A Birmingham Skoda dealership is giving support to a local Hospice after hearing of its work from a customer

Central Skoda will be supporting Birmingham’s John Taylor Hospice – thanks to one of their salesmen who offered to donate part of his earnings.

Mike Byrne, Managing Director of Central Skoda and who lives in Sutton Coldfield explained,
“Our decision to support the Hospice began after Ray Woods, Marketing and Fundraising Officer for the League of Friends of the Hospice bought a car from us earlier this year. Ray used the opportunity to tell us about the work of the Hospice.

When Ray came to see us again recently to find a car for his wife, Aaron Cooper of our sales team offered to donate his commission to support the Hospice - and we have agreed to match the amount involved. We also intend to give further help and support.

We like to support local good causes as our way of thanking the community for their support for us - and the Hospice is only 3-4 minutes away from our showroom. The Hospice also covers Sutton Coldfield where I and number of the staff live so it is a natural choice.”

Ray Woods of the League of Friends of the Hospice said,
“My wife hasn’t been well recently and the car was a surprise for her when she came back from seeing our son in Germany. I was really taken aback when Aaron offered to donate his commission to the Hospice - and delighted when Mike Byrne said that the Company would like to get involved.

I should also say that their service from beginning to end was superb!”

Central Skoda are at 585 Tyburn Road Erdington, Birmingham B24 9RX and can be contacted via their web site at www.centralskoda.co.uk or telephone 0121 382 0077

The John Taylor Hospice serves a population of over 400,000 in the north of Birmingham. It has a day hospice, an inpatient unit and community based nursing and bereavement support teams helping patients and their families (including children).

The League of Friends welcomes offers of help and support and can be contacted via their web site at www.johntaylorhospicelof.org.uk. Or telephone: 0800 781 1898.

Real help now on offer to people in the West Midlands

New local figures reveal record increase in work-based training

People across the West Midlands are benefitting from £23 million in Government investment in skills and training to help them get and keep jobs through the downturn, Skills Secretary John Denham said today.

Across the region the Government has re-orientated the skills and training budget so that people can gain the skills they need to get into and stay in work in these tough times.

In response to the downturn and to make sure the West Midlands is well placed for the upturn the Government has:

* Invested £12.5 million to make skills and training available for people who have lost, or fear they may lose, their jobs: and

* Invested £10.5 million to help people who have been unemployed for more than six months access skills and training to help them back into work.

This funding is part of the £4.5 billion that the Government is spending on adult skills nationally and will be used to ensure that more people can get the benefits this training brings.

Skills Secretary John Denham said: "This Government is offering real help now for people and businesses across the West Midlands. We have acted to make sure that people have access to the skills and training they need to keep their jobs or get back into work.

"We know that people whose skills are up to date are more likely to find a good job, and that employers with well-trained staff do better than those that don't invest in the skills of their workforce."

A record number of people have already gained vocation qualifications through the Government Train to Gain programme.

The qualifications cover a range of skills and training, giving people what they need to find work and get on at work, improving their chances of being employed.

Nationally, adults achieved 187,300 qualifications through Train to Gain in 2007/08, more than double the number of achievements in 2006/07.

In the West Midlands the number of people gaining work related training increased from 11,900 in 2006/07 to 25,700 in 2007/08. Birmingham saw the highest number of Train to Gain qualifications in the region last year with 5,100 - an increase of 3,000 on 2006/07.

Train to Gain is the Government's service to help employers to improve the skills of their employees and the productivity of their business. But the benefits of Train to Gain are not just economic.

Over recent months, the Government has responded to employers' needs and has made Train to Gain more flexible and responsive, which has helped to drive the increased demand. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will be top priority for Train to Gain funds, including growth of the overall Train to Gain budget worth £350m growth, over the next two years to help them get through the tougher economic climate by building the skills and expertise of their workers.

From January this year, DIUS has relaxed the rules so that SMEs can get funding for short courses in business-critical areas, and more funding for qualifications even when employees already have a qualification at that level. DIUS has also made funding deals with particular industries to meet their different skills and training needs.

Findings from further research published recently shows that gaining a qualification improves many people's self-confidence and motivation at work, as well as giving them skills that will appeal to employers.

New research published last month by the Learning and Skills Council shows that both employers and employees continue to be highly satisfied with Train to Gain.

An evaluation of employers found that:

* 92 per cent of employers who have accessed Train to Gain have been satisfied with the training, and the provider who delivered it;
* 68 per cent of employers stated that Train to Gain training has improved long-term competitiveness of their business; and
* 46 per cent of employers stated that Train to Gain has had a beneficial impact on their "bottom line".

An evaluation of learners found they felt there was real value in achieving a qualification. Respondents spoke with great pride about what they had gained and described how it gave them confidence, credibility and real gains in terms of their current job and future career:

* 89 per cent of new learners said the training gave them skills that would help with current and future jobs and employers;
* 45 per cent of new learners reported receiving a pay rise which they attributed to their training;
* 48 per cent of learners in a longitudinal group reported increased promotion prospects.

Scaffolding collapse in a pedestrian walkway "could have been so much worse", warns HSE

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is warning construction companies and property developers to ensure they provide safe scaffolding, which is regularly inspected, after two companies were fined for a scaffolding collapse in Birmingham City Centre.

On 13th December 2006 scaffolding, measuring between up to 50ft high and spanning 100ft along the side of a building, collapsed across Needless Alley at 6.40pm as it was being used by pedestrians.

SGB Services Ltd, of Leatherhead in Surrey, was fined a total of £4,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,000 at Birmingham Magistrates' Court, on Friday 13th March 2009, after pleading guilty to a breach of Regulation 8(b) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company had been charged with not ensuring that the working platforms, that they had installed were erected to ensure that components did not become accidentally displaced as to endanger workers or passers-by.

In the same court hearing John Davies Interiors Ltd, of Century House Oldbury, was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay costs of £1,996 after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 12(4) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company admitted that it had not ensured that the working platforms were not used in that position, as they had not been inspected within the previous seven days.

HSE Inspector Mike Ford said: "The incident placed pedestrians and workers at risk because the two companies had failed to provide a scaffold that was suitably tied to the building and failed to ensure that the scaffold was inspected regularly after the erection.

"All employers have a responsibility to ensure that safe working practices are in place, because failure to do so could well cost lives, as well as enforcement action from HSE. It is extremely fortunate that nobody was injured, as CCTV footage of pedestrians passing within seconds of the collapse clearly demonstrates, it could have been so much worse.

"Anyone attempting to work on that scaffolding would have been at high risk. Falls from height at work resulted in 45 deaths last year, of which 23 were in the construction industry. In addition, 3,750 workers were seriously injured afer falling from height and 3,409 of those were employed in the construction sector."

Villa kids dance their way to vitality at special summit

A special summit took place last Friday at Villa Park to look at how we can all play a part in tackling obesity in the West Midlands. A mixture of regional health care planners, voluntary groups, health officials and academics are coming together to showcase the innovative work already going on in the region and strengthen new partnerships to make the region a fitter and healthier place.

The summit takes place as part of Change4Life, a lifestyle revolution supported by the Department of Health, to help families to eat well, move more and live longer. Change4Life was launched in January 2009 and brings together a coalition of volunteers, health workers, big businesses, charities, teachers and healthcare professionals working side by side to reduce the proportion of overweight and obese children.

Obesity is growing at an alarming rate across the UK. Conditions, such as type 2 diabetes which is linked to excess weight, have increased dramatically in recent years and children as young as seven are now affected by the disease. The summit will look at the projects tackling the condition in the region and in particular, 'Villa Vitality', a programme organised in conjunction with Aston Villa Football Club, which has signed up to Change4Life.

One proven way to get children fitter and to develop healthier lifestyles is to make their activities fun. And what better way is there to have fun, than through a dance, exercise and healthy eating programme supported and hosted by one of the West Midlands Premier League football clubs?

'Villa Vitality' is a Heart of Birmingham PCT initiative open to schools in the city and football club officials, health and education chiefs are all 'high kicking' home this message to children - that dance, exercise and diet not only make you healthier but can improve your confidence too.

Nearly 200 delegates from the conference and Birmingham youngsters will be encouraged to get 'moving' themselves and can look forward to a dance display from local Aston performing arts company, 'ACE Youth Dance' and Staffordshire Dance Troupe JECYL.

Kevin Haywood, Head of Public Health Programmes for Heart of Birmingham PCT said:

"Today's Obesity Summit at Villa Park shows the Department of Health in the West Midlands is working creatively with all of its partners - including sporting institutions like Aston Villa to get our region fit and healthy. Many of the children are Villa fans and look up to the Premier League athletes who play here. This is a great opportunity for local children to get fit and enjoy a new activity at the famous stadium and show speakers and delegates at the summit that projects like this really do work."

The Heart of Birmingham PCT developed the 'Villa Vitality' programme with Aston Villa five years ago as a way of teaching school children about exercise and healthy lifestyles. Children take part in a six week programme hosted at the ground including two visits to the stadium, lessons from the Villa Park chefs on how to prepare healthy foods and take part in organised sports activities. Feedback from the schools and children taking part has so far been very positive. The project is seen as a model that could be adopted in other football clubs and education authorities.

Rashmi Shukla, Regional Director for Public Health in the West Midlands said: "Obesity is a major public health challenge for the region. Today's Department for Health West Midlands summit allows us to discuss and disseminate the innovative projects and research already happening across the region.

The conference brings together our partners in transport, local government, schools and community organisations. It features the many critical actions being taken by them, as well as the NHS. Above all it's a chance for all of us chance to shape what can be done in the future, both locally and regionally to reduce obesity."

(PICTURED: Professor Paul Gately, an obesity expert and keynote speaker at the summit, with 12-year-old Xhosa Hilton Cole, a member of the ACE Youth Dance Group and pupil at Holyhead School)

Aerospace event opens up a world of possibilities for Coventry and Warwickshire companies

Two Coventry and Warwickshire suppliers to the aerospace industry were among 60 Midlands businesses celebrating after making international contacts potentially worth millions of pounds at the 'Aerospace Opportunities 2009' event.

Over 40 key buyers from major international aerospace companies from countries including the US, Spain, Brazil, Germany, France, China, India, Switzerland, Ireland and the UK met representatives from Midlands-based aerospace companies.

The event was funded by UK Trade & Investment, Advantage West Midlands and East Midlands Development Agency and supported by the Midlands Aerospace Alliance.

Originally a sheet metal company, the Premier Group in Coventry expanded to providing products to the automotive and rail industries, as well as the military.

Its newest venture is into the world of aerospace so for Paul Smith, Key Accounts Manager, the event was a valuable investment.

"Every meeting has been really positive. We had appointments with ten buyers and two further buyers approached us themselves to see if we could help them.

"It's a unique chance to tell many influential organisations about your company, which would ordinarily take six months. If you get one request for a quote then it's been worth every penny and I'll certainly be returning."

Premier Group employs more than 100 staff and has an annual turnover in excess of £8m.

Ricardo UK in Leamington Spa provides transmission products and engineering solutions and decided six years ago to look for business in the aerospace industry.

Mick Strong, Sales Engineer, said: "It's been a really well organised event with lots of positive stuff to follow up on.

"We met with 17 buyers in total and we've got a really good feeling about most of them. It's our third time here and we see no reason to stop coming. One buyer from Michigan was so impressed that he decided to come and see us in Leamington Spa while he's here!"

UK Trade & Investment's international cluster co-ordinator for aerospace in the West Midlands, Matt Clive, said: "UK Trade & Investment organises events like Aerospace Opportunities to support West Midlands companies to develop their overseas trade. It is really positive to see so many international buyers participating and keen to do business with UK companies."

Experts from UK Trade & Investment's commercial teams in France, Spain, Switzerland and China were also there to provide advice to companies on understanding the aerospace industry in these countries.

Andrew Mair, Chief Executive of the MAA, said: "We help the organisers select buyers from around the world, to make sure they are the ones best suited for Midlands companies.

"Members tell us that it's been very good and many have had a number of successful meetings. And through the opportunity of networking there have also been a lot of unexpected gains.

"It's clear that, despite the current economic situation, the aerospace industry is very buoyant and that's been reflected in the fact that more than 40 buyers from all over the globe have attended the event."

During the day, sellers were given 15 minutes to pitch their products and services in a series of face-to-face meetings with the international buyers.

West Midlands businesses help build low carbon Britain

A new industrial activism was today placed at the heart of the government's emerging Low Carbon Industrial Strategy as new figures showed the UK green goods and services sector is already the sixth biggest in the world.

The Prime Minister, Peter Mandelson and Ed Miliband were meeting business leaders at a Low Carbon Industrial Summit in London to map out the UK's industrial priorities for taking advantage of the new global low carbon economy - currently estimated to be worth £3trillion globally and employing 880,000 people in the UK.

Business Secretary Peter Mandelson said: "Low carbon is not a sector of our economy, it is, or will be, our whole economy, and a global market. Today we are asking industry what more needs to be done to ensure these changes benefit to the UK economy and what needs to be done to equip British companies to compete for business overseas. A low carbon industrial strategy must seize the opportunities that will come with change. That requires a new industrial activism for a new green industrial revolution."

New independent research by Innovas is published today. 'Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services: an industry analysis' shows:

* The UK is already the 6th largest low carbon and environmental goods and services (LCEGS) economy.

* In 2007/8 it was worth £106.5 billion to the UK economy and could grow by another £45 billion over the next eight years.

* There are already over 880,000 jobs in the LCEGS sector. If employment grows at projected rates, an additional 400,000 jobs could be created in the next 8 years

* Just under one third (31%) of overall activity is in manufacturing.

The significant contribution made by Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services to the regional economy is clear.

Sales of Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services in the West Midlands region in 2007/08 were valued at £8.6billion. There are around 4,200 West Midlands companies engaged in the sector, employing some 74,000 people.

The West Midlands accounts for 8% of the total UK market value of LCEGS sectors, of which £1.7billion (20%) comes from the Environmental sector, the Renewable Energy sector makes up £2.7billion (31%) and the Emerging Low Carbon sector accounts for £4.2 billion (49%) .

Rugby-based company Converteam is an example of the kind of business leading the way in the industry. Specialising in power conversion, Converteam uses the latest superconducting wire technology to build machines that use fewer raw materials, demonstrate greater efficiency and higher performance. This can create for example, a wind turbine design without the need for a gearbox, potentially providing a significant improvement in efficiency and reliability. In 2009 the development of these machines will move from laboratory to the factory.

Regional Minister for the West Midlands, Ian Austin said:
"I want our region to lead the way in developing the new technologies and creating the new jobs on which our prosperity will depend in the future. We need to make sure we have the high-tech innovative industries and highly-skilled and well-paid jobs of the future here in the West Midlands.

"We must remain focussed on the much longer-term challenges of building a thriving, low carbon economy to compete in a changing world and one that delivers on our climate change commitments. It will require a new approach - not just what we do but how we do it. High carbon growth is not an option and we need a new way of working to capitalise on the opportunity that creating a low carbon future brings."

A pamphlet published today 'Low Carbon Industrial Strategy: a Vision' highlights a range of companies in the UK already taking advantage of low carbon opportunity and sets out the scope and ambition of the Government's plans.

Businesses and others with an interest are asked for their input through a new interactive website to inform a final Strategy to be published before the summer.

Local councils in the West Midlands to receive more than £11million to help communities through the credit crunch

Local councils in the West Midlands are to receive more than £11million to help meet the needs and priorities of their communities in this difficult economic climate.

Thirty seven local authorities in the region will benefit as part of a £100million package confirmed by the Local Government Minister John Healey for 360 councils in England.

This extra funding comes from the Local Authority Business Growth Incentives Scheme (LABGI) scheme that has been in operation since 2006 , and rewards councils for successfully promoting economic growth in their area.

In his speech to the New Local Government Network last month, Prime Minister Gordon Brown confirmed that the Government would release the last £100million funding through the scheme, helping councils respond flexibly to the impact of the downturn on their communities.

And today, John Healey confirmed the share that councils will get. The breakdown for the West Midlands' local authorities is:

West Midlands Contingency Payment

Shrewsbury & Atcham 68,751.44

Bridgnorth 67,909.44

Oswestry 36,479.95

South Shropshire 15,052.66

North Shropshire 109,968.65

Lichfield 287,470.19

Staffordshire Moorlands 60,360.69

East Staffordshire 44,733.27

South Staffordshire 90,829.20

Newcastle-under-Lyme 83,313.38

Tamworth 8,456.05

Stafford 406,878.87

Cannock Chase 103,210.48

Warwick 348,645.86

Stratford-on-Avon 121,248.05

North Warwickshire 45,316.74

Rugby 48,576.72

Nuneaton and Bedworth 305,080.48

Malvern Hills 20,850.82

Wyre Forest 44,482.07

Redditch 123,066.91

Bromsgrove -

Worcester 52,168.00

Wychavon 218,929.18

Wolverhampton 515,814.40

Sandwell 637,130.80

Telford & Wrekin 184,392.79

Walsall 314,800.25

Birmingham 3,008,663.36

Solihull 40,079.00

Coventry 1,077,249.32

Dudley 330,394.84

Herefordshire 345,889.23

Stoke-on-Trent 863,919.59

Shropshire 151,881.33

Staffordshire 601,383.05

Warwickshire 481,568.46

Worcestershire 251,875.55

Total = £11,516,821.07

Mr Healey said: " Over the last three years, the LABGI scheme has made a real difference to local communities - in these difficult economic times, it has an even more important role to play.

"Different parts of the country will be affected by this downturn in different ways and to different degrees - as these pressures are being felt by families and businesses, councils are best placed to provide real help locally, tailored to local needs, to help people to stay in their homes and their jobs.

"So I am pleased to be able to confirm the share of £100m that councils will get, with no strings attached and extra to the core grant they receive, which will be a real boost to councils' coffers as they provide much-needed support to their communities - particularly in these tough economic times"

The £100m LABGI payment is extra to the Local Government Finance Settlement. Next year - the second in the first-ever three-year settlement - local government will benefit from a 4.2 per cent increase in funding.