From opportunities to get more involved in improving your neighbourhood to a proposed increase in council tax, Norwich City Council wants to hear from the local business community.
They are consulting on their budget for 2017-18 and this is your chance to share your views. The survey runs until Sunday 8 January 2017 and any comments received will be considered by councillors when they meet in February 2017 to set the budget.
Reepham Road will be closed from early on Monday 14 November for five days (to Friday 18th) to complete construction of the NDR roundabout and tie in the surface to the existing carriageway.
The work, which will involve the use of heavy plant, will be carried out between 7am and 7pm, but the road will have to remain closed to all traffic throughout, including pedestrians and cyclists.
Diversion route Traffic approaching the closure from the north will be diverted via Fir Covert Road, the A1067 Fakenham Road, Boundary Road (Norwich Ring Road), returning to Reepham Road at the Boundary Junction. Traffic approaching the closure from the south will be diverted in the reverse direction.
Local access The physically closed stretch of Reepham Road will be between Furze Lane and Drewray Drive, allowing access to Thorpe Marriott from the Norwich direction via Long Dale and Drewray Drive. Access to other premises on Reepham Road will be from one or other side of the closure.
Other NDR traffic management Diversion of utility services, including gas, water and sewerage, electricity and telecom, is continuing at a number of points along the NDR, including Holt Road, Wroxham Road and North Walsham Road. Temporary traffic control may occasionally be needed. Where possible, advance warning will be given, but these signalsmay be imposed and removed at short notice, depending upon the work being carried out.
For many years Norfolk was the forgotten county. To get any investment we had to really fight our corner and in many cases we were unsuccessful.
In recent years this has started to change. The public, private and third sector are working increasing closely together to secure the best possible outcomes for Norfolk’s residents and business community.
Through the partners working together the Chamber has seen many positive changes over recent years including: A11 dualling, NDR, Norwich Cambridge Tech Corridor; investment in our universities and colleges, Kings Lynn Enterprise Zone and the Innovation Centres, to mention just a few.
However there is still a lot to be done and the UK economy is weakening with the prospect for another recession in 2020. We therefore need to ensure that we take every opportunity open to us.
As seen in BCC QES economic surveys, Norfolk businesses are not feeling confident. This is due to current weak trading conditions and uncertainty due in part to the Brexit vote.
This lack of confidence is translating into less financial investment, less job opportunities, a weaker local economy and fewer opportunities for Norfolk’s young people and residents.
However on the whole the business community believe that the Devolution deal on the table could help improve the Norfolk business environment. Suffolk, Peterborough and Cambridgeshire Councillors are all voting for the deal, but our Norfolk County Councillors are divided and may stop this happening at the end of November.
As a starting point, the Devolution deal will give us over a 30 year commitment:
The Norfolk business community is not naïve. We understand that there are risks involved in the Devolution deal on the table. But they have weighed up the options of our Councillors signing this deal or walking away and we want to see Devolution deal on the table signed.
The Government is very clear that this is the way they will distribute funds in the future, we do not want Norfolk to slide back into invisibility!
If you agree with us, we need you to let your local county councillor know. You can do this by advising us who your councillor is and providing us with your comments. We will then collate all the comments and share them with each councillor. You can find out who your councillor is by going to the following place: https://www.whereilive.norfolk.gov.uk/
More details on devolution can be found on: https://www.eastangliadevo.co.uk/
Norfolk Chamber recently hosted a roundtable event, in partnership with London Heathrow Airport, involving 16 Norfolk businesses.
The objective of the roundtable was to gather local business representatives together to discuss the opportunities that exist within the Heathrow Airport supply chain and how businesses can be more involved in their future expansion plans.
Heathrow were keen to engage with Norfolk businesses to further understand the business capabilities in our region and hear local views. Discussions centred around the challenges that Norfolk businesses face in joining Heathrow Airport’s supply chain and David Ferroussat, the Infrastructure Procurement Director and Sophie Carter from their Public Affairs Department answered questions about the possible expansion of Heathrow Airport.
Expansion at Heathrow has the potential to create 180,000 jobs and 10,000 apprenticeships. It will allow for 40 additional long haul destinations and more regional connectivity to local airports such as Norwich International Airport.
Should the expansion of Heathrow be agreed next week, the construction period would run from 2020 to 2026. The supply chaincould involve over 8,500 suppliers from large to SME. Heathrow were very keen to identify that there were plenty of opportunities for Norfolk businesses to be included within the supply chain. Any business that wants to be involved canregister on Heathrow’s procurement website – click here for details.
In addition, Heathrow are holding a business summit on Tuesday 08 November and invited businesses to register their interest using the following link:https://www.heathrowbusinesssummit.co.uk/
Discussions also centred around the need for future skills and ensuring that the next generation will be inspired with the support of large infrastructure projects, such as the Heathrow expansion.
Jonathan Cage, President of Norfolk Chamber said:
“It is important that Norfolk businesses, especially SMEs, take advantage of the opportunities that large scale projects such as the expansion of Heathrow could deliver. Whilst a large scale international company is likely to be the lead, there are still plenty of opportunities for Norfolk based companies to subcontract and supply specialist knowledge, skills and demonstrate good use of innovation and technology.”
Gee-Force Hydraulics is a privately owned business offering a wide range of equipment and servicing to the Oil & Gas, Nuclear, Renewables, Marine and Civil Engineering industries.
Gee-Force Hydraulics specialises in the sale and hire of hydraulic torque wrench equipment and other bolting equipment including hydraulic bolt tensioners, pneumatic and electronic torque wrenches, hand torque multipliers and manual wrenches. We also sell and hire mechanical and hydraulic flange spreading and flange alignment equipment, hydraulic nut splitters, hydraulic vertical lifting wedges and hydraulic lifting cylinders.
Through our rental partnership with industry leader HTL we enjoy access to the widest range of bolting and ancillary equipment available in the UK including portable machines, cutting equipment, flushing equipment, test instrumentation, subsea equipment and maintenance equipment.
We operate from premises in Great Yarmouth and Burnley, and in addition to equipment sales and hire we also provide ECITB accredited Mechanical Joint Integrity (MJI) training and testing out of our Great Yarmouth premises in conjunction with HTL’s Training Services Division. We are a distributor for SPX Bolting Systems, SPX Power Team and UK manufacturer Norbar Torque Tools ,as well as a wide range of equipment from other manufacturers. In addition to equipment sales and hire we offer full service, repair and calibration capabilities.
We are looking to expand the company’s activities beyond our Great Yarmouth base, across the whole of Norfolk and the wider South East. By joining the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, we hope this will play an important part in building our knowledge of and relationships with the County’s business community and by doing so fast-tracking both our profile and growth.
The region’s premier business to business exhibition was back for its 18th opening at Norwich City Football Club (NCFC) on Thursday 13 October.
The day brought together over 100 businesses exhibiting across two floors of NCFC and over 700 attendees for a day committed to business.
The event begun with a welcome from special guest television presenter and Break Patron Jake Humphrey where he told our businesses to ‘believe in yourself and be as ambitious as possible’. Following this Norfolk Chamber CEO Caroline Williams took Jake on a tour of the exhibition to meet our exhibitors and judge the Best Stand Award. This year we are pleased to announce Mayday were judged the winners, doing caricatures of visitors to their stand and printing them as souvenirs of the day on their printer.
In addition, we this year offered attendees the chance to take a break from the busy exhibition floors in our Networking Lounge. Busy throughout the day, we’re sure plenty of business connections were made here. We also hosted four workshops during the event for attendees to brush up their knowledge on networking, digital marketing, business growth and LinkedIn.
Overall the exhibition had a real buzz throughout the day with a variety of great stands on offers from the VR driving simulation from Innershed, to the photograph famous Hazel the eagle and Flint the owl with NBC Environment.
This year’s event was sponsored by osbornenash, Archant, Computer Service Centre, inVoke Marketing, Norse and HEAD | HUNTED Recruitment.
You can already register your name for priority booking for 2017 stands. Don’t forget to add Thursday 12 October 2017 to your diary for a day of doing business.
Did you visit or exhibit at B2B this October? Complete our short survey below:
Major improvements planned, plus special ticket offer to herald the new era
A new era for the railway in East Anglia was launched across our region yesterday. Abellio subisidiary company Greater Anglia is starting a new nine-year franchise to provide passenger rail services to and from London across Norfolk, Essex, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire.
People in East Anglia can now look forward to a £2 billion package of improvements to transform rail travel in the region.
Highlights include a complete fleet of brand new trains (replacing every single train in the current fleet with a larger fleet of new trains during 2019/2020 – up from 933 carriages to 1043 carriages); more services; faster journey times; 55 per cent more seats into London in the morning peak period; initiatives to improve punctuality from 89% to almost 93%; £60 million of improvements in stations and new ticket options offering even better value for money.
The majority of major upgrades, linked to the new trains, will be delivered in 2019/2020, but there are a number of other improvements delivered over the first three years of the franchise including 72 additional carriages to provide more seats from summer 2017; free wi-fi; automatic delay repay compensation for season ticket holders and advance ticket holders from early in 2017; ticket vending machines at every station; new customer information screens and help points at every station; at least 1800 additional car parking spaces and 4000 extra cycle parking places at stations around the network; a refresh and deep clean for all stations; significant investment in reliability modifications and interior refreshes for the existing fleet of trains and more investment in customer service and the Community Rail Partnerships.
To mark the start of the new franchise, Greater Anglia is running a “Wake up to Weekdays” offer with special adult return fares – £10, £15 or £20 for off-peak travel. Children can travel for just £2 return. Tickets are available to purchase until 30 October for travel up to 30 November, including the autumn half-term period.
After attending a special franchise launch event at Liverpool Street station, London, with Rail Minister Paul Maynard, there will be events at Chelmsford, Ipswich, Norwich and Cambridge to mark the start of the franchise with regional stakeholders.
Jamie Burles, Managing Director for Greater Anglia said: “This is an exciting time for the railway in our region. This is the first franchise renewal to see a train operator replace its entire fleet with brand new trains. I’m looking forward to leading Greater Anglia as we transform the railway.
“We have a huge programme of improvements planned for trains, stations, timetables, journey times, ticketing, performance and wider customer service standards. Today really is the start of a period of major investment and improvement to upgrade services for customers and communities across the region.”
Stakeholders across the region have welcomed the new franchise and the planned upgrades. At Norwich station, Andrew Goodrum, Greater Anglia Customer Services Director, and Michelle Smart, Human Resources Director, marked the new franchise with James Mason, Board member for Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, Ted Gadsden, Chairman of the Bittern Line Community Rail Partnership (CRP) and Ian Dinmore, Chairman of the Wherry Lines CRP.
James Mason said: “I was delighted to represent Norfolk Chamber at Norwich railway station to mark the commencement of the new Greater Anglia rail franchise. The Chamber has worked very hard to promote great infrastructure for the benefit of the Norfolk economy and the developments expected through this franchise will be most beneficial to business in our region.”
Proposals to improve traffic flow in two busy areas ofNorwich are now open for public comment and feedback.
Both Dereham Road and the centre of Eaton and Cringleford are due for investment through Transport for Norwich, with Norfolk County Council and Norwich City Council calling for feedback on the details of the schemes.
The aims of changes in Eaton and Cringleford include reducing traffic speeds to 20mph, installing traffic signals either side of Cringleford bridge that respond to the flow of traffic in each direction, and simplifying pedestrian crossings in the centre of Eaton. The project is designed to address the needs of general traffic while improving journey times for buses and providing better infrastructure for cyclists and those on foot.
Across the city at the Dereham Road/Sweet Briar Road roundabout, changes are being proposed that will reduce congestion for all traffic, improve pedestrian crossing facilities and provide a better environment for cyclists. By increasing the efficiency of the junction, proposed work also aims to improve the reliability and journey times for bus services in the area.
Jonathan Cage, President of Norfolk Chamber said: “It is just as important that businesses have their say with regard to these consultations and I would encourage any business that could be affected by the plans to ensure that they make their views heard.”
Councillor Bert Bremner, city and county councillor and vice chair of Norwich Highways Agency Committee (NHAC), said: “An important part of finalising proposals on these schemes is to get feedback on them from those using the area, whether they’re drivers, cyclists, pedestrians or bus passengers.
“Information and comments received through the consultations can then help us fine tune the plans and hopefully iron out potential issues to make them the best possible solution that balances the needs of all road users.”
To find out more about the projects, how to comment and to view the associated plans, please visit www.norfolk.gov.uk/derehamroad and www.norfolk.gov.uk/eatoncringleford.
The deadline for responses on Eaton and Cringleford is Friday 4 November, while the Dereham Road/Sweet Briar Road consultation runs until Monday 7 November.
Following any amends to the plans as a result of the consultations, the final proposals for both schemes will be submitted to NHAC to seek approval for construction.
Norfolk Chamber welcomed a trade delegation from Exeter to their flagship business to business exhibition. B2B 2016 was an all-day event, held at Norwich City Football Club.
The delegation from Exeter were exploring how the new daily flight to and from Norwich airport could help foster closer commercial relationships between the two regions. There are many similarities between Norwich and Exeter – both are university cities and have a history in finance and insurance industries, as well as a strong tourism offering.
The Exeter delegation included Exeter Chamber, the Devon Hotels and Restaurant Association, Signs Express (whose headquarters are based in Norwich), Exeter Airport and Flybe. Norfolk Chamber arranged for them to meet their Norfolk counterparts, together with lots of other local businesses.
Vice President of Exeter Chamber, Derek Phillips said: “Exeter and Norwich are both the urban centres of rural areas. Tourism is important: Norfolk has the Broads and we have Dartmoor.”
Caroline Williams, Chief executive of Norfolk Chamber said: “Our two regions are looking for common ground. We hope to organise a follow up trip to Exeter before Christmas to continue to forge stronger business links and ensure that the new flight can boost tourism and business.”
Ahead of the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement on Wednesday November 23, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is urging the government to use its ‘reset’ of fiscal policy to pursue measures that incentivise business investment, improve infrastructure, and demonstrate the UK government’s continued support for business.
Pre-existing concerns over a slowing economy have been intensified by the political and economic uncertainty that followed the electorate’s historic vote to leave the European Union. The recent Quarterly Economic Survey showed that businesses have lowered their expectations for hiring, turnover, and investment in plant, machinery, and training in the coming year.
The Chamber network believes that the Autumn Statement can create the foundations for the UK to successfully navigate the coming transition period, and remain a great place to do business for firms of all sizes.
The BCC submission, which was handed to the Chancellor when the BCC took a delegation of businesses to meet him at Number 11 in September, proposes seven key measures:
Adam Marshall, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said:
“The Autumn Statement gives the government a great chance to set the tone for its relationship with British business, by pulling out all the stops to support investment, infrastructure improvements, and business confidence.
“The Chancellor made the right move when he signaled his willingness to use historically-low interest rates to invest prudently to support growth, and he has a golden opportunity now to use this fiscal flexibility to ‘crowd in’ business investment.”
Caroline Williams, Chief Executive of Norfolk Chamber said:
“Plans to lower business costs and support investment would help firms take risks and seize opportunities in spite of the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the Brexit process. Westminster must do everything in its gift to improve the business environment – and firms will repay that backing with investment, hiring, training and export growth.”
The Norfolk Chamber of Commerce B2B Exhibition is back for 2016, and it’s quite a year for the consistently successful business event.
This, the 18th B2B, coincides with The Norfolk Chamber’s 120th Anniversary. Philippa Bindley, Events Manager of the Chamber said today: “We’re thrilled to mark these two milestones in the same year. The Chamber has been committed to local business for 120 years, and although B2B is a little younger it now has a track record of eighteen years consistent growth and development, becoming an essential event for local companies to exhibit at, and visit, to see the latest ideas and products coming out of our region.”
B2B 2016 takes place on October 13, at Norwich City Football Club, delivered in partnership with Archant. Special guest, TV Presenter and local celebrity, Jake Humphrey will open the event and will be there to judge the best stand award.
He’ll have quite a task as there are more stands than ever in 2016, breaking even last year’s record. With over 100 exhibitors the 2016 B2B Exhibition is a sell-out, and visitor numbers are already set to exceed the 2015 total.
Speaking before the event Jake Humphrey said, “The B2B exhibition is the showcase of the year for Norfolk businesses to engage with new customers.”
In an exciting new development, demonstrating The Chamber’s commitment to bridging the gap between education and commerce, 11 students from Sprowston High School are volunteering on the day, as part of national work experience week.
And flying in for B2B 2016 is a trade delegation from the Exeter Chamber who are bringing a number of businesses to the event. They’re taking advantage of the Flybe direct flights now running daily to and from Norwich to Exeter, allowing companies from different sides of the country to do business.
B2B 2016 is bursting with new ideas. There’s a new Networking Lounge, and stands have been taken out of the previous ‘zones’ to add variety and scope for visitors. New digital signage is another innovation, enhancing the visitors’ experience. To mark the year’s two milestones the overall event has been spread across the Business Boulevard, on floor 1, and the Anniversary Avenue, on floor 2.
Bite size training sessions are on offer throughout the day. The ‘Chamber Sessions’ are five 20 minute, expert led, sessions designed to help visitors do better business.
This year sees the return of the hugely popular Loka app allowing visitors to access exclusive offers and discounts from their phone.
Speaking before the event Jake Humphrey said, “The B2B exhibition is the showcase of the year for Norfolk businesses to engage with new customers.”
Caroline Williams, Chief Executive of Norfolk Chamber said: “Our founders, 120 years ago, had great foresight, but they could never have imagined what B2B 2016 would look like today. This is a truly cutting edge business event, brimming with technology and techniques to give exhibitors and visitors alike a really productive day. Most of all though it’s an opportunity for businesses to get face to face, to do business.”
B2B Exhibition is FREE to attend on Thursday 13 October, between 10am-5pm at Norwich City Football Club and no booking is required. For more information visit: www.norfolkchamber.co.uk/b2b
Happy birthday to Norfolk Chamber! We are officiallycelebrating our 120 years anniversary today, since being incorporated on this date 7 October in 1896.
This morning over 100 members gathered to help celebrate with us at our annual Norwich Economic Business Breakfast at OPEN followed by our AGM. Celebrations were underway early with a special toast led by Caroline Williams, Chief Executive with guests enjoying bucks fizz at 8am!
At midday ourmembers of staff gathered in the boardroom of our offices to toast this amazing achievement, with balloons, blow up guitars and mustaches on sticks.
Over the last year we have received special messages of congratulations from Her Majesty, The Queen; Theresa May, Prime Minister; Adam Marshall, Acting Director General at British Chambers of Commerce and local MPs. Read the messages below.
Also don’t forget to find out about our rich history which spans over a century here
Her Majesty, The Queen “The Queen was pleased to receive your kind message sent on behalf of the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce on the occasion of your One-Hundred and Twentieth Anniversary, which is being marked at your Annual General Meeting. As Patron of the British Chambers of Commerce, Her Majesty much appreciated your thoughtfulness in writing as you did and, in return, sends her warm good wishes to all concerned as you mark this notable anniversary.”
Theresa May, Prime Minister “It is my pleasure to send congratulations to the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce to celebrate its 120th anniversary.The Norfolk Chamber of Commerce is an excellent voice for the business community in Norfolk and the Chamber’s important work around bettering opportunities for young people is particularly commendable. The Chamber should celebrate these achievements as it looks forward to continuing its important work in the years to come.I am sure that this milestone will further encourage the young people and local businesses in the area to mark the Chamber’s incredible legacy.Please accept my best wishes on this special occasion.”
Dr Adam Marshall, Acting Director General, British Chambers of Commerce “For a business to survive for more than a century is no mean feat, but to have grown and expanded over a period spanning three centuries of unprecedented national change is an achievement worthy of special congratulations.In its 120 years, the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce has supported businesses across the county through world wars, economic booms and recessions, an ever-changing economy and the emergence of a global and digital marketplace.Norfolk Chamber’s longevity demonstrates its continued relevance to its members, as well as its team’s hard work and business acumen.
“Chambers of Commerce are now more important than ever as a key point of contact between local businesses in the UK and export markets overseas. As Chambers, we will at the forefront of providing our members with the information and contacts that they need to continue expanding into overseas markets.
“So on this landmark occasion, let me on behalf of the British Chambers of Commerce, offer my congratulations to yourself and the whole Norfolk Chamber team, and express my appreciation and admiration for your team’s consistent and unfailing professionalism and dedication to the businesses they work hard to champion, and wish you all the very best of success for the years to come.”
Henry Bellingham, MP for North West Norfolk “This really is a very important anniversary for the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, who have been serving Norfolk’s businesses in such a professional and energetic way for the whole of the last century, the closing years of the 19th century, and of course, the opening years of this current century. I have had the chance to see for myself the really quite superb work carried out by the Chamber, because not only have they successfully supported numerous countywide campaigns, but they have also been unstinting in their support of individual businesses.”
Rt Hon Keith Simpson, MP Broadland “Congratulations to the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce on celebrating an anniversary of 120 years. I know from my experience as a Norfolk MP for nearly twenty years what an important role the Chamber performs at bringing together businesses, local government and education providers and in lobbying on behalf of Norfolk’s wider commercial interests.”
George Freeman, MP for Mid Norfolk “I am delighted to send my congratulations to the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce on your 120th Anniversary. Having spent fifteen years working as an entrepreneur before coming to Parliament, and having served in Government as a Business Minister, I know from my own experience how important the Chamber is for businesses to contribute to the debate on national and local issues, providing the opportunity for members to engage with Government policy and acting as a champion of enterprise and innovation in our region. Norfolk led the agricultural revolution, and our businesses and entrepreneurs are now leading the digital revolution. The future for Norfolk enterprise is brighter than ever. Thank you for all your work in our area, and congratulations again on celebrating your 120th anniversary!”
Norman Lamb, Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for North Norfolk “Sincere congratulations to Norfolk Chamber of Commerce for meeting this incredible milestone. It is really important for the economy of Norfolk that we have an effective membership organisation representing local businesses. The Norfolk Chamber of Commerce provides important advocacy for businesses and employment in our county. I will continue to be a strong supporter of the NCC.”
Elizabeth Truss MP, Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice “Congratulations to Norfolk Chamber of Commerce on the 120 year anniversary. Over many years of operation, the organisation has worked hard to represent business not only in the UK but also overseas. It continues to support our entrepreneurs, provide networking opportunities, celebrate Norfolk successes and act as the voice for business; I wish the chamber every success in the years ahead.”