"Thanks for the invite and for hosting this morning's webinar: Managing Debt. The content was clear and concise." - Nicolas Gidaracos, InvoiceInsure Ltd
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Hounslow Chamber webinars
All are free, run for 60 minutes and start at 10:00 am:
Re-boot, Recover & Grow – for Ealing businesses - 27th August with Chiswickbuzz
- Branduin Business Support – Nauzar Manekshaw
- Contactus Ealing – Carlene Bender
- Ealing Council
- John Martin Estates - John J Martin
- Metro Bank - Sanjeev Panesar, Area Director – West London
- West London Local Chambers – Alan Rides
HR webinar - 10th September with Peninsula
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/x/how-to-manage-covid-19-employer-challenges-with-honslow-chamber-tickets-117386449029
Some of the talking points will include:
- The latest COVID secure guidelines
- Managing employee contract changes within the current legal framework
- Steps you can take to ensure staff feel safe on their return to work
- Potential risks to your business if operating outside of the latest guidance
- How to meet new employment laws and manage your workplace in a rapidly changing business landscape
During the session, you can submit questions about COVID-19 directly to an HR or employment law expert
All registrants get the chance to claim a one-to-one video conference with a Peninsula consultant for advice on how to reduce the impact of COVID-19 on your business.
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Back Heathrow will be hosting an interactive Facebook live event on September 4 at 11.00am. Alan and I will be with Parmjit Dhanda, discussing the impact of Heathrow’s current downturn on local businesses, and what local Chambers of Commerce can do to help revive our economy. We’ll keep you posted with news on the event, and how to book. |
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Please see our latest business magazine – Let’s Talk Business. Hard copies will be in the post to all Chamber members. The next issue will be October, if you have any interesting stories/contracts won, please let us know.
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Walk-in testing for Coronavirus in Heston |
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There will be a walk-in coronavirus testing unit in Heston this week. Do the right thing for your community and help stop the spread of coronavirus. No need to book - get tested tomorrow, Wednesday 19 August or Thursday 20 August between 10.30am to 3.30pm.
The free swab test is quick, easy and vital to help stop the spread of coronavirus in our area.
For this testing site we are encouraging everyone to get tested – even if you don’t have symptoms or live in Heston.
Address: St Leonard's Church, Heston Road, Heston TW5 0RD.
Don’t be the person who makes your relatives or friends sick. Do the right thing and play your part. Get tested now.
Help spread the message – please share with your relatives and friends.
Further local testing options are available across the borough. For more information, please click here.
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There are changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) from 1 September (courtesy of HMRC)
What you need to do from 1 September
- From 1 September CJRS will pay 70% of usual wages up to a cap of £2,187.50 per month for the hours furloughed employees do not work.
- You will still need to pay your furloughed employees at least 80% of their usual wages for the hours they do not work, up to a cap of £2,500 per month. You will need to fund the difference between this and the CJRS grant yourself.
- The caps are proportional to the hours not worked. For example, if your employee is furloughed for half their usual hours in September, you are entitled to claim 70% of their usual wages for the hours they do not work up to £1,093.75 (50% of the £2,187.50 cap).
- You will continue to have to pay furloughed employees’ National Insurance (NI) and pension contributions from your own funds.
Further guidance and live webinars offering you more support on changes to the scheme and how they impact you are available to book online – go to GOV.UK and search 'help and support if your business is affected by coronavirus'.
We are still receiving very high demand on our phone lines and webchat, so the quickest way to find the support you may need is on GOV.UK. This will leave our phone lines and webchat service open for those who need them most.
Making sure your data is right
It’s important that you provide all the data we need to process your claim. Payment of your grant may be at risk or delayed if you submit a claim that is incomplete or incorrect, so we want to help you get this right. We will get in touch if we see any employee data missing from your previous claims.
You can find everything you’ll need to help make your claim on GOV.UK, including a useful calculator and guidance on the data you need to provide and the format you need to use to ensure your claim is accepted. Search for ‘claim for wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme’.
If you’re claiming for 100 or more employees, please download and use our template as this will help you make sure your data is right – search 'download a template if you're claiming for 100 or more employees through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme' on GOV.UK.
Finding previous CJRS guidance
We’ve recently updated our CJRS guidance to make it easier for you to find the most relevant, up-to-date information.
If you need to check older guidance – for example, information for your claims ending on or before 30 June – you can search 'check if you can claim for your employees' wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme' or 'check which employees you can put on furlough to use the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme' on GOV.UK. A link to previous guidance can be found in boxes at the top of these pages.
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Updates from the Cabinet Office:
On 17 August the Government announced that applications opened for the second stage of the Self Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS). Those eligible will receive a government grant worth up to £6,570. Further information is available at: https://bit.ly/3iOHmrI
Also on 17 August, the Government issued a press release noting that over 100,000 people have volunteered to take part in COVID-19 vaccine trials as part of efforts to discover a safe and effective vaccine. More information is available at: https://bit.ly/3aydKMi
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Brand new and exciting co-working space
In conjunction with Hounslow Council CPGEXP are working together to create a new and exciting co-working space on Brentford High Street for: freelancers, micro businesses & start-ups or people who no longer want to travel to the city. To ensure that we create the services that you want and need, we would be grateful if you could complete this short survey.
For completing the survey we will give you a 1/2 day access pass for the co-working space when it opens in the autumn. It will take you less than 2 minutes to complete the survey.
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Dev from Diamond Geezer, who videos our events for us and made a brilliant video of last year’s Regeneration 2.0 conference, has asked if you would complete this simple Y/N questionnaire, and return it to him on dev@diamondgeezer.biz It is research for a dashboard he is launching next month and he needs your feedback.
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Schools are back in September!
TfL have today announced proposals to help schoolchildren travel safely and sustainably as they return to schools in September. Plans include additional buses and dedicated school services, a range of Streetspace measures and a comprehensive communication and engagement programme. I have attached the full press release here.
We are encouraging parents, students and school staff to plan ahead, and to walk, cycle, scoot or use public transport for their journeys. While we are running a normal service on weekdays on public transport, social distancing reduces the number of people we can carry, so those who can are advised to travel during quiet off-peak times, and allow more time if travelling by bus during school travel times.
We have worked closely with schools, London’s boroughs and the Government to prepare for the significant additional demand on a public transport network where capacity is reduced owing to social distancing measures.
More than 3,000 schools have been advised on encouraging active travel, staggered start and end times and Government safe travel advice, with bespoke plans for those schools served by the busiest bus routes for school travel. A new dedicated webpage for education providers gives the latest advice and useful resources for schools to encourage safe and sustainable travel among their pupils.
We are also planning to add over 200 extra dedicated school buses onto some of the busiest low-frequency bus routes, including our existing school services, funded through an additional £5.8M grant from the Department for Education.
We will be writing to all schools and customers with details of the affected bus routes once confirmed and we will keep you informed.
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The show must go on!
Shakespeare in the Garden returns to Fuller’s this September
Fuller’s, the premium pubs and hotels business, is delighted to announce the welcome return of Shakespeare in the Garden. Produced by theatre company Open Bar, this year’s production sees The Tempest taking centre stage in pub gardens across the Fuller’s estate. This is the ninth year running that Fuller’s pub customers have been able to enjoy alfresco productions from Britain’s greatest playwright, but this year, of course, with a socially distanced twist.
Open Bar co-founder and director, Nicky Diss, said: “Every year we try to bring accessible and fun Shakespeare shows to Fuller's pub gardens and, this year, we all need inspiring theatre more than ever. We're dusting off our aerial rig and The Tempest will be blowing into a beer garden near you.”
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West London Local Chambers & Hounslow Chamber of Commerce are the primary support, networking, and representation organisation in west London for SMEs.
We support the interests, the commercial aspirations and the investment from businesses in Ealing, Hounslow and Hammersmith & Fulham - the Chamber is the voice for all businesses located in the borough
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