Business News

Stallholders from Birmingham’s Frankfurt Christmas Market have made their annual donation of left over foods to local charities. The market closed on the 29th December, and traders donated produce – such as ham, doughnuts, waffles and sausages – which were distributed to charities via a food bank at Holford Drive Community Sports Hub. Birmingham City Council worked with Heart of Birmingham Community Sport & Physical Activity Network (HoB CSPAN) to provide the food to charities.

The City of Wolverhampton Council has secured funding totalling £207,000 to help more people with learning disabilities live independently in their own homes. It was successful in its bid to the Department of Health's Housing and Technology Capital Fund to put technology at the heart of the care and support provided to individuals. The council will use the funding to increase people's independence through greater use of the latest technology, adapting existing supported accommodation living properties and working with developers who are establishing new services in the city.

Antique hunters from near and far can now find a new treasure trove centre at Wolverhampton’s historic Bantock House. ‘Antiques at Bantock’ has opened up at the visitor attraction following a year of successful monthly antique fairs run by Victoria Rowson and her husband Paul. Victoria, who ran an antique business in Bridgnorth, says the monthly fairs proved so popular that it made sense to open a shop on site at Bantock House in Finchfield Road.

New figures from VisitEngland show that Brits spent a record-breaking £45.3 billion on day trips across England in the first eleven months of 2016, setting a new record for the survey.  January to November 2016 also saw the highest number of day trips taken in the first eleven months of the year at 1.35 billion visits in England. The figures show that the number of domestic tourism day trips in England from January to November were up 14% on the same period the previous year with spend up 7%, both records for the first eleven months of the year.

The Black Country Chamber of Commerce is looking forward to a year of developing and maintaining relationships. With this in mind, the Chamber is delighted to announce the return of the successful Strategic Leadership Programme, an exclusive programme to develop the leadership and management skills of CEO’s, MD’s and Senior Managers. This course is aimed at supporting business growth and inspiring leaders throughout the region.

Citizens wishing to have their garden waste collected in a clean and convenient way can sign up to Birmingham City Council’s 2017 service at a reduced rate if they order online. The annual subscription charge is £40 for 20 fortnightly collections from early March to late November/early December – with a discount of £2 for all orders (online), reducing the cost to just £38. As standard, subscribers will use a 240 litre bin with a brown lid. Residents can make multiple orders if they need more than one bin for their garden waste.

Birmingham Airport has been named the world’s most punctual airport in 2016 by air travel intelligence company OAG, with 91.28% of arriving and departing flights operating on time. With over 100,000 scheduled flights from Birmingham Airport last year, the most punctual route was to Dublin, boasting an on-time score of over 95 per cent. The UK airport beat contenders from countries such as Japan, Brazil, America, Germany and Australia to claim the global crown.

The Government announcement, which gives the green light for the construction of thousands of Starter Homes, is welcome but greater challenges lie ahead if we are to solve our housing crisis, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has warned.  Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said: “It’s great to see the Housing Minister kick off 2017 by giving the green light to the first Starter Homes."

Trading standards are advising retailers to be vigilant and responsible when selling e-cigs and liquid nicotine, applying the same checks as to the sale of any other age-restricted products.  This is after an undercover intelligence gathering operation found 9 out of 10 shops sold nicotine-inhaling products (NIPS) to an underage volunteer. There has been a surge in the number of users of e-cigs and the change in the law is intended to protect children.

A national director has been appointed to take a new concept in business networking nationwide. Kasim Choudhry, aged 27, has been appointed as National Director of Pathway2grow, part of the Birmingham based Pathway Group. He was appointed shortly after organising the first ever highly successful Asian Apprenticeship Awards in Birmingham. Pathway2grow has successfully launched in Birmingham and London an afternoon event ‘Coffee and Natter’ and an evening group ‘Chutney and Chat.’

Leading UK value retailer Poundland is bringing in the new year by cutting the price of thousands of items in its core ranges to 50 pence in its first ever sales event. While Poundland has reduced prices in the past to clear stocks or welcome a competitor to town, today’s sale marks the first time the retailer has halved the price of core items in its ranges. From sauces to soup, toothpaste to toiletries, the new move - initially covering essential grocery and beauty items - will give customers amazing added value to kick off a new year of savings.

Renting out property on Airbnb or selling second-hand goods on sites like eBay and Gumtree could land people in hot water with the taxman, unless they check whether they need to register for Self Assessment - according to one of the UK’s leading online accounting software providers. FreeAgent - who provide innovative cloud accounting software to freelancers and micro-businesses - warns that many people across the UK could be risking being fined by HMRC due to not realising they should be paying income tax on money they earn “on the side”.  

Knowing where to go to find a professional, skilled plumber is vital, says UK Plumber of the Year Shaun Scott. The 25-year-old, who was named the UK’s top plumber earlier this year, warns that it is only too easy for people who aren’t qualified to cause thousands of pounds worth of damage and give the plumbing industry a bad name. Shaun is a member of WaterSafe, the UK accreditation scheme for qualified plumbers, which ensures all its members are trained to work safely with drinking water.

I would like to wish all the residents of Wolverhampton a Happy New Year and hope that you had an enjoyable Christmas. Nationally 2016 was a year of some uncertainty, locally however we have continued to focus on priorities set out in our Vision 2030 with the aim of delivering an optimistic and resilient future for everyone who lives in our city.