Member News

My partner Charley works in Critical Care at NNUH. She and her 100+ colleagues do an amazing job all year round but in these stressful times I asked how we could help, and she said… Coffee!

My awesome teammates rallied around and purchased 3 machines to get things started. We would then like to give huge thanks to Paul & Phil at Tesco who have gone above and beyond to get all local stores to help the cause!

But… we can still do more, these nurses and consultants get through coffee ridiculously quickly, so let’s keep them topped up. Who knows, if we raise enough, we may be able to help even more hospitals in the strive for great (or better) coffee! If you or any of your colleagues would like to get involved, please make donations here. Any donations would be greatly appreciated.

However, we shouldn’t forget about the great work other charities are doing and will also be supporting the Norwich City Community Sport Foundation to make sure they hit the ground running when things settle down!

If your colleagues want to support and have a bit of fun at the same time, please also sign up here to our Charity FIFA Tournament and your company could soon be lifting the coveted Chadwicks Cup!

Watch this space as we will be running more (remote) activities over the coming weeks to help spread a bit of fun during these strange times, all for the same causes! This will start with our daily quiz and you will be able to obtain the answers from the Chamber. More details will be announced shortly!

Dan & The Team

Anglian Water turns on the tap with £1million fund for local communities • £1million Positive Difference Fund created to support local community organisations • New fund doubles the £1m already available to customers through the Anglian Water Assistance Fund • Builds on massive Extra Care direct support package assisting families financially hit by COVID-19 • Supply chain deals and enhanced payment terms keep thousands more in employment as key workers • Company will kick-start a fund to help employees and their families facing financial hardship • Restates commitment to workforce, continues with apprentice recruitment, honours all existing job offers

Communities in the Anglian Water region are to receive a cash boost to fight the impacts of Coronavirus as the water company’s owners backed plans to establish a new £1 million community support fund.

The Anglian Water Positive Difference Fund will be distributed through a locally appointed partner which has expertise in getting money quickly to areas in which it is most needed.

Fifty per cent of the fund will immediately be made available to support community organisations on the front line of the battle against coronavirus, with a further fifty per cent released to meet emerging needs later in the year.

Organisations like food banks, outreach programmes and those helping the most vulnerable will be supported by the Positive Difference Fund.

Direct support for customers The water company, which looks after around six million customers and the largest region in England and Wales, has already stepped up its efforts to directly support customers. The new £1million Positive Difference Fund is in addition to an existing £1million Assistance Fund that customers who struggle to pay may be able to take advantage of.

Other support, available under the company’s Extra Care banner, includes discounted tariffs alongside flexible and affordable payment schemes. More than 300,000 customers each year are already helped this way.

The company also helps customers identify if they may be eligible for benefits they are not claiming. Anglian Water has already signposted customers to a potential £4.5m of unclaimed aid, with the average amount that customers may be entitled to exceeding the cost of the average water bill.

It is currently adding customers to its Priority Services Register faster than ever before, meaning they will get tailored help and special assistance should they need it.

Peter Simpson, Anglian Water’s Chief Executive, said: “This business is built on the communities it serves, so it’s absolutely right we extend our support back to them during this time of need.

“As key workers we’ve so far been able to keep all our colleagues employed, and we’ll do everything we can to maintain that. We know many thousands will not be so fortunate, and we sincerely hope this fund can go some way to helping them.

“The Positive Difference Fund may be new, but our desire to protect and improve the region we serve is not. We can clearly see it has never been more important for companies like ours to step up, so that’s exactly what we’re trying to do.”

Looking after colleagues The company has restated its commitment to its workforce: • It will continue with its Apprenticeship recruitment programme, arranging virtual interviews, resulting in 80 jobs being offered to start in October • All existing job offers and start dates will be honoured and full salaries paid, even if new employees are not yet able to start work • A one-off flat-fee payment to all colleagues will still be paid later this year • A fund to support colleagues in financial hardship will be brought forward later this month • The company is offering employees flexibility where they are supporting vulnerable family members, without any risk to their salary • Casual or Fixed Term Contracts that are due to end have been extended to May 31st, giving these workers an additional buffer

Backup for the supply chain Peter continued: “We employ around five thousand people, but more than double that number work in our supply chain. We’re doing all we can to extend our support to that workforce too, as we know how much we will need them when we emerge from the pandemic.”

Steps taken to support the supply chain include: • Reducing the time taken to make payments, releasing more than £5million in March alone • Helping to support and advise many small and medium-size suppliers with access to advanced procurement opportunities • Supporting staff within some supply chain companies who have been hit with pay reductions by their employer

Peter said: “I’ve been humbled by the sometimes heroic efforts of both the Anglian Water workforce, and those all across the region we look after, as they simply try to keep our networks running and our communities safe. We will continue to do all we can to support them.”

Details of how to apply for support from the Anglian Water Positive Difference Fund will be released shortly. Any customer who has difficulty paying their bill should contact the company as soon as possible on 0800 169 3630.  

Anglian Water turns on the tap with £1million fund for local communities • £1million Positive Difference Fund created to support local community organisations • New fund doubles the £1m already available to customers through the Anglian Water Assistance Fund • Builds on massive Extra Care direct support package assisting families financially hit by COVID-19 • Supply chain deals and enhanced payment terms keep thousands more in employment as key workers • Company will kick-start a fund to help employees and their families facing financial hardship • Restates commitment to workforce, continues with apprentice recruitment, honours all existing job offers Communities in the Anglian Water region are to receive a cash boost to fight the impacts of Coronavirus as the water company’s owners backed plans to establish a new £1 million community support fund. The Anglian Water Positive Difference Fund will be distributed through a locally appointed partner which has expertise in getting money quickly to areas in which it is most needed. Fifty per cent of the fund will immediately be made available to support community organisations on the front line of the battle against coronavirus, with a further fifty per cent released to meet emerging needs later in the year. Organisations like food banks, outreach programmes and those helping the most vulnerable will be supported by the Positive Difference Fund. Direct support for customers The water company, which looks after around six million customers and the largest region in England and Wales, has already stepped up its efforts to directly support customers. The new £1million Positive Difference Fund is in addition to an existing £1million Assistance Fund that customers who struggle to pay may be able to take advantage of. Other support, available under the company’s Extra Care banner, includes discounted tariffs alongside flexible and affordable payment schemes. More than 300,000 customers each year are already helped this way. The company also helps customers identify if they may be eligible for benefits they are not claiming. Anglian Water has already signposted customers to a potential £4.5m of unclaimed aid, with the average amount that customers may be entitled to exceeding the cost of the average water bill. It is currently adding customers to its Priority Services Register faster than ever before, meaning they will get tailored help and special assistance should they need it. Peter Simpson, Anglian Water’s Chief Executive, said: “This business is built on the communities it serves, so it’s absolutely right we extend our support back to them during this time of need. “As key workers we’ve so far been able to keep all our colleagues employed, and we’ll do everything we can to maintain that. We know many thousands will not be so fortunate, and we sincerely hope this fund can go some way to helping them. “The Positive Difference Fund may be new, but our desire to protect and improve the region we serve is not. We can clearly see it has never been more important for companies like ours to step up, so that’s exactly what we’re trying to do.” Looking after colleagues The company has restated its commitment to its workforce: • It will continue with its Apprenticeship recruitment programme, arranging virtual interviews, resulting in 80 jobs being offered to start in October • All existing job offers and start dates will be honoured and full salaries paid, even if new employees are not yet able to start work • A one-off flat-fee payment to all colleagues will still be paid later this year • A fund to support colleagues in financial hardship will be brought forward later this month • The company is offering employees flexibility where they are supporting vulnerable family members, without any risk to their salary • Casual or Fixed Term Contracts that are due to end have been extended to May 31st, giving these workers an additional buffer Backup for the supply chain Peter continued: “We employ around five thousand people, but more than double that number work in our supply chain. We’re doing all we can to extend our support to that workforce too, as we know how much we will need them when we emerge from the pandemic.” Steps taken to support the supply chain include: • Reducing the time taken to make payments, releasing more than £5million in March alone • Helping to support and advise many small and medium-size suppliers with access to advanced procurement opportunities • Supporting staff within some supply chain companies who have been hit with pay reductions by their employer

Peter said: “I’ve been humbled by the sometimes heroic efforts of both the Anglian Water workforce, and those all across the region we look after, as they simply try to keep our networks running and our communities safe. We will continue to do all we can to support them.” Details of how to apply for support from the Anglian Water Positive Difference Fund will be released shortly. Any customer who has difficulty paying their bill should contact the company as soon as possible on 0800 169 3630.  

Norfolk County Council are circulating a survey to butchers, green grocers and pharmacies across the county, to better understand the impact COVID-19 is having on their current and future business, and seek to ensure that appropriate support is put in place.

Norfolk County Council is working in partnership with business leaders and district authorities to support small local businesses, vital to the county’s resilience, amidst the current pandemic.

The Council are keen to hear from these crucial businesses involved in the supply of food and medicine about their ability to maintain these essential services throughout the pandemic and invite them to complete the survey.

Cllr Graham Plant, Deputy leader of Norfolk County Council and Cabinet Member for Growing the Economy said: “These businesses are at the sharp end of service delivery and are vital to the resilience of the county, particularly in rural communities.

“We want to hear about any challenges they face now, or may face in the future, as we’re keen to understand how the Council and other public bodies can help.” 

Chris Starkie, chief executive of New Anglia LEP, said: “This is a really challenging time for businesses and we’re working closely with local partners to provide support. Frontline businesses which provide the essentials which we all need are facing particular challenges around supply chains, social distancing guidelines and staffing so it is important that they receive the help they need to keep operating in our communities.”

Complete the survey here. 

The Government announced the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (“the Scheme”) on 20 March 2020, as part of the range of measures put in place to support businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic. The aim of the Scheme is to avoid redundancies by employers whose operations have been severely affected by coronavirus. The official guidance to the scheme for employers, and for employees confirms that employers can ‘furlough’ workers, which is an unknown term in UK Employment Law, but describes a situation where a worker remains employed but is not provided with any work.

Information for Employers:   1) Which businesses can use the Scheme?   Any UK organisation that had PAYE payroll in place by 28 February 2020 can make a claim under the Scheme. Eligible organisations can include businesses, charities, recruitment agencies (if they have agency workers on PAYE) and public authorities. The Scheme is due to be live by the end of April and has initially been put in place for three months, backdated to 1 March 2020, but can be extended.   2) Who can be furloughed?   Workers who were on an employer’s payroll for PAYE purposes as of 28 February 2020 can be furloughed, but this is likely to exclude many workers in the gig economy. The Guidance does not state that evidence that a worker would otherwise have been made redundant will be required, but it does say that “HMRC will retain the right to retrospectively audit all aspects of your claim”. Any worker whose employment was terminated after 28 February can be rehired and furloughed, but there is no obligation on employers to re-hire a worker whose employment has been terminated.   3) Does the Scheme cover workers on reduced hours?   No. A furloughed worker is someone who remains employed but who is not provided with any work. This means that the worker cannot undertake any duties which provide a service to or generate revenue for their employer whilst furloughed, although training can be undertaken.   4) Can workers who are on sick leave be furloughed?   The Guidance confirms that workers who are on sick leave, or self-isolating in accordance with the advice issued by Public Health England, and receiving statutory (or contractual) sick pay, can be furloughed.   5) What will the employee be paid during furlough?   Employers will be provided with a grant by the Government for workers who are furloughed, to cover 80% of workers’ wages, capped at £2,500 per month. Employers are not obliged to top up the difference but may decide to do so – if not then the workers would need to agree to the reduction in pay. The Guidance states that employers can claim an additional grant to cover associated Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and minimum automatic enrolment employer pension contributions.   6) Can employers just tell employees that they are being furloughed?   In most cases, no. Many employment contracts will not have made provision for a worker to be laid off on this basis and therefore the employer will need to seek the worker’s agreement to vary their terms, particularly to reduce their pay.   7) How should employers select which workers to furlough?   In many cases employers who are operating at reduced capacity will need to select which workers to furlough. This could create problems if either too few or too many workers want to be furloughed. The Guidance does not set out how an employer should select the workers that it furloughs, but employers must remember that they will continue to be bound by general employment law, particularly discrimination.   8) Can workers come on and off furlough?   Yes. The Guidance states that while a worker must always be placed on furlough for a minimum period of three weeks, they can be placed on furlough more than once.   9) What records do employers need to keep?   The Guidance states that employers can only make a claim if they have provided workers with written confirmation that they are furloughed. It is therefore strongly recommended that a “Furlough Agreement” is put in place to cover the terms upon which the worker is furloughed.   10) Can employees take annual leave whilst they are furloughed? As yet, the official Guidance) does not make specific provision for this, but ACAS guidance and HMRC’s customer services team suggest that this will be possible and that it should be paid at 100% of normal salary. If this is correct, then it is assumed that the employer will have to top up the pay for such holiday from 80%, but at the time of writing, this is yet to be confirmed.   Information for Employees:   1) Who can be furloughed?   Workers who were on an employer’s payroll for PAYE purposes as of 28 February 2020 can be furloughed, but this is likely to exclude many workers in the gig economy. Any worker whose employment was terminated after 28 February can be rehired and furloughed, but there is no obligation on employers to re-hire a worker whose employment has been terminated.   2) Can you just work reduced hours?   No. A furloughed worker is someone who remains employed but who is not provided with any work. This means that you cannot undertake any duties which provide a service to or generate revenue for your employer whilst furloughed, although training can be undertaken.   3) Can you be furloughed if you are on sick leave?   The Guidance confirms that you can be furloughed, even if you are on sick leave or self-isolating in accordance with the advice issued by Public Health England and receiving statutory (or contractual) sick pay.   4) What will you be paid during furlough?   Employers will be provided with a grant by the Government for workers who are furloughed, to cover 80% of your wages, capped at £2,500 per month. Employers are not obliged to top up the difference but may decide to do so – if not then you would need to agree to the reduction in pay.   5) Can your employer just tell you that you are being furloughed?   In most cases, no. Many employment contracts will not have made provision for a worker to be laid off on this basis and therefore the employer will need to seek your agreement to vary your terms, particularly to reduce their pay. However, this is likely to be the more attractive alternative to redundancy.   6) Can you demand to be furloughed?   No. Under the Scheme, the decision to designate a worker as furloughed and claim the grant from HMRC can only be made by the employer. You do not have an explicit right to put yourself on furlough, even if you have caring responsibilities or cannot work from home.   7) How should employers select which workers to furlough?   If employers are operating at reduced capacity, they may need to select which workers to furlough. When selecting which workers to furlough, employers will be bound by general employment law, including discrimination in particular.   8) Can workers come on and off furlough?   Yes. The Guidance states that while you must always be placed on furlough for a minimum period of three weeks, you can be placed on furlough more than once.   9) Can you work elsewhere whilst you are furloughed?   The Guidance states that you can do volunteer work and/or undertake work for a new employer whilst furloughed, provided that your contract of employment allows you to work elsewhere. However, you cannot provide a service to or generate revenue for your employer or any organisation linked to your employer. This means that you could receive up to 80% of your wages from your existing employer, in addition to the wages you receive from a new employer.   10) Can you take annual leave whilst you are furloughed?   As yet, the official Guidance does not make specific provision for this, but ACAS guidance and HMRC’s customer services team suggest that this will be possible and that it should be paid at 100% of normal salary. If this is correct, then it is assumed that the employer will have to top up the pay for such holiday from 80%, but at the time of writing, this is yet to be confirmed.   For any Employment Law advice or more information on furloughing, contact Carla Gowing at carlagowing@hatchbrenner.co.uk

I regularly speak to importers and exporters in our region about the issues we’re all facing as Britain moves through the Brexit transition phase. Despite the fast-moving Covid-19 situation, we all need to keep an eye on the medium term. Here is the IES update on the areas I think are important for fellow professionals in the sector

Know your borders 

It is vital companies know the customs status and customs origin of your goods when they cross a border as this influences the type and cost of your import or export. 

Currently as the UK is still a member of the European Customs Union shipments are only classed as exports when they are being sent to a country that isn’t one of the other 27 EU member states. This is because it is only when the goods leave the EU to a rest of world (ROW) destination that they cross a ‘Customs Border’. 

All movements of goods through customs borders requires the submission of customs declarations and possible payment of taxes as they cross the border. 

There are currently 28 member states in the EU. Any movement of goods from the UK to one of the other 27 states is classed as an intra EU movement. Note that, as Turkey isn’t a full member of the EU, exports to Turkey require a customs declaration along with an additional document called an Admission Temporaire Roulette (A.TR), needed to support the non-payment of tax.

Understanding origin

One of the biggest issues I encounter for my clients is when they are exporting to countries who have free trade agreements with the EU. They are frequently asked to provide with a long term declaration of Preferential Origin or an EUR1 document.

The issue is that there are two types of origin, Preferential & Non-preferential origin. Non-preferential origin is defined as ‘nationality’ product i.e. where the products is made. Whereas Preferential Origin allows for products that aren’t grown or wholly sourced in the country of supply, comes from establishing whether the product has undergone sufficient processing for it to meet the Origin rules set out in trade agreements between the country of supply and the final destination of the finished goods. The trade agreements which are all different clearly lay out on a product by product basis how much ‘originating components’ must be used in the manufacture of the finished product for it to change origin.

For example: a UK company ‘Widgets are Us’ designs WidgetA made from components sourced from multiple suppliers all over the world which they assemble into WidgetA in their UK warehouse. When they sell WidgetA they can label affix a ‘Made in the UK’ label. However, if they want to sell WidgetA to a country like South Korea, and benefit from the trade agreement in place between the EU & South Korea allowing goods with an EU origin to be imported into South Korea duty free, they will have to perform a calculation to ascertain whether WidgetA has undergone sufficient processing giving it a customs preferential origin of the EU other wise duty will need to be paid when it’s imported into South Korea.

Customs status

The customs status of your goods depends on whether or not import duty and VAT has been paid on the products when they entered the EU/UK. Also, whether you received a reduction under a free trade agreement between the country of supply and the EU.  

Other important information exporters must know includes your trading terms with customers, i.e. who will be the importer or exporter of record, and who is liable for transportation costs, duty and VAT. This is vital as there are stringent rules that must be met when zero rating invoices on exports, as the exporter of record is liable for VAT on non-compliant exports. 

The accepted trading terms are known as Incoterms® which the ICC have revised and relaunched for 2020. Incoterms guide how the risks and costs associated with international trade should be split between the vendor and customer. They also outline who will be the exporter of record, and who is responsible for and who pays for transportation, insurance and taxes.

Brexit proposals

After the Brexit transition period ends, our borders will shrink from the entire EU to just the UK and Northern Ireland. Currently the UK Government proposes, following the transition period, that companies will apply EU tariffs on import and if goods are released to the UK and there is a duty differential they can submit an adjustment to account for any duty over or underpayment.

There is also a suggestion that for intra EU movements, companies will be required to submit a document similar to the A.TR which they propose calling A.UK/NI.  

All of this detail has yet to be agreed.

We can expect further developments during the transition phase, we will endeavour to keep you updated. As always, please call or email me with comments or questions, we’re always happy to discuss individual issues.

Incoterms info here

List of EU countries here

Despite the current lockdown, the help offered by charities and voluntary organisations in Norfolk is needed more than ever. Norfolk Community Foundation is delighted at the generosity of so many people and organisations who have donated to our appeal so far, and here is an update on some of the ways how your donations have been put to use immediately to help people in our local communities. Getting essential supplies to those who are vulnerable We’re continuing to support many charities, community groups and parish councils all across Norfolk who are providing essential supplies such as food and medications to older, vulnerable and self-isolating people in their communities, with help towards the cost of protective equipment that their volunteers need to carry this out safely. One example is the Wellspring Family Centre in Dereham, where a large group of volunteers are working hard to keep the Centre open as a local foodbank, as a place from where to run essential errands for vulnerable and isolated people, and also to provide support via telephone for local people who are experiencing mental health issues. Helping people affected by domestic abuse during the lockdown People experiencing domestic abuse are at greater risk during these difficult times, with rates of abuse soaring due to being confined to homes and with the added stress of health and financial worries. We are supporting the following local domestic abuse charities who are working hard to protect those at risk:

• Pandora Project, a charity offering support and advice to those affected by domestic abuse in West Norfolk, is seeing a rise in self-referrals from women experiencing abuse in the home during this challenging time. The funding is helping them to buy 10 mobile phones with credit to give to women should they need to request help urgently from the charity or the police, as abusers often monitor their partner’s phone or take it away from them. They will be able to collect these phones via local collection points where possible. The charity is also being supported to provide one-to-one support to those affected by domestic abuse via telephone and online channels, and is paying for transport for women and children who need to flee to safe accommodation, if they have no access to money and need to leave the property quickly for their own safety.

• Norfolk domestic abuse support charity Leeway is currently supporting 72 children who have previously lived in households affected by domestic abuse across their eight refuges in Great Yarmouth, Norwich, North Norfolk, and King’s Lynn and West Norfolk. As these children are now out of school and in self isolation, Leeway is providing them with access to wifi and online learning opportunities that can be accessed from their refuges so that they can continue their learning during this time.

Help for people with special educational needs It is difficult for everyone to be isolated at home at the moment, and especially so for families with children with special educational needs. We’re enabling SENsational Families, a charity supporting these families, to post out packs to families containing resources, activities and sensory toys to help both parents’ and children’s wellbeing during the outbreak, helping to ease the pressures of isolation. Support for organisations to continue helping the vulnerable from a distance Many charities and community groups provide important services which cannot be delivered face-to-face during the current lockdown, although more people are struggling and the need for their services is greater than ever. We’re supporting many organisations so they can continue to provide their vital services remotely via telephone or online, for example:

• Volunteering Matters has set up a telephone and online service to provide support to vulnerable adults with special educational needs in West Norfolk
• Norfolk Community Law Service is able to offer legal advice remotely via telephone and video conferencing
• Holt Youth Project can now continue supporting local young people remotely, particularly those who are more vulnerable such as their young men’s mental health group that cannot currently meet in person.

Help us continue to help others A huge thank you to everyone who has donated to our appeal so far. However, we still need many more funds to ensure that we can support the most vulnerable during these unprecedented times. Donate today to help people in your local community. Anything that you can give will make a real difference.

Norwich City Council has made £9.9 million in payments this week to local businesses which have been identified as being eligible for the government’s small business grants fund.

The £9.9 million equates to around 500 grants, with around 2,500 more expected to be processed over the coming days

Receiving a government grant is a free and automatic service. There is no lengthy application process and no need for businesses to employ any agency or broker.

However, to speed up the payment process, the council is asking businesses who haven’t already done so to fill in an online web form, which can be found at www.norwich.gov.uk/business-support

Alan Waters, leader of Norwich City Council said:

“Our Revenues and Benefits team are working incredibly hard to make sure businesses and residents get the financial support they need during this very difficult period.

“We are delighted that the first vital payments have now been paid to help small businesses and retail businesses in the city. “If you have not had your payment yet please bear with us as we are working very hard to process the grants as soon as we possibly can.”

As part of additional support measures, the council has also actioned a Retail Relief Scheme which means retail, leisure and tourism businesses will pay no business rates in 2020-21, regardless of their rateable value.

Those businesses affected will receive a revised rates bill to confirm that they will not need to pay any rates for 2020-21. Those businesses that pay by Direct Debit and now qualify for the relief will not have a payment taken.

Read more about the grants and support on offer

Great Yarmouth Borough Council is reminding local businesses of the support available to help them during this challenging time, with more than £9m in grants already handed out to eligible businesses and a webpage with lots of information on the new support recently announced by Government.

Last week, the council wrote to the 3,000 businesses in the borough which are eligible for the Government’s relief grants, with businesses able to contact the council directly for any support.

The council are advising that businesses be wary of third-party companies offering to complete their grant form for a fee. It is a simple process requiring information each business should have easy access to. The council is able to help over the phone if needed.

By the end of Friday, April 3, more than £9m had been processed in business grant applications, out of 942 applications received. Over the weekend, a further 122 grant forms were received. Eligible businesses should only submit one form, as duplication of forms is likely to delay processing.

Cllr Carl Smith, leader of the council, said

“The council is working closely with New Anglia LEP, other local councils and business groups to ensure our local businesses get the support they are entitled to. I’m pleased we’ve managed to process over nine hundred applications in less than a week and we’re happy to see more applications coming in daily from eligible businesses.

“The council will administer and pay out the grants as soon as possible. If you are a business with any immediate concerns, then please get in touch. Lots of information and support about the grants, eligibility criteria and further business advice is available on our website which is being kept updated daily.”

An award-winning kitchen tap designer and manufacturer has lent its engineering expertise to a 3D printing project to make face shields that will protect frontline NHS staff in the fight against coronavirus.

Cawston based, Greg Rowe Limited, responded to a plea from the University of East Anglia/Team East Anglia project and was notified yesterday that it had been selected from hundreds of applications to commence an initial 3D printing run.

Design engineer Iain Prosser (pictured), who is usually engaged in the design of the company’s QETTLE 4 in 1 boiling water taps, will deliver the first batch of shields to a secure area of the UEA’s campus tomorrow.

Greg Rowe Jr, who is the managing director of the family-owned company says:

“We got in touch with Team East Anglia as soon as we heard about the need for businesses with 3D printing facilities and knowledge of specialist, 3D printing software.

“We invested in our second 3D printer around two years ago – and ordinarily, it’s used for the rapid prototyping of parts for our QETTLE taps, which, in addition to dispensing flows of hot and cold water, also deliver 100°C boiling and filtered drinking water. However, we are both delighted and proud that our engineering expertise can be deployed to support the national effort to help the NHS.”

Firstly, this is one of the most challenging times we have all had to face. We hope that you and your loved ones are safe and well.

We are setting a challenge for our supporters, as you start to Spring clean and come across any loose change we are asking you to put this aside and donate it all to The Norfolk Hospice.

Why not raid your piggy banks, reach down the back of all of the sofas and check your coat pockets for any loose change!

You can also make this into a fun maths lesson for the Kids! Once you have collected as much loose change as you can, let them count it. Use different amounts… if you have more than one child, have them count two, three, four amounts, check them with each other and add them up! (Could be a good way of getting them to clean to!!)

No matter how little or big, every penny will make a difference to the work we carry out at the hospice.

You can donate by doing one of the following:

1. Donate online using the reference ‘Loose Change’

2: Keep the money safe until you are able to go out again to the bank or to drop it at our hospice!

3: Pay this directly into our bank, sort code. 82-63-15 A/N. 90055862 ref. ‘loose change’

Start: 

25th March, 2020 at 12:00am  

End: 

23rd April, 2020 at 12:00am  

Location: The Norfolk Hospice, Wheatfields, Hillington, King’s Lynn, PE31 6BH

Wednesday, 01 April 2020

Many of you will have read or heard of ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,’ an acclaimed personal development book written by the legendary Stephen R. Covey. It’s a masterpiece of timeless principles and insights on how to be, well, more effective! Applying these habits is perhaps even more important during this COVID-19 crisis, and I’d like to highlight two habits that I feel are particularly relevant and offer you two complimentary online training courses as part of our business advisory services.

Habit number 3: Put First Things First

I use the words “COVID-19 crisis” because a crisis is precisely what this is for many businesses and people. Let’s not pretend it’s anything else. So during this period it’s essential we prioritise the way we spend our time. Begin with the urgent and important things, like furloughing staff where necessary, cutting costs wherever sensible, and being creative with our income streams. Check out our website for short videos on this: https://www.larking-gowen.co.uk/coronavirus/covid-19-videos/ Once you’ve taken care of the urgent tasks, focus on the important and non-urgent stuff, such as planning the future post COVID-19. Anything that isn’t urgent or isn’t important should be avoided or delegated wherever possible.

Habit number 7: Sharpen the Saw. The metaphor is that time spent sharpening our personal “saw” will reduce the time and effort needed to cut down our “trees.” In other words, we need to continually upskill ourselves to make life more productive in the future.

So, why am I singling out these two habits? Well, once we’ve put first things first and resolved urgent and important issues arising from COVID-19, we should be doing the important and non-urgent things like sharpening our saws. We’re all likely to have a little bit of downtime at home over the coming weeks, so why not use this time productively?

To help you with this, I’m excited to advise that together with our business advisory partners, Mindshop, MHA Larking Gowen is offering our clients and contacts two complimentary online training courses!

Complimentary online training

These interactive online training courses are all video based with business advisory exercises for you to complete as you work your way through them. What’s more, you get to choose which courses are most relevant to you and your business, and there’s absolutely no cost or obligation.

So, what are the online training courses? There really is something for everyone, so here’s a summary:

Business Intuition: Intuition is 50% of the strategy development and problem-solving process used by entrepreneurs; the other 50% are logic tools such as a decision matrix or a force field analysis. It’s essential that business leaders learn how to develop and access their intuition.

Change Success: This course focuses on how you can boost your probability of change success with regard to a specific change initiative.

Coaching/Developing People: Learn how to coach people to make sure they achieve their full potential. Discover how to adapt your coaching approach to different people and instill the key tools and methodologies to help them to achieve their goals.

Developing Strategy in Volatile Times: Very apt in today’s COVID-19 crisis. This course focuses on tools and thinking to help develop strategies and actions to make sure your business remains strategically in the game.

Entrepreneur Course: Entrepreneurship includes designing, launching and running a new business. This course will help you learn and apply the key elements of being an entrepreneur.

Growth Strategy: Understand the fundamentals of how to accelerate growth in your business.

Leadership Development: Discover how to be an effective leader regardless of your role or seniority in a business. This course focuses on implementation of leadership principles and how to be a good leader in a volatile and unpredictable marketplace.

Lean Management: Find out about a myriad of tools to promote lean thinking and continuous improvement across any organisation to improve efficiency and quality.

Personal Growth: Learn how to accelerate your personal growth to improve life balance and energy levels and to clarify your purpose.

Problem Solving: Discover how to make more robust decisions, how to rank the priority of key issues and a powerful sequence of tools to take a strategy into action.

Profit Improvement: Understand how to improve the profitability of any business by removing up to 30% of the inefficiencies (waste) that occur every day.

Project Team Implementation: Find out how to set up and implement project teams successfully in an organisation to drive change.

Sales Performance: Discover how to accelerate sales performance in any organisation.

Sales Process: Learn the fundamental processes to monitor and drive sales in any organisation.

Self Confidence: Discover the tools and processes to overcome negative self-talk, self-sabotage and fears while mapping out a clear plan to boost your levels of self-confidence.

Strategic Planning: Shape the direction of your business by establishing where it is now, where you want to get to, and how you’re going to get there.

Time Management: No matter who we are, our social position, our personal wealth or our qualifications, we are all issued with only 24 hours every day, or 168 hours per week. No one gets any more. Learn how to prioritise effectively.

How to enrol

We do hope you’ll make use of this fantastic opportunity to learn new skills without cost or obligation to you during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To enrol, simply email businessadvice@larking-gowen.co.uk and let us know your full name, business name, email address and which two complimentary online training courses you would like to study.

All requests must be received by noon on 30 April 2020, and all complimentary online training courses will be made available for use until 5pm on 30 October 2020.

James Lay