It’s hard to believe that 12 months have passed since Staffordshire Chambers was named Chamber of the Year by the British Chambers of Commerce – an accolade that recognised our relationship with the business community and acted as a catalyst for the year that followed.

In a year marred by international conflict and unprecedented rises in inflation, it fills me with great pride to know that the Chamber and our partners have supported the local business community with a comprehensive range of programmes and services.

During the last financial year, through our Positive Pathways programme, we have supported almost 100 refugees who have fled war, violence, conflict or persecution with employability skills and business start-up advice. Our Positive Pathways team have worked tirelessly to help refugees find employment in the local area, and it is tremendous news that this programme has been extended by a further 12 months. We have welcomed a number of refugees from Ukraine and the thoughts of everyone at the Chamber remain with the country at this difficult time.

Over 200 businesses have been launched with the support of our Start-up programme. The entrepreneurial spirit is very much alive and well in Staffordshire, and I would urge anyone who’s interested in stepping into the world of self-employment to get in touch, here. 

Our newly-formed International Trade Centre processed export documentation worth almost £300 million throughout the last financial year – an impressive figure in its own right but something that we’re particularly proud of given the current climate that businesses are operating in. Breaking into new markets can really help evolve your business, and I would urge anyone considering oversees expansions in the new year to get in touch with our International Trade Centre manager, Allison Tomlinson.

Our Kickstart programme, overseen by our Head of Projects and Business Services, Tom Nadin, supported an incredible 912 young people into work across Staffordshire, and we were also proud to support over 2,500 business crime victims through our business crime advisor.

Shire Hall, a jewel in the heart of Stafford, was renovated during the summer and is the new home of Stafford Chamber, opening to the public this autumn. Our members are welcome to use the facilities at Shire Hall for free – an extension of the Members’ Lounge at Commerce House that has been hugely popular throughout the year as hybrid and remote working opportunities grow increasingly popular.

We were also selected by the Secretary of State for Education to lead the development and delivery of the Local Skills Improvement Plan for Stoke-On-Trent and Staffordshire. In November, we invited 70 business owners and leaders to our Skills Summit at the Catalyst Building, Staffordshire University, to discuss issues around recruiting and retaining staff. I look forward to continuing this work in the new year.

Most recently, we were proud to announce that a new daily news service would be making its way to inboxes across the county.

Daily Focus will be a source of the most up-to-date business news and comment from across Staffordshire – transforming the ways that local businesses receive and share information.

There is a real feeling of demand for a regular, focused and authoritative business news service to represent the businesses in our county. We want to shout about the brilliant things that Staffordshire businesses are getting up to – and encourage you to send your stories to the Daily Focus team on news@daily-focus.co.uk. You can sign up to the news service, here.

I am extremely excited about this project and look forward to welcoming your input!

We’re now seeing our events calendar for 2023 taking shape, with some very exciting events in the pipeline, including the return of our Chamber Awards and Let’s Do Business. We’ll be looking to continue the momentum from a record-breaking year, which included the most amount of entries for our Chamber awards and our best footfall on record for Let’s Do Business. There’s also an extremely exciting keynote speaker event planned for March – keep your eyes peeled on the Chambers’ events page for more details!

We of course couldn’t do it without the support of our membership. Thank you for being part of this journey with us.

I was humbled that around 70 members turned out on a cold and dull late November morning for our 73^rd AGM. It’s quite a procedural affair where we approve the annual accounts, our President, Kate Beardmore, reviews the previous year’s performance, we appoint our auditors and approve the election of Members to the Chambers’ Council.

Glynn Jones gave a fascinating insight of the state of our economy caused by the ‘four shocks’ of war in Ukraine, the state of the labour market, Government fiscal policy and financial market volatility. We got a real insight into the wealth and depth of information that the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) needs to consider when they decide on whether interest rates will go up or down each month. The bad news is that the Bank thinks we are in for a prolonged recession tempered by the slightly better news that it will not be as deep as the one caused by the 2008 global financial crash.

The current skills crisis is having a marked effect on UK plc’s overall performance. It is estimated that around 600,000 people have ‘disappeared’ from the labour market since the pandemic, either due to illness, mental health or through taking a decision to step away from work following the huge upheaval caused by the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns.

Where older experienced workers have moved from employment, we have been left with a widening skills gap that in the words of Glynn Jones: “will take time to unwind”.

Forgive me if I repeat myself but therefore, I am so pleased that that Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce will lead the development and delivery of the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) for Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire. Giving us the opportunity to build upon our skills delivery work to date and bring together employers, training providers and other key stakeholders across all sectors (via our sector forums) to enable us to respond to local skills priorities.

This initiative must work as without the skills we won’t have growth and the local economy and in turn, the population will suffer as a result.  I’m confident it will work if we all get involved and I would ask anyone with a vested interest in skills to sign up to our short survey which will be running for the next six months. To get involved please email: skillshub@staffordshirechambers.co.uk

Our Patron events are always a real pleasure and yesterday’s lunch was no exception.

We have now 26 Patrons, representing manufacturing, professional services, education, healthcare, utilities and local government.

Between them our patrons provide thousands of jobs and apprenticeships and contribute millions of pounds to our local economy.

However, the real value lies in the network of support they provide which underpins the Chambers business community. All our patrons are willing to give back to create further growth in the local economy. They provide their expertise, knowledge and guidance to steer the Chambers policy and service delivery and help to amplify the voice of business.

In turn, we provide Patrons with regular access to key influencers and decision makers in Government and other agencies. They are invited to the Annual British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) conference and earlier in the year several Patrons joined our trip to the Houses of Parliament to meet local MPs and Government Ministers.

This contact with our local MPs is vital as they are our direct conduit to government and with an election not too far off, we expect to see increased contact with MPs as they look to defend their seats.

Reflecting on the day later made me realise just how fortunate we are to have such an incredibly supportive and positive Chamber and business community who are able to rise above external factors, help one another and get on with the job.

Thank you all.

If you want to talk to us about any business issues, including funding, you can call our switchboard on 01782 202222 or call the Stoke and Staffs Growth Hub Helpline on 0300 111 8002 or email: info@staffordshirechambers.co.uk

Earlier this week a survey from the British Chambers of Commerce of almost 900 SMEs across the UK, including businesses based in Staffordshire, revealed the issues they are facing managing their digital tools (broadband, audio, visual conferencing tools and collaboration tools) within a challenging economic environment – with cost, a lack of time and inflexibility being the leading challenges.

The findings come at a time when SMEs are already facing an uphill battle to survive with rising inflation, spiralling energy costs and low growth risking long-term prosperity.

The management of digital tools stood out as a significant cause for concern for SMEs, with almost four in ten (38%) believing they did not have the capacity to effectively manage multiple ICT suppliers, contracts, and licences.

A quarter (25%) of SMEs did not feel that their digital tools were resilient enough to help protect their business from emerging trends, just over a fifth (22%) did not feel that their digital tools were secure, whilst 17% disagreed their current suppliers of connectivity tools enabled them to adapt to changing circumstances.

In an environment where businesses are facing spiralling energy costs, record inflation and a declining economy, firms must feel confident in the technology they rely on to serve their needs and carry them into the future.

This Connectivity Survey has highlighted significant areas of concern for businesses, with firms expressing particularly low levels of confidence in the flexibility and value for money offered to them by suppliers.

With BCC data highlighting the huge challenges businesses are facing in the current economic environment, now more than ever, they need help wherever they can find it. Finding the right connectivity tools for firms can not only save time and money, it can also help future-proof businesses against further challenges down the line.

You can view the survey infographic here: PowerPoint Presentation (britishchambers.org.uk)

Suppliers of digital tools and services must work with businesses, particularly small and medium-sized businesses, to ensure that they find their right fit and reap the benefits of a flexible and secure connectivity offering.

I do feel that we are tackling the connectivity problem head on in many parts of Staffordshire and the work currently being undertaken by LilaConnect as they roll out their full fibre network around Stoke-on-Trent, Leek, Uttoxeter and other parts of Staffordshire.

We are extremely proactive with digital technology and we have a Digital Forum which exists to drive the growing digital sector in Staffordshire enabling businesses to freely exchange information, share best practices and discuss digital innovation, information communication technology, the digital skills agenda and artificial intelligence.

Forum members include Keele and Staffordshire Universites, local authorities and many of our cutting-edge IT and digital businesses.

The Chambers also has two digital advisers Alan Bloomfield and Ben Hocking. They can advise on all aspects of digital technology and help you make the best use of it in your business. For more information on the Digital Forum or to speak to Alan or Ben email: digital@staffordshirechambers.co.uk

And finally, we have a special digital section at our Let’s do Business expo at Uttoxeter racecourse on 20^th October where you can meet the experts and talk to them about all things IT and digital. Register for Let’s do Business free here: Let’s Do Business – Staffordshire Chambers

If you want to talk to us about any business issues, including funding, you can call our switchboard on 01782 202222 or call the Stoke and Staffs Growth Hub Helpline on 0300 111 8002 or email: info@staffordshirechambers.co.uk