North Worcestershire Business Awards – one week remaining to enter!
Take a little time now to nominate your favourite business or get your nomination in for the North Worcestershire Business Awards organised by NWedR and NWBL.
All businesses based in North Worcestershire – covering Bromsgrove, Redditch and Wyre Forest districts – are encouraged to view the nomination categories online and select which one is most appropriate for them to enter. This year there are also three Worcestershire wide awards which means they are open to businesses across the whole of the County.
View categories and enter here. The closing date for entries has been extended by one week to Friday 30 September 2022.
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Thinking about your energy bills? -
funded Smart Meters for businesses
Calling Worcestershire wide businesses. Worcestershire County Council is offering 100% funding up to a maximum of £1,000 per unit (a max of £10,000 total grant) for businesses/organisations for the purchase and installation of Smart Meters and monitoring equipment.
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Job Opportunity: Kidderminster Business Improvement District Manager
Would you like to join a successful team in an exciting time of regeneration and transformation for Kidderminster?
If so, this role may be right up your street! We are looking for a dynamic and motivated individual to work alongside existing board and team members to deliver on all the areas within our current manifesto pledge.
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Elevate your business
The Elevate Worcestershire programme is a growth support offer for established, successful businesses with the vision and potential for significant further growth. The programme is flexible and will offer a variety of support packages to meet a range of business needs and sector specific challenges.
Aimed at aspiring SMEs ideally trading for a minimum of 3 years and employing five plus employees, the programme can offer specialist business support to encourage and enable growth, review processes, and improve productivity, look at sector specific barriers to growth and support SMEs to achieve their growth potential. Elevate currently offers generic growth support as well as specific industry support around manufacturing supply chain, digital technology and automated manufacturing and creative tech.
On completing the programme there will be the opportunity to apply for grant funding to help implement the actions and bespoke business plans that have been developed.
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Do you know a young person thinking about their future career?
If they have an inquisitive mind, are interested in the built environment, like to understand how things are constructed, are a confident and effective communicator and are prepared to challenge and learn - there has never been a better time to consider a career in building control.
Local Authority Building Control (LABC), the membership organisation for 3,500 public service building surveyors in England and Wales, has launched a fully funded trainee scheme to attract new recruits into the profession.
The capacity building programme will see more than 150 people recruited into the building control profession with a three year fully funded learning and development plan.
LABC is looking for people who can demonstrate leadership skills, solve problems creatively and work under pressure. The programme is nationwide with a clear progression pathway. The funded scheme means learning and development will be fully subsidised, and recruits will be paid while they study and progress.
Find out more here.
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Improvements underway on Kidderminster canal towpath
If you cycle to work through Kidderminster, or walk the dog alongside the canal, be aware that work will soon be underway on the resurfacing and widening of a section of the canal towpath in Kidderminster - between St Mary’s Ringway and Caldwall Mill Bridge.
These improvements have been made possible thanks to £17.9 million secured by Wyre Forest District Council, via the Government’s Levelling Up Fund, which will also see the transformation of Kidderminster’s Town Hall and other key sites in Kidderminster town centre. Local contractors Kelbec will be undertaking the work on behalf of Worcestershire County Council, and in liaison with the Canal and River Trust. The work is expected to last until the New Year.
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Worcestershire Ambassadors Appeal
Over the last 20 years, Worcestershire Ambassadors have raised over £1m for local good causes. This year the cost of living crisis is significantly affecting all, however for those on the lowest incomes, the impact is truly significant. This is why the Ambassadors have launched a campaign in support of five county-based food banks in Redditch, Kidderminster, Droitwich, Worcester and Malvern Hills.
All are individual charities franchised through the Trussell Trust and the aim is to raise enough funds to help these organisations provide a Christmas food parcel to all families and individuals who need their support. The Ambassadors are asking for business leaders and their families to donate if they can.
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Tap into the new Wyre Forest Heritage Trail App
If you’re looking for something different to do this Autumn, take a memorable trip around Bewdley, Stourport and Kidderminster town centres using the amazing Wyre Forest Heritage Trail App. The App uses state of the art technology to bring history alive by tapping into the lives of memorable Wyre Forest characters from yesteryear.
Download the free App to your smart phone and visit GPS location checkpoints around the town centre which are indicated on your screen. Hear stories and see the lives of local characters who will appear in-situ on your device thanks to the latest augmented reality technology.
Each town centre has its own complete heritage trail, so you can follow each trail independently at times to suit you. Trail time wise, it depends on your walking speed – we suggest you allow an hour at a leisurely pace for each town trail.
It’s a great way for friends and families to combine a town centre walk with being entertained in a fun way, and of course there are lots of cafes, shops and places of interest in each town, so you can make a morning or afternoon of your visit! See what Gary, one of the App creators says in this 2-minute video.
Read more, and download the App.
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New UK conformity assessment marking (UKCA)
The UK now has its own robust regulatory framework for marking and placing goods on the market in Great Britain and Northern Ireland and is hosting webinars to explain this to businesses.
Manufacturers need to start using the UK conformity assessment marking (UKCA) to place goods on the market in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). The UKCA regime seeks to ensure consumers are protected from unsafe, and non-compliant goods.
There are different rules for Northern Ireland, and we will be running dedicated events to cover the requirements for placing goods on the market in Northern Ireland.
These webinars give an overview of the new responsibilities and regulations for businesses. Each product type may have specific requirements detailed in legislation and specific guidance which we cannot cover in detail during the session. See the A to Z of industry guidance.
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Looking for space to work?
Whether you need a desk for one, an office for the team, a meeting space, a maker’s workshop or a large industrial unit, the perfect workspace for you could be on your doorstep through a local authority owned property. Your local council is a trusted, reliable landlord with established tenants who have put their place in our hands for many years. This month we are focussing on Wyre Forest workspaces.
Next month, we will be looking at Redditch and showcasing the recently refurbished Greenlands Business Centre.
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Cyber security guide for the construction industry
Construction firms working together on major building projects such as HS2 are now being offered security advice from industry and the government.
The new Information Security Best Practice guide aims to help these firms keep sensitive data safe from attackers by offering tailored advice on how to securely handle the data they create, store and share in joint venture projects.
The guide is a collaboration between experts from industry and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI).
Other NCSC resources aimed at helping organisations manage cyber security risks include the Board toolkit, to facilitate essential conversations between board members and their technical experts, and the Exercise in a Box toolkit which helps organisations to test their incident response plans in a safe environment.
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Expansion of Help to Grow: Digital
More small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and microbusinesses can now receive discounts worth up to £5,000 on approved software under an expansion of the Help to Grow: Digital scheme. The scheme was previously only open to those businesses with more than five employees but businesses with 1 to 249 employees are now eligible.
eCommerce software has also been added to the scheme, helping businesses to sell online and reach new markets. This includes helping them to manage their inventory, take payments and gather data and insights on customers’ needs.
Businesses can now access 30 different solutions from 14 leading suppliers of eCommerce, Digital Accounting and CRM software. Additionally, Help to Grow: Digital will support one-to-one advice for SMEs on how best they can adopt digital technology.
Find out more.
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Celebrating North Worcestershire Calendar ~ September Feature
Our Celebrating North Worcestershire calendar September feature is The Development Manager – TDM. The Development Manager is a Tech and Digital training and coaching provider, specialising in the delivery of Retraining Programmes, Career-Entry Apprenticeships and BSc (Hons) Degree Apprenticeships. TDM and further workplace learning journeys which; enhance social and career mobility, delight and positively impact employers, support regional and national economies and respond to skills development priorities. TDM are wholeheartedly dedicated to providing the structure organisations and employees need to fully develop their Tech & Digital skills.
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Tap into the Sustainability Hub from GBSLEP
Are you a small business who wants to understand your carbon footprint? Would you like to see where you can strategically invest in your business to be more sustainable? Do you want to explore how you can innovate to tap into new low carbon commercial opportunities?
If you have answered yes to any of the questions above, or simply want to see what is on offer from the GBSLEP Sustainability Hub, visit the Hub and see the support programmes on offer.
Any SME registered for business within the Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP can receive 1-to-1 advice from a Growth Hub Adviser. Any business with between 11 and 249 employees registered for business within the Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP geography can access our Clean Growth support programmes.
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