IN THE SEPTEMBER GOOD MORNING LEICESTERSHIRE
- Make The Skills Pledge
- Unique Opportunity at LeicesterCity Football Club
- IT Workshops
- Free Business Conference
- £40,000 Boost For SMES
- Speakers Announced For Business Event
- Corporate Relay Challenge
- The Musical Interlude
- Special Olympics In Leicester
- Sponsorship Opportunity
- Business Link Update
- GCCEuropeEXPO
- ChinaSeminar: The New Business Superpower
- Forthcoming Chamber Events
GET INVOLVED
If your company would like to help the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce continue to provide this informative e-newsletter Good Morning Leicestershire and raise the profile of your own business at the same time then please talk to Sharon Jeffrey on 0116 204 6618 to discuss sponsorship opportunities, preferential rates are available for Chamber Members
MAKE THE SKILLS PLEDGE
Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce, in association with The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, would like to invite you attend The Skills Pledge – Make The UK A World Leader In Skills By 2020.
This special event, to be held at the Peepul Centre, Leicester on 14th October, gives you an opportunity to hear what making the Skills Pledge can do for your company, with a key note speech from David Lammy,National Minister of State for Skills. As well as hearing first hand about the new and emerging national skills policies you will also hear how these fit with the economic priorities of the East Midlands.
Key themes to be covered include:
- Skills Pledge with a particular focus on the take up of training and development.
- Skills Polices concentrating on employers.
- New and emerging government skills policies.
- Train to Gain – how this can help your business.
Key to this event is an extensive feedback session where you, as a member of the local business community, will be able to ask questions about the skills challenge and feedback your thoughts to those who can make a real difference.
Make the Skills Pledge and Make the skills of your people, your key business asset….
Please contact Sharon Jeffreyon email: Jeffrey.s@chamberofcommerce.co.uk to book your place or for more information.
UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY AT LEICESTER CITY FOOTBALL CLUB
Business People can join Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce on 11th October at Leicester City Football Club for a home game against Yeovill, cost £20 per ticket and this includes exclusive use of a private room, buffet food, car parking, interval tea and coffee and good seats for the game. Please contactSharon Jeffreyat the Chamber on 0116 2046618 or email at Jeffrey.s@chamberofcommerce.co.uk for further information and tickets.
FREE IT WORKSHOPS
A series of free IT workshops, designed for SMEs and supported by Business Link, are scheduled for the coming months. Details are as follows:
Date: Breakfast Briefings:
30 September Mobile Working
Venue: Quorn Country Hotel, nr Loughborough
Date: Workshops:
2 October Planning a Succesful Website
6 October Advanced Search Engine Optimisation
In addition a number of web academy clinics, funded by Leicester Shire Economic Partnership, will be running at the Beauchamp College Training Centre. The clinics will run one day a week over a 3 week period and you will need to commit to all three dates. The clinics are free for delegates to attend but only companies based within Leicestershire, with a Leicestershire postcode, will be eligible to book. Details are as follows:
Web Academy Clinics – Online Marketing
Date: 20 Oct / 24 Oct / 4 Nov
Time: 8.30am – 5pm
Web Academy Clinics - Online Marketing
Date: 11 Nov/ 17 Nov / 25 Nov
Time: 8.30am – 5pm
To secure your place on any of these free events or to discover how ebusiness can benefit your business, please visit www.ebusinessclub.biz or contact the Business Link eBusiness Programme Team direct on 0845 603 8370
FREE BUSINESS CONFERENCE
The Business Conference for the East Midlands, to be held on 1st October 2008, is the second business conference organised and run by the East Midlands Learning Skills Council (LSC).
The conference is to be held at the East Midlands Conference Centre and last year attracted over 300 delegates. An all-day event this years conference will include 4 keynote speakers and the option to attend 2 of 4 seminars being run on the day.
The keynote speakers are Pete Waterman (Music Mogul), Emma Harrison (Secret Millionaire), Tim Campbell (first winner of The Apprentice) and Matthew Amroliwala (BBC News24 presenter).
The event is aimed at businesses that employ more than 25 employees and who are located in the East Midlands region. It is free to attend, however a £50 charge will be made to delegates who book but do not turn up.
Partners in this event include Business Link, Train to Gain, emda and emqc.
For more details contact Maria Iliffe at: maria.iliffe@lsc.gov.uk
£40,000 BOOST FOR SMES
Small businesses with big ideas to tackle climate change are being urged to compete for awards of up to £40,000 each, as the Shell Springboard programme opens for its fourth year.
With the Government pledging a million new ‘green collar’ jobs over the next two decades, Shell Springboard is urging UK SMEs to capitalise on the growing market opportunity by applying for a financial boost from the programme. James Smith, Chairman of ShellUK, said: "SMEs are a vibrant and creative sector of the economy, so they're ideally placed to be climate change entrepreneurs."
Shell Springboard offers a financial boost for UK businesses with compelling ideas for tackling climate change. These must be ideas which:
- Will lead to greenhouse gas reductions
- Are commercially viable
- Are innovative
Up to six awards of between £20,000 and £40,000 are on offer in each of three UK regions. Last year awards of £40,000 were made to five businesses from across theUK.
The deadline for 2008 entries is 7th November 2008. Full details and an online application form can be found at www.shellspringboard.org
SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED FOR BUSINESS EVENT
Leicester Business Event (LBE) 2008, the premier event for small and medium businesses in the Leicestershire region, will provide all the expertise entrepreneurs need to help increase their business potential.
The free conference will feature a number of high profile keynote speakers, well-known business owners and experts on the issues that entrepreneurs face while developing their business.
Speakers include Alastair Campbell entrepreneur behind the award-winning Ideal Marketing Company who will present the seminar entitled Marketing Breakthrough – the 17 key marketing areas to put your time, money and effort into. Learn how to gain more media coverage, improve direct mail response rates and convert more prospects as well as a host of other important marketing topics in this informative and fast moving seminar.
The exhibition will feature leading specialists in small business management with superb solutions to help businesses increase their efficiency and improve their profitability and develop sustainable growth. Professionals including accountants, lawyers and small business support services will be on hand to advise visitors on all aspects of developing their business.
The Leicester Business Event is open from 9am on Wednesday 1st October 2008. For tickets call the hotline on 0116 240 2330 or email: info@hi2events.co.uk
CORPORATE RELAY CHALLENGE
Freeth Cartwright Solicitors Leicester office are organising and sponsoring a Corporate Relay Challenge over the half-marathon course as part of the Leicester Marathon 2008 which takes place on Sunday 19th October.
The nominated charities for this event are LOROS, Rainbows and St John's Ambulance, each a worthwhile charity which provides invaluable help and support to the local community.
Freeth Cartwright would like to extend an invitation to you and your organisation to enter a relay team. The entry fee is £100 per team plus any additional donations, with all funds going to charity. The relay teams will comprise a team of 4 runners who will each run a leg of approximately 3.25 miles over the official half marathon course. The relay and the main marathon will start and finish at Victoria Park in Leicester and Freeth Cartwright are organising hospitality and refreshments at the finish. It is hoped that many local companies will be keen to participate and make this a day to remember.
For more information contact Sally Stephens on 0116 248 1146 or email: sally.stephens@freethcartwright.co.uk
THE MUSICAL INTERLUDE
Maestro Christoph von Dohnányi returns to De Montfort Hall, Leicester on Friday 31 October 2008 in his new role as Philharmonia Orchestra Honorary Conductor for Life, to conduct Bruckner’s Symphony No. 4,Romanticand Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante K364, arguably the finest of all his concertos for strings. The concert begins at 7.30pm.
Click here for more information and booking details.
The Philharmonia Orchestra is proud to be a member of Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce.
SPECIAL OLYMPICS IN LEICESTER
The 8th Special Olympics GB National Summer Games 2009 will take place in Leicester between 25th and 31st July 2009. Involving 2700 athletes, 1200 coaches, 1500 volunteers, 6,000 families, 21 sports and 7 days of achievements, there are lots of ways you can get involved.
For more details visit: www.sol2009.com
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITY
Has all that recent Olympic glory tempted you into a bit more exercise? It has for Jeremy Waterfield, from Nex Communication. Jeremy is running the first-ever Royal Parks Half-Marathon on 12 October. More importantly, he is doing it to raise at least £500 for Home-Start, the family support charity. Can you sponsor Jeremy? If so please go to his Just Giving web page at www.justgiving.com/jeremywaterfield to make a very welcome credit card donation, or just be ready to pledge a few pounds when he next sees you. For more information on Home-Start go to www.home-start.org.uk
BEAT THE CREDIT CRUNCH
You can use Business Link East Midlands tools and guides to get advice that could help your business combat the effects of the credit crunch. The potential impact of the credit crunch may be a worry for some businesses. Business Link have a range of resources that can help organisations take steps toprotect themselves and prepare for the adverse business conditions. The business health check tool can help identify areas that could help improve performance and your chances of survival. It is also important to think about managing risk in order to prevent crises that can be foreseen.
To read the full article visit:
http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/eastmidlands/creditcrunch
GCC EUROPE EXPO
GCC EUROPE EXPO will take place between 12-13 November 2008 at Olympia 2 Exhibition Hall, London. The premier event to facilitate trade and investment between the Gulf countries and the EU, it has over 150 exhibitors, 100 speakers plus EU and GCC country specific dedicated seminar sessions. For the latest information and registration visit: www.gcceuroexpo.com
CHINA SEMINAR: THE NEW BUSINESS SUPERPOWER
The Quorn Country Hotel in Quorn will be the venue for the above seminar which will take place on the evening of 24th September. The seminar will include guest speakers, case study and a question and answer session as well as networking opportunities.
The guest speakers are:
Professor Shujie Yao who is the head of the School of Contemporary Chinese Studies at The University of Nottingham. The Journal of Asian Economic Literature recently ranked Professor Yao as the world’s eighth best scholar specialising in the study of the Chinese economy.
Ting Zhang is CEO of China Business Solutions, a leading China specialist consultancy that helps European companies achieve greater success in China. Ting Zhang has 18 years experience in international trade & investment in China; her areas of expertise cover China entry strategy, market intelligence, due diligence, outsourcing & partnering, technology transfer and IP protection.
For more details contact Cheryl Crannesson Tel: 0116 257 5611 or email: CherylCrannes@emd.org.uk
PRESIDENT'S GALA DINNER 2008
Sponsored by Business Link
Date: 24 September
Venue: Marriott Hotel, Leicester
Time: 7.30pm – 11.30pm
Cost: Chamber Members £49.50 / Standard £59.50. Tickets for tables of ten can also be purchased at £470 for chamber members and £570 standard.
Dr Andrew Sentance, an external member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England, is to be the guest speaker at the President’s Gala Dinner event hosted by the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce.
For access to information, advice & support to start, maintain and grow your business - call 0845 058 6644 emai linfo@businesslinkem.co.uk or visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/eastmidlands
CHAMBER AUTUMN GOLF DAY
Date: 25 September
Time: 8.30am – 4pm approx.
Venue: Park Hill Golf & Leisure, Seagrave
Cost: Chamber Members £49.50 / Standard £59.50
For networking with a difference come along to the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce Autumn Corporate Hospitality Golf Day. For several years now the Chamber has been organising and hosting popular golf day events which enable local business people to meet, chat and network informally whilst enjoying a round of golf.
Prizes are sponsored by HWCA and there is also a hole-in-one prize of a car sponsored by Sytner.
CURRY NETWORKING NIGHT
Sponsored by The Business Booster
Date: 7 October
Venue: Spice ofIndia, Syston
Time: 6pm – 8.30pm
Cost: Chamber Members £25 / Standard £35
Leicestershire Chamber invites you to a networking evening with an Indian touch at one of Leicestershire's well-known Indian restaurants. The Spice of India will be providing a delicious buffet banquet, with several Indian starters and main courses, you can eat as much as you like and go back for more as many times as you want.
GROW YOUR BUSINESS SEMINAR WITH THE BUSINESS BOOSTER
Date: 7 October
Venue: The National Space Centre, Leicester
Time: 8am – 10.30am
Cost: Free
This short presentation will give you tips on how to grow your business and deal with those every day challenges. This educational, informative & inspirational seminar will also show companies that there is another way of doing business. Everything around us has changed, computers, cars, phones, yet we are still doing business in the same way as we would have 10 years ago. The market places are changing and the way a consumer buys has changed, this seminar will show businesses how to combat all of these challenges.
REGENERATION UPDATE SEMINAR
Sponsored by the Learning & Skills Council
Date: 28 October
Venue: Leicester Tigers
Time: 7.30am – 9am
Cost Chamber Members £25 / Standard £35
The Leicester Regeneration Company (LRC), a public and private sector partnership currently tackling the physical regeneration of around 1000 acres of central Leicester, launched its Regeneration Master plan back in November 2002. John Nicholls, Chief Executive of LRC will bring us up to date and share insights on where it all goes from here.
BUSINESS NETWORK EVENING
Sponsored by The Business Booster
Date: 4 November
Venue: TA Centre, Brentwood Road, Leicester
Time: 6pm - 8:30pm
Cost:
Place only, no display stand (inc. VAT)
Chamber Members £25 / Standard £35
Place & Space for display stand (inc. VAT)
Chamber Members £55 / Standard £65
Price includes a buffet meal and drink on arrival
Hosted by East Midlands Reserve Forces, this event gives members an opportunity to reserve space for a stand, exchange company literature over a glass of wine and gain an insight into the valuable work of the Territorial Army. During the evening delegates will be invited to place their business cards into a hat and after a buffet meal several will be selected at random, allowing the card holders the opportunity to give a short presentation on their business.
Space For 20 Pre-Booked Exhibitors
Harborough Area Luncheon with Edward Garnier QC MP
Date: 21 November
Venue: tbc
Time: 12.00 - 14.00
Cost £25
An excellent opportunity for business people to network and make new contacts that may form the basis for future business.
Edward Garnier will comment from a local perspective on national issues. This event will provide a valuable opportunity for delegates to raise questions.
Edward Garnier has been the MP for Harborough since the general election in April 1992. Born in October 1952, he is married to Anna and they have a daughter and two sons. Edward Garnier was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire, Jesus College, Oxford, and the College of Law, London.
Following the 1997 election when the Conservative Party left office William Hague appointed Edward Garnier Shadow Minister, Lord Chancellor's Department, until 1999 when he became Shadow Attorney General. When Iain Duncan Smith became Leader of the Opposition in September 2001 Edward Garnier stepped down from the Conservative front bench.
In 2005 he was appointed Shadow Home Affairs Minister.
In 2007 he was appointed Shadow Minister for Justice.
ANNUAL LUNCHEON 2008
Sponsored by Royal Bank of Scotland, Charles Street Buildings (Leicester) Ltd and Freeth Cartwright Solicitors
Date: 5 December
Venue:Leicester City Football Club, Leicester
Time: 11.30am – 4.30pm
Cost: Chamber Members £55 / Standard £65. Tables of ten available at £520 for Chamber Members and £570 standard.
The guest speaker for this year's annual lunch is household name and top entertainer and comedian Tom O'Connor. The popular annual luncheon event attracts some 500 local business people to network each year and is often a sell out so be sure to book your places early!
For more information on these Chamber events please callKam Atkeron Tel: 0116 204 6614, email: atker.k@chamberofcommerce.co.uk or alternatively you can visit the Chamber website at: www.chamberofcommmerce.co.uk and select What’s On/events