The Oxfordshire Town Chambers Network

Founded as a network of Oxfordshire’s chambers of commerce, OTCN (The Oxfordshire Town Chambers Network) now covers town chambers, business parks, shopping centres, business networking events and other membership organisations and business groups across Oxfordshire.

BUSINESS NEWS

Be one of 100 highlighted businesses.
The Small Business Saturday campaign is once again highlighting 100 small businesses, one a day for the 100 days leading up to Small Business Saturday on 7th December 2019. Businesses can apply until 30 June. It is a brilliant way to raise your profile. Details here.

Visit England has launched an online Business Advice Hub specifically geared towards tourism businesses. The site is packed with practical tips, legal obligations and detailed advice on topics including marketing, funding and managing staff. The advice is relevant to both new and established businesses.
Details here.

HeadsUp! is a new government-funded programme managed by Enterprise Nation. The scheme offers up to 10 hours of free productivity training across four key business areas: finance and accounting, marketing, time management and collaboration. Eligible businesses will be UK based with fewer than 50 employees and an annual turnover of less than £10 million. Details here.

Oxfordshire Greentech is hosting a series of events over the summer. They will cover different topics including an electric vehicle show and sustainable business models as well as encouraging attendees to form forward-thinking partnerships and collaborations across sectors.
Details here.

Twin Town Challenge is back in 2020 for one last time!

At its simplest, the Twin Town Challenge is a fun charity car rally.
The Twin Town Challenge was established in 2014 and, to date, the event has raised over £850,000 for Charlbury based SpecialEffect. The number of teams is limited so you are encouraged to enter yours soon! Details here.

Support for innovation

The Oxfordshire LEP is running a series of workshops through its Innovation Support for Business (ISfB) programme.
Themes include project management, using sustainability to drive innovation, networking and health economics evaluations. Details here.

Oxford Living Wage Accreditation Scheme

The Oxford Living Wage is a voluntary wage rate for employers in Oxford and its surrounding area. It is set by Oxford City Council, in conjunction with the Living Wage Foundation, and from April 1st 2019 is £10.02 per hour. There is no associated charge. Document here.

OXFORDSHIRE PLAN 2050

The six local authorities in Oxfordshire have committed to producing a joint statutory spatial plan for Oxfordshire covering the period up to 2050. This plan will provide a strategic framework for the delivery of new homes, economic development and the anticipated supporting infrastructure the County needs to 2050. Details here.

Help for retailers with new rate relief.

An estimated 353 businesses in West Oxfordshire could see their rates bill slashed by a third to help them through the challenges from changing retail habits. Retailers with rateable values of £51,000 or less could be eligible and will be notified by mid April.
Details here.

Preparing for Brexit.

How will we leave the EU? We don't have a crystal ball but, to quote Benjamin Franklin, 'By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.'

To find guidance and information on preparing your business for Brexit, please visit here

There is more detail from The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy here.

Innovative ideas to change the world.

The latest round of Innovate UK Smart Grants has just opened. Innovation can be hard - it can take a lot of time and resource to get an idea off the ground, find a suitable market and develop new products, services and processes. They are not limited to a particular industry or technology area and are designed to enable business growth. Details here.

Innovation Support for Business Phase Two (ISfB2) is now live!

Funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), ISfB2 assists the development and commercialisation of innovative business ideas within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as enhancing research and innovation infrastructure in Oxfordshire.
More details here.

Since 25 May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) applies in the UK.

The data protection act has a European-wide upgrade and is now the GDPR. The ICO (.gov site) has a good section covering the major points businesses have to worry about. See it here.

If you handle a customer's personal data you may need to be registered depending on how you process that data.

With thanks to Computer Repair Oxford.

International Retail and Business Opportunities....
For the most current opportunities please see here.