Prosper Spring

THE REGION’S LONGEST-RUNNING BUSINESS PUBLICATION 

BLACK COUNTRY 

PROSPER 

‘I want an employer in 

every classroom’ 

Jat Sharma, Principal, Walsall College, issues a call to arms

WELCOME TO PROSPER 

It’s never been more important 

to look after your people 

The economic headwinds show no sign of abating, says Sarah Thompson, 

Editor, Prosper, but with skilled staff at a premium, Chamber members are 

also focused on issues around training and retaining talent 

Welcome to the Spring issue 

of Prosper Magazine, in which we 

hope you’ll gain some fresh 

perspectives and insights from pages 

packed full of opinion, news and 

information from different sectors and 

the Black Country Chamber of 

Commerce. 

As this issue was being finalised more 

shocks were hitting the business world. A 

major bank funding the tech sector 

collapsed, only to bought by HSBC, 

industrial action continued to impact on the 

daily lives of many, and the Chancellor 

unveiled his Spring Budget – to a muted 

and mixed response from business. 

Many business owners are still looking for 

measures to counteract the damage they 

have sustained – and continue to sustain – 

as a result of the ongoing economic crises. 

And as they begin to emerge from the 

battering they suffered at the hands of the 

pandemic and rising costs, they now face a 

new headwind presented by the changed 

expectations of a workforce that has 

fundamentally shifted its values. 

Recruiting, training, and retaining the 

right people with the right skill-set from all 

age groups is still a problem for many firms. 

That’s why, in this issue of Prosper, we take a 

look at ‘people’ and talk to some of the 

region’s biggest educators, trainers, 

recruiters and employers on the subject of 

today’s workforce. 

Leading this is an interview with our front 

cover subject, Jat Sharma CBE DL, principal 

and chief executive of Walsall College and a 

passionate champion of the vital role that 

skills and training play in the development 

of the West Midlands economy and the 

ongoing regeneration of Walsall and the 

Black Country. 

We also take a look at a new survey by 

the British Chambers of Commerce which 

reveals firms are facing the highest level of 

recruitment difficulties on record, introduce 

you to one of the Black Country’s biggest 

training providers, In-Comm Training, as it 

expands with a new £3m technical 

academy, talk to Paycare boss Anthony 

Burns about encouraging male staff to seek 

counselling and support, and discuss 

the impact of Brexit on the UK economy 

three years after leaving the European 

Union with Professor Alex de Ruyter, 

Director of the Centre for Brexit Studies at 

Birmingham City University. 

The Chamber’s recent campaign, ‘This Is 

The Black Country’, is drawing to a close 

and we marked its contribution with a major 

event based around the Budget. 

In addition we have the usual round-up of 

news, views, opinion and debate from 

across the region’s business community. 

There’s also an insight into the extensive 

training opportunities and events on offer 

from the region’s longest running business 

support organisation, and we take a look at 

the recent International Women’s Day 

celebrations with Black Country Women in 

Leadership. 

CONTACT: SARAH THOMPSON 

e: SarahThompson@ 

blackcountrychamber.co.uk 

@SarahT_BCCC 

linkedin.com/in/ 

sarah-thompson-83931813/ 

PROSPER SPRING 2023 

O3

CONTACTS 

Editor 

Sarah Thompson 

0330 024 0820 

07971 322693 

prosper@blackcountrychamber.co.uk 

BLACK COUNTRY 

PROSPER 

Marketing & Policy 

Neil Anderson 

Director of External Affairs 

0330 024 0820 

neilanderson@ 


Membership 

Karen Webb 

Director of Business Services 

0330 024 0820 

membership@ 


18 

Walsall 

College’s 

Jat Sharma 

talks to 

Prosper 

Publisher 

Chamber Media Services 

4 Hilton Road, Bramhall 

Stockport, Cheshire 

SK7 3AG 

Advertising 

Colin Regan 

01942 537959 

colinregan001@yahoo.co.uk 

Production 

Rob Beswick 

0161 426 7957 

07964 375216 

rob@chambermediaservices.co.uk 

Black Country Prosper Magazine is the official magazine of the 

Black Country Chamber of Commerce. 

It provides news, views, interviews, opinion and debate along with 

information and insights. 

Prosper is the region’s longest running business publication . 

Produced on a quarterly basis, the magazine is supported by an array of the 

Black Country’s most influential business leaders and is read by business owners 

throughout the region and further afield. 

To find out more about advertising in Prosper, contact 

Colin Regan on 01942 537959. 

THE CHAMBER PATRON GROUP 

The work of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce is supported by these strategic 

business partners working together to make the region a better place for business. 

Cover Photography 

Jat Sharma CBE, DL 

Photographer Valerie Woolford 

with thanks to Dr Euripides Altintzoglou, 

FHEA, Course Leader (Photography), Senior 

Lecturer (Fine Art) University of Wolverhampton, 

Wolverhampton School of Art 

Although every effort is taken to ensure 

the accuracy of material contained within 

this magazine, neither the Black Country 

Chamber of Commerce nor Chamber 

Media Services can accept any 

responsibility for omissions or inaccuracies 

in its editorial or advertising content. 

The views expressed in this publication 

are not necessarily those of the Chamber. 

The carriage of adverts in this publication 

does not constitute an endorsement of 

the products or services advertised. 

All articles within this publication are 

copyright Black Country Chamber of 

Commerce. Consent from the Chamber 

and the publisher must be obtained 

before any articles are reproduced either 

in printed form or electronically. 

READ ONLINE 

We’re delighted that Prosper is back in a 

printed version, but you can still read it online. 

Go to blackcountrychamber.co.uk/news/ 

prosper-magazine/ 

Follow the Chamber on 

Twitter: @BCCCmembers 

LinkedIn: 

Search blackcountrychamber 

Facebook: @BlackCountryChamber 

Search BlackCountryChamber 

21 

O4 PROSPER SPRING 2023

CONTACTS & CONTENTS 

CONTENTS 

46 

30 

New law to 

offer more 

maternity 

protection 

24 

15 

Platinum members renew patronage 

28 

Mayor Andy on a visit 

42 

And he’s off! 

David Roberts 

to retire... 

sort of... 

22 

Budget 

response 

34 

Investing in training 

REGULAR FEATURES 

Members’ News 

Business is Done Better Together 

including Platinum Group, Celebrating five years of 

the Start-Up Club, Women as Leaders events 

This is the Black Country 

A year of campaigning draws to a close, 

and a Budget response 

Business in the Community 

Legal briefings 

Chamber Events 

Training & Professional Development 

Prosper People 

Members’ milestones 


O5

WELCOME 

As the economy continues to struggle, the 

Chamber’s focus will always be on supporting 

our members and fighting for your concerns 

says Sarah Moorhouse, CEO of the Black Country Chamber 

As we end the first quarter of 2023, green 

shoots are emerging around us following a 

long, cold winter. The extent to which the 

usual ‘green shoots’ metaphor can be 

attributed to the economy remains unclear, 

however. 

Real concern exists that long-promised 

investment into the region might not be 

delivered. The principal concern in this 

regard are announcements around the 

future of HS2; their tone suggests that we 

are in danger of being overlooked. 

During his Spring Budget statement, the 

Chancellor opened by saying that the UK 

economy is not in a technical recession and 

market reaction, although mixed, hasn’t 

seen the turmoil nor disruption which 

followed last Autumn’s calamitous financial 

statement. 

But as a Budget designed firmly to 

support the growth agenda and get people 

back to work, there was little in the way of 

help in tackling the upfront costs of doing 

business and, while the move towards 

energy security is the right one, local firms 

will struggle to pay energy costs from April 

onwards. 

Technicalities aside, the trading climate 

continues to be tough. Therefore, any 

announcements which help address the 

longstanding skills shortages will be 

welcome news for many. 

Indeed, when I talk to members, 

‘people’, the skills pipeline, and acquiring 

and retaining talent are important factors in 

boosting productivity and innovation. 

Indeed, it was a central tenant of our This is 

the Black Country initiative, which as it 

draws to a close continues to be a focus of 

the Chamber’s work moving forward as we 

fly the flag as the region’s economic voice. 

Equally important is remaining relevant 

to clients, customers and the marketplace, 

if businesses are to survive and thrive. 

Over the coming weeks we’ll be bringing 

members exciting news of additions to our 

membership packages and further news on 

our priorities to support the business 

communities across Dudley, Sandwell, 

Walsall and Wolverhampton. 

‘‘ 

When I talk to members, ‘people’, the 

skills pipeline, and acquiring and 

retaining talent are important factors in 

boosting productivity and innovation. 

Indeed, it was a central tenant of our 

This is the Black Country initiative 

‘‘ 


O7

FROM THE MAYOR’S OFFICE 

Andy Street, 

West Midlands Mayor 

Midlands rail plans would connect 

our industrial powerhouses 

Transport has always played an 

important role in the success of Black 

Country industry. The ability to move people 

and goods around helped establish the 

foundational industries here that drove the 

Industrial Revolution. After all, this is where 

steam power began. 

Building a world-class transport system is 

also a powerful way of driving investment 

into the region, boosting business. In this 

column I want to tell you about plans for the 

‘Midlands Rail Hub’, game-changing new 

proposals that will drive jobs and housing, 

and boost business. 

Rail investment has been key to the 

renewal of the West Midlands. For a start, 

unprecedented investment in HS2 is 

bringing significant regeneration as well as 

supporting thousands of existing jobs in 

construction. 

My own plans for the local public 

transport network has seen Wolverhampton 

The proposed Midlands Rail Hub 

station reborn, while work is underway to 

reopen others at Willenhall, Darlaston and 

Aldridge which have been closed since the 

1960s. Alongside all this the Metro network 

continues to grow, including the depot at 

Wednesbury. 

However, our local rail network still lacks 

capacity, in a way that often affects the 

whole country. 

The £1.4 billion Midlands Rail Hub 

proposals will sort those capacity issues 

once and for all, expanding the network by 

14.6 million seats per year. The plans would 

relieve the bottleneck at New Street station, 

for example, by expanding Moor Street to 

link up with the neighbouring HS2 station. 

Of course, winning investment of this 

level is all about building a compelling 

business case, and I am now lobbying hard 

to get the Government to proceed with the 

plans. 

The economic benefits of the proposals 

are there for all to see. They will drive 

footfall to our city and town centres and 

open up areas to business investment. They 

will also give 1.6 million people easier 

access to the benefits of HS2. 

Analysis shows that, for every £1 spent on 

the Rail Hub plans, the economy will get 

£1.50 back. It will also safeguard 1,600 

quality jobs in construction. The figures 

stack up. 

But it’s how the Midlands Rail Hub will 

help deliver Levelling Up that is perhaps 

most exciting. While HS2 will connect our 

part of the country with North and South, 

the Rail Hub will enhance the network right 

here, in the heart of England. 

Too often, as the nation debates the 

so-called North-South divide, the Midlands 

gets overlooked. The Midlands Rail Hub will 

better connect the economic powerhouses 

of the Black Country and West Midlands 

with our neighbours in the East Midlands, 

supercharging the economy here. It will 

provide a foundational investment that will 

link our communities like never before. As I 

have said many times, when the Midlands 

are doing well, the UK does well. 

Rail has never been more important. The 

pandemic saw passenger numbers hit, but 

patronage is growing again here. It’s vital 

that we keep investing. 

In London, Crossrail cost somewhere in 

the region of £14 billion. At £1.4 billion, the 

Midlands Rail Hub represents just a tenth of 

that price tag yet will improve the economic 

prospects of the Black Country, the wider 

region, and huge swathes of the UK. 

Transport has always played a big part in 

the success of the Black Country. If Midlands 

Rail Hub gets the green light, it would be 

‘full steam ahead’ for better connectivity, 

more investment and a boost for business. 

08 PROSPER SPRING 2023

NEWS 

Apprentices backed to 

‘future-proof’ top law firm 

Freeths proud to 

encourage black 

students into law 

National law firm Freeths was proud 

to host the Birmingham Black 

Lawyers’ (BBL) Student 

Empowerment Conference recently. 

The conference is designed to 

provide information, inspiration and 

empowerment for college students 

from African and Caribbean 

backgrounds who are interested in a 

career in law, as well as offering 

guidance and support to 16–18-yearolds 

and equipping them with the 

knowledge and skills needed for 

those important first steps. 

Becky Egan, Freeths’ Head of D&I, 

said: “We were delighted to be able 

to host this event on behalf of BBL. 

“The students learnt about being 

a barrister, a judge and a solicitor 

and had the chance to find out more 

about different routes into a career 

in law. 

“Students reported feeling 

empowered and excited about 

pursuing a legal career, and the 

team at Freeths is proud to have 

been a part of this.” 

A whole generation of apprentices is 

helping to ‘future-proof’ business for one of 

the West Midlands’ leading law firms. 

FBC Manby Bowdler, which has offices in 

Wolverhampton, Redditch and across 

Shropshire, has 10 apprentices learning on 

the job towards becoming solicitors or 

paralegals. 

HR Director Sarah Bond-Williams said 

The Merry Hill shopping centre has 

welcomed independent footwear brand, 

Soley Grail Soley Customs, which specialises 

in restoring and customising trainers. 

It is the latest addition to Merry Hill’s 

thriving lifestyle clothing and accessories 

offering. 

It follows on from the opening of global 

lifestyle brand Ted Baker, leading fashion 

brand H&M, luxury footwear and 

accessories specialists Kurt Geiger London, 

and global retailer Lids last year. 

apprenticeships were a key part of the firm’s 

employment strategy. She said: “We are 

working hard to grow the company, and to 

do that we need a full complement of skilled 

and talented staff. 

“The apprenticeship scheme allows us to 

‘grow our own’ which, given the skills 

shortage across all UK industries, is helping 

to future-proof our workforce.” 

Independent Halesowen footwear brand 

is a good fit for Merry Hill shopping 

Wired for Good gives charity funding boost 

A Black Country charity that predominantly 

supports men with their mental health has 

received a funding boost thanks to a 

kind-hearted local business. 

Tough Enough To Care, which was formed 

by Stuart Bratt after he lost two friends to 

suicide in four days in 2019, has secured 

£5,000 from Alloy Wire International’s ‘Wired 

for Good’ campaign. 

The money will be used to cover the 

operating costs of the weekly support 

groups it runs across the country, as well as 

inspirational presentations and trips they 

organise to help men, and now women, talk 

about their issues and get the right support. 

Located in Kingswinford, the charity has 

grown from a simple Facebook page 

encouraging men to talk into an 

organisation that has worked with over 6,000 

people and delivered mental health training 

to more than 1,500 individuals. 


NEWS 

Thursfields awards four work experience 

scholarships in new inclusion project 

Four aspiring law students have won a work 

experience scholarship with Thursfields 

Solicitors as part of the second phase of an 

inclusion project at the firm. 

The scholarship includes a guaranteed 

interview for a training contract with the 

leading Midlands law firm on the successful 

completion of the Legal Practice Course. 

The work experience will take place over 

two years during each student’s degree and 

will include mentorship and a cash prize. 

The four scholarships, were awarded to: 

• Elice Homer-Walton, at Wolverhampton 

University 

• Inderjeet Sandhu, at Birmingham City 

University 

• Nisha Bagga, at Aston University, and 

Beacon course is accessibility 

boost for sight-loss sufferers 

Businesses across the West Midlands can 

now sign up for a new training course 

designed to make their organisation more 

accessible for people with sight loss. 

The Beacon Centre has designed the 

course to help companies better meet the 

needs of the almost 200,000 blind and 

partially sighted people who are living in the 

region. 

The Sight Loss Awareness Training Course 

helps staff to understand the emotional 

impact of sight loss, learn about different 

eye conditions, and how to guide someone 

with a visual impairment. The course takes 

place over half a day and can be delivered 

onsite at business premises or the Beacon 

Centre’s Sedgley base. 

• Shukry Ali, at Birmingham City University. 

Jade Linton, HR Director and Chair of 

Thursfields’ Equality, Diversity and Inclusion 

Committee, said: “We are delighted to 

announce this programme, which is part of 

our commitment to inclusion and widening 

access to the legal profession for individuals 

from all backgrounds. 

“We recognise that access to the legal 

profession is harder for students from lower 

social economic backgrounds, particularly 

those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic 

backgrounds.” 

The work experience would be taking 

place across Thursfields’ five offices in 

Worcester, Kidderminster, Halesowen, 

Solihull and Birmingham. 

To find out more and to book, contact 

01902 880 111 or email 

enquiries@beaconvision.org 

Chamber welcomes 

Lauren as digital 

content creator 

The Black Country Chamber of Commerce 

expanded its external affairs team in 

February with the arrival of Lauren 

McGowan to the role of content officer. 

Lauren, a former University of 

Wolverhampton graduate, brings her 

creativity and digital marketing expertise to 

the established and award-nominated 

external affairs team, who lead on all 

member and external communications for 

the region’s longest running business 

support organisation. 

Lauren, who lives in Telford, Shropshire 

and who previously looked after content 

creation and social media for 

Wolverhampton-based BCRS Business 

Loans, brings extensive digital marketing 

and copywriting skills to the role, which sees 

her report directly to digital communications 

and marketing manager, Shahanaz Rahman. 

Lauren told Prosper: “Having previously 

worked for a business that is a member of 

the Black Country Chamber, I understand its 

work and the value that membership can 

bring to businesses across the region. 

“My role here will continue to help spread 

the message that we are the go-to place for 

business support in the Black Country. 

“The team have welcomed me with open 

arms, and I’m excited to get stuck in and 

help continue to spread the Chamber name 

and reputation far and wide.” 

Chamber CEO Sarah Moorhouse said: 

“Lauren brings with her a wealth of 

experience and I am so very pleased to 

welcome her to the Chamber team. 

“As our members are at the heart of 

everything we do, having Lauren on board 

will only amplify our support on offer to 

showcase and champion what businesses in 

the Black Country are all about!” 

PROSPER SPRING 2023 11

NEWS 

Vishwas 

and Olu 

Students celebrate 

physics test success 

Wolverhampton Grammar School students 

won awards at the British Physics Olympiad 

(BPhO), hosted by the Oxford University. 

The competition is designed to encourage 

the study of physics and recognise 

excellence in young physicists. 

Upper Sixth students Olu and Vishwas 

took part in the Senior BPhO and achieved 

a Silver award, while in February, 13 Year 11 

students took part in the Intermediate 

Physics Challenge Online. Three students – 

George, Marc and Mason – achieved a gold 

award, placing them in the top sixth of all 

students nationally. Six students received a 

silver award, and four achieved bronze. 

Simworks thrilled by 

success of new ride 

Simworks, the firm behind Thorpe Park’s 

popular Derren Brown’s Ghost Train ride, 

has been nominated for a prestigious Brass 

Ring Award at the International Association 

of Amusement Parks and Attractions Expo 

in Orlando, for its Pegasus Flying Theatre 

ride. It is the latest brainchild of the 

company, which specialises in the 

production of rides with 3D headsets, 

motion capture and 4D effects. 

It’s a carbon neutral world-first 

for Burke Bros Moving Group 

International removal and storage company 

Burke Bros Moving Group has successfully 

become the first company in its sector, 

globally, to receive PAS2060 certification 

after becoming carbon neutral by measuring 

and offsetting its carbon emissions. 

The company is working to become fully 

carbon neutral as it moves to Net Zero. All 

emissions linked to the business have been 

calculated to GHG (Green House Gas) 

Protocol and offset through the purchase of 

verified United Nations Carbon Credits. 

This not only neutralises their emissions, 

but also demonstrates positive humanitarian 

benefits to the less privileged in our world. 

“The journey to Net Zero is long, 

especially within an industry that heavily 

relies upon HGV and sea transportation, 

where zero carbon technology is still 

realistically a decade away,” explains Steve 

Pitt, Transport Manager. “The climate crisis 

didn’t happen overnight, and it certainly 

won’t be solved overnight, but the fact that 

Burke Bros Moving Group has now 

established its boundary period carbon 

footprint means it can begin executing the 

plan to reduce them to Net Zero by 2040, 10 

years ahead of the UK backstop,” 

Laura Burke, financial controller, said 

making the company carbon neutral had 

been quite an undertaking. “We had to 

collect from every element of the business 

in this ‘carbon accountancy’ challenge and 

the hard work doesn’t stop here. 

“This is part of a longer environmental 

journey to achieve Net Zero (a minimum 

90% reduction in boundary emissions only 

mitigating the embedded emissions 

through the purchase of Carbon Offsets) by 

2040. We will continue measuring our progress 

and reporting regularly as part of our 

commitment to the global climate crisis.” 

Chris Burke, Director, said: “We are an 

industry not exactly famed for having a 

positive environmental impact, so this 

makes our company’s achievement of 

carbon neutrality even more pertinent. 

“It’s important that the industry step up 

and start making a difference for future 

generations. 

“We are extremely proud to have 

achieved this milestone and to have 

spearheaded the developments in this area 

for our sector. We will continue working on 

our journey to Net Zero and keeping our 

customers and industry colleagues updated 

on our company social media pages.” 

The British Association of Removers, 

confirmed Burke Bros is the first in the 

industry in the UK to reach this milestone, 

while the FIDI, the global alliance of 

quality-certified international moving and 

relocation companies, based in Brussels, 

confirmed the company was a global first. 


Cyber Security: 

The Cost of 

Complacency 

Mike Cook, COO, EBC Group 

Contact us 

Email: hello@ebcgroup.co.uk 

Phone: 0121 3680 204 

Website: www.ebcgroup.co.uk 

A successful cyber 

security breach not 

only hurts a company’s 

bank balance but also 

seriously damages its 

brand and reputation. 

Mike Cook, COO at EBC Group, 

says “businesses tend to fall into 

two camps over cyber-attacks: 

those that have taken positive 

steps to protect themselves 

(including insurance cover), and 

those who think - or hope - it won’t 

happen to them.” 

The truth is, every business 

is vulnerable to cybercrime, 

regardless of their size. Mike 

explains, “Phishing is still one of 

the most common threats. For 

example, an ‘actor’ (cybercriminal) 

can infiltrate an email address and 

sit monitoring company data for 

days, weeks or even months.” 

Mike points out that even 

businesses with cyber insurance 

can be vulnerable, as three 

businesses in Worcestershire 

alone fell victim to cybercrime in 

just one week. “They all thought 

they were protected, they all had 

cyber insurance. But as with all 

insurance, it is a very good idea to 

check the small print. Some cover 

is excluded if your IT infrastructure 

isn’t up to certain standards, and 

these exclusions are escalating 

almost monthly as attacks spiral.” 

Adequate insurance cover against 

cyber-attacks is hugely beneficial, 

and most insurance companies 

now mandate Cyber Essentials 

or Cyber Essentials Plus for 

businesses. This government-led 

scheme uses five key technical 

controls to reduce 80% of common 

cyber threats. Once achieved, 

the accreditation can then be 

underwritten by a managed 

service provider like EBC Group 

and shows an insurance firm 

that its client is compliant in 

cybersecurity best practice. 

Staff training and awareness are 

also crucial in the fight against 

cybercrime. New hacks and scams 

are coming to light every day, and 

artificial intelligence is increasingly 

being used as a tool to get into 

networks, with “self-learning” 

compounding the challenge. 

Diligent research and development 

are needed to spot these trends 

early on and keep one step ahead 

of the game. 

The trend of fully outsourcing 

IT responsibilities is gaining 

momentum. Many businesses are 

realising the benefits of entrusting 

their IT functions to third-party 

providers who specialise in cyber 

security, disaster recovery, and 

management of desktop and 

mobile hardware. By doing so, 

businesses can focus on their 

core operations while leaving the 

IT infrastructure to experts who 

are equipped to handle complex 

security challenges and ensure 

data protection. This approach can 

lead to significant cost savings, 

enhanced efficiency, and improved 

cyber security posture.

NEWS 

BCC recruitment survey underlines scale 

of job vacancies across all sectors 

A new survey by the British Chambers of 

Commerce (BCC) has revealed that firms are 

facing the highest level of recruitment 

difficulties on record. 

The Quarterly Recruitment Outlook (QRO) 

for Q4 2022 shows that attempted 

recruitment remained virtually unchanged 

from the previous quarter, with 61% of firms 

looking to find staff (62% in Q3 2022). 

Overall, over eight in ten firms (82%) 

attempting to recruit reported recruitment 

difficulties, up from 76% in Q3. 

While the problem is persistent across all 

sectors, firms in the hospitality sector are 

most likely to face challenges when 

recruiting, with 87% reporting difficulties. 

This is closely followed by the manufacturing 

sector on 85%, and the construction sector; 

professional services; and public, education, 

and health sector, all on 83%. 

The recruitment pressure points vary 

across sectors. For firms who struggled to 

recruit in the construction sector, 73% faced 

difficulties in finding skilled manual/ 

technical workers. However, for hospitality 

businesses that struggled to recruit, 70% 

faced difficulties in finding semi/unskilled 

workers. 

Investment in training remains low; less 

than a quarter (24%) of firms reported an 

increase in their investment plans over the 

last three months. 60% reported no change 

to their plans, while 16% of firms reported a 

decrease. 

Alex Veitch, director of Policy and Public 

Affairs at the BCC, told Prosper: “These 

findings show that British businesses are 

facing the highest level of recruitment 

difficulties on record. Instead of seeing any 

easing of our extremely tight labour 

market, this issue only continues to head in 

the wrong direction. 

“The Government needs to take a hard 

look at a number of issues, including how 

the Apprenticeship Levy works. Currently it 

is unsuitable for many employers; we want 

more flexibility introduced so employers can 

support everyone in the workplace to get 

the training they need. 

“Access to childcare that is simple and 

affordable would also remove barriers into 

the workplace for many. 

“Finally, Government must hear our calls 

to reform the Shortage Occupation List to 

help businesses fill urgent job vacancies 

when they cannot recruit locally. The list 

should more accurately reflect vacancies.” 

Taylex Group 

appointed NEC 

official supplier 

Halesowen-based events supplier, 

Taylex Group, has been appointed 

as an official supplier to the NEC. 

The company has signed an 

agreement with the NEC Group 

which will see it expand its range of 

production services to support 

agencies, organisers, exhibiting 

brands and contractors. 

Servicing increased client demand 

for additional exhibition and event 

production solutions, Taylex Group 

offers an expanded team based at 

the NEC, complementing its 

extensive 30,000sqm HQ and 

production facility based in 

Halesowen. 

As a local, family business with a 

stellar 15-year history, Taylex Group 

excels in design and project 

management resulting in the 

creation of top-quality event 

environments for the likes of Visa, 

Kawasaki, Betby, Birmingham 2022 

Commonwealth Games, Frieze 

London and BST Hyde Park. 

More at https://taylex.co.uk 

Abigail breaks 

new ground at 

Thomas Dudley 

Thomas Dudley, the 100-year-old family business, has appointed its first female 

engineering apprentice after Abigail Brown joined as a toolroom apprentice. 

Abigail is currently in her second year at Dudley College where she is studying a Level 

3 Tool & Die qualification with plans to progress onto HNC level 4. 

When asked why she chose engineering and an apprenticeship, Abigail said, “My 

brother is in the industry and inspired me to do something that a lot of females 

wouldn’t do. I want to show that women can be engineers and can excel within the 

industry. I find being a toolmaker intriguing and there is always something new to 

solve each day. I am also not afraid to get stuck in and get my hands dirty. I would 

100% recommend engineering and toolmaking to other females”. 


NEWS 

Warning over skills gap as young people cut off 

from being economic stakeholders 

The UK skills gap will continue to broaden 

unless the Government can put young 

people at the centre of our economic 

recovery. 

The warning came from Chair of the 

Purpose Business Coalition and crossbench 

peer Lord John Walney at the first in a series 

of roundtables hosted by Warwickshirebased 

Pertemps, looking at how businesses 

can better connect their opportunities with 

talent, find and develop the right skills for 

those roles, and increase engagement of 

colleagues. 

Attended by West Midlands education 

establishments and business leaders, the 

first session focused on the workforce of the 

future, exploring how jobs are changing, 

and how skills can level-up and transform 

communities across the country. 

At the end of the series, a report will be 

published which summarises the findings 

and actions moving forward, including 

contributions from key employers during the 

roundtable sessions. 

Carmen Watson, Chair of Pertemps 

Network Group (pictured), told 

Prosper, “Lord Walney hit the 

nail on the head at our event 

when he said that young 

people are cut off from being 

economic stakeholders. 

“Apprentices are essential 

in helping us to address the 

UK’s skills gap and to boost our 

economy, but businesses need 

more flexibility on how they spend the 

levy to create even more opportunities for 

employers to work collaboratively.” 

Last year, in partnership with The Purpose 

Coalition, headed by Former Education 

Secretary Rt Hon Justine Greening and Lord 

Walney, Pertemps produced a Levelling Up 

Impact Report highlighting the work by 

Pertemps in helping jobseekers who may 

have experienced barriers to employment, 

including young people, ex-service 

personnel, ex-offenders and those from 

disadvantaged backgrounds. 

Established in 2021 by former Education 

Secretary Rt Hon Justine Greening with 

input from businesses, universities 

and policymakers, they provide a 

framework to help tackle the 

challenges the country faces 

following the pandemic. They 

focus on key life stages – from 

early years through to 

adulthood, alongside other 

barriers such as open 

recruitment and fair career 

progression – and identify the main 

issues that need to be resolved to create a 

level playing field for everyone. 

During National Apprenticeship Week in 

February, business leaders called for a 

reform of apprenticeships in the UK after 

reports of £600 million being sent back to 

the HM Treasury last year, which could have 

funded over 60,000 applications. 

To find out more about the 

Purpose Coalition, visit 

https://www.purpose-coalition.org/ 

Mayor Andy 

backs firm’s 

growth plans 

Willenhall-based ASSA ABLOY Opening 

Solutions UK & Ireland hosted West 

Midlands Mayor Andy Street for a 

behind-the-scenes tour of its state-of-the-art 

manufacturing facilities. 

The manufacturing site, which employs 

over 600 people, has seen significant 

investment over the past decade, and 

during his visit the Mayor was given a 

behind-the-scenes tour which focused on its 

operational excellence, including product 

innovation, manufacturing capabilities and 

investment in sustainability. 

Speaking about his visit to the facilities in 

Willenhall, Mayor Andy Street said: “ASSA 

ABLOY is not content to rest on its laurels. 

Rather, it is investing in innovative 

manufacturing and charting a course for the 

organisation that will no doubt stand it in 

good stead in the months and years ahead.” 

Mayor Andy Street chats to 

some of the young workforce at 

ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions 

UK & Ireland, and right, checks 

out one of its products 


NEWS 

Encouraging male staff to seek support must 

continue, Paycare boss urges 

Businesses are being encouraged to offer 

wellbeing support to male workers following 

a rise in the numbers seeking counselling. 

Research has historically shown men are 

less likely to reach out for support with 

physical or emotional health complaints, but 

a recent report from the British Association 

for Counselling and Psychotherapy shows 

27% of men are now doing just that, seeking 

counselling, up from 18% previously. This 

means 45% of all those accessing counselling 

provided via their workplace are men. 

Anthony Burns, CEO at Health Cash Plan 

provider Paycare, (pictured) says while the 

news is positive, organisations should 

continue to promote availability of and 

access to a variety of wellbeing assistance. 

“We know historically men have been 

more reluctant to seek support than women. 

For example, a BMJ study found the 

number of GP consultations attended by 

men was 32% lower than the number 

attended by women, and this wasn’t 

because women were seen an ‘excess’ 

number of times. 

“Just as we’ve collectively worked to 

reduce stigma in the community around 

mental wellness, we also need to continue 

working to promote the benefits of 

accessing support for both physical and 

emotional issues. 

“We know that, sadly, when people put 

off seeking a solution to a problem, the 

problem can worsen. And that’s why early 

help, and proactive as well as reactive 

healthcare, is beneficial for us all. 

“At Paycare, we’ll certainly be continuing 

to encourage the companies we 

work with to promote use of 

telephone counselling (also 

known as Employee 

Assistance Programmes), 

access to virtual GP 

appointments, and other 

services which men should 

use if needed. The earlier the 

better! 

“It’s also crucial to remember 

that this isn’t just about supporting 

those who have existing or emerging 

mental health conditions, or who are 

experiencing a specific issue which has 

caused a dip in their wellbeing. All of us 

have ‘mental wellness’ on a scale which can 

vary from day to day, and even within a day 

itself. 

“So while providing effective and timely 

support for those among your staff who 

have mental ill health is absolutely crucial, 

it’s also about ensuring everyone is as far 

towards that ‘well’ end of the scale as they 

can be each day. 

“Cultivating a workplace environment 

and culture which supports wellness, having 

checks and procedures in place which 

ensure it’s picked up on when someone is 

further down the scale than usual, and 

being proactive rather than simply reactive 

in our care and attention, all helps hugely 

when it comes to wellness. 

“Alongside that, let’s make talking about 

where we are on that scale a normal part of 

office conversation. Whether you assign a 

number from 1 to 10, or physically mark off 

on a line where your mood is, that 

can make identifying who 

might need support and what 

form that might take much 

easier. 

“Accessing workplace 

counselling for wellness, not 

just for illness, needs to be 

normalised, too. Men may 

feel there needs to be a 

specific problem or they need to 

have a recognisable condition for 

them to seek support. But this is absolutely 

not the case. 

“Support is there for anyone regardless 

of whether there’s something long-term 

going on, or whether they’re just having a 

bad day and need to tell someone about it. 

Given the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and 

the issues we’ve all experienced over the 

last few years, it’s not surprising that more 

people are reaching out for that support. 

“We see that as a positive. Proactive 

workplaces put support in place because 

they want employees to use it - so let’s keep 

encouraging men in particular (but also 

anyone within our workplaces) to keep 

themselves mentally well and to see 

workplace counselling as a fantastic way to 

do exactly that.” 

Visit www.paycare.org/wellbeingservices/eap-helpline 

for more 

information about the Health Cash Plan 

Provider’s Employee Assistance 

Programme. 

Cost-of-living crisis driving depression 

surge among business owners 

Following a tumultuous two years of lockdowns, restrictions and 

uncertainty, new research has revealed that the challenges facing 

owners today are proving no less difficult to navigate for small 

business owners. In the midst of the cost-of-living crisis, many 

describe how their mental health has worsened, with a fifth 

(20%) reporting battling depression. 

The survey of over 600 small business owners, commissioned 

by small business insurance provider Simply Business, has 

revealed the key challenges facing SME owners in 2023. With a 

fifth (22%) rating their mental health as (18%) ‘bad’ or (4%) ‘very 

bad’. Over half (51%) reported feeling stressed, two-fifths (39%) 

have been experiencing anxiety, while over one-in-five (22%) 

struggled with insomnia. 

Over four-in-five (81%) small business owners are worried how 

the cost of living crisis is affecting their business, with two-thirds 

(65%) seeing rising costs as the biggest challenge to it. 

The key results were: 

• 20% of small business owners are struggling with depression 

• 39% have struggled with anxiety and 22% with insomnia 

• 22% would rate their mental health as bad 

• 81% small business owners are worried about how the 

cost-of-living crisis will impact their business in 2023. 


BUSINESS VOICE 

Seven bookkeeping tips for small businesses 

Prosper spoke to Claire Cooksey, Director of CS Bookkeeping Services in 

Stourbridge and asked her for her top tips for smaller businesses... 

Bookkeeping for a small business plays 

a vital role if you want your finances to make 

sense. Initially, the bookkeeper may be you, 

but as your business grows, you may find 

you no longer have the time to spare. 

Keep records of every payment 

Use your books to track every payment 

and make it clear when they were made or 

received. 

Choose an accounting method 

Traditional accounting records income 

and expenses at the date of the invoice. 

Cash accounting records them on the date 

when you actually receive or pay the money. 

Cash accounting reduces the risk of having 

to pay tax on the money you haven’t yet 

received but is only available if your turnover 

is £150,000 or less. 

Be strict with deadlines 

Never make late payments (especially to 

HMRC), and give your clients a payment 

deadline so you can chase them effectively. 

This is called credit control, and the aim is to 

keep your cash flow healthy. 

Keep track of expenses 

You’ll need receipts to substantiate your 

claims from HMRC, so keep them stored 

somewhere safe and organised in different 

business categories. Also, be sure to keep 

business expenses separate from personal 

ones. 

File bank statements and 

invoices in order 

Make sure all bank statements and 

invoices (purchase and sales) are present 

and correct and in date order. 

Worse, if documents go missing, then you 

could end up facing a fine for late filing. 

Produce monthly reports 

Generating reports at least once a month 

is the surest way to stay on top of your 

business finances and ensure you don’t get 

caught out by nasty surprises. Your monthly 

reports should include a profit-and-loss 

statement and the balance sheet, as a 

minimum. 

Know when to outsource your 

bookkeeping 

If your business starts 

small, it may make 

sense to handle 

the bookkeeping yourself. As you grow, 

keep track of how much time per week you 

spend on the books. Work out the monetary 

value of your own time and compare this 

with the cost of a bookkeeper. 

A professional bookkeeper may take only 

a couple of hours to handle a month’s 

accounts, so it won’t be long before this is 

better value. 

Having a comprehensive finance function 

can put your mind at rest, save you time, 

and enable your business to grow as fast as 

you want. 


PROSPER INTERVIEW 

Walsall’s academic with 

a head for business 

Jat Sharma CBE DL, Principal and Chief Executive of Walsall College and Board 

member of the Black Country Chamber, wants an ‘employer in every classroom’ 

– and needs our members’ help in finding them. He explains more to Prosper 

JAT Sharma has a simple goal: 

he wants an ‘employer in every 

classroom’ at Walsall College. 

“That is absolutely my focus,” 

he says. “Everything we do here 

is geared to transforming the 

life chances of our students, by 

setting them on a path to a career that they 

will find fulfilling and add value to society. 

“But to do that we need to work with 

employers. I’m passionate about helping 

vulnerable people and those who haven’t 

had a chance, to better themselves. Our job 

at the college is to bring prosperity to 

Walsall and the community we serve.” 

As to what ‘an employer in every 

classroom’ entails, it can be anything, Jat 

says: “We want business leaders to get 

involved with us at a level they feel 

comfortable. We know you are very busy, 

but our links with the business community 

are invaluable to our students. You can 

come in and just give a single lecture on 

what you do, deliver a course with us, or 

become one of our work placement 

partners – it’s up to you. However you 

choose to get involved, we’ll be delighted 

to work with you.” 

He has a constant need for work 

placement roles. “We’ve got 150 T-Level 

students who need work placements worth 

300 hours a year and on top of that, all our 

Level 3 students and above need a 

placement, too – that’s another 1,500+. 

That’s a lot of employers to engage with, 

but we’re determined to make sure we offer 

all our kids the opportunities they deserve.” 

It’s that no-nonsense attitude that has 

helped him transform the college into a 

major player in the higher education sector, 

one that is hugely valued and respected 

both locally and further afield. “We punch 

well above our weight,” he says. “In a recent 

student survey, our courses achieved a 95% 

satisfaction rating. I think we’re on the right 

path.” 

The college is, in Jat’s words, “a big 

player in Walsall; we’ve got great links with 

local businesses, and with the NHS and the 

local authority. I like to think we’re involved 

in everything that goes on in the town.” 

‘‘ 

Some of our students are 

pretty lively, they’re very 

excitable and college is 

strange. It’s big! But we help 

them settle down and find 

the thing they love... 

‘‘ 

But he adds: “Walsall is a great place to 

live but you can’t ignore the fact that there 

is a lot of deprivation. We’ve got below 

average pay, above average physical and 

mental health issues, a lot of low skilled 

residents. It’s our job at the college to 

change that picture.” 

“What I’m most proud of is that we offer 

youngsters who possibly didn’t connect with 

‘traditional’ education with an alternative 

path that might engage them better. Our 

courses – for 14-19-year-olds – are all 

vocational and cover everything from health 

and beauty to construction, child care to 

digital skills. We run highly technical T-Levels 

through to Level 1 qualifications for those 

kids who left school with poor literacy and 

numberacy.” 

It’s clear he loves the youngsters who walk 

through his doors. “Some of them are pretty 

lively, they’re very excitable and the college 

is really strange to them. It’s big! Some 

come to us from a high school where they 

may have been in only one or two 

classrooms a day, and now they’re in a big 

college with 11,000 students. They might 

have to juggle college studies with a 

placement, and travel into town for work. It 

makes them grow up quickly.” 

But the important thing is “we help them 

find the thing they love, something that will 

give them a career in the future. When 

students leave, they’ve been through the 

Walsall College Graduates Programme: they 

are skilled, they have industry knowledge 

and experience, they are professional and 

work-ready. 

“Best of all, they are enterprising and can 

add real value to employers.” 

You would perhaps expect a college 

principal to be someone steeped in the 

education sector but Jat has a finance 

background. “I qualified as an accountant 

and had various roles in business, mostly in 

the logistics sector. Mind you, I do come 

from a family steeped in education: my 

grandmother and father were teachers, so 

perhaps it’s in the blood!” 

His first foray into education came when 

he was asked to lead the finance team of a 

college that was struggling. “I put a lot of 

work in to turn it round but in the end, the 


est option was to amalgamate with a 

neighbouring college, so that’s what we did. 

“It was the best outcome for everyone 

involved, and I must have done something 

right as from there I was asked to join 

Walsall College to oversee its expansion 

programme. The build project at the time 

was worth around £62m, probably equivalent 

to about £250m now, and I’m proud it was 

delivered on time and on budget. 

“My knowledge of the finance sector 

helped access the funding we needed, and 

everyone was delighted with the outcome.” 

It was finalised at a time of upheaval for 

the college elsewhere, too. “I think we went 

through four principals in four years, a bit of 

a revolving door that did no-one any 

favours. I hadn’t considered putting my 

hand up for the role but I was encouraged 

to by an unusual source: the union reps. 

“I’d had a number of dealings with them 

as we discussed some redundancies, and 

they told me afterwards that they admired 

my integrity and honesty, and thought I 

would make an ideal candidate for the 

principal’s post. It encouraged me to go for 

the job; after all, if you walk out of some 

tough conversations with union reps and 

they’re saying they admire you, you must 

be doing something right!” 

His time as Principal has seen a lot of 

changes in the education sector. “As 

the working landscape has changed, 

so have we. We are constantly looking 

to flex our course programme to 

match modern needs. We can’t do 

this too dramatically, as we always 

have to keep course structures 

within the guidelines set out by 

the examining bodies, but in our 

ever-shifting economy it’s 

important the college keeps up.” 

An example of this are new 

courses in digital skills and the 

‘green’ economy. “We have 

launched new courses in digital 

marketing and cyber security, and a new EV 

centre is being opened to prepare 

youngsters for jobs in the growing electric 

automatic sector. We will always listen to the 

needs of the business world and wider 

society.” 

Crucially, he says, the college always has 

an eye “10 years ahead, at what skills will be 

needed in the future.” 

Continued on page 20 


PROSPER INTERVIEW: JAT SHARMA 

“Personal skills are so important... many: 

of our students need help on the basics: 

– punctuality, appearance, how to: 

behave. But we also teach them: 

empathy - how to get on with your: 

colleagues, how to work in a team” 

Continued from page 19 

This focus on hi-tech and digital skills 

won’t mean the end of more traditional 

ones, however. “One employer said to me 

recently, ‘don’t worry about the skills. Make 

sure your students understand how to act in 

the workplace: to come in neat and tidy, 

shoes shined, on time, to work hard. We’ll 

teach them the skills’. 

“I get his point. Those personal skills are 

still needed. A lot of our students need help 

on the basics – about punctuality, 

appearance, how to behave. But we also 

teach them the importance of empathy 

– how to get on with your colleagues, how 

to work in a team. Those soft skills can easily 

be lost, but they are so important to a 

successful career. 

“Mind you, we’ll keep teaching the 

hands-on skills, too!” 

Returning to a look at the horizon, is there 

a message – or just a request – from 

Government about the future? “More 

money,” Jat says, laughing. 

Seriously, “every college principal can 

make a case of doing more if they had the 

funding, but I’m a realist. If I was to ask for 

one thing, it wouldn’t be money from central 

Government; it would be, ‘leave us alone.’ 

He explains: “The education sector has 

gone through a lot of changes in a short 

space of time, and perhaps we need to let 

new programmes bed down for a while.” 

He is full of praise for the new T-levels, 

but giving them a period to settle in would 

help staff and students alike. “I think 

everyone needs a breather, particularly 

‘‘ 

Get down to a college, go 

through the doors and talk 

to the course leaders. You’ll 

be amazed by the quality of 

the training on offer, and 

the resources we have... 

‘‘ 

those young people whose lives were so 

affected by the pandemic. It’s been very 

stressful and they need time to adjust to 

what society expects of them now.” 

Above all, he wants Government to 

recognise what a brilliant job the college 

sector is doing. “I’m so proud of my 

students. Many of them walk through the 

doors at the start of their course with few 

educational achievements behind them – 

but they leave with a Level ‘X’ qualification 

that shows what they can accomplish. 

“I’m so used to seeing happy, crying 

families, amazed by what their children have 

achieved!” 

And as for Chamber members, what’s the 

message? “Get involved with us. This 

college is at the heart of Walsall and it is 

making a difference every day. We are 

closely attuned with Andy Street’s skills and 

employment programmes, we just need 

people who want to work with us and our 

students.” 

He urged Chamber members to “get 

down to the college, go through the doors 

and talk to the course leaders. They’ll be 

more than happy to talk to you, to see if you 

can help us. If you’ve not had children of 

your own go through the college sector, 

you’ll be amazed at the quality of the 

courses we offer and the resources we have. 

“Help us build the curriculum or offer a 

work placement for students, so that when 

they leave us, they are ready for work.” 


MEMBERS MARKING MILESTONES 

Celebrating 150 

years of innovation 

The Atlas Copco Group is celebrating its 150-year 

anniversary this year. 

Founded in Stockholm, Sweden 

in 1873, initially to deliver 

equipment for the construction of 

the Swedish railroad system, the 

group has evolved over many years 

and today supports customers in 

several different industries, ranging from food 

production to space travel. 

The UK company was established in 1919, the first 

operation outside of Scandinavia. Today Atlas Copco 

Group companies employ almost 2,400 people in 

the UK. 

“We are extremely proud of our past, and we 

continue to shape the future through our 

technologies and service solutions,” said Mats 

Rahmström, CEO and President. 

“Much has changed since 1873 when we were a 

small local start-up. But I think our founders would 

recognise our innovative spirit, the passion shown by 

our employees and our dedication to drive 

development together with our customers.” 

“We have a very strong company culture of 

welcoming different perspectives and empowering 

our employees to take decisions,” Mats added.“I 

believe a large part of our success is built on our 

ability to adapt, while always focusing on delivering 

value for our customers. We would like to thank all 

our colleagues around the world and look forward to 

good co-operation in the years to come.” 

Long-standing 

members 

A leading regional firm of 

chartered surveyors has chalked up 

50 consecutive years as a member 

of the Black Country Chamber. 

Towler Shaw Roberts was 

established in 1991, but the firm’s 

Chamber membership traces back 

through its predecessor companies 

to provide a continuous 

relationship since 1972. Its work 

takes in all aspects of commercial 

property agency and consultancy. 

40-year celebrations for Oldbury-based firm 

LM Products, an independent firm with an 

engineering heritage servicing the 

construction industry, is marking 40 years of 

success. 

Based in Oldbury, the company employs 

50 staff, all of whom are dedicated to 

providing excellent levels of service to their 

customers by supplying, and manufacturing, 

a comprehensive range of products used in 

the construction industry throughout the 

UK. 

Groundwork materials, including 

reinforced steel, and associated 

construction accessories, along with 

manufacturing bespoke steel fabrications to 

prestigious civil engineering, has seen the 

company oversee contracts for the Medway 

Crossing, Midland Metro, Walsall Manor 

Hospital, Millennium Dome and, more 

recently, HS2 and Hinkley Point C Nuclear 

Power Station. 


IN PROFILE: DAVE ROBERTS, MD, WOLVERHAMPTON RACECOURSE 

And I’m off – but I’ve had a 

brilliant time! 

David Roberts, Managing Director of Wolverhampton Racecourse 

and a longstanding supporter and champion of the Chamber, retires 

shortly after 23 years in the saddle – to excuse the pun. He spoke 

to Prosper about his time at the course and his plans for the future. 

There is an obvious problem with 

being the boss of a racecourse: 

everyone always asks you for 

tips. But...“they don’t ask twice,” 

says David Roberts, managing 

director of Wolverhampton 

Racecourse, laughing. “My friends know 

better, put it that way. I am not a good 

source of advice on the horses.” 

That may seem odd for a man whose 

working days are spent at the course but he 

sees the attraction of horse racing differently 

to those who love a flutter. “I love watching 

the horses. They are beautiful, 

thoroughbred animals, who love doing what 

they do. I like watching a race and seeing all 

the horses come home safely. That’s where I 

get my buzz from the track. 

“I rarely gamble. I went to Ascot last year 

and had one bet; I’ll have a bet on the 

Grand National like everyone else, perhaps 

one on the Gold Cup if I’m down at 

Cheltenham, but that will be it for me.” 

David will be saying goodbye to the 

racecourse soon though he won’t be 

severing his ties completely. “I am retiring, 

but I’ve accepted an ambassadorial role with 

ARC Racing and Leisure Group, which owns 

Wolverhampton and another 15 courses 

around the country. It’s the best of both 

worlds: I’ll still be able to catch up with the 

racing and enjoy the courses – but with none 

of the day-to-day responsibility. Perfect!” 

His time at Wolverhampton has been, in 

his words, “wonderful.” “I’ve had a great 

time, met so many wonderful people. I have 

been very lucky: I tell people I’ve never had 

a proper job; just something I’ve done 

‘‘ 

I’ve had a great time; I’ve been very lucky. I tell 

people that I’ve never had a proper job... 

justsomething I’ve done gladly, but they’ve 

paid me for doing it. 

gladly, but they’ve paid me for doing it. It’s 

been brilliant.” 

His satisfaction with his career is possibly 

linked to the fact that it’s always been based 

in the leisure sector. Before moving to 

Wolverhampton and ARC in 1999 he spent 

23 years with Scottish & Newcastle, as a 

General Manager in its Pontins operation. “I 

managed a number of the biggest Pontins 

sites: Torquay, Brixham, Blackpool. I loved 

my time there. It’s great when your place of 

work is somewhere other people have fun.” 

Having said that, there has always been a 

very serious side to his role at 

Wolverhampton. “The very nature of 

what we do has meant we’ve had to 

instigate very strict health and safety 

conditions and conduct rigorous 

risk assessments. It shows just how 

far my role has evolved over the 

years. 

“Before I joined the role was 

more focused on the racing side: 

making sure the track and stables 

were in good condition, and the 

horses, jockeys and trainers were 

happy. Managing things like the 

catering was out-sourced. 

“Today being the MD is much 

more multi-faceted. We 

are a major 

conferencing, hotel 

and leisure facility, 

and my brief is to 

keep all that running 

smoothly.” 

The addition of 

the Holiday Inn 

‘‘ 

hotel to the site has boosted the conference 

and events side, and the hotel remains a key 

part of the overall package. “The Holiday 

Inn is running at 85 per cent occupancy, 

which is great. Diversifying our offer has 

been crucial.” 

Other events away from the racing also 

boost the coffers. “As a lot of racecourses 

are doing, we are always looking at adding 

to the visitor experience. We’ve invested 

heavily in the hotel and the dining suites 

over the years, and added a little glitter to 

race meetings. We put on concerts, have 

family fun days with bouncy castles 

everywhere, and our firework night in 

November attracted over 17,000 people.” 

The ability to put on these events was 

massively curtailed by Covid-19, and for a 

long time the future of sporting and leisure 

venues looked uncertain. It’s perhaps 

surprising, therefore, that David 

was always confident 

Wolverhampton 

Racecourse would cope. 

“Our business model is, 

perhaps, different to 

how people 

imagine it. 

“We are part of 

the Arena Racing 

Company, and 

the pictures from 

our course are 

sold around 


IN PROFILE: DAVE ROBERTS, MD, WOLVERHAMPTON RACECOURSE 

the world. The company’s finances are 

balanced between income from the tracks 

and from the overseas rights, so during the 

pandemic, as long as we could get racing, 

albeit without crowds, quickly, we were 

going to be okay.” 

As it turns out, horse racing was one of 

the first two sporting events to get the 

go-ahead from the Government when 

Covid restrictions began to lift. “It was 

horse racing and snooker,” he recalls. 

“I missed the crowds being part of the 

experience, but running the course during 

the pandemic wasn’t all bad. It brought the 

horse racing community together. On race 

days there would be just the course staff and 

the jockeys, stable lads and lasses and the 

trainers, and we became a tight-knit 

community. Usually on race days I’ve a lot of 

things to look after and people to talk to, but 

things slowed down a little and we got to 

know the horse racing community better 

than before. I had time to chat to people I 

don’t usually catch up with. It was an 

unexpected bonus from a difficult situation.” 

‘‘ 

The racecourse is in fine 

fettle... customer feedback 

is great, and backed by the 

hotel and conferencing, 

things will go from strength 

to strength... 

‘‘ 

As he leaves the racecourse, he believes 

it is in fine fettle. “We’re in a good place. 

The raceday offer is as popular as ever. 

We’ve just had a big day last Saturday and 

we’ve had great feedback. We ran a special 

offer to attract people in and we had a lot 

of first-time racegoers with us, and it looks 

like they had a great time. Backed by the 

hotel and the conferencing arm, things here 

will go from strength to strength.” 

The only clouds on the horizon are ones 

familiar to every business leader. “The red 

tape around running the course can be 

maddening. The problem we face is the 

Government applies a one-size-fits-all 

philosophy to health and safety, so the rules 

governing a crowd at, say, Wembley Stadium 

are the same as here. It is sometimes 

disproportionate to the risks involved.” 

He’s also concerned above rising prices. 

“The cost of eating and drinking out are 

rising at a worrying rate and it is getting to 

the point where the prices asked will stop 

people from going out. We’ve all seen the 

pub and restaurant closures on our high 

streets; we have to be careful that we don’t 

push the entertainment sector over the 

edge, as that would be a big loss to our 

communities.” 

But that apart, he has the challenge of 

retirement ahead of him. “I’m looking 

forward to getting out on my mountain 

bike, and I’ve got nine dogs to look after so 

I’ll be kept busy. 

“I’m also really looking forward to my 

new role with ARC: as I said before, all the 

fun and camaraderie, but a lot less fiscal 

responsibility. Marvellous.” 

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Transparency. Credibility. Trust.

BUSINESS IS DONE BETTER TOGETHER 

Major Black Country 

players renew patronage 

with Chamber 

Walsall-based centre of learning, Walsall 

College, home to over 12,500 people each 

year studying vocational technical 

qualifications, T Levels, apprenticeships and 

A Levels, has renewed its patronage with 

the Chamber alongside the region’s largest 

shopping and leisure complex, Merry Hill. 

The Chamber’s Patrons work as strategic 

partners alongside the region’s leading 

business support organisation and work 

hand in hand to support the Chamber’s 

work as they champion local businesses. 

James Norris, Assistant Principal for 

Commercial Development at the college 

said: “Our patronage helps keep the 

college at the forefront of conversations and 

subsequent actions around skills 

development, innovation and growth across 

our industries and region. 

“We are grateful to the many fellow 

patrons who work with us, particularly 

through our Employer in Every Classroom 

initiative where businesses shape our 

curriculum and provide our students with 

professional development opportunities. 

“These partnerships have a positive 

impact on our shared ambitions for a 

thriving local economy. 

“We look forward to continuing to work 

closely with the Chamber team and helping 

to drive further success for our business 

communities.” 

Gail Arnold, Head of Premium 

Membership at the Chamber, said, 

“Collectively, our Patrons are well-known 

organisations that hold years of experience 

supporting people and businesses across 

the region to develop, support and play a 

leading role in driving productivity and 

growth. 

“I am delighted that both Walsall College 

and Merry Hill are continuing their 

patronage with us and look forward to 

continuing our important work with both 

organisations.” 

Platinum Group will help drive our growth, says Rothley 

Black Country Chamber has 

welcomed Wolverhampton-based 

Rothley Ltd to its Platinum Group, 

the first company to join the group in 

2023. 

Rothley, based on the Wobaston 

Road in the city, is a leading 

European supplier of DIY, builders’ 

products, and decorative hardware 

components. It was first founded in 

Birmingham over 190 years ago. 

David Laschke, the company’s 

commercial director, said the 

decision to join the Platinum Group 

“was one of the factors that will help 

us in achieving significant growth 

through 2023.” 

“The ability to utilise group 

resource, network and share best 

practice is fundamental to 

maintaining a truly external viewpoint 

on both our operation and the 

potential market”. 

The Platinum Group, the 

Chamber’s exclusive platform for 

business leaders, sees some of the 

region’s leading business 

professionals come together 

regularly to identify opportunities 

and tackle some of the challenges 

that impact their own organisations. 

Led by Gail Arnold, head of 

premium memberships at the 

Chamber, who said: “I’m thrilled to 

welcome Rothley Ltd, a former Gold 

member of the Chamber, to the 

Platinum Group. I’m looking forward 

to continuing our on-going work with 

David and his team along with every 

member of the Platinum Group 

throughout 2023.” 

For further information about 

the Platinum Group visit: The 

Platinum Group - Black Country 

Chamber of Commerce 

Gail Arnold 

with David 

Laschke 


MEMBERSHIP OFFERS 

Get more from your 

Chamber membership 

From the 1st of April, we will be adding exciting new services and offers that 

Chamber members can access which will make doing business even easier. 

BENEFITS AND OFFERS INCLUDE: 

Discounts on tail-lift 

servicing, LOLER 

examination and weight 

testing provide by 

JC Payne 

A free financial 

health check by 

Central Business 

Finance 

20% 

off 

race day 

and tickets 

at Wolverhampton 

Racecourse 

PLUS 

40% off the normal 

standing charge for 

GMS Group’s key 

holding service 

Aura, the business 

assessment tool for 

micro and start-up 

businesses 

Reduced price on 

mortgage broker 

price by PIA Finance 

We will be sending more information about these 

benefits to Chamber members shortly. 

These new additions join existing Chamber member benefits: 

Chamber HR, Legal, Tax and Health & Safety support by Quest Cover 

Chamber Finance Finder 

Energy review and advise from Control Energy Costs 

Support on currency and foreign exchange by Halo Finance 

Discount on ISO Lite 

Business vehicle breakdown assistance with the AA 

Reduced merchant 

service costs 

provided by Barclays 

Insurance cover 

review by Timmins 

Whittaker 

Fitness packages to 

suit everyone with 

Fitness Studio 46 

If you want to find out more in the meantime, please speak to your account manager 

or email membership@blackcountrychamber.co.uk 


BUSINESS IS DONE BETTER TOGETHER: START-UP BUSINESS CLUB 

Start-Up Business Club: Celebrating 

The First Five Years…… 

The Start-Up Business Club, five years old this month, is 

supported by Black Country & Marches Institute of 

Technology (BCMIoT) and is headed up by the highly 

experienced business relationship manager, Alison Trinder. 

Alison has more than 30 years of experience in establishing 

and maintaining strong business relationships. She delivers 

a number of events and masterclasses where 

entrepreneurs and new business owners can meet and 

network and hear from experienced businesspeople. 

From networking opportunities to one-to-one business 

advice, marketing support and savings on essential 

business tools, the Start-Up Business Club helps small 

businesses to the next level. It has helped over 200 

During the last financial year, an 

astonishing 86 businesses were set up every 

hour in the UK, totalling 753,168 new 

companies registered on Companies House. 

But despite the high numbers of people 

taking the entrepreneurial plunge, running a 

business can be tougher than expected, 

especially with today’s economic headwinds. 

businesses since its inception in 2018 and 

offers a one-stop-shop for business 

advice, personal development training 

and marketing, all as part of a vibrant 

networking community. 

As Alison says, “Everyone in our Start 

Up Business Club has their own unique 

story to tell. By working closely with us, 

in those early stages of their business 

journey, they get the time to reflect, learn 

and adapt so that they can move forward 

positively to their next stage and chapter 

of their business.” 

Building resilience: Six key 

lessons for entrepreneurs 

In fact, one-in-five UK businesses are 

unlikely to survive beyond their first birthday. 

There are, however, many who do. And 

some of these businesses will scale-up fast, 

growing at a rate that their founders could 

only dream of. 

“Setting up and leading a business is an 

emotional rollercoaster,” said Alison Trinder. 

Alison Trinder 

“The highs and lows are perpetual. 

“Feeling excited, unsettled, anxious, 

joyful, stressed, and excited again is a 

common experience, and can all happen in 

the space of an average day at the helm. 

And in today’s challenging climate, these 

ups and downs are being starkly felt by 

some.” Alison told Prosper. 

A study commissioned by HSBC UK has 

found that a quarter of small business 

owners are reporting a decline in their 

mental wellbeing due to rising cost of living 

pressures. So, how do leaders of rapidly 

scaling, innovative businesses learn to 

manage this perennial state of flux, and 

build the resilience to not only survive, but 

to enjoy it at the same time? 

Prosper put the question to Alison and 

asked her for her six lessons on building 

resilience ... 

1. Resilience is a practice, not an 

innate trait 

Starting a business is a never-ending path 

of challenges, setbacks, and potential 

roadblocks. The struggle may be inevitable, 

but the way you respond to challenges is up 

to you and may be the very thing that helps 


you succeed. First, you need to reject myths 

about resilience. That it is a characteristic 

you’re born with; that there is a sure-fire 

recipe for attaining it; or that resilient 

people always power through stressful 

situations with ease. 

In fact, building resilience is more of a 

practice, requiring mindful application. It 

involves cultivating the self-awareness to 

understand stressors; reframing thought 

patterns; and building social support 

networks to help emotionally navigate the 

spectacular highs, as well as the unexpected 

lows. 

So, everybody stumbles. What matters is 

that when you’re knocked down, you get 

back up, you carry on, and you take valuable 

lessons into the next part of your journey. 

2. Connect with, and lean on, a peer 

group 

Being at the helm of a business can be a 

lonely experience. It is therefore key to find, 

connect with, and learn from those who ‘get 

it.’ The importance of developing 

connections as a way to enhance resilience 

has been an important lesson and it’s how 

we work in the Start Up Business Club. 

By creating networks and communities of 

dependable, supportive peers, you will learn 

valuable lessons and draw strength from 

those who are on the same rollercoaster ride 

as you. 

3. Find trusted mentors 

While this might be your first entrepreneurial 

venture, many have gone before you. Find 

those experienced mentors willing to share 

their insights; challenge your thinking; help 

you identify creative solutions and motivate 

and encourage you to take calculated risks. 

There are many routes to finding trusted 

mentors. Through investors; business 

incubators and accelerators; industry events; 

professional associations; or simply by 

approaching those you personally admire in 

business. It’s vital to be clear on what it is 

you’re looking for, be bold, and ask for 

advice. 

As your business grows, you may need 

‘‘ 

Minding the mind is hugely 

personal, but by making it 

part of your routine along 

with your work, is a great 

investment in both personal 

and business performance. 

‘‘ 

‘‘ 

Everybody stumbles... what 

matters is that when you’re 

knocked down, you get 

back up and carry on, and 

you take valuable lessons 

into your journey... 

more than one mentor, and they may 

change over time. Remember, mentors are 

different from coaches and therapists, and 

they don’t typically seek payment for their 

advice and guidance. 

4. Prioritise mental fitness 

The entrepreneurial rollercoaster can be 

extremely stressful, and the mental load is 

often immense. In this context, keeping your 

mental health in top shape is as important 

as exercising the rest of your body. 

Many successful leaders are taking 

positive steps to understand their own 

thought processes and behaviours, using 

tools and adopting routines to help them 

maintain peak performance. 

Minding the mind is hugely personal, but 

by making it part of your routine, alongside 

your work commitments, constitutes a great 

investment in both personal and business 

performance. 

5. Know your strengths, and 

play to them 

Growing a business might make you feel 

like you are expected to be a jack-of-alltrades. 

But no one is good at everything, so 

save time trying. Knowing where your 

strengths lie, but also where your 

weaknesses are is vital to ensure that both 

you and your business thrive. Focus on the 

stuff you’re good at rather than spreading 

yourself across everything.’’ 

While you might not yet be in a position 

to delegate all essential responsibilities and 

tasks, it pays to assess your skills and the 

impact of trying to ‘do it all.’ It could make 

all the difference. 

Delegate or outsource the jobs that you 

dislike, the ones that you keep putting to 

the bottom of the pile as they take up most 

of your time. Your time is money. 

Outsourcing will free up your time so you 

can spend that with your family, or just get 

some ‘me’ time. Remember, this is why you 

probably started your own business in the 

first place; get back your quality time. 

6. Celebrate the wins 

In the fast-paced world of a scaling 

business, the to-do list is never-ending, and 

the highs and lows are often moments 

apart. In this context, it’s important to take 

time to recognise, and celebrate success. 

Achievements come in all sizes, so this 

isn’t about waiting to celebrate the ‘big 

wins’. Acknowledging small 

accomplishments motivates and inspires, it 

relieves stress, and it gets organisations 

through rough patches. Make a habit of 

reflecting on success. Appreciate and share 

the achievements. 

And remember, taking time to do so will 

benefit you and the wider business. 

Set yourself SMART Goals – Specific, 

Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, 

Timeframe. 

Work on 90-day goals and celebrate 

those small wins and achievements. 

PROSPER SPRING 2023 27 

‘‘ 

Start Up Business Club Events coming up… 

20th April: 

18th May: 

15th June: 

Customers Journey: Customer Services & Upselling 

Sales Training: Presentations, Handling Objections, 

Closing the sale 

HR & Employment Law 

If you are not a member of the Start-Up Business Club and would like to 

book your place, please email AlisonTrinder@blackcountrychamber.co.uk 

or call her on 07980 906921 

Events are £25 +VAT for non-Start-Up Business Club members 

FREE to Start-Up Business Club members only 

Location: All events are held at 

Black Country & Marches Institute of Technology, 

Zoological Drive,Dudley, West MidlandsDY1 4AL

BUSINESS IS DONE BETTER TOGETHER: WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP 

Successful Black Country Women in Leadership 

events kick the year off in style 

Two great events draw 

region’s women business 

leaders together 

Business leaders from across the region 

gathered in late January, and again earlier 

this month, for the first events of the year 

organised by Black Country Women in 

Leadership, an initiative spearheaded by the 

Black Country Chamber of Commerce. 

In January business leaders from across 

the region joined Chamber CEO Sarah 

Moorhouse at West Bromwich Albion’s 

Hawthorns ground for the first Women in 

Leadership event of 2023, alongside the 

project’s new business partners, Midlands 

Engine Industrial Fund, international patent 

lawyers Forresters, global banking giant 

HSBC UK and leading international 

infrastructure group, Balfour Beatty. 

Coming together to talk about some of 

the work the partners are doing to support, 

educate and elevate women in the region’s 

business community, and to celebrate the 

resilience and progress made by female 

leaders while continuing to inspire the next 

generation, the event gave an insight into 

how each of the partners are providing a 

platform to enable women in their sector to 

step into business opportunities and 

leadership roles. 

On March 8, International Women’s Day, 

over 100 guests gathered at the waterfront 

offices of Chamber member Higgs LLP for 

an afternoon event entitled ‘Reputation 

Matters.’ 

With the audience congregated in the 

packed atrium, multi-award-winning creative 

entrepreneur, publicity coach, personal 

brand strategist and TV commentator, Dr 

Tru Powell took to the stage to guide 

attendees through tips on how to take 

control of your own PR, how to build a 

personal brand and how to become a 

person of influence in your business sector. 

He was followed by Halesowen-born and 

multi-award-winning tech entrepreneur, 

Charlotte Pearce, CEO & founder of Inkpact. 

com, who spoke passionately about 


About... the Chamber’s Women 

in Leadership network 

The Black Country Women in Leadership network 

was launched by the Black Country Chamber of 

Commerce in 2019 to support and celebrate 

women in senior roles, provide opportunities for 

peer-to-peer networking and information sharing. 

The network offers inspiring events to help 

strengthen women’s voices, whilst encouraging 

and inspiring successful women. 

For more details go to 

blackcountrychamber.co.uk/campaigns-projects/ 

women-in-leadership/ 

communication, human-ness within 

business, and creating memorable 

connections with consumers. 

Described as ‘the UK’s next Branson’ by 

Gadgette, and named in the Forbes’ ‘30 

under 30’ list, Charlotte discussed her 

personal mission, to help brands and 

people be more human and authentic by 

bringing together the head and the heart of 

business. 

The afternoon was rounded off by 

presentations from leading lawyers, Matt 

Dudley and Rhian Gray from Higgs LLP, who 

took the audience through what can happen 

when your reputation is damaged by 

adverse media coverage or significantly 

harmed across social media platforms, while 

giving a legal insight into the action of 

defamation, what rights and remedies it 

involves and what to do when your 

reputation and brand image may not be 

what it seems. 

Get involved 

The next Women in Leadership event 

will take place on the 22nd June, so to 

find out more about Black Country 

Women in Leadership, and register for 

updates visit: 

blackcountrychamberofcommerce.co.uk/ 

campaigns-projects 

More photographs from the 

Women in Leadership event 

at Higgs LLP – see overleaf 


BUSINESS IS DONE BETTER TOGETHER: WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP 

On March 8, International Women’s Day, over 100 guests gathered 

at the waterfront offices of Chamber member Higgs LLP for a 

Women in Leadership event entitled ‘Reputation Matters.’ 


COMMERCIAL FEATURE: THURSFIELDS 

Keep talking: Why mediation can 

be your best course of action 

Is mediation and other 

alternatives to the traditional 

court process the way forward 

in family cases? Two senior 

family law solicitors at 

Thursfields Solicitors believe so... 

Laura Williams and Hannah Nicholls are also 

trained mediators and are witnessing 

first-hand the benefits to client’s that 

resolving their family disputes outside of 

the court arena can bring. 

The use of mediation and other dispute 

resolution processes has been widely 

encouraged by senior family judges and 

other professionals who work with children 

and families for some time, however it has 

only more recently started to gather more 

publicity and popularity with lawyers and 

their clients. 

Why is this? The overwhelming pressure 

on the courts is certainly a factor, which is 

resulting in court proceedings taking 

significantly longer to conclude. It is not 

unusual for cases involving disputes over 

child arrangements to take over 12- 18 

months to resolve (and even longer in some 

cases), and for cases involving the dividing 

of family assets significantly longer. Not 

only does this place an enormous emotional 

strain on children involved, and the family, 

but it also means legal costs are increasing 

significantly. 

But it is not only the delays and 

attributable costs of the court system which 

are resulting in the increasing participation 

in mediation and other processes. The court 

process for dealing with all types of family 

dispute, is unpredictable and complex. 

There is no guarantee that a judge or bench 

of magistrates will make a decision that you 

feel is right for you or your family. They do 

not know you or your children and only have 

a snapshot of insight into the family 

dynamic. 

Although your lawyers can advise you on 

the considerations that the court must have 

when making informed decisions, they 

cannot tell you with any degree of certainty 

exactly what order a court will make. This is 

because the court has a wide discretion 

when making orders in family cases, and 

what one judge may feel is fair and 

appropriate in the circumstances, may be 

notably different to that of another. 

The court process is also combative in 

nature. It heightens tensions and conflict 

rather than appeasing it. This can lead to 

long term and irreparable damage being 

caused to family relationships, individual 

family members mental health, and the 

ability of that family to be able to parent 

their children in a way that they want to and 

what will be of most benefit to their children 

in the long term. 

‘‘ 

Mediation offers an alternative 

where couples and family 

members can attempt to 

address and resolve their issues 

in a neutral, safe and impartial 

environment. 

‘‘ 

Mediation offers an alternative where 

couples and family members can attempt to 

address and resolve their issues in a neutral, 

safe, and impartial environment. A trained 

mediator will assist by facilitating 

discussions in an attempt to resolve issues 

which are in dispute. The aim is for families 

to find an informed way forward which they 

decide for themselves and having control 

over decisions which can work practically, 

financially, and emotionally for them in the 

long term. The process allows for parties to 

continue to take legal advice in the 

background should they wish to so that they 

can be assured they are making informed 

decisions. 

Other processes such as arbitration, early 

neutral evaluation, collaborative law, and 

solicitor round table meetings should also 

be explored with clients early on in the 

family breakdown, as they are also 

processes designed to limit conflict and 

assist in reaching resolution at an early 

stage. 

Court proceedings will of course still be 

necessary in certain circumstances, but it is 

important that full consideration is given, 

both at the outset and during the process, 

as to whether an alternative can and should 

be implemented in order to provide the 

best possible outcome in the long term. 

For advice contact Hannah Nicholls and 

Laura Williams on 0345 20 73 72 8 

or info@thursfields.co.uk 


Ground-breaking 

This is The Black Country 

campaign draws to a close 

Working in partnership with recruitment 

experts Pertemps, national audit and tax 

firm Crowe UK, tech experts EBC Group, 

the University of Wolverhampton’s Business 

School and Dudley-based legal firm Higgs 

LLP, the Chamber’s 12-month campaign, 

‘This Is The Black Country’ draws to a close 

this Spring. 

Reflecting on the campaign, Neil 

Anderson, the Chamber’s Director of 

External Affairs said: “Public affairs and 

communications activities are at the heart 

of our work. Campaigns such as this enable 

us to focus on key topics, themes and raise 

awareness of issues and challenges our 

members are facing. 

“Collaborating with amazing partners has 

allowed us to add real depth to our 

conversations with policymakers and shine 

a spotlight on the unique issues which 

impact growth and productivity. 

“Importantly too, ‘This Is The Black 

Country’ has been a vehicle which celebrates 

the resilience, ingenuity and drive of many 

working in businesses throughout the region.’ 

“This Is The Black Country centred on 

three main areas: people, place and power. 

All are key to the success of the region’s 

economy in a post-Brexit and -pandemic 

world and at a time of rising business costs. 

“Kicking off the campaign was a ‘Skills 

for the Region’ event followed by a 

meeting with the Department for Levelling 

Up, Housing and Communities. 

“Our first event gave our business 

partners an opportunity to offer their 

perspectives on a topic which is front of 

mind for many of our firm’s leaders. With a 

record number of vacancies and skills gaps, 

this will continue to be something on which 

the Chamber focuses. Our sectors have 

nuanced the need for a vibrant skills 

pipeline, and we will be maintaining 

pressure on decisionmakers to address this 

will be a legacy of the campaign. 

“Similarly, the Black Country is home to 

the Levelling-Up ministry, and it was 

important that policymakers new to the 

region got to hear directly from businesses 

on their doorstep and be introduced to 

innovators doing trailblazing work.” 

‘Communicating the challenge’ and 

‘trusting your people’ emerged as guiding 

principles as the campaign unfurled, and 

three Black Country Thinktank sessions 

provided an important forum for business 

Neil Anderson 

voices to shape and influence the debate 

against a shifting political backdrop of 

three prime ministers and government 

administrations. 

During the Autumn, the Second Black 

Country Economic Business Conference 

welcomed 100 delegates to hear from 25 

speakers including West Midlands Mayor 

Andy Street and Shadow Treasury Secretary 

and regional MP, the Rt Hon Pat McFadden. 

“This is the Black Country has been a 

fantastic campaign,” added Neil, “It has 

pushed boundaries, celebrated achievements 

and provided both a platform for local firms 

to learn from one another while also 

promoting our modern Black Country to a 

wider audience beyond our borders. 

“On behalf of our members, we would 

like to recognise everybody who has 

contributed to the campaign and say a 

special thank you to our business partners.” 


This is The Black Country 

What our partners said... 

‘‘ 

We have been delighted to be a key partner in the 

‘This is the Black Country campaign’, a subject 

very close to my heart,” said Johnathan Dudley, 

Midlands & Southwest Managing Partner and Head of 

Manufacturing Business at Crowe UK. 

“Together with the Black Country Chamber, we are 

constantly working to put the region on the map. 

“It is vital that we keep reinforcing the message that 

the Black Country and wider West Midlands is a 

dynamic and innovative place to do business and a 

great place to work, where talent is recognised and 

rewarded. It is also a region with great connectivity to 

all parts of the UK and global markets, and we are all 

aligned in our commitment to drive forward greater 

usage of green energy sources in coming years. 

“The year-long ‘This is the Black Country’ campaign 

has helped put the area firmly on the map, and it is now 

our joint duty to keep it forever in the mind of our 

regional and national politicians and, crucially, 

investors looking for a reception region in which 

to deploy their capital, grow their business 

and create jobs. 

‘‘ 

‘‘ 

EBC Group became a partner of ‘This Is 

The Black Country’ campaign because it 

was an excellent way for businesses across the 

region to work with the Chamber, to focus on 

ensuring we are attracting and retaining the 

right talent to equip us in the future. 

“We are focused on providing innovative 

technology to the Black Country, which drives 

growth for businesses and helps them stay 

competitive. 

Richard Lane, CEO/Founder EBC Group 

‘‘ 

Pertemps is proud to have worked with 

many Midlands-based firms across 

multiple sectors, helping them to grow, 

prosper and manage whatever challenges 

come their way. 

“Being part of the Black Country Chamber 

and ‘This Is The Black Country’ campaign has 

helped us continue that, supporting businesses 

for the benefit of our local communities. 

Richard Bourne, 

Regional Manager, Pertemps (right) 

‘‘ 

‘‘ 

‘‘ 

The University of Wolverhampton 

Business School has been delighted to 

be supporting the BCCC ‘This is the Black 

Country’ campaign,” said Professor Sukhninder 

Panesar (Associate Dean) LLB LLM SFHEA, 

Head of Law School, University of 

Wolverhampton. 

“Our mission – as was the campaign’s – has 

always been to support and champion business 

in the region as well as preparing people for 

work. Being part of this important campaign has 

helped us to serve and celebrate the business 

community in the Black Country.” 

He added that the campaign “has highlighted 

the innovation, entrepreneurship and 

opportunities created by businesses in the Black 

Country, and allowed us to celebrate the 

fantastic organisations responsible for it.” 

‘‘ 

‘‘ 

It has been hugely beneficial to be a partner in 

the ‘This Is The Black Country’ campaign and it 

has certainly created a platform for championing the 

region and its business community. 

“We are proud to have played our part in flying 

the flag and creating positive conversations about 

the needs and ambitions of regional businesses in 

the here and now, but also creating opportunities to 

grow in the future. 

“The most rewarding aspect of the campaign has 

been the opportunity to interact and communicate 

with leaders from so many different sectors. There 

has also been a high degree of reciprocation, with 

members and non-members exchanging their views 

and thoughts about how to collectively work 

together to drive the region forward. 

“Our strategy as a law firm is to build long-term 

relationships with our clients, our people, our 

business partners and our community, and this 

campaign has certainly helped us further 

achieve those goals. 

Sophie Wardell, HR Director of Higgs LLP 

‘‘ 


THIS IS THE BLACK COUNTRY: RESPONSE TO BUDGET 

Partner Budget event 

offers instant response 

to Chancellor’s plans 

The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s much 

trailed ‘return to work Budget’ was placed 

under the microscope at a special This is 

the Black Country event hosted by Crowe 

UK. The Chamber’s business partners 

offered instant analysis and reaction as the 

details were revealed. 

Neil Anderson, Director of External 

Affairs at the Chamber said that while there 

was some good news, the Chancellor 

missed a lot of the targets set him by the 

British Chamber of Commerce. “With 

recruitment still a big issue, two-thirds of 

businesses planning to raise prices due to 

cost pressures and almost half saying 

paying energy bills will be difficult, going 

into the Budget, the British Chambers of 

Commerce had set out its principal asks. 

These included easing the pressure on the 

labour market by making childcare more 

affordable to cash-strapped parents, 

reform to business rates systems and 

helping businesses become more energy 

efficient. 

“Although there were some positive 

announcements, including good news 

around childcare and for the over-50s to 

combat labour shortages, we were 

disappointed to see reforms which could 

have created the climate for greater 

innovation and investment. 

“Trade was not mentioned once by the 

Chancellor, an oversight given exports are 

‘‘ 

“The Chancellor’s four 

pillars to drive growth were 

all good, but I’d really like to 

have seen a fifth ‘E’; help 

for energy for businesses 

‘‘ 

a big driver of economic growth. 

“We hope that the Black Country will be 

a beneficiary of the proposed Investment 

Zone in the West Midlands and the roll-out 

of future UK Shared Prosperity initiatives 

will be targeted and make a meaningful 

difference”. 

“What was very pleasing was to see a 

mention of an industrial strategy again, a 

concept that has been absent from both 

rhetoric and actions of Government for so 

very long,” said Johnathan Dudley, 

Managing Partner, Crowe UK 

“Confidence will get savers investing and 

spending, so the announcement of 12 

more Investment zones, each with £80 

million of funding with ‘generous tax 

incentives’, does smack of a strategy. 

Incentives for innovation through R&D 

reliefs were interesting, to a point; industry 

types seem limited though and there is 

little sign of a let up in the attacking of R&D 

for SMEs that he announced back in 

October. 

“The introduction of full capital 

expensing relief for all businesses sounds 

great but most SMEs enjoy this anyway 

with £1m per year already available. 

“What is encouraging is the continued 

investment in defence, carbon capture and 

nuclear energy – but only if the investment 

is made and kept in the UK. 

“The Chancellor’s four pillars to drive 

growth were all good, but I’d really like to 

have seen a fifth E; help for energy for 

businesses – because it’s those businesses 

that employ the people who pay the taxes 

and who continue to enjoy a rebate in their 

domestic bills.” 

Pictured at the 

This is The Black 

Country Budget 

response event are, 

from left, Richard 

Ferguson of Higgs 

LLP, Richard Bourne 

from Pertemps, 

Neil Anderson from 

Black Country 

Chamber and 

Mark Evans from 

event hosts Crowe 


Budget response from legal sector 

Nick Taylor, Managing Partner, Higgs LLP, commented: “We were disappointed not to see a wider 

programme of direct policies announced to offset the rise in corporation tax and the ongoing 

implications of the cost-of-living crisis, particularly around energy bills. 

“That said, there is room for cautious optimism when looking at the potential impact on the wider 

Black Country business community. 

“The commitment to creating an £80 million investment zone in the West Midlands is extremely 

welcome news. While the detail will be crucial, the hope is that this scheme will help drive growth, 

productivity and enterprise in the region. For many of our clients, the ‘full expensing’ policy which 

allows business to claim 100% capital allowances on investment in machinery and IT equipment will 

certainly provide some relief from the high costs companies have been forced to bear in recent years. 

Those two policies in particular appear to offer some hope to businesses in the Black Country.” 

• Higgs LLP is a Partner in the This is The Black Country campaign 

Budget response: 

Top left, Chancellor 

Jeremy Hunt outlines his 

Budget, via the big 

screen at Crowe HQ. 

Above, Black Country 

Chamber’s Neil 

Anderson delivers the 

Chamber’s view, to our 

invited audience of 

Chamber members and 

guests 


COMMERCIAL FEATURE: BUSINESS AND YOUTH TRAINING 

“At Collins Aerospace we are 

working with local education 

providers to develop STEM 

talent pipelines in order to 

ensure that fresh and skilled 

talent are prepared to enter 

the industry in the future.” 

Collins is committed to ensure next 

generation get off to a flying start 

With Collins Aerospace’s 

investments in young people, 

the Black Country can 

continue to prosper 

A recovering and growing aviation industry 

requires companies to attract fresh talent to 

maintain the UK’s global leadership in 

aviation. Collins Aerospace has been 

actively engaging with the local community 

for decades in order to promote the 

aerospace industry in Wolverhampton. 

Collins Aerospace, a unit of Raytheon 

Technologies, is a leader in technologically 

advanced and intelligent solutions for the 

global aerospace and defence industry. 

Collins in Wolverhampton provides the 

fundamental, vital, and operational 

capabilities that can make all flights safer 

and more efficient. Its innovative actuation 

solutions use lightweight, durable materials 

to help control and operate new 

generations of aircraft. It also produces 

more than 2,000 different thermoplastic 

composite parts — with hundreds currently 

in qualification for aircraft manufactures in 

both the UK and around the world. 

Thermoplastic composite parts can be 

found in more than 20 types of aircraft 

ranging from wide bodies and single aisles 

to business jets and helicopter platforms. 

These products can be found in the 

fuselage, wing, tailplane, nacelles, flight 

control surfaces, doors and more. 

Oliver Herrmann, Early Careers Lead at 

Collins, said: “We are committed to 

supporting our local community in a number 

of ways, including investments into local 

STEM outreach. We are working with local 

education providers to develop STEM talent 

pipelines in order to ensure that fresh and 

skilled talent are prepared to enter the 

industry in the future.” 

In 2022, Collins launched the ‘Enthuse’ 

partnership, which focuses on making STEM 

more accessible to women and 

underrepresented groups. 

“Our STEM learning initiative sees to 

support eight primary and secondary 

schools in the Wolverhampton area where 

STEM education is most needed over the 

next two years,” Herrmann added. 

Through the partnership, teachers will 

gain professional development and be 

encouraged to engage in STEM to achieve 

higher levels of achievement, especially 

among disadvantaged and 

underrepresented students. 

Collins is committed to investing in local 

jobs and people, shown through the 

continued support of apprentices, 

graduates, and industrial placement 

students every year. 

As of 2018, more than 76 apprentices, 39 

graduates, and 45 industrial placements had 

been recruited, and that number continues 

to rise. 



O7

BUSINESS IN THE COMMUNITY 

Nicklin staff pop into 

the food bank to help 

Lord helps keep 

fliers saving lives 

Nicklin to back food 

bank in 2023 

Halesowen-based chartered accountants 

and business advisers, Nicklin LLP, has 

selected the Black Country Food Bank 

as its 2023 charity of the year. 

Plans are now in place to support the 

charity with a year-long schedule of 

fundraising activities, volunteering 

initiatives and events. 

Employees visiting the food bank’s 

warehouse in Brierley Hill recently 

helped to date and pack food ready for 

distribution. 

Partner at the firm, Mark Howell said, 

“As a business we understand the 

importance of raising awareness and 

helping local charities. We also 

recognise the pressure local 

communities are facing with the cost of 

living, leading to increased need and 

rising costs for food banks. 

“With the demand for donations 

growing, we are committed to support 

our local community.” 

The escalating energy crisis is having a 

significant impact on charities and the 

communities they serve, a group of experts 

from the sector have said, as they penned 

an open letter asking the government to 

extend its current energy bill relief scheme. 

Hardest hit third sector organisations 

include hospices, social care facilities, 

women’s refuges and homelessness services. 

The letter points out that such providers 

cannot reduce their energy use without 

compromising services and safety; and 

unlike businesses, they cannot pass on the 

increased costs. 

For every charity forced to cut back on its 

services there are people losing that lifeline. 

Energy groups must prove their 

commitment to people and communities by 

meeting with charities and government to 

get a grip on this crisis – otherwise charities, 

Commercial heating and ventilation specialist Lord Combustion Services has helped 

Midlands Air Ambulance Charity save lives by collecting £10,500 at its recent 40th 

anniversary charity ball. Last month, the charity welcomed Stuart Smith, managing director 

of Lord Combustion Services to its airbase at RAF Cosford to receive the donation. 

JJX Logistics launches Easter egg charity collection 

It’s fast appoaching that ‘eggcellent’ time of 

the year again when we ‘shellebrate’ 

Easter and indulge in plenty of 

chocolate. 

And Kingswinford-based 

JJX Logistics needs your 

help, as the company runs 

its annual Easter egg 

collection before delivering 

them to the Black Country 

and the communities they serve, will be left 

out in the cold. 

One of the co-signatories of the letter, 

which was published in the Financial Times 

in February, was Toby Porter, former CEO of 

Acorns Children’s Hospice and now Chief 

Executive at Hospice UK. 

He told Prosper: “The UK’s adult and 

children’s hospices raise and spend some 

£1.5bn annually on palliative and end-of-life 

care, directly supporting some 300,000 

people and their families. 

“We are proud that our services are so 

valued by local communities that some 60% 

and 80% of adult and children hospice costs 

are funded in normal times by donations 

and charity shops, with only the balance met 

by NHS grants and contracts. 

“Hospices have high energy costs, and 

this is a huge worry as prices rise. The 

Food Bank and Black Country Mental 

Health charities. 

JJX is accepting donations at its 

offices in Kingswinford but is 

also happy to arrange 

collections. 

To get involved, contact 

JJX on 01384 221642 or 

email edward.martin@ 

jjxlogistics.co.uk. 

Hospice leaders demand action over energy costs 

Government needs to recognise that 

hospice donors cannot be expected to 

make up the shortfalls in our budgets over 

the coming years. 

“It is therefore surprising that the 

Government’s new high energy use scheme 

post-March will exclude charities such as 

hospices, social care, community, leisure, 

women’s refuges and homelessness 

services. These providers cannot reduce 

their energy use without compromising 

services and safety; and unlike businesses, 

we cannot and would never seek to pass on 

these costs to our ‘consumers.” 

Fellow signatories included Sarah Vibert 

Chief Executive, National Council for 

Voluntary Organisations, Rick Henderson 

Chief Executive, Homeless Link, Caroline 

Abrahams Charity Director, Age UK, and 

Farah Nazeer of Women’s Aid Federation. 


PROSPER PEOPLE 

New manager at Lord Combustion 

Marie Alebon has been appointed to oversee the finance team 

at award-winning commercial heating and hot water specialist 

Lord Combustion Services. 

Drawing upon experience of working in finance and 

accountancy in different sectors, Marie will be responsible for 

leading the financial side of the company as it looks to engage 

with more than 1,000 customers including public health sites, 

schools and Edgbaston cricket ground. 

Reporting to Managing Director Stuart Smith and the 

directors, Marie will support the engineering firm as field staff 

deliver services at a range of premises from churches and 

hospital sites to assisted living accommodation, commercial 

properties and schools. 

Acorns Children’s Hospice 

announces new CEO 

Acorns Children’s Hospice has appointed Trevor Johnson as 

its new chief executive. He was formerly CEO of Katharine 

House Hospice. 

Trevor said: “As someone who is very familiar with the 

hospice sector, I’m excited to be leading Acorns and helping 

the charity as it works towards its ambition to reach even 

more families with the care they need.” 

“It’s an honour to join this cause, and I’m very much 

looking forward to working with the fantastic teams across 

the charity to take Acorns forward over the coming years.” 

Dudley College appoints 

new chair of corporation 

Dudley College of Technology has 

appointed Professor Paul Noon OBE as its 

new Chair of Corporation. 

Paul has enjoyed an extensive career in 

the public sector, with previous roles in the 

Foreign and Commonwealth Office and as 

Regional Director of UKTI West Midlands. 

He is the current Pro-Vice Chancellor 

(Enterprise and Innovation) for Coventry 

University where he is involved in projects as 

diverse as developing the health sector in 

Yorkshire and aviation and manufacturing 

sectors in Indonesia and Brazil. 

He has vast experience in supporting 

businesses develop export markets, via a 

de-centralised approach to economic 

development working with organisations 

such as the West Midlands Combined 

Authority and the Midlands Engine to drive 

growth and prosperity.

EVENTS: CHAMBER EXPO 

Let’s Do Business Exhibition 

The Chamber’s Let’s Do Business Exhibition, held on 

Valentine’s Day at the Mercure Birmingham West Hotel, 

brought together the Black Country business 

community and offered a great opportunity to network. 


BUSINESS AND YOUTH TRAINING SPOTLIGHT 

High-tech engineering skills are 

coming ‘home’ to Telford 

A new £3m technical academy, located 

just a few miles away from the home of 

the industrial revolution, is promising to 

deliver a major skills boost to Telford and 

nearby areas. 

In-Comm Training, which already operates 

two highly successful facilities in Aldridge 

and Shrewsbury, is looking to train more 

than 350 apprentices and upskill 2500 

existing workers at its T54 centre over the 

next 12 months and opened its doors on 

March 3. 

The ‘Ofsted Outstanding’ provider has 

created 20,000 sq. ft of manufacturing 

training space, fitting it out with new 

equipment and state-of-the-art technology, 

spanning from the latest CNC machines, 

robotics, fluid power and material testing to 

welding, electrical, lathes, millers, CAD/ 

CAM and metrology equipment. 

A team of 20 expert trainers – all with 

considerable experience in industry – are on 

hand to guide the engineers of the future 

and to deliver best practice courses that will 

help local companies futureproof 

employees for years to come. 

“We’ve been operating in Shropshire 

since 2015 and all of our clients have been 

saying to us that Telford, regarded as the 

industrial epicentre of the north Marches, 

has been crying out for a dedicated 

manufacturing training centre for years,” 

explained Gareth Jones, Managing Director 

for In-Comm Training, which is 

headquartered on Vigo Place in Aldridge. 

“Our employer-led approach, honed for 

over 40 years in the Black Country, meant 

we had to act on this, so decided to make a 

£3million investment into taking on creating 

a truly world class technical academy on T54 

for the thousands of manufacturers 

operating in the town and county.” 

He continued: “Telford is just a few 

minutes away from where the first industrial 

revolution started and industry is going 

through the next one, with digital 

transformation firmly on the agenda and a 

move to more sustainable production high 

on the list of priorities. 

“Companies must act to make sure they 

have the skills in place to support this 

transition and this technical academy will 

play an important role in generating the 

talent of the future. 

“Our manufacturers have a major role to 

play in this and we used the opening as a 

rallying call to get more strategic partners 

involved in how we deliver training.” 

In-Comm Training (Telford) marked its 

official launch with an open day, where 

senior delegates, including Selina Graham 

(the High Sheriff of Shropshire), Claire 

‘‘ 

The aim is to create a vibrant 

learning environment that 

leverages the capabilities of 

academia, employers and 

higher education... all geared 

to providing high quality 

training in the area... 

‘‘ 

Critchell (Telford and Wrekin Council) and 

Kathryn Jones (Marches LEP) were given the 

opportunity to meet learners, trainers and 

the management team, not to mention 

touring the expansive facility. 

They heard how the centre will be home 

to the Marches arm of the Black Country & 

Marches Institute of Technology, which is 

pioneering a new approach to delivering 

today’s higher technical education for 

tomorrow’s careers. 

The aim is to create a vibrant learning 

environment that leverages the capabilities 

of academia, employers, and higher 

education – all geared towards providing 

high-quality training opportunities with clear 

pathways to skilled jobs in automotive, 

advanced engineering, aerospace, 

construction, medical and renewables for 

example. 

There will also be a strong focus on 

delivering upskilling and managed services 

from Telford, as well as expert consultancy 

on safety and quality compliance, leadership 

and management and continuous 

improvement. 

In-Comm Training’s HNC offer will be 

expanded, with new engineering and 

manufacturing Level 4 courses available 

through apprenticeships or upskilling 

opportunities. 

Bekki Phillips, chief operating officer at 

In-Comm Training, told Prosper: “One of 

the other differences that separates us from 

other training providers is our ability to 

leverage the expertise and capabilities of an 


army of technical partners. 

“This includes the CNC machining 

technology of the Engineering Technology 

Group (ETG), the automation knowledge of 

Telford-based Bauromat, precision 

toolmaking of Brandauer, clean air experts 

Filtermist, energy specialists Schneider 

Electric and the metrology, measuring and 

CAD insight of Hexagon and The Torus 

Group.” 

She added: “There’s no escaping the 

tough economic climate but, at the same 

time, local manufacturers have some great 

opportunities through reshoring and 

leading the electrification race. Protecting 

the skills of today and future developing the 

skills required for tomorrow will be key in 

turning the potential into reality. 

“A strong UK economy needs a buoyant 

manufacturing sector, and we’ll only achieve 

this by growing engineering and industrial 

skills. If we achieve this, our innovative 

companies will no longer have to worry 

about gaining access to the talent they 

need to lead the world.” 

Collaboration 

It has been a whirlwind few months for 

In-Comm Training and its ambition to help 

local industry bridge the skills gap. 

In addition to the strategically important 

opening of the Telford Technical Academy, 

the company is also five months into the 

launch of a joint venture with tooling and 

stamping specialist Brandauer. 

Over £1m has been channelled into the 

Precision Tooling Academy at the firm’s 

Aldridge HQ and this has created a 

commercial toolroom producing complex 

tooling, as well as acting as a professional 

training ground for the toolmakers and 

designers of the future. 

This is a vital move for domestic industry, 

with the sector being held back by a severe 

lack of toolmakers and the very real 

possibility of losing these essential skills 

forever as older workers choose to retire. 

The Precision Tooling Academy aims to 

reverse this trend by offering companies 

access to professional toolmaking courses, 

upskilling opportunities for qualified 

engineers looking to diversify their skills 

and a Level 6 Tool Process Design 

Apprenticeship to develop the next 

generation of talent. 

Training will be unlike anything currently 

on the market, with up to 35 individuals in 

the first 12 months able to learn on live 

tooling projects that will be producing 

hundreds of thousands of parts every week 

for Brandauer and other tooling experts 

keen to maximise the current reshoring 


www.in-comm.co.uk 


BUSINESS FINANCE SPOTLIGHT 

Stealing a march in 

customer insolvency 

Why Higgs LLP says retention of title is important 

All businesses, large and small, are aware of the impact Covid-19 and other global 

events have had on the UK economy. The Bank of England anticipates the UK will face 

a protracted recession, with the number of corporate insolvencies predicted to rise 

throughout 2023. It is, therefore, more important than ever that businesses protect 

against non-payment of goods to prevent unwanted cash-flow issues. 

Here Suky Mann, Principal Associate in the Higgs LLP Restructuring and Insolvency 

team, and Tracy Lake, Head of Commercial, offer key advice to ensure you are not left 

at the back of the creditors’ queue. 

Suky Mann 

Robust terms and conditions 

Terms and conditions provide clarity 

about what should happen in any given 

situation. 

Having an agreed set of terms can help 

businesses manage client expectations with 

regards to delivery and payment and also 

provide certain rights in the event of 

non-payment or customer insolvency. 

To rely on the contents of any terms and 

conditions, it is essential that these are 

properly incorporated into any agreement 

between a business and its customers. It 

may be appropriate for terms and 

conditions to provide for retention of title 

over goods that have not been paid for, the 

effect of which if drafted correctly can 

enable a creditor to assert security over 

those goods and steal a march on other 

unsecured creditors. 

Retention of title clauses: 

Retention of title clauses protect the 

supplier of goods against non-payment by 

retaining ownership of the goods until 

payment is received. 

A basic retention of title clause will state 

that legal ownership, or title, to the goods 

will not pass from the seller to the buyer 

until the buyer has paid for the goods. 

A right for the seller to enter the buyer’s 

premises to repossess the goods should be 

included to ensure that the seller is not 

committing a trespass when doing so. 

In an insolvency event, the Insolvency Act 

1986 defines a ‘retention of title agreement’ 

as: an ‘agreement for the sale of goods to a 

company, being an agreement – (a) which 

does not constitute a charge on the goods, 

but (b) under which, if the seller is not paid 

and the company is wound up, the seller will 

have priority over all other creditors of the 

company as respect the goods or any 

property representing the goods’. 

A significant benefit of retention of title 

clauses is that, as a supplier, there is scope 

to escape the constraints of the Insolvency 

Act, namely the strict order in which you 

would be paid as a creditor in the event of 

customer insolvency. 

Ensure terms and conditions are 

robust and provide clarity about what 

should happen in any given situation. 


‘‘ 

In the event of a customer insolvency, 

ensure you notify the insolvency 

practitioner of your claim to retain title 

to the goods as quickly as possible. 

Good drafting is everything: 

The effectiveness of a retention of title 

clause lies in careful drafting and 

consideration of whether that drafting 

constitutes a charge. 

If a clause is drafted too widely, it may 

constitute a charge over the buyer’s assets 

and any claim will be that of a secured 

creditor. 

While this will be preferable to that of an 

unsecured creditor, it is of little use if the 

asset in question has been disposed of and, 

crucially, will rank behind the claim of the 

beneficiary of a well drafted retention of title 

clause, who have priority over both secured 

and unsecured creditor claims. 

Notifying the insolvency practitioner 

of your claim: 

In any insolvency, enquiries will be made 

to ensure the goods and assets to be 

realised are not subject to a retention of title 

clause. These enquiries will often involve 

examination of any contractual 

documentation relating to the goods, so it is 

imperative that the clauses are drafted and 

incorporated effectively. Failure to do so 

may lead to the assumption that the goods 

belong to the insolvent customer and can 

be realised for the benefit of the general 

body of creditors as a whole. 

In the event of a customer insolvency, 

ensure you notify the insolvency practitioner 

of your claim to retain title to the goods as 

quickly as possible. If the insolvency 

practitioner is not aware of your claim, there 

is a real risk that those goods will be used or 

sold without your consent. 

Remember that the onus is on you as the 

supplier to prove your claim which will 

require significant time and effort on your 

part. The reward of enforcing the clause is 

much higher than taking the risk that you 

will rank at the bottom of the creditor pile. 

Points to consider: 

When reviewing your terms and 

conditions, it is important to consider both 

‘‘ 

Tracy Lake 

the content and how it is presented to your 

customers. Here are my top five tips to have 

in mind when reviewing your terms and 

conditions: 

• Expressly state in any pre-contract 

correspondence, including quotations, that 

the contract will be subject to your terms 

and conditions and include a copy of your 

terms and conditions 

• Include a link to the terms in your email 

footers and confirm that all contracts formed 

with customers will be subject to these 

terms and conditions 

• Include a copy of your terms and 

conditions on your website so that they are 

easily accessible 

• Ensure you have a well-drafted retention 

of title clause and make all payment 

deadlines clear; and 

• If you receive terms and conditions from 

your customer which are not agreeable, these 

need to be formally rejected in writing and 

confirmation that your terms and conditions 

are applicable will need to be set out 

At Higgs LLP we have a dedicated team 

of Commercial solicitors able to advise on 

the review of your terms and conditions to 

ensure maximum protection in the event of 

customer insolvency. If you are already 

dealing with a retention of title dispute, our 

Dispute Resolution team can help. If your 

dispute is with an insolvent customer, our 

team of Restructuring & Insolvency 

specialists will be happy to assist. 

Fore more information, contact Suky Mann 

on suky.mann@higgsllp.co.uk or 

01384 327304, or Tracy Lake on 

tracy.lake@higgsllp.co.uk or 01384 327 217. 

MEMBERS NEWS EXTRA 

Good’ news for City of 

Wolverhampton College! 

Wolverhampton College was graded 

‘Good’ – the second highest possible 

grading – in its most recent Ofsted 

inspection. 

In the report, inspectors rated a range 

of types of provision as ‘Good’ - 

including education programmes for 

young people, adult learning 

programmes and provision for learners 

with high needs – as well as quality of 

education, behaviour and attitudes, 

personal development and leadership 

and management. 

The report also highlights a number of 

key strengths, including the provision of a 

broad curriculum which meets the needs 

of the local economy, how the college 

engages with employers and stakeholders 

to ensure that curriculum content aligns 

with current industry trends and practices, 

and implementing courses to meet local 

skills needs in construction, electric 

vehicle maintenance, rail track safety and 

social care. 

There was also praise for the tutors’ 

courses, as well as for the students, 

whose attitude and interest in learning 

was particularly impressive. 

Grant boost for 

RWT NHS Trust 

The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust 

(RWT) Charity, in partnership with 

Wolverhampton Voluntary and 

Community Action (WVCA) has been 

awarded £220,000 from NHS Charities 

Together for project Holistic 

Opportunities Preventing Exclusion. 

The grant means RWT can recruit, 

train, manage and support a full-time 

Link Volunteer Co-ordinator, a 

part-time Link Administration Officer, 

and up to 200 volunteers per year, to 

work alongside the city’s Social 

Prescribing Service. This is run by 

WVCA, to help tackle loneliness, 

isolation, depression and anxiety. 

There are currently more than 3,000 

referrals a year to the Social 

Prescribing Service, following a spike 

in referrals for mental health in the last 

two years following the pandemic. 

HOPE will work alongside the 

service – which identifies and refers 

people to improve their wellbeing – 

by linking them to community services 

such as social groups, sporting 

activities and other support groups. 


LEGAL SPOTLIGHT 

Maternity protection looks to 

get stronger as MP’s Bill 

passes through the Commons 

54,000 women a year are 

forced out of work while on 

maternity or parental leave 

A push to secure better protection 

from maternity discrimination has taken a 

step forward, after a bill extending maternity 

protections passed its final reading in the 

House of Commons. 

The Private Member’s Bill, called 

the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy 

and Family Leave) Bill, is led by Labour’s 

Dan Jarvis, and would put in place greater 

protections against redundancy from the 

moment the woman discloses her 

pregnancy until her child is 18 months old. 

Currently, women are protected from 

redundancy only while on maternity or 

parental leave, and at least 54,000 women a 

year are pushed out of the workforce after 

becoming pregnant, according to a study by 

the Equality and Human Rights Commission. 

Women who are illegally discriminated 

against often struggle to bring cases against 

their employers because of a number of 

barriers. 

Jarvis said he had been taken aback when 

he realised the level of maternity 

discrimination faced by women and had 

been inundated by stories such as that of 

“Natasha”, who was the only member of 

staff made redundant from her job in 2020 

shortly after she had informed her boss, she 

was pregnant. She then had a miscarriage. 

He said, “Stories like these, they are 

obviously heart-breaking, but they are also 

deeply unjust and unfair. And they shouldn’t 

be happening in 2023.” 

Amy Brokenshire, Partner and HR lawyer 

at George Green LLP told Prosper, “The 

introduction of better legislative protection 

for women and new parents has been under 

discussion for some time. 

“In March 2016, research carried out by 

the Department for Business, Energy and 

Industrial Strategy and the Equality and 

Human Rights Commission revealed 77% of 

women reported negative experiences at 

work related to their pregnancy or maternity. 

Subsequently, the Women and Equalities 

Select Committee (WESC) published a 

report into pregnancy and maternity 

discrimination that showed that the number of 


‘‘ 

“It is wrong to say that the proposed 

legislative reforms will mean that 

employers cannot make women 

redundant from the point at which 

their pregnancy disclosed ... but it will 

extend protections that already exist...” 

Amy Brokenshire 

expectant and new mothers forced to leave 

their jobs had almost doubled since 2005. 

“In 2017 the Government committed to 

strengthening the position of women in 

relation to pregnancy, maternity and 

redundancy. However, for a multitude of 

reasons, the implementation of enhanced 

protections has not been high on the 

government’s agenda in recent years and so 

it has taken a while for the new legislation to 

be progressed. 

“It is wrong to say that the proposed 

legislative reforms will mean that employers 

cannot make women redundant from the 

point at which their pregnancy is disclosed 

until the child is 18 months old. 

“Rather, the proposed new legislation will 

extend protections that already exist for 

employees on maternity, adoption or shared 

parental leave. 

“Under the current law, where an 

employee on maternity, adoption or shared 

parental leave is potentially redundant, they 

are entitled to be offered any suitable 

available vacancy with their employer in 

priority to other potentially redundant 

employees. 

“It may be that the employer does not 

have any suitable alternative vacancies to 

offer the employee. 

“However, if they do, and the employer 

dismisses an employee by reason of 

redundancy in breach of these rules, the 

dismissal will be automatically unfair and 

may also constitute unlawful discrimination. 

“The special protections that apply to 

employees during these particular periods 

of family-related leave are often overlooked 

by employers. That can prove to be an 

expensive mistake, should the employee 

pursue the matter via the Employment 

Tribunal. 

“The Government announced in July 2019 

that the existing redundancy protections 

would be extended so they apply from the 

time an employee notifies her employer of 

her pregnancy until six months after the end 

of maternity leave. It also confirmed that 

these measures would apply to the end of 

adoption leave and to the end of shared 

parental leave. . 

“In addition to extending redundancy 

protections, the WESC report 

‘‘ 

recommended that the time limit to bring 

an employment tribunal claim in pregnancy 

and maternity discrimination cases should 

be extended from three to six months. This 

doesn’t appear to be being taken forward in 

the new Bill, something that has attracted 

criticism from commentators who do not 

feel that the reforms go far enough to 

protect women experiencing pregnancy and 

maternity discrimination. While there is a 

broader, ongoing review of the time limits 

for the submission of discrimination claims, 

the Government doesn’t appear to have 

considered it appropriate to change the 

time limits that apply for pregnancy and 

maternity discrimination claims in isolation. 

“By way of an explanation, the 

Government advised that data had been 

collected on the pregnancy and maternity 

discrimination claims presented out of time 

to the employment tribunal. 

“It reported that in the period January to 

June 2018, 25 cases were accepted out of 

time on the grounds that it was just and 

equitable to do so, something that the 

Tribunal has the power to do, and none 

were rejected. 

“The Government appears to be relying 

on there being an increase in awareness of 

the Tribunal’s power to accept a 

discrimination claim out of time, in order to 

encourage women to nevertheless apply to 

the Tribunal, even if they have missed the 

three-month deadline for doing so.” 

Joeli Brearley, the founder of Pregnant 

Then Screwed, said the bill was welcome 

but it had limitations – including the fact 

that only 1% of women who experience 

pregnancy or maternity discrimination raise 

a tribunal claim because of barriers, 

including a three-month time limit to make a 

claim. 

“Extending protections sounds great in 

theory, but women are forced to use a 

dysfunctional tribunal system to access 

them, and so they give up,” she said. 

“If the Government were really serious 

about giving women greater access to 

justice, they would have increased the 

time limit to raise a tribunal claim and 

invested in the tribunal system so it can 

better provide adequate and timely justice 

for claimants.” 

Firms miss out as 

they fail to spend 

apprentice cash 

Ahead of last month’s National 

Apprenticeship Week, new research 

from City & Guilds, the skills development 

organisation, together with workplace 

learning advocates The 5% Club, has 

revealed that the Government’s 

apprenticeship levy is not working as it 

should. 

Levy-paying employers are using 

around 55.5% of available funds, and 

only 4% have used their full levy funding in 

the past five years – meaning nearly half of 

the generated funding has not been used 

by levy-paying employers and risks going 

to waste. 

The City & Guilds and The 5% Club are 

also calling on the Government to reform 

the apprenticeship levy system to 

a 50:50 model – with half of funding 

ring-fenced for apprenticeships, and half 

freed up for businesses to use to meet 

their skills needs in a more flexible way. 

According to the findings, a staggering 

96% of UK businesses want to see changes 

made to the levy while the Freedom of 

Industry (FOI) found that £3.5b funding 

nationally allocated to levy-paying 

employers has expired! (FY 2017-18 and 

FY 2012-22). 

Despite the research revealing that 

only 15% of businesses can recruit the 

skilled people they need, employers are 

facing barriers to accessing levy funds 

which could help to fill skills shortages. 

According to City & Guilds’ research, 

carried out amongst 1,000 HR leaders at 

UK levy-paying business, of those who 

haven’t used all of their levy 

funds, 94% report facing at least one 

barrier to accessing it. 

18% say access involves too much 

bureaucracy or administration 

17% state a lack of time to invest 

19% cannot commit to the length of 

time an apprenticeship takes to complete. 


BUSINESS FEATURE: OLDER WORKERS 

Over-50s at work: ‘You feel 

your usefulness has passed’! 

Britain’s workforce is flagging, with 

vacancies at a record high, but Jeremy 

Hunt’s push to get older workers back to the 

office will fall flat unless employers agree to 

change too. 

New research from the Chartered 

Management Institute (CMI) suggests firms 

are much less open to hiring older workers 

than they are to bringing in younger people, 

and the experience of many over 50s is that 

they feel their usefulness has passed. 

Yet at the same time the Chancellor is 

urging people who retired early to return to 

work. 

In a recent speech Jeremy Hunt said there 

were almost 300,000 fewer people in 

employment than before the pandemic, and 

warned firms would find it difficult to grow if 

they could not find enough staff. 

“So, to those who retired early after the 

pandemic, or haven’t found the right role 

after furlough, I say: Britain needs you,” Mr 

Hunt said. 

But the CMI warns that to bring more 

older workers back into the workforce, 

employers will also need to “shift their 

attitudes” towards hiring. 

The CMI surveyed more than 1,000 

managers working in UK businesses and 

public services. It found that just four out of 

10 (42%) were open “to a large extent” to 

hiring people aged between 50 and 64. 

The survey found that most employers 

were more open to hiring workers in 

younger age groups. 

Almost three-quarters, 74%, of managers 

were open to a large extent to hiring 

younger workers between the ages of 18 

and 34. Slightly fewer – 64% – were very 

open to hiring those between 34 and 49. 

The number dropped furthest for 

applicants in the over-65 aged group. Just 

18% of managers said they were open to a 

large extent to hiring people in that 

category. 

The findings are despite the benefits 

older workers can offer. Mr O’Reilly has 

decades of experience working in the 

banking sector, starting as a programmer 

and moving up to global IT management 

positions. He is over 50, although he avoids 

giving his exact age to potential employers. 

“What tends to happen is, over the 

phone the initial conversation is fine, but 

when you do video calls or face-to-face 

interviews the dynamics change. You can tell 

by their manner and their body language, 

they’re not really paying attention to you,” 

he said. 

With UK job vacancies currently sitting at 

1.134 million, are we missing a trick with the 

over-50s? asks Chair of the Pertemps 

Recruitment Group, Carmen Watson. 

“There’s no doubt this is a crisis with the 

number of 50-to-64-year-olds economically 

inactive currently sitting at 3.6 million, 

300,000 higher than pre-pandemic,” said Ms 

Watson. “We know that getting more 

over-50s back into work would significantly 

boost the economy and productivity, while 

easing inflation and addressing the 

shrunken labour market. 

“The onus is on us, as employers, to be 

part of the solution,” she told Prosper, 

“working together with the Government to 

understand how we can make the workplace 

and our economy fit for older workers. 

“We are proud to say that 20% of our 

workforce are 50 and over, but with only a 

third of all workers now aged 50 or over 

across the UK it shows there’s still some way 

to go for businesses. 

“Among our over-50 employees, we’ve 

seen the wealth of experience and industry 

knowledge they bring to the table and how 

essential they are when supporting and 

mentoring our younger workers. 

“But historically, employment support has 

failed this age group. Support needs to be 

tailored for people at later stages of their 

working lives, while eliminating age bias and 


making workplace cultures more age 

inclusive. 

“We need to look at what we, as 

employers, can offer, considering flexibility, 

bespoke job specs and financial incentives. 

But, also, it’s crucial to remember their 

adaptability; they have lived and worked 

through some of the most dramatic 

technological advances and are no strangers 

to adapting to change, which employers 

could use to their advantage.” 

“It’s essential that we focus on supporting 

a multi-generational workforce to help the 

current labour market challenges. 

“Moreover, it’s critical that we give older 

workers the opportunity to work and share 

their valuable skills and knowledge with 

other generations. It’s not enough to purely 

focus on recruiting young people. We need 

to adopt and adapt talent strategies to 

attract older workers so businesses can 

thrive in the digital economy.” 

Leadership failings 

Ann Francke, chief executive of the CMI, 

said it was employers, as much as older 

workers, who needed to hear the 

Chancellor’s message about encouraging 

them back to the labour market. 

Employers were complaining of severe 

labour shortages, she said, while also 

admitting that they are hesitant to bring in 

older workers. 

“[That] points to both cultural and 

leadership failings in businesses of all sizes, 

and that needs to change,” she said. 

“But unless those doing the hiring revisit 

their attitudes, older workers will continue to 

be excluded, just when the labour market 

needs them the most,” she said. 

Meanwhile Government efforts to boost 

Britain’s workforce should focus on 

supporting more mothers into work, and 

helping older workers and those with a 

disability stay in work, rather than 

persuading the large Covid cohort of older 

workers to ‘unretire’, according to new 

Resolution Foundation research published. 

Economin inactivity 

In its latest report, Post-pandemic 

Participation, Think-tank the Resolution 

Foundation, found that economic inactivity 

among all adults has risen by 830,000 since 

the start of the pandemic, with three 

quarters (76 per cent) of this increase 

coming from the over 50s. 

However, the report warns against 

focusing policy efforts on trying to entice 

the most recent ‘Covid Cohort’ – early 

retirees who left employment during the 

Covid pandemic – back into the labour 

market. 

Creating a more inclusive workforce 

The Age-friendly Employer Pledge is a nationwide programme for employers who 

recognise the importance and value of older workers. Employers commit to 

improving work for people in their 50s and 60s and taking the necessary action to 

help them flourish in a multigenerational workforce. 

The job market is changing, and employers are facing huge challenges. There are 

skills and labour shortages with vacancy rates at record highs. Workers in their 50s 

and 60s are key to filling these gaps. Yet employers are missing out on all that 

older workers can offer. 

More people are working later in life, but older workers often face prejudice and 

are overlooked. Employment rates drop after the age of 55, and over half of 

people have stopped working before state pension age. 

It says increased labour market exits 

during the pandemic were 

disproportionately from higher than normal 

retirements among higher-paid 

professionals, and the Resolution 

Foundation argues that with many of these 

adults living comfortably in their early 

retirement, Government policy is unlikely to 

prompt them to “unretire”. 

Instead, the think-tank recommends that 

policy makers focus on three groups: older 

workers, mothers and people with ill health 

or disabilities, whose employment rates 

have proven to be responsive to policy 

changes in the past. 

Wasted talent 

Many sectors across the economy are 

suffering from acute staff shortages. But at 

the same time around a quarter of people of 

working age - about 10 million people 

- don’t have jobs. Some are looking for jobs, 

others are students or carers, or are unable 

to work due to ill-health. 

DWP leads way supporting people aged 

over 50 at work 

The DWP has signed the Age-friendly 

Employer Pledge, a nationwide 

programme run by the Centre for Ageing 

Better to promote age inclusive working 

practices. The Department for Work and 

Pensions recognises the immense benefit 

that a multigenerational workforce brings 

and will encourage other government 

departments and employers to sign up 

The Age-friendly Employer Pledge 

encourages employers to: 

• create an age-friendly culture 

• hire age-positively 

• be flexible about flexible working 

• encourage career development at all 

ages 

• ensure everyone has the health support 

they need 

More at ageing-better.org.uk 

Jeremy Hunt said if students were 

excluded from the figure, there were 6.6 

million people who were “economically 

inactive”, describing it as “an enormous and 

shocking waste of talent and potential”. 

A significant number of those, more than 

one million, are people between the age of 

50 and 64, who have retired early. 

Matthew Hunter, industrial director at 

Black Country-based MET Recruitment said, 

“It is a well-known fact that there is a large 

skills shortage and candidate shortfall in 

roles throughout the region. The one thing 

that people in their 50s have is valuable 

experience and knowledge which could 

help ease pressure on these shortages. 

Choosing an applicant from this age group 

could bring a valuable skillset to your 

organisation. 

“However, it’s not all about the skills and 

knowledge, research has shown that people 

of that age range are more likely to stay with 

an employer. Millennials, on average, stay at 

one job for 4.5 years whereas with 50 to 64 

year olds this figure is closer to 10 years per 

job. Therefore, the risk of putting training 

into people and then have them leave is a 

lot less. 

“The whole job market has been turned 

on its head by the pandemic and Brexit. I 

would urge employers to reconsider 

applicants of this age range and not be put 

off by gaps in work history which could be 

due to people being laid off during 

Covid-19 or taking early retirement and now 

wanting to get back into work.” 

Learning 

Shevaun Haviland, director general of the 

British Chambers of Commerce, said firms 

repeatedly told her they could not hire the 

staff they needed. 

While improving childcare and other 

strategies could also help bring younger 

workers back into the workforce, luring back 

the over-50s was also “part of the answer” 

to filling those labour shortages, she told 

Sky News. 


EXPORT SPOTLIGHT 

Three years on, 

what’s the real 

impact of 

Brexit on 

the UK 

economy? 

It’s now been three years since the UK left the European Union. 

Since then we’ve had a pandemic and a war in Europe, 

prompting an energy crisis, which has made it hard to decipher 

exactly what the impact of Brexit has been. 

When the UK pulled out of the single market and customs union 

in 2021, companies trading with the EU faced new rules, new 

paperwork and new checks on some goods, prompting fears 

over what would happen to the £550bn of trade between the 

UK and its nearest trading partner. There was an initial dip in UK 

exports to the EU, but once teething problems were dealt with, 

trade volumes recovered to pre-pandemic levels, according to 

official figures. 

But it could be argued trade might have grown more if it hadn’t 

been for Brexit. When the British Chambers of Commerce 

surveyed 500 firms recently, more than half said they were still 

grappling with the new system, and the red tape may have 

deterred some small exporters altogether. 

Certainly, a study of customs classifications 

shows the variety of goods we export has 

diminished. 

Prosper talked to Alex de Ruyter, a 

Professor at Birmingham City University 

and a Director of its Centre for Brexit 

Studies, for his views on the subject. 

As I write this article, it is hard to believe 

that it has been over six years since the UK 

voted to leave the EU, and over three years 

now since we formally left the Single Market 

and Customs Union. At the time, the 

concerns of those like myself, widely tarred 

as ‘Remoaners’, were dismissed by Leave 

advocates as ‘Project Fear’. 

Yet here we are in 2023 and it appears 

that most of our concerns of the negative 

impact of Brexit on the UK economy, and in 

particular, regions heavily reliant on 

manufacturing such as the Black Country 

and wider West Midlands, have been 

vindicated. 

While the impact of Brexit on the economy 

has been ‘shielded’ to some extent by the 

Covid-19 outbreak in 2020, the subsequent 

sluggishness of the UK economy compared 

to its EU rivals post-pandemic is abundantly 

clear, with growth in the UK having lagged 

behind that of EU member states France, 

Germany, Italy and Spain. 

Indeed, the OECD’s forecast for 2023 has 

the UK in recession (with real GDP growth 

year-on-year for 2023 at -0.4%) and 

outperformed by every other G20 economy 

except Russia, and the situation for 2024 

doesn’t look much better, with year-on-year 

real GDP growth forecast at 0.2%. 

Brexit has had a clear impact on inward 

investment into the UK, with the number of 

FDI projects peaking at 2,265 in 2016-17 and 

then declining over the subsequent period. 

While the figure reported for 2021-22 (1,589) 

represents a slight increase over the year 

before, this still represents a substantial 

drop from the pre-Brexit period as investors 

re-evaluate the attractiveness of the UK 

outside of the Single Market. 

Turning to trade, one of the key 

arguments promoted by Leavers was that 

the UK would be able to negotiate its own 

(better) trade deals outside of the EU, with 

the ‘great prize’ being that of a trade 

agreement with the United States, or failing 

this, a trade agreement with the 11-country 

Pacific Rim Comprehensive and Progressive 

Trans Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). 

Negotiations to enter the latter are still 

ongoing, while the prospects of a trade 

agreement with the US appear to have been 

put on the back-burner by the Biden 

administration. 

However, even if these trade agreements 

were to be secured, they would have a 

minimal impact on the UK economy, with 


LGVs queue to enter the 

docks at Dover. Trade with 

the EU is worth £550bn, 

dwarfing the figures for 

other areas of the world 

that of the US only projected to add 0.16% 

to UK GDP over the long-term (15 years) 

according to the UK Government’s own 

analysis, which shows little benefit outside 

that of niche sectors such as Scotch whisky. 

In a similar fashion, the CPTPP would only 

add about 0.1% to UK GDP, and current 

trade with these countries only accounted 

for 8% of UK exports in 2019 (less that that 

sold to Germany). 

While CPTPP membership may open up 

some opportunities around digital and 

services trade, and the UK Government still 

holds out hope with India as a key emergent 

economy, our main trade partner remains 

the EU – which only serves to underlie how 

trade flows are typically geographically 

concentrated. In other words, that the 

nature of supply chains – particularly for 

manufacturing, on which much of our 

region’s economy depends – warrant that 

parts and components can be quickly and 

easily moved around. 

It is why key supply chains such as that of 

the automotive industry tend to be 

geographically concentrated in ‘world 

regions’ such as Europe. 

Toyota, for example, concentrates 

production on a regional basis, and maintain 

14 production companies in South East Asia 

alone. No merchandise trade agreement 

between the UK and the North Americas or 

the Far East can hope to replicate this, given 

the distances involved. 

As such, the costs of Brexit to the UK 

economy have been significant, with the 

Government Office for Budget 

Responsibility (OBR) estimating that Brexit 

will result in a 4% drop in UK productivity 

relative to having stayed in the EU (think of 

all the resources now being squandered on 

customs barriers/declarations and border 

checks and you can see why), and in turn a 

15% decline in exports and imports relative 

to having stayed in the EU. 

As can be seen in the Figure 1 below, the 

UK’s trade performance has worsened in 

recent years to date 1 . 

Our own research has highlighted the 

undue impact of Brexit on smaller firms in 

the manufacturing supply chain in the Black 

Country and wider Midlands, with many 

respondents struggling to cope with 

increased red tape and the additional cost 

involved, and consequent lost business as 

clients in the EU switch business to 

elsewhere in the EU. In a similar fashion, our 

research has highlighted the ongoing 

exposure of firms in the region to a key 

‘‘ 

As can be seen in 

the chart left, the 

UK’s trade 

performance has 

worsened in recent 

years to date... 

‘‘ 

number of anchor firms, such as Jaguar 

Land Rover (JLR). 

Moving forward then, there is a clear 

need within the Black Country, and wider 

Midlands region to which it is extrinsically 

connected, to understand the nature of 

supply chain dependency on key regional 

anchor firms such as JLR. 

As current news of JLRs purported 

intention of wanting to construct a 

Gigafactory for EV battery production in 

Somerset (or Spain) attests, it spells bad 

news for the West Midlands if a key 

component of EV gross value-added is lost 

to the region. 

There is then a real risk that thousands of 

jobs could disappear in the Midlands over 

the coming decade if production is 

re-routed elsewhere in the UK, or abroad. 

1 

Source: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/ 

nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/ 

timeseries/ikbj/mret 


EVENTS 

Events Programme 

APRIL 

5 Big Business @ B63 (Breakfast) 

– Free to members and 

non-members 

13 MDP Module, Communication & 

Delivery of the Right Messages 

at the Right Time 

13 Black Country Business Club – 

Chamber members only 

annual fee applies 

19 Third Week Wednesday – 

Networking - Free to members 

and non-members 

20 Start-Up Workshop - FREE to 

Start-Up members only 

27 Black Country Business Club 

MAY 

9 Export Procedures and 

Documentation 


12 MDP Module, Styles and 

Dynamics which Create a 

Good Team 

17 Third Week Wednesday 

– Networking - Free to members 


18 Export: Letters of Credit 

18 Start-Up Workshop: Sales 

Training - FREE to Start-Up 

members only 


JUNE 


14 Import Procedure Training 

15 Getting the Most from 

Meetings 

15 Start-Up Workshop: 

HR and Employment Law 

21 Third Week Wednesday – 

Networking - Free to members 



22 Women in Leadership – Save 

the date and join us for our 

summer event 

Please note: Prices may vary from 

April 2023. 

Further details, and to book, see 

www.blackcountrychamber 

ofcommerce.co.uk/events 

Exclusive networking opportunities 

at the Black Country Business Club 

Exclusive closed networking club 

for businesses across the region 

The Black Country Business Club provides a 

platform where individuals can build 

business relationships and promote their 

products and services within a friendly and 

supportive environment. 

The event is live, face-to-face and meets 

every fortnight on a Thursday morning from 

9.30am until 11.30am. 

Chamber members and non-members 

are welcome to come along and visit to see 

how everything works before committing to 

the Club. There is an additional annual cost 

to be part of the Business Club network. 

At each meeting, one delegate has the 

opportunity to co-host and use a 10-minute 

slot to promote their business, while every 

other delegate gets the opportunity to 

provide a short 60-second pitch, to share 

their latest news or highlight a key product/ 

service. 

Rules of Engagement! 

Members of the club agree to the 

following principles: 

• Only two businesses per sector/ 

industry will be allowed to join 

• There will be a maximum of 50 

members 

• Membership is on a first-come, 

first-served basis with a final decision on a 

membership application made by the Black 

Country Chamber of Commerce 

• Each business is expected to deliver a 

minimum of one 10-minute ‘presentation’ 

each year at their Club, and all businesses 

deliver a 60-second pitch at every meeting 

The Club will meet once a fortnight. 

Cost*. There is an additional cost for the 

club dependent upon which Chamber 

membership you hold. 

Only one representative from a business 

can attend each session. 

Across 25 meetings, a no show at three 

consecutive Clubs will mean that a member 

has forfeited their right to be part of the 

Club and will be barred from future Clubs 

with no refund given. 

For further information, email 

membership@blackcountry 

chamber.co.uk 

Alternatively call Graham Croom on 

07714 740818 or Alison Trinder on 

07980 906921 for a free guest pass* 

to the next meeting. 

We would love to meet you. 

Big Business @B63 Breakfast Event 

There’s a new monthly breakfast 

networking event on the first Wednesday 

of the Month. 

Providing a fantastic opportunity to 

network with like-minded businesses each 

month, the Big Business @B63 ‘breakfast 

event’ is hosted by Halesowen College, 

sponsored by The Halesowen Bid and 

SAVE THE DATE! 

powered by The Black Country Chamber of 

Commerce. 

It starts at 7.45am, running until 9.15am. 

For more details contact 

Graham Croom on 07714 740818 

or via grahamcroom@ 


We are currently putting the finishing touches to two of our most 

popular events – the Chamber’s Race Day at Wolverhampton Racecourse, 

and the Annual Awards night in autumn. Dates to be announced 

very soon on www.blackcountrychamber.co.uk 


See you 

Third Week 

Wednesday! 

Each third week Wednesday, Chamber 

members, and non-members, meet for a 

FREE monthly networking session. 

We’re delighted to be meeting live and 

face-to-face again at Walsall College in the 

Littleton Restaurant, Wisemore Campus, 

Littleton Street West, Walsall, WS2 8ES. 

Meet at 9.45am for a short introduction 

from the college before ‘Open Networking’ 

kicks off through until through until 11.30am. 

Get involved and raise your business 

profile via your social media platforms and 

amplify your attendance by bringing along 

your smartphones and tablets. 

Tag, like, share and comment using the 

Twitter @blkcountryhour with the following 

tags: 

#tww 

#blkcountryhour 

@bcccmembers 

plus your own businesses and friends, to 

network, share, retweet and raise your 

profile. 

Don’t forget to share your experience and 

post on LinkedIn too by tagging Black 

Country Chamber of Commerce and your 

host, Joanna Smith. 

We will also be running short individual 

business interviews broadcasted over 

Twitter, (live streamed) and left as a tweet via 

our ‘Twitter Hour’ profile – ‘The Black 

Country Hour’, which can be found 

@blkcountryhour from 11am, so bring your 

pitch and your contact details if you want to 

plunge in! 

For more details on these events 

and how you can join in, contact 

Jo Smith on 07810 377821 or 

joannasmith@ 


It’s back! Join us on the first 

tee at the Chamber Golf Day 

Black Country Chamber Golf day 

Date: September 21 

Time: 10am – 5pm 

Location: Oxley Park Golf Club, Stafford 

Road, Bushbury Wolverhampton 

West Midlands WV10 6DE 

http://www.oxleyparkgolfclub.co.uk/ 

Cost: £350+ VAT members 

£400+ VAT non members 

(teams of 4) 

Join us for what will be a fun but 

challenging day’s golf – with great 

networking thrown in. 

We start at 10am for networking and 

breakfast before a midday shotgun start 

and a busy day’s competition between 18 

teams of four. This will be followed by a 

two-course dinner and hospitality at Oxley 

Park. 

The price includes green fees, free 

parking, 18 holes of Golf plus the two 

meals as described. 

Individual Players: We can take 

individual bookings dependent upon 

BANK OF ENGLAND PANEL 

Date: June 27 

Time: 8.30am - 10:30am 

Location: Online Event 

Cost: This is a free, members-only event 

for Gold, Platinum Group and 

Patron Group members only. 

This is a great opportunity to hear an 

update from the Bank of England as it 

outlines the national economic outlook 

and real-time intelligence collected by its 

network of agents from businesses up and 

down the country. 

Meetings such as this are a cornerstone 

of the Chamber’s policy, lobbying and 

representation work. Starting at 8.30am, 

this online event ensures that Chamber 

members are kept up to date with goings 

on at the national level. 

To ensure that the BoE’s economic 

policy represents all areas and sectors of 

Oxley Park: A challenging but 

immaculately maintained course is a 

superb venue for our golf day 

numbers and subject to a waiting list to fill 

a whole team. However, don’t let this 

deter you, we should be able to fit 

everyone in if you book early! 

TO BOOK: Email grahamcroom@ 

blackcountrychamber.co.uk or call 

07714 740818 for individual and team 

bookings. 

SPONSORSHIP: Increase your business 

profile at the event through various 

affordable sponsorship options. 

Call Neil Bettridge on 07792 620355 

(powered by AMROS Golf Event 

Management & Black Country Chamber). 

Bank update: exclusive access to agents 

Events Updates 

the UK economy, members are also asked 

to give a brief update on a variety of 

business policy issues which can help 

build the Bank’s understanding of the 

local and national economy. 

Please note: places are limited; please 

register your interest in attending below 

and we will confirm spaces shortly before 

the event. 

For further information email 

policy@blackcountrychamber.co.uk 

More events are added to our diary all the time so keep 

an eye on www.blackcountrychamber.co.uk 


PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING 

Money not always the answer in 

cost-of-living inspired war for talent 

There is little doubt that there is a growing 

recruitment crisis in the UK, with 2022’s 

Great Resignation hitting a market already 

ravaged by Brexit and economic instability. 

But figures from a new report published in 

February by strategic skills training provider, 

Corndel, show that there is hope for HR 

managers who don’t have the bottomless 

pockets required for salary gazumping or 

above-inflation wage hikes. 

Corndel surveyed 500 senior HR leaders 

and 2,000 employees, with 60% of 

employees saying they would be more likely 

to go for a position with a personalised 

professional development and career 

progression plan, even when another job 

offered a slightly higher salary. 

The survey compared a role at £35,000 

with personalised professional development 

and a career progression plan, with an 

identical one at £37,000 but without the 

development and progression 

opportunities. 63% of women and 68% of 

younger employees (aged 18-34) also went 

with the job offering lower salary but more 

development opportunities. 

The survey also detailed how 83% of 

employees felt that professional 

development in the workplace made them 

feel more valued, with 47% saying it made 

them feel much more valued. 

Corndel’s Workplace Training 2023 report 

details how employers should use the 

apprenticeship levy as a budget-conscious 

way to fund workplace development where 

‘‘ 

60% of employees would be 

more likely to go for a 

position with a personalised 

professional development 

and career progression 

plan, than a job with a 

slightly higher salary... 

‘‘ 

possible, resisting the standard recessionera 

practice of letting training drop down 

the list of priorities. 75% of the 500 senior 

HR leaders surveyed said that economic 

uncertainty was impacting their company’s 

learning and development strategy for 2023, 

with 49% of those with a learning and 

development strategy confirming they will 

be spending less on learning and 

development over the coming year. 

Management and data expertise were 

highlighted as the main skills gaps, 

especially in the workplace that HR leaders 

have come back to postpandemic. 

Management skills for hybrid 

working were said to be a shortage for 36% 

of HR leaders, with flexible working skills a 

shortage for 35% and data/digital skills a 

shortage for 34%. 

Professional Development: Why more 

businesses are upskilling staff to combat 

‘recruitment crisis’ 

With the UK experiencing 

significant labour and skills shortages, 

businesses are investing additional 

resources into training and upskilling their 

current workforce. 

The House of Lords’ economic affairs 

committee reported that the UK is in the 

midst of a recruitment crisis, with people in 

their 50s and 60s retiring early during 

Covid-19 lockdowns listed as the main 

reason for the skills shortage. The 

committee has predicted the situation will 

worsen into 2023 and beyond. 

What out clients say about Chamber 

management development programmes 

‘‘ Having completed six months of my Management 

Course and having to unconventionally partake 

via Zoom due to the pandemic, it has certainly 

presented some challenges but equally, plenty of 


Alice Higginson, 

Hill and Smith Limited 

‘‘ 

‘‘ The Black Country Chamber management 

development programme under Wendyanne 

Shapiro is a great way for companies to 

invest in the futures of their staff. 

Mark Nicholls, 

CKCA Limited 

‘‘ 

‘‘ Attend and you will only learn and improve 

yourself as a manager, leader and a person. I 

guarantee this programme will develop you 

not just as a manager, but as a person. 

Lee Stanford, 

Edward Howell Galvanizers Ltd 

‘‘ I am so glad I pushed on with this 

course… as I am already using the 

new skills and tools I learned with 

the amazing Wendyanne Shapiro 

and my peers on the course. 

Stuart Davies, 

Wedge Group Galvinizing Ltd 

‘‘ 

‘‘ 

‘‘ I didn’t know exactly what to 

expect but from the first 

lesson on the management 

course I knew it was 

something well worth doing. I 

have grown both 

professionally and personally 

massively. The tools this 

course has given myself and 

my colleagues has helped to 

develop our business vastly. 

James Long, 

Vacuum & Atmosphere 

Services Ltd 

‘‘ 


PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING 

Unleash the potential 

of your managers 

Management development programmes 

with the Chamber 

Exploring new approaches, insights and taking part in an 

outstanding professional journey is in order for the Black 

Country to remain competitive and thrive, great business 

leaders and dynamic managers are needed more than ever. 

There are many who find themselves in management 

positions or elevated to roles who feel they have missed out on 

essential training which allows them to be effective and deliver 

success for themselves and their business. 

For the last six years the Black Country Chamber has worked 

with Lotus Flower Consultancy in order to help those individuals 

who want to challenge themselves to develop new insights, 

explore different approaches and share invaluable development 

experiences. 

Hundres of individuals have taken this learning back to their 

businesses to help navigate challenges, embrace the opportunities and 

help their teams and businesses grow. 

In recent months, these leaders and managers have stepped up to lead 

through the most turbulent of times, and whilst utilising the invaluable lessons 

learned, they have led from the front and will continue doing so during the uncertain 

months ahead. 

Designed to stretch and challenge participants, programmes are run with participants 

from different backgrounds, experiences and industries creating a diverse environment 

where individuals can test and apply learning and developing together. 

COURSE MODULES 

n What is a manager? Introduction to management 

and the manager’s role 

n Using your time effectively and efficiently 

n Communication and delivery of the right messages 

at the right times 

n Styles and dynamics which create a good team 

n Getting the most from meetings 

n Delivering a great presentation which gets the right results 

n Building commercial awareness and acumen 

n Preparation and successful management of change 

n Stakeholder and relationship mapping and management 

n How to run and deliver a project well 

n Clarify the purpose and principles or project management 

and review roles and responsibilities 

n Getting the best from your team and helping them to 

perform better 

n Coach and develop your teams and people 

n Consider development aims for the next six months which 

include reflection on this Programme’s learning outcomes 

COST: 

Take the full 12-month programme or pick and choose modules. 

Full 12-month programme: Chamber members – £1,595.00 + VAT 

Non-members – £1,995.00 + VAT 

Per module: Chamber members – £250 + VAT 

Non-members – £295 + VAT 

Programmes will begin each month 

throughout the year, so for more 

information and to discuss the 

Chamber’s easy payment options, 

please contact 

training@blackcountrychamber.co.uk 

or call 0330 024 0820 


PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & TRAINING: INTERNATIONAL TRADE 

Chamber 

courses focus 

on helping you 

trade overseas 

CUSTOMS COMPLIANCE AUDIT 

This course gives you a full audit and risk 

assessment of your current customs, VAT, 

logistics, documentary and procedure 

compliance, carried out by a professional 

international trade consultant who is 

qualified in Advance Customs Compliance 

and previously worked for HMRC. 

How will the audit work? 

The audit will take place on your premises 

and can include anyone you feel would be 

able to contribute or have a vested interest, 

such as a member from your import/export 

teams, finance and a director. 

Most audits involve at least one day on 

site. The audit will use processes adopted 

by HMRC and the outcome will be discussed 

with team members, who will have the 

opportunity to ask questions regarding the 

audit and other shipping issues. A summary 

of the audit will also be sent to you. 

The audit will focus on the following: 

• Checking customs import entries 

• Record keeping and audit trails 

• Completion of transport paperwork 

• Customs valuations and shipping 

• Checking preferential origin import/ 

export 

• Any clearance instructions required 

If you subscribe to the HMRC’s 

Management Support System data we will 

ask you to provide a copy and a sample of 

shipments will be randomly selected in 

advance of the audit for checking. 

If you do not subscribe to MSS, then you 

will need to provide a list of shipments for 

selection. 

Further Information 

The charge for a Customs Compliance 

Audit is £2,500 +VAT* for Chamber 

members and £3,000 +VAT* for nonmembers. 

Contact export@blackcountrychamber. 

co.uk to book or for further information 

(*Price is dependent on the size and 

requirements of your business and includes 

preparation, one day on site and the final 

report. The price may increase for more 

complex audits.) 

Forthcoming courses 

EXPORT PROCEDURES AND DOCUMENTATION 

Date: May 9 

Time: 9.30am – 1pm 

Location: Online 

Cost: Members: £200 ex VAT 

Non-members: £250 ex VAT 

Have you experienced delays and incurred 

costs due to incorrect export 

documentation? Do you want to save time 

and reduce export risk…? 

Export Documentation problems often 

lead to delays in getting goods to 

customers, increased costs and charges, 

not to mention a breakdown of goodwill 

EXPORT: LETTERS OF CREDIT 

Date: May 18 





This training course has been devised 

for companies/departments that are 

regularly receiving or handling Letters of 

Credit. It will help you to reduce risks, 

bank charges and improve efficiency of 

administrators. 

IMPORT PROCEDURE TRAINING 

Date: June 14 





Do you want to increase your 

competitive edge? 

As an importer it is vital to understand 

the complex challenges of global trade. 

Importing is a process and needs planning 

between seller and buyer. We will take you 

through a detailed look at export 

documents taking a practical approach to 

why and when documents are needed. 

Includes background, uses and key 

requirements for different countries. 

We’ll help you understand how to 

produce the necessary documents for an 

international shipment, identify the 

documents required to expedite the 

shipment and any additional special 

requirements or documentation for 

particular markets/sectors. 

This course will cover the following: 

• The need for careful credit checking 

• The export quotation 

• A review of other payment methods 

– advantages and disadvantages and 

when they should be used 

• What is a Letter of Credit, and costs? 

• Administration and Procedure 

• Security and what can go wrong? 

• Tips to ensure you get it right. 

with clear and focused objectives. This 

half- day course will give practical tips and 

advice to enable your business to look at 

importing and consider the implications of 

compliance. 

We will look at 

• Why we import 

• The cost of importing 

• How to select the right supplier 

• Import documentation. 

For more information on these courses, email training@blackcountrychamber.co.uk 


COMMERCIAL FEATURE: ART BUSINESS LOANS 

Midlands businesses to benefit from 

unique social funding partnership 

Businesses in the West Midlands that 

struggle to access finance from high street 

lenders are set to benefit from a £4m 

funding package thanks to a unique 

partnership between three socially-minded 

organisations. 

Block Inc (NYSE: SQ), a global technology 

company with a focus on financial services, 

is making its first social impact investment in 

the UK, providing £2m capital to ART 

Business Loans (ART), which is being 

matched by well-established ethical lender 

Unity Trust Bank. 

ART, a Birmingham-based Community 

Development Finance Institution (CDFI), was 

founded in 1997 to help alleviate poverty 

through enterprise. ART lends between 

£10,000 and £150,000 to businesses in 

underserved and disadvantaged 

communities which are unable to obtain their 

full requirements from traditional banks. 

Dr Steve Walker, Chief Executive at ART 

said: “This deal is a real game-changer for 

us and a great vote of confidence from such 

well-established institutions as Block and 

Unity Trust Bank. 

“With the backing and support of these 

two allies, ART has never been in a stronger 

position to write the next chapter of our 

25-year history. 

“This £4 million agreement puts ART on a 

firm financial footing at a time of 

considerable economic uncertainty and 

enables us to continue to provide key 

financial support to SMEs across the West 

Midlands, many of whom are currently 

facing considerable financial headwinds.” 

Block is made up of ecosystems, 

including Square, Cash App, Spiral, TIDAL, 

and TBD, with a united purpose of 

expanding economic access for everyone. 

Today’s investment comes from its $100m 

social impact investment fund, which was 

established in 2020 to support minority and 

underserved communities, allocating $10 

million for social impact investments in 

markets outside the US. 

Amrita Ahuja, Chief Financial Officer at 

Block, said: “We are thrilled to be making 

our first UK social impact investment. ART’s 

efforts to help underserved groups access 

fair and responsible finance is completely 

aligned with Block’s mission of economic 

empowerment. 

“We believe fair access to finance is what 

unlocks opportunities for individuals and 

communities and are pleased to be able to 

invest in local programs that further this 

mission.” 

Unity Trust Bank, a thriving commercial 

bank that is headquartered in Birmingham 

city centre, has been using banking to 

improve the lives of UK communities for 

nearly 40 years. It is a long-standing 

supporter of CDFIs and has provided ART 

with £20.4m funding since 2005. 

Deborah Hazell, CEO at Unity Trust Bank, 

said: ““Financial inclusion is a key focus for 

us and we are committed to providing 

access to fair and affordable finance through 

intermediaries such as ART. 

“Historically, we have supported CDFIs by 

match funding grant money they have 

received from local authorities, central 

government or the European Regional 

Development Fund (ERDF). This new 

co-lending partnership is a significant 

development and we welcome the addition 

of a corporate investor supporting this 

underserved sector.” 

• see www.artbusinessloans.co.uk 

Pictured from left 

to right are: 

Deborah Hazell 

CEO at Unity 

Trust Bank; Dr 

Steve Walker, 

Chief Executive at 

ART; and Helen 

Prowse, Head of 

International 

Corporate 

Communications 

at Block Inc 


As ART business Loans (ART) celebrates 25 years in 

business, it is encouraging that through credit 

crunch, recession and pandemic, ART has remained 

true to its mission. 

ART continues to provide access to appropriate 

finance supporting enterprise and targeting job 

creation and preservation in underserved areas and 

communities. 

ART provides loans of between £10,000 and 

£150,000 across the Midlands, with a mixture of 

private sector funds and public sector support where 

banks have been unable to fully meet the customer’s 

needs. 

The customer base is very well spread across many 

sectors and ART remains committed to supporting 

viable businesses, to give them the opportunity to 

grow or trade through challenging times. 

To apply for a loan, see ART’s website: 

www.artbusinessloans.co.uk

Prosper Spring

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