The Bradford GRID Blog

NEWS: Are you an Accountancy Service Provider?? Then you need to READ THIS!

Under the Money Laundering Regulations 2007, existing Accountancy Service Providers need to register with HMRC, if their business is not supervised by a designated professional body (such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales or the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers) by the 1st of January 2009. 

This deadline has now passed and businesses that are not registered are now trading illegally and may be subject to penalties or criminal prosecution. 

Want to know more?

The final deadline for compliance with MLR2007 Money Laundering Regulations) comes into effect on 1st January 2009 and all Accounting Service Providers (which includes book-keepers, accountants, auditors, payroll bureaux and tax advisors) are required to be supervised by that date.  It is now too late for anyone not already registered to apply for registration by 1st January and anyone in this position should cease trading until such time as registration has been effected.

Anyone reading this article who has not registered but feels that they should have done, should contact the Institute immediately on 0845 060 2345.  Anyone not able to register with the Institute must register direct with HRMC, although they warn that this could take up to forty-five days, during which time the practice cannot carry out any business.

NEWS: Get a FREE Blackberry!

NEWS: New Member holds the GRID Entranced!

Despite the Credit Crunch, there is no shortage of new businesses taking advantage of the facilities offered by the GRID, a communal workspace funded by Bradford Council, Kickstart programme.

One of the newest members is Gary Blonder, a complementary therapist offering Hypnotherapy, Reiki and Stress Counselling. Gary has had previous careers as a production manager and a schoolteacher before launching his own business. Gary has no regrets launching out on his own. “Our family came into some money and we were able to pay off all our debts, and I used what was left over to re-train as a complementary therapist” says Gary. “It is one of the best decisions I ever made, as now I’m finally doing what I love.”

Gary specialises in helping people with weight loss, giving up smoking, stress anxiety and pain management, and also helps people get over phobias, traumas insomnia, and anger management issues: “I believe totally in what I do because of what hypnotherapy has done for me” he enthuses. “I was sixteen stone, angry and bitter until I had hypnotherapy myself and now I’m twelve stone with a positive outlook”



In addition to private consultations, Gary offers drop-in “taster” sessions for a nominal fee every Monday afternoon, and leads a free meditation class every Tuesday at 11am. Gary explains: “People can be a little cautious about complementary therapy, so my Monday drop-in session is an ideal opportunity to just turn up without appointment and give it a go for a fiver, or if they prefer, to just come and have a chat about it free of charge. My Tuesday meditation class is an opportunity to de-stress for free!” Gary is very determined to be taken seriously as a professional: What I offer is not yet legally regulated, so I made sure I was properly trained. “My qualifications are endorsed by the National Council for Hypnotherapy, the most widely recognised professional organisation of hypnotherapists, and I will soon be joining the Reiki Association. I have also won a page on the BEST OF BRADFORD website, a directory of the best local businesses in Bradford”

Gary has some simple advice for those starting out in business: “Two simple words – get networking” he declares. It is by far the most cost-effective way of getting yourself out there. It is important to build strong relationships with lots of other business people, and as trust builds, I feel confident to refer my clients to their services and vice versa. Everybody wins that way. If a client who comes to me for stress-counselling is after a reliable source of office supplies for example I can put them on to someone risk and stress free!” Gary’s day for standard appointments is Tuesdays at the GRID West, and also makes home visits. He has his own website http://www.garyblonder.co.uk and can be contacted by e-mail at info@garyblonder.co.uk.

NEWS: GET FIT WITH COMMANDO FIT

Grid member JOSEPH RAINER of COMMANDO FIT invites you to join him and his Team at Roberts Park, Saltaire.

DO YOU WANT TO GO COMMANDO?

COMMANDO FIT are looking for women and men to improve their health and fitness, shed a few pounds and get fit for the summer. You do not have to be super fit to take part but you will need to be:

COMMITTED TO GETTING FIT AT THE BRADFORD BOOT CAMP (B.B.C)

Get the body you want with a new series of 1 hour OUTDOOR exercise classes based on Armed Forces Physical Training in ROBERTS PARK, SALTAIRE.

Come along to a FREE trial session at ANY of the training sessions and see what we can do for you and the benefits of training the military way.

We can challenge you but can you challenge yourself to become fitter?

If this sounds like you then contact us on 01226 382800/  07724 465770 (mob) or email: info@commandofit.co.uk 

Website: www.commandofit.co.uk

If you really want to get fit and lose weight you can with the B.B.C.

Exercise sessions on Mon and Thurs. Evenings 7pm. and Sat. mornings 9am.

Mon. and Thurs mornings 6.30am (true military style).

(Please arrive 15mins early to complete a health questionairre. Available on website.)

At COMMANDO FIT we want you toGet fit, Lose weight. Have fun.

That’s an order.

Military style training by military trained instructors for health conscious adults. Effective training for 1000’s of years!

Can you survive the Bradford Boot Camp? It’s Tough but it’s Effective.

Can you be COMMITTED?

Getting fit and losing weight is not easy on your own. Let us put some Mental Toughness and Discipline into your life to get the results you want. NOW.

PERSONAL TRAINING £2.50 hr*.

Regular Weigh-ins and fitness tests. No membership fees. Nutritional advice.

In addition to our Monday and Thursday evening sessions (7pm) and Saturday morning (9am) and ALSO due to popular demand for all you busy people, we are now ADDING 6.30 am  early morning military style exercise sessions (Mondays and Thursdays).

These classes will start with a FREE 2 week trial and will get you fit, fast. 

The sessions consist of 1 hour of OUTDOOR exercise and take place in

ROBERTS PARK, SALTAIRE.

Come along to the FREE trial sessions and see what we can do for you and the benefits of training the military way. All we ask is that you arrive initially 10 minutes early to complete a health questionnaire (available on website).

 

Here are some of the statements by current members

*  “at £2.50 an hour it’s even better than I was getting from my personal trainer, and that cost me £30 per hour”.

“I can’t believe the muscles are toning in just 5 weeks, everybody at work keeps noticing. It might be me but I feel more curvy also”.

I paid nearly double what I do now and i never went to my gym, now I feel guilty if I miss a session, it really is a big change for me”.

“I really hated PE at school but I love this, especially the friendliness”.

Website: www.commandofit.co.uk

01226 382800 /  07724 465770 (mob)

info@commandofit.co.uk

THE SESSIONS ARE GRADED AND ARE THEREFORE SUITABLE FOR ALL ABILITY AND FITNESS LEVELS. TELL US YOUR GOALS AND TOGETHER WE WILL ACHIEVE THEM.

Anyone beating the instructors trains for free! How many gyms would offer that? Get fit, have FUN and SOCIALISE.

NEWS: Footsey 2008 Dragons Den

Footsey 2008 DRAGONS’ DEN APPLICATIONS

Introduction Footsey 2008 will again include an exciting “Dragons’ Den” competition.

It is a chance for organisations to win investment (which might be in the form of a grant, loan or other financial instrument) for a new enterprise idea.

A seminar will take place on the afternoon of Footsey (16 October), where 4 shortlisted organisations will pitch their idea to a distinguished panel of judges, in front of an audience of conference delegates. The judges (the Dragons) will represent their organisations who are the potential investors*: Business Enterprise Fund - www.befund.org Futurebuilders - www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk Key Fund Yorkshire – www.keyfundyorks.org.uk Resource Efficiency Yorkshire - www.recyclingaction-yorkshire.org.uk Unity Trust Bank – www.unity.co.uk UnLtd - www.unltd.org.uk

Organisations pitching for funding may be relevant for investment from one, some, or all of the organisations listed above.

• *Investment offered by the Dragons may be any of: funding investment,
• loan,
• grant or other
• finance, or
• consultancy or
• other support;

offers made on the day will be ‘in principle’ and subject to due diligence and other organisational checks.

Application Guidelines This competition is open to any community organisation or social enterprise meeting the following criteria.  If you would like to discuss your eligibility for the event, please contact Neil Berry of the DTA on 07968 782775. 

To enter the competition you must:
• Be independent and community–led, not controlled by the private or public sector.
• Be able to plan and deliver successful social enterprise activity.

Completed forms need to be received by 4.00pm on 19th September 2008.  Applications which are shortlisted for inclusion in the event will be notified by 29th September.

Please find attached booking form below.

Download dragonsden2008.doc

Pluto Media's exclusive offer!

Pluto Media are pleased to announce their new service - Pluto Web!

They will produce a 5 page website for you - but no ordinary website - all their sites feature an introductory video. You can see an example at http://www.plutomedia.co.uk/plutoweb/demosites/template_a/

They make it easy. Everything you need for a multimedia website is combined into one easy package:

For just £2495 (including VAT) you get all this:

• A 5 page website, with introductory video.  They will create a fully accessible and easy to navigate site, including subtitles for the video.

• A Choice of layouts.  Choose from a range of layouts.

• A Content Management System Update the content of your site, whenever you want, using their unique content-management system.

• 1 Years hosting.  They will host your site for a full year Web domain.  They will supply you with a .co.uk, .net or .com address of your choice (Subject to availability).

• Web Search Optimization.  They will optimise your site to ensure it has the best chance of being listed high on popular search engines. For September only, they are offering a 25% introductory discount.

If you know anybody who's looking for a new site, please let them know about this great opportunity! If you have any questions, feel free to give us a call on 01274 841 31.

NEWS: Business Centre Day Success

Bradford’s Lord and Lady and Lady Mayoress (Cllr Howard Middleton and Mrs Colleen Middleton) were among the guests at the Carlisle Business Centre (CBC) Open Day in Manningham.

With drumming and dancing courtesy of Theatre UnderFire Productions it proved to be quite a party. Tenants joined in too, with several of them arranging an exhibition to give visitors an idea of the wide range of businesses based at the Business Centre. Exhibitors included; Bradford Nightstop, Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, Carlisle Café, Immigration Advisory Service and other community and voluntary sector and private businesses.

The main aim of the Open Day, organised by CBC owners, Action for Business Ltd (ABL) was to showcase the Centre’s recently upgraded meeting facilities, in particular the new Joseph Rowntree Conference Suite. Thanks to sponsorship from the Joseph Rowntree Trust, the two room Suite has been fully refurbished. It now boasts the latest ICT equipment and blackout blinds which ensure that the very latest ‘all-singing, all-dancing’ presentations can be seen to the very best effect.

“We’ve now got the best Conference Facilities in the area, with full disabled access,” say ABL’s Chief Executive, Jenny Pupius. “And of course they’re not just available for our tenants – they are available for everyone’s benefit. So we’re keen to share them with other local businesses, organisations and the general community.”

Action for Business Ltd (ABL)
ABL was established by the local community in 1992. Working with Bradford Metropolitan District Council it rebuilt the then derelict Carlisle Mill, creating the Carlisle Business Centre (CBC). In 2003 ABL purchased the Centre from the Council, thus becoming a significant asset-owning development trust and social enterprise. The majority of its board of volunteer directors still live locally. All profits from the operation of CBC are ploughed back into the further social and economic regeneration of Manningham.

NEWS: Debt Advice Session

NEWS: Park Lane College Opening Test Trading Site

Park Lane College launches test trading site in Keighley.
For more information please see brochure attached below.

For Further information please contact Keith Ramsey on:
07989 851744

Download theRetailStoreKeighley_brochure.pdf

 

NEWS: Procurement Opportunities for Women and Ethnic Minority Owned Businesses for 2012 Olympic Games!

2012 Olympic Games Procurement Opportunities for Women and Ethnic Minority Owned Businesses

Hilton Hotel, Sheffield, Monday 23rd June 2008

Yorkshire Forward and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (DBERR) would like to invite you to 2012 Olympic Games - Procurement Opportunities event, on Monday 23rd June at the Hilton Hotel, Sheffield. This event is aimed at women and ethnic minority owned businesses.

London 2012 seems a long way away, but delivering the London Olympic Games and Paralympics Games will be a massive undertaking, requiring goods and services from an enormous range of businesses.

Please join us for this unique chance to find out how your business can capitalise on the procurement opportunities available now for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Programme
08.30    Registration and refreshments
09.30    Tom Riordan, Chief Executive, Yorkshire Forward
09.35    Adeeba Malik, Chairperson, Ethnic Minority Business Task Force
09.45    Sarah McPherson, WE Connect, Women in Enterprise Connecting to Contracts
09.55    Ruth Brothwell, Business Outreach Manager, Olympic Delivery Authority
10.40    Bob Styring, Local Area Manager, Business Link Yorkshire
10.55    Break
11.10    'Winning Public Procurement Contracts - Training Workshop' - Eddie Reagan, Senior Procurement Consultant, BiP Solutions
12.40    Lunch and networking

CompeteFor.com is the chosen site of London 2012 for the publication of Games-related contract opportunities and is supported by Yorkshire Forward, the region’s development agency.

It acts as a brokerage service between buyers throughout the London 2012 supply chain, and potential suppliers. CompeteFor.com also provides access to business support services; building skills and capacity to ensure that businesses across the UK can access opportunities linked to the hosting of the London 2012 Games.

CompeteFor.com has been developed on behalf of the English Regional Development Agencies and UK Devolved Administrations by the London Development Agency, working closely with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) and the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA).

Registration
If you would like to attend, please email your details to events@yorkshire-forward.com or call 0113 394 9711/12. Please note places are limited and available on a first come first served basis.