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Latest news from MILTON KEYNES CHAMBER MEMBERS including award wins, relocations, appointments, new contracts, member profiles, mergers, company expansion plans, sponsorship deals and business success stories


NEW TEAM WORKS TO INCREASE FUNDRAISING


MILESTONE FOR LOCAL LENDER


Responsible finance provider Enterprise Loans is celebrating its 30th anniversary in business, having lent more than £25m to SMEs across the East and South East Midlands. Hosting a black-tie event in


September, the evening brought together more than 200 key stakeholders, partners and funders to highlight the impact Enterprise Loans has had on the regions. CEO Quammar Zamman


said: “The business first launched as First Enterprise in 1989, and since that time the organisation has developed into so much more and has grown into the leading Responsible Finance Provider in the East Midlands and South East Midlands. “Over the years we’re proud


to have won several funding streams, such as Start Up Loans, the Creative Quarter Loan Fund and most recently the Midlands Engine Investment Fund, to support this aim. These have enabled us to reach and support even more incredible businesses within the region. “This has culminated into an


incredible total of £25m that has been lent to SMEs and more than 10,000 individuals have been supported to find employment or start-up their own businesses across the East and South East Midlands in the past 30 years.”


Visit: www.first- enterprise.co.uk Twitter: @1st_Enterprise


Every year 4,000 people in Milton Keynes and the surrounding areas are given the devastating news that they have cancer. At present cancer facilities at


Milton Keynes University Hospital are cramped and overcrowded, with many patients having to be referred to hospitals in Oxford, Northampton or Bedford. This means lengthy and stressful journeys for patients and their families. In June 2018, Milton Keynes


Hospital Charity launched a £2.5m appeal to help build a cancer centre at the hospital. With a team of three, the charity’s annual income average was approximately £250,000 per year so this appeal was a huge step change in fundraising for them. As well as recruiting someone to


fill the vacant position of community fundraising manager, Vanessa Holmes, head of fundraising, also recruited a community/staff engagement fundraiser and a trust fundraiser.


The cancer centre is coming along at pace and is due to open this winter


But has this bold move worked?


Yes it has. The appeal total currently stands


at over £800,000, and there have been a variety of high profile events, such as the sold out Gala Ball in September, with more planned in the coming months.


Vanessa said: “It was important


to recruit individuals that I felt would work well together and we have definitely done that.”


Visit: www.mkhcharity.org.uk/cancer- centre-appeal


MAXIMISING MEMBER BENEFITS


A team of financial planning experts have made the most of their Chamber benefits after attending a Maximise Your Membership event. During the event, Wealth and Tax Management managing director


Tony Byrne listened to a representative of one of the Chamber’s third party providers, AXA, explain that member businesses are entitled to a 50% discount on the premiums for the first three years of their membership. On top of that the premiums are discounted for Chamber members, even small firms, because their membership is treated as one large group much like a large company scheme. Tony said: “I was surprised to learn the cost of insuring my eight staff


including me was only three times the cost of insuring me individually! As the cost was so competitive I wasted no time in agreeing to proceed. “I’ve had treatment in private hospitals on just two occasions; the


decor, furniture and equipment is top class, it’s ultra-modern, and the staff service is second to none. You get treated more quickly than with the NHS which is a considerable benefit. This was the reason I took out private medical insurance in the first place. “As a business owner I felt it was imperative to be able to return to


work quickly after an illness or injury. I’ve never regretted having private medical insurance even though I’ve only made two claims. It’s great peace of mind knowing you have a policy to cover you in the event of ill health.”


26 inbusiness DECEMBER 2019/JANUARY 2020 Tony Byrne


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