7 minute read
EXETERWORKS )ll the movers and shaSers in town
MAKING WAVES IN BUSINESS
Advertisement
Shiny happy boaty people
This talented fella can play anything from Bach to Billy Joel The Bigwave Business Games are back for 2020. The biggest event of its kind in the South West, Exeter’s Bigwave Business Games will launch on 18 May and run through to July. The games consist of five fun events that are suitable for all physical abilities including a bubble football tournament, treasure hunt around the Royal Albert Memorial Museum, something called Clip ‘n Climb, bell boat racing on the Quay and a lively pub quiz. The Bigwave Business Games attract a diverse range of businesses from across the region and will this year be raising money for local charity WESC Foundation – The Specialist Centre for Visual Impairment on Topsham Road, Exeter. To date, the event has raised £45,000 for charity.
These are the dates to block out in your diary: Monday 18 May: Launch event Thursday 11 June: Team leaders meeting Wednesday 17 June: Bubble Football Tournament Tuesday 23 June: Treasure hunt Monday 29 June: Clip N Climb Thursday 9 and Friday 10 July: Bell Boats Thursday 16 July: Pub quiz / awards Register your team now, or enquire about sponsorship opportunities: www.bigwavebusinessgames.co.uk/Exeter
This one’s got his eyes on us
I ROBOT
)rtificial 1ntelligence is the most widely anticipated business tech trend of 2020, according to a recent survey of South West tech companies.
Looking at technological innovations that will have the most impact on shaping business strategies over the coming year, )rtificial 1ntelligence )1 was by far the most popular response, with 44.7 per cent of the vote, revealed the survey of over 100 tech businesses by Tech South West. Anthony Peake, CEO of Exeter-based data science and artificial intelligence specialists Agile Datum says,“It is really interesting to see AI coming out on top. That aligns with our own finding from a recent national survey we have run. Businesses have been spending far too long dealing with low value, high volume administrative tasks and not focusing enough on productivity and customer engagement. “Companies large and small are looking at ways to automate admin, develop new products and improve customer service, and we are seeing AI as a powerful tool to achieve these aims. For a few years now people have said that every business needs to become a digital business. I would go one step further and say that every business will need to become an AI enabled business to thrive, compete and meet customer expectations.”
The full results can be viewed at www.techsouthwest.co.uk
Say hello to Emily Gibbon
NEW FACE AT INEXETER
) new interim manager at 1nExeter has Rust been announced. Emily Gibbon is stepping into the role, which is temporarily vacated by )nn 0unter, who’s on maternity leave.
Emily is relocating to the city from Gloucester and brings with her a wealth of Snowledge. 8ast roles include head of business engagement and support for Gloucester *1, and director for =3 ,igital :etail 1nnovation +entre. ¹1’m thrilled to be leading the 1nExeter team and relocating to ,evon,º says Emily. ¹Exeter is an incredible city with a huge amount to offer businesses, employees, residents and visitors.
¹<his next year is the first of the new term, following successful renewal, so there are plenty of proRects and services to deliver to support the businesses across the city. 1 intend to build on )nn’s worS and continue to drive further benefits for our member businesses over the coming months.º
1nExeter offers freeofcharge support schemes for the businesses within the 1nExeter area. <his includes services such as management and financial support for local area events, free training courses and 8: and marSeting for the city as a whole and for business. .WZ mWZe" ______Qne`e\eZKWm
LOOK AFTER YOUR PENNIES
)n ongoing fundraising initiative by 6ourish Bero ?aste has raised , for 0ospiscare from simply encouraging to donate Rust a few pence in each transaction.
<he money will fund visits to a patient in their own home by one of the charity’s clinical nurse specialists enabling patients to stay at home with their loved ones.
6ourish, a berowaste groceries store, has shops in <opsham and 5agdalen :oad. 1t’s been running this voluntary charity »round up’ since opening in 5arch .
¹1t’s a simple idea giving customers the option to round up their totals to the nearest bero with a few extra pence,º says owner Sarah 5artin. ¹6ourish then matches that amount. .or example, if the bill is . a customer can round it up to .! · and we also put pence into the pot.º
<he initiative initially attracted around of donations each month, but after the second 6ourish shop opened in )pril !, this increased · meaning , was raised in under two years of the round up being introduced.
Cheque out the money they raised
0ospiscare provides expert support, resources and personalised specialist care for people in Exeter, 5id and East ,evon who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness. .WZ mWZe" ___NIKebWWSKWmnW]ZQ[PbeZW_I[\e
The trio are bringing ultrafast broadband to Exeter
FAST AND FURIOUS
2urassic .ibre, a local full fibre ultrafast broadband provider, is rolling its services out across East ,evon following a successful test phase near Exeter. 7ffering speeds of up to Gbps, the communities to receive the full fibre ultrafast broadband include )ylesbeare, *ishop’s +ourt, *lacShorse, +lyst 0oniton, +lyst St George, +lyst St 5ary including +at and .iddle, Ebford, Exton, .arringdon, 4ympstone, 7il 5ill 4ane, 8erSins >illage, Sowton >illage, ?oodbury and ?oodbury Salterton.
.or businesses, coverage includes Exeter )irport 1ndustrial Estate, 0ill *arton *usiness 8arS, Greendale *usiness 8arS and Sowton 1ndustrial Estate.
*y early summer, the networS will have reached Exmouth, the first large town set to have access to the new networS.
Exmouth +ouncilor 8auline Stott says, ¹?e desperately need better broadband in Exmouth and so it is very positive that 2urassic .ibre is bringing their networS to the town. 1 am really pleased that we are finally getting better connected in this part of the world, as this area has previously been overlooSed. 1 am certain that it will help businesses and residents enormously.º
Self-administered pension schemes
Steve Woodham of OLD MILL tells us more...
Small self-administered pension schemes (SSAS) continue to be a popular planning vehicle for business owners. A SSAS has the ability to pool together individuals’ pension savings to purchase investment assets they may not be able to acquire individually. This can help if you wish to set up a pension arrangement for a small group of co-directors and key employees. A SSAS offers businesses a wide range of potential investments including stocks and shares, unit trusts, investment trusts, Open-Ended Investment Companies (OEICs), deposit accounts, loan backs and commercial property. This provides greater flexibility and investment control over your pension arrangements. It gives you the ability to purchase commercial property from any party, rent it to the business and lend money from the SSAS to the business. A SSAS also offers favourable tax benefits including: O Company contributions qualify for Corporation Tax Relief O Contributions by members are free from Income Tax O Investments growth is free from Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax (CGT) O A tax-free pension commencement lump sum of 25% of a members’ fund can be taken from age 55 O Lump sum death benefits are free from Inheritance Tax (IHT)
If you already have a SSAS but you’re unhappy with your provider’s costs and services, you have the option to appoint new professionals to run your scheme instead. So there’s no need to break-up these schemes.
To avoid tax penalties, registered pension schemes should comply with the new regulations and reporting requirements. We can assist you and ensure that your pension complies with the updated legislation, no matter how complex your scheme is.
Old Mill act as the scheme practitioner and can deal with the responsibilities of a scheme administrator on your behalf. The scheme administrator has a highly responsible role and protects the member trustees from falling foul of making unauthorised payments or breaching tax regulations which would result in potential penal tax charges. n
Our expert advisers are here to help you. Contact Steve Woodham on 01749 335027 or email steve.woodham@om.uk
