September Policy & Business Briefing

Suffolk Place Forums

Suffolk Chamber's place forums enable discussion of local matters and provide a local voice that informs the priorities of local place partners such as district councils. Place forums also help to shape the Chamber's priorities and its policy and project work.

Ipswich Forum

The forum for Chamber members in Ipswich will be a breakfast meeting, kindly hosted by the New Wolsey Theatre, on Wednesday 2nd October. The theme will be promoting Ipswich and after the meeting there will be chance to have a behind the scenes tour of the theatre.

The forum meeting is free of charge for Chamber members. Find out more here 

West Suffolk Forum

The next West Suffolk Forum will be kindly hosted by Treatt in Bury St Edmunds. Treatt is a natural extracts and ingredients manufacturer for the global beverage, flavour, fragrance and consumer goods markets. The forum will be a breakfast meeting on Thursday 3rd October. The meeting will focus on sustainable growth in West Suffolk and there will be an option to tour Treatt after the meeting.

The forum meeting is free of charge for Chamber members. Find out more here 

Central Suffolk Forum

The next Central Suffolk Forum will be kindly hosted by Siemens Healthineers in Sudbury. Siemens Healthineers in Sudbury is a cutting edge facility which builds instruments and consumables for Urinalysis, Diabetes and Blood Gas analytics. The forum will be from 4pm to 5:30pm on Thursday 7th November. Our keynote speaker will be Councillor Deborah Saw, Leader of Babergh District Council and there will be an option to tour Siemens Healthineers after the meeting.

The forum meeting is free of charge for Chamber members. Find out more here 

East Suffolk Forum

The East Suffolk Place Forum took place in September at Seckford Hall Hotel, find out more here

Suffolk LSIP events - Putting employers at the heart of local skills planning

Over the past two years Suffolk Chamber has been working to put employers at the heart of skills planning and has prepared the Norfolk and Suffolk Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) in partnership with Norfolk Chambers of Commerce, employers, Suffolk and Norfolk further education colleges, the University of Suffolk, other training providers and Suffolk and Norfolk county councils.

This autumn and spring there will a number of events across Suffolk to update employers on the progress of the LSIP and discuss what needs to be done next to tackle the skills challenges that Suffolk faces. The events will also be an opportunity to find out more about:

• existing skills initiatives
• what businesses are already doing to tackle skills challenges
• improving careers education for young people 

The events on the following dates:

23.10.2024, The Food Museum, Stowmarket,  8.30-10.30 am Book here

 05.11.2024, Suffolk New College, Ipswich, 8.30-10.30 am Book here

 26.02.2025, West Suffolk College, Bury St Edmunds, 8.30-10.30 am Book here

 12.03.2025, East Coast College, Lowestoft, 8.30-10.30 am Book here

All events are free of charge and breakfast will be available.

Equity Commission Urges Action on Workplace Barriers 

The Workplace Equity Commission, convened by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), has outlined more than 40 recommendations to improve employment opportunities and breakdown barriers for people in the workplace.  

The Commission has focused on supporting the 5.5 million SMEs across the UK, which need support to shift the dial on workplace equity. 

Among the recommendations for business and Government: 

• Removing barriers to work and career progression for people of all ages 

• Flexible and supportive workplaces to help people stay and thrive in work  

• More training and support for employers, and sharing of best practice, to boost confidence and drive cultural change 

• A legislative framework that sets out clear expectations 

The Equity Commission was established for the BCC in September 2023. It brought together businesses, UK and international Chamber representatives, and key stakeholders from across civil society. The final report, has been published in partnership with Youth Futures Foundation,. 

Read the full report here

Menopause & Me – More training available for businesses

Suffolk Libraries' Menopause & Me project is providing support for employers and anyone affected by the menopause or perimenopause in Suffolk.

Working with Suffolk Mind, the project and its training courses are making a difference to local businesses and any staff affected by the menopause.

The courses are free and run online. 87 employers have now taken the pledge and 69 have completed the courses. 

Suffolk Libraries and Suffolk Mind are offering more free online menopause courses for employers in coming months. The dates available are:

• Thurs 26th September, 9.30am – 4pm
• Thurs  7th November, 9.30am – 4pm
• Tues 14th January 2025, 9,30am – 4pm
• Wed 19th February 2025, 9.30am – 4pm
• Thurs 27th March 2025, 9.30am – 4pm

To take advantage of this training, employers need to sign up to the Menopause & Me pledge via the Suffolk Libraries website and someone will be in touch to discuss booking you in for a course.

Chief & PCC host meetings to discuss policing in Suffolk

Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore and Chief Constable Rachel Kearton are hosting a series of public meetings this autumn to talk about local policing and answer questions from the public.

Meetings are being held across the county through September and October with an on-line meeting in November. Forthcoming meetings include

EAST AREA: Thursday October 3 at Wherry Hotel, Bridge Road, Oulton Broad, Lowestoft NR32 3LN   

SOUTH AREA: Wednesday October 9 at Police Headquarters, Portal Avenue, Martlesham IP5 3QS  

All meetings start at 6.30pm and there is no need to book, just turn up on the evening.

There is also an on-line meeting on Tuesday November 6 at 6pm via Microsoft Teams.  Please email spcc@suffolk.police.uk to register and an invite will be sent through via email in advance of the meeting.

Suffolk Local Nature Recovery Strategy Webinar

The Local Nature Recovery Strategy is intended to signal that Suffolk is open for green investment, demonstrating that nature is at the heart of a successful local economy. The strategy has the potential to unlock opportunities for businesses and the recreation sector to meet environmental and social goals alongside their developing ambitions.

Suffolk County Council, who are part of the Norfolk and Suffolk Nature Recovery Partnership have an online webinar on Tuesday 15th October, from 11:30 – 12:30pm, to update businesses on the current progress of the strategy, share the shortlisted priorities and demonstrate the mapping tools developed to identify where action for nature will have the most impact.  The aim is to enable you to signpost and highlight potential for your land or infrastructure to deliver key measures and embed nature recovery in your strategic development. Please follow this link to register your interest in the webinar.

Babergh & Mid Suffolk District Councils Economic Strategy Workshops

The district councils are developing an inclusive Economic Strategy for Babergh and Mid Suffolk and want to do this in collaboration with businesses and others in Babergh and Mid Suffolk. To help in doing this the councils have organised a number of workshops.

These workshops will bring together key stakeholders from diverse sectors, including business leaders, partners, voluntary services, policymakers and academics to collaborate on developing a forward-thinking strategy. The workshops which take place on:

Thursday 26th September 2pm to 5pm at Endeavour House, Ipswich

Wednesday 2nd October 10am to 1pm at Sudbury Arts Centre

Monday 7th October 9:30 am to 12:30 pm at The Mix Stowmarket

If you are able to join us please complete the attendance form by clicking here no later than 20^th September 2024. For any other inquiries email BMSDCEconomicdevelopment@baberghmidsuffolk.gov.uk.

Haverhill and Bury Jobs and Skills Fair

West Suffolk Council and the Department for Work and Pensions have organised jobs and skills fairs in Haverhill (Wednesday 2 October, 10am to 12pm, at the Haverhill Arts Centre) band Bury St Edmunds (Wednesday 9 October, 10am-12.30pm, at the Apex).

If you would like to book a free stand to promote the vacancies in your business, please email haverhill.ucfullservice@dwp.gov.uk for the Haverhill fair or WESTSUFFOLK.EandP@dwp.gov.uk for the Bury fair.