International Men’s Day is approaching, and we spoke to Jason Carlton, Director of Uptech on the importance of raising awareness of mental health in organisations.
“International Men’s Day is a good talking point to embrace the people around us and take the opportunity to check in with loved ones, family members, friends and work colleagues on how there are….is anything troubling them that they may be willing to share and open up with.
A high percentage of men are very good at masking their true thoughts and feelings and not sharing with others with their real problems. We have the tendency to allow our thoughts to build up challenges and problems that confront us which in turn can trigger our vulnerabilities that leads to an unclear state of mind into what we think is the way out.
Our mental state and wellbeing is clearly not just down to gender or age its a massive problem across for board and is wrapped around different layers in what is perceived to fit in culturally and accepted in our environments and communities which can isolate us and single us out and have a huge impact on our mental wellbeing feeling alone.
If there is a takeaway in awareness of mental health issues – I would encourage business owners – leaders to roll out mental health champion training within their organisations.
For family members and friends to get involved in your local organisations within your community in learning skills be part of how you can help.
It’s so important with many of us losing someone because we couldn’t see the symptoms …. So to be able to try and recognise when someone is screaming for help but no one hears them!
From personal experience first-hand what I know now has helped me understand more about having the tools and the ability to help others and point them to seek the right help before it’s too late.
Being a mental health champion is not about being the fixer or giving professional advice, for me it’s being the beacon and being able to act when there are obvious signs, when talking to someone who may well be suffering on the inside but doesn’t know how or won’t cry for help!”
Welcome to the Norfolk Chambers podcast, in this episode Haze Carver is chatting to Lorraine Bliss, MBE and CEO of St Edmunds Society.
Lorraine is heading up a dedicated, passionate team at St Edmunds Society. St Ed’s are the Leading provider of employability skills for young people, providing support for young people living in poverty and struggling with mainstream school.
Lorraine talks about the difficulties, challenges, and wonderful successes that every student at St Ed’s faces and goes through. From the challenges of funding, and donated kitchens for the students to fit, to their recent awards ceremony earlier this year at The Halls in Norwich, Loraine’s determination and passion for her resilient students shines – she remembers every student and each and every story.
Since recording the podcast we are thrilled that St Ed’s won at the recent CSJ Awards! Enormous Co.ngratulations to Lorraine and everyone at the St Ed’s family!
You can listen to the full podcast below
Short on time? Listen to the bitesize Co.next version here
St Edmunds Society are a Norwich-based charity, offering vocational training and employability skills training to young people aged 16-18 (or up to 25 if you have an EHCP). We work with tutors and in partnership with industry experts, to give young people the skills and experience to build their future.
In this free one-hour facilitated networking event you’ll be given a brief overview of the Reset Restart business support programme, be introduced to some of the MENTA business advisors and have the opportunity to interact with other participants.
For further information about any of our events, please contact us at bipcnorfolk@norfolk.gov.uk or telephone 01603 774708.
Jordan talks to Haze about Curlyworm’s beginnings in 2019, keeping it going through covid when she lost all her income overnight, up to building her agency from a 5 figure turnover in 2 years to the point where she is bringing in someone else to join the team.
If you missed Jordan’s workshop at our recent flagship B2B event, then listen in to this brilliant podcast to find out more about female empowerment, job titles with a twist, and working your socks off as a family-run business.
We’re proud anti-hustlers
You won’t find us bragging about being part of the “5am club” in fact, we love a good lie-in. Curlyworm Creative was founded to give us the freedom to live life on our terms. And that’s exactly what we do for our clients. Hell, we’ve even helped people give up their 9-5s, all through our awesome content.
David Fung presents an all-new show of magic and mystery.
Associate of the Inner Magic Circle, David’s creative magic will intrigue and astonish you in this intimate setting. David shares meaningful, magical experiences unlike any you’ve seen before.
Also introducing The Saint in Scarlet debuting his remarkable act “Killing Scott” in which he proves that everything is connected and sometimes our actions are not our own.
The hour long performance will be followed by close-up magic in the bar.
Welcome to the Norfolk Chambers podcast, in this episode Haze Carver is talking to Thomas Panton, CEO & sustainability expert at Canopey.com (formerly Greenr).
“Your home for better buying. Quantified impact data, ethical brands, better impact products. Fight back against the big-boy polluters, it’s time to Bin B*zos and Buy Better.”
Thomas is CEO and resident sustainability veteran at Canopey, having worked in the industry for a decade with organisations like Greenpeace UK and Surfers Against Sewage. As a previous startup founder, Climate Change MSc student, and LinkedIn Top Green Voice, Thomas is Canopey’s lucky volunteer when it comes to speaking at events, and talks to Haze on all things sustainable – from crowdfunding, angel investors, hot summers to how perfectionism often hinders the progress we need to make in the climate change movement.
Thomas Panton is an experienced speaker for the London Speaker Bureau in the environment sector, spending his time educating, inspiring, and engaging different audiences to begin their journey to become more sustainable. He also talks about mental health in high pressure roles, and advises other founders on wellbeing and making tough decisions.
We’re proud to have Thomas as a Business Climate Leader for Norfolk Chambers of Commerce, Thomas is Co-creator of The Topic, with Nadiah Arif. A podcast that talks about everything from climate change to human rights, raising awareness on these important issues and educating people on how to get more involved in challenging the status quo.
He is also Founder of Festovers, upcycling leftover consumer waste. One of IQ Mag’s Green Guardians. BBC Oxford’s expert on festival tent waste and sustainability.
We’re not just building a shopping platform, we’re building a community of people and brands that want to create a greener future.
We want to make it easier for everyone to shop more ethically and become a platform that educates people on sustainability issues so they can learn how to create the change they want to see. Our vision is to make sustainable living, living.
Good value, better values
We’re not just about making shopping more ethical: better values are at the core of everything we do. From creating a diverse and talented team, to ensuring our marketing is accessible.
Our final event of the year will be informal and festive. Drop in between 2-4pm for hot chocolate, mince pies and some relaxed networking.
The final Food for Thought event of 2022 will be at our Waterloo Park venue and take place in the main café rather than the upstairs community room.
We will keep this one informal so it’s a chance to network while enjoying a hot chocolate, mince pie or any other hot drink or homemade cake available.
At 3pm our CEO Lucy Parish will give a short update so be there then if you’d like to hear it.
“The challenges facing businesses in the UK labour market remain very much the same. We have a critical shortage of skills and labour that is damaging firms and holding back growth.
“Once again, the data shows the number of job vacancies remains at record highs, adding to inflationary pressures.
“With confidence waning as we enter recession, and the expectation of even tougher economic times ahead, we may see more recruitment freezes, job losses and business closures.
“But the underlying problem is unaltered – unless we address the ongoing mismatch of skills available and business needs, this drag anchor on the economy will persist and hinder recovery.
“Concerns are growing about the numbers of people who are leaving the labour market through long-term illness – as well as those choosing early retirement. This will damage opportunities for individuals and the economy.
“The government and employers must work together to solve the labour market conundrum. We must look at ways to help people experiencing ill-health stay in work and to encourage skilled and experienced retirees to return to the workplace.
“We need to remove barriers to work, by offering flexible workplaces, rapid re-training opportunities and better access to childcare and public transport.
“And, crucially, we need to invest more in the training and upskilling of everyone in the workplace so that we are ready to grasp new opportunities for growth.
The Chancellor has an opportunity on Thursday to start fixing the labour supply problem in our economy. If he misses it, growth will remain hard to come by.”
The focus for this event Cloud and Cyber Security, with an emphasis on essentials for SMEs and the increasing risks of corporate data theft. With the rapid rise in AI tools, bots, and automation — and the new vulnerabilities these can introduce — it’s more important than ever for businesses to understand the basics of IT security and how to protect themselves.
Cyber Security Essentials – Key threats for SMEs, the importance of Cyber Essentials certification, and simple steps to protect data.
Cloud Security & Corporate Theft – Understanding common vulnerabilities in cloud setups and how insider threats or poor controls can lead to breaches.
AI & Emerging Threats – A look at how AI is being used by attackers (e.g. phishing, botnets, automated attacks), and how businesses can respond.
Live Risk Assessment – An interactive section where attendees assess their own organisation’s risk using a simple tool/checklist.
Building a Culture of Awareness – Practical ways businesses can improve staff awareness and prepare a basic response plan.
Q&A and Signposting – Support available locally and links to further guidance.
The session would be around 2.5 hours, ideally running in September, and we’re asking delivery partners to offer this at low or no cost as part of their support for local businesses.
This event is to be facilitated by Netmatters.
Netmatters are a well-established Norfolk-based tech firm that prides itself on transparent, ethical partnerships and hands-on delivery. With a fully in-house team and dedicated account management, they offer clients a consistent, accountable service underpinned by robust processes and clear communication.
Welcome to the Norfolk Chambers podcast, in this episode Haze Carver is with Izzy Lerpiniere | East Norfolk Sixth Form College.
This week’s podcast is with Izzy Lerpiniere, High Schools and Alumni Coordinator at East Norfolk Sixth Form in Gorleston, a top performing sixth form for Great Yarmouth & Waveney.
Izzy coordinated the Eco-Schools campaign for the college, completing the project and application work, and achieved their Green Flag accreditation with a distinction!
“We are an education provider, so funding and regulations are governed by external organisations, however we have the power of lots of young people who hold sustainability a priority – and we are able to harness this and use it in our sustainability strive.”
With her new role as High Schools Coordinator, Izzy talks about her hope to run sustainability workshops with high school students, and is also keen to do more sustainability engagement with primary schools, through working with our Schools & Community Champion.
Izzy is also working with the UKSSN (UK Schools for Sustainability Network) and is involved with our Business Climate Leaders programme – You can view Izzy’s profile here
Listen to the full podcast below
Short on time? Why not listen to Izzy’s advice for under 35s below
St Albans saw a 33ft (10m) deep sinkhole appear in Fontmell Close earlier this month; the council are now suggesting that surveys are showing a significant anomaly or possible void underneath the houses. So how do sinkholes happen?
In 2014, the UK press reported seeing an increase in sinkholes appearing across the country*. It has been suggested that the emergence of these sinkholes may be down to climate change and human activity, and with our unpredictable weather conditions will we be seeing more?
Why do they happen?
Sinkholes may have a natural or man-made origin, but typically they are caused by underground voids or loose zones triggered by stress changes as a result of saturation or vibration, either from construction or from existing development (like leaking drains).
Sinkhole is a common term for holes that appear without apparent reason to the layperson. According to the British Geological Survey (BGS) web site** there are various different types of sinkhole:
Surface dissolution or soluble rock: limestone or chalk that dissolves in rainfall or acidic groundwater (see map opposite).
Where a thin layer of loose, superficial material such as sand, clay or soil covers soluble rocks beneath; the soil can be washed into the widened crevices leading to the development of a cavity (suffusion sinkhole).
Where more cohesive material such as clay creates a large sinkhole before finally collapsing (drop out sinkhole).
Sinkholes caused through gradual cave collapse; this is where the collapse gradually spreads up through overlying strata causing subsidence at the surface. These can sometimes extend into rocks creating a caprock sinkhole.Mining can also be significant in causing sinkholes by water intercepting clay-filled voids which subsequently collapse, or by dewatering and lowering of the water table (dene hole).
Some sinkholes can occur as a result of weak unconsolidated material by flowing water, where loose material is removed by a process called ‘soil piping’, creating large voids within the sediment.
What are the impacts?
Sinkholes are not restricted to the UK, and reported international examples tend to add to public unease. One example of a sinkhole caused by mining was seen in Russia where an accidental release of brine in certain parts of the mine caused a sinkhole of up to 80 meters***. Generally in the UK sinkholes are smaller, but can still cause concern and extra costs in the built environment.
The sinkholes we see in the UK can be indirectly caused by human activity, occurring alongside constructions where rain water has been concentrated to a patch of ground such as roofs or tarmac, burst water mains or irrigation. As a result, residential areas are impacted the most affecting infrastructure. The British Geological Survey warn that sinkholes are going to be an ongoing feature of our landscape, particularly if ground remains saturated for long periods of time. Often it is difficult to identify an absolute cause, and subsequently apply a liability to affected parties where damage occurs that has to be paid for.
Many UK case reports are from the south east, because of dense property and infrastructure development where the geology may be thin unconsolidated sand and clay superficial deposits overlying weathered soluble chalk bedrock.
There is a clear planning and environmental conflict between sinkhole risk and the sustainable use of surface water drainage to land. Sinkholes may be used as evidence why sustainable drainage cannot be adopted.
Land stability is a material concern in the UK planning system with a responsibility not only to minimise the risk and effects of land stability, but to ensure development doesn’t occur in unstable locations as well as improve unstable land where possible.
Could more sinkholes be on the way?
Delta-Simons did record an increase in sinkhole activity in 2014, but so far in 2015 there have been fewer events. Possibly because the rainfall has been less extreme nationally, and maybe events on the verge of collapse were triggered last year.
What may have changed is our client’s awareness of the sinkholes and requests to perform specific desk studies and ground investigations to identify risks have certainly increased. See how we can deliver clear understanding of ground conditions, visit our geotechnical services.
The next annual Innovate East Conference is on 2-3rd March 2021. The conference will look at how funding, finance and collaboration can help businesses to innovate and grow.
This year, the event is moving online and there will be two days of talks and seminars. Day one will see InnovateUK take the lead. There will be talks from the Innovate UK ‘family’, including the Knowledge Transfer Network and Catapult Centres. Sessions include tips around applying for and securing funding and encouraging diversity and inclusion in your organisation.
Day two sees the University of Essex, University of Kent and University of East Anglia (UEA) take the lead with a focus on how to work with Universities (accessing talent, funding and support).
In the morning (9:30-10:45) there will be a focus on working with Universities and ‘plugging into the power of knowledge’. This session will highlight how businesses can engage with Universities to access talent, funding and support. Businesses who have successfully worked with universities, including Outfield, will discuss their story.
At 1:30 productivity takes the lead. This session, led by the University of Essex and UEA will discuss how to boost productivity through collaboration and innovation. UEA’s Productivity East will feature, looking at what they will offer over the coming months.
Finally, UEA will lead a session (3:30) focussing on how to work with us to access funding, grow your knowledge and inspire your workforce. The session will feature two businesses, Ehabitation and Geoacoustics, who have successfully worked with us.
Spaces are filling up fast! For more information and to register visit the event page.
