Manufacturing firms in the West of England are backing expansion at Heathrow Airport, with results of a new survey showing they believe it would be best for their sector and lead to a better balanced economy. The report by EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, comes ahead of next Tuesday’s deadline...
Bristol’s pioneering business incubator Engine Shed is to be expanded as part of a £18.1m increase in Government funding for the West of England announced this week. Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg visited the hi-tech building at Temple Meads on Thursday to announce the funding, which will also go...
Bristol digital entrepreneur Mark Mason has joined the leadership team of city-based research and development tax credit consultancy ForrestBrown to help it continue to grow. He will also seek to improve access for tech firms to the high levels of tax relief they may be eligible to claim against...
Bristol’s standing as one of the UK’s most innovative cities has been recognised in a major new report which also highlights the strength of its economy. The latest report from respected urban think tank Centre for Cities places Bristol ninth in the table of the leading UK cities for...
The former managing director of Bristol-based chocolate manufacturer Elizabeth Shaw has been appointed by alternative finance provider South West Investment Group (SWIG) Capital as a non-executive director to the board of its fund-holding arm. Malachy McReynolds, pictured, join the group, which since 1996 has invested £15m in to more...
Confidence among West of England businesses petered out at the end of 2014 and has started the new year lower than at any time over the previous 12 months, new research shows. Domestic sales, cashflow and recruitment expectations all fell during the fourth quarter, according to results of the...
Bristol is to become a test bed for hybrid buses that can automatically switch from diesel to electric power to reduce emissions in areas of the city with poor air quality. The vehicles will be piloted on the city’s streets thanks to a £1m Government grant. The trial coincides...
The University of Bristol is to play a key role in helping the UK develop a hub to manufacture next-generation advanced semiconductor materials. Along with the universities of Bath, Sheffield and Strathclyde and industrial partners, it has received £2.65m from the Engineering Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) to fund research into...
Bristol businessman and charity champion Stephen Parsons has been appointed MBE in the New Year Honours list. Mr Parsons, pictured, splits his time between specialist engineering firm Redcliffe Magtronics, where he is chairman, and his extensive charity work. He also chairs the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership’s (LEP)...
Phil Smith, managing director of Business West, the organisation behind Bristol Chamber of Commerce and the Bristol Initiative, looks back at the past 12 months and considers why next year’s General Election is set to be one of the most important in recent memory. “The noise and glare of...
The Bristol office of accountancy and investment management group Smith & Williamson has completed two private equity deals in one week, signalling a resurgence of interest from both businesses and investors. The firm’s Bristol tax, advisory and corporate finance teams worked closely with Bristol-based specialised advanced engineering firm Stirling...
The amount of world-leading research carried out at UWE Bristol has soared by 170%, according to a major new national report. The results of the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) show that 57 % of the research submitted by UWE was judged to be either world-leading or internationally excellent....
Bristol Chamber & Initiative has welcomed another decrease in unemployment but warned that “fundamental weaknesses” remain in the economy which threaten to hold back recovery. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published this week show unemployment across the South West fell by 2,000 between August and October,...
