The Great British High Street competition has revealed the nation's best high streets. Twenty-seven finalists now have the chance to impress an expert judging panel and battle it out in a public vote to be crowned Britain's best.
Two Leicestershire high streets are included in the nominations. Both Hinckley and Market Harborough are nominated in the Large Market Town category.
Winners in each category will receive a share of a prize pot worth £100,000, as well as expert training from Google's digital taskforce for shops, bars and restaurants and a trip to Twitter UK's London office to boost their social media skills.
For more information and to cast your vote before 18th November, please see the following link:
http://thegreatbritishhighstreet.co.uk/high-street-of-the-year-award
This exciting Food & Drink event will provide business attendees with the opportunity to meet with industry leaders and experts from across the sector.
There will be an extensive Food & Drink business exhibition coupled with a series of six short seminars seeking to address specific industry issues and provide help, information and guidance on growing your Food & Drink business.
The event takes place:
- 16.00-19.00
- Tuesday 25th October 2016
- Brooksby Melton College, Melton Town Campus LE13 0HJ
This is a free event as part of the Leicester Business Festival but registration is essential for seminars.
For further information on the seminar sessions and to book, please see the attached flyer.
A free event for businesses will take place at Horiba MIRA Ltd, Watling Street, Nuneaton on Wednesday 26th October 16.00-18.00.
The event will be a chance to for businesses to network and seek opportunities for working together.
Businesses at the event will find out how to:
- Promote opportunities for your business to both sell to and procure goods and services from companies in the area, including the MIRA Technology Park.
- Strengthen and support the local supply chain to maximise the benefits to existing businesses in the local area.
- Identify strengths in the supply chain as a marketing asset to new companies moving into the area.
Places at the event need to be booked by Monday 24th October and you can do so via www.ticketsource.co.uk/event/EHKEII.
More information is available via the attached flyer.
Budding entrepreneurs, rural businesses and farmers looking to diversify are invited to tap into Leicestershire's tourism trade.
A free session to help businesses grow and develop is being held from 4.30-6.30pm on Monday, 31, October at Melton Borough Council's offices, Burton Street.
It has been organised by East Leicestershire LEADER programme which launched last year to support rural business and tourism across Melton and Harborough, plus parts of Charnwood and Blaby.
Councillor Blake Pain, Leicestershire County Council's cabinet member for economic development, said: "Recent figures show Leicestershire's tourism is worth almost £1.1 billion, so this is a great opportunity for budding business men and women to tap into the market.
"I'd encourage all rural businesses to take advantage of session that will see a range of experts come together to help boost business in rural Leicestershire."
All are invited to the free event to find out more about the practicalities of setting up and running a tourism business.
A range of professionals from the Tourism industry will be able to answer questions about practical issues such as marketing, planning permission, environmental health and more.
This event is taking place part of the Leicester Business Festival. Returning for a second year, the festival, organised by the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership, will comprise of over 120 events over the two weeks from 24 October – 4 November 2016.
The event is free to attend, but limited spaces are available. Tickets can be booked online at the Leicester Business Festival website www.leicesterbusinessfestival.com
For more information contact Charlotte Long on 0116 305 6298 or email eastleicestershireleader@leics.gov.uk
The Prince's Countryside Fund provides more than £1m in grants each year to projects across the UK. Grants of up to £50,000 are available for innovative projects that will provide a lasting legacy.
The scheme seeks applications to support activity that results in a long-term positive impact on rural communities by helping the people that live and work in the countryside.
The grant programme currently aims to tackle the following key rural issues:
- To improve the prospects of viability for family farm businesses
- To sustain rural communities and drive economic vibrancy
- To support aid delivery in emergency and building resilience
The programme is open for applications twice a year. The current application period closes on Thursday 13th October.
For more information, details on eligibility and to apply, please see the Prince's Countryside Fund Website - http://www.princescountrysidefund.org.uk/grant-giving-programme/grant-programme
We want your feedback
Leicestershire County Council and BT are inviting parish councils to share feedback on the Superfast Leicestershire project which is bringing fibre broadband access to 85,000 homes and businesses across the County. Your comments will help us understand what's most important to communities and if there are ways we can improve.
You can complete the survey up until midnight on Sunday 2 October 2016.
The second round of the Community Minibus Fund has been launched by the Department for Transport.
The total value of the second round of the Community Minibus Fund is £2 million and is open to educational organisations and community groups, including community transport operators, across England.
Transport Minister, Andrew Jones MP, announced the funding in Market Harborough, where he handed over keys to a new minibus to successful bidders Harborough Community Bus.
The second round of funding is now open, and will close on 2nd December 2016. The fund will be managed by the Community Transport Association, the membership association for community bus operators across the UK, who will provide advice to all bidders.
Information on the application process, including an application form and detailed guidance on eligibility, can be found on the Community Transport Association's website.
The VisitEngland Awards for Excellence will take place in spring 2017 and applications will open in late August with a closing date of 14 October 2016.
In partnership with Leicester Shire Promotions, VisitEngland is pleased to announce a free workshop on the awards. The workshop will be an opportunity for your business to discover more about the award categories, application process and what the judges look for in a winning business. The session will also cover 'Managing Guest Expectations and Online reviews', so would be of interest to any accommodation provider, visitor attraction, restaurant or pub operator.
What will be covered?
- Meet the VisitEngland team and learn more about what makes a winning business
- Find out what judges look for when judging a business
- Find out more about the application process, the rules and the new categories
- Managing guest expectations and online reviews
Time 10.30am - 1.00pm
Wednesday 7th September
Curve Theatre
Maximum two places per business. Please book here
Please note: Lunch is not included. Tea, coffee and pastries will be provided.
If you have any dietary requirements, please email: workshops@visitengland.org.
Tourism Businesses are invited to apply for the Leicester and Leicestershire Tourism Awards 2016.
There will be a new format this year including entire new categories and awards. The awards ceremony will take place on Wednesday 30th November.
The application process has been simplified and should take no longer that 45 minutes to complete.
The applications process is now open and will close at 5pm on 12 September 2016. Judging closes on 31 October with a Gala Awards Ceremony to be held on 30 November. For more details and to download application forms, please visit www.goleicestershire.com/trade/TourismAwards2016 or contact Elizabeth Furniss on 0116 225 4073 or via email at elizabeth.furniss@l-p-l.com.
Superfast Leicestershire Stakeholder Forum
Tuesday 19 July 2016 , 6pm – 8pm
This event is an opportunity for community broadband groups and Parish Councils to speak to the broadband team and find out more about the upcoming stages of the project.
The agenda will include:
- Update on Contract 1 Deployment
- Contract 2 (Superfast Extension Programme)
- Universal Service Commitment – Satellite Scheme
- Final 4% / Additional Potential Funding and New Technology
- Q&A Session
For more information on the event and how to register, please visit: http://www.superfastleicestershire.org.uk/
