A Bath charity making eco-friendly knickers, a specialist building maintenance firm and the city’s two universities were among the winners at this year’s South West Fairtrade Business Awards. Kerala Crafts, established in 2001, supports projects in Kerala, Southern India, including a women’s stitching co-operative and cotton co-operative. Its products, which range from oven gloves and...
A 44% increase in customers at Chippenham-based renewable energy company Good Energy helped push up its annual revenues by 12% to £64.3m. But pre-tax profits in the year to December 31 fell by 92% to just £128,000 due to the cost of servicing £54m worth of debt and a rise in administrative expenses. The...
More than twice as many West businesses want the UK to stay in the EU as leave, according to the hotly anticipated results of a major regional survey. Some 57% of business people said they will vote to remain part of the EU, compared to 26% who say they will back the leave campaign....
The long-awaited devolution deal giving the West of England a £1bn boost for investment in infrastructure and skills has been announced by Chancellor George Osborne. The move would represent a major change, transferring decisions on transport, investment, funding, skills training, business support, housing and strategic planning from Westminster. But the package of measures, which...
National business leaders welcomed a number of moves in this afternoon’s Budget, particularly those aimed at helping small firms. But there was concern over how the Chancellor will meet his deficit reduction target. The CBI called it a “stable Budget” for business facing global stormy waters. Director-general Carolyn Fairbairn said: “The Chancellor has listened...
Measures to help small firms in Chancellor George Osborne’s Budget this afternoon were immediately welcomed by Bath’s business community and business advisors. Phil Smith, pictured right, managing director of Business West – the organisation that runs the Bath Chamber of Commerce - said the Chancellor had delivered what will be remembered as a “thin...
Chancellor started speaking at 12:34 He opened by saying he will report on an economy growing faster than any other major economy and a deficit falling each year and on course for a budget surplus. Economy was strong because he did not support short-term fixes. But he warned world economy is weak. "In this...
Bath’s outstanding entrepreneurs and business leaders have less a week to enter the region’s top awards scheme that recognises excellence and enterprise in the boardroom. The annual Institute of Directors’ South West Director of the Year Awards showcase the wealth of executive talent in the region. Bath Business News is once again backing the...
Go Green, a business initiative to drive sustainability in the workplace, has been launched in Bath after its success in Bristol as part of its year as European Green Capital. A collaboration between business leadership organisations Business West and Low Carbon South West, it signposts organisations to resources that can help them be greener....
Good Energy, the Chippenham-based renewable energy company, has unveiled plans for a community-owned wind farm which could become the first in the UK to operate without government subsidy. The Government last year announced an end to subsidies for onshore wind farms in Britain. As a result, Good Energy plans to fund its Big Field...
