Member News

Waveney District and Great Yarmouth Borough Councils have commissioned Norwich-based Building Partnerships Ltd. to review their six Enterprise Zones sites across Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth.

Enterprise Zones are designated areas across England that provide tax breaks, simplified planning and enhanced Government support to drive business investment and growth. Enterprise Zones form a key part of the Government’s Industrial Strategy.

The Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Enterprise Zones, launched in 2012 and expanded in 2018, cover over 130 hectares of land and aim to attract at least 200 businesses, generating more than 9,000 direct jobs over its 25-year life span.

To date, they have delivered a staggering 1,720 news jobs across 59 businesses. 55,000 sq.m. of new commercial floorspace has been built, attracting £48 million of private sector investment.

Paul Knowles, Chairman at Building Partnerships Ltd. said “We’re delighted to have been commissioned to deliver this review of the Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Enterprise Zones, recognised as one of the best performing Zones in the country for stimulating investment and job creation.

“Our job is to review what has been instrumental in bringing forward these sites to date, to test and refine demand for the type of amenities business need, and then find new and alternative ways to accelerate investment in infrastructure, buildings and facilities.”

The Zones are focussing primarily on the energy sector and its supply chains, recognising the importance of the oil & gas, offshore renewables, and nuclear power sectors to the local area.

This latest review will inform future investment and development on the six sites. Building Partnerships is working closely with energy-sector specialists Nautilus Associates Ltd. and local property experts from Brown & Co.

Based on recent capital investment forecasts in energy projects from Nautilus, the region could see more than £59 billion invested in new offshore energy and infrastructure projects between now and 2040, with more than half of all forecast spend being in offshore wind.

Johnathan Reynolds, Director at Nautilus Associates, said “We are seeing huge new investments in new offshore wind projects off the East Anglian coast, with an annual operational spend close to £1.3 billion per year by 2025. Offshore oil and gas activity is picking up following the most recent downturn, and decommissioning projects are now being contracted. It is an exciting time to be in the energy supply chain with so many opportunities for growth.”

Businesses and organisations are being consulted to gather intelligence on their plans for growth over the coming years, and to explore the types of facilities that may be required to meet those needs.

An online survey and facilitated workshop dates have been announced. The survey will take no more than 5 minutes to complete and is available at https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/enterprisezoneconsultation

Free-to-attend workshops will be held at the Marketing Suite on the Beacon Park Enterprise Zone on Monday 18th March and at OrbisEnergy, Lowestoft on Tuesday 19th March.

For more information and booking details, go to:

·         Great Yarmouth workshop – https://www.eventbrite.com/e/great-yarmouth-lowestoft-enterprise-zones-consultation-workshop-tickets-57523485293

·         Lowestoft workshop – https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lowestoft-great-yarmouth-enterprise-zones-consultation-workshop-tickets-57523676866

 If you own or operate a business that is interested in development opportunities on the Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Enterprise Zone sites, please contact pknowles@buildingpartnerships.co.uk

Larking Gowen welcomes Rob Skilton to its specialist VAT team. Based at the Norwich office, Rob has worked in the accountancy profession for 20 years and has 8 years expertise in VAT, guiding businesses through this area of tax.

“VAT is a complex tax, made more challenging because the regulations, as well as HMRC and legal interpretations of those regulations, are constantly evolving,” explains Rob Skilton, who joins Larking Gowen as Senior Manager, “but it is the changing nature of VAT that makes it so interesting to me.”

Rob qualified at a Cambridge-based firm, where he gained a broad foundation in accountancy. This was followed by a move to the not-for-profit sector, where his interest in VAT was sparked, and which in turn led to full-time employment as a VAT specialist for eight years.

“For me, the opportunity to advise businesses of all kinds, from charities, SMEs, the agricultural sector, to national and international corporates, is a real advantage of joining Larking Gowen’s respected VAT team,” continues Rob Skilton, who is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. “We help clients navigate the complexities of VAT. It’s hugely satisfying to help streamline the process for them. We reduce their administrative burden, ensuring compliance and avoiding problems with HMRC at a later date,” Rob concludes.

“We’re delighted to welcome Rob as a senior manager,” says Richard Proctor, lead tax partner at Larking Gowen, “our VAT team is respected for its ability to respond to our clients’ needs, as well as for its knowledge of national and international tax opportunities and challenges. Rob’s expertise and keen interest in VAT is certain to enhance our ability to provide constructive and supportive advice in this area” Richard Proctor concludes.

Biohazard Cleaning is a daily occurrence in certain sectors, and with increases in regulatory control and health and safety guidelines, it is becoming more frequently used in others. From an industrial accident in a factory to a Friday night brawl in a pub, from the aftermath of a flood to a death, the emergency services do not have the time or resources to deal with biohazards such as trauma clean-ups or blood clean-ups. More importantly, emergency service staff are not trained or qualified to free a scene of biological hazards.

Biohazard situations are categorised into four groups, according to severity and impact.

• Category 1 incidents include train crashes, plane crashes, bomb blasts and large scale road traffic accidents. Significant resources are required to eliminate any visual or bacterial remnants of the event, and must be attended by a bioengineer with a Primary Qualification.
• Category 2 incidents include decomposition, fall from height, suicide on railway, and road traffic accidents. The incidents affect a more confined area and will require fewer resources than a Category 1 incident although the expertise needed to address the challenges for decontamination are the same and a bioengineer with a Primary Qualification must be present.
• Category 3 incidents including an act of violence, minor industrial accident, flesh wounds and presence of sharps. They usually result from a minor incident involving a single person and are primarily required for the clean-up of bodily fluids. A bio first aider with a Secondary Qualification can attend Category 3 incidents without the supervision of a bioengineer.
• Category 4 incidents include domestic incidents, minor injuries and occupier purges. A bio first aider with a Secondary Qualification can attend Category 4 incidents without the supervision of a bioengineer.

In the workplace, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, give employers a legal duty to protect the health and safety of employees and anyone else that may be on the premises. Outside of the workplace, if an incident occurs on private property, the property owner is responsible for arranging the clean-up, even if the emergency services attended. Fortunately, these property owners do not have to don their industrial rubber gloves and grab a bucket, because there are a lot of specialist cleaning companies ready, willing and able to do it for them.

But what criteria should be met when choosing a good company?  How can you tell if they have done a good job? Monthind Clean LLP, East Anglia’s leading contract and specialist cleaning provider, has been providing Biohazard cleaning services to a range of clients for many years. Operatives should not just be trained in the processes of Biohazard and Trauma Cleaning, they should also be trained in how to deal with the local press, general public, local authorities and family of the deceased. There should be counselling available to affected operatives in traumatic events, and management support to ensure ongoing training and monitoring of staff wellbeing. All work should be risk assessed and quoted for prior to any work commencing so a client understands what will be done and how it will be carried out. A reputable specialist cleaning company will be able to provide evidence of its staff qualifications and will audit procedures regularly.

At Monthind Clean LLP, we have a response team in place and offer a 24/7 call out service. Our fully equipped response vehicles are always ready to undertake any type of bio cleaning required. We have Safe Systems of Work for every aspect of Biohazard and Trauma cleaning and our management team ensures they are always adhered to. With the correct Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) and procedures in place, bio-cleaning can be a very satisfying and safe job, but if the potential dangers to health for both cleaning operatives and people attending the site, during and after a clean, are ignored, the results could be catastrophic.

The risks to health include viruses such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV, which bodily fluids and faeces can carry. Pathogens can come in the form of bacteria, viruses, mould spores, or protozoans; they can cause disease and often have a significant presence in sewage waste. If flood waters have been in contact with sewage they will contain pathogens, and even if they haven’t, they are still likely to contain disease-causing micro-organisms. If post-flood clean-up is not carried out properly, mould spores can present a health risk in the future.    

Decontamination and cleaning of soiled areas are vital in order to reduce and eliminate the risk of infection from exposure. By having up-to-date Safe Systems of Work, cleaning a potentially overwhelming trauma scene can be approached systematically, ensuring there is no cross-contamination and no area is missed.  At Monthind, no corners are cut, nothing is missed. You’re not talking about a dusty shelf being overlooked; you’re talking about life-changing and life-threatening implications if the job is not done properly. Our operatives understand this, and it is important for potential clients to understand this too. The risks associated with employing companies providing inferior services, can prove to be very costly, and not just in a fiscal sense.

For more information, call 01206 215300.

Staff at the Maids Head Hotel in Tombland, Norwich are celebrating today, having won two awards at the 2019 Norfolk and Suffolk Tourism Awards staged on Thursday night at Open in Norwich.

The hotel won Best Independent Hotel, along with the Investing in the Future accolade. The wins at the Tourism Awards follows hot on the heels of last November’s Best Employer win at the Norfolk Business Awards.

Christine Malcolm, General Manager said: “We have been privately owned by the Chaplin family for the last six years. During that time we have embarked on a phased multi million pound renovation programme to ensure that the historic building meets the expectations of 21st century visitors. The hotel has continued to trade successfully and grow the business during this period, with a reputation for friendly and professional staff and a burgeoning reputation for the quality of the food in the restaurant. Our success at the Norfolk and Suffolk Tourism Awards is wonderful acknowledgement for all our hard work.”

We are pleased to announce that we have teamed up for the 5th year running as the official video partner for the Norfok and Norwich Festival. At the official launch last night the trailer for 2019 was screened and the Festival Programme announced! This year will again be packed with ground-breaking music, unique theatre and performance, breath-taking circus, inspirational literature and visual arts treats and more. Head to the NNF website for a full look at what is in store and to book tickets at https://nnfestival.org.uk/whats-on/ and watch out for more of our festival films being released over the next few months on social media @eyefilm.

Norwich City Table Tennis Club have 80 members members ranging from 6-86, play locally (we run the Ping Pong Parlour in the Castle Mall, putting on Charity events), across the county and across the country in national competitions. We run junior competitions and a ladies league, over 55’s Bat and Chat sessions and are starting a LGBT+ session this April. It’s a great family sport with few limitations.

They are looking for sponsorship for:

• £500 for a match table, which can include sponsors logos on / round it and will be housed at Frere Road Community Centre, where the Norwich team cup finals are being held, and teams across the county will come to play, along with being used for Bat and Chat, Junior Training sessions and social sessions.
• £500 kit sponsorship, shirts carrying sponsors logos that will be worn in league, county, and national competitions and at promotional / charity  events that we hold (Norfolk Show / Ping Pong Parlour) by junior and adult players who compete together. 
• £500 British League sponsorship, team name and shirts will incorporate sponsors name as they compete nationally.

If you sponsor they will host a team building for your business or partner events in return.

For more information email: norwichcitytt@gmail.com

Advertising production company JMS Group are embarking on a new 2019 strategy to encourage more businesses to advertise online, on radio and on TV.

The creative experts have enlisted fellow Norwich-based company Full Mix Marketing to deliver a new campaign to help more businesses take advantage of lower costs for TV and on demand advertising.

“It’s now easier than ever to target highly specific audiences with TV, radio and on demand video advertising” says Francesca de Lacey, Managing Director of JMS Group. “With costs falling, we want to help even more companies in the East and beyond to burst onto their customer’s screens.”

Established in 1983, JMS Group have produced TV and radio advertising for a wide range of local, national and international businesses, including TaxAssist, Crisp ‘N’ Dry and Volkswagen. Founded by former BBC executive and ‘Breakfast Time’ presenter, John Mountford, they now create more than 200 TV commercials and 1,000 radio commercials each year for UK and European broadcasting.

With the rise of on demand TV services and social media, the production company have chosen recent award-winners Full Mix Marketing to help them make more businesses aware of new lower cost ways to use TV commercials and video to drive sales.

“We’re delighted to be helping JMS find the right mix of marketing to spread the word” says Sarah West, Managing Director of Full Mix Marketing “Costs have tumbled as on demand services let advertisers target individual viewers by factors like age, location or life style. With all their experience, expertise and facilities in-house, JMS can quickly deliver fantastic advertising for ambitious businesses.”

Full Mix Marketing have worked with the production specialists to develop a strategy which more directly targets new clients and reduces their focus on digital marketing alone. The JMS Group are keen to increase awareness of their services and realise a greater return on investment from their marketing budget. Following successful completion of the strategy, delivery has begun with Full Mix Marketing building a soon to be unveiled new website to showcase JMS Group’s impressive experience and portfolio.

“It’s fantastic working with Sarah and her team on our next exciting chapter” states Francesca de Lacey. “They’ve already helped us rediscover all the ways we’re different and how we go that little bit further to help our clients get the most from TV, radio and video. We look forward to a successful relationship as we both continue to grow.”

Established in 2016, Full Mix Marketing have gained a reputation for helping businesses across the region achieve success through strategic, digital and offline marketing. Founder and Chartered Marketer, Sarah West, was named the Institute of Director’s 2018’s New Director of the Year in East Anglia for her leadership of the results-focused marketing agency.

For more information on JMS Group visit www.jms-group.com. For more information on Full Mix Marketing visit www.fullmixmarketing.co.uk

Now in its 13th year, the annual Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Business Survey asks all East Anglian based businesses from across the sector to join forces and take part.   The survey was launched today by Larking Gowen, Chartered Accountants and Business Advisors, and is supported by organisations such as Visit East Anglia, Visit Essex, Visit Norfolk and Visit Suffolk.   All businesses in the tourism, leisure and hospitality sector including restaurants, hotels, tourist attractions as well as retailers in the tourism hotspots are being encouraged to participate in the independent survey.   To take part in the survey click here.   The sector is the largest in East Anglia, one of the biggest employers and estimated to be worth around £10bn to the East Anglian economy. Participants have the opportunity to fill in the survey and gauge their achievements. They can also receive a tailored report which analyses their yearly performance, giving them a valuable benchmarking planning tool.   Those who fill in the survey remain anonymous in the published report, which provides an annual snapshot of the sector across East Anglia. The survey includes questions about the short and long term impact of issues like Brexit, the National Living Wage (NLW) and the National Minimum Wage (NMW), and delves into questions around the use of plastics, profit margins and, more generally, how businesses have performed in the last year.   The results are published as an annual brochure, which includes features and news stories about participating businesses who have chosen to publicise their successes.   Many of the businesses that provide services to this sector fully support the annual survey and this year the survey is sponsored by Adnams, Camplings, and Howes Percival.

We are delighted to announce that our new website is live. 

Our new site is full of information regarding our products and services, as well as our very latest news, case studies and careers. 

Andrew McKay-Atkinson, Managing Director says ‘We specialise in industry leading products and efficient and professional washroom services, and our new website is a reflection of our professionalism as a business.’ 

Visitors to the site will have access to information on Active Washrooms products and services, including informative product descriptions and images as well as a quote request facility too. 

Visit the site at https://www.activewashrooms.co.uk/

A night of celebrating the success of north Norfolk businesses took place at Gresham’s School on Thursday 21st February. The North Norfolk Best Small Business Award, sponsored by MENTA the business support organisation was won by The Norfolk Brewhouse. Rachel and David Holliday own the business and David said, “Our small team were thrilled and proud to win the award, we were especially pleased for our brewer, Bruce Ash. “Where we are based is of particular importance to us, not only does north Norfolk provide us with the key ingredients for our beers, but its vibrant community of small businesses inspire us in so many ways. To be recognised for our small part in helping to promote north Norfolk and create jobs is fantastic.” Chair of MENTA Alistair Ponder who presented The Norfolk Brewhouse award commented, “Congratulations to Rachel and David who have grown their business with a dedicated and enthusiastic team of staff and have used their strong creative marketing skills to expand and grow. Their commitment and vision are to be commended.” The Norfolk Brewhouse are based near Fakenham and produce a range of hand-crafted beers and lagers. They often work collaboratively with other Norfolk businesses to produce special brews, for example Nelson and Norfolk Teas Company and Black Shuck Gin. MENTA helps established small businesses throughout Norfolk, providing affordable networking events, business conferences and advice sessions. It’s next marketing conference takes place on the 3rd April at Pensthorpe near Fakenham and costs just £10pp to attend. MENTA also provides free business skills training in North Walsham, Dereham and Norwich, supported by the European Regional Development Fund for anyone who is Norfolk based and is thinking of starting a business or has done so in the last 12 months. For more details regarding MENTA’s services visit www.menta.org.uk or email info@menta.org.uk

25 February 2019 – Berwick – Simpsons Malt has revealed that Diageo Global Supply employee Richard Moxom is this year’s recipient of the Institute of Brewing and Distilling (IBD) Simpsons Malt Award.

The award recognises Richard’s success in achieving the highest percentage mark in the Diploma in Distilling Module One Examination for 2018.

Currently based in Dublin, Richard holds the role of Beer Operational Excellence Quality Manager for West and South Africa at the international firm. Enthusiastic about expanding his knowledge and training within the distilling sector, Richard took on the diploma with the backing of his employer having noted an increasing focus on spirit and RTD innovation within his role. He sees the IBD Diploma in Distilling as a great way to expand his knowledge in this area and apply it to some of the issues he faces day to day.

Speaking about the recent award, Richard Simpson, Vice Chairman of Simpsons Malt said: “We are very proud of our association with the IBD as we believe that recognising talent within the industry is the best way of developing much-needed skills for the betterment of the brewing and distilling industries. We wish Richard a huge congratulations for his outstanding achievement.

“There is so much innovation within the sector right now, which has created some really exciting opportunities for individual brewers and distillers, as well as companies. We wish Richard continued success in his career.”

Richard Moxom added: “I would like to thank both the IBD and Simpsons Malt for my award – I am delighted to have claimed the prize. My wife has previously won the Hough Award for highest marks in the Master Brewer exam, so this allows me to catch up to her a bit!”

IBD CEO Dr Jerry Avis concluded: “The IBD is extremely proud of its association with Simpsons Malt as this award provides tangible recognition of outstanding success in the gateway exam to the Diploma.  Great technical knowledge will always underpin the great quality products that comprise the backbone of our industry. I commend Richard for his superb performance and wish him success for his remaining Diploma in Distilling exam.”

Recognising his achievement, Richard Moxom will receive a £500 cheque presented at the IBD Scottish Section Dinner next month.

Previous winners of the Simpsons Malt Award include Elgin-based Peter Milne who is also employed by Diageo, Elgin Isaeblla Wemyss from Wemyss Development in Scotland, Flavien Desoblin, owner of the Brandy Library Lounge in New York and Tambudzai Makunde of African Distillers Limited.

Open Academy, a Gold Young Chamber Member, are looking for businesses willing to take young people for work experience.

Their Year 10 students have their Summer Term work experience week 8th – 12th July and employers would need to be able to accomodate the students for the whole week.

If you would like to help the students gain the experience they need to succeed in the workplace please contact Caroline Davies at Caroline.Davies@open-academy.org.uk