Congratulations to our incredible Norfolk Chamber members who have been nominated in The Norfolk Business Awards!
These awards are brought to you by Archant who bring the county’s business community together to celebrate each other’s achievements and highlight the leaders in each industry. These awards bring Norfolk’s diverse and vibrant business community together in order to celebrate companies who are truly outstanding in their sector and honour the achievements and contributions being made to the local economy.
On behalf of the entire Norfolk Chambers Team we wish you all the very best of luck!
We’re absolutely delighted that Mills & Reeve are Chamber Business Awards 2021 Regional Winners for Equality Trailblazer award. Congratulations!
The Chamber Business Awards is one of the showpiece events in the business calendar, recognising and promoting the best of British business through a series of regional heats, culminating in a virtual Awards ceremony, taking place online on the 9 December 2021.
This year we had entrants from organisations of all sizes and sectors across the country and want to express sincere thanks to all the Chambers who nominated their members. The quality of nominations received this year is testament to the strength of businesses across the country.
Congratulations to the 2021 regional winners, listed below, who will go forward to represent their business at the Chamber Business Awards virtual ceremony on Thursday 9 December 2021. Click here to book your tickets
Join the conversation on Twitter as we count down to 9 December #ChamberAwards.
The OPEN Youth Trust (OPEN) on Bank Plain has appointed nineteen year old Michael Ni’Man to its Board of Trustees.
Michael, who lives in Norwich, is soon to start studying Medicine in London, but he first stepped through the doors of OPEN as a Year 9 pupil at Norwich School. Soon after joining OPEN, Michael quickly became involved in it’s Youth Forum. This Forum aims to give young people a voice, ensuring that the charity meets the current and future needs of young people in Norfolk. He believes that through this Forum, OPEN has given him the confidence and inspiration to follow his dream of becoming a doctor, but also picking up an entrepreneurial flair along the way with business interests in social enterprises, IT and innovation.
Speaking of the appointment OPEN’s Chief Executive, John Gordon-Saker said: “Michael is a remarkable young man brimming with ideas and his pitch to the Board was compelling. It is wholly appropriate that a charity with the objective of making a difference to the lives of young people in Norfolk has a young person on its Board and Michael is the embodiment of our aim of giving people the confidence and life skills to find work or follow their passion. We are already bringing on the young people who come through our programmes as volunteers, interns, apprentices and employees and now one of them is a Trustee. It’s brilliant.”
Speaking of his appointment Michael said: “Throughout my years of engagement with OPEN, I’ve seen first hand the direct impact and change OPEN can have on a young person’s career and outlook. The Youth Forum meets regularly to discuss issues, concerns and ideas, so I look forward to becoming their voice on the Board, making sure that the charity continues to move in the direction that serves young people and delivers activities and programmes, such asYour Life, that are engaging, current and wholly relevant. The governance experience will help me in my career and I look forward to learning from John and the Trustees as experts in different fields. OPEN is a great institution and vanguard of youth in the city and county, no further proof of this than my appointment as a Trustee.”
Photo caption: Michael Ni’Man with OPEN Chief Executive, John Gordon-Saker
• The ‘Hope Funds’ scheme is offering grants of up to £10k for projects working to alleviate homelessness in the East of England;
• In the first round of funding in summer 2021, £96k in grants were awarded to 11 organisations in the region;
• Applications are invited from registered charities, social enterprises, and community based not for profit ventures by 6 December 2021.
‘Hope Funds’, a scheme offering grants of up to £10k to support projects working to tackle homelessness in East Anglia, is once again open for applications – after £96k was awarded in the first round of funding.
11 organisations working to alleviate homelessness across East Anglia were the recipients of funding up to £10k this summer, and now applications are invited once more by projects which share the aims of Hopestead, the charity behind the grant scheme.
Hopestead is looking to support organisations which can provide access to a safe place to live, tackle the causes and impacts of homelessness – as well as homelessness itself – or empower people who have experienced or are at risk of homelessness to take control and get past the challenges in their way.
They are also keen to invest in projects which enhance communities, and give people connections to build relationships, solve problems and try new things to create a sense of belonging that makes a house a forever home.
Applications are invited specifically from registered charities, social enterprises, and community based not for profit ventures, and grants are open to projects which share Hopestead’s aims.
Hope Funds opened on 1 November and 6 December is the deadline for applications. Successful applicants will be announced on 20 December, and these projects will then be invited to submit full proposals by 24 January 2022. The funds will be granted in March 2022.
The announcement of the latest round of Hope Funds grants is testament to Hopestead’s ethos to work collaboratively to achieve the charity’s ambitious goal of ending homelessness in the East of England. CEO Marie-Claire Delbrouque explained: “We’re so proud of the partnerships we’ve made since we launched in October 2020. We know that it is only through working together that we can make homelessness a rare, brief, and non-recurring event in people’s lives, and ensure that those moving into a property from a route of homelessness have everything they need to thrive.
“There are so many incredible organisations and fantastic projects working to alleviate homelessness across our region, and through our Hope Funds grant scheme, we have an opportunity to support these great initiatives that are making such a vital difference.
“Our first round of funding showed us just what an impact the Hope Funds grants can make, and I would urge eligible applicants to please do apply.”
Organisations and projects wishing to apply for the Hope Fund grant scheme can do so here: Apply for funding – Hopestead
Hope Funds previous recipients
St Martin’s Housing Trust was amongst the recipients of the first round of Hope Funds grants and was awarded a grant to provide tenancy training for 32 people to aid the prevention of homelessness.
Lucy Bone Head of Community Services at St Martins said: “We have been extremely fortunate to receive this funding. It gives us the opportunity to deliver training to the people we support to develop the skills needed to live independently in a safe and secure environment and to feel confident they can sustain this in the future.”
Empanda, a CIC which offers community-based housing related support across Norfolk and day care services across Norfolk and Suffolk also received a grant. A representative of Empanda said: “The grant from Hopestead has enabled Empanda to access a small team of specialist counsellors able to respond quicker, and often more appropriately to the young persons’ needs assisting them to become more positive about their future. We know from experience that when a young person feels positive and in control of their life they are more likely to move on to permanent accommodation successfully and avoid the pitfall of repeat homelessness.”
Another recipient was Village Orchard CIC, a not-for-profit organisation which provides personalised mental health support through one-to-one therapy sessions and group work. A spokesperson for Village Orchard explained how they would be using the grant: “We will be providing a 12-week closed therapy group for 6 to 8 participants, as well as 16 weeks of 1:1 therapy for 2 participants. The Village Orchard East CIC understands that homelessness can stem from trauma. We are so grateful to receive this funding and to have been granted the opportunity to provide this support for people who need it, thank you Hopestead!”
Hopestead was also pleased to provide a grant to Norfolk Community Law service. A spokesperson for the service said: “The independent specialist Debt and Welfare Benefits advice and representation we can provide is quite literally life changing. The funding from Hopestead means we can help more people. People who have been made most vulnerable by society. On their behalf we say thank you.”
And, The Horticulture Industry Scheme CIC (Thetford) received a grant and remarked: “We are so grateful to Hopestead for awarding us funding as part of their Hope Funds project. This funding will enable us to help ten households who have struggled with their gardens because of Covid-19. Our team of employees who have suffered difficulties such as homelessness will be working on this project to transform these householders’ gardens.”
Proeon Systems Ltd. are very pleased to announce that Jake Bridges, nominated by our company for ECITB “Apprentice of the Year” at the Training & Development Awards 2021, he was selected as a finalist in this category. Jake Bridges, was up against several other talented candidates, and we are pleased to announce he was awarded “Runner-Up” in this category.
As Jake was unable to attend the ceremony in person, our MD Richard Miller attended on his behalf, Richard was extremely pleased for Jake’s success in this category, and was happy to receive the “Runner-up” trophy on Jake’s behalf.
Richard Miller said: “This is a fantastic accolade for a very conscientious, hard-working and personable young man, who is a valued member of the Proeon team. We here at Proeon are all extremely proud of you and your achievements.”
Chris Claydon, ECITB Chief Executive, said:
“The ECITB’s industry awards provide a great opportunity to recognise the people who have really stood out for their achievements.
There is no doubt we have all experienced one of the most difficult periods in our working lives, and during these challenging times we have seen employers, training providers and learners display real resilience, innovation and creativity in the face of adversity.
With so many excellent nominees, it has been a real challenge to shortlist, and so my congratulations to all our finalists who have really shone over the last year.”
On Friday 5th November, Hope for Tomorrow launched their next generation state-of-the-art fully mobile medical cancer care unit, a ‘world first’ in healthcare innovation, designed to change the way care is delivered.
In a unique partnership with the NHS, the next generation mobile cancer care unit will visit communities to offer a wide range of services including accessible daily clinics, cancer screening and education programmes, and a variety of treatments. It will be operated as a pilot scheme by Airedale NHS Foundation Trust, helping them to achieve NHS England’s 62-day cancer target for at least 85% of patients to start a first treatment for cancer within two months (62 days) of an urgent GP referral.
There are the facilities on board to run a range of patient education and information clinics, meaning that ultimately patients will need to spend significantly less time attending hospital- based appointments. Staffed by NHS oncology experts, the unit will address health inequalities, with a holistic treatment option for hard-to-reach communities. It will also offer patients more choice of where their cancer care is delivered with less time spent attending appointments with no compromise in quality or consistency of care.
Embracing digital innovation
Manufactured here in the UK, the unit includes two hydraulic powered consultation rooms which expand from its side. Each room will be fully connected with digital facilities so that patients and staff on board are able to connect remotely to the main hospital if necessary. Being attached to its HGV chassis means the unit is fully mobile and can be moved from location to location with ease.
Combatting the Covid backlog
Hope for Tomorrow designed and launched the first mobile cancer care unit in 2007 in Cheltenham. Since then, the charity has continually developed its fleet which grew to 13 units by the beginning of 2021 and the charity now employs 14 people. 12 mobile cancer care units are currently allocated to NHS Trusts, with two units remaining in reserve ensuring minimum interruption to service. Throughout the Covid-19 crisis, available reserve units were deployed to support NHS Trusts wherever possible, allowing vital cancer services to continue where they may not otherwise have been able to. Hope for Tomorrow are also providing support with tackling the backlog caused by the pandemic; enabling treatments to take place away from the hospital environment and protecting this vulnerable patient group while helping to reduce the spread of Covid-19. In 2020, the units delivered 24,492 patient treatments.
The units deliver longer-term benefits to the NHS, in the form of a more streamlined Patient Pathway and the additional capacity on hospital sites for more complex treatments, supporting partner Trusts to meet NHS England targets.
Mental health benefits
Moving cancer care closer to patients has proven health and wellbeing benefits. In some cases, once initial consultations and first treatments have taken place, mobile cancer care units allow for the removal of hospital visits for all of a patient’s treatments. The associated reduction in travel and waiting times delivers a vastly improved patient experience, reducing stress and anxiety levels.
Tina Seymour, CEO of Hope for Tomorrow said: “This unit has been three years in the making and the result is a testament to our relentless commitment in making crucial cancer care more accessible for all. By facilitating educational and support sessions within a community, the unit will allow NHS staff to provide life-saving information, such as self-examination guidance from specialist breast care nurses. The potential for urology clinicians to host catheterisation sessions for patients and a range of other clinics will enable patients to spend significantly less time attending hospital-based appointments.
The need for more services like this is crystal clear and reflected in the increasing engagement we are seeing with key organisations. A number of outside agencies have also expressed a desire to support patients with services that go beyond healthcare from within the unit. Organisations including Citizens Advice and Be Clear on Cancer are investigating how they can offer services such as financial advice and benefit support via the unit.”
Funding next generation care
Hope for Tomorrow receives no statutory funding and relies entirely on donations from the general public, corporate donations and other private funding bodies.
Building the unit was made possible by a generous grant of £747,764 from global pharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS). The grant has been donated to cover the build costs of the next generation unit as well as another unit which will be built to existing specifications.
The unit has been named ‘Christine’, in memory of the charity’s founder Christine Mills MBE who died in 2018 from cancer.
Press and media coverage for our Next generation Unit:
James and Mark look at the myth that is having a Unique Selling Point. Instead they focus on the business critical concept of Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA) and walk the listeners though a step by step process to help them identify what their SCA is. In time honoured fashion, the come up with 3 top tips and a musical link for good measure!
If you are enjoying the series, we would really appreciate it if you could follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Audible, or wherever else you get your podcasts!
If you have feedback, questions or think you might be a great guest on the podcast, please get in touch! Email the team at podcasts@larking-gowen.co.uk
The growth of the internet has brought with it endless opportunities to learn new things; whether it’s for work, school or a hobby, the online world means there is an infinite amount of information at our fingertips. It has changed how we learn, and new technology such as personalisation, virtual reality and artificial intelligence means that education is evolving into a whole new experience.
Key to being able to access these new learning opportunities is connectivity. Access to a fast, reliable, high-capacity internet service is vital here – especially when it comes to new data hungry learning tools – and a full fibre connection, which is 100 times faster than most current UK broadband services, is the best technology for the job.
This is why CityFibre is investing up to £4 billion across the UK to bring full fibre enabled internet access to more than eight million homes, 800,000 businesses, 400,000 pipseichlic sector sites and 250,000 5G access sites. This includes here in Norwich where we are investing in the area to bring the fastest most reliable network technology to practically every home and business locally.
Norwich’s new full fibre network will make it possible for you to take advantage of all the benefits of online learning, from ease of access and controllable pace, to the ability to choose from a wider range of options that suit your own unique learning style and ambition.
Immersive technologies, such as Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), for example, are already transforming education, making learning a whole new experience. There are countless examples of this technology being used, which include The Unimersive, which is an app which uses VR to help people learn a new language, and the Gibson App which uses AR to help people learn guitar.
Everyone learns in different ways; some need to read information, while others need to see it illustrated. So how do you deliver a learning experience which suits everyone? Artificial Intelligence (AI) is enabling the development of training programmes that are completely personalised to each person.
Similarly, adaptive learning platforms are being used to meet the needs of each individual learner, ensuring that they can understand the information, learn at their own pace, and repeat any sections they don’t understand. Prodigy Math is just one example of this, the game, which teaches mathematics, uses an algorithm to match the learning to the student’s style and level.
Another benefit of AI-enabled technology is that as it is largely based online, meaning you can get 24/7 access to learning. And, with fast, reliable connectivity, such as the services enabled by CityFibre’s full fibre network here in Norwich, quality online experiences are accessible to all – no matter how data intensive.
This is just a snapshot of how the way we learn is changing, and the massive opportunities which exist to develop new skills and experience new things. Our area-wide full fibre networks will future proof communities, ensuring that as the learning landscape continues to change and expand, people will be able to use the technology and take advantage of these remarkable innovations in learning.
Brick by brick, our new Dereham Road, Norwich Centre is nearing completion.
Make a lasting gift to support local people affected by cancer and buy an engraved paver for the walkway through our sensory garden in the grounds of our new Cancer Support & Information Centre on Dereham Road in Norwich.
Our sensory garden, set to be completed in Spring 2022, will be an uplifting and lasting place where many people using our services will spend time.
Help us build a better future for those affected by cancer #nearertohome
Our high quality pavers will be engraved with black lettering with a two line dedication made up of 21 characters per line (including spaces and punctuation). You can put a paver in your name, the name of a loved one, family, friends, your company – or buy simply as a gift. Your dedication will be an engraving which will sit below the surface of the paver. The pavers have a 20 year guarantee.
The whole team at Tudor Lodge Consultants are thrilled to announce that we are working with Tests2Go, part of the NPH Group, on their website, online positioning and search engine optimisation (SEO), with a view to getting them found by significantly more people online.
Tests2Go are a relatively new player and company in the ever-growing covid testing industry in the UK. Offering rapid antigen tests for people throughout the UK, Tests2Go are now taking the next step up online and are aiming to get in front of more people than ever, offering their rapid antigen tests to increased numbers of people.
With Covid-19 sure to be a feature of most of our lives, testing when travelling is increasing in its importance with most countries around the world, including the UK requiring tests before and sometimes after entry.
The ultimate aim of the SEO project we are working with the development team at Tests2Go on is to increase the quality of those reaching the Tests2Go website as well as relevant quantities of consumers for the company and its website.
What We Are Doing for Tests2Go
The current Tests2Go website is very small and comprises just a few pages. Thus, we are undertaking an expansion as well as optimisation plan with regards to their website in a variety of ways and taking some key SEO fundamentals into account:
Meta Data – A fundamental part of any website’s SEO is the meta data which are assigned to each and every page of any website. This is one of the first things Google looks at and ranks when assessing a website for ranking on their search engine results pages (SERPs).
Website Content – The current Tests2Go website does not have much content on it and thus, we are working with their development team to research, plan and create more content both fir users to engage and interact with as well as for Google and other search engines to crawl; read, understand and rank accordingly.
Landing Pages – Working with the team at Tests2Go we are planning and working on a number of different landing pages; pages which are designed to capture the rankings for specific searches, drawing users in and capturing them as leads. This is another key element of SEO requiring attention.
Online PR – One of the most important aspects of SEO in the modern day is that of online PR and the backlinks which may well come with that. Therefore, we are working with Tests2Go to develop their online PR plan to benefit both their SEO as well as their wider brand and company objectives.
We look forward to the coming months and the months to come working with the superb team at Tests2Go!
Jodie Woodrow, senior recruitment consultant for Pure’s Financial Services Division, was invited on to Mustard TV’s Business Extra Show to discuss the latest economic findings released by The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).
The BCC has released the results of its latest quarterly survey which provides a snap shot of the UK economy. Based on responses from over 8,500 firms, the latest findings show that growth in the economy has continued to soften in the first quarter of 2016.
Mustard TV, a local TV station based in Norwich, invited Jodie to be a panellist on its Business Extra Show to discuss whether the UK-wide findings are reflective of Norfolk’s economy and the problems local organisations may be encountering as a result. She was joined by Jon Shooter from Glazing Vision in Diss and Jonathan Cage, President of Norfolk Chamber of Commerce.
During the discussions Jodie revealed that the number of job vacancies in the region had increased in the last quarter, but outlined how challenges in finding people with the right skills to fill these roles could be a contributing factor to the slowdown in economic growth.
If you are having difficulty in finding candidates with the right attributes for your organisation,contact your local Pure officefor expert help and advice.
Train operator, Greater Anglia, has launched a new online ‘green hub’ which includes a new carbon calculator to help travellers see how much they could help the planet by switching from car to train.
The hub at greateranglia.co.uk/GreenerAnglia offers information about why it’s more sustainable to travel by rail and lets people calculate the environmental impact of different transport modes, showing them how much they can reduce their CO2 emissions by travelling by train.
According to the Department for Transport*, road transport is the biggest driver of CO2 emissions in the UK. In 2019, domestic transport was responsible for emitting 122 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). This means transport is the largest emitting sector of greenhouse gas emissions, producing 27% of the UK’s total emissions in 2019. Of this, the majority – 91% – came from road transport vehicles. Rail, however, accounts for just 1.4% of transport emissions despite representing 10% of all journeys – and the industry has a target to become net zero by 2050.
Greater Anglia’s Managing Director, Jamie Burles, said, “We want to help people build back better as we emerge from the pandemic and get life moving again. Our green hub is available to provide people with all the information they need if they are interested in living more sustainably and playing their part in tackling climate change.
“The railway in East Anglia can lead the green recovery from the pandemic by being a much greener way to travel – and our new fleet of trains will contribute even more thanks to their more environmentally friendly features which reduce CO2 and particulate emissions in the region further still and offer a convenient, comfortable alternative to the car.”
The carbon calculator reveals that for most journeys, going by car emits four times more CO2e than going by train, so big reductions can be made. For example:
A journey from Norwich to London Liverpool Street saves 28.14 kg of CO2e (equivalent to powering a house for 32 hours)
A journey from Cambridge to Norwich saves 12.95 kg of CO2e (equivalent to boiling 185 kettles)
A journey from Ipswich to Lowestoft saves 8.74kg of CO2e (equivalent to 90 hours of TV)
A journey from Colchester to Clacton-On-Sea saves 3 kg of CO2e (equivalent to boiling 42 kettles)
A journey from Bishop’s Stortford to Tottenham Hale saves 4.84 kg of CO2e (equivalent to powering a house for 7 hours)
A journey from Southend Victoria to London Liverpool Street saves 7.68 kg of CO2e (equivalent to boiling 109 kettles)
Greater Anglia has joined the rest of the rail industry in pledging to make stations across Britain more sustainable.
Action to reduce waste, support local wildlife and cut the carbon footprint of railway stations will be informed by the industry’s new Sustainable Stations: Best Practice Guide, which details ways in which train operators can meet this commitment in support of global goals of decarbonisation, reducing waste and supporting local plant and animal life. The document will also be used by train companies when agreeing future contracts.
Face covering compliance is high on trains and stations and Greater Anglia is asking people to follow the Government’s recommendation and keep on wearing them when it’s busy. As more people return to rail, Greater Anglia is seeing some trains and stations getting busier. Customers are encouraged to use the full length of trains and platforms and check the operator’s ‘Less Busy Trains tool’ at greateranglia.co.uk to opt for a quieter train. Trains are well ventilated either by air conditioning which replaces air inside the train every six to nine minutes or by open windows. Doors also open at every station. Greater Anglia is also continuing with enhanced cleaning and sanitisation of trains and stations.
Full details of the revised timetable and measures Greater Anglia is taking to keep people safe are available from www.greateranglia.co.uk