West of England business’s confidence in the economy has bounced back for the first time in four years, according to a new survey, but there are growing fears that the recovery will be choked off by a lack of skilled workers. The latest quarterly economic survey conducted by Business West, the region’s largest business...
Bath-based alternative financial services group Time Finance has become an accredited lender under a government scheme to help businesses recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The group, which specialises in asset, loan and invoice finance products, is now able to support small and medium-sized firms looking for additional funding by providing loans and...
Public relations consultancy Clearly has launched a project for young people to help businesses in its home city of Bath tackle climate change and increase positive social impact. In what it believes is the first venture of its kind for a UK PR firm, Clearly has committed £5,000 to fund the research, development and...
An incredibly light material that can reduce aircraft engine noise to little more than that of a hair-dryer has been developed by researchers at the University of Bath. The meringue-like insulation weighs just 2.1kg per cubic metre – making it the lightest ever manufactured. Researchers from the university’s Materials and Structures Centre (MAST) believe...
The founder of Bath-based spectacles designer and manufacturer Inspecs today insisted the group was seeing growth this year after unveiling annual results showing it had fallen into the red on lower revenues in 2020. Robin Totterman, pictured, the former bond trader who launched Inspecs in 1988, said it had performed well in the first...
Bath firms that have imported goods from countries in the EU this year are being urged to complete their full declarations or face a possible fine or prosecution as the final deadline approaches. Regional business group Business West, which is authorised by HMRC to process supplementary customs declarations, said companies needed to submit their...
The Institute of Directors (IoD) is recruiting a new chair to lead its South West region as the role’s current holder Muir Macdonald comes to the end of his three-year term this autumn. The successful candidate will act as the voice for regional directors, working alongside a dedicated team at the IoD to build on...
Work to bring better connectivity within the reach of almost every home and business in Bath has started – with CityFibre, the UK’s largest independent full fibre platform, breaking ground in the city. CityFibre is investing £25m in a network that it says will future-proof Bath’s digital needs for generations to come. Along with...
Investment by foreign businesses into the South West rose last year despite the pandemic in contrast to a fall for the UK as a whole. According to a new report by accountancy group EY, the South West achieved a 6.7% increase in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects in 2020 – up by two to...
West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris is calling on employers to help increase the number of apprenticeships in the region. With an estimated £4m to £8m of unused Apprenticeship Levy funds returned to the Treasury each year, Mayor Norris is calling for apprentice levy-paying employers to give their unused funds to a new scheme called Share to Support. Administered...
