Business Support
Business Advice
Thinking of starting your own business?
Recruitment
Maximise your current resources
Events
Business Rates
New Opportunities
Redundancies
LinkBusiness Support
The main point of contact for advice, guidance and public sector business support is Business Link East Midlands. As the Business Link website contains a significant amount of information to help business through the current economic conditions, it is recommended that all businesses who are in need of help contact Business Link via their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk or call them on tel: 0845 058 6644.
Thinking of setting up a new business? Business Link start up services are provided by Nottinghamshire Business Venture (NBV). NBV’s team of experienced Business Advisers offer a professionally delivered Business Advisory service, accessible to all and tailored to individual needs. To contact NBV or arrange a free, confidential appointment with a professional Business Adviser please visit their website at: www.nbv.co.uk or call NBV on tel: 0115 970 5550.
Do you have a business idea but would like help to assess its commercial viability and turn it into a profitable reality? The Hive Start to Innovate programme supports entrepreneurs to develop and test their ideas. For more information visit: www.ntu.ac.uk/hivestart-to-innovate
Your Local Enterprise Organisation (LEO) provides free expert business support in Ashfield, Mansfield and Bolsover. So if you're running a business, or thinking of starting up contact LEO to find out how they can help on tel: 01623 457158. For more information visit: www.leobusiness.org
Business Advice
The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) provides advice and guidance on all the legal issues related to business restructuring, alternatives to redundancies or the legislation regarding making redundancies. Please visit their website at: www.acas.org.uk
Acevo - Supporting the Third Sector in the Recession. Please visit their website at www.recessionsupport.org.uk
Business Link - No Nonsense Guides. Please visit their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk.
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber of Commerce (DNCC) organises seminars, workshops and networking events. Provides expert services. Lobbies Government on behalf of local businesses and carries out a quarterly economic survey. Please visit their website at: www.dncc.co.uk.
Jobcentre Plus works with a range of partners to provide tailored solutions to help minimise the impact of redundancies and provide help and advice when they are taking place. Please visit their website at: www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk.
Marketing Donut: www.marketingdonut.co.uk, Start Up Donut: www.startupdonut.co.uk and Law Donut: www.lawdonut.co.uk launched a few months ago with Google and Royal Mail. These are online, free to view, information websites covering all aspects of marketing, starting up a business and legal advice and are aimed at small businesses.
Nottinghamshire Libraries offer free use of computers for up to three hours per day. Use computers to access the internet and software such as Word, Powerpoint and Publisher. Find a library near you.
Take a look at the websites recommended for business advice.
Nottinghamshire County Council Trading Standards offer specialist business advice and help interpreting and complying with trading standards legislation. Visit the Trading Standards page.
Nottinghamshire Libraries subscribe to online reference resources such as the business directory Kompass, a collection of newspapers from the UK and which? online. Ask at your nearest library about access to which?
Thinking of starting your own business?
Nottinghamshire Business Venture (NBV) –If you are thinking about being your own boss and setting up your own business, or perhaps already running your own small enterprise, you need confidence in those you turn to for help and support. Business Link start up services are provided by Nottinghamshire Business Venture, whose team of experienced Business Advisers offer a professionally delivered Business Advisory service, accessible to all and tailored to individual needs.
NBV Business Advisers are experienced business people who have either run their own business or worked at a senior level in commerce or industry.
To contact NBV or arrange a free, confidential appointment with a professional Business Adviser please visit their website at: www.nbv.co.uk or call NBV on tel: 0115 970 55500.
Do you have a business idea but would like help to assess its commercial viability and turn it into a profitable reality? The Hive Start to Innovate programme supports entrepreneurs to develop and test their ideas. For more information visit: www.ntu.ac.uk/hivestart-to-innovate
Start Up Donut: www.startupdonut.co.uk launched a few months ago with Google and Royal Mail. This is an online, free to view, information website covering all aspects of starting up a business and is aimed at small businesses.
Nottinghamshire Libraries offer a choice of books about employment law, health and safety, management and other subjects. Ask at your local library.
Recruitment
Jobcentre Plus. Jobcentres are located across Nottinghamshire. Please visit their website at: www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk
University of Nottingham - The Employer Services team within the Centre for Career Development offers a variety of options to suit your graduate recruitment needs. Services include advertising graduate jobs, work experience opportunities and part-time vacancies. Please visit their website at: www.nottingham.ac.uk.
Maximise your current resources - People and Money
People
The greatest resource of any business is its people. Now is a great time to maximise their potential by ensuring everyone has the relevant skills.
Apprenticeships - Work based training for adults and young people is key to meeting the future skills needs of business. Apprenticeships can make you organisation more effective, productive and competitive. Please visit their website at: www.apprenticeships.org.uk
Train to Gain - Every day, 1.3 million people go to work without the skills they need to do their jobs well. With help from Train to Gain you can invest in skills, giving your employees the ability, confidence and motivation to deliver real business results. Train to Gain is expanding, offering even more funding and support as you train your employees for business success. Please visit their website at: www.traintogain.gov.uk
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber - If you require training for your staff Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber of Commerce Chamber can help you. Please visit their website at: www.dncc.co.uk
Money
Business Link - Saving Money. Please visit their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk
Business Link - Real help with finance now. Please visit their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk
Business Link - Tax Help. Please visit their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk
Business Debtline provides free, confidential and independent advice on how to deal with debt problems tel: 0800 197 6026. Please visit their website at: www.bdl.org.uk
HMRC Business Payment Support Service designed to meet the needs of businesses affected by the current economic conditions. Please visit their website at: www.hmrc.gov.uk
Environmental support for businesses. Cut energy costs. Business Link East Midlands has introduced an online resource efficiency diagnostic tool to help businesses identify where they can improve their resource efficiency and reduce their energy waste and water cost base. Once a business has been through the resource efficiency diagnostic and subsequent consultation it may be eligible for a grant of up to £10,000 to implement the recommendations. Please visit their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk
Innovation Centres offer cost effective fully inclusive easy-in easy –out rental packages and opportunities for virtual tenancy.
Events
Businesses offered free support to help them 'ride out the recession'
With many businesses across Nottinghamshire worried about the potential impact of the economic downturn, we are working in partnership with Business Link to help local companies access timely information and advice to protect themselves against any potential adverse business conditions.
Seven free half day events were held across Nottinghamshire during July, featuring experts from the cash flow management, employment law, public sector procurement, sales and marketing world.
The experts shared their advice and tips on what measures businesses can take to weather the storm and potentially gain a competitive edge.
Events took place at different venues across the county.
Business Link aims to assist businesses to take positive steps and help identify areas that could improve both business performance and competitiveness during any possible downturn they might experience.
For further information about the events or to find out more about practical help and advice available, contact Business Link on tel: 0845 058 6644 or e-mail: info@businesslinkem.co.uk
Slides from the presentations are available below in PDF format 
Please note that some of the presentations are large files and may take a while to download.
Cash is King
Cash is King - Stopford Associates [PDF 173KB]
Sales and Marketing in tough times
Sales and Marketing in tough times - Watson Sessions Consulting presentation [PDF 1.9MB]
Giant Returns - Quiet Storm solutions presentation [PDF 5.1MB]
Recession Busting Marketing - Sore Thumb Marketing Presentation [PDF 508KB]
Managing your people - Employment Law update
Freeth Cartwright presentation [PDF 100KB]
Managing Your People - Hancock's Solicitors presentation [PDF 119KB]
Riding Out Recession - Berryman's Solicitors presentation [PDF 549KB]
Using technology to cut costs
Technology to Reduce Costs - eBusiness Programme Presentation [PDF 9.7MB]
Real Help for Real Business
Real Help for Businesses - Business Link Presentation [PDF 614KB]
Business Rates
Business Link - Business Rates
Please visit their website at: www.businesslink.gov.uk
District Councils
Ashfield District Council. Please visit their website at: www.ashfield.gov.uk
Bassetlaw District Council. Please visit their website at: www.bassetlaw.gov.uk
Broxtowe Borough Council. Please visit their website at: www.broxtowe.gov.uk
Gedling Borough Council. Please visit their website at: www.gedling.gov.uk
Mansfield District Council. Please visit their website at: www.mansfield.gov.uk
Newark and Sherwood District Council. Please visit their website at: www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk
Nottingham City Council. Please visit their website at: www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk
Rushcliffe Borough Council. Please visit their website at: www.rushcliffe.gov.uk
New Opportunities
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber of Commerce (DNCC) delivers a wide range of business support services across Nottinghamshire to its members and the wider business community and to individuals seeking to gain employment through learning. These services include Networking Events. Please visit their website at: www.dncc.co.uk
EMITA – East Midlands International Trade Association is an independent trade association promoting import and export expertise amongst businesses in the East Midlands. Please visit their website at: www.emita.org.uk
Government Procurement Service - public sector procurement. Please visit their website at: www.ogc.gov.uk
Local Government Procurement. Please visit their website at: www.sourcenottinghamshire.co.uk
London Olympics 2012 There will be many opportunities to get involved in working with London 2012. To give companies as much warning as possible about opportunities on the horizon so they can prepare, the organisers have set up CompeteFor.This is the chosen website of London 2012 for the publication of Games-related contract opportunities. Once registered with CompeteFor businesses will automatically receive news of future tender opportunities from tier two suppliers or below. Please visit their website at: www.london2012.com
UK Trade and Investment provides support to UK based businesses to assist them to grow their business overseas. Whether you are new to exporting or experiences UKTI have a range of services. Please visit their website at: www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk.
Redundancies
If despite all best efforts it is necessary to make people unemployed see this document: The Extended Nottinghamshire Offer for Redundancies [PDF 244KB]
