By Adam Powell, director of skills, West of England LEP Businesses in our region continue to face the challenge of a skills gap, impacting on growth and stifling productivity and future innovation. However, how can we ensure that the skill demands of the business community can be met now...
Business Showcase South West 2015, the biggest event of its kind in the region, is hoping to welcome up to 3,000 delegates in just under two months’ time. The event attracted more than 1,700 pre-event delegate registrations for its inaugural show last year. This year it has been extended...
The latest changes to accounting practices, tax, regulations and company compliance procedures will be explained at a finance and business briefing staged by the Bristol office of accountancy and investment management group Smith & Williamson. The breakfast event on April 21 is aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)...
More than 800 jobs have been created in 222 businesses over the past year through the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership’s (LEP) Growth Fund. The £10m-plus handed out by the fund has enabled the wide range of businesses to gain training, attract investment and carry out research and...
Bristol firms are being urged to act quickly to secure the last few exhibition stands at the ‘early bird’ rate for Business Showcase South West 2015, the region’s biggest business exhibition. The event, which is expected to attract 3,000 delegates, is being staged at Colston Hall on May 14...
The deadline is looming for Bristol firms to enter one of the region’s top award schemes showcasing excellence and enterprise in business. Entries for the prestigious Institute of Directors’ South West Director of the Year Awards 2015 must be in by March 31. Nominations are open to anyone working...
The chief executive of UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), the Government’s international trade support body, has visited Thatchers HQ to get a taste of the cider makers’ impressive growth over recent years – much of it due to exporting. In his first visit to the West Country, Dominic Jermey...
Chancellor George Osborne announced a number of measures that could boost the economy in and around Bristol in this week’s Budget. These included granting full approval of the third and final section of Bristol’s MetroBus Network, running from the North Fringe to Hengrove and housing zones in South Bristol...
The CBI welcomed many of the “encouraging” Budget measures which it said would help businesses “create jobs for the benefit of all”. Director-general John Cridland said: “Stability and consistency are what businesses need to grow and prosper. This Budget sets the tone, providing a clear plan for fiscal health...
Economy UK grew 2.6% in 2014, faster than any other advanced economy but lower than 3% predicted in December 2.5% growth forecast in 2015, up from 2.4% predicted in December, followed by 2.3%, 2.3%, 2.3% and 2.4% in the next four years Alcohol, tobacco and gambling Beer duty cut...
Bristol-based specialist plastics manufacturer Phineas Group, which ‘reshored’ parts of its manufacturing from China a year ago, has created five jobs and secured a £100,000 tooling order since the move. The firm, which has a turnover of £5m and employs 14 people, is among a growing trend for firms...
More help for entrepreneurs, tech start-ups and exporters – and a better-funded HMRC – are among the items on the wish lists of Bristol experts ahead of this week’s Budget. Chancellor George Osborne will present the last Budget of this Parliament on Wednesday with many commentators expecting him to announce...
Bristol’s ambition to become a global laboratory for change has taken a major step forward with the official launch of Bristol Is Open – a world-beating project that places the city at the forefront of innovative technologies ranging from driverless cars to remote health monitoring. The ground-breaking ‘smart city’...
