The WSCC Recover & Rise SME Digital Accelerator Programme

Free online workshops start in September to help West Sussex businesses maximise the impact and accessibility of digital technologies.

The Recover and Rise SME Digital Accelerator programme is a four-part series comprising more than 25 online workshops:

● Series 1: Getting Online
● Series 2: Customers and Marketing
● Series 3: Systems and Productivity
● Series 4: Growth Expansion and New Products. 

The aim is to help Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) utilise digital tools and gain expert knowledge and advice on how best to grow their online presence, attract and retain
new customers and work more productively.

The workshops start on 9 September and will take place at 12pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They will run through to January 2022.

They can sign up to Event 1 for FREE - HERE

The programme of workshops has been devised by local digital experts Freedom Works, Always
Possible and Creative Bloom and is being delivered in partnership by West Sussex County Council and the West Sussex district and borough councils. 

Please note: businesses have to be located within West Sussex to be eligible for these workshops. Interested organisations can sign up for any or all of the sessions 

Programme overview

Series 1 – Getting Online: The Webinars in Series 1 cover everything you need to know to set up and maintain your business’s online presence to a professional standard.

Series 2 – Customers & Marketing:

Everything you need to know to enhance your online presence to take your business to new marketing heights.

Series 3 – Systems & Productivity

Everything you need to know about streamlining your business workflow and productivity with digital tools.

Series 4 – Growth, Expansion & New Products

Everything you need to know about using digital tools to innovate and grow your business.

Sparkling new website sends out clear message: It's Time For Worthing

A sparkling new website packed with information on investing and living in Worthing has been launched.

The Time for Worthing inward investment project wants to attract visitors and businesses to the borough to boost the local economy.

The new website has breathtaking videos, stunning brand artwork and is packed with information about the borough and what there is to do. The project believes it will help those who live outside the borough’s boundaries and even local residents take a fresh look at the place.

The Time for Worthing place brand was launched in Feb 2020 with the overall aim of projecting the town's positive values, attracting investment and generating civic pride. Originally launched by the Borough Council the project is now managed by a board of local residents, community groups, businesses and creative industry professionals with support from council officers.

The launch of the website comes as we emerge from the pandemic and begin to build a post-Covid economy.

The site is divided into sections including:

• Whats' On  - up to date event listings (with an option to event holders to list their event for free)

• See and Do  - ideal for inspiration for days out in and around Worthing - places to eat and drink and experiences to keep everyone entertained whatever the weather

• Live - an insight into Worthing for new and prospective residents with highlights of neighbourhood areas, schools and details of how to get involved in your local community.

• For Business -  aimed at prospective investors to the town - from micro entrepreneurs right up to large developers and includes whos' here - with  testimonials from some of our most eminent business leaders

The website has been built by local Worthing firm Huxley Digital with copy and content produced in house by the Time for Worthing Team.

Andy Willems, chairman of the Time for Worthing Board, said, ‘Obviously as soon as we launched the investment brand the pandemic struck but that doesn’t alter the essential message which is that Worthing is changing, becoming more attracted to live in, come to for entertainment and, as importantly, to invest your business, talents and creativity here. 

‘So as we move to a post pandemic world it is vital that Time For Worthing sends out the message that there is a warm welcome here in a fantastic part of the world.’

Sam Whittington, proprietor of city centre jewellery and giftware store, Sewsilver and chairperson of the Worthing Town Centre Initiative (TCI), which is represented on the Board, said , ‘The TCI is pleased to be partners with Time for Worthing and is excited about the benefits the new website will offer. Having such a raft of information, easily available in one place, will help drive the Worthing economy by attracting not only visitors, but also investment into our town. The site is launched just in time to take advantage of the growth in staycationing and provides a platform for Worthing businesses and organisations to reach new audiences.’

Bev Lees, Chief Financial Officer at ophthalmic innovators Rayner said, ‘The new website showcases what Worthing has to offer from education, social activities and infrastructure perspective .This will be of great benefit in attracting new businesses, to complement existing ones, leading to an excellent business network and engaging future external investment ,increasing employment opportunities.’

The new website can be accessed here: https://timeforworthing.uk/

Coast to Capital launches new Business Plan

Coast to Capital are delighted to share our Business Plan 2021-22 with you. Along with other LEPs across England, we have a crucial role to play in helping to support economic recovery and new business realities. As a region which has always made a significant net contribution to national prosperity, Coast to Capital has a lot to offer.

In our new business plan, we have refocused the role of our LEP to add value to regional growth. This includes building even stronger relationships with our key businesses and sectors. We will be concentrating on the most important opportunities to sustainably grow our business base, attracting investment, and generating jobs. As an ambitious organisation, we aim to pioneer what an effective LEP looks like to support our local authorities, businesses and voluntary & community sector in delivering their wider priorities. 

Click here to read the Business Plan

Bid to restore climate tackling seabed kelp forest gets government seal of approval with major grant

An innovative plan to restore a kelp forest off the coast of Sussex has resulted in Adur & Worthing Councils being awarded a government grant for major schemes tackling climate change.

Working with the Sussex Kelp Restoration Project, neighbouring local authorities and other partners, the Councils want to support work to restore natural kelp forest in the seas out to 4km off the coast between Selsey and Shoreham.

Coastal kelp beds help combat climate change by drawing down carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, reduce coastal erosion by absorbing wave energy and provide a haven for wildlife. Eventually the hope is that a Sussex Bay marine park can be created across the entire county coastline.

Now the scheme has been given a government seal of approval with the award of £79,000 from government department Defra and the Environment Agency to invest in the project. It is one of 27 schemes across the country to be awarded funds from the ground-breaking £10 million Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund.

Funding has been awarded to environmental groups, businesses and local authorities to invest in a broad range of projects that deliver environmental benefits while also demonstrating a wide range of innovative approaches to generating revenues from ecosystem services.

The Councils are in talks with The Crown Estate to become the first in the UK to lease the seabed for this purpose, in a pioneering project to invest in climate change measures and restore marine habitat.

This would allow the authorities and their partners to create a trial ‘kelp blue carbon investment product’ as well as exploring the value of other ‘ecosystem services’. The project could provide Government bodies such as the Environment Agency, water companies and other companies a platform to invest in kelp forests to help in their own bids to become carbon neutral.

Earlier this year the Nearshore Trawling Byelaw, which protects more than 300 square kilometres of seabed off the Sussex coast from trawling, was introduced by Sussex Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (Sussex IFCA). It followed effective lobbying by the Help Our Kelp partnership led by the Sussex Wildlife Trust SWT). Both groups partnering Councils in the new initiative.

Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said, ‘Given the scale of the environmental challenges we face, including climate change and biodiversity loss, it is crucial that domestic natural environment projects are able to attract private investment alongside support from the public sector.

‘Unleashing innovation and developing new sources of finance, such as through the Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund, are fundamental for delivering nature recovery and developing nature-based solutions to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.’

Leader of Adur District Council, Cllr Neil Parkin, said, ‘There has been a tremendous response to the kelp forest project and indeed the idea of Sussex Bay. This government grant is another endorsement of this vital and innovative scheme.’

Leader of Worthing Borough Council, Cllr Daniel Humphreys, said, ‘This is great news. This partnership work on Sussex Bay has the potential to help us cut carbon emissions, restore our marine ecology and attract investment to support the creation of a marine park.’’

Rampion 2 wind farm expansion project opens public consultation

A nine-week public consultation on proposals for the expansion of Rampion Offshore Wind Farm, which could power over one million homes1 in the UK and reduce carbon emissions by around 1.8 million tonnes2 per year, opened at Rampion2.com [14 July to 16 September].

An ‘Area of Search’ eight miles off the Sussex coast has been assessed by renewable energy producer RWE for a maximum of up to 116 turbines, the same number as the existing Rampion Wind Farm but using the latest turbine technology, so that the Rampion 2 Wind Farm could create up to three times the amount of power. An underground cable route is proposed to carry the power under Climping Beach to Bolney Substation in Twineham, to connect to the National Grid via a new substation required close by.

“We encourage people in Sussex to visit Rampion2.com, where you can take a tour around a virtual exhibition, explore our detailed proposals with maps and videos, sign up to attend a public forum with the project team, and complete our questionnaire,” said Chris Tomlinson, Development & Stakeholder Manager, Rampion 2, RWE.

Technical and environmental surveys and a four-week informal consultation earlier this year have helped to establish the proposed cable route, undergrounding the cables in short sections. Directional drilling would take them under Climping Beach, railways, major roads such as the A27, the River Arun, Washington Recreation Ground and other key areas, to minimise environmental impacts and disruption to local communities.

Rampion is committed to full reinstatement of the land, so that it is returned to its former state or better along the whole cable route and the successful reinstatement of the Rampion 1 cable route demonstrates this commitment. Since January, possible sites for the new substation have been reduced from three to two in the Twineham area following further development work and consultation with the local community.

Continued Chris Tomlinson, “We will consider all the consultation feedback alongside the results of technical and environmental surveys, to further refine our proposals and select construction methodologies and environmental mitigations that reduce impacts to a minimum. We will submit our final proposals to the Planning Inspectorate for examination in early 2022.

“Rampion 2 is the only wind farm proposal off the UK’s south coast, where much of the country’s energy demand is. Should the project achieve consent, construction could start around 2025/26 with the wind farm fully operational before the end of the decade, contributing to Government targets to secure clean, green energy supplies and tackle climate change.”

Discussions with local authorities, MPs, parish councils and experts on wildlife, environment, transport, geology, archaeology, business and fishing will continue throughout the consultation and beyond.

UK wind energy context:

The cost of offshore wind has halved in just two to three years and is now cheaper than nuclear and coal, while the industry is creating tens of thousands of jobs nationwide. The UK leads the world in offshore wind and the Government is committed to quadrupling offshore wind capacity to 40 gigawatts (GW) by 2030. Rampion 2 can make a major contribution to this target.

Spectrum Racing for Autistic racing drivers

Six racing drivers under the age of 21, including Corey Chapma a karter aged ten, and multiple kart race winner Jack Ferguson.

Three of the six are on the Autistic Spectrum. (Autism, or autism spectrum condition, refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviours, speech and nonverbal communication.)

All highly talented, dedicated, and determined. All proven race winners. We need your help to get them on track.

We have supplied the cars, commercial partners have helped  and these drivers have the chance they want. We need them to top up the funding.

We will not detail the drivers yet and they will introduce themselves when they feel comfortable to do so. You will have plenty of chances to meet them all eventually.

We have two endurance specification Citroen C1s, ready to race. We also have two BMW 116i Trophy cars in build, scheduled for completion at the end of August, subject to funding.

In addition to developing the drivers, we are raising funds and encouraging donations to the Norwich Foodbank, while raising awareness of homelessness through Shelter. 

Our target is to raise £5000, to be split between the race costs, entry fees, etc and the charities.

Big or small, all donations will be very gratefully received. Each supporter will receive regular newsletters, and those over £15 will receive a signed photo.

Over £50, and we'll give you two race tickets, and if you’re able to contribute £500, you can drive the cars at the end of the season.  If you're able to contribute £1000, you can be in the driving seat yourself at the end of the season!

Three drivers per car for the following events:

• Pembrey 11 & 12 Sept 2 x 3-hour races
• Oulton Park 23 October 1 × 3-hour race
• Brands Hatch 13 November 1 x 3-hour race

Apprentice Incentive Scheme Ends This September 

Time is running out for your chance to get up to £4,000 for taking on a new apprentice.

If your new apprentice joins your organisation by Thursday 30 September, and they start their training before Tuesday 30 November, you can still be eligible to: 

• Receive £3,000 for apprentices of any age (if they start their apprenticeships between 1 April and 30 September this year). 
• Plus, receive £1,000 for hiring any apprentice between 16 and 18 years old or under 25 with an EHCP (Education, Health and Care Plan) or who has been in care. 

Don’t miss out. Contact us: employers@ccgtraining.ac.uk or book an online appointment, and we’ll help you to find the right apprentice for your business. We can also offer our expert advice on grants and funding.  

Non-Executive Directors Vacancies at Shoreham Port

Non-Executive Director 

Role summary 

To be a Trusted Custodian of Shoreham Port.

Execute the responsibilities of a Non-Executive Director according to lawful and ethical standards and the Nolan Principles, in addition to upholding the requirements of the Shoreham Harbour Revision Orders, The Ports Good Governance Guidance and the latest Department for Transport Trust Port review.

To adhere to the Port’s values and to ensure behaviour and contributions reflect these values.

Deputy Chair 

Role summary 

Click here to view the full description 

Click here to view the NED recruitment pack

Women in Business Networking for Sussex and Kent 

This will be a fun interactive 1 hour of Women in Business Networking in partnership with the NatWest Business Banking and Entrepreneurship team and Innovate UK Edge.

Innovate UK EDGE will be presenting on how they enable ambitious and innovative SME`s to scale and grow, by helping them to exploit innovation, source funding and enter new markets.

Over the past 12 months online networking has become more important than ever.

Networking is a huge part of building your personal brand. But with face-to-face events currently out of the question, it has been necessary to forge new connections online. Remote networking covers a host of different activities, from building followers on social media to attending live webinars and virtual events, and from joining themed Facebook groups to posting articles on LinkedIn.

Women in Business networking provides an opportunity for women to meet, educate, inspire and support each other in a safe environment.

This event will be on the virtual platform Zoom for business owners that are looking at getting started in business or looking to take their business to the next level.

Click here to book your  free ticket

Worthing Youth Mayor joins anniversary celebrations for award winning local Educational business

Founded in 2017, Worthing based TeachAllAboutIt opened their Worthing Centre in Tarring Road a year ago this week and to mark the occasion they held their first Open Day on 20^th June 2021. Among their visitors were Worthing’s Youth Mayor, Will Nyss, and Deputy Youth Mayor, Henny Sonnemann-Petty. As this was their first public engagement in person, this year, they were thrilled to connect with people and actually see, first-hand, what this Tuition Centre does.

Will Nyss, Youth Mayor for Worthing, said after his visit,

“I’m hugely impressed by how unimaginably creative, independent and resourceful this business has been over this Covid year and I am sure that their approach will continue to be of benefit to many learners long into the future.”

Deputy Mayor, Henny Sonneman-Petty, added,

“I really didn’t realise that something like this existed. It gives access and flexibility, which creates a certain freedom online, which is manifested here in the Centre, outside the traditional classroom setting.”

TeachAllAboutIt is a Tuition Centre offering 1-2-1, Group and Distanced Learning from KS3 to Adults, online and more recently, due to the lifting of restrictions, face to face. The Lockdown meant they were able to continue to support students online whilst helping other teachers and tutors to access and develop their own tutoring using modern technology.

Originally, Founder and Chief Tutor, Holly Billinghurst only offered Computer Science but, as demand has grown, she has taken on more tutors and now offers ICT, Maths, English, Business Studies and Science, working with children from across the UK and as far as the Middle East.

Recently, they have developed new initiatives running Worthing Home Ed Discovery Club on Tuesday afternoons, and DnD Club for budding wizards every Wednesday. The popularity of their courses has allowed them to open a KS3 Computing Group and  a second GCSE Computer Science Group from September and there are plans to deliver Functional Skills and open a new Gaming Club too.

Commenting on the day, Holly said,

“We were thrilled to see so many familiar and new faces throughout the day. The ability to showcase how far we have come in just the first year of physical premises was testament to the hard work and effort from every member of our team. We can’t thank our learners and their families enough for supporting us in taking on this new challenge and because of them we’ll be starting back in September with even more opportunities for young people to access education without limits.”

Throughout the afternoon, there was a constant stream of visitors from parents and children to local businesses, greeted on stilts by local circus performer, Nick Cook, who presented them all with a balloon animal of their choice. Inside was the opportunity for children and adults alike to play Minecraft using Pitops, experience the Banana piano and play with a range of Maths toys.

TeachAllAboutIt also offer bespoke training and offer their space for hire to businesses, and STAR Training were on hand to share details of their upcoming courses being run from the Tarring Road site from September. A franchise of the company, TeachAllAboutItFilm, who offer GCSE Film Studies, invited Sussex based actress, Caitlin Cameron (What Happened to Monday, Betrayed), to talk to visitors about her career and answered questions from budding actors.

Caitlin enthused,

“It was great to chat to people about acting and the different routes they can take into the industry. It’s so great that TeachAllAboutIt is here to support this, as well as other career paths. I wish there had been something like this when I was at school!”

Notes for Editors:

1. Founded in 2017 by Holly Billinghurst, TeachAllAboutIt Tuition has focused on access to education for all. Initially created for Computer Science tuition, TeachAllAboutIt has expanded to supporting students in a variety of subjects.

• Since the introduction of social distancing, Holly and her team have been working hard to produce a set of online masterclasses covering both Maths & Computer Science to allow GCSE & A Level students to continue accessing their high-quality tuition at an affordable price tag. Based in West Worthing, the centre has been specifically designed to support students and independent tutors within an adaptable and comfortable environment that encourages progress and independence for all learners.

1. TeachAllAboutIt was awarded 2021 UK Enterprise Awards Best Educational Resource and Private Tuition Provider in West Sussex by SME News.

1. TeachAllAboutIt was awarded Sussex New Business of the Year in 2020 by Sussex University Business School at the Gatwick Diamond Awards.

1. Holly was picked as one of Digital Women’s 40 Women to Watch 2020.

1. For more information, or to book a place on a course, please contact Debbie Bird, Administrator, at 0800 357 9129 or debbie@teachallaboutit.uk

1. To see our courses and training offers from TeachAllAboutIt, please visit our website at www.teachallaboutit.uk

1. Follow us on Social Media:

• https://www.facebook.com/TeachAllAboutIT https://www.linkedin.com/company/teachallaboutit
• https://www.instagram.com/teachallaboutit/
• https://twitter.com/TeachAllAboutIT