Worcestershire 'is open for business' (From Evesham Journal)

Worcestershire 'is open for business'

9:29am Tuesday 5th March 2013 in News By Mike Pryce

TOP DUO: Adrian Hardman, leader of Worcestershire County Council, with Ahmed Goga, right, the council’s head of economic development and planning.

AN initiative has been launched which aims to put all business support and information in one place.

Called Worcestershire Business Central (WBC), it is being masterminded by Worcestershire County Council in conjunction with a group of partners covering a wide range of business and commercial interests.

It comes in response to feedback to the council from more than 1,200 businesses and offers single-point information and advice for all business solutions – whether for start-ups or growing businesses – to develop skills, find property, networking or finance.

Worcestershire County Council leader Councillor Adrian Hardman said: “While there was a lot of great business support that can be accessed, Worcestershire businesses said they were unsure which organisation they should go to for what, and as busy people with demanding priorities, they may be missing out on opportunities.

“The council’s main focus, identified in the most recent corporate plan, is to ensure the county is truly ‘open for business’ and aiming to help start-up businesses grow and improve the performance of existing businesses, provide support to enhance skills, improve communication, attract new businesses to the county and increase Worcestershire’s profile as a place to do business.

“Therefore I am delighted to see the launch of this exciting service which will help business to succeed in Worcestershire and support the council in working towards its main strategic priority.”

Other Worcestershire Business Central partners include district councils, Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), Hereford and Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce, Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire Train-ing Providers Association, the National Apprenticeship Service and Jobcentre Plus.

Dean Attwell, deputy chairman of the Worces-tershire LEP, said: “With the demise of Advantage West Midlands and Business Link there was a gap in the provision of support for services and where to find information.

“WBC is an excellent idea and I look forward to seeing Worcestershire businesses reap the rewards by accessing the services and programmes it can bring.”

Worcestershire Business Central has a dedicated web presence, business-central.co.uk, and a helpline and enquiry system on 0300 1231440.