Never done Vision Boarding before? It’s relaxing, inspiring, thought-provoking, fun, generates chat and results in a ‘vision’ of what you want for you, your family and your business or career.

All you need to bring is a board (canvas from any art supply shop – lots of cheap ones), some old magazines and any photos, pictures that you think reflect you and what you want.

We will bring scissors, glue, pens and magazines. And Heg and Jo from The Meeting Room will supply us with yummy cakes and drinks.

As ever there is a chance to share what you do with the group, and bring along any literature or fliers you want to share – whether they are to do with your work, your hobby or a charity event.

It’s £4.50 if you are a member of WiRE and £5 if you are not. Cost includes cake and drinks.
Start Time: 19:00
Date: 2013-06-12
End Time: 21:00

The IoIC is the UK’s leading professional body for in-house, freelance and agency staff involved in internal communication.  Member companies include Lloyds TSB, Nationwide, Rolls-Royce, BT and many more.

Commenting on the award win Karen McElroy, who is Director of the Centrum 100 based company said: “I was extremely proud and surprised to win the Freelancer of the Year 2012 category at the awards.   As a business we pride ourselves with delivering great results for our clients so it’s brilliant to receive industry recognition for demonstrating expertise in the field of internal communication.”

 FCM Associates is an independent PR agency based in Burton upon Trent, offering multi-award winning public relations and communication support on a freelance basis across the Midlands.   Its flexible approach means clients can pick and choose to use their services according to current business needs. 

 Chairman of the IoIC Central Region Lesley Allman said:  “The IoIC Awards set out to recognise, reward and celebrate communications that are making a real difference to organisations or clients.   We had some great entries that clearly shows there is excellent work going on to engage employees at work across the Midlands.  Many congratulations to Karen for her win of the Freelancer of the Year category. ”

Donations of prizes for the tombola would be welcome.

Confirmed stalls:

Nowzad – promotional items and gifts raising money for Nowzad
Cupcakes by Sheila
Hand felted brooches by Karen
Purple Penguin Glass – Fused glass gift items
FckC Photo art and cards
Bags2Riches and The Making House
Fragrant Favours
Forever Living – Natural products for a healthy lifestyle
Utility Warehouse – ‘win a mini’ promotion
Start Time: 14:00
Date: 2013-04-20
End Time: 16:00

Whether you are a business or organisation which uses Twitter regularly, or an absolute beginner, come and meet fellow tweeters for a friendly chat. Make new friends and contacts and share tips and advice.
Start Time: 10:00
Date: 2013-03-15
End Time: 12:00

Over recent years Tony had bravely fought a devastating combination of two critical illnesses. In January 2010 he was given just three months to live but defied all the odds and astounded doctors to return to work and to be an active committee member of Burton Business Club. Until recently he was Webmaster and had played a key role in promoting the club online.

Burton born and bred, Tony was a toolmaker and engineer by trade who moved into computer work in the early 1980s. He also worked as an IT and quality manager, taught at Burton College and Queen Street Community Centre and was a parish councillor.

After a period of self-employment, he formed his own successful web development and hosting company, Mercia Web, in 2005.

In 2009 he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma – cancer of the plasma cells – and within a few months he was diagnosed with a second condition which damaged his heart and kidneys. Tony always said he “chose to ignore” the doctor’s verdict in January 2010 that he had only three months to live. He underwent traditional chemotherapy, then a new chemo drug and had home dialysis treatment every night. His will to live, and enjoy his life as a devoted family man, was always strong.

Sadly in recent weeks he became seriously ill and began a new round of chemotherapy in January. He died on Wednesday March 6.

We would all wish to send our deepest condolences to Tony’s wife, Sandra, and all his family.

His funeral will be held on March 19 with further details announced in due course.

A sell-out crowd packed the dinner tables not the terraces at the Mercure Hotel, in Newton Solney, to hear The Brewers’ chairman Ben Robinson give an illustrated talk about the football club, revealing how red tape, diets and sporting fitness had changed over the decades.

Today’s approach to pre-match preparations is a far cry from the 1950s and 60s when players would sometimes enjoy a glass of beer, a whisky or even a glass of champagne before kick-off, he revealed. 

The business club heard the story of how classical music loving newspaper diarist Alf Moss became the lynch pin behind the club’s formation in 1950 and how its first manager Bertie Mee later went on to manage Arsenal, taking them to the cup and league double in 1971. 

“Public meetings were held in July 1950 and Burton Albion played its first game in the August of that year. There certainly wasn’t the red tape there is now,” laughed Mr Robinson. “When it was suggested Alf had bitten off more than he could chew, his reply was said to be ‘Whatever we’ve bitten off we’ll eat never mind chew.’” 

“We have had 31 managers since 1950, including Ian Storey-Moore and Neil Warnock but in 1998 for 10 years Nigel Clough put Burton on the map. Our David versus Goliath match against Manchester United attracted interested around the globe.We even had emails from Argentina.” 

The business club heard that while there were financial rewards for the battle between league minnow and Premiership giant, the event was not without its headaches, including a wrangle over the condition of the pitch at the Pirelli Stadium. 

“Sport has the unique capacity to bring people together,” said Mr Robinson, “and our aim is to use the power of football and brand of Burton Albion FC to make a difference to the lives of people within our communities.  We work with themes including sports participation, education, health and social inclusion.” 

Alongside local colleges and funding partners, Burton Albion Community Trust now has more 1,500 participants a week across East Staffordshire. It organises after school clubs, park football to help reduce anti-social behaviour, helps youngster with their self esteem and much more. It runs coaching sessions while the club’s own football academy has 110 players. 

Each year the club donates 6,000 match day tickets, corporate hospitality packages, 150 signed footballs and 90 signed shirts to help the local community and charities with their fund-raising efforts. 

On the night, Mr Robinson presented a signed football to business club chairman Ian Page. Ian said the football will be used to raise funds for the Donna Louise Trust, the children’s hospice in Staffordshire.

 Please View picture by clicking on the following or click here

Article Written By : Sue Robinson 

Picture By : David Finch Photography

It is a popular path for professionals across many disciplines from writers and designers to architects and photographers – if you have a trade or profession you can freelance. 

It’s not surprising that the last year has seen a surge of freelancers across the country within a vibrant array of professions.  Enabled with new technology that allows people to work more flexibly could freelancing be the future?

The benefits that come with freelancing could certainly suggest that.  There’s the flexibility to choose your own hours, often ones that help to create a balance between work and life. There is also the ability to choose your own work and the challenge of running your own business!

As with many jobs it comes with cons and there can be concerns about where the next work will come from. However the benefits and flexibility of being a freelancer often outweighs the negative aspects.

Even Prime Minister David Cameron is backing this way of working saying in a letter to the PCG to celebrate National Freelance Day “Freelancing strikes the right balance between work and life in the 21st century, and as we go for economic growth this Government is getting right behind them.”

In the current economic climate the role of a freelancer is becoming more prominent and crucial than ever, with more and more businesses choosing to outsource the work.  A report carried out by the PCG showed that UK businesses are hiring more independent professionals to complete specialist project work, with a third using freelancers on a weekly basis.  With an increasing number of businesses choosing to outsource work it’s not surprising that the number of professionals becoming freelancers has increased by 12% in the last year alone.

So what makes a good freelancer?   Here are five top tips that have worked for freelancers I work with:

1. Listen and get underneath the business you are working in and adapt…quickly!
2. Always be prepared to define your own role and sense of purpose.
3. Build positive relationships by adding value and sharing knowledge
4. Set out what you intend to deliver and never miss a deadline (without giving advance notification)
5. Keep focussed on delivering results, check in regularly with the client and make it your number one priority to be an asset to the business.

Karen McElroy, Director at FCM Associates Ltd – the freelance PR and Communications professionals

*Source: Professional Contractors Group (PCG) www.pcg.org.uk

Registration from 9.00am for 9.30 start

From October 2012 new legislation began affecting the largest employers first and will gradually encompass all employers by February 2018. The new duties force all employers to have a pension scheme suitable for automatic enrolment and automatically enrol certain workers into that pension scheme. Other workers will have certain rights to opt in or join a pension scheme. The employer will be required to make a contribution for those eligible, manage deductions and contribution payments, communicate with employees and keep proper records.

To help employers meet the legal standards the Government has set up a corporation to implement a national pension scheme – the National Employment Savings Trust, or NEST for short.

For a Key Facts Brochure about the Workshop please email workshopKF@jayfinancial.com

Seminar Objectives
An introduction to the legislation: An explanation of the employer duties, how to identify the staging date, the different categories of workers, contribution amounts and ongoing responsibilities.

Start Time: 09:00
Date: 2013-04-16
End Time: 10:30