Latest updates and stories from Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce and its Members

Commenting on GDP figures for February 2021 published by the ONS, BCC Head of Economics, Suren Thiru, said:

“The latest data confirms a modest return to growth in February. However, coming after a contraction in January, it does little to alter the prospect of a downbeat first quarter for the UK economy.

Employers can claim up to £4,000 for taking on an apprentice aged 16-18.

And, apprentices of any age can attract £3,000 of funding.

Business Development Director Gina Bubbins of The Bedford College Group says:

The British Chamber of Commerce has signed the Armed Forces Covenant in a virtual signing event attended by the Assistant Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Simon Brooks-Ward CVO OBE TD VR.

The Forest of Marston Vale and Midas Pattern Company Ltd launch partnership to showcase zero-carbon business in action and plant trees in the local area

SHORTSTOWN AND COTTON END: Local Community Forest charity the Forest of Marston Vale has entered into a 5 year partnership with award-winning company Midas Pattern Company Ltd, planting 500 trees per year near Bedford and selling verified carbon units to cut the manufacturing company’s carbon footprint to absolute zero.

Company celebrates winning major accolade at Asia-Pacific Bioprocessing Excellence Awards

Peli BioThermal, the global name in temperature controlled packaging, was announced as winner of the Best Temperature Control Packaging Provider - Passive category at the annual Asia-Pacific Bioprocessing Excellence Awards 2021.

TWO of the leading publishing businesses in Milton Keynes, Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire have joined forces to create a new ‘print powerhouse’.
Lunar Publishing Ltd, which produces the monthly MK Pulse and NN Pulse lifestyle magazines, has relaunched the well respected and long-established Northamptonshire business publication Business Times earlier this year.

In March 2020 as part of the Budget, the Government committed to the preparation of a Spatial Framework for the Oxford to Cambridge Arc to guide the direction of development in this recognised growth corridor.

Robinson & Hall, Land and Property Professionals explain further….

Jaltek has invested in a TAKAYA APT-1400F Flying Probe Test machine from Accelonix Ltd. The new machine will sit alongside Jaltek’s existing Flying Probe further enhancing technical capacity and throughput.

There was a flood of bookings for all the facilities at Wyboston Lakes Resort immediately after the Prime Minister’s ‘roadmap’ announcement. 

From the spa and golf course to the hotel and conference centres, the few staff working were kept continually busy throughout the week handling enquiries and confirmations.

About six months ago my small bookkeeping business expanded to take on a part time assistant to help with admin and marketing which was a huge success. It was lovely to have a member of staff to talk things through with and the system we developed meant her work really saved me a lot of time (mainly a few hours a week swearing at my printer).

Sarah Howard MBE believes women in business have a lot to be proud of but more needs to be done to make sure their voices are heard, especially in company boardrooms.

The Board of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has today announced the appointment of Shevaun Haviland as the new Director General of the organisation.

The success of The Bedford College Group in winning the FE College of the Year Award has been made possible only through the support of employers.

By listening and learning, we have been able to adapt our curriculum and programmes, offers and courses, to meet your demands.

Giving his reaction to the Chancellor’s budget, Dr Adam Marshall, Director General of the BCC, said:

“There’s much to welcome in this Budget for business communities across the UK. The Chancellor has listened and acted on our calls for immediate support to help struggling businesses reach the finish line of this gruelling marathon and to begin their recovery.

Giving his reaction to the Chancellor’s budget, Dr Adam Marshall, Director General of the BCC, said:

“There’s much to welcome in this Budget for business communities across the UK. The Chancellor has listened and acted on our calls for immediate support to help struggling businesses reach the finish line of this gruelling marathon and to begin their recovery.

A Luton community and business leader has spoken of his pride at being appointed as Deputy Lieutenant of Bedfordshire at the age of just 38.

Father-of-four Mostaque Koyes, from Luton, is one of the youngest people to hold the honorary position in the county.

Central Bedfordshire Council, in partnership with the Department of Health and Social Care, has launched a community testing initiative to help drive down Covid-19 transmission rates.

A new grant funding pot of £475,000 has been made available by the South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP) to help small and medium sized enterprises in Bedfordshire to reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions of their commercial premises.

Works are close to completion on the big improvements to Allhallows and Church Square.

Allhallows is a key part of Bedford town centre, and is a busy link between the town, the bus station and the train station. The whole stretch of Allhallows from St Loyes Street down to Midland Road, and Church Square is set to be improved in a major project.

Commenting on the announcement of the fund, Suren Thiru, Head of Economics at the BCC, said: 
 
“This is a welcome first step in dealing with some of the major issues that small businesses trading with the EU are facing.

Results from the first major business survey for 2021 by the British Chambers of Commerce on Brexit found that half (49%) of  exporters  are  facing difficulties in adapting to the changes in the trade of goods following the ratification of the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) on 1 January 2021. 

• Work commences on a further 250,000 sq ft of prime distribution and logistics space at Bedford Commercial Park
• Phase two of development follows leasing of 407,143 sq ft distribution warehouse and completion of i-Worx innovation units 
• Strategic location at heart of Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor to provide customers with access to 32 million consumers within a two-hour drivetime
Goodman has broken ground on 250,000 sq ft of prime distribution and logistics space at Bedford Commercial Park.

Wyboston Lakes Resort has appointed Chelsey Hutchinson as chair of the 380-acre conference, training and leisure resort in Bedfordshire.

Hutchinson, 34, has spent a decade working across every area of the Resort, including four years as a board director.

Luton Businesswoman, Bina Briggs has been selected to be part of the F: Entrepreneur Top 100 businesswomen in their #isalso campaign for 2021.
This campaign highlights inspiring female business leaders across the UK.
Bina owns Plain Talking HR, an HR consultancy based in Luton supporting clients with HR requirements.

Providing pandemic response support sees company’s Crēdo™ on Demand network expand with latest airline cargo collaboration

Peli BioThermal, the global name in temperature controlled packaging, announces its latest partnership with Asiana Airlines, which will see an extensive expansion of the company’s growing global network.

This is the year of new beginnings for so many in business and industry.

At The Bedford College Group we are focussed on supporting employers who need staff with the right skills to navigate the “new normal”, or Brexit Britain, or tackle technology fast-forwarded by lockdowns and ‘working from home’.

Neville Funerals has announced that it is to open a new branch at Dunstable in January 2021. This will be the long-established firm’s ninth branch to open in its heartland of the Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire region.

The start of 2021 sees the appointment of Sarah Williams as a new Business Development Partner for top UK accountancy practice, Streets Chartered Accountants.

The British Chambers of Commerce’s Quarterly Economic Survey (QES) – the UK’s largest independent survey of business sentiment and a leading indicator of UK GDP growth – found that business conditions remained weak in the fourth quarter as the second lockdown squeezed activity.

 
Commenting on the support measures for business announced by the Chancellor, BCC Director General, Adam Marshall said:   
 
'While this immediate cash flow support for business is welcome, it is not going to be enough to save many firms.