High Wycombe based Grant & Stone Limited, an independent builders’ merchant in the Thames Valley, has agreed to acquire and merge with CRS Building Supplies Limited (CRS), marking a decisive stage in its strategy to expand through a combination of acquisitions, new site development and organic growth. Established in 2005, CRS Building Supplies provides a broad range of heavyside building materials to trade and retail customers from 12 branches across Somerset. Headquartered in Wells, CRS is a highly successful local brand, with the reputation for outstanding customer service, which has demonstrated continued organic growth since its formation. Strategically, the partnership…
Author: sme-admin
The new campaign launches to support the nation’s mental health, as half of adults say they are more worried during this current lockdown than in March 2020. At the start of the current government restrictions, reveals the impact coronavirus (COVID-19) has had on adults’ mental wellbeing across the country. The research found that almost half (49%) felt that the pandemic has impacted negatively on their mental health and wellbeing (53% of women and 45% of men). Of those surveyed, significant proportions of the population said they had been experiencing more anxiety (46%), stress (44%), sleep problems (34%) and low mood…
People aged 70 and over and the clinically extremely vulnerable to begin receiving invitations for vaccinations from today. Millions of people aged 70 and over and those clinically extremely vulnerable to COVID-19 will be invited to get their vaccinations from today (Monday 18 January) as the NHS begins roll out of the vaccines to the next 2 priority groups. The NHS has so far been working to vaccinate the first 2 priority cohorts recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which are care home residents and staff, and those aged 80 and over and frontline health and…
Thinking about applying for a Kickstart Scheme grant to offer young people job placements at your organisation, then please read below some tips and advice on applying. What is the scheme? The Kickstart Scheme is a £2 billion scheme to create thousands of high-quality 6-month job placements for 16 – 24 year olds. The Kickstart Scheme is part of the plan for jobs and supports young people to develop new skills that will help them move into sustained employment after they have completed their Kickstart Scheme job placement. The Kickstart Scheme provides organisations of all sizes, across the private, public and voluntary sectors with the opportunity to access a large pool of…
The UK Space Agency and Rolls-Royce are joining forces for a unique study into how nuclear power and technologies could be used as part of space exploration The UK Space Agency and Rolls-Royce are joining forces for a unique study into how nuclear power and technologies could be used as part of space exploration This new research contract will see planetary scientists work together to explore the game-changing potential of nuclear power as a more plentiful source of energy, capable of making possible deeper space exploration in the decades to come. Nuclear propulsion, which would involve channelling the immense energy…
Since lockdown ended we have improved safety measures to ensure your visit is a safe and enjoyable one. It has been a major undertaking to prepare the Park for this. For example, the booking system we have used for years simply wasn’t designed for these extraordinary times, so we have installed new software which allows us to restrict visitor numbers via pre-bookings. We have reviewed all our public areas and introduced some measures to keep our staff and visitors safe. Please note: these are in addition to our previous announcement on the website which you can find here. Although Cotswold…
UK house prices increased by 5.4% in the year to October 2020, up from 4.3% in September 2020. The UK Property Transactions Statistics showed that in October 2020, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the estimated number of transactions of residential properties with a value of £40,000 or greater was 105,630. This is 8.1% higher than a year ago. Between September and October 2020, UK transactions increased by 9.8% on a seasonally adjusted basis. House price growth was strongest in Scotland where prices increased by 6% in the year to October 2020, up from 4% in the year to September 2020.…
Why? Experian and the other Credit Reference Agencies (CRAs) had been receiving data from other data brokers, their suppliers, which had been collected on the basis of ‘consent’. Key Finding 4 of the “Investigation into data protection compliance in the direct marketing data broking sector” states: None of the consents reviewed by auditors … were valid under the GDPR. These are the same data brokers who you are most likely to get your data from. Experian, Equifax and Callcredit/TransUnion are not foolish, and they do not merely accept the assurances of these data suppliers. The problem is with the way these data…
SME Today met Sara Frost, who is currently Website & Marketing Manager for the wildlife tour operator Naturetrek. Sara is a trained Zoologist and wildlife guide and we were fascinated to hear about her journey to becoming a successful ‘Life Entrepreneur’ Sara was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug early in life. She describes going door-to-door age six to sell spider plants to her neighbours in County Durham. “I came back with £4.80 – I thought I was rich… Until my dad explained to me that I had left with a £3 float in my bumbag. It was a hard first…
The UK Government recently relaxed its lockdown measures, enabling numerous businesses – including pubs, bars, restaurants, hotels and hairdressers – to reopen, providing they have taken measures to ensure they are COVID-19 secure. The new measures, including the reduction of the two-metre social distancing rule to one-metre, will enable thousands of businesses to reopen, giving the UK economy a much-needed boost. One of the proposed measures for allowing employees to safely return to the workplace is to introduce staggered shift patterns or hours. This would reduce the likelihood of large numbers of people travelling at peak times and therefore, hopefully, reducing the…