A group helping employers and payroll professionals get to grips with compulsory workplace pensions will host North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson at next month’s meeting. Swindon Friends of Automatic Enrolment (FoAE) have invited the MP to its meeting on January 15 where he will get the chance to gauge opinion about workplace pensions –...
Confidence among professional services firms is at its highest for more than two decades with most planning to increase spending on recruitment, marketing and IT next year, according to a new survey. Some 99% of respondents to accountancy firm Smith & Williamson’s annual professional practices survey said they were positive about year ahead –...
Two of Wiltshire’s leading mobile technology businesses have come together to create one of the UK’s largest firms in their fast-growing market. Mobile software firm M-Netics, which makes software that helps retailers and logistics businesses streamline their supply chains, has been acquired by the UK arm of US group Peak-Ryzex. Both firms are based...
The body tasked with driving up innovation in the West of England’s growing healthcare sector has generated more than £12m to support collaborative projects between health service providers, industry and universities. The West of England Academic Health Science Network (AHSN) plays a critical role in improving healthcare delivery throughout the area and beyond. The...
High-growth businesses in the Swindon area are to be offered specialist support under a scheme launched by Barclays. Called ‘Barclays High Growth and Entrepreneurs’, the initiative is in direct response to what the bank sees as Britain’s ‘scale-up gap’, and will also help the UK compete on the global stage. Barclays believes that by...
The CBI welcomed the spending review’s commitment to longer-term investment in the economy but said there was a sting in the tail in the size and scope of the £3m apprenticeship levy. Director-general Carolyn Fairbairn said: “Businesses will be pleased to see the Chancellor staying the course on deficit reduction, his commitment to an...
Swindon business experts have given a mostly positive reaction to this week’s Autumn Statement and Spending Review. Ian Larrard, director of the Swindon and Wiltshire Initiative – part of Business West – said it contained some good news for the region. “Once again the ‘builder’ Chancellor has used the tools at his disposal to...
Chancellor George Osborne today delivered his Autumn Statement and Spending Review. These are the main points: Chancellor says five years ago UK economy was in crisis. Debt will fall this year. £12bn of welfare savings will be delivered in full. Britain has grown faster than any other G7 countries since 2010. Economy is predicted...
A talk called ‘What’s in your financial bucket?’ will be delivered next week to Swindon networking group Business Village. Alice Douglass from independent financial advisers Grosvenor Consultancy will use the theme for her presentation at Business Village’s weekly breakfast meeting on Thursday December 3. Alice, pictured, who works in Grosvenor’s Highworth office, said: “Everyone...
Profits have soared at Swindon-based Nationwide Building Society as the strong housing market pushed up its mortgage lending to record levels. The mutual lender, which employs 7,000 people across its three sites in Swindon, chalked up a 26.8% increase in pre-tax profits to £801m in the six months to the end of September. Gross...
