Thank you to everyone who nominated us! We are extremely proud to be finalists for the English Wedding Awards – one of only two venues shortlisted in Norfolk!
The English Wedding Awards aim to recognise and reward those within the wedding industry that work towards making a special day perfect. Now in it’s fourth year, the English Wedding Award finalists are nominated by the public so we are extra proud to have reached this far! We will found out if we have won ‘Venue of the Year’ at the awards do in Birmingham on 26 November. Keep your fingers crossed for us!
We are delighted to be runners up for Tastiest Breakfast at the 2019 Eviivo Awards!
We were announced as runners up at the glittering black tie awards event at London’s Grand Connaught Rooms on Tuesday 15th October. The results were decided following a live cook-off, where our Head Chef Kieran Barrett cooked our famous full English breakfast for judges including celebrity chef Rosemary Shrager. The judges commented on the quality of our ingredients and how well everything was cooked. https://awards.eviivo.com/awards/tastiest-breakfast/
The Norfolk Mead in Coltishall is offering a substantial venue hire discount for new wedding bookings for early Spring 2020.
The beautiful, luxury venue has several dates still available for Friday and Saturday wedding bookings in both March and April 2020 including Good Friday, 10 April. The discounts available are: March:
Friday 6, 13, 20 and 27: a huge £1,750 off venue hire
Saturday 7, 21 and 28: £1,000 off venue hire
April:
Friday 3 and 10: £1,000 off venue hire
Events Manager Victoria Norman commented: “We are delighted to offer a discount for any bookings coming through for Spring 2020 weddings. Spring is a beautiful time of year in our walled garden, particularly with our spectacular magnolia tree in full blossom at that time. A stunning background to wedding photos, and we often enjoy mild sunny spring weather so wedding guests can make the most of our beautiful grounds and riverside setting. With a relatively short lead up time from now until Spring, this offer may suit couples planning a more intimate day, but we can also host a sit down meal for up to 140 guests. We encourage any couples still working out their options to get in touch and arrange to come down to see myself or my colleague Francesca for an initial meeting. We’d love to show you around.” Contact Victoria and Francesca on 01603 737 531, or email events@norfolkmead.co.uk. You can also find out more on the wedding page of our website at https://www.norfolkmead.co.uk/weddings
Congratulations to our second B2B exhibition game winner, Lucy! We hope you enjoyed playing the game and the Amazon Echo you have taken home.
To be in with a chance to win another of our great Empresa prizes, keep an eye out for future events we are attending and participate in our games and activities for a chance to win!
Congratulations to Alison, who was randomly selected as an Empresa winner from those that completed our game at the Norfolk Chamber B2B Exhibition on the Norfolk ShowGround. We hope you enjoy the Echo Dot and other goodies included in the bag!
TaxAssist Accountants’ continual growth has seen the network of small business specialists rise one place to 21st in the highly regarded industry league table with a 5% increase in fee income, up from £39.6m to £41.5m.
The latest survey reveals that growth across the sector has accelerated despite the economic uncertainty caused by Brexit and new regulations. The top UK accountancy firms recorded fee revenues totalling over £16bn in the last financial year, one year after breaking the £15bn barrier.
Karl Sandall, Group Chief Executive Director at the TaxAssist Group, said: “To have moved up one place to 21st in the league table is fantastic news. Our rise of 13 places, since we first entered the Accountancy Age survey in 2010, is testament to the dedication of our network and our sustained vision for continual growth.
“Although we are living through uncertain times, recruitment of new franchisees continues to be strong. The benefits to being part of the TaxAssist network are clear and our full service offering is increasingly in demand with small business clients, who need help and advice with software and regulation, attracted by our visible, welcoming shop based practices. I feel confident that our adoption of a best-in-class technology suite, investment in our brand, coupled with our plans to develop services to help attract and support clients, bodes well for future performance.”
Austin Clark, Editor at Accountancy Age, said: “The good news for the sector is that this year’s ranking showed widespread growth across the table – from the Big Four through to the smaller firms in the listing – despite the multitude of challenges faced and the uncertain climate.”
To see the list of the Top 50 firms and an analysis by Accountancy Age click here.
Foster and Gamko unveiled new branding and the latest addition to the Foster G2 range at the recent HOST exhibition in Milan.
“Branding is about more than just a new logo and we’re delighted that our branding now reflects Foster and Gamko’s innovative spirit and market leading positions,” said Katy Chilvers, Marketing Communications Manager for Foster and Gamko. “Both companies celebrated significant anniversaries last year, and we took the opportunity to reflect on our heritage ahead of our rebrand.”
With an increased alignment of the Foster and Gamko brands, our customers will have a streamlined experience, one point of contact for the two businesses and access to our shared knowledge of professional kitchens and bars.
“Although Foster and Gamko have been aligned for some time, we are now closer than ever. Our combined knowledge and experience, award-winning products, and dedicated staff means we absolutely assert ourselves as The Refrigeration Experts,” said Nick Bamber, European Head of Marketing for Foster and Gamko.
Foster also took the opportunity to launch the new G2 Short in Milan, a low height version of its EcoPro G2 range. The G2 Short can pass through standard doorways (measuring 1960x760mm) without the need for tilting, and with swivel brake castors there is no need for compromising mobility. Perfect for kitchens with low ceilings, the Short requires just 100mm space above the cabinet rather than the usual 300mm.
The benefit of Foster and Gamko’s shared technologies can be seen in its G2 Short, which is fitted with their award-winning +stayclear condenser. The G2 Short offers the same fantastic energy credentials, like being cheaper to run than a traditional lightbulb, made standard by its bigger brother the G2.
“The G2 Short is the latest exciting new addition to the G2 family,” said Gareth Hunt, Senior Product Manager for Foster and Gamko. “The G2 Short is a prime example of our approach to new product development, continuously improving our product portfolio in response to our customers’ needs.”
Previously when low ceiling heights have been an issue, traditional undermount cabinets have been the go-to solution, whereby the fridge system is located at the bottom of the product. The new G2 Short now solves this problem, and in doing so offers greater usable capacity (439 litres) compared to undermount solutions (411 litres), whilst utilising all the benefits of a top-mounted refrigeration system.
And best of all? With superior energy credentials the G2 Short is easier on your pocket than its undermount counterpart, delivering between 33-50% annual energy savings based on ErP testing.
The G2 Short is therefore the latest innovation hot off the product line at Foster and Gamko, where state-of-the-art manufacturing plants are based in King’s Lynn and Etten-Leur.
Dedicated brand guidelines have been created to allow anyone using the brands to display it correctly in their marketing materials such as leaflets and websites. Our updated brand guidelines can be downloaded here.
If you have any questions, please contact the Foster and Gamko marketing team on marketing@foster-gamko.com.
A video showing the new branding can be seen here.
To find out more about the G2 Short, watch the video here.
The Maids Head Hotel in Tombland, Norwich, is the new permanent home for The Norwich Panorama, created by John Moray-Smith in the mid 1940s for Morgans Brewery.
The Norwich Society acquired the Panorama in 2016 to both save and restore the panel. The magnificent 2.5 metre by 1.5 metre panel is now on display next to the entrance to the Maids Head’s Wine Press Restaurant.
The three-dimensional panel depicts the view of Norwich from St James Hill. It was commissioned by Morgans Brewery for the Cock Inn on King Street. Following the Inn’s closure in the mid 1970s, the panel was moved to Caistor Hall Hotel, where at some point after 2010 it was damaged and placed into storage. The Norwich Society bought the panel in 2016, and with the support of the Paul Bassham Charitable Trust, the John Jarrold Trust and the Norwich Heritage Fund, paid for its restoration.
Paul Burall, Chair of Trustees, The Norwich Society said: “Having rescued John Moray Smith’s wonderful panorama of Norwich, from being abandoned in a garage, we are now delighted that the Maid’s Head is providing a home where the public can admire this 1940s view of the City. It is the only work by this eccentric artist portraying the City during his lifetime and therefore is an interesting contrast to his other works that are on public view that depict scenes from previous centuries.”
Christine Malcolm, General Manager, Maids Head Hotel said: “We are delighted to be providing a new home for John Moray-Smith’s magnificent Norwich Panorama. It will be a great talking point for our guests and visitors and is a wonderful enhancement to the approach to the Wine Press Restaurant.”
Tom Humphrey from the Fairhurst Gallery who restored the Panorama added: “The basic restoration work was very similar to that I use for any painting, although I minmised the use of liquids, as even solvents could damage the Plaster of Paris used by Moray-Smith to build up the work . I did not want to over-restore the picture so have left areas of thin paint to retain authenticity.”
“Moray-Smith’s work is very interesting,” continued Tom Humphrey. “He was clearly an experimenter and didn’t follow any set rules, making it up as he went along. The Panorma is a fascinating work of art and I think that the public will enjoy seeing it.”
John Moray Smith worked in Norwich from the early 1930s until his death in 1958. Little is known about the artist before his arrival in Norwich, but his genius is still there for all to see in the unique, vivid, highly detailed and huge three dimensional panels (bas-reliefs), installed on the exteriors and interiors of pubs in Norwich and elsewhere in Norfolk. The panels were commissioned by Norwich based Morgans Brewery to distinguish some of its pubs with locally relevant strong visual images that depicted what life was like.
Panels that can still be viewed in Norwich include St Stephen’s Gate on the Coachmakers Arms, the Berstrete Gates for the pub of that name and The Prince of Denmark for the Prince of Denmark pub. Out in the county, the Maids Head’s sister hotel, The Ship at Brancaster features the model of a 19th century collier, The Black Diamond created by Moray-Smith.
The £25 million state-of-the-art new operations and maintenance building for East Anglia’s largest offshore windfarm to date has officially opened its doors.
The building was officially opened last week by Waveney MP, Peter Aldous and Charlie Jordan, ScottishPower Renewables Project Director for East Anglia ONE.
The operations and maintenance building will be the base for up to 100 full-time employees, including skilled engineers and technicians, for the 30-plus year lifespan of the windfarm. The site is already a hive of activity welcoming hundreds of contractors and supply chain operators, contributing substantially to the local economy.
Norwich and London based architectural practice LSI Architects worked in collaboration with Arup to design the new base, located in the port of Lowestoft.
Peter Durrant, Director at LSI Architects, commented: “The new building provides technically suitable facilities for the complex needs of the operation and maintenance phases of the client’s work. LSI Architects understanding of the technical requirements of the site has helped to inform the design, for example through the use of robust contextual materials to withstand the harsh coastal environment and a split ground floor level to manage flood risk.
The building is segregated into office, technical and warehousing spaces and the management of people through these areas are key to the security and efficient operation of the building. Externally the building presents a simple form, mirroring the silhouette of the surrounding warehouse buildings whilst setting itself apart with a clean glazed gable and ground floor, providing an attractive presence to the public façades of the building and allowing views through this corner and out across the harbour.”
Charlie Jordan, ScottishPower Renewables Project Director for East Anglia ONE, said: “Lowestoft is the home of East Anglia ONE, and to see the operations and maintenance building fully up and running really demonstrates that fact. It’s not just the base of operations for the windfarm, but a symbol of our long-term commitment to the region and our drive to grow the offshore wind industry in Lowestoft and East Anglia.
“In just 14 months, the construction team have turned an empty site on the Port of Lowestoft into a state-of-the-art establishment and we are grateful for all of the work which has made the base into what you see today. Most of the operations and maintenance team are based within a few miles of the site and have worked on other local windfarms, bringing with them great knowledge and expertise. This has allowed us to perfect design elements of the base, making it super-efficient and reinforcing the East of England’s leading position in the sector.
“With the windfarm due to be complete next year, the building is already buzzing with local employees and contractors all helping us to create clean, green energy to meet the UK’s carbon reduction targets.”
Waveney MP, Peter Aldous, said: “The opening of the East Anglia ONE operations and maintenance base is a big moment for Lowestoft and the wider Waveney area. It demonstrates a significant investment in our town. East Anglia ONE is providing important job opportunities for people locally and across the region, both offshore and onshore, as well as through the local supply chain.
“Lowestoft has a proud maritime heritage and the substantial growth of the offshore wind industry, particularly off the coast of East Anglia, will see more generations making a career out at sea. It is great to see Lowestoft leading the way in the UK’s offshore wind revolution.”
East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH) supports families and cares for children and young people with life threatening conditions across Cambridgeshire, Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk. With a reputation for excellence and innovation, our family centred approach includes specialist nursing care, symptom management support, short breaks, wellbeing activities, therapies and counselling. Our Hospices aren’t just about end of life care; they’re often happy and fun places focussed on creating memories and helping and supporting families to make the most of their precious time together.
We rely on voluntary donations for the majority of our income and having just moved into our new purpose built Hospice, The Nook, in Norfolk we’re now looking to define future strategy to ensure that we are continue to provide the Care and Support our Service Users and Families rely on. It really is a great time to come and join us!
We are looking for a number of Trustees to broaden our representation of skills and seek applications from individuals who have a strong strategic focus, an understanding of organisational governance and the challenges of income generation. We would welcome all applications, but would like to increase our representation in the Peterborough and Norfolk areas with, if possible one new trustee with a background in Public Health.
The current Trustee body is an established group who bring a high level of commitment and passion and attend both board meetings and committee meetings regularly.
The role is unpaid, although expenses can be reimbursed. To apply, please email your CV and a short statement on why you want to join EACH to: Amanda.drummond@each.org.uk. If you would like further information and/or would prefer to speak with our Chief Executive or Chairman before applying, please just let Amanda know.