There’s still time to book your early bird stand at B2B 2018. You can save £50 on the cost of your stand if you book online by Friday 25 May.
Celebrating its 20th year in 2018, the B2B Exhibtion brings together the finest business minds in Norfolk and beyond, giving you access to hundreds of businesses contacts that are looking for bright ideas and are keen to explore new opportunities.
B2B 2018 is the region’s premier business to business exhibition, offering your business a unique opportunity to maximise visibility of their brand, raise your profile and show Norfolk what you can offer.
Booking early not only saves you money, but offers you priority booking to reserve your preferred stand location.
Here at Norfolk Chamber of Commerce we respect your privacy and are committed to protecting it. As you know there are changes in data protection law, so we wanted you to know we’ve updated our privacy policy.
Your trust and protection of your data is important to us, and we want to make sure you understand what these changes mean for you. This Privacy Policy is designed to inform you of our policy and practices and to tell you of the way your information is collected and used.
Norfolk Chamber ensures that any data received will be processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation.
As result of GDPR we have recently sent a number of emails to our contacts to opt-in to continue receiving our email marketing. If haven’t yet responded and want to keep receiving email communications from us, you can sign up here.
If you have any questions about how we manage your data please call 01603 625977 or email hello@norfolkchamber.co.uk
Commenting on the labour market figures for May 2018, published this week by the ONS, Suren Thiru, Head of Economics at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“With unemployment declining and employment levels continuing to rise, the latest data confirms that the labour market remains a bright spot for the UK economy. However, while the latest figures are likely to reinforce the MPC’s hawkish rhetoric, labour market data tends to lag behind the wider economy, so any broader weakening in economic conditions wouldn’t be expected to appear in the figures for some time.
“While regular earnings growth continues to marginally outpace inflation, the decline in UK productivity in the first quarter is a clear warning sign that positive real wage growth should not be taken for granted. While businesses are reporting some upward pressure on pay, sluggish productivity and high upfront business costs are restricting the extent to which wages are able to rise.
“More needs to be done to support firms looking to recruit and grow their business, including tackling the high input costs faced by businesses and addressing the chronic labour shortages that continue to undermine the UK growth prospects.”
Commenting on the labour productivity statistics, Suren added:
“The fall in the first quarter is disappointing and shows that the recent pick-up in productivity was relatively short lived. The decline in the quarter was driven by weaker than expected GDP growth outturn in Q1 and the recent pick-up in hours worked.
“The persistent weakness in UK productivity reflects the longstanding structural problems in our economy from a chronic skills shortage, to our creaking infrastructure and the escalating cost of doing business in the UK. Delivering solutions to these key business concerns would help boost investment and drive the productivity gains we need to boost the UK’s long-term growth potential.”
Great news, the new edition of Norfolk Voice is out! This edition May/June focuses on GDPR. In our main feature, you will find an eight-page GDPR pull out with all you need to know, to get really for the 25 May 2018. Read about Dr Adam Marshall in our big interview, who is driving forward the British Chamber of Commerce, he gives us an insight into his vision, and challenges ahead for businesses.
Don’t miss out on how you can apply for the BCC Awards, and Norfolk Business Awards. We want to celebrate your great work in this region, so get that application filled in! In addition, we talk to Michael Baldwin from Bank House about his role as General Manager and President of the West Norfolk Chamber Council.
You can access the Norfolk Voice in several forms, digitally and of course print. For the digital version click on the link below. https://issuu.com/distinctivepublishing/docs/nv46
Don’t forget we love to hear from you and your businesses, your successes, your awards and creative journeys. You can get directly with Dominique on the email below.
If you would like to receive a hardcopy of the Norfolk Voice magazine please do let me know. dominique@norfolkchamber.co.uk
In Spring 2017 Highways England held a number of consultation events giving the public and businesses the opportunity to hear about and share their views on the A47 corridor improvement schemes. In August 2017, the preferred route announcement was made.
However Highways England have continued to develop more detailed designs and are pleased to advise they plan to hold further statutory consultation for the A47/A11 Thickthorn Junction Improvement starting on Monday 11 June 2018 and running until Friday 20 July 2018.
There will be four public information events for local communities and interested parties on the following dates and locations:
Saturday 23 June 2018 11am to 5pm The Forum, Norwich
Tuesday 3 July 2018 1pm to 8pm North Wymondham Community Centre
Friday 6 July 2018 1pm to 8pm Ketteringham Village Hall
Saturday 7th July 2018 11am to 5pm St Peters Church Hall, Cringleford
Eleven government departments have each appointed a Head of International Trade Profession to champion trade negotiation skills and help ensure that the UK develops appropriate expertise.
The International Trade Profession aims to raise the skills and ambitions of those working, or aspiring to work, in international trade by opening up new roles and career opportunities in the UK Government, supporting talented people to develop careers in trade and providing a training programme for them.
Announcing the initiative, the Chief Trade Negotiation Advisor, Crawford Falconer, said: “We are ensuring government attracts the best and brightest talent by not only offering trade professionals a clear route into working on trade policy, exports and investment at the centre of government but also nurturing their ability for the future through access to world-class training.”
The need for the UK to develop its own trade negotiation capacity has been highlighted by Brexit, with the possibility of the country having to take on responsibility for something that for many years has been the responsibility of the EU.
Commenting on the announcement, International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said that, by establishing the International Trade Profession, the Government has embedded the development of trade negotiation capability at the heart of its agenda and taken another important step in getting UK trade policy Brexit-ready.
That view was echoed by CBI Director-General Carolyn Fairbairn who commented: “Business will warmly welcome the appointment of Heads of International Trade Profession across Whitehall, demonstrating that the Government is building expertise and capability in a crucial area for post-Brexit Britain.”
Chief Operating Officer at Tech East,Tim Robinson will provide an update on the organiation’s mission to establish the East of England as the next global tech cluster and promote digital excellence across the region. Businesses will hear about the accelerated growth of exciting tech companies throughout Norfolk and the positive impact this has on the Eastern region. Tim will also examine the increasing availability of tech and digital skills throughout Norfolk and beyond. The event will be hosted by the Chamber’s Chief Executive, Chris Sargisson, who will facilitate an interactive Q+A session to close the event. The networking event at Barnham Broom Hotel will provide Norfolk Chambers with a chance to meet likeminded businesses, form valuable new connections and raise their profile in the Norfolk business community. Book your place at the event here.
With only two weeks to go until our Norwich Business Breakfast, now is your last chance to book onto our ever-popular breakfast in the centre of Norwich. Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from ofo’s Regional Operations Manager Matthew Thomas-Keeping who will be talking about the company’s evolution from 2014 to now. Matthew will discuss the context of bike sharing as a force to change urban mobility and where bike sharing will be heading in the coming months and years, in the context of Norwich. In usual Chamber style, we will also be providing:
A luxury Norwich venue
Lots of coffee and a full English breakfast
Our trademark networking activities
The rest is up to you! You will meet lots of other Chamber members at our most popular, and often sold out, Norwich Breakfast and hopefully leave (potentially on an ofo bike!) having made new business connections. Click here to book your place onto our Norwich breakfast.
Representatives from Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Suffolk – the three counties the A47 trunk road runs through – stand united in calling for the Government to fully dual the road between Peterborough and Lowestoft, a meeting heard today. Members of the A47 Alliance came together at County Hall in Norwich today (Friday, 11 May) to discuss ongoing efforts to convince the Government to invest in the A47. Currently just 47% of this major route is dual carriageway and while Highways England have committed to making £300m of improvements to the road, including dualling some stretches, this will still leave substantial sections of the A47 as single carriageway with no current plans to dual them. The Just Dual It! campaign, which is being led by Norfolk County Council, Norfolk Chamber of Commerce and the Eastern Daily Press, is calling on the Government to commit to make funding available to dual the entire length of the A47 by 2030. Since launching at the end of March, the campaign has received more than 2,000 messages of support from residents, businesses and political figures, whose reasons for wanting the route fully dualled range from road safety, shortening journey times and improving journey reliability and creating a better transport link between the east of England and the Midlands and beyond. At today’s meeting representatives heard updates on the campaign from Chairman of the A47 Alliance and Norfolk county councillor Martin Wilby, MP for Mid Norfolk George Freeman and Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough James Palmer. Martin Wilby said: “We knew a lot of people felt very strongly about getting the A47 fully dualled but the widespread support for Just Dual It! has shown that this campaign crosses borders and matters to people from all walks of life. As it stands, the road is a source of regular frustration and concern. Fully dualled, the A47 would be an asset to counties in the east of England, supporting business growth, boosting tourism and improving day-to-day life for hundreds of thousands of people. “We’ve waited long enough, it’s time for the Government to commit to fully dualling this major route – and we won’t rest until they do.” George Freeman MP said: “While I am very proud that we have managed to secure the £300 million required for the first phase of A47 dualling, it is imperative that we now get the rest dualled in order to improve safety and ensure that Norfolk has the 21st century transport system it deserves. Only then can we unlock the true economic potential of our great county.” James Palmer said: “Dualling the A47 is essential for the future prosperity of the northern part of East Anglia. “I have been only too pleased to lend my support to the A47 Alliance and the Just Dual It! campaign. When I became Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough last year, I made the A47 one of my key transport priorities. I felt the Highways England proposals already on the table – the dualling of 2.5km of road from Wansford to Sutton and improvements at the Guyhirn roundabout by 2021 – were not nearly ambitious enough. “Big regional campaigns like Just Dual It! really do make a difference to decision makers in Whitehall and I stand ready to make the case for dualling the A47 as loud and as clear as possible on behalf of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.” The importance of dualling the road to the regions’ businesses was also stressed at the meeting, and their support for the campaign is seen as key to getting Westminster to invest in the road. Nova Fairbank, Public Affairs Manager for Norfolk Chamber said:”The full dualling of the A47 is a ‘must have’ for Norfolk Chamber and the local business community in order to deliver greater economic growth and jobs in this region. From tourism to logistics, manufacturing to research, all sectors across our region rely heavily on the A47 as our main road artery East to West and onwards to the Midlands. Improvements to this route are vital to help us to remain accessible and competitive.” Richard Perkins, Suffolk Chamber representative to the A47 Alliance, said: “Suffolk Chamber of Commerce have been supporting their members in North East Suffolk for a long time in seeking to substantially improve the A47, which is the only trunk road serving the area and provides vital links to Great Yarmouth, Norwich and the UK in general. The creation of a fully dualled A47 is robustly endorsed by Suffolk Chamber, its members and the business community in general and will greatly facilitate the accelerated economic growth of the Energy Coast areas of Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth.” There are several ways that businesses can show their support for the campaign to get the A47 fully dualled, including:
These messages will be transferred onto a Just Dual It! postcard, which will then be hand-delivered to Westminster in the summer to evidence the strong support that exists for getting the A47 dualled.
Councillors from Norfolk County Council’s Digital Innovation and Efficiency Committee today approved the publication of a mobile phone coverage map, which has been created using the results of a study commissioned by the Council earlier this year. The survey covered 5,000km of Norfolk’s roads and 30 places on foot, capturing six million data points, looking at the quality of coverage from the four main mobile network operators (MNO) including EE, Telefonica/O2, Three and Vodafone across 2G, 3G 4G. Today the Council committed to working closely with the MNOs to identity where in the county additional mobile equipment is required and where NCC owns structures that could be used to house new phone masts. The council will also facilitate conversations with other local public sector organisations such as district councils and Police, to look for even more buildings which could be utilised. The mobile survey will be repeated in 12 months to show how much progress has been made on improving mobile phone signals across the county. Tom Garrod, Chairman of Norfolk County Council’s Digital Innovation and Efficiency Committee, said:
“We regularly hear from residents and businesses who are plagued by poor mobile phone signals in Norfolk, but it was important that we got a accurate, impartial assessment of the situation. Now that we know where the problem areas are we can start to do something about it. “This map provides us with a strong starting point to work with the mobile network operators to improve signal right across the county. In our work together to improve the signal we will be overlaying more than 200 council owned structures onto the map which potentially could be used to house mobile masts. I am confident that by working with the mobile network operators and removing as many barriers as we can, we will begin to see signal improve quickly.”
Also commenting on the release of the mobile phone coverage map, Nova Fairbank, Public Affairs Manager for Norfolk Chamber said:
“We have a diverse and innovative business community in Norfolk, however if we want to be seen as a place to do business and be able to compete at a national and international level, we need more investment in Norfolk’s mobile signal infrastructure and improved services from the mobile providers. Norfolk Chamber will continue to work in partnership with Norfolk County Council and the mobile network operators to work towards greater mobile signal coverage in Norfolk.”
The Chamber Business Awards 2018 are open for entries for businesses across the UK. Here in Norfolk, we want to champion the success and excellence of our business community by helping you become national award winners.
“Finding and celebrating businesses which are delivering award-winning, innovative work and services will put Norfolk on the map as a great place to work and to do business. That’s good for the local economy and good for quality local jobs.” – Peter Treglown, Four
Has your business shone through customer commitment? Or perhaps you’ve found new and innovative ways to incorporate technology in your work. The Chamber Business Awards offers nine categories for your business to enter; if you like you can even enter all nine.
The categories are:
Small Business of the Year (Employing less than 75 full time members of staff)
Export Business of the Year
Best Use of Technology
High Growth Business of the Year
Employer of the Year
Education and Business Partnership
Customer Commitment Award
Workplace Wellbeing Award
Digital Communication Campaign of the Year
Businesses who enter the awards will compete with fellow entrants from across our region; for us that’s the East of England. Once regional winners have been chosen, they will go on to compete for the national titles.
In the past two years Norfolk has produced two regional winners. EPOS Now, who in 2017 were recognised in the ‘Commitment to People and Development’ category said:
“As a company that strives to nurture innovations and honour success, to be recognised and celebrated as one of the leading employers in the area really is a fantastic mark of our dedication to our people.” – Hayley Johnson, COO, EPOS Now
The awards are free to enter and open to Chamber members only. The deadline for applications is midnight on Friday 29 June.
To find out more about the awards, or to enter click here!