INBUSINESS inbusiness CONTACT DETAILS


EDITOR: Catherine Bontoft T: 01604 490490


NORTHAMPTONSHIRE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Waterside House, 8 Waterside Way, Northampton NN4 7XD


NEWS AND ARTICLES SHOULD BE SENT TO: inbusiness@northants-chamber.co.uk


THE VOICE OF NORTHAMPTONSHIRE BUSINESS VIEWPOINT


THE SUCCESSES OF AN ACTIVE CHAMBER


As I write this I cannot help but reflect on how much activity goes on within our Chamber. I’m proud to say that this year we have launched


PUBLISHED BY: Kemps Publishing Ltd 11 The Swan Courtyard, Charles Edward Road, Birmingham B26 1BU T: 0121 765 4144 W: www.kempspublishing.co.uk


MANAGING EDITOR: Laura Blake DESIGNER: Lloyd Hollingworth


ADVERTISING T: 0121 765 4144 E: jon.jones@kempspublishing.co.uk


PRINTERS: Warners (Midlands) plc


FRONT COVER: Paul Burton, chief executive of Briggs and Forrester COVER/INTERVIEW PHOTOS: Jane Russell Photography


ABOUT THIS MAGAZINE: inbusiness is a bi-monthly publication and digital magazine distributed to 6,000 Chamber members and key businesses in Northamptonshire. The publication focuses on news and information about local companies and the initiatives and advice available to increase the prosperity of county firms. Northamptonshire Chamber welcomes newsworthy articles of business interest, giving preference to Chamber members. As editorial space is limited, inclusion cannot be guaranteed and the editor may amend or reject articles submitted.


our new series of Your Future Careers Fairs for 11 to 18-year-olds in response to our members’ concerns about recruitment issues in the county. We have staged three fairs so far and once again


our members have provided fantastic support at these events. Dozens of businesses have run stands at the fairs


and provided practical activities and skills building exercises to help the students prepare for employment. The schools that have taken part have been thrilled


to welcome such a wide variety of businesses to meet their students and we have had lots of positive feedback from our members who have taken part too. It’s been great to see our members making such a


positive impact to the lives of young people whilst helping to better prepare the next generation of our workforce. Our Business Forum is also going from strength to strength and is producing exciting results


‘IT’S BEEN GREAT TO SEE OUR MEMBERS MAKING SUCH A POSITIVE IMPACT TO THE LIVES OF YOUNG PEOPLE’


already. So far its members have identified six key topics, including Brexit and the Government’s Industrial Strategy, which they want to focus on in 2017. Their work is being used to create a Business Manifesto which will be a vital tool for us


when we are lobbying local authorities and MPs on behalf of our members. We have also held two meetings of our International Trade Forum and a third meeting is


due to take place soon. These events have been attended by a good mix of businesses. They have included topical


discussions and a number of our members contributed to the dossier of information we took down to our meeting with the British Chambers of Commerce and representatives of the Department for Exiting the European Union at the Treasury. We’ve had a lot of interest in this forum from members and it’s proving to be a great place


FOLLOW NORTHAMPTONSHIRE CHAMBER AT:


www.facebook.com/northamptonshire.chamber @NorthantsCoC


www.linkedin.com/company/northamptonshire- chamber-of-commerce www.youtube.com/NorthantsChamber


You can also follow our International Trade Team on Twitter: @NhntChambExport


For further information on Northamptonshire Chamber call 01604 490490 or visit www.northants-chamber.co.uk


inbusiness is produced on behalf of Northamptonshire Chamber by Kemps Publishing Ltd and is distributed without charge to all Chamber members and other leading businesses in Northamptonshire. The Chamber and the publisher are committed to achieving the highest quality standards. However, views expressed in the magazine are independent and while every care has been taken to ensure that the information it contains is accurate, neither Northamptonshire Chamber nor the publisher can accept any responsibility for any omission or inaccuracies that might arise.


4 inbusiness APRIL/MAY 2017 BUSINESS ALLIANCE GROUP PARTNERS 2016/17


for them to discuss issues and problems in international trade. It is fantastic to see our members engaging with us in so many different ways. This engagement helps us to ensure that we continue to have a clear understanding of the issues and challenges facing our members and gives added weight to our efforts to lobby key figures in local and national Government on your behalf. Thank you for your ongoing support – it is


the reason that we have such an active, vibrant and award-winning Chamber.


PAUL GRIFFITHS Chief Executive, Northamptonshire Chamber paul.griffiths@northants-chamber.co.uk


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40