 We're celebrating Living Wage Week 14-20 November
Our agenda is to build a fairer Newham and that’s why we are a London Living Wage Employer. Our game plan is to progress with Newham becoming a London Living Wage borough. This requires a sea change from employers and businesses operating in Newham, so that they pay their staff a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work.
We encourage all Newham businesses to become a Living Wage employer in three easy steps:
 As the only UK wage rate which is annually assessed according to the cost of living, this year the Living Wage Foundation brought forward its announcement of the new rate to September in order for Living Wage employers to implement it accordingly.
To find out more about Living Wage accreditation:
Living Hours accreditation for Enabled Living Healthcare
Photo Credit: Enabled Living Healthcare
In September Enabled Living Healthcare, which is a council-owned company, was accredited as a Living Hours employer by the Living Wage Foundation – a first for a health and social care organisation in London.
This is a notable achievement in a sector which is struggling to retain staff – it has an impressive 90% retention rate. Enabled Living, which is based in Plaistow, was accredited as a Living Wage employer in 2018.
Mathew Sheehan, Managing Director at Enabled Living, says: “Times are tough for most people. We want to ensure that our workers and their families can count on a reliable income that meets, as a minimum, their everyday needs. We know that our commitment to both a minimum hourly rate and minimum hours means that our workers can budget ahead properly.”
Michael Lascelles, Driver Fitter at Enabled Living, adds: “At times it can be challenging working in care, but being paid a fixed salary means I can plan ahead. This motivates me to be productive because I know my time and work is valued by my employer.”
The Living Hours standard has been developed to ensure that people have predictable working patterns and income to better plan their lives.
To find out more about Living Hours:
Wednesday 16 November – 16:30-19:30
Venue: East Ham Library, 328 Barking Road, E6 2RP
East Ham Town Centre Workshop
A reminder: we're holding a workshop for businesses, organisations and residents about East Ham town centre, looking at how best to revitalise the area ahead of the formation of a business-led East Ham Town Centre Partnership.
The workshop will be facilitated by experts from an organisation called the High Street Task Force, who want to hear from businesses and residents about what is happening on High Street North and what could be done to boost the area.
After the workshop the High Street Task Force will provide guidance, tools and skills to help develop a business-led partnership which could go on to identify opportunities for improvements at High Street North.
For more information:
Council opens welcoming Warm Havens across Newham
 Newham Council has launched the first phase of its network of Warm Havens available in libraries and community centres. Operating according to the Warm Havens Charter, the dedicated safe and inclusive spaces provide practical help for anyone needing respite due to the cost of living crisis.
You can also find out more about the small grants of up to £500 that are available to voluntary, community and faith groups who want to support residents facing difficulties.
For more information and to apply:
As the cost of living crisis continues to hit Newham hard, including businesses, here’s lots of helpful information:
The ever popular Newham Heritage Month will be returning in June 2023. Applications for grants have now opened, offering up to £5,000 for individuals and £8,000 for constituted groups and organisations to help pay for events and activities which they wish to hold. The deadline for applications is Monday 12 December.
For more information:
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The Rebel Business School
The Rebel Business School provides free online start-up courses made up of five or 10 full day sessions which support people into self-employment by teaching them how to set up a business and start trading. It’s different to similar organisations, as it helps a business to start by providing all sorts of practical help.
Its latest course is called the Extraordinary Life Course. Over five weeks this will help anyone wanting to start a business to overcome challenges, take actions and make things happen. Starting on 21 November, each weekly session takes place 20:00-21:30 online via Zoom or YouTube.
For more information and to sign up, send your full name, the first line of your postal address and the full postcode to:
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Supporting the community
Earlier this year we awarded £1,124,561 through the Additional Restrictions Grant: Large Grant Scheme to nine organisations to help support a broad range of projects and activities centred around the eight pillars of our Towards a Better Newham Covid-19 Recovery Strategy. These grants build on Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz’s Building a Fairer Newham commitment, through which we are creating an inclusive economy which works for local people and supports their wellbeing and financial security. The grants provide beneficiaries with both capital and revenue funding for initiatives to help boost local economic activity.
Read here about what Discover Children’s Story Centre in Stratford is doing with its £47,387 grant:
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COVID-19 Additional Relief Fund update
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COVID-19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) supported those businesses affected by the pandemic but which were ineligible for support linked to business rates (e.g. Extended Retail Discount). We were delighted to award just over £5.3m to 692 businesses. |
November is Islamophobia Awareness Month
 Islamophobia Awareness Month which is organised by a group of Muslim organisations, highlights the threat of Islamophobic hate crime and showcases the positive contributions that British Muslims make to society.
To mark this month, the Council has arranged a programme of events and activities. One of these is Centring Ourselves in Our Built Environment, where local artist Sabba Khan will talk about the values of community and anti-oppression when imagining and designing spaces in Newham.
To find out more:
 Christmas is fast approaching and this year it will be more challenging for many as a result of the cost of living crisis. Against this backdrop, Newham Council is keen to bring communities together at Christmas.
The Council is therefore organising a boroughwide campaign called We are Together at Christmas, which will have two free events:
- a series of Christmas light switch-ons starting on 19 November
- the Big Christmas Lunch week 12-17 December.
We’re calling on all our local partners, businesses and the voluntary sector organisations to either support us or consider taking part by hosting their own lunch. This could be by:
- sponsoring a council-hosted Big Christmas Lunch
- providing items for Christmas hampers and/or goody bags
- volunteering at any of the events
- providing entertainment as a choir or solo artist
- organising your own Big Christmas Lunch in your own communities.
To get involved:
Free consultancy service for local SMEs and charities
The Student Consultancy Project at Queen Mary University of London offers consultancy services to London-based SMEs and charities free of charge.
Four-to-five undergraduate students who are placed in multi-disciplinary teams spend 100 hours on a project brief given to them by a business or charity which acts as their client. Once the project is completed, the student consultants present their recommendations.
Organisations can overcome real business challenges by using the Student Consultancy Project, while providing an opportunity for students to hone their skills.
For more information and how you can apply:
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Self-Assessment: declare COVID-19 payments
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is reminding Self-Assessment customers that they must declare COVID-19 grant payments in their 2021/22 tax return.
The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) application and payment windows during the 2021/22 tax year were:
- SEISS 4: 22 April 2021 - 1 June 2021
- SEISS 5: 29 July 2021 - 30 September 2021.
SEISS is not the only COVID-19 support scheme that should be declared. If you received our Additional Restrictions Grant during the 2021/22 tax year, for example, it will also need to be declared.
You can find a full checklist of all grants and payments that need to be declared:
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Are you a food business in Newham?
 Businesses have an important role to play in creating positive change in our communities. Oxford University is working with several food businesses in Newham to understand what they need to do to promote healthier food and diets.
If you’re a restaurant, wine bar, café or takeaway the university would like to speak to you (either online, via phone or in person) to find out what you think you could do to help this happen; first, you’d need to fill in a short questionnaire.
 Local businesses and all those who use Stratford Station are being invited to comment on emerging design proposals for the station and its surrounding area.
Stratford Station is one of the busiest stations in the UK with passenger demand set to grow further in the coming 15 years.
Now is therefore the right time to think about the future of the station and how improvements to it and its immediate area could ensure its longevity for all those who rely on it.
Together with London Legacy Development Corporation, Network Rail and Transport for London, Newham Council has helped to develop design ideas for new connections, an improved interchange, new and improved public spaces and new building uses.
The consultation on the initial design ideas will run until Friday 18 November:
The time has come again for the official celebration of all that’s best about quality local small shops, businesses enterprises and traders, whether that’s bricks and mortar, online or both.
It takes place on the first Saturday of December every year, which this year falls on 3 December.
The day is a call to action to the public to shop local and support the fantastic businesses in our borough; it’s also a way for small businesses to benefit from a range of support from the organisers of Small Business Saturday.
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The Startup School for Seniors has launched a new online course aimed at entrepreneurs with a social conscience. Starting on 21 November, Developing Your Green Economy Business is a full-time two-week programme delivered via Zoom which equips entrepreneurs with the skills to turn ideas into a business or increase the trading income of an existing business.
Contact them to find out if you are eligible for a sponsored place:
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Exhibitions and conferences
Halal Expo London
2-3 December – 10:00-18:00 ExCeL London
Britain has one of the most sophisticated and well-connected Muslim populations in the world, totalling over three million. A wide variety of businesses and organisations across multiple sectors will be exhibiting at Halal Expo London, offering visitors trade, investment and networking opportunities.
Start Up Show
28 January – 09:30-16:30 King's College London, London WC2R
This event is a must for aspiring or existing entrepreneurs. It’s your chance to not only discover everything you need to know about starting a business but also to connect with advisers and business experts who’ll help you take your enterprise to the next level.
To find out more and to buy early bird tickets:
Blogs and podcasts
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