Member News

Organisations in Norfolk are starting to increase salaries and introduce more innovative benefit packages as the job market becomes more competitive, according to the latest salary and recruitment report by Pure.

The 2016 report, released by East Anglia’s professional recruitment specialists, reveals that employers across Norfolk, and the region as a whole, are now having to work harder to attract and retain high calibre staff. Previous reports showed salaries had remained steady for the last five years, but this year a trend is beginning to emerge that shows an increase in salaries and more attractive benefits packages. The industries of food production, manufacturing, professional services, and the public sector, have all played a significant factor in a steady growth in the Norfolk recruitment market, despite the downturn in the oil and gas sector.

Joseph O’Sullivan, Manager of the Pure Norwich office, said: “In general, salaries across Norfolk have remained consistent, but there are signs that salaries are starting to increase and we predict that these will continue to rise as the job market becomes more buoyant. We have already seen some increases in salaries, particularly in temporary and permanent office roles in the county. This could be partly attributed to the introduction of the national living wage.

“However, we expect to see salaries continue to rise as competition for talented employees increases. With more job opportunities available, people are becoming more confident about switching companies. Candidates feel more empowered to negotiate better terms and employers need to be prepared for this. Our salary survey is not just provided for job-seekers; we also compile it to provide employers with the research needed to benchmark how competitive their salary offering is.”

The report also reveals that the positive increase in recruitment has resulted in employers across the region focussing on other ways to retain their best employees and to attract new talent. In Norfolk there has been a noticeable trend for increased investment in career development opportunities, highlighted by the number of businesses seeking to appoint learning and development or training specialists.

Joseph added: “Being able to demonstrate an investment in employee development is an excellent way to help attract high calibre candidates. Candidates are still reluctant to move on salary alone and benefits, career progression and workplace culture still remain significant deciding factors. However, employers also need to review whether the benefits they offer are still competitive. Pensions used to be a key differentiator, but with the Workplace Pensions roll out almost complete, employers are now starting to offer enhanced pensions to entice new employees. Benefits which used to make employers stand out from the crowd are also becoming more common place, for example 85 per cent of the companies we’ve surveyed now offer flexible working hours.”

Pure’s salary report covers its core industry recruitment sectors of Accountancy, Financial Services, Human Resources, Office Support and Marketing. The 2016 report also includes results for the IT sector, following the launch of Pure’s IT recruitment specialism in 2015.

The findings have been compiled using information from Pure’s Compare my Salary tool and the team’s extensive knowledge of the recruitment market in East Anglia. Compare my Salary is a unique online tool for candidates to benchmark their salary and benefits against like-for-like job roles in the region. It is also used as a benchmark for organisations to gauge salaries to acquire and retain top talent.

For more information or to see the full 2016 salary survey visithttps://www.prs.uk.com/clients/salaryguideor emailnorwich@prs.uk.com

You know you’ve got talent when senior members of the England Shooting Team encourage their manager to see you shoot. Even more so when the team manager approaches you afterwards and encourages you to try out for the England Team Selection Shoots! Charlie is looking into shooting in the remaining ones, just the experience will be beneficial for him but he really does have something about him and his shooting that it could also be the start of a winning career for him with the England Team.

Over the past few weeks, Charlie has shot in the English Open Sporting and came in 2nd in the Colt class (juniors) and 7th in the C class (with adult shooters). He also came in 2nd at a normal registered shoot at Barrow Heath Shooting Ground. Then at the East Midlands Skeet Championship he came 2nd in the C class and 3rd in the Juniors, winning a Bronze medal!

The Premier League shoots are also underway and at the halfway mark, the 4th shoot last weekend, Charlie was High Gun and also won the C class. The event ends in September and Charlie is currently in 2nd place, just 3 targets off the top spot! He is also 31 targets clear in the Colts class and 32 targets clear in the C class so he’s looking good for a top end finish.

To top off a spectacular few weeks, he was crowned Norfolk Junior Skeet Champion again at the Counties Championship held at Eriswell Gun Club. This is his second time holding this title, he first bought this home in 2014.

This enigmatic youngster is going from strength to strength and we’re proud to be sponsoring such a local-born talent.

As the Government prepares to announce the successful bidder for the East Anglia rail franchise in the coming weeks, the Great Eastern Mainline Taskforce has offered a punctual reminder of its demands for a better rail service for the region.

In a letter to Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin MP, Joint Chairs of the GEML Taskforce Mark Pendlington and Chloe Smith MP have restated the key improvements they are determined to secure:

• New rolling stock to be included in the new franchise tender. • The delivery of journey time improvements to achieve: London to Chelmsfordin 25 minutes, Colchester in 40 minutes, Ipswich in 60 minutes and Norwichin 90 minutes. • A comprehensive package of infrastructure improvements.

The letter to the Secretary of State has also been signed by over 20 business and sector leaders from across the three counties, including the Chambers of Commerce, Anglian Farmers Ltd, Bernard Matthews Ltd, Willis Towers Watson, Howes Percival LLP, Aviva, EEEGR (East of England Energy Group), Visit East Anglia and the LEP board.

It states: “We were delighted that you, the Chancellor and the Prime Minister have all explicitly endorsed the findings of our campaign and we are looking forward to delivery.”

The key improvements needed were set out in the Great Eastern Main Line Report, published in November 2014, accepted by Government and included within the franchise Invitation to Tender (ITT) published last September. The report made a strong economic case for investment, which will deliver:

• £4.5bn economic benefits • £1.3bn of capital investment along the line • Journey time savings of £9m annually • 48,000 jobs along the line • £9.50 return for every £1 invested

Since its launch in the summer of 2014, the GEML Campaign has been supported by more than 100 of the region’s most senior business and education leaders representing more than 111,000 employees and students pledged their support and more than 1,600 commuters and rail users joined the campaign online.

Mark Pendlington, Chairman of New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership and Joint Chair of the Great Eastern Mainline Taskforce, said: “Our three-year campaign has consistently stated that for far too long, thousands of commuters, visitors and businesses in Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk have not had a service worthy of our region. We have worked long and hard to ensure the new franchise provides the high quality, world-class rail service that is crucial to delivering key economic benefits including new jobs, homes and business growth right along the length of the line. Now is the time for the campaign to get the result it deserves.”

Chloe Smith, MP for Norwich North and Joint Chair of the Great Eastern Mainline Taskforce, said: “We’ve had a big campaign with huge ambition. We have demanded the highest standards possible. In the franchise soon to be announced we are expecting new trains – that’s a huge part of the campaign, but there is more to do. We need track improvements as well, so the work continues.”

David Burch, Director of Policy at Essex Chambers of Commerce, said: We are seeing a lot of new development in places like Chelmsford and Colchester and the businesses investing in those areas tell us that a first class rail network is essential to businesses in Essex. They are expecting the Government to honour its pledge to invest in upgrading the infrastructure and introduce faster, more modern rolling stock through the new franchise. For too long rail users in the East of England have been the poor relations when it comes to rail services and now is the time for the Government to put that right.”

Lindsey Rix, Managing Director, Personal Lines at Aviva said: “As the announcement of the contract winner for the new East Anglian rail franchise nears, it’s important to make clear what is required to create a high-quality rail service for the region. Effective transport infrastructure is critical to our business – particularly in Norwich, a core location for Aviva. This will help our employees when they need to travel and, in turn, helps our business function more efficiently. We look forward to working with the new franchise operator to achieve the goal of a world class rail service”

Robert Gough, Managing Director of Gough Hotels, said: “With hotels across Suffolk, it’s vital to our business that visitors are able to get here safely, in comfort and without delay. A rail network deserving of the East should provide the perfect start to a trip to our region. That is what we hope for and expect from the franchise winners.”

Steve Mannix, Executive Director of the Mercury Theatre in Colchester, said: “We have embarked on a £10 million scheme to re-develop our theatre and surrounding site in Colchester and having reliable transport links is essential to this development to enable us to continue to grow our audiences from the region and beyond.”

Proeon Systems yesterday held an open event at their facilities in Norfolk, to show case a technology collaboration with Danish company SAAB, known for their military communications and aircraft equipment, and BARTEC with their latest range in ATEX approved AV equipment.

Proeon presented an integrated solution to complement changes in offshore working practices providing multi level lines of communications to the beach. Dr Dorian Hindmarsh, Proeon’s Business Development Manager, said “The offshore industry is really starting to look at operational costs both in O&G and Renewables sector, and with the application of the right kinds of technology, safety and quality improvement with significant cost reduction can happen”

Proeon are now working with clients to offer bespoke packages with personal helmet mounted and remote HD ATEX cameras, PDAs and wi-fi communications, to provide direct lines of communication between workers offshore and the technical support and senior engineering team back on beach.

“With this robust technology operators can utilising softer, multi skilled engineers offshore positioned between assets, and maintaining a smaller skilled Engineering discipline team on the beach. The smaller offshore team has fast access to all the technical details available to the senior beach team through a two way direct and secure communication, with HD video.”

The systems offered could lead to significant headcount reductions offshore for operators with immediate reductions in logistics costs, and increases efficiency of problem solving.

Ben Hornsby, Proeon’s Senior Telecoms Engineer said “With the direct ability to query a situation back to beach whilst the team are actually in front the issue, the time saved in down time, reporting, and solution development is significant. The systems can be tied in to existing communication infrastructures including the UHF and VHF radio, PAGA, etc so instructions, notices and personnel management can be maintained and improved”

Major operators from both the O&G and wind industry and their supporting maintenance companies attended the event, with live demos of the cameras, PDAs desktop management consoles and examples of various applications discussed; from rope access reviews and surveys, through to enclosed space operations, first aid support, and training.

Dr Hindmarsh commented “We are delighted to be working with BARTEC and SAAB on this application though I am sure this systems is sure to meet with objections and misinterpretations of spying and monitoring, but I think now everyone in the industry wants to work more efficiently and communications, cameras, and rapid verification is the method to do this.”

Proeon Systems Ltd, has been providing Innovatively Engineered Solutions for the Energy sector around the globe since 2004. www.proeon.co.uk

To find out more about Proeon or offshore communication solutions with Headcam equipment please contact Proeon directly on 01953 859110

Leathes Prior will be supporting the Royal Norfolk Show this year by sponsoring the much loved Grand Parade of champion livestock and heavy horses. Continuing on from last year’s support of the Supreme Ridden Championship at the show in 2015, the firm is delighted to be supporting the show for another year.

The Grand Parade takes place within the prestigious Grand Ring, situated within the heart of the showground, taking place between 15:25 and 16:05 on the Thursday afternoon.

The Grand Parade gives exhibitors the chance to showcase their final livestock, offering over 258 championship classes for Cattle, Sheep, Pigs and Goats. The parade also acts as a salute to the farmers, exhibitors and their animals in Norfolk, as the award winning champion livestock and heavy horses are showcased.

TheEquine Prize Schedule has several new classes, sections, awards and qualifiers at the show this year. There are some exciting new additions in Light Horses, Heavy Horses, Private Driving and Showjumping. In addition, the new ‘Beltex Class’ will be introduced to the livestock category this year, to reflect the growing popularity of the Beltex Breed in East Anglia.

Leathes Prior will be not only be sponsoring the event but also proudly presenting the prizes in the Grand Ring, to the winners of each class on the day. With the Royal Norfolk Show livestock schedule set to be bigger than ever, the competitions will continue to be a real attraction for visitors and make up the heart of the show.

The firm has an increasingly strong presence in agriculture and equine across Norfolk and Suffolk with specialistAgricultureandEquineteams. Both teams are delighted to be presenting the awards to each class and extremely pleased to be sponsoring such a prestigious event within the show.

New to BBA Digital Media’s digital signage networks are the wonderfulOmni Search- an innovative SEO Agency and website design company. OMNI take a bold approach to SEO and Website development, harnessing the individual skills, passion and drive of an exceptional team. OMNI have come on board with BBA Digital Media this June to spread the word about their 10 years of experience in providing the very best SEO services, Content marketing and Web design.

Check out their advert on our screens across the city reaching 500,000 people per week, and head tohttps://omnisearch.uk/about-omni/to receive a FREE SEO Analysis…You’re Welcome!

We are happy to welcomeBMA Estatesto our digital signage networks across Norfolk. Their beautiful motion graphic HD ad will be viewable across all our screens for the whole month. The newly opened Estate agents are using our network of screens and taking advantage of our high footfall locations to increase their brand awareness.

BMA Estates offer modern and energetic estate agency services across Norfolk. Their Norwich based offices showcase the best in the rental and buyers markets, and pride themselves in offering a truly personalised service. Their Sales team create a bespoke sales plan, utilising traditional and online sales marketing to make sure that your home achieves the price it deserves, whilst their rental team offer everything from full management to a comprehensive tenant find service.

Whether you are looking to rent or sell your own property, or you are searching for that dream home yourself – let BMA Estates take the stress out of searching and enjoy a tailored and personal modern service.

Watch out for their digital advert on all our screens throughtoutJune!

Norfolk Community Foundation would like to hear your views about work and community life in Norfolk!

Vital Signs is a report that is produced annually in various regions of the country (and worldwide) to measure social trends and issues, to help target charitable giving where it is most needed. The reports combine existing research with community consultation, to gain a full picture of the issues in each area.

We would like to know about the issues affecting you and your community in Norfolk to help us to produce our Vital Signs report which will be released in October. If you live or work in Norfolk, this is an opportunity to add your voice.

The survey covers the core themes that make up Vital Signs, including wellbeing, fairness, work, learning and housing and homelessness and asks for your perception of issues affecting people who live and work in the county. It should take around 10-15 mins to complete. All responses are anonymous.

Click here to complete our Vital Signs survey now – thank you in advance. The survey will close on 13 July 2016.

To find out more about Vital Signs, and how your information will help, please visit our Vital Signs webpage.

Salaries across East Anglia are starting to increase as the job market becomes more competitive, according to the latest salary and recruitment report by Pure.

The 2016 report, released by East Anglia’s professional recruitment specialists, reveals that employers across the region are now having to work harder to attract and retain high calibre staff. Previous reports showed salaries remained steady for the last five years, but this year average salaries are beginning to rise and more innovative benefit packages are being introduced.

Gill Buchanan, co-founder and director at Pure, said: “The increase is salaries could be partly attributed to the introduction of the national living wage. Salaries have increased for temporary and permanent office roles in particular, for example the average salary for a receptionist has risen to £18,000 in Essex, an increase of £2,000.

“However, as the Eastern Region economy improves more organisations are expanding and recruiting. Competition for talented employees is increasing and with more job opportunities available people are becoming more confident about switching companies. Candidates feel more empowered to negotiate better terms and employers need to be prepared for this. Our salary survey is not just provided for job-seekers; we also compile it to provide employers with the research needed to benchmark how competitive their salary offering is.”

The report shows that salary increases are particularly noticeable in Cambridgeshire, a county which currently has a number of industries facing a shortage of experienced employees. In the accountancy sector, salaries have remained reasonably consistent for higher level managerial positions but have significantly increased for the part-qualified market where demand is much higher. The average salary for newly qualified accountancy professionals is now £45,000, a 20% increase over the last two years.

In general, salaries across Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex have remained more consistent, but are predicted to rise as the job market continues to become more buoyant. For example, the number of job opportunities in Essex is staring to rise for the first time since the recession. Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) and Private Equity Investment has had a positive effect on recruitment in the county which faces increased pressure from being close to London and competing with the capital’s weighted salaries.

Other factors highlighted have also shown that employers in the region are reviewing how to attract and retain good employees. In Norfolk and Suffolk in particular there has been a noticeable trend for increased investment in career development opportunities, highlighted by the number of businesses seeking to appoint learning and development or training specialists.

Gill added: “Being able to demonstrate an investment in employee development is an excellent way to help attract high calibre candidates. Candidates are still reluctant to move on salary alone and benefits, career progression and workplace culture remain significant deciding factors. However, employers also need to review whether the benefits they offer are still competitive. Pensions used to be a key differentiator, but with the Workplace Pensions roll out almost complete, employers are now starting to offer enhanced pensions to entice new employees. Benefits which used to make employers stand out from the crowd are also becoming more common place, for example 85 per cent of the companies we’ve surveyed now offer flexible working hours.”

Pure’s salary report covers its core industry recruitment sectors of Accountancy, Financial Services, Human Resources, Office Support and Marketing. The 2016 report also includes results for the IT sector, following the launch of Pure’s IT recruitment specialism in 2015.

The findings have been compiled using information from Pure’s Compare my Salary tool and the team’s extensive knowledge of the recruitment market in East Anglia. Compare my Salary is a unique online tool for candidates to benchmark their salary and benefits against like-for-like job roles in the region. It is also used as a benchmark for organisations to gauge salaries to acquire and retain top talent.

For more information or to see the full 2016 salary survey visithttps://www.prs.uk.com/clients/salaryguideor emailclare.fuller@prs.uk.com

East Anglia’s top employers will be announced on 6 October at the next Best Employers Eastern Region event, an ongoing initiative run by Pure and eras Ltd to support the development of local organisations, boost the regional economy and to celebrate the region’s fantastic businesses.

With the date now confirmed, employers still have time to register to take part in the initiative and to attend the high-profile networking event. To register, organisations need to sign up for the free employee survey which is at the heart of the initiative. The survey is tailored for each organisation and provides employers with a better understanding of their workplace culture and employee engagement levels. All participating organisations are in with the chance of winning a prestigious accolade which will highlight the organisation as a great place to work. Research by Pure, East Anglia’s professional recruitment specialists, shows that organisations with these types of employer-focussed accreditations and awards typically receive twice as many applications when recruiting for a role.

Lynn Walters, co-founder and director at Pure, said: “Many employers already carry out their own staff surveys. We want to encourage them to incorporate these into the Best Employers survey as this is a unique opportunity with added benefits. Being part of the Best Employers initiative not only enables employers to monitor their own employee engagement levels, it is also a chance to benchmark their findings against other organisations in the region. Our aim is to provide employers with the tools and guidance to actively develop their own organisation, and the opportunity to work together with other business leaders to share successes and ideas. A collaborative approach from all the region’s best employers will help to put East Anglia on the map as great place to work and ultimately boost the regional economy overall.”

The Best Employers Eastern Region Survey provides employers with the data needed to understand and develop an organisation’s culture, values and employee engagement. Each organisation receives a tailored report summarising the culture, values and leadership style across their organisation, and an action plan for guidance on further development.

Margaret Burnside, Director of People Development at eras Ltd, added: “Running your employee survey through the Best Employers initiative not only provides organisations with reliable and accurate information on their own organisation, but also access to regional trends. This will help to really inform strategic planning and to deliver long term organisational change. Employers can choose to use our standard survey or customise it to suit their own business by incorporating any existing staff surveys or adding additional, bespoke questions. Because it is conducted by an external party, employers are also more likely to get honest answers and gain an authentic reflection.”

Previous participants, which have gone on to win Best Employer awards, include Benefit Cosmetics in Chelmsford, crowned the region’s Best Overall Large Employer at the last Best Employer awards in 2014, and Bidwells in Cambridgeshire, Rehabworks in Suffolk and Tobar in Norfolk. These organisations are now part of a growing network of Best Employers across the region, attending regular employee engagement seminars to share best practice.

Three key reasons to take part in the Best Employers Eastern Region initiative:

Become part of a growing network of Best Employers and share successes and ideas with other top employers to benefit the region as whole. Enhance your employee survey by accessing valuable data not only on your own organisation, but also regional trends which will enable you to benchmark your business against others across the region. Be in with a chance of winning a prestigious award which will enhance your employer brand and attract more talent to your organisation.

The Best Employers survey is open to organisations of all sizes and sectors across Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex. The confidential employee survey typically costs around £2,000, but is provided free of charge if businesses implement it as part of Best Employers initiative. The survey is open for employees to complete until September. For more information, visitwww.best-employers.co.ukor contact the team at Bestemployers@prs.uk.com.

Our latest Food Safety newsletter has just been sent out;

In this month’s newsletter we look at; – 10 things you should know about Campylobacter

– Food Standards Agency Video Clip on Allergies

– Launch of Tablet Examiner

– The Norwich Food & Drink Festival

You can view our newsletter here

With our recent focus on the growth of Delta-Simons Environment, Health & Safety team, we are pleased to welcome our new Operations Director for EHS, Rosanna Webb. Rosanna joins the company with over 20 years’ of EH&S experience having worked in the UK Construction sector for 13 years, then moving into consultancy for a brief period and more recently working in the high-tech software industry globally.

Having worked for the likes of Symantec and Veritas, Rosanna specialises in delivering Health & Safety solutions, focusing on key H&S risks for businesses such as ergonomics and emergency response as well as leading programs to develop robust and appropriate EHS Strategies and Management Systems. As EHS Operations Director based out of our Manchester office, Rosanna’s new role will be to develop the EHS offering to clients focusing initially on the high tech sector; working closely with clients to understand their company EHS requirements and then working to deliver effective and consistent solutions.

Comfortable and safe work places can increase productivity by 16%, and improve job satisfaction by 24% (source: RiskRight). Delta-Simons are delivering RiskRight EHS solutions designed by Antea Group, which aims to reduce and proactively manage Environment, Health & Safety risk factors in lower-risk environments i.e. non-manufacturing such as offices, data centres and retail stores. As RiskRight EHS practitioners, we work to understand a business’s culture to ensure the successful implementation of EHS or enhancement of the EHS services in place. This could be from air quality through to employee wellness – providing a rapid response to a specific local issue such as fire risk assessments, or delivering a strategic plan to address global risks.

Alex Ferguson, Managing Director, said of Rosanna’s appointment “We are thrilled to have Rosanna on board; we are seeing an increased need for EHS services within the lower risk environment, and Rosanna’s appointment and experience will enable us to deliver these services effectively, and to each client’s specific requirements”.

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