e-bulletin - December 2007 | Birmingham Forward

Birmingham Forward Seasons Greeting from the Birmingham Forward Team

Well as another year comes to an end we can reflect on the positive impact that your organisation has had both in the city and with the wider UK agenda. Our lobbying work continues apace and is beginning to deliver dividends as reported last month. Those members we have been talking to at numerous Christmas receptions over the last two weeks have given us positive feedback and are looking forward to the launch of our 2008 strategy in the New Year.

Membership renewals are on target and we would ask all members to ensure they expedite payment to save us expending unnecessary resource on chasing.

We start 2008 with our second Roger Dickens annual lecture and we are delighted that Liam Byrne, Minister for the West Midlands has agreed to be our speaker. Please see below for further details of this event.

News & Events

New Directors - Your chance to join the Board

As ever we are looking for non-executive directors to join us and help influence and direct the future of the professional and financial services sector in the city.

Directors serve for an initial three year term and invest some 4/5 hours per month in this role. If you have a passion for your city and the work we do at Forward now is your chance to apply to join Birmingham Forward’s Board. Due to our annual Board Director rotation this year we have four vacancies. If you think that you have the qualities to be a Birmingham Forward Board Director, please contact jo.sollom@birminghamforward.co.uk for an application form, which must be returned by 18th January 2008.

We are particularly looking for candidates from the accountancy, creative, insurance and media/marketing sectors. We welcome applicants from all sections of our community. For an informal chat about the role of a Board Director, please, call Richard Brennan on 07739 071964.

2008 Directory

For the second year running our commercial partners Clarke Associates are well on with preparations for next years Directory. Based on the huge success of the revised 2007 edition we have great plans to further enhance the contents, layout and distribution of the 2008 version.

We expect that there will be a lot of interest in the various commercial opportunities on offer so you need to ensure you have renewed your membership so that your firm can maximize their opportunities in this flagship publication.

The Second Annual Roger Dickens Lecture- Liam Byrne MP- Minister for the West Midlands

The Minister with responsibility for the West Midlands, Liam Byrne MP, will deliver Birmingham Forward’s second Roger Dickens Annual Lecture.

This prestigious business lecture will, once again, be staged in partnership with the NEC Group and take place at the International Convention Centre on Thursday, January 31st commencing at 18:00hrs for 19:00hrs. Judging from the last event we expect this to be a very popular engagement and would advise early booking here to ensure you hear it ‘directly from the horses mouth’.
Sponsorship opportunities are available for this event, please e-mail Isabel here for more details.

Forthcoming events…

We will be kicking off the New Year with the first PSMG workshop on Thursday 24th January. In this masterclass, Derek Jones of Acuigen & Mark Brodaty of Eversheds LLP will propose a range of strategies that can help your firm capitalise on client feedback programmes and client intelligence being developed. Places are available at £20.00 + vat and bookable by clicking here!

Birmingham Hosts Labour Party Spring Conference 2008

In October Marketing Birmingham announced that "Birmingham will be hosting the Labour Party Spring Conference from 29th February to 2nd March at the ICC. It is expected the city will welcome around 4,000 delegates to the conference in an event that could be worth more than £4m to the local economy."

We are all doing our part to ensure that businesses and residents are being consulted and kept informed of what will be happening around the conference dates to enable them to make the most of the Party Conference and also minimise any inconvenience. Birmingham Forward will be holding a business briefing event for both Forward & Future members in early February (please check the January e.bulletin or our website www.birminghamforward.co.uk for further details)..
We would like to remind and advise anyone wishing to attend the conference to book early as security for conference attendees and entrance onto the ICC site will be high. It is advisable therefore if you anticipate attending that you go through the accreditation process as soon as possible. Please click here. Online applications received before 5.30pm on Friday 25th January 2008 will not incurr a fee but make sure you check the site first as you will need to provide a number of personal details (eg; national insurance, passport and driving licence numbers, car registration etc).

Have you ever…

Have you ever legged through the cut? Or spent an afternoon with the Grundys? These are just two of the questions that Advantage West Midlands is asking people in the region as part of a new campaign aimed at inspiring pride and a sense of belonging to the West Midlands.

As part of the campaign people from across the length and breadth of the region are being asked to sign up as West Midlands Champions. The role of a Champion is simply to speak proudly about the West Midlands as part of a combined effort to improve perceptions of the region. Champions are encouraged to make use of the free-to-use images, endorsements and other resources at www.westmidlandslibrary.co.uk

To submit your own ‘Have you Ever’ and to register as a West Midlands Champion please visit www.westmidlandslibrary.co.uk/haveyouever

Senior Judge’s Report recommends permanent Administrative Court for Birmingham

One of the Country’s most senior Judges, Lord Justice May, is recommending that Birmingham should have its own permanent Administrative Court. The recommendation is contained in a report published by a judicial working party chaired by Lord Justice May which has looked in detail at the justice system outside of the capital.

Birmingham Forward, along with its partners St. Philips Chambers, No.5 Chambers, the Birmingham Law Society and Deloitte, has been actively lobbying to bring a permanent High Court to the city of which the granting of an Administrative Court is a significant stage in the process.

Within the report Lord Justice May acknowledged the constructive campaign spearheaded by Birmingham Forward for consideration of a permanent High Court residency in the city to replace the circuit system that currently operates.

The report also states that although Cardiff has the strongest constitutional case for an Administrative Court, Birmingham has the strongest business case.

New members

We would like to welcome on board the following new members who joined us in November:

CNP is a dynamic building consultancy specialising in all aspects of building surveying, project management, quantity surveying and construction technology.
HSBC Insurance Brokers Ltd are the intelligent alternative offering bespoke insurance programmes to Corporate customers including full risk management advice, based in Birmingham City Centre.

Little steps… big difference!

No.39 - Plant a tree - Trees are amazing things. They take in stuff we don't like (carbon dioxide and pump out stuff we do (oxygen). And yet we get rid of these amazing things every year. In fact, 33 football pitches of trees are cut down every minute worldwide. You can do something to help. And you don't need to be able to tell your Dimmocks from your Titchmarsh to do it. Plant a tree. Each one you plant will provide enough oxygen for two people for the rest of their lives. So where to start? You can visit www.woodland-trust.org.uk or why not get hold of Scots pine seeds and grow your own Christmas tree?

No.40 - Smile when you answer the phone - You can hear a smile. And we don't mean that in any kind of hippy 'I can sing a rainbow' kind of way. It's just one of those commonsense, makes-the-world-better, makes-business-better kind of way.