This months stories:
How to improve the effectiveness of your employees
THURSDAY 3 SEPTEMBER, 8.30am
Gateshead College Skills Academy
Come along to Gateshead College’s Skills Academy for Automotive, Engineering, Manufacturing and Logistics on Team Valley for breakfast on Thursday 3 September and find out how employees with Foundation Degrees can improve the performance and productivity of your business.
The Foundation Degrees in Engineering, Operations Improvement and Maintenance are aimed at employers in a manufacturing or engineering company. There are many benefits to you and your workforce including:
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Equipping your employees with the higher level of skills you need to take your business forward.
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Flexible teaching arrangements meaning less disruption to your business day
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Your employee gains an accredited qualification, improving their job prospects.
If you are serious about investing in your staff and want to up skill your workforce – come along and find out more – bring your employees – and mix breakfast with business!
It all starts at 8.30 on Thursday 3 September at Gateshead Skills Academy for Automotive, Engineering, Manufacturing and Logistics, Kingsway South, Team Valley, Gateshead, NE11 0SU.
RSVP: Jo Wastell by Wednesday 2 September
Tel: 0191 490 2420
Email: Joanne Wastell|
Summertime tipple
THURSDAY 17 SEPTEMBER, 6-8pm
Some of the region’s most prominent business people will get together to enjoy a summer time tipple on BALTIC’s River Terrace on Thursday 17 September. They will be celebrating the relaunch of B.Partners, BALTIC’s corporate members programme, and the on-going success of our quarterly Business Breakfasts.
BALTIC would love you to come along and join the party, sip a long cool drink and enjoy live music.
If you are interested please let BALTIC know by contacting Rachael Watson on: 0191 440 4927.
Email: Racheal Watson|
Registered Trader Scheme - Your Questions Answered
The Gateshead Council Registered Trader Scheme has two aims:
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to encourage and promote fair-trading in home repair businesses across the region; and
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to help put Gateshead residents in touch with reliable traders.
Businesses who are members of the scheme are vouching that they will abide by the code of practice and adhere to good business practice. Applicants go through a series of checks to ensure they have reasonable standards of business practice and on-going reviews will ensure such standards are maintained.
The Registered Trader Scheme is mainly concerned with the good working practices and customer care aspects of business. It is not an assurance of any other part of an organisation.
Currently there are trades people from various home improvement areas such as builders, plumbers, electricians, gardeners, glaziers and joiners. Members of the public will be able to find a trader according to the type of business and distance in miles from their home.
What does it Cost?
The scheme is free to join. If you are interested in joining the scheme you can find more information by:
Phone: Tracey Donnelly on 0191 433 3934
Email: Registered Trader Scheme |
Web: Registered Trader Scheme|
The Hub - Join our Free Business Network
The Economic Development service at Gateshead Council has been busy establishing a new support network aimed at the commercial creative sector in Gateshead, and in May launched ‘The Hub’.
The Hub is a business collaboration network designed to help make the most of the collective minds of the Gateshead creative business community. Through it people can work together, learn together and share resources with one another while having the opportunity to express thoughts, ideas and solutions.
It’s free to join and delivers a range of practical events, quarterly workshops and monthly networking opportunities with one main aim – to create, sustain and develop a creative hub in Gateshead.
In addition, soon to follow is an exciting website that will provide members with a host of information, including a directory of other commercial creative businesses in Gateshead, access to shared resources, collaboration opportunities, and more. Not only that, the website will integrate into some of the most popular social networking sites including Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – giving members even greater opportunity to integrate and connect with other local creative business people.
The primary target market is for the following three categories:
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Advertising, Design & Brand Communications
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New Media, Games & Software
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Film, TV & Radio
If you are a business that operates in any of those categories, and would like to join The Hub or would like further information, you can contact Mark Carrigan in Economic Development by:
Phone: 0191 433 3931
Email: Mark Carrigan|
Future Jobs Fund - Cash Boost will Create over 300 New Jobs in Gatshead
A £2m government-backed boost will help create over 300 new jobs for Gateshead’s young unemployed.
The Future Jobs Fund is set to deliver at least 300 new jobs in the public, community and voluntary, and private sectors over the next 18 months.
Subject to discussions with the Department for Work and Pensions, the first phase of the programme - with expenditure of over £900,000 - will support the creation of 139 new jobs over the first six months from October this year.
The Government announced the £1.2bn Future Jobs Fund initiative in its 2009 Budget, in response to the Houghton Report on tackling long-term worklessness.
Councillor Mick Henry, Leader of Gateshead Council, has welcomed the government’s investment in local jobs.
“Helping people out of unemployment and giving them the chance to become economically-active not only makes a huge difference to their own lives, it also gives them spending power, which can help to stimulate and sustain the local economy.
“Carefully-targeted investment such as this can therefore indirectly benefit dozens of local businesses and hundreds more people who depend on them.
“In addition, the skills that this scheme will help people to acquire will equip them for securing real and lasting employment both now and in the future.”
All the jobs created through Future Jobs Fund must: be new jobs that would not exist without such funding;
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demonstrate a benefit to the local community;
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be suitable for long-term unemployed people between the ages of 18 and 24, or unemployed people of all ages in areas where the number of Job Seekers Allowance claimants is 1.5 percent above the national average; and
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last at least six months and be for at least 25 hours per week, and pay at least the national minimum wage.
The new jobs are expected to cover a range of different employment sectors, including work in areas of health & social care, customer service, ICT, youth & community work, catering and hospitality, sport & leisure, and environmental activities including recycling.
For further information about Future Jobs Fund, contact the council’s Economic Development Service by:
Phone: 0191 477 3747
Email: Economic Development Service|
Stress in the Workplace
In today’s world of economic challenges, SMEs need to take care of their most precious assets – their employees. Ensuring that the work environment supports the employees is a vital step towards a healthy and successful business. If work-related stress is ignored it can result in unplanned absences from work. Click onto the e-newsletter ‘Healthy Work Matters’ and read about how businesses can cope with the problems of stress and the action they can take to tackle it.
Visit: Healthy Work Matters website|