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Norfolk Chamber, through its linkage to the British Chambers of Commerce, is pleased to be able to offer Accredited Training Courses covering International Trade from January 2013.

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is playing a leading role in the Government’s Get Britain Exporting agenda by launching a new National Trade Skills Training programme.

The ‘core 6’ course set will be accredited by the BCC and offered through the Chamber Network as a family of short courses. The courses are individually and collectively relevant to SMEs who wish to improve the skills and competence of their staff.

Candidates achieving Pass or Merit in any of the courses will receive a uniquely numbered certificate in each area. Those who pass all six courses will achieve a nationally recognised Foundation Award in International Trade.

The training programme has been developed after demand from employers for a national skills experience for their staff. By developing a national solution to the exporting skills gap, the BCC is making a vital contribution to helping the government achieve its target of creating 100,000 new exporters.

These courses are suitable for both experienced exporters and those with no previous knowledge of exporting.

The 6 course titles are:

• Understanding Exports
• Methods of Payment
• Export Documentation
• Incoterms® 2010
• Letters of Credit
• Import Procedures

Using the unique international trade experience within the chamber network, the BCC identified these six core, one day courses that businesses need to be able to start exporting. Through a steering group of Chamber experts they developed an accreditation process to give employers confidence that those attending the course have gained relevant and applicable knowledge and that their competence has been assessed and verified enabling them to boost their businesses export drive.

The courses will continue to be delivered by our trusted, accredited trainer Mike Strawson, who has been working with us for many years. Those of you who have attended our courses will know that Mike has an incredible knack of delivering the content in such a crystal clear manner, delegates walk away with a sound understanding of the subject. Mike has in fact, played an instrumental part in writing the new Accredited Courses for the BCC, and they are very similar to our existing ones.

For more information on these courses, please see our flyer or contact the International Trade Team on 01603 729712, email export@norfolkchamber.co.uK

HMRC is introducing Real Time Information (RTI) for PAYE from April 2013. The vast majority of employers are required to start submitting PAYE returns in real time in April 2013 and all employers will be routinely reporting PAYE information in real time by October 2013.

From April, PAYE returns are electronically required each time a payment is made, as part of routine payroll processes. Employers operating their own payroll will need to consider and take the appropriate action to either update their payroll software, obtain new payroll software or, where an agent or payroll bureaux is used, discuss the changes with their payroll provider. During October HMRC will be writing to all employers telling them about RTI, advising what they should be doing to get their business ready for the changes to PAYE in April 2013, and signposting HMRC guidance.

Information on these changes can be found here.

Working with partners, Norfolk County Council is seeking to progress a number of key infrastructure initiatives in 2012/13 and beyond. The attachedupdate aims to keepeveryone up to speed on progress.

Responding to Ed Miliband’s keynote speech to the Labour Party Conference in Manchester, John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:

“Ed Miliband extended an olive branch to business by saying that Labour wants to engage with the private sector and small businesses. Many companies in the real economy will want to hear more over the coming months about Mr Miliband’s promise to support businesses focused on long-term growth.”

On banks and access to finance:

“Many businesses will sympathise with Ed Miliband’s ultimatum to the banks to reform or face regulatory action. However, there could be perverse consequences of a political witch hunt. In designing its future policies to improve access to finance, Labour must be careful not to undermine the financial services industry, which makes such a valuable contribution to our economy. Labour must also set out how it will make a British Business Bank a permanent part of our national growth strategy.”

On skills and education:

“Employers have long said that our national obsession with university leads to a blatant disregard for the majority of young people. Too often, young people come out of education without the skills required for the world of work. We need to value all types of skills equally, as they are all critical for the success of the economy. Business cannot function without the right mix of academic, technical and manual skills – they are all vital.

“Ed Miliband wants to put employers in the driving seat for training and skills. He’s right to say that giving employers greater control over training funds will deliver results. But introducing yet another overhaul of qualifications is not the answer. Businesses have a hard enough time determining the value of current qualifications. Instead, we need to focus on getting businesspeople into schools to help prepare young people for the world of work, boosting apprenticeships, bringing back enterprise education, and ensuring no one leaves the classroom without the basic skills needed to succeed in work.

“To get there, however, Labour may need to reconsider its long-held views on academic selection. The systems that work best in the rest of Europe separate academic, technical and manual schools, where they are funded and valued in equal measure. Labour must also look beyond the issue of apprenticeships in tackling problems with public procurement.”

Over 100 Norfolk businesses, large and small, came together this morning to discuss the economy from both a local and a national scale at a bustling Norfolk Chamber breakfast at Dunston Hall, sponsored by Steeles Law.

Attendees heard a presentation from John Longworth, Director General at the British Chambers of Commerce, who provided an overview of key economic issues facing businesses across the country, including the Eurozone and USA. Mr Longworth commented on the confusing economic data coming out of Government. He felt that the data was “not inaccurate but incomplete” and was causing businesses to lack confidence in investing.

He felt that access to capital remains key to economic success, as was the funding of infrastructure rail, road, aviation, energy, digital and of course skills. Mr Longworth complimented Norfolk Chamber on its campaign work and emphasised the need for the Chamber network to continue to make the business case to government and to “hold people’s feet to the fire” if they try to avoid addressing the key issues.

Chloe Smith, MP for Norwich North and Parliamentary Secretary at the Cabinet Office, highlighted three areas that are essential for economic growth at a local level, namely infrastructure, in particular rail, young people and export. Ms Smith emphasized the need for local businesses to work together with the Chamber to get behind the new Norfolk Rail Prospectus as there is a window of opportunity to get the business voice heard.

John and Chloe then went on to interact with several Norfolk businesses by holding a Q&A session and addressing the questions and concerns of a varied audience.

John commented “I was delighted to be speaking at the Norwich Economic Breakfast. The economic climate is of concern to businesses of all sizes, though many tell us things aren’t as gloomy as newspaper headlines suggest. I enjoy hearing from members, and will do all we can at the British Chambers of Commerce to ensure the government listens to what Norfolk businesses need to grow, and contribute to a strong economic recovery.”

Chloe commented “As a local MP and minister, economic growth for Norwich, Norfolk and the country is my top priority. I make it my business to understand business, and so I was delighted to join the Chamber for such an informative event.”

The breakfast also featured a very special guest, Nelson the Gorilla, who was there to highlight the work the Chamber is doing with the charity Break. Aiming to have 50 Gorilla sculptures around Norwich in 2013, Break have launched their ‘Go Go Gorillas’ project and are looking for the support of Norfolk businesses to sponsor a sculpture.

Nelson’s cousin, Horatio, will be being painted live at the Chamber’s forthcoming B2B Autumn 2012 event, taking place on 18 October at Norwich City Football Club, with a special guest appearance from Jake Humphries, an Ambassador of the ‘Go Go Gorillas’ project.

To view photo’s from the Norwich Economic Business Breakfast, visit the Norfolk Chambers’Facebookpage.