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An independent review of the BEST WESTERN Brook Hotel, Norwich

https://tssreviews.com/2013/07/21/review-of-best-western-the-brook-hotel-norwich-uk/

As part of the Government’s ongoing programme of employment law reform, the recently enacted Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 introduces a range of measures aimed at encouraging the early settlement of workplace disputes without recourse to an employment tribunal. One of the provisions under the Act, in force from 29 July 2013, is that evidence of settlement offers made by employers to an employee pre-termination will be inadmissible in a subsequent claim for unfair dismissal.

This new provision is intended to circumvent the existing rules for “without prejudice” conversations, evidence of which are inadmissible in subsequent proceedings only if there is a pre-existing dispute with the employee. The existence of such a dispute can be difficult to prove, and the risk of making an offer of settlement where no dispute exists is that the employee may resign and bring a claim for constructive unfair dismissal, using evidence of the discussion in support of their claim.

Pre-termination negotiations

Under the new rules, employers will be able to put forward suggestions for the early termination of employment without any existing dispute with the employee, avoiding the need to follow a full procedure (such as a capability or disciplinary procedure), unless settlement terms cannot be agreed. Such discussions will not generally be admissible as evidence in an ordinary claim for unfair dismissal.

However, this exclusion does not apply in claims of unfair dismissal if the reason is one of the automatically unfair reasons (such as trade union membership or activities, related to health and safety or pregnancy and maternity). The exclusion will also not apply to claims of discrimination, meaning that evidence of such discussions will be admissible in such claims.

Settlement offers can be made either in writing or verbally and employees must be given a reasonable time to respond (Acas suggests a minimum period of 10 days). The agreed terms must then be recorded in a “settlement agreement” (the new term for compromise agreements). If the employer acts in a discriminatory or “improper” way when making an offer of settlement, evidence of the offer will become admissible in tribunal proceedings.

Code of Practice

Acas has issued a new statutory Code of Practice on Settlement Agreements, which provides a brief explanation of the new law relating to settlement agreements, some basic guidance on reaching a settlement agreement and guidance on what would amount to “improper behaviour” on the part of the employer, resulting in evidence of the negotiations becoming admissible in evidence.

To accompany the Code, there will also be non-statutory guidance, which is due to be published by Acas at the end of July. The non-statutory guidance will include factors for both employers and employees to consider when negotiating a financial settlement, as well as template letters and a model settlement agreement.

Practical risks

Whilst these new rules may go some way to assist employers in holding difficult conversations with employees, removing the need in appropriate cases to follow, for example, a lengthy and time consuming performance-management process, there will be risks in attempting such a conversation in any situation where an allegation of discrimination may arise. For example, if an individual’s poor performance is related to a disability, the individual may seek to use evidence of the conversation in a subsequent claim for disability discrimination.

It will also fall to the courts and tribunals to establish the tests for determining what amounts to “unreasonable behaviour” on the part of the employer, and the consequences of such behaviour.

It is too early to predict whether the new provisions for “pre-termination negotiations” will be of any practical assistance in bringing the employment relationship to a mutually-agreed end. In the meantime, employers should be cautious in entering into such negotiations without a proper assessment of the potential risks of doing so.

Employment law experts from Steeles Law will be examining this topic in more detail, together with other issues relating to the termination of employment, in the forthcoming HR Forum which is taking place at Dunston Hall on 11 September 2013, from 2pm.

Bigfork were appointed by Norwich based, electrical contractors Phase 3 to improve their online presence and design an effective new website. As a fast growing company they needed a website that was appealing and focused on the company’s key benefits and services. You can see the full story here.

Bigfork – we make websites stand out

01603 513080

We have a conference suite available today now if anyone needs it, fully air conditioned, natural daylight, a dedicated host and as much food and drink as you would like brought to you throughout the day. Norwich Conference Venue – BEST WESTERN Brook Hotel

Call Sarah Jones on 07436 162697 or email [email protected]

As the world celebrates the birth of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s baby son, the latest Royal Baby and third in line to the throne, he enters a very different world to that of his parents. The new Prince’s father was born 31 years ago into a very different age. In 1982 when Prince William was born, the mobile telephone had not yet become commercially available. It was not until 1983 that the first commercially available mobile telephone was sold. Today there are over 6 billion mobile phones around the world with more than 1 mobile phone for every person in the population of many countries.

As news of the Royal Baby’s birth spreads around the world, it is ‘trending’ on Twitter and news of the birth was learned quicker by Twitter users than by any other method. Twitter was only invented in 2006, the same year that the Prince’s father, Prince William graduated from Sandhurst watched by his future wife, Catherine Middleton. His parents were already dating at the time, but would not marry for another 5 years when the wedding would be watched by viewers of over 100 million streams over the Internet in 188 countries!

When the new Prince’s father was 9 years old, Sir Tim Berners-Lee posted the first web page to what is known as the World Wide Web. Last December there were estimated to be 634 million web sites on the World Wide Web and over 2.4 billion users. Assuming that the usage of the Internet and the World Wide Web continues at a similar rate to that which it has done for the last few years, by the time that the Royal Baby is just one year old, there will probably be in the order of 810 million websites and near to 3 billion users.

So why is all of this important? And why am I reading this on a page from a data centre company? It is simply this. Data centres are the foundation of the digital age. Without data centres the world would starve, and without data centres UK Plc would be bust within a day. These may sound like outrageous claims, but think about it … no data centres = no plane travel, no ship travel, no train travel, no car travel. No data centres = no financial transactions, no stock exchanges, no banking system, no money, no credit cards. No data centres = the world stops!

Yet, despite the fact that data centres are the foundation of the digital age, they are the critical infrastructure that the entire modern day world relies upon, if one asks most people what a data centre is, they don’t know. Most politicians certainly don’t know, most people don’t know, most business leaders only have a vague idea, yet this is the fundamental infrastructure upon which not just one fragile new born baby relies, but all of us – every single one – need data centres as much today as we need water, electricity and food, because without them we would be unable to produce and distribute water, or manage our electricity, or produce and distribute disease free crops of food for us to eat. Isn’t it about time we all learned a little more about the things that are keeping us alive?

There is a huge amount still to be done in developing, producing and distributing vital food, water and medicines and data centres are a part of the critical infrastructure that is needed in order to make this happen. Data centres won’t save the world, they won’t fix all of the world’s ills, but they are essential to world ‘operation’ today and will be even more so in the future.

As we welcome the Royal Baby into the world as the newest member of our Royal Family, we must remember that he has been born into the digital age and nothing that happens in his lifetime will be more important than ensuring that the critical infrastructure that is the foundation of the digital age is there, operational and available to whenever it is needed to support all of the new challenges that the world will face.

Our data centre is always on and we will do everything within our power to ensure that it remains that way. If the world continues to evolve at the pace that it has since his mother and father were born, the data centre will be even more critical in the future than it is today.

Congratulations to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on the birth of their son! We welcome the new Prince into an exciting new world where the digital infrastructure will be an integral part of his growing up and future adult life.

Want to help spread the word and help others to understand what is the basis of the digital world we live in? Go on … Tweet this article and spread the word to those who, as yet, haven’t quite learned what a data centre does! You read this on the World Wide Web, using the Internet to access it and you almost certainly learned of the birth of the Royal Baby via the Internet in some way. All that relied entirely on the data centres that are its foundation!

At the end of 2025, the government published their
long-awaited Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy outlining their
plans to tackle an issue that has frequently been described as a “national
emergency.”

Whilst the strategy predominantly contained information
about the legislation that would be introduced, it also reminded businesses and
organisations of their responsibilities in tackling violence against women.

In the introduction to the strategy, the government called
on businesses to play an active role in “protecting employees, supporting
survivors and championing gender equality” in their workplaces.

With offences classed as violence against women accounting
for over 20% of all police recorded crime, it is likely an issue that will be
affecting workforces across the region and the country.

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) can include:

·       Domestic
abuse

·       Stalking

·       Harassment

·       Rape

·       Sexual
offences

·       Tech-based
violence/abuse

·       Honour-based
abuse

The government hopes that improving understanding of these
forms of abuse, as well as giving businesses the knowledge of how to respond
effectively to support employees, will play a role in tackling violence against
women.

Why do businesses have an important role to
play?

Domestic abuse and other forms of violence not only impact
those experiencing it, but also have a massive effect on our society, our key
services, and the economy.

Figures released alongside the Domestic Abuse Act (2021)
estimated that domestic abuse costs society £66bn every year, with a staggering
£14bn coming from lost output – the costs to businesses and organisations
through staff absence, lack of productivity, or recruitment.

People experiencing domestic abuse are also likely to be
disciplined or even lose their jobs as a result of higher levels of absence
from work, poor time keeping or reduced productivity.

Knowing how to respond to domestic abuse is a challenge for
many businesses, particularly when it can be hard to spot the signs someone is
experiencing it and many are unsure how to provide effective support to those
affected.

There will also be many that do not have policies or
procedures around domestic abuse, making it difficult to know how to respond
effectively and consistently.

Whilst many employers will have clear guidance around
issues such as mental health, the picture around domestic abuse is unclear and
could be costing businesses.

Leeway’s Training

The training provided by Leeway aims to equip businesses
and organisations with the knowledge and ability to spot the signs of domestic
abuse, whilst also being able to signpost employees or clients to access
support. 

Our Domestic Abuse Awareness sessions break down the
different forms of domestic abuse, how to spot the signs – providing real life
examples of what this might look like – and how to approach conversations
around domestic abuse and signpost someone to support.

We also provide bespoke training sessions tailored to meet
the needs of businesses and organisations, specifically covering the issues
that are most relevant to their area of business. 

Leeway can also provide support for businesses and
organisations that are looking to draft or their policies and procedures
around domestic abuse.

Not only will this support businesses and organisations to
meet their duty of care to their employees, but we also believe that this can
save them money too.

To enquire about our training services and how Leeway can
support your business, please email [email protected]. More
information can also be found on the Leeway website.

While more and more countries around the world try to emulate Silicon Valley-style digitally-fuelled economic success, it’s ironic that the free flow of data is increasingly problematic for the governments that run them. The ease with which the Internet moves information, sans frontiers, seems to emphasise the smallness of national government compared to the ‘bigness’ of data. Privacy, defamation, national security, taxation and, of course in the news at the moment, pornography, are the regular flashpoints between the big Internet brands and governments in a battle which pitches the freedom web users against the laws of the State they live in.

Transparency The negotiation between citizen and state is as old as humanity and historically has been resolved with revolution, execution, imprisonment and, thankfully, most often by legislation. However, the Internet is a new factor in the relationship – empowering citizens to make choices, (some good, some bad and some ghastly), independently of the laws of their land on an unprecedented scale. Not surprisingly governments try to assert the law when one of their citizens uses the Internet to do something that they consider ‘ghastly’ – the problem is that what the state considers ‘ghastly’ varies from country to country. In fact Google deals with so many requests to modify or block online material from governments around the world that it publishes a Transparency Report listing them all. As the search giant explains:

“Like other technology and communications companies, Google regularly receives requests from government agencies and courts around the world to remove content from our services or to review such content to determine if it should be removed for inconsistency with a product’s community policies. In this report, we disclose the number of requests we receive from each government in six-month periods with certain limitations.”

Fascinating Reading! And fascinating reading it is – the number of content removal requests from government agencies has doubled to close to 2,300 in the last three years with over 30% of the them being concerned with defamation compared to just 3% over adult content. The detail of requests by country is an insight into the sheer breadth of world’s diversity in terms of culture, values and laws … and the Internet’s border-traversing ability to trample all over them!

The kind of ‘micro-management’ offered by Google – taking requests, considering them and then sometimes removing the content – clearly frustrates governments. The UK Prime Minister’s is the latest political leader to take on the issue, focussing on blocking child pornography on which he has massive support. While the moral mandate is clearly there, what precise action should be taken is already proving problematic. When the rubber hits the road and national legislation comes up against the physical reality of that sprawling bundle of hardware and software we call the Internet, control is difficult. Behind the beguiling simplicity of the Cloud is an international patchwork of servers, data centres and networks that host and transport the content that users call up via their search box. Where these servers and data centres are located in the world and which borders the networks cross really does matter, not only because there’s some web-content that we want to block, but also because there is web-content that we want to protect.

Where is your data stored? For web-based businesses, the location of the data centre where your data is stored is a significant factor in how much tax you pay, what legal protection you have if someone tries to violate your copyright, and what level of control and ownership you have over your data. Clients of MigSolv’s colocation data centre in Norwich, for example, can rely on the strength of the UK legal systems, a stable tax rate and benign Government interference when it comes to freedom of speech and expression, all of which amounts to security. When they say that in the Cloud it doesn’t matter where your data’s stored, it’s simply not true – while it’s important that, (most), data moves freely, it’s vital that web businesses can rely on a stable, secure and fair legal environment for their data.

The organisers behind the GoGoGorillas outdoor art trail that has captivated Norwich over the last few weeks are about to launch a programme of research. The aim of the research is to get feedback on the life-size art installations, while measuring the economic and social impact of the initiative and of course find out the most popular primates.

Local research agency, Zing Insights is partnering with the organisers to conduct the research and will be surveying residents and visitors to the city over the summer using their innovative interactive iPad research pods. Research will take place starting this weekend at Castle Mall (27-28 July), The Forum (8-9 Aug), Chapelfield (10-11 Aug), Norwich Station (3 Aug), M&S (5-6 Aug), John Lewis (17 Aug).

Jo Walther, Director of Zing Insights said “We hope the findings will show the benefits of projects like this, and will help support similar initiatives in the future. We urge residents and visitors to support us and give us their views”. Participants in the research will be entered into a number of prize draws to win GoGoGorilla merchandise worth over £100 including paint your own gorilla kits.

Zing Insights are working in collaboration with organisers Wild in Art and Break Charity. Charlie Langhorne, Director of Wild in Art said, “We are delighted with how the gorillas have been received. Visitor feedback is vital to enable us to enhance future events and we hope the results will demonstrate the positive impact GoGoGorillas! is having on the local community”.

Michael Rooney, Fundraising Manager of Break Charity said “As a locally based charity we are very pleased that some meaningful research can be undertaken, not only about the impact of the GoGoGorillas project itself, but also whether there has been an increase in the awareness of Break and the work we are involved in.”

Zing Insights Zing Insights is an award winning market research and insights consultancy run by a team of highly skilled research professionals with over 40 years experience of delivering world class business insights and specialism in day out experiences. Since launching in 2011, Zing have worked with an impressive list of clients including; Farnborough International Airshow, BBC Good Food Shows, Autosport International, Clotheshow Live, BBC Gardeners’ World Live, Taste of London, Banham Zoo and Norwich Cathedral. Zing were finalists for the EDP Business Award – Best New Business 2012 and are in the EDP Future50. Find out more at www.zinginsights.com

Wild in Art Wild in Art is the UK’s leader in the development, management and production of spectacular, mass-appeal public art events which engage the public through the creation of citywide trails of uniquely painted animal and other sculptures.

From ‘crashes’ of rhinos in Chester and São Paulo and prides of lions in Nairobi, to herds of Asian elephants in Melbourne, Wild in Art events have animated cities and enthralled people the world over, raising over £1.8m for charity partners along the way.

In 2013, you can find Wild in Art events in Colchester, Norwich, Southampton, Bristol and Torquay.Find out more at www.wildinart.co.uk

Break Charity Break, changing young lives, supporting children, young people and families:- • Young people in care and moving on • Children with disabilities • Families in need of support • Children at risk

For GoGoGorilla PR enquiries contact Jungle PR – Rachael Paddick, Kate Morfoot & Danielle Howard, Jungle PR tel ; 01362 694649

For further information on the work of Break, please contact Liz Richards, Senior Communications & Marketing Officer, email: [email protected], tel: 01603 670105, mobile: 07748 112709.

Break Head Office: Davison House, 1 Montague Road, Sheringham, Norfolk NR26 8WN, tel: 01263 822161 Registered Charity No. 286650 Follow GoGoGorillas on Twitter – @GoGoGorillas and Facebook gogogorillaswww.gogogorillas.co.uk

Bidwells, one of the UK’s leading property consultancies, today announced the launch of Bidwells TV

The new channel, which is accessible via PCs, laptops, Tablets (such as iPads) and smart phones will feature every residential property marketed by Bidwells in their offices in Nprwich, Cambridge and Saffron Walden. Each featured property, whether for sale or to let, will be promoted via a tailored, high quality animated walk-through video.

Recent research conducted by Nielsen, a leading global information and measurement company, concluded that property marketing via online TV channels, is more effective than traditional advertising methods and the most compelling medium to show case property.

Commenting at the launch of Bidwells TV Marc Langdon, Bidwells said

“Online video walk-throughs allow potential buyers to view new homes without having to step outside their front door – or even on their smartphones – wherever and whenever they want.”

“This innovative way of marketing is particularly popular because it enables the seller to display particular features of the property, which may not always be easy with more traditional methods of marketing, such as newspaper advertising.”

” Bidwells TV will be an integral part of every property marketing campaign we implement – ie the campaign will comprise print ads, portal campaigns (such as Rightmove and Zoopla), digital marketing and now virtual tours on a dedicated channel. No competitor can match that potent mix”.

For a virtual tour of a property visit www.bidwells.tv or access it via Bidwells’ website www.bidwells.co.uk.

BEST WESTERN Brook Hotel are looking to recruit a full time Receptionist in their Norwich Hotel, working 5 Reception shifts on a rota basis – early shifts are 7am to 3pm and late shifts are 3pm to 11pm, includes weekends.

Please apply if you have reception experience and a great customer care background.

Send your CV with covering email to [email protected] or by post to Sarah Jones, B.W. Brook Hotel, 2 Barnard Road, Norwich, NR5 9JB

www.brookhotel.co.uk

Norwich based SaxonAir Charter Ltd has seen a record increase in air charter use during the first six months trading of 2013.

Aeroplane charter hours for the first half of the year increased by over 65% against the same first six months trading of 2012, with Helicopter charter hours at its Norwich base up by 41% in the same period. Christopher Mace, Group Commercial Director, believes this positive news is a further sign of increased business activity from the UK as companies see the value in optimising travel time for key staff away from both the office environment and family life. SaxonAir has recently undertaken a campaign to promote private air charter to the business community highlighting the time saving benefits, flexibility and potential boost in productivity that can be gained by using the service.

“Air Charter is not necessarily about living a luxury lifestyle, being served champagne and caviar on-board” advises Mr Mace. “The majority of our clients are in fact businesses who appreciate that air charter enables them to make the very best use of their time with pre-cleared check-ins, the ability to undertake work on board in private and secure surroundings as well as landing at private airports closer to their destination not served by the airlines.”

Travelling with scheduled airlines can take you out of the office for several days, driving to major airports and adjusting your day to fit into the airline schedule – plus there’s the stress of delays or missing your flight if your meeting over-runs, lengthy check-in queues and pricy city hotel stopovers. With SaxonAir’s air charter service you can be in the air within minutes of arriving at your local airport, arrive refreshed and ready for a productive day’s business being back home to your family that evening – and back at your desk the next morning ensuring your business keeps flowing.

“There is no substitute for meeting face to face” adds Mace, “a major contract could be in the balance, presentations to be given or multiple sites to visit. These are many of the reasons when our business clients use the service as part of their overall transport solutions. The increased use of our aircraft in the first half of this year is down to a better understanding of air charter, our staff’s commitment to customer service and the varied modern aircraft fleet that we can offer”.

SaxonAir operates from their headquarters in Norwich alongside operating bases in London, Cannes and Thessaloniki in Greece. The varied aircraft fleet on offer ranges from entry level Citation Mustang jets to midsize Hawker 900XP and both a single and twin engine helicopter fleet. In its six years of operation the SaxonAir group of companies has continued to expand and today sees its total number of staff at almost 50, bringing a significant boost to the East Anglian region’s economy and infrastructure at Norwich International Airport.

As part of our commitment to keeping you informed about police and crime issues affecting the business community, we will be issuing brief monthly email updates on any areas relevant to you.

Please see below for July’s update. If you require any further information on the issues noted, please contact Norfolk Police on 101.

Crime across the county is down compared with this time last year. For the year 2012/13 to the end of June 2013, crime is down 4.5%, with 146 fewer crimes being recorded than the previous year. Current business crime issues are:

COUNTY – Diesel thefts – An increase in diesel thefts has been noted over the past month. Diesel is being targeted from motor vehicles, plant machinery, boats and containers. The key area targeted is around the Broads, also spreading into the Great Yarmouth district. The majority of offences are occurring overnight. In some offences large amounts of fuel is being taken which suggests that offenders are using a large lorry or container. Any containers or vehicles should be stored securely where possible and any suspicious behaviour should be reported immediately on 999.

COUNTY – New online advice for businesses – A wealth of advice and information relating to business safety is now available on the Norfolk Constabulary website. This section of the site has been update to include sections on key subjects for local businesses, including rural crime, scams, night time and licensing and fraud.

NORWICH – Cash exchange scam – Officers from Norwich North Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) have issued several images of a group of people they want to speak to after a number of cash exchange frauds were committed across Norwich during the weekend of 31 May 2013.

COUNTY – Rogue trader jailed – A rogue trader who charged overinflated prices for unnecessary and substandard work across East Anglia has been jailed for 18 months. Arthur Draper persuaded elderly homeowners in Norfolk and Suffolk to have work done on their properties, and also benefitted from overcharged work carried out in Cambridgeshire.

PORINGLAND – Truck and trailer stolen – Police are appealing for information after a pick-up truck was stolen during a burglary in Poringland. The incident happened between midnight and 6am onTuesday 2 July, in West Green.

Join Police Direct Police Direct is a high tech messaging service provided by Suffolk Police, which is designed to bring you up to date information about crime and policing issues in your area. We can send you information by email to your computer, by text to your mobile phone, or by leaving a message on your landline.