Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce is known as the voice of local business in Staffordshire – but what does this really mean? Being a member of the Chambers is not just the chance to be a part of the county’s largest business network, but it also provides the opportunity to join your fellow Chamber members and help to influence policies that impact businesses both locally and nationally.
I recently joined two of our forums, the Chairy Forum and the Energy, Environment and Sustainability Forum. Discussions covered topics such as the Midlands Net Zero Hub and the benefits of volunteering for employees and businesses. We also discussed the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), which aim to address inequalities in areas such as gender, health, education and hunger.
These two forums are among eleven policy forums delivered by Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce:
- Charity
- Digital
- Energy, Environment and Sustainability
- HR, Employment and Skills
- HS2
- Manufacturers’
- Money Matters
- Planning & Infrastructure
- Rural Business
- Social Value & Procurement
- Transport
Each forum is made up of representatives from our member businesses and meets up several times across the year. Key topics for discussion are identified, guest speakers are brought in and our forums pick up that role of highlighting the matters that concern our members, at both a national and regional level. Each forum has its own Chair, who will steer both the meetings and objectives of that particular forum.
Throughout 2023, we plan to develop closer working across all of our policy forums and highlight the more common themes which impact on multiple business sectors. We will closely track any actions we take to escalate the concerns raised by our members and this could be done through consulting with our local authority partners, stakeholders and even nationally, through the British Chambers’ of Commerce (BCC). We will also report back on what we have done.
We’re always keen to welcome new faces in all of our policy forums but what’s in it for you and your business? It’s a chance for your views to be heard and the opportunity to work collaboratively with your fellow Chambers’ members in influencing our policy role on specific topics. You also get the chance to grow your networking contacts in similar sectors. It could also be a perfect development opportunity for one of your team, helping to empower confidence.
Some of our forum members have gone on to join British Chambers’ of Commerce (BCC) policy groupings, getting their voices heard at a national level.
Joining our policy forums is not a huge commitment, with no more than four meetings a year. Meetings typically start at 9am and last no more than an hour or so.
Being the voice of business is what we do but why not get involved and play your part. For further details on any of our policy forums, please contact Declan Riddell:declan.riddell@staffordshirechambers.co.uk
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