Business confidence among South West firms has slumped to the lowest in England as the latest lockdown pushes sales down further and puts more pressure on staffing levels. Just 11% for businesses in the region expect trading levels to have returned to pre-pandemic levels by this time next year while one-in-five expect to have...
A campaign to help Bath area businesses recover from the impact coronavirus by connecting them with essential support and guidance has been launched by the West of England Combined Authority (WECA). Called Together West of England, the campaign is part of a plan for a long-term, post-Covid recovery drawn up in partnership with the...
Bath-based housing group Curo’s 700-home Mulberry Park development on the city’s outskirts has been described as an ‘unqualified success’ and England’s best current scheme in an assessment based on its impact on people and nature. The development on the 48-acre former Foxhill MoD site includes community facilities and open spaces as well as a...
Boutique hotel The Bird, Bath, has made a trio of new appointments to bolster its senior management team. Ashley Ely, pictured, joins the 31-bedroom venue on Pulteney Road, part of Bath-based hoteliers Ian and Christa Taylor’s Kaleidoscope Collection, as general manager from March 1. He was most recently cluster general manager for London-based Locke...
Bath Ales’ parent company has secured new funding from its lenders to help it withstand the challenges of Covid-19 and allow it to invest for the future. St Austell, which makes beers including Tribute bitter, Proper Job IPA and Korev lager brands, and owns a portfolio of more than 180 pubs, inns and hotels,...
Construction group Bouygues UK has appointed John Boughton, the former deputy managing director of rival Willmott Dixon in Wales and the South West, as its managing director for the same region. John, pictured, has worked in the industry for more than 30 years, four of them at Willmott Dixon, where he was instrumental in helping...
It has been great to see many businesses adapt and thrive throughout the pandemic, while for those facing ongoing uncertainty and challenges, the roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccines now provides some welcome light at the end of the tunnel. However, the future still remains uncertain for many. These businesses still have time to take...
More than 1,600 businesses across Bath and North East Somerset forced to close because of the current national Covid-19 restrictions are in line for thousands of pounds in government grants. Bath & North East Somerset Council (B&NES) has emailed all businesses that previously received discretionary grants during November’s national lockdown to let them know...
Bath Spa University is calling on businesspeople based in the city to become mentors to its graduates as they begin to find it harder than ever to join the workforce. The university has launched its scheme MentorMe following an 11% increase in the take up of mentoring since last year. It is now recruiting...
Investment group BGF’s South West team overcame challenges sparked by the coronavirus pandemic to invest a record amount last year. Some £67m was injected into businesses in 2020 – up on the £37m achieved in 2019 and overtaking the previous record of £50m in 2018. The new investments take BGF’s total funding in the...
