The Norfolk Chamber have joined withCambridgeshire Chambers of CommercetoDiscover how you could increase sales and enhance your company’s brand at our forthcoming safari networking lunch.
In addition to opportunities for building your business network, this month’s safari networking lunch offers you a chance to receive expert advice on practical ways you can boost your business’ sales from telemarketing expert Chris Walthew, Director of Prospect Research.
At thislunch Chris will be using 10 years of experience in telemarketing to explain how the method could dramatically improve your business’ sales figures and develop the prominence of your brand.You’ll also be provided with top tips on implementing a telemarketing system in your own businesses and become aware of the potential benefits for your company.
At our safari networking lunch you have the opportunity to meet new business connections through our popular method of networking. The relaxed but structured format sees delegates move around the room and form connections with new businesses from a wide range of industry sectors.
For the businesspeople you don’t get to meet on your safari circuit, there will be additional time for networking over lunch.
Perfect for anyone who wants to raise their profile across the business community and extend their network of business contacts.
Member Fee: £15.00 (plus VAT) Non-Member Fee: £22.50 (plus VAT)
Please note payment for the event is required at the time of booking.
Fees for all bookings are non-refundable for cancellations made within six working days of the event as per the Cambridgeshire Chamber’s T&C’s.
Norfolk Chamber of Commerce is looking to recruit an Events Co-ordinator. The ideal candidate should have very good organisational skills and 2-3 years experience with organising Business Events. As our Events Manager will be going on Maternity Leave there may be the potential to manage the team during her absence so experience within this field would be ideal.
The course is designed for users new to Excel. It will provide trainees with the confidence, knowledge and practical experience to use Excel, to create and manipulate spreadsheets and produce printed reports. Delegates should have sufficient Windows experience beforehand.
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 The Excel Screen Ribbons, Quick Access Toolbar, Formula Bar, and Status Bar Workbooks and Sheet Tabs Data Entry Types of Data Data Entry Techniques In Cell Editing Selecting Cut/Copy/Paste Drag & Drop Using AutoFill to fill Adjacent Cells and Extend Series, Custom Lists Formulae and Functions Simple formulas & Functions Relative and Absolute References Named Ranges AutoSum AutoFill Paste Function Average, Max, Min & Count Functions Multiple Panes Freeze and Unfreeze Formatting a Worksheet Using Borders and Shading to improve presentation Font & Number Formatting, Alignment Printing Print Preview & Setup Headers & Footers Print Row/Column headings File Management Saving, Closing and opening files New Workbooks Good Working Practice Creating a Chart Creating Charts An explanation of different versions How to find familiar commands in the 2003 & 2007/10 interfaces
Course Price: Prices range from £74.00 – £96.00
For more details or any enquiries, please contact us on 01603 788950, or email carrowbreck@broadland.gov.uk
Great Yarmouth Borough Council has now formally submitted their Core Strategy Local Plan document in two parts on Monday 1 April and Monday 7 April 2014 to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Secretary of State) for independent examination.
Copies of all documentation (including representations received in response to the publication consultation September – November 2013) which the Council submitted to the Secretary of State are available for inspection by clicking here.
Hard copies of the evidence documents are also available for inspection at the Council Offices:
Town Hall Hall Plain Great Yarmouth Norfolk NR30 2QF
The Council office opening hours are: Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm, except for the first Thursday of each month.
The Planning Inspectorate on behalf of the Secretary of State has appointed Inspector Malcolm RivettBA (Hons) MSc MRTPI to undertake the examination process. The Inspector will be assisted by a Programme Officer, Mrs Annette Feeney. Mrs Feeney is your first point of contact in this matter.
Annette Feeney’s contact details are as follows: Mrs Annette Feeney Programme Officer Strategic Planning, Housing and Regeneration Development Town Hall, Hall Plain Great Yarmouth Norfolk NR30 2QF
For further advice and guidance on the Examination procedure click here or information can be found via the Great Yarmouth Borough Council website: www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk.
The Ultimate business fashion event is back for its fourth year! This year it’s back at Jarrold where you can learn how to keep warm and stylish through the cold wintermonths and maybe see if you can create the most on trend outfit on a budget!
This year we are going to make it even more interactive giving you plenty of chances to network with likeminded business people andnot only update yourwardrobe, but update yourbusiness connectionstoo!
Tailored for businessmen & women, Jarrold fashion and beauty experts will provide a skincare and make-up demonstration and will showcase business dress trends perfecting the office look,giving younew ideas to help you and your business look and think smart.
#AfterHours #ChamberNetworking @norfolkchamber Date:Thursday 20thAugust 2015 Venue:Jarrold, 1-11 London Street Norwich Norfolk NR2 1JF Time:6.00pm-9.00pm Doors Open 5:30pm Price:£18.00 + VAT This is a members only event, but exclusive to the After Hours series. If you are a non-member and are interested in joining the Chamber or finding out more information please call 01603 625977 or lookhere A delegate list and agenda will be emailed to you two days prior to this event, please ensure you register early to feature on the published delegate list. Bookings for this event have now closed, for availability please email events@norfolkchamber.co.uk or call 01603 625977.
The Skills Service is looking for around 150 businesses from Peterborough, Fenland, Rutland and West Norfolk and the surrounding areas to showcase their industry at the Careers Festival on the Peterborough Embankment on 10th July.
Supported by The Skills Show, the European Social Fund and the National Careers Service, the Festival aims to help young people consider their career options, raise their aspirations and ensure they have the right skills needed to gain employment in the local area.
Last year the event was attended by more than 100 businesses and training providers and over 2000 young people. Following positive feedback from both exhibitors and visitors the 2014 event is being extended to a much wider geographical area, offering a bigger and more extensive experience.
Free to exhibit, businesses are invited to offer interactive ‘have a go’ style activities to give a taster of what it might be like to work in their sector and to talk to young people about the types of jobs they could aspire to.
A practical, informal and interactive session for HR practitioners dealing with some of the thornier aspects of dismissal that regularly pose problems for employers.
Topics covered will include: cumulative incidents and prior warnings, “bumping” and redundancy selection, maternity dismissals, PILON and protecting post employment restrictions, disability and dismissal, TUPE related dismissals, and removal of senior executives.We will also consider the new rules regarding pre-termination negotiations with employees, including advice on potential pitfalls and how to avoid them.
Your speakers:
Lorna Townsend, Principal Solicitor – Steeles Law Lorna Townsend joined Steeles Law in 2002 and is Principal Solicitor in the employment team. She has particular experience of employee relations issues, including advising on complex and lengthy employment disputes, often involving elements of discrimination. Highly regarded for her drafting skills, pragmatic advice and sound judgment, clients also value Lorna’s supportive approach when dealing with sensitive workplace issues.
Robert Hickford, Solicitor – Steeles Law Robert Hickford is a solicitor in the employment team at Steeles Law. He advises on all aspects of employment law, including defending employment tribunal claims on behalf on employers. He also assists employers with immigration matters, including the process for sponsoring migrants to work in the UK.
Oliver Brabbins, Director and Head of Employment – Steeles Law Following a successful career as an HR Manager, Oliver trained as a Barrister before converting to a Solicitor in 2001.Oliver excels in providing pragmatic, solution-based advice in an industrial relations context.Highly regarded for his advocacy skills, Oliver represents clients at employment tribunals across the UK and the Employment Appeal Tribunal. Oliver has a special interest in advising on large scale reorganisations and redundancies, industrial relations and the TUPE Regulations.
Non-Member Rate: £50 + VAT Venue: Holiday InnNorwich, Ipswich Road, Norwich, NR4 6EP A delegate list and agenda will be emailed to you 2 days prior to this event, please ensure you register early to feature on the published delegate list.
Bookings for this event have now closed. For availability please email details to events@norfolkchamber.co.uk or call 01603 625977. Thank you.
Larking Gowen has appointed a new Director, to its Tax Advisory Group.
Gillian McGill joins the regional accountancy and advisory firm from RSM, in Bury St Edmunds, where she spent eight years.
Originally from Scotland via Southampton, she began her career with PwC in Norwich, where she trained and qualified in Corporate Tax, subsequently working at Grant Thornton across Norwich, Ipswich and Cambridge.
Gillian says the key to working with VAT as a specialism, is being able to translate its implications into a language that clients can easily understand.
“VAT is a very live tax, requiring decisions to be made in real time. You have to be available to clients and to give an opinion, sometimes at very short notice. For large transactions, particularly involving land, this can involve large amounts of money and risk.
“Understandably, clients don’t have VAT at the forefront of their minds or necessarily a lot of experience of the tax. Where we can assist is to set out what options are available, then give our recommendation on how to proceed with the benefit of our specialist experience,” she explains.
“I’m very much looking forward to getting to know Larking Gowen’s clients and, hopefully, getting out to see them in their ‘natural habitats’ when we can.
“Having worked with a number of Larking Gowen’s people in the past, I know that I’m joining an excellent team and that we’ll be working collaboratively to ensure our clients receive holistic advice,” Gillian adds.
Tax Partner, Richard Proctor, says, “We’re very pleased to welcome Gilly to her new role in the Tax Advisory Group. As a VAT specialist, she’ll be working for clients across the region, with her knowledge and experience adding further to the strength of the advisory team. In particular, Gilly will work closely alongside current Director Dominic Carter, who will become a Partner of the firm from the 1 April.”
As a follow up to the Norfolk Chamber’s ‘Audience with George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer’ event on the 7 November, we submitted a number of questions from our members to the Chancellor. Responses to those questions are now starting to be received from the relevant Ministers within Westminster.
Jonathan Woolston is Managing Partner at Larking Gowen, one of the Chambers longest standing members.
Jonathan’s question to the Chancellor was:
“Every year a significant number of small unincorporated businesses set up in Norfolk which do not get the same tax breaks as a Limited Company, why is there such a distinction and are there any plans to encourage these micro businesses further, without the need to incorporate?”
Find on the attached document the written response from the HM Treasury.
Norfolk Chamber of Commerce have made the difficult decision to withdraw Meet the Buyer 2016 from our programme of events.
A large percentage of our business buyers are not looking to expand their supplier list at present so we do not feel that we are able to deliver the desired outcome to all parties and therefore came to the decision not to proceed with the planned event.
Meet the Buyer is a great concept and has seen many new business relationships formed as a result. Therefore as part of our continued commitment to business, we may look to run our Meet the Buyer event on a smaller scale focused on specific sectors or projects.
If you have a particular upcoming contract/development and are interested in running a Meet the Buyer event with us, please contact the events team events@norfolkchamber.co.ukto discuss further.
Meet the Buyer creates the opportunity for companies to put themselves in front of some of the most important buyers in the region. We’ve identified key market sectors and our specialist software will match buyers to sellers. 2015 saw 50+ buyers waiting to meet suppliers.
Our bespoke software means youget in front of the right people. The software will allow you to select which areas of industry best match your company description. The buyers that are actively looking for new suppliers in your area will appear as a match and you can select which buyers you want to see.
Appointments golive in February 2016, where you will be able to pre-book up to 5, face to face,10 minute appointments with key buyers from a number of major private and public companies from across the region who are looking to procure the products and services you offer. Pre-booked appointments mean you will be able perfect your pitch and do your research before the big day.
Last year we had over 700 appointments booked within hours of the site going live.
Work starting on Norwich inner ring road’s Grapes Hill on Monday, 28 April, heralds a summer of changes that will transform access to the city centre for buses, and bring improvements for pedestrians and cyclists on busy shopping streets.
The construction of a bus lane up Grapes Hill, creation of a new access route into the city centre via Chapel Field North, and the removal of general traffic (except buses, taxis and bicycles) from Rampant Horse Street, St Stephen’s and part of Surrey Street have been welcomed by bus operators. The changes are expected to be in place before Christmas shopping begins in earnest.
The work on Grapes Hill is to create a southbound (uphill) bus lane, in addition to the two general traffic lanes. This will allow buses to avoid queues at the Grapes Hill roundabout.
The work is being carried out for Norfolk County Council and Norwich City Council by Lafarge Tarmac and will take around 12 weeks to complete. Grapes Hill will remain open, but lane closures will be required and the councils apologise for the inconvenience this will cause.
The Grapes Hill project will be followed by the Chapel Field North and St Stephen’s schemes. These will create a new route into the city centre for buses, taxis and cycles, and remove general traffic from Rampant Horse Street (between Debenhams and Marks & Spencer), St Stephen’s Street and Surrey Street (from St Stephen’s to All Saints Green).
Changes that make this possible include:
Making Chapel Field North two-way, with a 20mph speed limit and general traffic only allowed as far as the Chantry Car Park. (Buses, taxis and cyclists will be able to carry on into Rampant Horse Street.)
Removal of the pavement on the southern side of Chapel Field North, but with an improved cycle and pedestrian path inside Chapelfield Gardens and pedestrian crossings to the north side pavement
Two-way traffic on Cleveland Road from Grapes Hill Roundabout, allowing the closure of Little Bethel Street to vehicles
Right turn only into Red Lion Street at the bottom of Westlegate for general traffic, so that it cannot cross into Rampant Horse Street.
The construction programme for the Chapel Field North and St Stephen’s/Surrey Street is still being finalised, but work will finish before the important pre-Christmas period. Work on Chapel Field North may begin before Grapes Hill is complete.
Altogether the three linked projects will cost around £1.7M. The Grapes Hill and St Stephen’s schemes are being largely paid for through the Department for Transport’s Better Bus Area Fund. The Chapel Field North scheme is funded by Norfolk County Council, Norwich City Council, developer contributions (Section 106) and Growth Point Funding (via the Greater Norwich Development Partnership).
David Harrison, Norfolk County Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Transport, Development & Waste, said: “These are important Transport for Norwich projects that will make it quicker and easier for buses to get into the city centre, and at the same time improve important shopping streets for pedestrians. The Government’s Better Bus Area fund is making an important contribution to the cost, and has also helped us develop a range of other improvements, including the ‘holdall’ smartcard ticket for Park and Ride, improved bus information and measures such as bus priority at traffic lights, and business travel packs. The aim is to make bus travel people’s first choice because it is high quality, reliable and easy to use.”
Steve Wickers, Commercial Director Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk for FirstGroup plc, said: “The changes to Norwich City Centre’s traffic network are welcomed by First and demonstrate what can be achieved through partnership working between local authorities, operators and other key stakeholders.
“The improvements to Chapelfield North in particular will allow us to reroute our busy Blue Line services which link the Station, City Centre and University, offering a more direct journey with fewer delays. The changes are good news for Norwich, as bus passengers will benefit from improved reliability of services encouraging more people to use the bus.”
Julian Patterson, Managing Director of Konectbus/Anglianbus, said: “These significant improvements to bus flow in the city centre will further enhance the appeal of bus travel by enabling quicker access to shops and businesses and removing some of the timetable unpredictability by not sharing road space with car park queues.”
Our 2012 theme of Unlocking Growth got off to a fantastic start on 2 December with our Business Conference, at OPEN, in Norwich. The event was attended by nearly 200 delegates and we were delighted to welcome Dr Vince Cable MP as keynote speaker.
His presence at the event highlighted that Unlocking Growth is a key part of the Government’s agenda, and that engaging with the Norfolk business community as a whole is vital part of getting the UK back on its economic feet.
Conference highlightsDr Vince Cable – He acknowledged the opportunities that exist for Norfolk businesses, particularly within life sciences, energy and the creative sector. We took the opportunity to drive home to him the importance of Norfolk as a business community and that businesses need to be treated according to their size, rather than a ‘one size fits all’ solution, in matters such as employment law.
British Chamber of Commerce – President Martyn Pellew and Director of Policy Adam Marshall were very positive about how the British Chambers and Norfolk can work together to bring about growth. Adam asked how many people in the audience were positive about 2012 and there was an overwhelming show of hands.
Andy Wood – CEO of Adnams and Chair of New Anglia LEP talked about what Norfolk and the LEP has achieved in 2011, particularly the Regional Growth Fund, Enterprise Zone and Green Pathfinder.
David McNally – CEO of Norwich City Football Club focused on recruitment, underlining that employers need to assess candidates’ overall offering of experience, skills and attitude when recruiting. He also said that we need to exceed customer expectations when delivering service.
Johnny Hustler – Director of Archant Anglia, presented his thoughts on technology. He said we need to embrace new ideas and new methods of communication and marketing into the way we do businesses, and accept that they are an inevitable part of change and positive growth.
Davina Tanner – The General Manager of Chapelfield encouraged businesses to work more closely with the community and presented a film on the work Chapelfield is doing to reduce the prison population by giving work, and hope, to ex-offenders.
Old heads, young shoulders – the conference ended with an interview with two young entrepreneurs, Ben Farrin and Keiran Miles. These two young men have shown extraordinary initiative and drive to achieve remarkable business success at a very young age. They were incredibly positive and enthusiastic about the future and effectively summed up the tone of the conference. An inspiration to us all!
Event host Matthew Hudson – Business Reporter, ITV Anglia. A big thank you to Matthew, whose superb presenting skills and experience ensured that the conference ran smoothly and professionally.
Caroline Williams, CEO of Norfolk Chamber, commented on the conference: “The conference was a complete success and showed that Norfolk is determined that the current economic situation will not curb their ambition or desire to grow. Norfolk has fantastic opportunities, but businesses need to work together to ensure every chance is maximised. The Chamber is dedicated to working with Norfolk business to ensure this happens.”