The Highways Agency (HA) is developing Route-Based Strategies for the strategic road network as the basis for the infrastructure investment plans heralded by the Government after the last Budget in Investing in Britain’s Future.
One of the routes of particular importance to businesses in Norfolk is the ‘East of England’ route, which covers the A47, A11, A12 and A120.
In connection with that route the Department for Transport is currently conducting a feasibility study into the A12/A47 corridor from Lowestoft to Peterborough with a view to establishing the economic and employment benefits to prioritise further investment. To provide evidence for the feasibility study, Norfolk and Suffolk Chambers of Commerce have been asked to survey their members about their use of the route.
If you are a regular business user of the A12/A47 between Norwich and Lowestoft or beyond, we would therefore very much value your responses to a few questions by Wednesday 26 March 2014.
The road use survey will only take a few minutes of your time and can be completed here.
As a follow up to the Norfolk Chamber’s ‘Audience with George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer’ event on the 7 November, we submitted a number of questions from our members to the Chancellor. Responses to those questions are now starting to be received from the relevant Ministers within Westminster.
Jay Mehta is a solicitor at Howes Percival. The Norwich-based company have been Chamber members for over 20 years.
Jay’s question to the Chancellor was:
“The Community Infrastructure Levy (now implemented and in force by Norwich City Council and Broadland District Council) operates as a non-negotiable tax on new development. This is because developers have lost the opportunity to negotiate the levels of contributions payable for new infrastructure and are unable to recover all or part of such contributions if not used within a certain time.
Consequently, is there not a risk that CIL would dissuade developers from developing sites? If so, what measures are being proposed to prevent this from happening and ensuring proposed development remains viable?
The judicial review of planning permissions is a constant source of delay and expense for developers. In practice, such challenges cause significant delays in the building of homes and other developments.
I am pleased to hear that a new dedicated “planning chamber” has been recently proposed to speed up the process, although guidance indicates that this new chamber shall only hear claims concerning “major development.”
Find on the attached document the written response from the Department for Communities and Local Government.
Who could resist an invite to spend an evening networking with an intriguing medieval merchant with a penchant for extensions and risk taking?
Tuesday evening was spent in one of Norwich’s most beautiful heritage buildings, the medieval Dragon Hall on King Street. Dragon hall is home to the National Centre for Writing, who take care of the city’s UNESCO City of Literature status.
We were very proud to support The National Centre for Writing as they opened their doors and welcomed Norfolk Chamber of Commerce members to join them for one of their heritage tours and fizz in the Foyle Gallery, the stunning contemporary glass addition to Dragon Hall.
Meg Rumbelow Hemsley, Development Manager and Peggy Hughes, Programme Director talked about the NCW role and the exciting creative work they support and inspire in the community.
By creating a programme that engages writers, literary translators and readers, both in person and online the National Centre for Writing are supporting new voices and stories. With a full programme of workshops and mentoring. If you are interested in attending any of the events you can find out more here.
Following the fizz, we split into three groups and followed the incredibly knowledgeable Heritage volunteers, Mary Bradford, Richard Matthew and Malcolm Ireson around the stunning Grade 1 listed building.
From stories of the 15th Century entrepreneur Robert Toppes to visiting the 14th Century Undercroft it was a witty and colourful journey back in time.
If you want to start writing, or improve your skills you can find inspiring and creative tips on NCW blog page.
The Heritage tours are free to attend and are run on the first and third Monday of each month at 2pm. You can find out more about the next upcoming tour in February here.
Norfolk Chamber’s Representation Council recently held its inaugural meeting. The Representation Council consists of members of the Chamber Board, the chairs of the Area Councils and Special Interest Groups, together with senior representatives of the Chamber’s Gold Patrons. They will meet on a quarterly basis.
Their aim is to set the policy direction for the Chamber and there are three key policy priorities for the Representation Council to consider:
Promoting a positive message for Norfolk
Unlocking the potential of young people
Improving Norfolk’s infrastructure
Discussions centred around how to work collaboratively with Norfolk business organisations, local authorities and MPs as well as other counties, such as Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. In addition the group also received an update from Iain Dunnett, the Stakeholder Manager for New Anglia LEP on their Strategic Economic Plan.
The chair of the Representation Council is the Chamber President, Ian Hacon, who said: “The aim of the Chamber’s Representation Council is to drive the policy aspects of the business agenda for Norfolk and to ensure that the Chamber has a positive influence at a local, regional and national level.”
Photo: Left to Right Back Row: Andrew Barnes, Caroline Williams, John Morse, Bob Crawley and Tracey Howard Left to Right Front Row: Ian Hacon, Jonathan Denby, David Whitehead, Jonathan Cage, Geoff Tucker, Heather Garrod and Bobby Burrage
Norfolk Chamber of Commerce is a member of the steering group for Norwich for Jobs and is very excited about what has been achieved in relation to Norwich’s young people over the past 12 months. One year on, Norwich for Jobs wants to celebrate the success together with the local business community at an event to be held at the Forum on 21 February from 8.30am – 10.30am.
As a business community we can still do more to help our young people and part of the celebration on the 21st will be to help businesses to understand better how to do this, as well as help celebrate what has been achieved so far.
Norfolk Chamber’s Apprenticeship Brokerage Scheme is also there to help businesses through the minefield of employing an apprentice, so if you are at the stage of looking at the possibilities, Chris Perry would be happy to discuss it with you: chris.perry@norfolkchamber.co.uk or call 01603 729 707.
Over half of UK firms attempted to recruit in the last quarter of 2019, but almost three quarters have struggled to find the right talent, the largest survey of UK employers has found.
Labour market remains stable as over half (55%) of UK businesses attempted to recruit in the final quarter of 2019.
Skills shortages continue to impact growth as 72% of firms reported recruitment difficulties in Q4 2019.
With greater political stability, one in four (26%) businesses expect to increase their workforce in Q1 2020.
The latest Quarterly Recruitment Outlook from the British Chambers of Commerce, in partnership with Totaljobs, revealed continued skills shortages in the UK workforce ahead of the government’s first Budget next month. While over half of UK firms (55%) were looking to hire, the report revealed that 72% of businesses had difficulty finding the right talent. The figures illustrate a critical skills deficit across the UK workforce, with shortages most apparent in the construction and hospitality sectors, with 79% and 77% respectively struggling to recruit. Two thirds (67%) of construction businesses attempted to recruit in Q4, up from 62% in Q3. In both these sectors – and others – uncertainty over the UK’s future immigration regime continues to be a concern.
Looking ahead, 26% of UK firms say they plan to increase their workforce in the first quarter of 2020. The construction industry reports the highest proportion of firms looking to grow their headcount (34%).
The report’s findings highlight the need to address critical skills shortages in the upcoming Budget, including commitments to long-term funding for vocational education and for apprenticeships in small and medium-sized businesses – both of which are crucial to the government’s ambition to ‘level up’ opportunities across the UK. BCC and Totaljobs are also calling on the government to review the Apprenticeship Levy, which hits every firm with a payroll of over £3m, to ensure companies can use the funds to train their staff. Greater flexibility for employers on how funds can be used towards vital non-apprenticeship or accredited training could help to make better use of this budget and upskill the UK workforce. Adam Marshall, Director General of BCC, said: “Although it is encouraging that businesses are looking to take on people, the prolonged skills shortages they’re facing are not sustainable as they try to shake off years of political uncertainty and pursue growth. “Training has got to be at the heart of the upcoming Budget if the government wishes to demonstrate that it is serious about ‘levelling up’ opportunity all across the UK. Funding boosts are needed for vocational and technical education, for apprenticeships, and for incentives to help more employers provide high-quality job-related training. “As the UK forms new economic relationships with the EU and partners across the world, businesses also need clarity on who they can recruit. As things stand, businesses don’t know who they can hire, and under what conditions, from New Year’s Day 2021. That’s unacceptable. The Government needs to act swiftly to deliver a fast, flexible new immigration system that allows firms to access staff at all skill levels, and limits upfront fees, delays and costly red tape.” Jon Wilson, General Manager of Totaljobs, said: “The market is very much active and hiring intentions remain strong, with Totaljobs seeing 640,000 jobs advertised alongside over 12 million job applications in Q4 2019. Yet, skills shortages continue to impact many UK businesses, as one factor contributing to the UK’s low productivity rate. “UK businesses need to ensure they have robust training opportunities to keep the people they need. Totaljobs research shows that two thirds of UK workers have left a job due to a lack of learning and development. Clearly, learning new skills is very much tied up in job satisfaction. For SMEs particularly, training budgets can be an issue, which is why dedication and support from the government is essential in order to help the UK workforce upskill.”
The B2B Exhibition is Norfolk Chambers flagship event, returning to Norfolk Showground on Thursday 15th October. We are pleased to be welcoming SLM Toyota as our first sponsors of the exhibition, taking both space outdoors with a fleet of vehicles to welcome attendees and a stand inside the main arena. Whether you drive a company car, manage a fleet of vehicles or need cars for your company, SLM Toyota have a number of solutions to help. Their business team are trained to meet your needs. Visit their website to find out more. SLM Toyota will be both outdoors and on stand 62 at The B2B Exhibition. The B2B Exhibition is free to all businesses to attend with ticket registrations opening soon. For more information on the event please click here. Opportunities to sponsor The B2B Exhibition including joining SLM Toyota with outdoor space, are all available now! Find out more. Exhibition stand bookings open on 24 February.
Help us give a warm welcome to the newest members of Norfolk Chambers of Commerce for the month of January 2020.
Visit their business to explore what they have to offer. Click on a business name below to view the full listing in our Member Directory.
The One Question When it comes to feedback systems, many business owners are left asking ‘which is right for my business?’ The One Question was designed and built in response to this need, to get to the heart of the one thing that matters.
Mustard HR Mustard HR specialises in Employee Relations – essentially the collective and individual relationships within a workplace. Lucy has many years’ experience working in various HR roles and alongside her day job siting in on Employment Tribunals as part of the adjudicating panel.
Bartrums Road Services From their location in the heart of East Anglia, Bartrums provide road haulage and warehousing services to a wide range of industries in Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex.
Minuteman Press Minuteman Press have been trading from their Norwich city centre location since 1998, offering litho & digital printing, including variable data and large format printing, along with a range of finishing options, such as folding & creasing.
Norfolk Snowsports Club Norfolk Snowsports Club is a Members Club; they are ran by their members, for their members. With over 80 qualified ski and snowboard instructors and a range of activities for all abilities, Norfolk Snowsports Club has something for everyone.
Knight Accountancy Lewis Knight, Director of Knight Accountancy, is a fully licensed AAT qualified accountant as well as Xero advisor certified. Lewis provides accountancy and tax services to sole traders, partnerships and limited companies.
OFT Global OFT Global Limited is a registered international freight-forwarding company based in the United Kingdom. They are also a licensed customs agent in Nigeria and an authorized indirect air carrier/NVOCC (Non Vessel Owning Common Carrier) agent in the United Kingdom.
Horton Training Horton Training aims to provide first aid training courses for all. Whether you need training for your job role, or you just want to learn a new skill, they will have a course for you.
ISTQ Training ISTQ are a leading provider of training qualifications and CPD for the Corporate, Licensed Retail and Security Sectors. Training delivered by ISTQ is recognised on an International basis for the quality of their delivery, competitive pricing and their resources.
State Bank of India UK In the UK, SBI has been active since 1921, and has grown to become the largest Indian bank in the UK. Whilst SBI’s operations in the UK began in wholesale banking, it has now expanded to include a subsidiarised, ring-fenced retail offering as well.
Following the success of The B2B Exhibition in 2019, held at Norfolk Showground for the first year, we are excited to announce a new Brand Partnership designed to enhance the profile of the show for 2020. Our new Brand Partnership, formed with local Norwich business Ark, will see The B2B Exhibition go through a re-brand to become The B2B Show. This re-brand will give B2B not only a new name, but a new look too, utilising elements of the recent Norfolk Chambers re-brand to make the show stand out. Based in the Norwich Lanes, Ark have worked on a range of exciting local projects since forming including the Norwich City of Stories brand, Liftshare, UEA Innovation and Impact Awards, Visit North Norfolk, Jarrold Privilege Club and more. Although in the early concept stages, we are excited to see how the brand forms ready to unveil it to you in the coming months. Keep your eyes on our website and social media and get ready for an exciting change. For more information on the show, click here.
What is the Apprenticeship Intermediary Service? It’s a centralised support service delivered by NSAR in partnership with the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) to help Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and other smaller business intermediaries throughout England understand the recent changes to apprenticeships and how this impacts smaller employers. By working in partnership with you, this service aims to provide practical advice to as many smaller employers as possible until March 2020.
Why is the service needed? There are over 2,000,000 smaller employers in England and from January 2020, they have a choice in the way they engage with apprenticeships. The Government has a vision to improve the quality of apprenticeships and ensure they work for businesses of all sizes. That’s why at the beginning of the year they opened up the apprenticeship service for all businesses, not just large ones. This change will allow smaller employers, who do not pay the apprenticeship levy, to make more informed decisions when it comes to apprenticeships, ensuring they are doing what’s best for their business.
How can you help? We’re working in partnership and collaboration with local intermediaries, sharing tools and knowledge so that your network of local businesses can confi dently navigate the apprenticeship service. We want to help you to drive regional growth by encouraging business growth through apprenticeships.
How will we support you? NSAR has recruited Partnership Leads to work in regional clusters with intermediaries to deliver a schedule of information-sharing activities in each LEP region in England. These will involve a selection of co-delivered events, webinars and workshops and will cover subjects including:
The Apprenticeship Service – what is it, how to register, how is it used?
Making Apprenticeships Work for Smaller Employers – the Toolkit launch
We are offering webinars on the following dates to update you on the progress of the intermediary service and showcase best practice in your regions:
January 29th
February 26th
March 25th
We are also running regional ‘Masterclass for Intermediaries’ workshops. These funded workshops are open to intermediary staff and will provide coaching on the changes to Apprenticeships, allowing you to pass on sustainable support to your smaller employer networks beyond the end of this project.
In addition, we have grant funding to help intermediaries raise awareness across England so get in touch today to see how you can get involved.
To get involved in the campaign, register for the webinars or sign-up for your nearest event contact us at apprenticeships@nsar.co.uk
The UK left the European Union on 31 January 2020, bringing us to the final stages of Brexit – a process that officially began almost three years ago.
The Department for International Trade has begun preparations for the UK’s first independent tariff policy in almost fifty years. This means that the UK will be free to set its tariff rates on all imported goods. To inform the development of the UK Global Tariff, the Government has launched a four-week public consultation on the UK Global Tariff policy, beginning on 6 February 2020 and closing on 5 March 2020.
Julie Austin, International Trade Manager at Norfolk Chambers of Commerce, encourages everyone with an interest to take part and provide their views. So, take part today, and be part of the voice that shapes what happens from the 1 January 2021.
The tariffs will apply to all imported goods into the UK, unless in exceptional circumstances such as a preferential agreement or if tariff suspensions apply. As such, this tariff will not apply to goods incoming from developing countries that benefit under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences, or to goods originating from countries that the UK has negotiated a free trade agreement (FTA).
Regarding Northern Ireland, specific arrangements that are in place are provided by the Northern Ireland/Ireland Protocol within the Withdrawal Agreement.
The interests of producers in the United Kingdom of the goods concerned
The desirability of maintaining and promoting the external trade of the United Kingdom
The desirability of maintaining and promoting productivity in the United Kingdom
The extent to which the goods concerned are subject to competition
The government will also seek to balance strategic trade objectives, such as the delivery of the UK’s trade ambitions and FTA trade agenda, with maintaining the government’s commitment to developing countries to reduce poverty through trade.
The consultation offers you the opportunity to provide:
Views on a potential series of amendments to the Common External Tariff to create a bespoke UK tariff- specifically: simplifying and tailoring the UK Global Tariff policy, removing tariffs on goods imported by UK businesses to manufacture other goods, and where the UK has zero or limited domestic production
Specific feedback on specific products or commodity codes of importance to you, including on the corresponding tariff rate
Information on your interactions with MFN tariffs and the importance of tariffs to your sectors
Throughout the consultation respondents are encouraged to provide evidence to support their view, including the possible impact (costs and benefits) of amending or not amending the tariff on businesses, consumers and the economy.
This consultation represents a unique and historic opportunity for every business, every person and every civil society group, in every part of the UK, to have their say.
So be sure to share your views and contribute to the preparation of the MFN tariff policy that comes into force from the 1 January 2021.
It is recommended that you use a desktop or laptop computer to complete your response to this consultation.
For any further queries on guidance or accessibility you can email tariffconsultation@trade.gov.uk. This email address will no longer be monitored once the consultation closes on 5 March 2020.
If you have any further queries regarding International Trade please do not hesitate to contact the International Trade Department at Norfolk Chambers of Commerce on 01603 729706 or email export@norfolkchambers.co.uk
Do you agree with the identified topmost burdensome EU laws?
The 20.8 million European small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) create 85% of all new jobs in Europe, they employ 2/3 of the workforce in the EU and they contribute significantly to innovation and growth.
Following the principle “think small first”, and in line with the Small Business Act of 2008, the Commission advise they have put SMEs at the heart of its smart regulation agenda to help growth and job creation in Europe. In a broad consultation initiated by the Commission, around 1000 SMEs and business organisations have now identified the top 10 most burdensome EU laws.
The purpose of this broad consultation was to check where EU regulation might be impeding jobs and growth and to identify areas or issues which would require further examination and action where necessary. The result published today indicates that SMEs see the biggest difficulties and costs as a consequence of the rules regarding the REACH chemical legislation, value added tax, product safety, recognition of professional qualifications, data protection, waste legislation, labour market related legislation, recording equipment for road transport, public procurement and the modernised customs code.
The following EU laws have been identified by SMEs as the TOP 10 most burdensome EU laws:
REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals)
VAT – Value added tax legislation
General Product Safety and market surveillance package
Recognition of professional qualifications
Shipments of waste – Waste framework legislation – List of waste and hazardous waste
Labour market-related legislation
Data protection
Working time
Recording equipment in road transport (for driving and rest periods)
Procedures for the award of public contracts (public works, supply and service contracts)