Everyone involved in climate change and sustainability – from scientists to politicians and business leaders – needed to go out and get ‘dirt under their fingernails’ to understand the key issues, Eden Project co-founder Sir Tim Smit said during a speech in Bristol. Because of this lack of understanding,...
By Barbara Davies, chief executive, West of England Local Enterprise Partnership. Our newly refreshed LEP board met for the first time on June 17. There are some new faces following the local elections and a business-led selection process. Great news that Colin Skellett has been reappointed as chair of...
Accountancy and investment management group Smith & Williamson has launched a free tax calculator to enable businesses to work out how much tax they could be saving on their research and development (R&D) costs. The online tool has been set up in the light of research suggesting that thousands...
Bristol’s economy will get a £12m boost this year from its biggest-ever Harbour Festival, organisers said this week as they unveiled more details of the ever-popular event. The festival, which takes place from July 17 to 19, is forecast to attract more than 250,000 visitors to the city –...
Hundreds of small cider producers across the West of England could be put out of business if they are forced to pay excise duty under a new EU ruling, campaigners claim. Cider makers who produce less than 70 hectolitres a year – around 33 pints a day – and...
The chief executive of Bristol-based alternative transport group Sustrans, Malcolm Shepherd, has been awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List. The accolade is in recognition of his contribution towards protecting the environment and improving people’s health. Sustrans’ vision is that by 2020 four out of five local...
Bristol firms’ contribution to more sustainable ways of operating – and the city’s year as European Green Capital – will be recognised next week when Business Green Week takes place. Events during the week will aim to inspire more businesses to adopt sustainable practices in the workplace. The 39...
Bristol is emerging as a hot spot for ethical investing, a national conference staged in the city heard. The city was chosen to host this year’s Ethex Annual Gathering because of its role as European Green Capital 2015, and according to the social enterprise’s research Bristol is the UK’s...
Bristol architecture firm Stride Treglown has become the first organisation in the city to achieve the top award of excellence in a national scheme that recognises businesses committed to the health and well-being of their workforces. The firm, which employs 270 people across nine offices in the UK and...
Bristol-based ethical investment management firm Rathbone Greenbank is to host a high-profile seminar and discussion as part of the city’s Big Green Week. Among the speakers at the event, on the theme of ‘Investing in the Future’, will be Eden Project co-founder and executive vice chair Sir Tim Smit....
The Friends of Arnos Vale Cemetery, the organisation that promotes the Bristol historic cemetery as a place of remembrance, heritage, wildlife and learning, has won the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service – the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK. The group was set up in...
More than 300 delegates from 18 countries across the world will head to Bristol next month as the city hosts the 9th International Fair Trade Towns conference. The two-day event on July 4 and 5 will take the theme of Fair Trade for Sustainability as part of the Bristol’s...
Eight business leaders have been appointed to the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership’s board to help drive its growth ambitions. Five new representatives join three reappointed members on the newly formed LEP board, which meets for the first time on June 17. LEP board members are drawn from...
