Member News

Above: Station adopters, Heather Babb and Trevor Lond, receive their accreditation. Credit: Greater Anglia Diss rail station has received a ‘Wildlife Friendly’ accreditation recognising the work of community volunteers to improve biodiversity and support nature there. Greater Anglia has partnered with the Norfolk Wildlife Trust to formally recognise the achievements of its team of volunteer ‘station adopters’ to create wildlife havens at stations across its network through the new ‘Greater Anglia Wildlife Friendly Stations Accreditation Scheme.’ Diss station adopters, Heather Babb, Katie Brame, Nikki Young and Peter Harrison received the award following assessment by a Norfolk Wildlife Trust Conservation Officer to determine how well the station supports local flora and fauna. They have created a garden area on platform 2 with nectar-rich planting to help support pollinating insects, complete with an insect hotel. The ecologist’s report stated that although Diss is an “urban station, surrounded by housing and industrial estates, it sits in a good location for providing some habitat connectivity for wildlife through the town.” James Hogg, Development Officer at the Norfolk Wildlife Trust, said: “The alarming decline in the abundance of wildlife and the plight of species under threat means that just protecting the nature we have left is not enough; we need to put nature into recovery, and to do so at scale and with urgency. “This project with Greater Anglia is a fantastic example of how people can transform nature-poor areas into new nature-rich places – and change the way we think about land, seizing opportunities to help nature outside traditional nature reserves.” Each assessment also offers tips and advice for how to make the stations more wildlife friendly and the reports can also be used as examples of best practice to help spread good ideas around all Greater Anglia’s stations. Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Engagement Manager, Alan Neville, said, “We’re delighted to partner with the region’s wildlife trusts to formally recognise the valuable work of our station adopter volunteers in supporting wildlife and improving their local environment.” “I’d like to congratulate the volunteers at Diss station on receiving this recognition and thank them for the incredible work that are doing that is help to support biodiversity locally.” Rail stations in East Anglia are increasingly becoming havens for local wildlife thanks to the efforts of over 300 volunteers who last year transformed over 7,400 square metres of land into thriving wildlife gardens. In a recent survey, Greater Anglia station adopters reported a wide range of creatures visiting their stations including many different types of butterflies as well as bees, slow worms, bats, foxes, toads, lizards, deer and many varieties of birds, recording more than 200 different species. Greater Anglia has joined the rest of the rail industry in pledging to make stations across Britain more sustainable. Action to reduce waste, support local wildlife and cut the carbon footprint of railway stations will be informed by the industry’s Sustainable Stations: Best Practice Guide, which details ways in which train operators can meet this commitment in support of global goals of decarbonisation, reducing waste and supporting local plant and animal life. Image provided by Greater Anglia  

Could your business join the Refill revolution? Food, drink and retail businesses, and any business with a tap, can sign up as a Refill Station (for free) and offer refills. You can help people who are keen to avoid single-use plastic and introduce them to your business at the same time. Why becoming a Refill Station is great for your business:

• Reach new customers by appearing on the free Refill App used by over 480,000 people worldwide looking for places to refill water, hot drinks, food and groceries.
• Make your customers happy. 61% of customers view a business more favourably if they offer reusables.
• Boost sales: water refill customers spend on average between £2.50 and £5 per visit in food and drink businesses.
• Food and drink businesses offering refills can save money on costs of disposable packaging
• Prevent pollution and plastic bottles littering the environment in Norfolk.

Join more than 500 Norfolk-based businesses offering refills and help us achieve Norfolk-wide refill coverage! Find out more and sign up for free online. Norfolk County Council have teamed up with the Refill campaign to make living with less plastic easy. For more information, please visit www.norfolkrecycles.com/refill-norfolk Image provided by Norfolk County Council

Greater Anglia is to run a special train from London to Norwich on Wednesday evening (19 April) for fans returning from the QPR v Norwich game. The 23:12 London Liverpool Street to Norwich service, which will also call at Diss, will operate to ensure those going to the game can get a return train through to Norwich, as overnight pre-planned engineering works are taking place. Supporters are asked to return for this service, as the 23.30 from London only runs as far as Ipswich due to essential track maintenance works.

Norfolk County Council has received funding from The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to run an E-Cargo Bike project within the Air Quality Management Zone in Norwich. Electric Cargo bikes also known as E-Cargo bikes are electric bicycles designed and constructed specifically for transporting loads (e.g food items, hardware, consumer parcels). They also boast considerably lower operating cost than vans and are nimble enough to provide a practical solution for small / medium local freight, including last mile delivery. The project will allow businesses to try E-Cargo bikes for a fixed term, at no cost, businesses will receive support on all elements of how they can implement e-cargo bikes into their work. This survey will help shape an e-cargo bike library for businesses in Norwich city centre and we hope that you make use of the E-Cargo Bike library when it is operational. The E-Cargo bikes will be available from July 2023 and the pilot will run at least until March 2025. The survey is accessible through the link below and closes on 23.59 on Sunday 7th May norfolk.citizenspace.com/environment-transport-and-development/travel-norfolk-e-cargo-bikes-for-business

A bereaved couple have signed up for a foam-filled fundraiser to thank the children’s hospice that supported them after the death of their baby son. Chris and Lisa Bearman will be joined by others including eight-year-old son Freddie for East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices’ (EACH) Norwich Bubble Rush, in July. They are raising funds and awareness as a way of showing their gratitude for the care and support they received, following the death of little Henry in November 2021. “I went into pre-term labour at 23 weeks and Henry was born three days later,” said Lisa, who lives in Bowthorpe. “Amazingly, he was doing well in the neonatal intensive care unit and there weren’t any major health problems, considering he was so small. “However, suddenly, on day eight, he went dramatically downhill. “They had to resuscitate him but they couldn’t get him back and he died in my arms. “Chris and I called our parents to tell them of Henry’s passing. “We said they could come and see him if they wanted. They came to the hospital, held him and both said their hello and goodbyes. “It was the worst time of our lives and we didn’t know which way was up.” Chris, 38, and Lisa, 37, also had to break the news to Henry’s older brother, Freddie. Tragically, he had not been allowed to see his sibling before he died because of Covid restrictions. “We sat him down on a bench outside the hospital and told him his brother had died,” said Lisa. “We asked if he would like to see him and he said yes. “Freddie gave him a hug and sang a lullaby before saying goodbye. “As a family, we only had a very short time with Henry. “We remember thinking how small he was and were worried if he would be OK, having been born so prematurely. “Only Chris and myself were allowed to visit Henry when he was alive due to Covid. “We used to sit by his incubator and talk to him. We’d tell him about his big brother and what we’d do together when he left hospital.” After Henry died, Chris and Lisa were recommended to EACH, which supports families and cares for children and young people with life-threatening conditions across Norfolk and the rest of East Anglia. They were encouraged to take part in memory-making exercises, including making hand and foot casts. “We felt numb at the time and were so grateful to EACH,” said Lisa, who works for an insurance company. “We’ll always treasure those casts of his little hands and feet. “I honestly don’t how I would have coped without EACH. “I have counselling to talk through everything and advice for how to help Freddie. “EACH is fantastic and we always say how amazing everyone is and how much they’ve helped since we lost Henry. “We did the Bubble Rush last year as a way to remember Henry. “We thought it would be a fun way to honour our son and give something back, so more families have help if they’re unlucky enough to find themselves in the same situation.” Unfortunately, Chris, who works in IT, was ill last year so Lisa took part with Freddie and father-in-law Paul, 64. This time, Lisa, Chris, Freddie and Paul will be joined by Chris’ sister, Sarah, 34, the couple’s eight-year-old niece, Evie, and Lisa’s mum, Jane, 64. “The three of us had lots of fun last year and wanted to do it again with other family members, all keen to race in Henry’s memory,” said Lisa. EACH’s foam-filled Norwich Bubble Rush is taking place at the Norfolk Showground on 16^th July. The course once again features four bubble stations along a 2.5km route. Participants can do one lap or double their enjoyment by completing the circuit twice. Each bubble station has a cannon which pumps out coloured foam to create a four-foot deep bubble bath. To sponsor the Bearman family, head here. Click here for more details of EACH’s fun-filled 2023 Events calendar.

Join us in our pretty courtyard for an evening of music.

‘Cool RnB, upbeat Ska and Latin Lounge … with a Jazz feel – from Francesca and Clifford, food, Pimms and great company. This intimate event is from 6pm – 8pm and will run Friday 2nd, 9th, 23rd and 30th. 

Booking is essential, cover charge £10 per person, add a sharing board for just an extra £10 per person.

Why not book an overnight stay from just £135.00 Bed & Breakfast per couple.

To book please call our events team on 01603 272008 or email events@maidsheadhotel.co.uk

For our upcoming Golf Day event, we will be auctioning off a number of incredible and exciting items including a signed 2023 Norwich City FC football! The official auction will be run on the day of the event (21st April) but if you can’t get to it don’t worry, you still have a chance to win! Up for grabs are:

• Signed Norwich City FC Football (current squad)
• 1 x four ball at Belfry (not including Brabezon Course)
• 1 x four ball at Royal Norwich
• 1 x four ball at Great Yarmouth
• 1 x four ball at Mundesley
• 1 x four ball at Sprowston Manor
• 1 x four ball at Mattishall
• 1 x four people on Mini Golf Mattishall
• 1 x four people on simulators at Mattishall
• 1 x 9 hole playing lesson with Matt Gardner (Mattishall Golf Club)
• 1 x 40 minute lesson with Tony Varney (Mattishall Golf Club)
• 1 x Original Tour and Tasting The English Whisky Co (for 1 person)

To be in the chance to win, email the item you would like along with your maximum bid to leanne.neave@rspcanorwich.org Deadline to get your bids in is 12pm, Wednesday 19th April.

5th of April 2023 Written by Lee Hart, Head of Knowhow Energy Overview Headlines: ✓ Gas and Electricity Wholesale prices are higher. ✓ EU Gas Storage levels remain high at 56% full. ✓ OPEC announced further Oil production cuts. ✓ EU Gas Storage levels are 96% full. As of the 5th of April, Gas and Electricity Year Ahead Wholesale costs were higher, when compared to last month’s report. OPEC announced further Oil production cuts on top of those from last year, in an attempt to pressure prices higher. Russia also stated the intention to extend their cuts until the end of the year. Prices have rebounded from $73 per barrel over the last month to $85. There has been a small reduction in the EU’s Gas Storage levels from 59% full to 56%. This is significantly higher than the 30% seen in both 2021 and 2022. The EU target for November 2023 is 90%, in readiness for the winter demand, which will require Gas injections through the warmer months. Large numbers of LNG deliveries are still being made to Europe, compensating for the lower Gas flows from Russia, some of which are instead being diverted to China, which may reduce their future demand for LNG. As Gas is the main source of generation, the price of Electricity closely follows, despite the contribution from much cheaper Renewables. The growing diversity of supplies, which includes Nuclear and Hydro Imports from the continent, aims at reducing the reliance on expensive carbon sourced generation such as Gas and Coal. View the full report below  

The Norfolk Hospice Tapping House and tulip grower Mark Eves of Belmont Nurseries are thrilled to announce the return of Tulips for Tapping once again this Spring. The unique event, which will take place from Thursday 27th April to Monday 8th May (closed Tuesday 2nd and Wednesday 3rd May) is a rare chance to visit and walk through working tulip fields, taking advantage of special photo opportunities and enjoying a day out unlike any other in the country. The tulip fields are located just off the A148, close to the Sandringham Estate in King’s Lynn. The exact location will be given to ticket holders at the time of purchase. Tickets will be for 45 minute slots with first entry at 10am and last entry at 3.15pm. Adult admission is just £5 each, children (aged 5 to 17) are £3 each and under 5s are free. There will also be a special late afternoon/early evening opening on Thursday 4th May where the last entry will be 5.45pm. Norfolk Hospice Tapping House invites everyone to come and join in this wonderful celebration of the tulip season. All proceeds will go towards the Hospice which provides vital services in the local community offering free care, comfort and compassion for people who are living with a life limiting illness, whilst also providing support for their families and friends. Nicola Ellis, Chief Executive at The Norfolk Hospice said “This year’s Tulips for Tapping event promises to be fantastic. The tulip fields are a spectacular sight and with local traders selling food and refreshments, it really is something a bit different for people to enjoy. We hope people will support the event as all proceeds will go towards the crucial services the fantastic teams at the Hospice provide.” To ensure entry, tickets must be pre-booked in advance, online at norfolkhospice.org.uk. Tickets go on sale on Monday 17th April at 10am. There will be local traders selling food and refreshments, toilet facilities, free parking, and a stall selling merchandise at the event. Nicola added: “We are so grateful for the support of the local community and we hope that by organising events such as Tulips for Tapping we are able to provide people with unique experiences, while fundraising for the Hospice at the same time. I would especially like to thank the team at Norfolk Tulips, Michael Rae and Roydon Hall Farms.” Dogs and drones are strictly forbidden on the fields, and wheelchair and pram use is discouraged due to uneven terrain. Please also note that the site is a no-smoking zone. The terrain is uneven and can be either muddy or dusty according to weather conditions – please bear this in mind before you visit and ensure you wear appropriate footwear. For further information, please visit www.norfolkhospice.org.uk or contact The Norfolk Hospice Tapping House on 01485 601 701 Image credit Mark Eves

Attleborough-based renewable heating expert Finn Geotherm, has won two prestigious awards in the Energy Efficiency Awards 2023 for the East of England. The awards recognise businesses and organisations who are making strides in cutting carbon emissions and increasing energy efficiency. Finn Geotherm was awarded Large Scale Project of the Year for its air source heat pump installation at Alive Lynnsport – the largest dry leisure centre in East Anglia. The company specified and installed three colossal 210kW Panasonic air source heat pumps – some of the first to be installed anywhere in Europe – to provide all the heating and hot water. The system is expected to deliver savings of more than 500 tonnes of CO2 annually. Finn Geotherm was also awarded Renewable Heating Installer & Contractor for its expertise in heat pump system design, specification and installation, which has seen the company completing some of Panasonic’s largest air source heat pumps installations in Europe over the past 18 months. In addition, Finn Geotherm was highly commended in the Small Scale Project of the Year for its ground source heat pump installation at West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village in Suffolk. Guy Ransom, commercial director at Finn Geotherm, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won these two Energy Efficiency Awards for the East of England. The installation at Alive Lynnsport was a highly significant project, which saw us installing some of the first 210kW Panasonic air source units anywhere in Europe. The project demonstrates the vast opportunity for air source in commercial applications, particularly in areas where ground source heat pumps aren’t an option due to space limitations. To also win the award for Renewable Heating Installer & Contractor is testament to the immense hard work of the entire team at Finn Geotherm who work so hard to deliver outstanding installations such as Alive Lynnsport and West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village among many others.” The awards were also a great success for housing association Flagship Group who were nominated by Finn Geotherm and won Housing Association/Landlord of the Year. The award recognised Flagship’s commitment to decarbonisation, including three district heating systems installed by Finn Geotherm to replace electric storage heaters and gas boilers in some of its housing stock. For more information on ground and air source heat pumps and details on Finn Geotherm, visit www.finn-geotherm.co.uk.

Norfolk-based BLS Safety and Training has welcomed three new members to the training team – Amanda Merrin, Melanie Walker and Richard Hughes – who will be providing first aid and health and safety training to businesses and individuals across the county. This brings the total number of trainers and assessors to eight, including owner-manager Justin Cowles and trainer Clive Wells, who joined the team in September last year. Together, they provide health and safety consultancy services, fire risk assessments, face fit testing, and training courses for businesses and organisations throughout Norwich and Norfolk. Amanda Merrin is a passionate trainer in a wide range of health and social care subjects, and has a natural love for teaching in both physical and mental health first aid. Amanda is hugely experienced in her subject fields, with over 10 years’ experience working in mental health services across Norfolk. Melanie Walker has over 20 years’ experience as an emergency department nurse at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, and more recently qualified as an emergency nurse practitioner specialising in minor injuries. She has a natural flare and passion for teaching and loves passing on her experience and knowledge in dealing with real-life workplace injuries. Mel will be delivering a full range of clinical and first aid courses for BLS in both workplace and clinical settings. Richard Hughes is a paramedic with over 15 years’ frontline experience within the East of England Ambulance Service. Richard is passionate about training and his hands on experience brings every course to a new level in with dealing with scenarios. He delivers first aid at work courses, clinical courses and, more recently, courses in manual handling and moving and handing of people. “I am delighted to welcome Amanda, Melanie and Richard to BLS Safety and Training,” says Justin Cowles, managing director. “They each bring a huge amount of skill and industry experience, which further strengthens the team, maintains our high standard of training and enables us to offer an even wider range of training courses, including mental health training.” Justin Cowles set up BLS Safety and Training in 2013 having gained many years’ experience as an emergency medical technician within the private ambulance sector. In April 2023, the business celebrates ten years of providing health and safety services to businesses across Norfolk. To celebrate ten successful years, Justin is offering 10% off every training course booked during the month of April. These can be booked via the website, email or telephone. For more information on the services offered by Norfolk Chamber of Commerce member BLS Safety and Training, and to view the training courses on offer, please visit the website: https://www.blstraining.co.uk/booking/ Image one | Amanda Merrin Image two | Melanie Walker Image three | Richard Hughes

Norwich Airport has teamed up with Norfolk and Waveney Mind as its chosen charity of the year. Airport staff will be organising a series of events and fundraising activities over the coming months to help people in need of mental health support. Norfolk and Waveney Mind, supports people in crisis, as well as those looking for general advice and information about dealing with mental health issues. Norwich Airport’s HR Manager Stephanie Dyball said teams across the site were already working on some creative ideas to support this year’s good cause. Plans include a spring raffle, bake sale and even a ‘onesie Wednesday, where staff can come to work in their all-in-one outfit and make a donation. “There will be some exciting things to look forward to, I’m sure,” said Stephanie. “Our staff here are very good at coming up with different suggestions and organising events. “It’s really important for us that we do our bit to help our local charities and we recognise that we can play a big part in raising awareness of the work they do. “We want to do whatever we can to support the work that Norfolk and Waveney Mind does. “Any one of us could be affected by problems with our mental health and it’s vital that people feel able to talk to someone when they need to most.” The team at Norfolk and Waveney Mind believes no one should have to face a mental health problem alone. Expert staff there offer urgent help to people worried about themselves, or a member of their family or a friend. They also help to signpost people to relevant organisations, including community support groups and well-being activities that can help in the longer term. Pete Boczko, CEO at Norfolk and Waveney Mind said: “Each year the demand for our services increases as more and more people seek support for their mental health. As Norfolk and Waveney’s leading mental health charity, we supported around 30,000 local people last year through our wide range of services and support programmes. “We couldn’t continue to do what we do without the help of our corporate partners and can’t thank Norwich Airport enough for choosing us to be their 2023 charity of the year. The fantastic activities they have planned will help us to raise both funds and awareness and truly make a big difference to local people.” Norwich Airport selects a different local charity every year to support, with staff raising thousands of pounds in the past through hosting a wide variety of events. Last year, the airport supported The Big C, raising more than £700 for the Norwich-based cancer charity. Richard Pace, Managing Director at Norwich Airport, said: “Our staff have already shown that they are fantastic at organising and getting behind fundraising events. We were able to collect £1,000 for The Big C, which we’ll be handing over to the cancer charity later this month. “We’re proud to be supporting Norfolk and Waveney Mind as our new charity of the year. “The work they do is relevant to all of us in some way and we’re pleased to be able to do our bit for this important local organisation.” For more information about Norwich Airport, visit www.norwichairport.co.uk and to find out about Waveney Mind visit www.norfolkandwaveneymind.org.uk