The Witans are a small group comprising of eight local businessmen who have come together for a simple common goal, to raise money and assist those in need. This may sound like your standard charity organisation however what differentiates the Witans from their larger more bureaucratic brethren is their commitment to helping those in need directly.
By casting aside the pen pushers and applications forms the Witans are able to quickly, and effectively help those whom need it the most. There are no waiting lists, questionnaires or requirements, they simply hear about someone in need and they help them. Like Robin Hood’s band of merry men but instead of stealing from the rich they buy from each other.
Each business auctions a service or product from their company to which the others bid with the accumulative total then being divided into two lots of £300 contributions every quarter or more for exceptional circumstances to those that need a helping hand.
The evening was commenced by Mick Whitman better known as Captain Mainwaring from the Dads Army Museum and by bidding on such items as a season ticket for Thetford Football Club, a complimentary chimney sweep or dinner for two in your own home prepared and cooked by Rock ‘n’ Roll Chef Tony Liddell it was as one member said “Great to see local businesses working together to improve the lives of the local community.
On the 16th July The Witans raised an astounding £1665 which will go directly to those that need it most. If you, or someone you know is in need, you can apply for this unique contribution by emailing gez.chetal@trusthouseleisure.co.uk and simply state your reasons and circumstances.
The Witans “Making the world a little better one Auction at a time”
Do you struggle to find the time to review the strategy of your business? Spend so much time working on the ‘day-to-day’ that you can’t move things forward? Are your future plans still relevant?
Over 2 days, Accelerate allows you to review the current state of your business, overcome challenges, and seize on opportunities. As well as the 2-day intensive workshop you will also gain access to our team of specialist advisors where you will discuss and create an action plan to move your business forwards. Accelerate has been created to help the idea-rich and time-poor to review ‘the now’ and work for ‘the tomorrow’. Working collaboratively with other businesses, succeed together.
Hethel Innovation are the provider of innovation support in the East of England, and throughout the series you will be challenged why you do what you do, and how you can look to do things differently. Provided with an extensive toolkit, you can work with other business owners experiencing similar challenges to create innovative solutions and accelerate your growth potential.
What Will We Cover:
Over the 2 days, we will cover a variety of topics to help you explore your ideas and turn them into real actions, including:
How your market environment may have changed over the past 12 months.
Breaking down who your competitors are, and identifying gaps.
Evaluating your brand; how it aligns to what you do and whether it is manifested in reality.
Identifying your customers of today, and of tomorrow, and how you can best engage with them.
Reviewing your top line and bottom line growth strategies, and the opportunities available in your industry.
Revisiting your strategy and taking actions from the aforementioned topics and turning it into a realistic action plan.
Who Should Attend:
Using interactive tools that benefit businesses at varying stages of their development, Accelerate has been designed to help:
Aspiring young businesses that are ready to grow, but don’t believe an ‘Accelerator Programme’ is for them.
Businesses between 1 and 5 years that focus on day-to-day operations, rather than strategic actions.
Businesses looking to launch a new spin-out or product/service and want to create a growth plan to ensure it’s success.
What Will You Get:
We’ve all been on training and events where you leave with high hopes of implementing something into your business, home, or general life, but lose the motivation to do so. In Accelerate you will get the following to make sure you can confidently take your business forwards:
A copy of the slides from the day.
The Accelerate ‘Toolkit’ – contains the tools provided on the day as well as other resources to continue your progress.
‘Strategic Action Cards’ – A Hethel Innovation-designed tool to help you turn your thoughts into realistic actions.
(Optional) – Continued mentoring from the Hethel Innovation team.
What Have Others Said:
“It was a really enjoyable and friendly approach to learning, with real knowledge and understanding being shared. There were many tools explored, which make a difference to how I think about my business. Thank you.”
“Jordan and Sam were charming, supportive and knowledgeable. The offered clear and concise, easy to follow information. The guys also remained patient and understanding throughout. Can’t recommend Hethel enough!!!”
“I just wanted to say thanks again for the incredible sessions. I have learnt a lot and found them so very useful. I have lots of plans and ideas on how to move forward. I had been feeling a little bit lost in 2021, though I am still rather scattered, I now feel well armed and equipped to continue battling on!!”
Hi, we’re Hethel Innovation:
Our goal is to help businesses become more innovative, competitive, and productive.
These goals reach across many sectors, and bring together businesses, researchers, institutions, local governments, and students to create opportunities for innovation.
Alongside management of award winning hubs Hethel Engineering Centre and Scottow Enterprise Park, Hethel Innovation has supported hundreds of businesses in East Anglia over the past eight years through: bespoke interventions, training courses, conferences, masterclasses, workshops, innovation platforms, and incubation.
This course enables attendees to take personal responsibility for following food safety procedures, keep themselves clean and hygienic, receive and store food safely and prepare, cook and hot hold food safely. By the end of the course, employees who handle food will gain a firm grasp of the importance of food safety systems, techniques and the procedures involved, an appreciation of Food Safety Hazards and the confidence and expertise to deliver food safely to customers. Duration: One-day course (9:00am – 4pm approximately) IMPORTANT INFORMATION ON COVID-19 – PLEASE READ Lunch provided: For full day training courses a lunch with sandwich or salad, crisps and cake or fruit will be provided. Hot drinks and bottle water will be provided but please bring snacks with you at present. This may change dependent on restrictions and when your course will take place. Classroom set up: We are still operating with learners 2 metres apart for your safety and the maximum size is determined on the room. This will be a maximum of 5 learners. The room will be thoroughly cleaned before and after use. Induction: On arrival, learners will be asked if they or their household has any symptoms. Anyone exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms will be excluded and moved to the next available course. As a facility – we do have the test and trace QR code onsite which we kindly ask to be scanned upon arrival. We kindly ask delegates to where a face covering when moving around inside but these can be taken off when seated. During the course: Learners will be asked to thoroughly wash, or sanitise, their hands throughout the course. Equipment: Pen, pencil, note paper will be made available to attendees. These should not be shared under any circumstances. Hand sanitiser will be made available. Each delegate will be supplied with a Food Safety handbook to take away, and an exam paper to be completed at the end of the day. Please note that it is a requirement of the awarding body, that we need to see photographic proof of identity of each candidate before they can be entered into the exam, for example, passport, driving licence, student union card or work pass. Course Content Legislation Food safety hazards Temperature control Refrigeration, chilling and cold holding Cooking, hot holding and reheating Food handling Principles of safe food storage Cleaning Food premises and equipment Subject to passing a 20 question multiple choice exam paper delegates will gain the HIGHFIELD AWARDING BODY FOR COMPLIANCE Level 2 Award in Food Safety in Catering. It is recommended that this qualification is refreshed every 3 years. You will be given a HABC Food Safety in Catering manual to take away and keep after the course for future reference. Course prices between £102 and £114. For more information – contact us on 01603 788950 or email carrowbreck@broadland.gov.uk
A new milestone in the King’s Lynn and West Norfolk economy is reached next month.
A partnership of the Borough Council, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the governments international trade service provider and Norfolk Chamber of Commerce will present and introduction to trading overseas and also look at business opportunities in Germany and France to an audience of business people in Yours Business Networks, Tuesday Market Place.
The event which will be opening by West Norfolk MP Henry Bellingham follows the decision by the Borough Council to join the European Hanse Business League.
Council Leader, Nick Daubney said, “The Hanse Business League is a really exciting network of towns and cities predominately in Germany and like us are promoting opportunities for their businesses to an ever widening market place. Adding a French connection too makes this a very important event.’
Informative presentations will be made by Steve Exon, an experienced exporter, the Hanse business League and from one of UKTI’s offices in France on the current international trade opportunities for their market.
Heather Garrod, President of West Norfolk ChamberCouncil said,” This is a unique networking session that allows businesses to explore trading links with the rest of Europe. We expect that from this event that a delegate would travel to various networking session in mainland Europe next year.’
Pat Smith, UKTI’s Partnership Manager commented ‘UKTI is delighted to be working in partnership with the Hanse Business League, Morston Assets, West Norfolk Council and the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce to organise this important event. With modern communication technology and a good range of European flights from Norwich, Stansted and Luton, West Norfolk businesses can reach out to opportunities worldwide’.
The event “European Opportunities Live” takes place on Friday 11th October at Yours Business Networks King’s Lynn. The event is free to attend and to register please contact Leon Palmer of UKTI on 01707 398728 or email l.palmer@uktieast.org.uk.
Learn how Agile methods are used in practice through group activities and personal reflection!
About This Event:
Right now a project is failing. Projects fail or suffer delays every single day. The failure of projects is almost never technology. It is because of poor management of people and tasks!
Agile project management is a way of approaching a project using small and powerful teams. These teams take greater ownership of tasks, understand the bigger picture and work on a cycle of continuous improvement to accelerate towards being the best they can be.
What Will We Cover:
This session will provide you with an overview of what Agile project management is, where it comes from and the potential power it has for small teams. In this workshop, we will be discussing how you can apply Agile to all kinds of project management, and the session will be an interactive experience for you to learn Agile and Scrum Framework concepts. Further, the day will provide you with clear and engaging demonstrations of how Agile methods are used in practice through group activities and personal reflection and we will also share some quick wins with you to help you get started on your Agile journey.
Who Should Attend:
• Anyone who is unsure if Agile is the right approach for them
• Anyone who manages a team and wants to improve productivity
• Anyone who wants to improve communication amongst a team
• Anyone who is sick of projects running past deadlines
• Anyone who needs greater cohesion and team focus
What Will You Get:
5 hours of Agile training
A good working understanding of Agile Project Management and the Scrum basics such as values, principles, roles and artifacts
Hands-on and practical exercises
Your own ‘Get Agile in a Day Toolkit’, a personal collection of tools to help you visualise how Agile methodologies can be implemented in your business, note important realisations and plan your next Agile steps
Access to all supporting course material, including post-access to the Miro board that will be used during the session
Networking opportunities during breakout rooms and other interactive exercises
Following the session, the Business Development Team at Hethel Innovation will be available to make 1-2-1 appointments to help you and your team become even more Agile!
What Have Others Said:
“Really enjoyed the session, this is the first kind of session like this I have joined and I found it very informative and would definitely recommend.”
“Thank you for a superb event. If anyone is on the fence about attending. Take a day out. It’ll do the team a world of good to look at projects through this approach.”
Hi, we’re Hethel Innovation:
Our goal is to help businesses become more innovative, competitive, and productive.
These goals reach across many sectors, and bring together businesses, researchers, institutions, local governments, and students to create opportunities for innovation.
Alongside management of award winning hubs Hethel Engineering Centre and Scottow Enterprise Park, Hethel Innovation has supported hundreds of businesses in East Anglia over the past eight years through: bespoke interventions, training courses, conferences, masterclasses, workshops, innovation platforms, and incubation.
New farm policy clears key hurdle: Agriculture MEPs endorse CAP reform deal
Legislation for the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was endorsed by the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee on Monday, following last week’s informal agreement in talks between Parliament, the Council and the Commission.To read the full story, click here.
Five member states exceed their milk quota (for deliveries)
Five Member States – Austria, Germany, Denmark, Poland and Cyprus, – exceeded their milk quotas for deliveries in 2012/2013, and must therefore pay penalties (“superlevy”) totalling roughly €46 million. Click here for more details
Euro area unemployment rate at 12.0% & EU28 at 10.9%
The euro area1 (EA17) seasonally-adjusted2 unemployment rate3 was 12.0% in August 2013, stable compared with July4. The EU281 unemployment rate was 10.9%, also stable compared with July 4. In both zones, rates have risen compared with August 2012, when they were 11.5% and 10.6% respectively. These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. For full details click here.
Location: Carrowbreck House, 300 Drayton High Road, Norwich, NR6 5BJ.
Are you showing up at Social Networking Platforms and not really achieving much; you’re unsure what to say, where to say it and how often you should be talking. If you’re unsure how to measure the impact Social Media is having on your business, then this is the course for you. This course is suitable for all Business people that know they should be using Social Media to enhance their business, but are unclear how to, find it difficult to manage, or struggle to build meaningful business relations on line.
Duration:One-day course (9:30am – 4:00pm approximately) Equipment:No equipment is necessary for you to bring to the course. Pens and note paper will be available. Lunch provided: For full day training courses a sandwich lunch with crisps and cakes will be provided. Refreshments will be available throughout the duration of this course.
Course Content Social Media the Big 4 and niche platforms Define yourself as The Expert Help you to find your voice Find your audience/customers See case studies of people using Social Media well Learn to connect with your audience using Video How to be Internet Famous & the many ways to turn that into a profit.
By the end of the course you will have a clear message, you will know how to encourage your audience to become advocates and the importance of lists to define your different types of followers.
Great Yarmouth Borough Council has commenced consultation on their Core Strategy. The Core Strategy is the key document in the Local Plan setting out strategic policies for new homes, new jobs, retail and leisure facilities, transport and local services as well as energy and the environment. To find out more and to have your say click here.
The list is based entirely on recommendations from thousands of solicitors across England and Wales who were asked to choose which law firms they would recommend for a number of categories covering business, public and private-client fields. Solicitors are not permitted to choose their own law firms or vote for any category more than once.
This is the second time Howes Percival has been featured in the list, which has now been running for four years. The firm was commended for its expertise in commercial property, insolvency & restructuring and planning.
‘We are really proud to be featured in this influential list for the second year running. Our listing is testament to the quality of work being produced across the firm and it’s fantastic to see the calibre of our people and their expertise being recognised by our fellow legal professionals.’
Instagram is becoming the influencers platform of choices and it is one of the fastest growing social media platforms. With new features being added every month it is quickly becoming an essential channel to drive activity and grow your brand. Pinterest is one of the fastest growing e-commerce channels and the unique way that it is set up allows content to be shared and discovered much more easily than other social media platforms. Please make sure you have active accounts set up before the course takes place. Pens and note paper will be available. Please bring any passwords you may need to access. Main Instagram features are not available on desktop so please bring a device you can use on the day that can connect directly to 4G. Lunch provided: For full day training courses a lunch with sandwich or salad, crisps and cake or fruit will be provided. Hot drinks and bottle water will be provided but please bring snacks with you at present. This may change dependent on restrictions and when your course will take place. We kindly ask delegates to where a face covering when moving around inside but these can be taken off when seated. This workshop will look at the key features of each platform and help you to leverage them to increase leads and grow your brand. The workshop will look at the following areas: • The basics of each platform • The features of each platform • Creating content and using tools to save you time and effort • Strategies for success • Selling products on each platform The aim is to give you the skills required to go away and use these platforms to help grow your business. Course cost: £77 – £99 per person. For more details or any enquiries, please do contact us on 01603 788950, or email carrowbreck@broadland.gov.uk
The Alan Boswell Group Charitable Trust continues to deliver on its commitment to make a difference to charitable causes in the areas that we operate in. We wanted to share what our donations mean to some of the charities who have been given funds.
The current Charitable Trust sub-committee have assessed 111 applications made to the Trust, sent feedback to dozens of charities and have been the driving force behind the £460,000 of grants awarded in the last 12 months.
Here are some of the amazing impacts that our grants have been making:
East Norfolk Riding for the Disabled
The Trust donated £4,000 to the charity and they have put the money to excellent use. They have been able to purchase all of the following:
Specialised saddle which features a deep seat to support riders.
A set of ‘Bunny ears’ handles for riders who have difficulty with traditional reins.
Instructors booked onto First Aid and Safeguarding training
Training sessions for volunteers – these are much needed as no sessions have been able to run since the first lockdown and the charity are looking forward to welcoming back their volunteers and riders.
COVID safety products such as hand sanitiser pumps and cleaning products.
The remainders of the donation will be used to support activities and events taking place for service users in the future.
North Norfolk MacMillan Centre
MacMillan Cancer Support invested £2.2 million in the North Norfolk MacMillan Centre to help thousands of people access cancer treatment and support closer to their homes. They relied on grants such as the £10,000 donated by ABG to cover the costs of the build and despite an unprecedented drop in income of up to 50% during the pandemic, the building is now complete & the first patient has received treatment! The new centre includes:
Six chemotherapy treatment chairs with capacity to treat up to 36 patients a day.
Three new clinic rooms and two new minor procedure rooms, creating an additional 10,000 outpatients’ appointments annually and space for new cancer diagnostics including prostate biopsy.
A Macmillan cancer information and support centre.
Eating Matters
Eating Matters are a Norfolk based charity which offers counselling for people age 11+ with mild to moderate eating disorders in the community. They applied for a grant of £2,500 back in March 2020 to support their services throughout the pandemic, meaning delivery via online/telephone counselling. At the time of writing, they supported 264 clients, 134 of which were under the age of 25.
‘’The funding received from The Alan Boswell Group Charitable Trust has supported counsellor fees for 100 counselling sessions. The average number of sessions a client requires to aid recovery is 18. These sessions take place on a weekly basis for an hour over a period of between 4 – 6 months. Our counsellors and support staff will liaise with GP’s and NHS tier 3 eating disorder services for medical monitoring where necessary to ensure client safety. We currently have 18 part time counsellors working at Eating Matters, one of which is a third-year student who is completing her placement hours with us.’’
The organisation has since resumed face to face counselling sessions, as well as continuing the online/telephone sessions for service users with more mild symptoms, or live in remote parts of Norfolk.
Arthur Rank Hospice
The hospice ran the ‘Help Us Be There’ appeal back in 2020 where they aimed to raise £100,000 to fund the recruitment of two full time healthcare assistants. The new colleagues were needed to meet the demands of people wishing to receive end of life care in their own home, overnight, during the last two weeks of life. The appeal was a great success and raised a total of £140,000 in the end, of which the Charitable Trust donated £6,608.00.
Our funds directly funded 14 nights of care supporting 11 patients. The care staff were briefed each evening in readiness for their visit which involved understanding medical conditions of the patient, the family dynamics, if loved ones were present, and information about the patient which would help to ensure the patient to feel well supported by the staff member caring for them. Here’s some feedback from a family member of a hospice at home patient:
‘’We just wanted to write and say a huge thank you for arranging the lovely nurse Anne to help us with our Mum on her final night. Anne was so sweet and caring and she cared for my mum so well. My mum passed just before Anne was due to leave. We so appreciated her help and kindness. Thank you for all the wonderful work you all do.’’
The hospice were also delighted to share that during their appeal they entered conversations with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), and have secured significant funding to provide a daytime service which has expanded the Hospice at Home service to cover day and night.
Nancy Oldfield Trust
The Trust offers accessible accommodation, canoeing, sailing and motor cruising on the Norfolk Broads and put together an ‘Enhanced Accessibility’ project to improve the accessibility of their premises. They were given a grant of £3,746.48 to purchase an automatic door system. Since the installation of the system in May 2020 approximately 180 visitors have benefited. The visitor numbers were significantly impacted by Covid-19 and various lockdowns but in more normal years in the future we would expect around 750 to 1000 visitors to enjoy the convenience of the new system each year.
‘’The automatic door system has made it immeasurably easier for our visitors to move between rooms in our residential bungalow and this has been of particular benefit for our visitors with wheelchairs. It has also made the bungalow much safer as visitors were known to prop open fire doors with chairs despite advice and warning notices.’’
For those in the corporate world, the festive season brings with it invitations to parties with an expectation that alcohol will be freely consumed….and you will be involved! How do you navigate these events if you’re sober? Mark and James welcome the ‘Sober Exec’ Chris Anthony to chat about navigating the corporate drinks culture.
Chris talks about what life is like at the top of the corporate world; with over 25 years’ experience in the tech sector, Chris is now the Vice President of U.S. Consumer Goods at Salesforce Marketing Cloud. He stands out not only for his expertise and experience, but for his 15 years of sobriety. He offers inspiration and guidance for others struggling to navigate their way through the drink-heavy culture that exists in the competition for corporate management roles.
On the morning of New Year’s Day 2020, Chris realised that he had been sober for 15 years but had not shared this information publicly. He quit drinking after it became a problem for him back in 2005 – wrecking his career path and marriage, but he kept it secret because he was ashamed that it had become an issue, and the world he lived in thrived on wining and dining, ostracising anyone ‘not playing ball’.
Chris shares insight into how he navigated through his career without a drink in his hand, and how his sobriety was key to his success and happiness, leading him to discover his true purpose in life “to be of service to others”.
Fast forward to 2020, Chris realised he could make a difference by speaking out about his sobriety, which prompted one of his fellow execs to ask him for help. Chris knew then that he had a new purpose and launched Sober Force, and his role as ‘The Sober Exec’, which sees him working as a motivational speaker and consultant for businesses who want guidance on how to structure their seasonal and social activities.
Chris also observes how sobriety health is now good for business, using football as an example, where in rejecting the pub culture of the 70s, the modern Premiere League acts as proof that good health can maximise profits!
Chris is also extremely passionate about his philanthropic work; holding advisory board roles for several non-profit organisations including Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation, and is an active mentor supporting US Navy SEALs transition into successful business roles. He talks us through how his work for them have both inspired his personal recovery and motivated his work with others.
This episode explores the power of resilience, how to combat peer pressure at work, how to be prepared instead of reactive, what businesses can do to embrace EVERYONE in their team and why making healthy decisions don’t need an apology. His personal journey and professional insight make for inspirational listening, especially as we head into the Christmas season and the inevitable ‘social’ pressures this will bring.
You can read Chris’s public LinkedIn statement about his sobriety, that sparked his new journey in life, here.
Show notes
The Sober Exec – check out Chris’s work here
Follow Chris on Instagram for daily inspirational posts! @Thesoberexec
LinkedIn – Sales Force – Chris appears on this podcast as a representative of The Sober Exec and not Sales Force, his opinions are his own, and not those of Sales Force. If you would like to know more about Sale Force, you can visit their site here, and connect with them on LinkedIn.
Top tips – James and Mark summarise the chat:
56:03 – recognising in order to help others, look after yourself first
57:33 – never be afraid to ask for help!
59:00 – be ready, and practice/prepare for questions on a sober night out
You can get in touch with James and Mark on podcast@larking-gowen.co.uk, we would love to hear your feedback on this, or any of our episodes!