Chamber News

Although Norfolk Chambers has traded successfully for over 125 years supporting Norfolk businesses, it is only in the last decade that the pace of change within digital consumer behaviour has become meteoric. To keep up, traditional longstanding organisations and businesses across Norfolk need innovation; without it they run the very real risk of losing their relevancy and customer base. So, innovate we must and with that in mind let me tell you my number one top tip when thinking about innovation.

‘Always, always make it about your customer’.

Technology is a huge enabler, it can speed things up, simplify information, make you more accessible, save you time and therefore cost, BUT introducing innovative tech is best used in ways that delight and engage your customers more than you already do. In other words, you innovate to add to the customer experience.

Be mindful though, not all innovation does this. Have you noticed, for example that some retail outlets are removing automated tills from some of their stores? Yes, it’s nice to wiz though a checkout (although you could argue that rarely happens with automated tills), but did this innovation really add to the customer experience, or instead make it more frustrating with less positive human engagement? If your customer chooses to visit your shop, then you must make the experience a positive one and not try and ‘fuse tech’ to deliver the customer service and instead create an angry hybrid!

My other top tip.

It’s all about your people, your team, your living/breathing brand ambassadors.

They must own your transformation. When companies think about transformation they naturally focus on risk and revenue and KPI’s etc. All good, but a huge value of a business is in its culture and people, so naturally the culture must allow the people to drive and support the innovation as co-creation.

Co-Creation is where our heads have been for the last year or so at the Norfolk Chambers. Buoyed by our refreshed company mission and purpose: ‘to connect and support and give voice to every business in Norfolk’ we have begun our modernisation journey.

The journey references our 125-year history and enables us to create and engage in new and exciting digital innovations that, when applied, add to the customer experience. There are a few innovations to come and grouped together they collectively form: The Digital Chamber.

And, due to the current and dramatic shift to digital caused by the COVID pandemic, we have accelerated the launch of the first The Digital Chamber innovation: Norfolk’s Voice.

Norfolk’s Voice is a new digital media platform and is, quite simply, a home for videos, podcasts and articles, that are enriched with vital knowledge, that when understood will enable business to succeed.

Knowledge rich content is not in short supply; in the spirit of Co-Creation we see and hear it every day, and now we have the ability to give it greater purpose. Norfolk’s Voice is free to view and available 24/7 via the web and free apps. Supported and curated by the chamber, our aim is to deliver relevant, engaging content that’s free and is ‘telling not selling!’

We are just beginning. Welcome to The Digital Chamber!

AA patrols will continue to help key workers and those who need to travel during lockdown, but many vehicle owners will be preparing for another month off the road, this time in colder conditions. 

Ben Sheridan, AA Patrol of the Year, gives his top tips on maintaining your vehicles through lockdown:

If being used occasionally:

If vehicles are likely to be used for occasional essential journeys, you’ll want to know that they are ready when needed.

One of the key things to look out for is the battery. There is more demand on car batteries during winter with increased use of lights, wipers and heating. The age of the battery, how the vehicle has been used and the cold temperatures all affect performance. 

You can help keep batteries in good working order by using a mains-powered battery maintainer or, if this isn’t possible, starting the engine once a week and allowing it to run for at least 15 minutes to give the battery time to charge. 

Most modern vehicles with a fairly healthy battery should last at least two weeks without needing to be started up, but if there’s any doubt about the condition of the battery, start it once a week just to be safe. 

If your vehicles are garaged, remember to pull them out into the open first; don’t run the engine inside a garage, and never leave a vehicle unattended with the engine running.

If not being used at all

If you’re locking your vehicles up for the month or even further into winter, there are steps you can take now to see them through the period of disuse; known as laying-up. 

If a vehicle is kept off the road and isn’t being used at all, you may be able to make a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN). 

Before parking up, it’s a good idea to top up with fuel. A full tank doesn’t attract condensation, which could cause issues if allowed to build up over time.

More information on laying up vehicles for winter can be found at: https://www.theaa.com/driving-advice/laying-up

Advice for Electric Vehicles (EVs)

Electric and hybrid vehicles have 12-volt batteries, the same as conventional cars. However, they charge differently. 

Pressing the start button so the ‘ready’ light comes on will operate the charging system. Putting the vehicle into ‘ready’ mode for 10 minutes once a week should keep the 12-volt battery topped up. 

Some electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles can maintain their 12-volt batteries if they’re plugged in to the mains charger, so vehicle owners should check their EV handbook for details.

Getting back on the road

Once you’re ready to use your vehicles again, check that the MoT and tax are still current. If your MoT is due to expire during the second lockdown period, it would be a good idea to get it booked in as soon as possible as many garages are still dealing with high demand from the MoT extension. Vehicle owners can find a local AA-approved garage, select a date and book an individual MoT online via AA Smart Care or contact your AA account manager if you have multiple vehicles to maintain.

Before starting the vehicle, make sure there’s nothing nesting under the bonnet which might have caused damage to pipes or hoses, and check all the fluid levels before starting the engine. 

Before driving, check the tyre pressures and inflate them if needed. It’s also worth checking the condition of the tyres, looking out for any defects.

If your vehicles have been standing unused for a long time, it’s a good idea to arrange a full service once you’re ready to use them again.

Providing an initial response to the Prime Minister’s plan for Coronavirus restrictions after the second lockdown ends in England, BCC Director General Adam Marshall said:

“It is helpful that the Prime Minister has heeded our call to give businesses at least a week’s notice of the rule changes that will affect firms across England from December 2nd. 

“Businesses across England now need to see the detail – and will judge the latest set of Covid rules on whether they are easy to understand and based on clear, transparently-presented evidence.

“They need to know that the new rules will be accompanied by commensurate support, by a significant expansion of mass testing, particularly to workplaces across the country, and by a plan to get the economy fully open again. 

“The reduction of time in quarantine for international passengers will help to re-establish connections to key markets and trade partners across the world, helping businesses that depend on the UK’s connectivity and preserving industries and livelihoods.

“Ministers can’t simply keep switching businesses on and off like a light switch without expecting severe consequences. Covid-secure businesses will be looking to the government for a plan that keeps them, and the economy, open throughout winter and beyond.”

Commenting on the government’s net zero plan to tackle climate change, BCC Director General Adam Marshall said:

“As business communities restart and rebuild after the pandemic, Chambers are clear that the transition to net zero must be measurable, credible and fair. 

“The Prime Minister’s announcement is a step forward on this journey, but more detail and even higher levels of both public and private investment will be needed to ensure that we are able to meet the shared ambition of government and our business communities. 

“Business communities in our coastal regions will benefit significantly from a greater emphasis on offshore wind. Integrating local firms into supply chains will be vital in supporting investment and jobs of the future.  

“Decarbonisation remains crucial to our future economic recovery, but businesses will need to see more detail in the long-awaited Energy White Paper if we are to boost investor confidence. And if we are to build the supply chains needed to meet these ambitions here in the UK, clarity on the future of industrial strategy is also required.  

“While the impact of the pandemic has not diminished business communities’ desire to become greener, the pace of change will mean many firms will need support in the transition to cleaner technologies. Government should consider incentives to help businesses make the change without losing out, including business rates exemptions for green investments and compensation schemes for phasing out petrol and diesel vehicles.”  

British Chambers of Commerce calls for evidence and clarity for businesses as government mulls post-December 2nd Coronavirus restrictions in England

The British Chambers of Commerce has called on the UK government to publish its approach to national Coronavirus restrictions in England without delay, providing firms with: 

• at least one week’s notice ahead of December 2nd;
• scientific evidence for any continuing restrictions on specific business sectors; and 
• an economic impact assessment of the impact of continued business restrictions and closures on communities and the wider economy. 

With the second national lockdown in England due to end on 2 December, the leading business organisation – which collectively represents over 70,000 firms of all sizes and sectors across the UK employing six million people – is concerned about the lack of clarity over what form restrictions will take after the current lockdown. 

BCC has called for government to publish its plans with at least one week’s notice before restrictions are set to end on 2 December, allowing firms adequate time to prepare to re-open and trade afterwards. 

The group is also pressing government to explain clearly why businesses in a number of sectors have been forced to close despite taking considerable steps at huge expense to comply with Covid-secure guidance, including leisure, non-essential retail and beauty.  

It has submitted a Freedom of Information Request to the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to determine what evidence base, if any, was used to inform government guidance on the closure of businesses in England from November 5. This clarity is essential for businesses and government to work together on steps that avoid the need for business closures in future.   

The call follows the BCC’s challenge to the Prime Minister to meet five business tests to limit the impact of Coronavirus restrictions on businesses and jobs and take a long-term approach to tackling the pandemic. 

BCC Director General Adam Marshall said:

“Nine months into the pandemic, business communities are still crying out for timely information and a clear strategy from government so that they can survive and rebuild.  

“Delays and imprecision mean people lose their livelihoods. Firms are taking difficult decisions every day about their futures, and are tired of being left to rely on speculation and rumour. The government must urgently set out the exit plan for the end of national restrictions in England on 2nd December – and make it crystal-clear which businesses can operate, and under what conditions.  

“Businesses have played their part by working hard and spending hundreds of millions of pounds to become Covid-secure, in line with official guidance. We must see the evidence for why many were forced to close again on 5th November, and absolute transparency on what may happen from 2nd December.  

“Business communities – whether in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland – cannot take another year of rushed stop-start restrictions from governments while vaccines are rolled out. Broad-based workplace testing would help bridge the gap, maintaining employee confidence and helping as many businesses as possible remain open and trading at this crucial time.”  

The Kickstart Scheme is aimed at 16 to 24 year olds who may find it more challenging to access the world of work.  The scheme provides 6 month placements, at 25 hours per week at minimum wage – although the employer can offer more hours and cover the additional cost.  The total grant available from the scheme is £6,500, which pays for the wages and the on-costs such as NI etc.

In addition, there is a further £1,500 payable to the employers for them to provide wrap-around employability support – this can be either in-house or the employer can pay for the support to be delivered.  Whichever way, you will need to be able to evidence what the support is and the impact/benefits to the employee.  Norfolk Chambers is working with various training providers and others to offer a suite of support options to make it easier for the employers to provide the wrap-around employability support.  At present all the support is based online, due to the current pandemic restrictions.

City College Norwich

College of West Anglia

East Coast College

Futures For You

Steadfast Training

To qualify for a Kickstart placement – the business must be able to demonstrate that this role is additional.  The placement is for 6 months, at the end of that period, you can either take that person on or replace them with another placement for a further 6 months.

The Kickstart Scheme requires employers to be able to offer a minimum of 30 placements which for the majority of Norfolk businesses will not be possible – therefore Norfolk Chambers has become a Gateway, and we will collate the 30 placements on behalf of a group of employers. 

If your business wishes to take part in this scheme, you will need to advise how many placements and the type of placement.  Apply for your placements now.  

Once Norfolk Chambers have received the 30 completed applications, we will submit the cohort to the DWP and notify you of the submission day.  The DWP are quoting up to 30 days for a response on the cohort applications.

If your application is successful, a grant funding agreement will be issued and you must return the signed funding agreement and provide a detailed job description for the position.  Candidates via the DWP will then apply for the job placements and you can choose who to employ. Please note, you will only obtain funding if you appoint a young person that DWP have introduced.

For more information on what happens following the submission of the cohort to DWP – click here.

If you have any questions on the Kickstart Scheme, please contact:

Nova Fairbank              [email protected]

Charlotte Upcraft           [email protected]

Or call: 01603 625977

Following the Chambers’ Countdown to Change 75 days webinar on 16 October, the UK Cabinet Office has shared responses to the questions posed during the session with the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office.

For more information on how Norfolk Chambers can help support your business through the transition on 01 January 2021, visit our Brexit Hub.

With only a few weeks to go until the United Kingdom transitions out of the EU, time is of the essence for businesses to prepare. The government has put in place new rules that organisations must adhere to on 01January 2021. This year has already been an incredible challenge for the majority of businesses due to the COVID pandemic, so it is understandable that strategising for Brexit may not have been your top priority.

However, with time fast slipping away, now is the time to act in order to prevent any further disruption to your operations. And the Norfolk Chambers of Commerce are on hand to help.

How we can support your Norfolk business through Brexit and beyond

The complexity of Brexit, from the regulation changes to the shifting EU exit dates, has made it a daunting concept. To alleviate any concerns, the Norfolk Chambers of Commerce have moved swiftly to implement a Brexit Hub on our website.

With social distancing measures in place impacting on the ability to hold face-to-face meetings and seminars, online information hubs have proven to be incredibly effective in providing business support. We saw great use of the Coronavirus Hub set up earlier this year, which can still be accessed.

The Brexit Hub is a resource-rich portal which includes:

• Brexit Readiness videos ,  guides on the understanding of Customs Declarations and Rules of Origin and Tariffs for whether we leave with or without a deal.
• Countdown to Change online webinar series hosted by Customers expert, Liam Smyth. Covering import and export processes, systems and controls, these webinars are designed to guide your business through the complexity of change.
• Online Customs Declarations Training workshops – your business may be eligible to claim up to 100% back from the HMRC through their Customs Grant Scheme for some courses.
• Chamber webinar recordings from throughout the year that cover a range of topics from COVID and mindset resilience, to staff motivation and strategies.
• International documentation including ATA Carnets, International Import Certificates, Arab Certificates of Origin, A.TR Movement Certificates, EUR1 Movement Certificates and European Certificates of Origin. We can also arrange for the legalisation of these documents through the Chamber Network.
• Information on other topics that could impact your business including people, trade, borders, digital, regulations and standards, tax, finance and banking as well as funding.
• Links to other useful sources of information to keep you updated including the British Chambers of Commerce, New Anglia LEP and the GOV.UK website (who also provide an email service for updates).

Many of these resources are free for members and non-members, or are discounted for members. Click here to learn about the other benefits of becoming a member.

Going further to help ease the pressure on your business

In addition to the hub, we are delighted to announce that we have specialist Brexit advisers available to talk to. These advisers are qualified to manage Customs Declarations, making them a fantastic, easy to reach, point of contact for your business.

We do recommend phoning in sooner, rather than later, as this service has been incredibly popular. You can contact an adviser by calling 01603 625977.

By covering all angles, we hope to make this a stress-free process for your business. Especially as 2020 has been one of the most difficult years in the last few decades. Together we can be Brexit-ready.

Access the Brexit Hub by clicking here.

The Quarterly Economic Survey is significant piece of economic data, used by many organisations and the country’s decision makers to help shape economic policies for the UK.

The Bank of England recently worked on the latest round of Quantitative Easing and they used data supplied by the Chambers Quarterly Economic Survey to help inform those decisions.

With England in its second round of Covid-19 restrictions and the UK Government putting lots of energy into ‘levelling up’ the UK – it is more important than ever to hear from businesses based in Norfolk on how they see the local economy.

Without this vital local and regional knowledge the decision makers cannot make informed choices and put in the right support mechanisms that ultimately may impact on you and your company.

The QES is anonymous, open to anyone and only takes a couple of minutes to complete online. 

We need your input, if you only take one survey, then please make it the QES

Take Part Now.

Commenting on the ONS labour market statistics for November, published today, BCC Head of Economics Suren Thiru said:

“The rise in the unemployment rate and redundancies is further evidence that the damage being done to the UK jobs market by the Coronavirus pandemic is intensifying.

“While there was a rise in the number of job vacancies, this is more likely to reflect a temporary bounce as the economy reopened before recent restrictions were reintroduced, rather than a meaningful upturn in demand for labour. 

“The extension to the furlough scheme will safeguard a significant number of jobs in the near term. However, with firms facing another wave of severely diminished cashflow and revenue and with gaps in government support persisting, further substantial rises in unemployment remain likely in the coming months. 

“Increased grant support for businesses impacted by restrictions is urgently needed to help businesses protect jobs, particularly given the delay to the job retention bonus. Closing the remaining gaps in government support, including for some self-employed and company directors must also be a key priority.”

With Coronavirus restrictions come in place, many businesses could be forgiven for taking their eyes off the ‘Brexit ball’.  However, the number of days left to prepare for Brexit are rapidly dwindling and business needs to take action now.

At present businesses have free movement of their goods into/out of Europe, however on 01 January 2021, you will need to produce international trade documentation for all your products both imported and exported to/from the EU.

Whether you are an importer or an exporter, deal or no deal, you will need to do things differently from 01 January 2021 and that means you need to step up your Brexit preparations now, to ensure you are fully ready to meet the coming changes.

To ensure that your business is ready to meet the new UK import/export regulations on 01 January 2021, you need to have considered the following ten key areas:

1. Do you have an EORI number starting with GB?
2. Who is currently moving your freight and who do you currently use to process your customs declarations?
3. Who’s currently holding the liability for your declarations? (direct/indirect representation)
4. Do you have an international team?  What is the level of expertise in that team?
5.  When did you last review or check your commodity/tariff codes?
6. What is the likely volume of your imports/exports from the EU?
7. Which ports/airports do you use?
8. Do you have your own deferment account with HMRC?
9. Are your imported goods liable for excise duty?
10. Do your import/export goods require licences, health certificates or dangerous goods notifications?

Norfolk Chambers has also been gearing up to meet the expected demand from these changes.  We now have trained expert Chamber Customs staff to provide both support and advice, as well as the processing of customs declarations for both import and exports.

It is expected that in early 2021, there is likely to be considerable constraints on the capacity for processing customs documentation across the whole of the UK.  As such, we are encouraging you now to make sure you are prepared to meet the challenge of Brexit. 

Depending on your preparations, we may be able to offer you the opportunity to secure some of Norfolk Chambers’ processing capacity for your customs declarations.

To secure your capacity, we will need some detailed information about your importing and exporting needs and we will need to ‘on-board’ you into the Chamber Customs system.

To find out more about securing Customs Declaration capacity for your business, please contact:

Julie Austin                 [email protected]

Ade Cockburn            [email protected]

Andrea Wilson            [email protected]

Nova Fairbank            [email protected]

Or call: 01603 625977

With new Coronavirus lockdown restrictions in force until 02 December, what support is available to businesses affected by these restrictions.

Business Grants

Business premises forced to close in England due to local or national restrictions will be eligible for the business grants as outlined here. 

Loan schemes

Application deadlines have been extended to January 31 2021 for the following schemes:

• Coronavirus Bounce Back Loan;
• Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan;
• Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme
• Coronavirus Future Fund