The views of employers in Bath and across the West of England are being sought on recruitment experiences, skills gaps and more to influence the area’s future skills strategy. The West of England Local Enterprise Partnership’s (LEP) Annual Employer Skills Survey, is aligned to its vision to develop a local workforce with the skills...
An energetic financial adviser from Bath-based Epoch Wealth Management is preparing to run the length of Hadrian’s Wall in just one day to raise vital funds for charity. Ed Grobler, pictured, will run 69 miles when he competes in a gruelling cross-country race that follows the famous Roman monument from Carlisle to Newcastle. The...
Mendips-based aggregates firm Wainwrights has completed its new £9m asphalt plant near Bristol, increasing capacity for the historic firm and ensuring further growth. The plant, financed by Barclays, has been built on a 4.5-acre site at Avonmouth is within a mile of the regional motorway network, so opening up access to new markets for...
The Bath Economic Question Time debate gave the city’s business leaders the chance to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing Bath as well as get an update on the UK economy. The event, staged by law firm Withy King in association with accountants Bishop Fleming at the Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel, heard from HSBC’s...
Landlords planning to transfer their properties into a company to avoid recent tax changes are being warned of the dangers. In a bid to cool the market, Chancellor George Osborne has introduced new taxes – and his 20% cap on mortgage interest relief is causing the most anxiety in the buy-to-let sector. The cap...
Business advisory firm Deloitte has strengthened its senior team in the South West and Wales by promoting two new partners and nine directors. The new partners are Duncan Down in the firm’s financial advisory practice and Gareth Pritchard in its tax practice. Gareth, who joined Deloitte’s Cardiff office in 2005 and advises a wide...
The newly appointed West of England president of accountancy body ICAEW is to use his term in office to support projects that prepare young people for work, create growth opportunities for all businesses and encourage the wider profession to do more in the local community. Duncan Stratford, a director at leading professional services firm...
The Business Growth Fund (BGF), the UK’s most active provider of growth capital to small and mid-sized businesses, has celebrated its fifth anniversary by increasing its South West team. Set up in May 2011 to fill a funding gap, BGF has since invested nearly £120m in 17 of the South West’s most ambitious companies,...
Specialist lender Aldermore has appointed John McDonnell as a new business development manager in residential mortgages covering the South West and Wales region. John McDonnell, pictured, has worked in financial services for 15 years, most recently as managing director of Stamford Financial Services, where he spent the past seven years. Aldermore group managing director,...
NatWest has promoted Chris Preston to the role of regional managing director – business banking, for the South West and Wales. Chris, pictured, who has worked for NatWest for 30 years, was previously the bank’s South West regional director – business banking. In his new role he will oversee NatWest’s support for businesses with...
