Hello and welcome to the August edition of the Worcestershire Growth Hub newsletter. I can’t believe we are almost two-thirds through the year already. Hopefully, you’ve been able to get out and enjoy some of the sunshine.

So, what a year we are having, and we’ve seen this month the interest rate rises and forecast for the economy. Today I’m making a plea to Worcestershire businesses, I would like to remind and encourage you all to engage with our team on this matter. We have a variety of support programmes with funds available which could help minimize the impact of these on your business.

The first of our Professional Business Advisors are now on board and we are beginning to roll out the programme. If you’d like free 1-to-1 support for your business across areas such as marketing, sustainability, use of tech, developing a financial strategy and much much more, please enquire with our team.

We speak to businesses every single day and we know that one of the things we hear the most is that businesses are facing skills and recruitment challenges. One of the best ways to overcome this challenge and build your business workforce for the future is to engage with local schools and colleges. We are currently working with our career’s hub team, to help encourage Worcestershire businesses to bridge this gap with education to help inspire their future workforce. You can contact the Growth Hub Team to find out more about this.

Sticking on the skills theme, an important one for any business professionals watching with children, is that our careers team are running a series of roadshows throughout August and September to help guide young people on what options they have available. Whether this is relevant for your child or someone in your family, who you know might benefit from this advice, please share the article in this newsletter.

Also, if you’re a business in Wyre Forest, the County Councils Clean Growth Programme, is looking to help your business assess and reduce its carbon footprint. You can visit our website to find out more about that support.

We are also pleased to confirm that our accelerator pilot, in North Worcestershire, Betaden North, has had its funding extended to support more businesses. Find out more about this in the newsletter or contact a member of the Growth Hub team.

As always this is just a flavour of the latest news for businesses, within the newsletter you will find the latest update and please make sure that no matter what your business size or sector, you contact the Growth Hub team here to see how we can support your business. I wish you all a fantastic summer and look forward to speaking to you again in September.