President's column: More can be done for Burton based businesses

As we head to the end of summer, I was personally pleased to hear the Office for National Statistics unexpectedly reveal in August that the UK economy grew faster than expected in the second quarter of this year, writes Shaun Gray.

In fact, it was the best quarterly reading in more than 12 months.

Whilst this is really positive news, there is still much for the government to do to alleviate the pressures facing businesses. At a UK level, the Chambers of Commerce continue to push the government for clear direction especially on high inflation, tight labour market conditions and global economic uncertainty.

Whilst this work continues at a national level, there is much we can do to help businesses operating in our own region and celebrate success stories, which you can read weekly in the Burton & District Chamber of Commerce e-newsletter.

That's why I'm particularly excited that the hugely popular Burton & Uttoxeter Jobs Fair is returning to Burton Albion on Thursday 28th September, with up to 60 businesses signed up to exhibit with over 1000 jobs available.

The Chamber is proud to work in partnership with Kate Kniveton MP, Burton and South Derbyshire College, Burton Albion, Department for Works and Pensions (DWP) and East Staffordshire Borough Council. I would like to extend a personal thank you to JCB, KAMMAC and Cosy for sponsoring the event.

We know many people are looking to return to the workplace and that's why an important feature of the event is having representatives from the local branch of the DWP and Job Centre who will be available for CV and interview workshops to improve participants' employability chances.

Kate Kniveton MP for Burton & Uttoxeter commented on this year's jobs fair, saying: “I am delighted to be hosting another Jobs Fair, connecting local employers to potential employees. Last year's event was a big success with thousands of job opportunities on offer to local residents.

“I want to thank those involved in the preparations for this year's event including Burton's Job Centre, the sponsors JCB, Kammac and Cosy along with Burton Albion Community Trust who will be putting on transport for residents in Uttoxeter.

“I encourage all those locally to come down to the Pirelli Stadium on 28th September and see what your next career move could be!”

We have much to look forward to across our region as investment and redevelopment work continues apace.

In Burton, we have never really had a cycle network so it's great to see the first phase of Burton's new town centre cycleway near to completion which will connect to a wider network to support sustainable and active travel.

It's exciting to know that further sections are planned and when complete this will be a real asset for the town, enabling people to cycle to work and for leisure.

We are fortunate to have businesses in our community that continue to grow and invest in the local community and two of those businesses are Hardy Signs and Else Solicitors.

Hardy Signs is celebrating being in business for 30 years and is now recognised as a trusted and respected voice in the signage industry across the Midlands and the UK.

Else Solicitors celebrated 20 years in business with its team and friends of the firm at Burton Rugby Club. The Else team recently also raised over £2,500 for the local YMCA thanks to its charity football tournament and golf day.

When it comes to Chamber events, there are several events coming up including an evening social networking event on 27 September and a joint business breakfast with Burton, Cannock, Lichfield and Tamworth at the National Arboretum in Alrewas on 4 October. If you would like to attend, please get in touch with Richard (see below).

Also, on 12 October we hold our quarterly the Good Business Forum looking at everything from climate change to attracting and retaining a new, more socially-minded generation of employees.

This really is a must for any business focussed on developing an Environmental & Social Governance (ESG) strategy.

And finally, we are delighted to welcome both the IT Helpdesk Burton Ltd and Marshall Mahoney as members of the Burton & District Chamber of Commerce.

They are joining over 100 member companies across Burton upon Trent and Uttoxeter and over 2500 member companies across the broader region.

If you would like more information on Burton & District Chamber of Commerce or to attend one of our networking events, please feel free to contact me at [email protected] or Richard Brooks on [email protected].

Shaun Gray is the president of Burton & District Chamber of Commerce and European managing director of Burton-based Ginho Group