Hounslow Chamber webinars
All are free, run for 60 minutes and start at 10:00 am:


11 th June - Business Task Force / Structuring for re-emergence -
We are pleased that Cllr. Katherine Dunne, Cabinet Member for Communities and Climate Emergency is able to be with us.


16 th  June - Trading with the UAE and the Gulf -
Dubai wants to buy your goods. Join us to make this happen and to learn how.


18 th June - Business Task Force -
We are pleased that Cllr. Steve Curran, Leader of Hounslow Council, is able to be with us.


If you have missed our webinars, you can watch them now:  https://hounslowchamber.org.uk/10015
The programme of advice and support is really helping business owners with up to date information, enabling you to make good decisions about how to get through the current strange times.

All the webinars are free – please use this service and  click here to book your place.
During the current pandemic many of us have moved to working from home. The ICO has published advice on this subject and can be found at:


Mobile test centre available in Isleworth this Sunday and Monday
The mobile coronavirus test centres form an essential part of the national testing programme and will be available again this Sunday and Monday. 

When:  Sunday 7 June and Monday 8 June 10.30am-3.30pm 
Where : Grasshoppers’ Rugby Club, Syon Lane, Osterley, Isleworth, TW7 5PN. 

There is a mixture of walk-in and drive-through appointments at this test centre.  You can book your appointment via the  NHS website .   

You must register via the  gov.uk porta l before attending a mobile testing unit and bring your 16-digit code or appointment confirmation with you on your mobile phone. Tests should be taken within five days of developing symptoms as this is when the test is most accurate. 

Criteria for testing:   
Anyone over the age of five who is symptomatic is now able to receive a test at one of the testing centres.  

Coronavirus symptoms are: 
  • a high temperature 
  • a new, continuous cough 
  • a loss of or change to your sense of smell or taste 

This test can tell you if you have coronavirus at the time the swab sample is taken. The test to tell if you’ve ever had coronavirus (‘antibody test’) is not available yet.   

Booking appointments and requesting a walk –in appointment:
If you would like a walk-in appointment at the mobile testing centre, please put “unknown” in the box requiring your vehicle registration number. This should allow you to continue the booking process.    
If you have any problems refer to the helpline detailed below, or you can use the 16-digit authorisation code that is sent to you via SMS and go to the testing centre anytime on foot or in a car between 10.30am and 3.30pm where local authority staff will help you.    

Alternative testing provision  
Please note that if an appointment is not available at the Grasshoppers’ site then the same testing criteria apply for bookings at the Twickenham testing site, and they operate seven days a week. They do however only offer drive-in appointments.   
There are also home testing kits available, bookable via the same  NHS website .     

Questions or problems  
If anyone has any problems booking via the portal, please contact the National Coronavirus Testing Helpline on 0300 303 2713.   
If you have any questions about testing, please contact  publichealth@hounslow.gov.uk.
Alcohol based hand sanitiser is flammable – safety advice
With the recent coronavirus outbreak, we are using more hand sanitisers.

Alcohol based sanitiser is a class 3 highly flammable substance and if left in a place where it is exposed to high temperatures it has the potential to set on fire

It has also been noted that increased exposure to high temperatures also changes the chemical properties of alcohol-based sanitisers making them less effective, so keep hand sanitisers out of direct sunlight and ideally store in cool places.  

Here are some safety precautions and tips to follow:  
  • Do not carry any hand sanitiser in an exposed part of a vehicle like dashboards and near windows, that is likely to attract strong sunlight or high temperatures. 
  • Try to minimise the risk by avoiding carrying hand sanitiser where it is difficult to control the temperature exposure. 
  • Keep hand sanitisers away from naked flames and sources of ignition. 

Where hand sanitiser is used in an office or in a site environment, then these must be stored in appropriate conditions and away from direct sunlight, heat source, electrical sockets or any other source of ignition.
Health measures at the border (courtesy of the Cabinet Office)

The Home Secretary delivered an oral statement to the House of Commons yesterday on health measures being introduced from Monday 8th June, at the border in response to coronavirus. 

Full details of her statement can be found here:  https://bit.ly/BordersOralStatement

Key details to note include:
  • All arrivals – bar a short list of exemptions (https://bit.ly/HOExemptions) - will be required to complete an online locator form to supply contact details, travel details and the address of where they will self-isolate for 14 days. Where international travellers are unable to safely self-isolate in their own accommodation the Government will support them finding appropriate accommodation at their own expense.
  • Passengers arriving in the UK will be required to self-isolate for 14 days and could be contacted regularly throughout this period to ensure compliance. Public Health England will contact people at random to ensure they understand the requirements and are self-isolating. Removal from the country would be considered as a last resort for foreign nationals who refuse to comply with these public health measures.
  • Anyone failing to comply with the mandatory conditions may face enforcement action. A breach of self-isolation would be punishable with a £1,000 fixed penalty notice in England or potential prosecution and unlimited fine.
  • The level of fine could increase if the risk of infection from abroad increases. The Devolved Administrations will set out their own enforcement approaches.
  • Border Force will undertake checks at the border and may refuse entry to any non-resident foreign nationals who refuse to comply with these regulations and aren't a resident in the UK. Failure to complete the form is also punishable by a £100 fixed penalty notice.
  • The rules do not apply to those travelling from within the CTA (Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands) - unless they have arrived in the CTA from overseas within the last 14 days, in which case they will have to provide locator details and self-isolate on arrival here. This will help make sure that those who could have come into contact with the virus overseas cannot bypass the self-isolation measures.
  • Those who have arrived in the CTA longer than 14 days ago will not have to provide locator details or self-isolate if they travel to the UK.
(courtesy of East Midlands Special Operations Unit)

Cybercriminals have been busy establishing dozens of fake websites that impersonate the domains of popular UK supermarket chains. Thirty lookalike domains impersonating Tesco, 11 illegitimate domains impersonating Asda, and 10 recent spoofed websites impersonating Amazon have been uncovered. These fake domains can enable hackers to obtain names, addresses, email addresses, and payment card information of hundreds of thousands of shoppers in a very short time. 

NHS Test and Trace phishing emails are being sent by scammers, the fake email refers to the service as ‘track and trace’. The recipient is told they have been exposed to someone who tested positive for coronavirus. They are instructed to click a link to find out who it is, within 24 hours. If they fail to do so legal action may be taken and their benefits suspended. 

Remember: Contact tracers will never ask you to:
  • Dial a premium rate number to speak to us (for example, those starting 09 or 087)
  • Make any form of payment
  • Give any details about your bank account
  • Give your social media identities or login details, or those of your contacts
  • Disclose passwords or pins
  • Create any passwords or pins
  • Purchase a product
  • Download any software to your device
  • Hand over control of your pc, smartphone or tablet
  • Access any website that does not belong to the government or NHS
Good News:
Spot the chick! (courtesy of me)
Hounslow Chamber of Commerce is the primary support, networking, and representation organisation in west London for SMEs.

We support the interests, the commercial aspirations and the investment for some 18,000 firms - from Chiswick to Feltham, Heathrow to Osterley and Brentford to Bedfont - the Chamber is the voice for all businesses located in the borough.