector.

Robert continued: “As our plans for growth come into fruition and our commercial building project portfolio increases, it is vital we have a robust communication platform in place, and I am confident we have that now.”

For more on either company, see www.thefpmgroup.co.uk or www.solaas.it

Crack the clues and lift the curse in new Hatton escape room

The doors to a brand new escape room swung open – and then promptly locked again – in Warwick in July.

Nottah Temple takes aspiring adventurers on a jungle expedition like no other since becoming the third Tulley’s Escape Room to launch at Hatton Country World.

But beware the curse that lies within!

Teams of between two and eight people are invited to crack the codes and unlock all the secrets as they puzzle their way through a series of gameplay challenges in the latest fun adventure, the storyline of which centres around the discovery of an ancient temple. Visiting teams must embark on a quest to return to the temple and return its stolen treasure before it’s too late.

Between two and eight people have up to 60 minutes to complete the task before the temple

collapses and the treasure is lost forever. Tulleys Escape Rooms, established in Crawley, partnered with Hatton in 2019 to launch the two original games, Mutiny – a swashbuckling adventure to overthrow a bloodthirsty buccaneer – and The Oufitters, where you’re part of a special police task force to crack gangs in prohibition Chicago.

In addition to the escape rooms, Hatton Country World offers a host of shows and activities daily on its 100-acre site, and includes a four-acre laser combat field and a large indoor play area.

Hatton Country World owner, Johnnie Arkwright, said: “We are delighted to be have opened a brand new room, which is only available at Tulleys Escape Hatton. The new experience has surpassed anything we could have imagined, a truly immersive treasure-hunting experience; you have to see it to believe it. We look forward to

explorers taking on the new challenge and trying to escape. Good luck!”

Nottah Temple is geared towards adults and teenagers and bookings can be made via: https://hattonescaperooms.com/

Dedication to sustainability recognised with accreditation

The accreditation was achieved through the Quality in Tourism, REST (Responsible, Ethical, Sustainable Tourism) certification program, which recognises businesses that demonstrate a clear commitment to sustainability. This accolade assures guests that the Windmill Village Hotel is committed to environmental sustainability.

Silvio Faller, hotel group Operations Manager said: "Achieving REST accreditation is a tremendous milestone for Windmill Village Hotel, Golf Club & Spa. It represents our unwavering commitment to creating a sustainable and ethical environment for our guests, staff, and the broader community. This accreditation is a testament to our ongoing efforts in embracing the challenges of a net-zero future.”

Christmas at the Telegraph Hotel

Christmas has come early at Coventry’s Telegraph Hotel with two of its party nights already selling out with the summer holidays barely in full swing, and another close to being fully booked.

The Mid-Century styled city centre hotel, which opened three years ago in the former offices of the city’s daily newspaper, is offering a range of options to get everyone in the mood this festive season – from private party bookings through to festive afternoon teas, lunches and dinners.

The Telegraph’s party nights are also back by popular demand which allow guests to book a private table at a shared party night, which includes a generous package of pomegranate fizz on arrival, three-course meal in the Editors Suite and half a bottle of wine per guest, followed by the opportunity to dance the night away at a Christmas disco until midnight.

The popular parties being on Saturday, November 30 and then run every Friday and Saturday until December 21.

Amy Windsor, General Manager of the Telegraph Hotel, said: “The brochure went live on our website a few weeks ago and one of the nights sold out immediately. In fact, we’d already secured a series of bookings before the brochure was released from returning guests who have had such a great time with us in previous years.

“The fact that so many people are choosing to return year after year is testament to the whole team who put on such amazing events – from the quality of the food, the incredible surroundings and, of course, the chance to let your hair down with a few drinks!

“As well as the party nights, we ensure we offer something for everyone at Christmas including our festive afternoon teas, lunches and dinners which begin at the end of November and run right up to December 22.

“We are so pleased that so many people in Coventry, Warwickshire and the wider West Midlands have made this part of the Telegraph part of their Christmas tradition in such a short space of time.”

As part of the accreditation process, the Windmill Village Hotel, Golf Club & Spa underwent a thorough review of its environmental practices, social impact, and operational policies. This not only aligns with the global goal of achieving netzero emissions but also contributes to broader industry resilience in an evolving economic and ecological landscape.

Windmill Village Hotel remains dedicated to continuous improvement and aims to be a leader in responsible tourism, paving the way for a more sustainable future. By achieving this accreditation, the hotel reaffirms its dedication to reducing its environmental footprint while enhancing the wellbeing of its staff, guests, and the local community. https://www.windmillvillagehotel.co.uk/

Afternoon teas are available with or without Prosecco in the stylish Forme & Chase Restaurant and include everything from roast breast of turkey and cranberry jelly finger sandwiches through to chestnut and parmesan arancini.

Festive Fayre lunches and dinners, also in Forme & Chase, feature three courses and are perfect for meet-ups with family and friends, while Christmas party nights and private parties are the ideal way for companies, organisations and local groups to celebrate together.

The Telegraph is also offering discounted overnight stays with breakfast for those who book onto a party night. For full details of Christmas at the Telegraph go to https://www.telegraphhotel.com/christmas-2024/

Sarah Windrum (front, centre) with members at the Chamber’s North Warwickshire Local Business Forum

The Windmill Village Hotel, Golf Club & Spa is proud to announce that it has been awarded accreditation

Get into the festive spirit with historic venue’s cracking Christmas offerings

A 14th century historic hidden gem in the West Midlands has launched a pair of exciting festive adventures to entertain visitors this Christmas – with activities inspired by real history and a beloved tale.

St Mary’s Guildhall, located in the heart of Coventry’s Cathedral Quarter, will transport guests to days of Christmas past this December, with Tudor-inspired activities and Victorian tales to captivate all ages.

On December 4 and 12, “Scrooge’s Spirit” – a one-man performance of A Christmas Carol complete with mulled wine and minced pies – invites guests to witness the timeless tale told from Scrooge’s perspective.

Bookings for groups of 10 or more are now open and include the chance to explore the Grade-1 listed attraction, which is home to the 16th century Coventry Tapestry, thought to be the oldest in Britain still hanging in its original location.

Christmas Tours and Tudors follow on December 11 and 17. The experience includes a guided tour of the 700-year-old venue, which will be adorned with festive decorations, with knowledgeable guides on hand to talk about early Christmas traditions.

Daily visits are also available, with all guests invited to marvel at real 18ft Christmas trees and twinkling festive lights.

The Guildhall Tudors will also be in action in the medieval kitchen, as they begin preparations for the 12 days of Christmas and explain all about the seasonal feasts and games that would have brought families together in the late 15th century.

The events are designed to help daytrippers and budding historians get in the festive spirit, explore a unique historic venue and discover more about the history of Christmas – and be entertained along the way.

Across its 700-year history, St Mary’s Guildhall has played host to royalty including Mary Queen of Scots and Henry VII, and underwent a variety of uses for the city’s merchants and communities, including as a Victorian soup kitchen.

The historic attraction, which survived the November 1940 blitz, offers a unique window into hundreds of years of British history.

Abi Moore, Heritage and Venue Manager at St Mary’s Guildhall, said: “It’s set to be another festive season to remember, and with our calendar already filling up, we are looking forward to welcoming all-comers this December with so much to see and do at St Mary’s Guildhall.”

Advance booking is required and visitors are encouraged to book early to avoid disappointment. Visit www. stmarysguildhall.co.uk or email traveltrade@noordinaryhospitality.com

Area Focus: Coventry - Mid Warks - North

Accolade well deserved for team that builds region’s business successes

A Midlands construction and development group has continued its track record of developing staff with the graduation of two of its trainees.

Jake Bishop and Josh Hendy have become the latest staff members at the Deeley Group to successfully complete degrees after support from the firm.

Deeley Group, headquartered in Coventry, has a proud history of supporting the development of both its site and office-based teams –with 26 per cent of the firm’s current staff having come through a trainee, apprenticeship or graduate programme.

Jake, site manager, has secured a has secured a BSc First Class Honours in Construction Management, and Josh, quantity surveyor, has completed a BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying & Project Management with a 2:1.

Jake, 30, from Solihull, joined Deeley Group as a trainee site manager in 2019 and completed his degree at Birmingham City

University while working as a site manager for Deeley Construction.

He said: “I’ve tried to take every opportunity that presented itself since joining the business. Now I have graduated, I can focus on carrying out my role full time and hope to be able to continue progressing.

“The support and opportunities the business has given me have been fantastic. They have shown great faith in me and my ability.

“It’s been beneficial to develop my theory and knowledge at university while also learning on the job and being able to put that theory into practice. It has been a five-year process for me, but doing the degree alongside my job on site has been great for my progression.”

Josh, 25, from Stafford, began working with Deeley during a placement year at Nottingham Trent University and chose to stay on, completing his final year of studies part-time. Over three years, he has progressed from assistant to quantity surveyor, supporting a

diverse range of retail, healthcare, and education projects.

“My course at university was a sandwich course and I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to join Deeley on placement,” said Josh.

“I really enjoyed that year and the business took me on as an employee part-way through. It was clear to me that I would get great support in my development through Deeley and the team here would help me to progress.”

Deeley Group is a member

Eleanor Deeley, joint Managing Director

said: “We place great importance on developing our team, with many senior staff starting as trainees or apprentices. We are committed to supporting staff in their growth, through apprenticeships, degrees and ongoing professional development opportunities.”

New things in store for Leamington Spa as deal agreed

a leading commercial agency.

The 5,709 sq ft unit at 36 Parade in Leamington Spa will become a new Nisa store following its purchase by Dougall Group, a family-owned property company which owns a variety of convenience stores in the West Midlands and London, after a deal was agreed by Leamingtonbased Wareing & Company.

The store will open in September after planning permission for external signs was granted.

Ricky Dougall, Director of Dougall Group, was informed of the opportunity by Jonathan Blood, Director at Wareing & Company.

“We had been looking at opening a store in Leamington for a while, but we’d never been able to find a property that met all of our needs,” Ricky said.

“I’d been in contact with Jon on a previous deal that we didn’t pursue in the end, but we kept in touch because of our desire to find a Leamington site.

“When he told us about this opportunity –especially to buy rather than rent – we knew this was the site we were looking for.

“36 Parade is in an excellent location, being right next to the main bus stops and attracting a high level of footfall.

“We’re looking forward to opening in September and we’re confident Leamington will embrace the new store warmly. If all goes well, we’d be looking at potentially finding more sites in south Warwickshire to expand our portfolio further.

Coventry training provider opens new Leamington office

Having successfully delivered the Government’s Restart Scheme at Royal Leamington Spa College over the past three years to thousands of participants, PET-Xi will be opening its new doors on the Parade.

An exciting opportunity was presented to PET-Xi, allowing learners easier access to training options in the town centre, with extra transport links in walking distance of the office, supporting learners from Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth.

The office will also be used as an Employability Hub, with PET-Xi delivering several skills courses from the new location, working alongside local businesses to offer guaranteed interviews for participants.

The Restart Scheme provides tailored support to individuals who have been claiming Universal Credit for nine months. It gives participants the tools, technology and coaching they need to jump-start personal development and succeed in finding employment.

Fleur Sexton, CEO and Co-Founder of PET-Xi, said: “It’s fantastic to be in the heart of Leamington, alongside all the fabulous employers who we work with to find them employees who are committed to their businesses and to the community.

“We have some great people with us who are looking for jobs and will be a real asset to the businesses they are taken on by.

“And having the office here in the town centre makes a real difference as many of our participants can access it far more easily.”

Leading Midlands law firm supports manufacturing sector

A new medical glass manufacturing facility in St Helens is a step closer to fruition after a lease was signed on the industrial site where it will be based.

SINA Medical Glass has signed a 15-year lease on an industrial building to the rear of Glass Futures with the support of leading Midlands law firm Wright Hassall.

The company will now convert the warehouse into a medical glass manufacturing centre.

SINA Medical Glass plans to manufacture circa 300 million medical glass vials and cartridges per annum, sufficient to meet the UK’s domestic annual requirement, and with the excess to be exported to meet global demand.

Wright Hassall worked on behalf of the company to agree the lease for the site, which is now owned by St Helens Borough Council.

Andrew Jones, a Partner in the Commercial Real Estate team at Wright Hassall, said: “We are extremely pleased to help SINA Medical Glass secure a lease for its new site.

“There were a number of complexities in relation to the site which we were able to navigate on behalf of the client.

“This included working closely with St Helens Borough Council

which was purchasing the site as part of its investment into the glass industry in the area, and advising on change of use planning permission ahead of the lease being agreed.

“St Helens has a long history in glass manufacturing, so it is fantastic to support such an exciting business as it looks to boost investment in this area, create local employment opportunities and grow the economy in the North West.

“As a team, we are very pleased to be supporting the manufacturing sector right across the UK.”

of The 5% Club, a group of more than 250 employers committed to developing the skills of young people.

at Deeley Group,

Professor Stuart Croft, Vice-Chancellor and President of The University of Warwick (left), with the University of Warwick Science Park’s business support team after presenting them with their Warwick Wow award

A growing retail property business has acquired a unit in a prime Warwickshire location for a new store after a deal was agreed with

Ricky Dougall, director of Dougall Group (left) with Jonathan Blood, director at Wareing & Company outside the new Nisa at 36 Parade in Leamington

Area Focus: Coventry - Mid Warks -

Signing Off to bring their UK tour to the CBS Arena

The much-loved songs of UB40 will be brought to life in Coventry by the only tribute band endorsed by the famous reggae and pop group.

Signing Off, named after the Birmingham band’s seminal debut album, will perform at Coventry Building Society Arena on Saturday, March 22, as part of their eagerlyawaited 2025 UK tour.

UB40 fans can expect rousing renditions of many of the band’s 17 UK top ten singles such as Red Red

Wine, Food For Thought, Kingston Town, One In Ten and I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You.

The group’s striking resemblance to UB40's original dub and reggae sound, and their preference for material that only diehard fans would recognise, has led to praise from the band itself.

“We know the guys in Signing Off quite well,” said guitarist Robin Campbell. “I have known them for years. They are raving fans.

We probably have more tribute bands than anyone going!”

Signing Off was formed in 2014 by a group of friends and experienced musicians determined to replicate with unerring likeness the live sound of their idols.

Lead vocalist and frontman Scott Lloyd said: “I think I speak on behalf of all of Signing Off when I say that we can’t wait to perform at Coventry Building Society Arena.

“It’s an amazing opportunity for us to show why we are the only UB40 tribute band to be endorsed by UB40 themselves.

“We can’t wait to take people back to when UB40 first came about and make them think about memories to certain songs.

“We pride ourselves on having such a close similarity to UB40’s style and sound that people can close their eyes and believe they are at a UB40 concert.”

Jenni Ford, Director of Sales and Marketing at Coventry Building Society Arena, said:

“We’re delighted Signing Off will be bringing their UK tour to the Arena.

“That they are the only UB40 tribute act to be endorsed by the band themselves speaks volumes for the show they put on and their likeness to the real thing.

“Casual and diehard fans alike are in for a real treat with plenty of singalongs and maybe one or two surprises too.”

Signing Off have been performing for over a decade, selling out shows at festivals, theatres and major live music venues right across the UK.

In 2021 they were invited to perform, alongside famous reggae artists and former UB40 collaborators Winston Francis and HUNTERZ, at an event in memory of saxophonist and founding member Brian Travers.

The memorial concert was staged at The Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath, the pub where UB40 made their very first live performance. For tickets visit www.eticketing.co.uk/cbsarena/

Two South Warwickshire charities awarded funds by the Lodders Charitable Foundation

Warwickshire charities The Shakespeare Hospice and HomeStart South Warwickshire have received donations from the Lodders Charitable Foundation (LCF) to support their work in the local community. The LCF was established in 2016 by Stratfordbased law firm Lodders and supports regional charities where a real difference can be made. Since its inception, the LCF has donated more than £100,000 to local independent charities.

The Shakespeare Hospice and Home-Start South Warwickshire were chosen as the LCF’s fundraising beneficiaries for 2024.

In recognition of its 25th anniversary this year, The Shakespeare Hospice has received a donation of £7,500 from the LCF, raised through local fundraising events with additional support from Lodders.

The Shakespeare Hospice cares for patients, their carers and loved ones across South Warwickshire and the surrounding areas. The hospice in Shottery is the hub for its day services, providing a friendly, caring environment and support for those affected by life-limiting illness to access a wide range of services and therapies. Other services provided include hospice at home, children and family support service, adult counselling and transitional care.

Alison Stone, Corporate and Community Fundraiser at

The Shakespeare Hospice, said:

"Support from our corporate partners is essential in ensuring that The Shakespeare Hospice can meet the growing demand for palliative care and expand our services to those in need. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Lodders Charitable Foundation for their generous support this year. Their commitment enables us to continue providing compassionate care and essential services to our community, especially as we celebrate our 25th anniversary.”

Home-Start South Warwickshire has received a £2,500 donation from the LCF. The organisation is a local community network of trained volunteers and expert support helping families with young children through their most challenging times.

David Lodder, chairman of the LCF, commented: “The LCF is thrilled to be able to support both the Shakespeare Hospice and Home-Start South Warwickshire

this year. Both organisations have a profound, positive impact on our local community as well as the West Midlands as a whole.

“Having delivered compassionate care and support to individuals and their loved ones affected by lifelimiting conditions for an incredible 25 years, the Shakespeare Hospice is a shining example of a charity that makes a tangible difference.”

This year’s LCF events programme has included the annual Family Fun Day and Dog Walk in Henley in Arden, and a Quiz Night.

David adds: “Throughout its 240 plus years, Lodders has maintained a commitment to helping the local communities in the towns and cities where we are based. It has been a great privilege to raise funds for such vital and worthwhile charities in Warwickshire this year.”

For more information, visit: www.lodders.co.uk/about-us/ lodders-charitable-foundation/

Historic mode of transport brings magical way to tour attraction

Coombe Abbey Hotel’s punt service is back in operation at the historic hotel – with opportunities for family tours or extra special experiences for couples this summer.

Each journey begins at the historic boat house, located behind a wooden portcullis next to the cobblestone bridge upon entry to the hotel, allowing visitors to see the historic former monastery and popular attraction from incredible new perspectives.

Trips allow guests to see original craftwork from when the abbey was built in 1150, as well as recently uncovered vistas along the moat.

The service can even be booked for proposals, with prosecco included on your trip, and weddings, offering the bride and bridesmaids a memorable way to arrive as well as a picturesque getaway for the wedding couple.

For those not planning to tie the knot anytime soon, sparkling cream tea packages are also available.

Abbey Punts run Wednesday to Sunday from 10.30am until late during the summer – weather permitting – with leisure trips for two to six people lasting around 35 minutes.

Experiences can be booked at the hotel reception – with a limited number of slots on Monday and Tuesday available by pre-booking directly with Abbey Punts.

The restored punt, lined with fine silk and featuring customised upholstered seating to allow better views, is skippered by Anthony Haynes, who founded Abbey Punts.

Each trip allows guests to get up close to the park’s abundant wildlife and incredible history of the medieval abbey, brought to life by Anthony’s expert knowledge of the surroundings.

Wedding coordinator shares top tips for the big day

A wedding coordinator from a luxury hotel near Stratford-upon-Avon has shared her list of tips for couples ahead of their big day – encouraging them to “bury a sausage” among other advice.

Francesca Crooke from Billesley Manor Hotel and Spa advises guests that ahead of their wedding day they should:

• Make time for themselves: Amidst the hustle and bustle of the day, remember that it’s all about you. Take a few moments alone together to soak it all in.

Be quirky: Let your personality shine through, whether it's unique decor or an unconventional entrance, embrace your quirks.

• Trust the professionals: From the venue to the photographer, trust the experts you've chosen. Their experience is invaluable in bringing your vision to life.

• Plan backwards: Start with the ideal time for your evening reception and work your way backward to plan the rest of your day.

Reuse decorations: Consider reusing flowers from the altar or registrar's table for your top table.

One of Fran’s more quirky tips for couples is to bury a sausage in a garden. Some superstitious couples believe that following this tradition the night before a wedding brings glorious skies for the festivities, and with the unpredictability of British weather, this can bring extra luck for blue skies on the big day.

Punting, which uses a single wooden pole to navigate, would have been common in local waterways at various points in Coombe’s history, including as a way to deliver goods to the abbey’s various esteemed occupants under the ownership of the Craven family, who owned the former Cistercian monastery for more than 300 years from 1622.

Ron Terry, group operations director at No Ordinary Hospitality, said: “Abbey Punts is a truly magical way to explore the historic grounds of Coombe Abbey.

“With some incredible views and Anthony’s fantastic hosting skills, there aren’t many better ways to spend an afternoon when the sun is shining.”

More packages can be viewed at: https://abbeypunts.com

On Sunday, November 3 from 12-3pm, couples are invited to Billesley Manor’s wedding fayre to view the fully decorated hotel and gardens and meet some top suppliers from around the county.

Regular and continual feedback on the quality of service, professionalism, and value for money are among the most frequently praised aspects of weddings at the hotel. This has seen Billesley Manor receive some great reviews from its guests, with a rating of 5/5 on Hitched.

As a result, couples travel far and wide to have their wedding at Billesley, with one recent couple travelling 10,000 miles from Australia for their big day.

For more information on weddings at Billesley Manor, visit www.billesleymanor.com/weddings

Signing Off (provided by Signing Off)

David Lodder, chairman of the Lodders Charitable Foundation

The Heart of England Conference and Events Centre

RECORD-BREAKING CHRISTMAS PARTIES AND FESTIVE BOOKINGS

The Heart of England Conference and Events Centre is a leader in delivering exceptional festive activities and Christmas Parties. This year is no exception, with reports indicating bookings are already at an all-time high!

This year, you can expect giant Viva Las Vegasinspired Christmas Party Nights, Santa’s Grotto with magical train rides through the woods, and Festive Feasts throughout November and December in the Quicken Tree Restaurant.

The Managing Director and founder of The Heart of England, Stephen Hammon, said, “The team and I love Christmas and put 100% effort into making it special and magical for all our visitors and guests. Tickets and bookings are selling faster and earlier than ever before. If you want to book, we strongly advise you get in touch

quickly, as last year, we know there were people left disappointed as they’d left it too late to book.”

The Elves have certainly been busy up at The Heart of England, you can clearly see the hard work and

preparation going on. We’ve heard whispers of new and exciting plans for the Viva Las Vegas party nights, and for New Year’s Eve; it sounds absolutely amazing!

The Quicken Tree on-site restaurant is serving up Festive Feasts at lunchtime and in the evenings for companies, groups of friends and family. Christmas Day is so popular that they offer two different experiences. First is the Chilled VIP Experience in the restaurant with a 4-course banquet, and second is the Birchley Suite Bonanza, which is in the party room with a cracker of a Christmas Carvery, party atmosphere, quizzes, games, bouncy castle and access to the marquee full of activities.

For more information on any of the above activities, head over to www.christmasattheheart.co.uk or call 01676 540333.

WMG Academy Coventry celebrates outstanding student success

Staff and students at the WMG Academy for Young Engineers Coventry have every reason to celebrate after seeing significant increases in Year 13 students gaining the highest grades.

WMG Academy Trust provides GCSE, A-level and BTEC education for 14 to 19-year-olds. It opened in 2014 and specialises in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects.

This year, more than 69 per cent of the cohort achieved grades between A* and C and/or Distinction* and Merit, with 41 per cent of A Level students gaining A* to B grades.

An impressive 70 per cent of the Year 13 students have secured places at university, with a further eight students heading off to begin degree apprenticeships.

Six students achieved the highest possible grade of Distinction* in the Cambridge Technical in Engineering, whilst five young people secured Distinction* in BTEC Triple Engineering.

In Cambridge Technical in Business, 40 per cent of students were awarded Distinction and Distinction*– Dawid was the highest achieving student, achieving Distinction*, A*, A, A in engineering, maths, physics and further maths, and is heading off to the University of Warwick to study maths and statistics.

WMG Academy Chief Executive Stewart Tait said: “I am delighted that students at the WMG Academies have had their commitment and endeavours rewarded with impressive examination results that will allow them to progress to the next stage of their journey, be that university, apprenticeships or direct employment.

“Whilst it is always pleasing to report yearon-year improvements in results, this year has seen a significant increase in the highest grades gained in A Levels and in technical qualifications. In our areas of specialism, over a third of students achieved the very highest grades.

“Once again, there is a very impressive range of destinations that have been secured by Year 13 students that they and their teachers and parents should be rightly proud of.”

Principal Fiesal Mahroof said: “We are extremely proud of all our students. They have demonstrated resilience and maturity throughout. We have once again this year seen increasing numbers of students pursuing higher education at prestigious universities in their chosen STEM subject. It is also pleasing to see a good number of students securing highly sought after degree apprenticeships, from both large and medium sized companies.

“WMG Academy for Young Engineers is proud to be partnered with a large number of national and international employer partners who work with students to develop their employability skills, which is evident in the fantastic destinations that many students have secured.”

The academy will be holding an open day on Saturday 19th October 2024.

For information, see https://coventry.wmgacademy.org.uk/

Supported Internships transform the lives of young learners

Warwickshire South

College (NWSLC) is transforming the lives of young people with learning disabilities or autism spectrum diagnosis by helping them gain full-time paid employment.

Through a partnership with national charity DFN Project SEARCH, and employers such as the NHS and ASDA, the college delivers Supported Internships – a programme designed to smooth the transition from education to the workforce for young people aged 16-24.

Currently, only 4.8 per cent of people with learning disabilities are in employment in England and Wales. The NWSLC programme

offers an invaluable opportunity to improve the odds for young individuals with SEND to develop transferable job skills, increase their independence, boost their self-esteem and build their future career.

Paula Jeffries, Team Leader of Supported Internships at NWSLC said: “These partnerships not only provide meaningful work experiences but also help create inclusive workplace environments. Interns work towards real job descriptions. NWSLC provides two professional job coaches based on site with the interns, who help colleagues to teach new tasks to interns in a way that suits their learning style.

“The success of the programme is reflected in the growing number of placements and opportunities available. For instance, the NHS George Eliot Hospital (GEH) has increased the number of intern placements and is creating new roles specifically for programme graduates.”

Supported Internships are tailored specifically to meet the needs of each intern and have recently gained significant recognition, with NWSLC’s Supported

Internship Programme recently winning the Pearson National Teaching Award for FE Team of the Year.

Additionally, the construction giant HS2 Balfour Beatty and Vinci has committed to offering two paid roles to interns each year. Consisting of three 10-week rotations within a host business, interns gain diverse work experiences while receiving 800 hours of structured support from job coaches and business mentors.

NWSLC, in collaboration with DFN Project SEARCH, continues to make a profound impact, empowering young adults to achieve independence, confidence, and real employment opportunities as they transition into adulthood.

Businesses looking to find out more about supporting the programme can contact Paula Jeffries, Team Leader Supported Internships at NWSLC: paula.jeffries@nwslc.ac.uk or Molly Williams-Leer, Programme Specialist at DFN Project SEARCH: Molly.Williams-Leer@dfnprojectsearch.org.

College staff among first to benefit from suicide prevention training

Staff at a Midlands college group have been among the first to complete early suicide prevention training delivered by a leading regional mental health charity.

More than 70 staff at WCG (Warwickshire College Group) have completed the training delivered by South Warwickshire and Worcestershire Mind (SWWMind).

SWWMind has received funding from the Government’s Suicide Prevention Fund to deliver this early suicide prevention training to schools and communities in South Warwickshire and Worcestershire.

The training series was delivered as a mixture of online and in-person sessions and offered to staff at the six colleges which are part of WCG, including Royal Leamington Spa College, Warwick Trident College, Rugby College, Moreton Morrell College, Pershore College and Evesham New College.

It saw staff take part in a six-hour workshop which taught them to look after their own wellbeing, as well as supporting colleagues and students.

They were trained to recognise early signs of mental health distress, how to support those individuals and how to best initiate conversations around suicide.

Emily Halderthay, of SWWMind, said:

“As part of our bid for funding for the programme, we identified a clear need in the region for suicide prevention support. The statistics are going in the wrong direction nationally but even more so regionally.

“Young people are one of the high priority groups. We are early intervention experts at SWWMind, and we want to be able to

identify any issues before they escalate to a crisis point.”

She said the course involved lots of interactive and role-playing scenarios, adding: “These exercises shed light on active listening and what triggers might be a warning sign.” Participants were also advised on how to have an initial conversation about suicidal thoughts.

Judith Abbott, Specialist Support Lead for Mental Health at WCG, said: “This training is really important for our staff and will enable them to make the right decisions and give impactful advice when speaking to colleagues or students.

“We want WCG to be a community not worried about having those conversations and our staff to be equipped to intervene early if they identify any early signs of suicide.”

To find out more about mental health support at WCG visit https://wcg.ac.uk/ page/1666/mental-health-support

College launches new courses to meet growing demand for skilled employees

In a move to address the growing shortage of skilled professionals, North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College has announced the introduction of Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) in several key areas: computing, digital technologies, business leadership and management, engineering, and healthcare professions.

The new HTQs were created in response to a government initiative last year, aiming to provide an alternative to traditional apprenticeships or degrees. These qualifications, which fall between A levels or T Levels and degrees, are designed to be taught at further education colleges,

independent training providers, or universities.

Marion Plant, Principal of North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College, said: "HTQs provide a valuable pathway for both young people starting their careers and adults seeking to upskill or retrain. The flexibility and industry relevance of these qualifications make them a compelling choice for anyone looking to enhance their professional capabilities."

Developed in collaboration with employers, HTQs ensure that students acquire the specific skills and knowledge required by industries. This employerdriven approach guarantees that graduates

are well-equipped with the expertise needed for specialised roles in the workforce.

HTQs encompass various types of qualifications such as Higher National Diplomas, Higher National Certificates, foundation degrees, and Higher Education Diplomas.

The duration of these qualifications ranges from one to two years of full-time study, with part-time and flexible learning options available. This adaptability makes HTQs an attractive option for a diverse range of learners.

Further information can be found at https://www.nwslc.ac.uk/course/htqs/

North

Leicestershire

Education and Skills

Homebuilder donates 80,000 bricks to Rugby College

Rugby College is part of college group WCG (Warwickshire College Group), one of the largest further and higher education college groups in the UK.

Each college is distinct, and Rugby College in particular is renowned for its specialist facilities for engineering, construction, hair and beauty, and performing arts. The 80,000 bricks will help budding students learn their trade.

The bricks that have been donated are a combination of firsts and seconds, meaning they will have a longer life span than bricks often used in the college. The number of bricks is the equivalent to eight detached homes meaning the bricks will supply a number of different classes.

The donation is part of an ongoing relationship between Rugby College and Mulberry Homes. In 2022, the homebuilder donated 4,000 bricks and has set up programmes about construction apprenticeships at the college.

Anthony Rouse, Head of Department for Construction Trades at WCG, said: “We would like to thank Mulberry Homes for this fantastic donation of bricks to support our students as they look to become the next generation of industry professionals.

“Practical work is an incredibly important part of our bricklaying courses, and these bricks will be a valuable resource for students as they develop and perfect their skills.

“We have a number of talented young bricklayers currently studying at the college, and this donation will undoubtedly help them to achieve their career goals.

“WCG has a strong relationship with Mulberry Homes and we hope to continue to build on this going forwards.”

Chris Russell, Construction Director at Mulberry Homes, said: “We are pleased to be making this donation to Rugby College, and are happy to hear that the students will be able to use them to gain valuable experience which will help them in their future careers.

“Giving back to the communities in which we build is something that is very important to us at Mulberry Homes, and something we will continue to do in all our future ventures.”

Catering students sharpen their skills with Warwick Conferences’ expert chefs

Hospitality and catering students at Hereward College have been reaping the benefits of two hands-on cookery masterclasses with Warwick Conferences’ expert chefs.

Hereward College – based in Tile Hill – provides study programmes, learning experiences, and award-winning work placement opportunities for young people aged 16-25 with complex disabilities and learning difficulties.

The masterclasses, held in the college’s kitchens, were focused on developing students’ understanding of pastry arts and knife skills. The sessions were organised as part of a long-standing partnership between Hereward College and Warwick Conferences, which allows Warwick Conferences’ renowned catering team to share their expertise and support the students’ development.

Chef de Partie Val Elvin and Sous Chef Dave Wilson attended the sessions alongside colleagues Mark Ralph (Head of Food) and Clive Singelton (Head of Conferences and Event Catering).

Val led the first session, focused on choux buns, where she demonstrated the art of pastry making to the students – even divulging

Community centre refreshed thanks to Prince’s Trust Team programme

A Warwickshire community centre’s gardens and grounds have undergone a major makeover thanks to a group of selfless youths.

Thirteen youngsters aged 16 to 25 have spruced up Brunswick Hub’s external areas as part of the Leamington Prince’s Trust Team programme, delivered in Warwickshire by college group WCG.

It’s the second time Team 202 Leamington has helped out at the centre in Shrubland Street after carrying out a colourful renovation last summer.

Martin Smith, Prince’s Trust Team Leader at WCG, said the refurbished areas would be used not just by people who frequent the hub, but also by residents living in high-rise flats nearby.

“The first thing we did was give the front a complete overhaul,” he said. “We’ve done lots of weeding and replanting.

“We filled the planter with fresh herbs that people from the foodbank at the hub can use in their meals.

“In the secret garden behind the main building we’ve repainted all the fences and pots, redecorated the garden furniture which had all weathered and faded and given everything a good clean.

“They’re a fantastic team. They’ve shown real maturity and teamwork. They just want to help people in their community and that’s really refreshing and heartwarming.”

Brunswick Hub offers a range of physical activities, services, support and advice to local people of all ages.

her own perfect recipe for them to use. The students then had the opportunity to put their learning into practice. The choux buns were then sampled and given an enthusiastic seal of approval from all involved.

The following week, Dave led a knife skills demonstration, beginning with how to handle knives safely, before moving on to demonstrate proper technique for hand placement when cutting and chopping food. The students put these foundational skills to good use as Dave guided them through classic chopping techniques, including chiffonade, baton, julienne, brunoise and tourney.

Commenting on the masterclass sessions and the strong partnership with Hereward College, Clive Singelton, Head of Conferences and Event Catering at Warwick Conferences, said: “At Warwick Conferences, we are determined to help young people in our local community access meaningful employment opportunities and rewarding careers.

“Our partnership with Hereward College is a key part of our efforts as a dedicated employer partner that has allowed the students there to gain experience working with our expert chefs and learn how to create items to industry standard, enhancing their knowledge in preparation of potential route for work in the hospitality and catering industry. Since embarking on this partnership, we have seen the skills students demonstrate go from strength to strength and are looking forward to continuing to seeing it continue to grow.”

through a sponsored walk and tombola to pay for materials and ensure the hub did not have to fund any of the upgrade.

The two-week community project formed just one element of the wider Team programme which aims to provide young people not in education, training or employment with practical and soft skills.

For all of the programme’s community benefits, Martin said the students themselves, all from central Warwickshire or Coventry, were arguably the biggest winners.

“What the Team programme offers is invaluable,” he said. “It really does develop teamwork and gives them a massive confidence boost.

“It enables them to get out into the community and speak to people from different walks of life. A lot of them spoke to the people who use Brunswick Hub and got an idea about the many challenges they face.

“It teaches them really important lessons away from the classroom and gives them real pride in what they have achieved in a short space of time.

Learn more about Warwick Conferences at: https://warwick.ac.uk/services/conferences/

Members of Team 202 Leamington raised more than £200

Luxury homebuilder Mulberry Homes has donated 80,000 bricks to Rugby College, near its development at Houlton in Warwickshire.

Steve Harcourt President

of Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce

The summer months seem to have flown by and I hope many of you had the opportunity to take time off to spend with family and friends – although the weather hasn’t been much to talk about!

Whilst it seems like a distant memory now, since the General Election in May and the installation of a new Government, the Chamber has continued to work hard to engage with our new and existing MPs across the region and ensure that the voices of our businesses are heard as new policy and plans are developed. The Labour Party led a pro-business election campaign and the Chamber, on your behalf, will continue to hold them to account to ensure a positive business environment in which we can all grow and succeed.

On that note, I wanted to say thank you to each of you who take the time to complete the Quarterly Economic Survey. As a director of Prime Accountants Group, we partner with the Chamber on this important survey, which gives us critical intelligence, data and insight into how businesses in our region are performing and feeling. Please continue to complete the survey each quarter when the Chamber team send you the link.

Recently in my capacity as president, I was pleased to pay a visit to Mark, Joanna and the team at Purple Planet Packaging, one of the Chamber’s Business Influence Partners, and it was great to see a thriving business, here in Coventry and Warwickshire, who are innovating and growing and, in this instance, helping other companies to become more sustainable. Mark and Joanna relocated the business from Cornwall to Coventry and it was great to see that they are taking full advantage of the support of the Chamber and benefitting from being located in our region – recently striking a major deal with the Coventry Building Society Arena.

Looking ahead, there is a busy programme of events planned for the autumn so plenty of opportunity to learn, grow and network. In September it’s the Green Futures Expo & Summit, in October we have the International Trade Summit and in November we’ll be hosting our 24th Annual Business & Economic Conference at the IXL Events Centre in Southam. I hope I will see many of you there on the day.

Finally, the Coventry & Warwickshire Business and Community Awards have now been announced and entries will open in all categories in late September. I would urge you to do all you can to support, promote and partner with us on these awards. We want to make these awards a real celebration of Coventry & Warwickshire and invite you to celebrate with us!

Steve

Two new promotions in the Dafferns Leadership team

Dafferns, a leading Coventry and Warwickshire firm in the audit, accounting, tax and advisory sector, is thrilled to announce two significant promotions within its leadership team. Effective from 1 July 2024, David Halkett has been promoted to Business Services Director, and Lucy Hatton has been promoted to Partner.

David Halkett – Business Services Director

David Halkett joined Dafferns in 2015 as a manager in the corporate team, before being promoted to senior manager. Over the years, he has become an integral part of the leadership of the corporate team. As the new Business Services Director, David will head up the Business Services team, which includes small business, payroll, outsourcing, and business services teams. His role will focus on providing a full range of accounts, tax, advisory, and outsourcing services to small and medium-sized businesses. Later this year, David will also assume the role of audit RI (Responsible Individual) for many of the corporate audit clients he has managed.

Lucy Hatton – Corporate and International Partner

Lucy Hatton has been with Dafferns since 2017 and joined the Leadership team

as a Director and Audit RI in 2021. From 1 July 2024, Lucy's promotion to Partner further solidifies her position within the corporate and international teams and her role as staff and training Partner. Lucy is well-connected within AGN International, an international association of independent audit, accounting, advisory, and tax firms. For the last two years, she has been a member of the AGN International shadow board, supporting the main international board.

Talent Development with a Problem-Solving Advisory Mindset

Dafferns has made a substantial investment in talent development for senior team members. Both David and Lucy have benefited from working one-on-one with an external business coach over the past few years. They are also part of Dafferns’ Mindshop advisor team, utilising tools and diagnostics to solve problems and develop strategic plans, both within the firm and with clients.

International Connections

Both David and Lucy are graduates of AGN International’s next leaders programme, which is a year-long initiative designed to connect, train, and mentor

senior managers and directors of AGN member firms across Europe, preparing them for future leadership roles.

"As a firm, Dafferns aspires to be authentic, agile, and connected. David and Lucy’s promotions are a testament to our talent development programme. They have benefited from coaching, business advisory training, and building significant international and regional connections. They will be key parts of the Dafferns leadership team in the coming years and invaluable assets to the firm, our team, and our clients."

Martin Gibbs – Dafferns Managing Partner www.dafferns.com

Azets UK announces 25 regional promotions

Azets, the international advisory, outsourcing and compliance Group, has announced 213 promotions across its UK business, including 25 in the Central region.

Lee Meredith (Audit & Assurance, Wolverhampton) has been named as an Office Managing Partner, whilst Chan Landa (ABAS, Coventry) has been promoted to Partner. Matthew Woodhead (Audit & Assurance, Nottingham) and Sally Taylor (ABAS, Wolverhampton) have been promoted to Director.

At a wider senior leadership level within the Azets Group, Damien Russell has been appointed as UK Chief People Officer, replacing Helen Hall who has taken a new strategic role as Head of DE&I and ESG in

a planned move, and Mark Barrie (Hertford) has been promoted to UK Head of Debt Advisory.

Richard Goddard, Regional Managing Director at Azets (Central region), said: “I’m delighted to welcome a talented group of new partners and directors as part of our regional promotions. We’re continually investing in people and advisory-rich services, and these appointments strengthen our breadth and depth of experience and expertise to help our clients achieve their ambitions. These promotions recognise an immense amount of hard work by my colleagues, and I want to extend my gratitude to them, for their continued commitment and excellence, as we continue to go from strength to strength.”

Hard work pays off with exam success for Jordon

A national award-winning firm of chartered accountants based in Coventry & Warwickshire is celebrating success.

Armstrongs Chartered Accountants team member Jordon Knowles has recently passed her final Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) exam to become a fully qualified chartered certified accountant.

Jordon, who is based at the firm’s Nuneaton office, is delighted to have completed her ACCA qualification and is looking forward to continuing to support her clients with accountancy and tax services. She has worked in accountancy for six years and services a wide portfolio of businesses, from sole traders through to larger businesses, across a range of sectors. With Armstrongs continuing to grow, Jordon has also started to look after some of the firm’s new clients, ensuring that they receive an exceptional onboarding experience.

Commenting on her news, Jordon said: “Completing my ACCA qualification has been

a great achievement. I’m really pleased that all my hard work has paid off.”

Armstrongs Director Jane Biggs said: “At Armstrongs, we invest heavily in the training and development of our staff, supporting them to achieve their potential as accountants and business advisers. Jordon has worked really hard to gain her qualification and we are proud of her success.”

Armstrongs supports their employees to progress through a number of accountancy qualifications starting with the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) levels 2, 3 and 4, through to ACCA at level 7. For those who have a specific interest in tax, the Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) qualification is also an option once fully qualified.

Armstrongs Chartered Accountants provide a wide range of services including accounting, tax, corporate finance, wealth planning, audit and assurance, business support and business development. Armstrongs has offices in Nuneaton, Coventry and Hinckley.

Armstrongs Director Jane Biggs with Jordon Knowles

20th anniversary year sees key promotions made at IFS

A freight and logistics firm in Nuneaton has appointed a new senior management team as part of a raft of key promotions on the back of a landmark anniversary.

Independent Freight Solutions (IFS), based at Attleborough Fields Industrial Estate, has appointed three long-serving members of staff to senior positions as part of a restructure.

The company, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, has appointed Sales & Marketing Manager Anna Marszalek, Branch Manager Neil Lewis and Operations Manager Emily De Sousa into its new senior management team.

The trio have 12 years’ experience with the business between them, with Emily also receiving a promotion from her role as customs manager to oversee both the customs and freight teams.

The north-Warwickshire business has also appointed Rena Heer as Freight Team Leader after three years in her freight operations role, while Jamie Harper has taken up the role of Customs Team Leader after two years with the business.

Jenny Hooper, Managing Director of IFS, said: “We have an excellent track record of internal promotions within the business,

with many of our team having previously been apprentices with us.

“We are delighted to have appointed Anna, Neil and Emily to our new senior management team. After 20 years as a business, we are looking at ways to continue growing, and they will play a crucial role in supporting that process and maintaining our high standards across everything we do.

“We are also thrilled to see Jamie and Rena take on management positions with us after excelling in their previous roles. It’s an exciting time for the business and we looking forward to continuing to grow together.”

IFS was founded in 2004 by David and Jenny Hooper, and provides expertise to help companies of all sizes and sectors in the Midlands and beyond achieve their trade goals anywhere in the world, from compliance advice to resolving complex shipment issues.

This summer also marks 10 years with the company for Facilities Manager Kim Batchelor, while two apprentices, in sales and finance, have joined the business since the end of last year.

For more information about IFS visit https://independent-freight.com/aboutus/meet-the-team

Morgan Davies succeeds Kevin Johns as Prime Accountants MD

Senior leadership change at West Midlands firm as long-serving director starts transition towards retirement

Award-winning West Midlands accountancy practice Prime Accountants Group has announced Morgan Davies as its new managing director, succeeding the long-serving Kevin Johns.

Morgan formally takes over the role on September 1 as part of the firm’s advanced succession planning, which has been taking place behind the scenes for some time.

Kevin has worked for Prime, which has offices in Solihull, Birmingham and Coventry, for 31 years and has been its managing director since 2015.

As well as holding the positions of Solihull BID chairman and vice-president of the Solihull Chamber of Commerce, Kevin has spearheaded Prime’s fundraising efforts, which have seen the business raise tens of thousands of pounds for charities such as Solihull Life Opportunities (SoLO) and Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Morgan is one of the four original founding partners of Prime from 2007 and steps up from his role as director overseeing the firm’s audit and accounts department.

While Kevin is stepping down as managing director, he will continue to work with his portfolio of clients and remains on the senior leadership team.

To facilitate Morgan taking on his new role, fellow directors Jeremy Kitson and Paul Guise will take over his responsibility for audit and accounts.

Kevin, who was awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) in the New Year’s Honours list in 2019 for services to Solihull, said: “I’ve planned to gradually retire over the next few years, so handing over to Morgan now means we will have a far more controlled and better transition.

“I’ll still be part of the leadership team, I’m still looking after my clients but I just won’t be leading on the day-to-day anymore.

Milestone for Haidee as she celebrates 30 years’ service

Haidee Vedy, Senior Solicitor at Alsters Kelley Solicitors Limited, has plenty to smile about as she celebrates 30 years’ service at the firm and 35 years as a qualified solicitor.

She qualified in 1989 as a lawyer whilst working for a specialist litigation firm in London, before joining the business in 1994.

Haidee became a partner after 18 months at the firm and remained a partner for 15 years. In 2010 she became a Senior Solicitor in order to concentrate and focus on her client work.

“I said when we marked my 30th anniversary with Prime that I’ve been leaving for a long time! This is longterm succession planning and a natural progression in any business. I’m passing the baton to someone in Morgan who is exceptionally capable and well-positioned to keep the firm on exactly the right path.”

The promotion comes in a milestone year for Morgan, who has worked for the firm for 20 years and has been in practice for 30 years.

He said: “This is part of a succession plan we have worked hard on. I’ve been audit and accounts lead ever since I’ve been here at Prime, which is effectively half the firm, as well as being part of the senior leadership team.

“The experience that gives you is seeing every element of the business up close. It’s a natural fit, we work closely together and I have supported Kev for years.

“The culture of this company is to develop people and empower them to succeed and grow, and this demonstrates that with aplomb. As I move up to managing director, two very capable directors in Paul and Jeremy move up to audit and accounts – it’s good for everyone within the pyramid at Prime.”

For more information on Prime Accountants, visit https://primeaccountants.co.uk.

Throughout her career, Haidee has specialised in personal injury but started concentrating on medical negligence matters in 2012. She remains focused on handling complex, high value personal injury and medical negligence cases such as brain injuries, birth injuries and catastrophic injuries.

Haidee said: “I have thoroughly enjoyed my career with Alsters Kelley and the variety of the work I deal with, but most importantly I love the face to face contact with our clients and providing them with a very personal and high-level service. I also have many lovely friends across all five offices and it certainly doesn’t feel as if I have been here for 30 years!”

Rachael Flanagan, Head of Medical Negligence & Personal Injury at Alsters Kelley, who presented Haidee with gifts on behalf of the firm, said: “Haidee is the ultimate professional and as such a very valued member of the business. We really appreciate her loyalty and commitment to Alsters Kelley, to her clients and to her colleagues and we were thrilled to be able to recognise this fantastic milestone in her career.”

Morgan Davies officially succeeds Kevin Johns as managing director of Prime Accountants Group on September 1.

Business Engage Members

People Arches Limited t/a McDonalds Restaurants

07707 777766

dawood.ibtehsam@uk.mcd.com

Business Global Members

Freightline Carriers

Freight Forwarding 01926 290222

Amandeep.dhadwal@freightlinecarriers.co.uk

https://freightlinecarriers.co.uk/

Interactive Coventry Ltd

Artificial Intelligence 07894 329501

info@interactivecoventry.com

https://www.interactivecoventry.com/

Business Connect Members

Chin Badger Media

Video Production 07794 412775

charlie@chinbadgermedia.co.uk

https://www.chinbadgermedia.co.uk/ Cloverglade Ltd Consultants

07889 548641

Cloverglade@mail.com

Dandelion Applied AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) 07512 213842

caroline@dandelionai.co.uk dandelionai.co.uk

Green Circle Solutions Ltd

Sustainability/Net-Zero 01789 613561

hello@greencirclesolutions.co.uk www.greencirclesolutions.co.uk

Happy Marketer Ltd

Marketing Services 07527 721420

hello@happymarketer.co.uk www.happymarketer.co.uk

Integrity Training and Consultancy

Training & Consultancy Organisations 07359 546348

Integritytrainingandconsultancy@outlook.com integritytrainingandconsultancy.com

LoudLocal

Marketing Services 01926 961098

priya@loudlocal.co.uk https://www.loudlocal.co.uk

Business Talent Members

Oakley Grange Care Home -

Cinnamon Care

Care Homes 01926 291639

oakley.haa@cinnamoncc.com

https://www.cinnamoncc.com/care-homes/ oakley-grange/

Pro Game Nutrition

Business & Wellness Expertise

07946 061536

Progamenutrition@gmail.com https://www.progamenutrition.co.uk/

Q6S Solutions Limited

Management & Business Consultants

07974 791108

bob@Q6S.co.uk www.Q6S.co.uk

Rose & Shine Cleaning Services Ltd

Cleaning Contractors

07769 467299

roseandshineltd@gmail.com

S J Accountancy

Accountancy Services

07786 417633

sarah@sjaccountancy.uk www.sjaccountancy.uk

Shakespeare's Schoolroom Trust

Tourism & Leisure Activities

01789 868262

info@shakespearesschoolroom.org https://www.shakespearesschoolroom.org/

Sheridan Accounting Solutions Limited Accountancy Services 024 7634 9192 david@sheridanaccounting.co.uk www.sheridanaccounting.co.uk

Social Media Resilience Business Wellbeing 07534 963664 abi@socialmediaresilience.co.uk https://www.socialmediaresilience.co.uk/

Steel Gates Grill Fabrications Limited Steel Fabrications 07521 369676 sales@sggfabrications.co.uk www.sggfabrications.co.uk

Technoset Ltd

Precision Engineers 01788 560522 Sales@technoset.com http://www.technoset.com

Therapy and Fitness Centre Therapists 01926 833003 info@therapyandfitness.co.uk www.therapyandfitness.co.uk

TRIBE

Sports Clubs & Associations 07505 003373 info@tribecoventry.co.uk http://tribecoventry.co.uk/

Warwick Racecourse

Tourism & Leisure Activities 01926 405560

https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/warwick/

Katie Ellen Stanton

Mackenzie Pidgeon

BUSINESS INFLUENCE & ENGAGE Members

omnigo®

ZeroStrings:Dojo commitment-freefor30days, withnocontractandnocard machineservicefees ExpiryDate:31/12/2024

Lumien Complimentary Candidate Perception Report for Chamber Members Expiry Date: 31/12/2024

BUSINESS CONNECT Members

AI Transform Conference 2024

Chamber Members can receive

50% off your entry to AI Transform Conference 2024! Expiry Date: 23/10/2024

B2B Expos

£100 off any stand package at the Coventry Business Expo on 23rd October 2025 Expiry Date: 17/10/2024

Ramada Hotel and Suites Coventry City Centre 10% off Christmas Party Bookings Expiry Date: 31/10/2024

Next Steps Consulting 10% off all Outplacement Packages Expiry Date: 30/09/2024

Telegraph Hotel Coventry

Complimentary upgrade to Breakfast Rolls with arrival refreshments - September Expiry Date: 30/09/2024

The Welcombe Hotel Spa & Golf Club Chamber Member Exclusive Offerings - Corporate Golf Day Expiry Date: 31/12/2024

Coventry Building Society Arena

25% off tickets for Ministry of Sound Ibiza Anthems with Ellie Sax & Friends Expiry Date: 30/09/2024

Diverse Matters 5% off Diverse Matters Prices exclusively for Chamber Members Expiry Date: 31/12/2024

Want to share your Member Offer?

Email the details and your logo to info@cw-chamber.co.uk

Member Offers are included in our Online Marketplace and shared to over 18,000 followers across social media.

To view these and all of our Member Offers, head to cw-chamber.co.uk/marketplace

MEMBERS EVENTS

September - October 2024

Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience

Holiday Inn Kenilworth Warwick, 212 Abbey End, Kenilworth, CV8 1ED

Date: 13 September 2024

Time: 7pm - 11:45pm

Gin, Tonic & Tales

with UK Special Forces

East Chase Distillers, Chase Lane, Kenilworth, Warwickshire, CV8 1PR

Date: 14 September 2024

Time: 6:30pm arrival

Thrive at Work – Drug and Alcohol Misuse Awareness Webinar

Online Webinar, delivered via MS Teams

Date: 19 September 2024

Time: 11am – 12pm

Murder Mystery - Bart's Billions

Telegraph Hotel, 157 Corporation Street, Coventry, CV1 1GU

Date: 20 September 2024

Time: 7.30pm – late

AI Power Up: Overview of ChatGPT and alternatives

Online Event, delivered via Microsoft Teams,

Date: 20 September 2024

Time: 1.15pm - 1.45pm

Mallory Court Festival & Family Fun Day

Mallory Court Country House

Hotel & Spa, Harbury Lane, Leamington Spa, CV33 9QB

Date: 22 September 2024

Time: 2pm - 8pm

Gin & Cheese Night with East Chase Distillers

Chase Lane, Kenilworth, Warwickshire, CV8 1PR

Date: 27 September 2024

Time: Bookings available from 5pm

AI Power Up: Get started with prompting

Online Event, delivered via Microsoft Teams

Date: 04 October 2024

Time: 1.15pm - 1.45pm

Coventry RFC Oktoberfest

Coventry RFC, Butts Park Arena, Coventry, CV1 3GE

Date: 05 October 2024

Time: 2pm ‘til late

AI Transform 2024

The Slate, University of Warwick, Coventry, CV4 7SH

Date: 23 October 2024

Time: 8am – 3pm

Coventry Business Expo & Speed Networking

Village Hotel, Coventry Business Park, Coventry, CV4 9GZ

Date: 23 October 2024

Time: 10am – 2pm

Sydenham History GroupFriends of the Family

The SYDNI Centre, Cottage Square, Sydenham, Leamington Spa, CV31 1PT

Date: 29 October 2024

Time: 7:30pm – 10pm

CLOSE YOUR TALENT GAP

Access new skills and grow loyal employees

APPRENTICESHIPS

Expand your workforce with WCG, the largest apprenticeships training provider in the West Midlands, training 2000+ apprentices in over 60 sectors annually.

T LEVELS

Like the idea of an apprentice but need a short-term solution? Take on a T Level student for a 45-day placement and help them kickstart their career.

WCG now offers T Levels in:

• Agriculture

• Animal Care

• Business

• Construction

• Craft & Design: Furniture or Fashion & Textiles

• Digital Support Services

• Education & Childcare

• Engineering & Manufacturing

• Health

• Media, Broadcast & Production

INDUSTRY PLACEMENTS

Trial a potential apprentice or employee by offering a work placement that’s completely flexible to your business needs.

Find out how WCG can help your business gain a competitive edge today by contacting our Business Development Team: 0300 135 6940 employerenquiries@wcg.ac.uk