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1813 Club and Premier Members


1813 Club and Premier Members


Greater Birmingham’s leading companies


An organisation which is attempting to plug the skills gap in the UK is pleading with businesses to step forward and play their part in the initiative. Ahead Partnership, which


operates in Yorkshire, Tees Valley, London and Birmingham, is a social enterprise, and is funded by the Big Lottery. Its mission is to ‘connect businesses with people and communities to drive social and economic change’. A big part of that is tackling the


skills deficit, which businesses mention frequently as a reason they cannot find the recruits they need from among Britain’s school and college leavers. Julian Buttery, Birmingham-


based development director of Ahead Partnership, said: “Businesses are concerned that there is a gap between the skills of students leaving education and those demanded by employers. Linked to this, there is often a lack


Get ‘work ready’ with a BT placement


Telecoms giant BT is offering free work placements to help young people in Birmingham get ‘work ready’ and prepared for their future careers. The three-week course,


combining hands-on work experience with coaching and training, is open to anyone aged 16 to 24 not currently in education, employment or training. BT said that the work placements


were a great opportunity for people to build confidence and learn practical work skills. Colin Bannon, chairman of BT’s


West Midlands regional board, said: “BT work placements give local, young people the opportunity to experience the working day and gain invaluable insight of what is expected in the workplace” BT work placements are part of


the BT Work Ready programme, which is a series of initiatives to help young people, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds.


22 CHAMBERLINK October 2017


of awareness of the breadth of career options available and the skills needed for those careers.” In order to tackle this issue,


Ahead Partnership has devised a programme called ‘Make the Grade’, which introduces students to the work environment from an early age. It is an industry-led initiative, based on industry visits, mentoring and workshops, all of which help students get an idea of what employers will expect from them. Mr Buttery said: “Make the Grade


is a flexible and adaptable programme which brings employers and schools together and offers bespoke projects and workshops designed to address your particular business needs. “ Mr Buttery is now hoping that


local businesses will step forward and pledge their support for Make the Grade. Any business which is interested


should contact Ahead Partnership on 0121 607 1808.


Students from King Edward’s School in Birmingham take part in a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) day with Ahead Partnership


LDC invests in Birmingham’s future


Private equity provider LDC is celebrating 30 years in Birmingham, a region Andy Lyndon – director and head of LDC in the Midlands – describes as “a hub of ambition, innovation, and entrepreneurialism.” LDC arrived in Birmingham in 1987, opening


its first premises outside of London. Three decades later, LDC’s portfolio companies in Birmingham generate combined revenues of more than £1.7billion a year, and support almost 14,000 jobs. Since the Birmingham office opened, LDC


has backed more than 130 management teams here with over £1bn of investment. One of the company’s flagship investments in the


region is the NEC Group. LDC backed the management team in a £307m transaction in 2015, supported by Birmingham-based advisors including Eversheds and Deloitte. Now just over two years into the partnership, LDC


has helped the NEC Group to build both scale and value, including the recent opening of its Resorts World outlet shopping centre and Vox conference venue. The team has also recently won the Midlands Large Company Management Team of the Year at the BVCA Management Team Awards.


Andy (pictured) says: “During these past three decades we’ve partnered with some exceptional management teams, like the team at the NEC Group. First and foremost LDC invests in people. We don’t concentrate on any one sector over another – we work with our corporate finance partners to find and back the ambitious management teams running growing and profitable businesses. “What those teams find in us is a


partner with the capital, experience and skills to help make their ambition a reality.” As Birmingham experiences a period of


significant growth and investment – with the


highest number of employees of any city outside of London – how does LDC see the next 30 years? Andy says: “Birmingham has always played a key


role on the UK’s national economic stage. Some of our strongest corporate finance relationships are in this region. So just as economic success in the Midlands is fundamental to the UK economy, the Birmingham business community is central to LDC’s future. “We’ve pledged to invest £1.2bn nationwide over the


next three years to help small and mid-market businesses grow and I want to see a big portion of that going to ambitious companies here in the Midlands.”


Premier Membership


Contact: Howard Blow T: 0121 607 1841


Help students make the grade


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