5 minute read
Member News
by HCOC
The perfect puzzle – inclusivity
Media production company Drop the Mask Productions CIC (DTMP) was founded with a laptop and a dream by Director Gregory White with the ambition to create an inclusive workspace where individuals with mental and physical challenges never have to hide behind masks for their potential to shine.
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We felt that it was important to ask our Kick-starters their experience:
“As a woman of colour, it’s not been easy to blend in and feel valued in society. I faced obstacles every day, from employers refusing to pronounce my name correctly to being told I did not fit in with the image of a company. At DTMP, I do not feel like an outsider. I have the opportunity to explore my ambitions without pretending to be someone else. I find the environment to be wholesome and we are all constantly learning from one another.” – Noorj
“After months of searching for work, I am pleased to achieve the first step towards my career thanks to the Kickstart scheme. I am deaf and DTMP has given me the opportunity to be myself whereas I have been rejected by other employers based on my inexperience. I’m very thankful that Greg and DTMP have given me a chance to grow and to show them my skills. Since I first came into their workplace, Greg and the staff have been so welcoming towards me that they have been willing to adapt their workplace environment to help assist me in settling into the role.” – Owen.
20 April 2021, Whiteley (Hampshire): On Friday, local internet provider, Giganet, installed its 100th home broadband customer in Portsmouth, on the new CityFibre network.
Currently, 9,588 homes in Portsmouth can get full fibre broadband, following the first few months of CityFibre’s build. Work began in 2020 and Giganet started connecting customers in late February this year. These 100 local customers are amongst the first in the city to benefit from faster, more reliable full fibre broadband.
Peter Clarke from Helena Road, Southsea, is officially Giganet’s 100th local customer enjoying the benefits of a hyperfast Giganet connection. Pictured here with his daughter-in-law Jo and dog Des, Peter opted for Giganet’s fastest package. This gives him and his family incredible download and upload speeds of up to 900Mb/s.
“I’m really happy with my new connection. The installation was hassle free and took less than an hour. When it was complete, I did a speed test straight away and it’s lightning fast,” says Peter.
Peter plans to use his new broadband to work from home, whilst the family use it for general browsing and streaming.
The appetite for full fibre home broadband in Portsmouth has been immense. With hyperfast speeds, customers like Peter can work from home, stream their favourite shows and game at the highest level without worrying about the connection dropping out. Full fibre is the next generation of home broadband.
To check whether your home can benefit, visit the Giganet Home site: http://bit.ly/100thPortsmouthCustomer
Join us N W! E: T: membership@hampshirechamber.co.uk 01329 242420 or 01256 338633
DLM wins British engineering award
DLM has showcased once again the remarkable capabilities of a small company going above and beyond in the design and manufacturing industry by winning a British Engineering Excellence Award (BEEA).
The BEEAs were established in 2009 as a means to demonstrate the high calibre of engineering design and innovation within the UK.
DLM situates itself in multiple sectors, including the offshore wind industry, subsea, marine, oil & gas and lifting & rigging. From the beginning, DLM has been a familyrun business, however since the takeover of another family eight years ago, DLM has undergone a significant overhaul. One of the very first changes was migrating to online processes opposed to paper, ensuring the business ran smoothly and more efficiently – one of multiple significant changes that saw the company win the British Engineering Excellence Award for Small Company of the Year 2020.
Employee engagement specialists back mental health charity, Mind
Hampshire Chamber member Growth Partners has announced Mind as its Charity of the Year. Their commitment to supporting Mind is part of the company’s mission to make employers’ and employees’ lives easier, happier and healthier so businesses can thrive.
“We recognise the importance of mental health and wellbeing and the impact it can have on employees’ lives. By choosing Mind as our charity, we’re reemphasising our commitment to looking after employees and removing the stigma around mental health – we want everyone to feel able to talk openly about their wellbeing,” says Claire Antony, HR Partner at Growth Partners.
The news comes as Mind declared a mental health emergency with more people having experienced a mental health crisis than ever previously recorded.
The team completed Mind’s 100 Miles in May and has lots more fundraising ideas in the pipeline, including the development of open-source software for local businesses, a charity auction and a curry contest.
To hear more about Growth Partners Charity fundraising, contact Sally Stacey: Email: Sally.Stacey@growthpartnersplc.co.uk Call: 07852518238 www.growthpartnersplc.co.uk
Is your business prepared for the bounce back?
Lincolnwick Business Consultants & Resource Providers have taken inspiration from conversations with industry leaders across the UK to really identify the needs of businesses and their pain points in 2021.
It is no secret that a lot of businesses have struggled over the past 18 months, but most experts believe the UK will bounce back stronger than ever. This will cause a lot of business to lack the required skills and resource to be able to cope with the impending rapid increase in demand.
At the start of lockdown it was generally accepted by most consumers that service levels from business would not be where they were pre-lockdown. However, we are now at a point where consumers expect businesses to have adequate working arrangements in place to best serve the needs of the customers again. This is what we believe will be a key driver for businesses to retain customers throughout 2021, so it’s critical to have contingency support ready for when you need it. Please call 0800 861 1407 to find out more or visit www.lincolnwick.com
