business newsletter - march 2011

The East Hampshire Online Business Directory - join for free. For

more information visit at www.easthants.gov.uk/businessdirectory

Inside this issue:

♦ New Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (p.2)

♦ Copper Theft - Free Advice For Businesses (p.3)

♦ Business in the Big Society (p.5)

March 2011

The Fieldfare Local Action Group (LAG) continues to

achieve remarkable success. The LAG, now in its second

year of operation, has funded a variety of projects to include:

the restoration of an historic property to accommodate an

exciting antique and interior design business, an excellent

open space improvement in a rural village and the supply of

new computers to help a community project.

Since its launch in 2009, the Local Action Group has dealt

with 628 enquiries and handled 91 full applications for

LEADER funding. To date, the Fieldfare LAG has awarded

£828,517.09 worth of grant funding to 67 projects.

The local business community has been the largest

beneficiary of LEADER funding in the Winchester and East

Hampshire areas. Support has included start up grant

funding to encourage local entrepreneurs, funding for

specific equipment and preparatory workshops to review the

health of the business. See case study on Page 7

Funding for the new financial year is now available. The

Fieldfare LAG welcomes applications from farmers and

growers, foresters and private woodland owners, tourism

enterprises, rural businesses and community organisations

in the rural areas of East Hampshire and Winchester.

Businesses located in the urban areas of Winchester and

East Hampshire but serve rural areas can also apply for

funding (subject to eligibility).

Fieldfare Local Action Group Awards Grant Funding to Projects in East Hampshire and Winchester

Grayshott Square Project members with Councillor Richard Millard (to the right) EHDC Portfolio Holder For Economic Development

Business Rates - Changes to Empty Property Exemption

becomes empty. This is extended to 6 months for certain

industrial properties.

If you have any queries on this matter or would like to

discuss how this change may affect you, please contact the

Business Rate Team on Telephone no. 01730 234159 or

visit http://www.easthants.gov.uk/businessrates

The Government has announced that

the empty property rate threshold will

reduce from £18,000 to £2,600 with

effect from 1 April 2011.

If your commercial property is empty,

and has a rateable value of more than

£2,600, you will be due to pay a 100% empty rate charge

from 1 April 2011. There is an exception for Listed Buildings

which will remain exempt whilst empty.

As from 1st April 2011, properties that become empty will not

pay rates for the first three months that the property

For more information on LEADER funding, please visit:

http://www.fieldfareleader.org.uk/support or contact:

Ken Brown (Fieldfare LEADER Programme Manager) on

01962 848588.

Case Studies and feedback from successful applications &

projects:http://www.fieldfareleader.org.uk/projects-feedback

Busi nes s New s Busi nes s New s Business News

East Hampshire Business News

Good Hygiene is good for your

business

In April, East Hampshire District Council

in partnership with the Food Standards

Agency (FSA) will be implementing the

National Food Hygiene Rating (NFHR)

scheme.

The scheme will provide consumers with

at-a-glance information about hygiene

standards in the food business to make

informed choices about where they buy/

eat food. It will replace the existing

Safe2Eat scheme currently being

operated. All businesses where

consumers can eat or buy food will be

given a rating.

Hopefully all businesses in the

district included in the scheme will

receive their new NFHR rating by the

middle of March ready for the launch

in April.

The scheme will be a good

advertisement for those businesses

that comply with food hygiene law.

Good hygiene means a good

hygiene rating and a good hygiene

rating is good for business.

For further information contact the

Food & Safety Team at EHDC on

01730 234306 or visit the FSA

website at www.food.gov.uk/

hygieneratings

The rating is calculated using the score

given at the end of your food hygiene

inspection by the EHO/Food Safety

Officer.

Based on this your business will be

given a rating between 0 (low

compliance – Urgent Improvement

Necessary) and 6 (high compliance –

Very Good). The rating will be published

on a national website, so customers can

look at it.

The scheme includes ‘Safeguards’ for

businesses to make sure your rating is

fair. You can appeal against your rating,

you have a ‘right to reply’ on the national

website, you can also request a revisit.

New Food Hygiene Rating Scheme

Business News

March 2011

March 2011

East Hampshire Start-up Incentive Grants Scheme a success

East Hampshire District Council is committed to encouraging the strength and vitality of its local economy. In order to support

local businesses the District Council made available grants of £500 to new businesses in East Hampshire. The programme

which started in 2007 has benefited a total of 65 start-up businesses.

Case Study: The Name UK

Cressy Luke started her retail business (The Name UK) at the start of the

recession and has successfully been trading for two and a half years.

Previously, Cressy worked as a Costume Designer for film and TV. Due

to the recession and a slump in the film industry, she moved to

Petersfield, a move that inspired her to open a little shop to carry on with

her creativity and passion for vintage and collectables.

Cressy approached East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) and

Business Link for support in setting up her business. She was awarded a

start-up business grant from EHDC and with the help and advice from

Business Link Advisor Miranda Morgan, she was able to establish,

develop and grow her business (The Name UK) amidst the recession.

The Name UK sells an extensive and eclectic range of modern and

vintage accessories from around the world.

In the first year of trading, the business won the award of best dressed

shop display and went on to win the same award for the second year

running. In 2010, the Name UK was highly commended as New Business

of the Year by Petersfield Life awards.

For more information on the scheme please call 01730 234164 or send

an email to: [email protected]

Please note: the scheme is now fully subscribed and all new applications are

placed on a waiting list.

Copper Theft - Free Advice For Businesses

There have been quite a number of copper thefts in the

East Hampshire area.

Do you consider yourself vulnerable to Copper Thefts?

If so, then please contact Hampshire Police. Please clearly

state that you are a business which considers yourself

vulnerable to copper thefts and you would like the Crime

Prevention Officer to contact you to give you free crime

prevention advice.

Businesses in Clanfield, Horndean or Rowlands Castle

email [email protected]

Any other part of East Hampshire District, email:

[email protected]

The Buy With Confidence Scheme was started in 1999 by

Hampshire County Council Trading Standards Service.

The Scheme brings together a list of over 500 gardeners,

plumbers, electricians, car sales and many other types of

business from all over Hampshire, which have been

individually checked for trustworthiness and compliance

with consumer protection laws.

Trading Standards officers visit and vet every applicant and

if they pass stringent checks they are accepted onto the

scheme. The business can then display the Buy With

Confidence logo.

For information on how to join the scheme please visit

www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk or call 08454 040506.

Buy with Confidence Scheme - Hampshire

Business News


The Food & Safety Team at East

Hampshire District Council is taking

part in a scheme to try and cut down

on the number of visits made to

businesses by different regulators.

The Team is working in partnership

with the Hampshire Fire Authority and

Hampshire Trading Standards.

The scheme is similar to the Retail

Enforcement Pilot which was trialled

recently but is more refined, less time

consuming and more effective in terms

necessary by that Regulator.

The scheme has been devised as a

result of direction from central

government and hopefully over time

you will see a decrease in the

number of visits made to your

business by the different regulators.

of the information collected.

At the end of a Food Safety or Health

& Safety inspection, the inspecting

officer will complete a short checklist

asking questions relating to Fire,

Trading Standards and Licensing.

The answers will be fed back to the

relevant Regulator who will review the

information.

If the information is satisfactory, it

could result in an inspection not being

Hampshire Better Regulation Partnership

For further information contact

the Food & Safety Team on

01730 234306.

Hampshire now has two Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs): The Solent LEP and Enterprise M3. East Hampshire District

is covered by both LEPs, with the most southern part in the Solent LEP and the rest in the Enterprise M3 LEP.

Solent LEP

The Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (Solent LEP)

seeks to create an environment that will facilitate

economic growth and private sector investment in the

Solent area, allow businesses to grow, become more

profitable and greener, and enable new businesses to

form and prosper.

The Solent LEP is led by the business community and

supported by four university partners, the further

education sector, three unitary authorities, eight district

councils and the voluntary and community sector, all of

whom are actively working together to secure a more

prosperous and sustainable future for the Solent area.

Website: http://www.solentlep.org.uk/

Enterprise M3 LEP

The vision for Enterprise M3 is to build on the existing

strengths of the area by all sectors working closer

together to create the premier centre for enterprise and

sustainable economic growth outside London with an

additional focus on creating a knowledge-based, rural economy. The Enterprise M3 area covers major parts of Hampshire

and north west Surrey and now includes the towns of Alton, Aldershot Andover, Basingstoke, Bordon, Camberley,

Farnborough, Farnham, Fleet, Guildford, Hook, Petersfield, Winchester, Woking and a large rural economy in Surrey and

Hampshire. Website: http://www.basingstoke.gov.uk/go/lep

Local Enterprise Partnerships in Hampshire

Business News

March 2011

March 2011

Business in the Big Society

L-R: Nick Wilson (Chair of East Hampshire Community Partnership) and Faith Charnock-Wilson (Vice Chair of the East Hampshire

Community Partnership)

By Nick Wilson, Chair of East Hampshire Community

Partnership

Public spending cuts, localism, less big government, the Big

Society: all ‘big’ issues for the public and voluntary sectors.

Googling ‘business in the Big Society’ gets 168,000 results

but which of us could say what the Government thinks

business should be doing in the Big Society?*

Of course, the point about the Big Society is that we

shouldn’t wait to be ‘told’.

I attended a recent Business East Hants (BEH) meeting

where the focus was what businesses themselves could do

– in this case about boosting the number of apprenticeship

opportunities. A great example of business leaders

themselves deciding what needs to be done and doing it.

I would like Business East Hants to be an influential

member of the East Hampshire Community Partnership,

together with key public and voluntary sector members, in a

‘partnership of equals’. BEH knows what local businesses’

big concerns are: transport and infrastructure, business

support, skills and employment, etc. The Partnership can

promote dialogue about these and broker solutions.

But this could also be about business opportunities. The

race is on to design and deliver public services in new and

more cost effective ways. Hampshire has around 4,000

social enterprises with a turnover of over £1 billion and

22,000 employees. Combining the knowledge, business

skills and creativity of successful voluntary and private sec-

tor enterprises could be the route to winning public service

contracts and achieving ‘more for less’. The Partnership can

be a crucible for new alliances and new solutions.

For more information on the East Hampshire Community

Partnership, please visit:

www.easthampshirecommunitypartnership.org

* For what the Prime Minister thinks about business in the

Big Society, go to:

http://www.bitc.org.uk/business_and_the_big_society/

business_commits/index.html

Started in late 2010 - The Horndean

Network was set up by Horndean

Community Association to support local

businesses in the village and also

highlight the support for & opportunities

open regarding employment of young

people in the village.

The members have used the network to

support & promote the small businesses

in Horndean.

The network is currently looking at how

it can maintain and enhance the village’s

Brendan Charles

Association Manager for Horndean

Community Association,

Merchistoun Hall, 106 Portsmouth

Road, Horndean, Waterlooville,

Hampshire, PO8 9LJ

Telephone: 023 9259 7114

Email:

[email protected]

precinct and how this can be improved

further through the Gales redevelopment

programme.

The group wish to increase membership

and invite small businesses from within

the village to join the network.

Current membership includes Alice

Blue, SM Printers, Universal Vehicle

Services and local authorities.

For more information on the

Business Group, please contact:

Horndean Business Group

Tourism


East Hampshire Tourism Conference a success

The East Hampshire Tourism and

Marketing Partnership recently held a

successful conference.

The conference, held at the Gilbert

White’s Field Studies Centre, was well

attended, attracting over 60 delegates

from tourism businesses, including

representatives from the accommoda-

tion and attractions sectors.

District Councillors, representatives

from partner organisations and EHDC

officers to facilitate were also present.

One of the objectives of the event was

to gain the commitment of local

tourism businesses to the marketing

action plan for the Hampshire South

Downs developed by Blue Sail tourism

consultants. The plan contains

The Gilbert White’s Field Study

Centre

The Centre made an ideal venue,

helping to ensure an inspiring event.

Delegates enjoyed the lovely views

across Gilbert White's garden and an

excellent lunch supplied by the Gilbert

White tea parlour.

The magnificent 17th century

Hampshire barn is available for day,

evening or weekend hire for meetings,

conferences, one-off events and

celebrations. The space has been well

designed and suites a variety of

events. It certainly makes an excellent

conference venue.

For more information, please visit http://www.gilbertwhiteshouse.org.uk/field-studies-centre/

recommendations on how East

Hampshire, promoted as the

Hampshire South Downs, can make

the most of the opportunity afforded by

the South Downs National Park. There

was unanimous support for the plan,

with businesses making a formal

commitment to be involved.

The workshop session took forward

one of the recommendations in the

plan, to brainstorm PR ideas for the

Hampshire South Downs. The outputs

will form the basis for a PR task group

of the East Hampshire Tourism and

Marketing Partnership to generate PR

for the area.

Overall, the delegates found the

conference very interesting and

helpful.

New Guide to Where to Stay

The new guide to where to stay in East Hampshire,

Hampshire South Downs 2011, is now available.

The guide promotes the area as a place to visit,

highlighting the beautiful countryside of the South Downs.

The guide has details of hotels and B&Bs in the area,

many with high speed or wi-fi internet access and other

facilities for people staying on business.

All these establishments have been independently

assessed as part of a national quality scheme, so you

can be sure that your visitors will be well looked after

if they need to stay overnight.

To obtain a free copy of the guide, please contact :

The Tourist Information Centre in Petersfield

Telephone 01730 268829,

email [email protected], or

download from our website, www.easthants.gov.uk/tourism

Rural Economy

March 2011

Sustainability Centre takes the lead on sustainable building with help of LEADER Funding

By Mary Lewis, Sustainability Centre Manager

LEADER funding (see page 1), granted through the

Fieldfare Local Action Group, has enabled to us achieve this

wonderful project.

The aims of the project fit well within the priorities identified

in the Rural Development Plan for South East England, to

include: rural skills development; the environment, increasing

biodiversity through sustainable woodland management,

developing facilities for eco-tourism and mitigating climate

change through the use of zero carbon building materials.

The Woodland Classroom project created an inspirational

space for learning at the Sustainability Centre that gave a

sense of being connected to nature. The project was aimed

at developing something that would inspire people through

the use of natural, tactile materials. We wanted a building

that was very low-impact, had low embodied energy, used

locally sourced materials and contributed to developing skills

in woodland management and sustainable construction. The

result is a beautiful building with a sweeping curved roof

nestled in the woodlands of the South Downs National Park.

The innovative roundwood building was designed by

nationally renowned timber framer and coppice worker Ben

Law. The structure was built by Ben and a team of trainees

using low-grade ‘waste’ timber from our own woodland with a

locally sourced cedar shingle roof. The training element was

an important part of the project with four trainees gaining

skills in specialist sustainable building techniques.

The process was documented in an instructional DVD

produced by Permanent Publications and a full colour book

by Ben Law titled Roundwood Timber Framing.

The classroom is used by schools and for adult courses in a

wide range of subjects including rural crafts, woodland man-

agement, biodiversity, renewable energy and environmental

education. It also provides a calm, peaceful venue for funeral

gatherings at the South Downs Natural Burial Site.

The classroom enables us to grow our business and

generate more revenue. We are a self-funded charity and we

aim for all our projects to support themselves financially.

If you would like to visit the Woodland Classroom, or you

would like to hire it for a training course or event please call

01730 823166 or visit our website:

www.sustainability-centre.org

Fieldfare LEADER Programme

Read about the successful projects and feedback at: http://

www.fieldfareleader.org.uk/projects-feedback

For a full list of projects that have been awarded LEADER

funding through Fieldfare Local Action Group, visit: http://

www.fieldfareleader.org.uk/grants-awarded/

For more information on LEADER funding and how to

apply, please visit: http://www.fieldfareleader.org.uk/

support or contact: Ken Brown (Fieldfare LEADER

Programme Manager) on 01962 848588.

March 2011

Woodland Classroom at the Sustainability Centre

Woodland Classroom at the Sustainability Centre

Employment & Skills


Apprenticeships are the proven way to

train your workforce. Apprenticeships

can make your organisation more

effective, productive and competitive by

addressing your skills gaps directly,

even in uncertain economic times.

There are real business benefits to

taking on apprentices. This section

outlines these benefits as well as

answering other questions you may

have about Apprenticeships.

The Apprenticeship programme has

been designed to help your employees

reach a high level of competency and

hours but 16 hours or more and

wished to follow an Apprentice-

ship. It is anticipated that all

employed apprentices will be

engaged in working and learning

for a minimum of 30 hours per

week).

♦ A knowledge based element.

♦ A competence based element.

♦ Transferable or “key skills”.

♦ A module on employment rights

and responsibilities.

Continued next on page 9

performance and with over 180 different

types of Apprenticeships, there’s bound

to be a place for an apprentice in your

organisation.

What does it involve?

An Apprenticeship includes the fol-

lowing components:

♦ A minimum of 16 hours per week

paid employment. (However it is

expected that this will be greater

than 30 hours per week…It is no

longer required that permission is

obtained from the Agency where a

learner is employed less than 30

Apprenticeships Facts

Alton Business Advantage

Alton College Adult learning

New range of business focussed training courses

Launch

Companies hoping to survive in the current economic

climate should be looking at all the available resources for

improving their businesses. From March, Business Advan-

tage in conjunction with Alton College will be offering a

range of cost effective bite-size courses that have been

created to deliver up-to-date, practical business training and

advice that is focused upon core skills and the adoption of

best practice in managing and running a business.

Suitable for every stage of your business, from thinking

about setting up to having been in business for several

years, these short courses, many of which are just 3 hours

duration, will ensure you understand business basics and

can apply them with confidence, whether you are taking

those first exciting steps into business or taking your

business to the next level.

John Stratford, Business Advantage Manager commented

“our range of bite-size courses has been designed

specifically for business start-ups and SMEs with particular

consideration to the current economic climate. Our aim is to

deliver professional and affordable courses that are valuable

to any business sector.”

A full list of business courses are listed on our website

www.altoncollege.ac.uk. Courses include Financial

Awareness for Business, Essential Recruitment and

Selection Skills, Essential Interview Skills, Managing

Change in a Downturn, Effective Project Management,

Essentials of a Marketing Plan, Improving Team

Performance and Managing Staff Performance. As well as

all of the listed courses, Business Advantage offer a

bespoke business course service to provide companies with

business courses to suit their individual needs.

For further details, see the Alton College website:

http://www.altoncollege.ac.uk/business or contact the

Business Advantage Team on 01420 592200.

Employment & Skills

March 2011

March 2011

With Apprenticeships now the preferred

government training model there really

isn’t a better time for businesses to

benefit from these programmes. And

even though some employers recognise

there are huge advantages to having an

Apprentice they can still be deterred

from employing one because they think

it will be very complicated, time-

consuming and risky.

With these myths still hindering some

businesses from taking on Apprentices,

Sparsholt College has created and

launched Apprentices for Business, a

new scheme based on the Apprentice-

ship Agency model. This flexible solution

has been specifically developed to meet

the needs of local businesses, by

centrally employing apprentices (much

like an employment agency) on their

behalf. This makes recruitment much

simpler, efficient and even more cost

effective.

The process couldn’t be easier – firstly

potential employers define the role and

programmes are successfully

delivered – their outstanding 89%

completion rates are 15% above the

national average and Ofsted graded

the programme ‘good’ in 2008.

The College’s Apprenticeship

programme incorporates a vast

range of courses: from various

business disciplines, the service

industries, care and education to

construction and engineering and

land based industries.

Having an Apprentice really could

not be much simpler – why not give

the College a call on 0845 850 0916

or email [email protected]

to find out more?

the wage. Sparsholt College will then

work closely with the employer to

advertise the vacancy through a

dedicated web-based Jobs board,

screen applicants and provide the

employer with a shortlist of the most

suitable candidates. Naturally the actual

interview and selection stage is done by

the employer but once the right person

has been found, Apprentices for

Business will officially employ the

Apprentice, managing all payroll and HR

functions. Businesses thereby get to

enjoy the benefit without the administra-

tive burden of being the employer.

As one of the region’s experts in

delivering quality Apprenticeship

programmes, Sparsholt College

understands the issues businesses face

and have the industry links and support

mechanisms in place to ensure the

Sparsholt College Apprentices for Business

Continued from page 8

What are Apprenticeships?

They are work-based training

programmes designed around the

needs of employers, which lead

to national recognised qualifications.

How long does it take?

The length of an Apprenticeship varies

depending on prior skills levels of the

apprentice, the qualification being

obtained and industry sector. Gener-

ally, Apprenticeships take between one

and three years to complete.

now and in the future. The mixture

of on and off job learning ensures

they learn the skills that work best

for your business. Over 130,000

companies offer apprentice places

because they understand the

benefits that apprentices bring to

their business – increased

productivity, improved competitive-

ness and a committed and compe-

tent work-force.

For more information on

Apprenticeships, please visit:

http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/

Business Benefits

Apprenticeships can help businesses

across all sectors by offering a route to

harness fresh new talent. UK busi-

nesses consider skills shortages and

recruitment difficulties a bigger threat

to performance than soaring oil prices

and declining consumer spending, and

more than a quarter of these rate this

form of vocational training higher than

any other qualification.

Apprenticeships ensure that your

workforce has the practical skills and

qualifications your organisation needs

Apprenticeships Facts continued.

Did you know that East Hampshire District Council

provides a pest control service for the commercial sector

as well as the public sector?

The Council provides a professional pest control service at

competitive rates, whatever your premises. Our pest control team

has more than 30 years’ experience in commercial and domestic

pest control.

Treatment and protection is provided against rats, mice, wasps and

much, much more.

Annual contracts and ad-hoc visits are available.

Survey and quotations are free.

For more information, to obtain a quote

and book a survey, please call:

01730 234 360.

Community First—Training News

Community First East Hampshire is

the lead organisation in the Learning

Highways programme, a consortium of

local councils for voluntary service in

East Hampshire, Winchester,

Rushmoor, Test Valley and Hart.

New courses on offer in the Spring

2011 programme include:

♦ Learn how to touch type: An

exciting new course that will teach

the basics of touch typing and help

you to increase your typing speed

Date: Mondays 7 & 14 & Friday 25

March (a 3 part course).

Venue: Petersfield Library.

♦ Managing your Workload

Efficiently. Monday 21 March

2011. Venue: Church on the

Green, Rowlands Castle.

Community First can also offer

bespoke IT or Personal Safety & Lone

Working training tailored to your

organisation's needs.

The next East Hampshire Community

Learning Forum will be held on 14th

June and 10th November, 13.45 for a

2.00pm start until 4.00pm at EHDC

offices, Petersfield.

Contact Liz Moore, Learning &

Development Manager at

[email protected] or call 01730

710017 if you would like to attend the

Learning Forum or if you would like to

find out more about any of Community

First's training.

♦ Enjoy Email and Outlook: Gain

an in-depth look into the electronic

world of email and how to manage

it. Learn how to survive and thrive

in the modern world of emails and

electronic communication. Date: 8

April 2011 at 9.30 - 17.00 Venue:

Alton College.

The usual favourites are also on offer:

Enjoy PowerPoint, An introduction to

Publisher and Basic committee skills

plus much more.

Book online by filling out the online

Training Booking Form – http://

www.cfeh.org.uk/training/training-

booking-form

For the full Spring 2011 Training

Programme visit:

www.cfeh.org.uk/

information/training.

business newsletter - march 2011

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