Discover how a new Slough initiative can help your business thrive in 2017
Helping Slough-based businesses thrive: Slough Business Accelerator
Slough is, by just about every reported indicator,* a thriving town and a jewel in the crown of the South East. Situated between London and Reading, it retains a distinctive character and advantages over those two cities that are leading it to reliably outperform in the South East. But in these days of place-based industrial strategies, when cities are planning how to make themselves ever more attractive, Slough can never rest on its laurels. To attract and nurture highly productive and growing businesses, it needs to deliver skills, infrastructure and business knowledge in an accessible and joined up way.
IBB Solicitors, in conjunction with professional services firm KPMG and NatWest in Slough, intends to do just that.
According to the Cities Outlook 2017 report, Slough is one of the top three cities* in the UK (outside London) for export in the UK (by which we mean exporting regionally, nationally or internationally). Slough is also in the top three for starts-ups (86.5 start-ups per 10,000 population in 2015) and is gaining year-on-year growth in business stock of 12.5% (second only to Doncaster). London, Slough and Reading have the highest levels of productivity in the UK and Slough is also in the top 10 for patent applications published. Slough also has the highest ratios of private-to-public-sector jobs in the South East. What does that mean for the businesses that are located in the area?
The multiplying effect of its diverse business community on jobs, wages, local services and producers makes Slough a great place to set up and run a business. But, of course, there is competition from other towns and cities for this thriving business community.
What does Slough need to retain its exceptional businesses, entrepreneurial atmosphere and nurturing growth potential?
It is generally accepted that towns need skills, infrastructure and knowledge to attract and develop their business community. Skills are being provided through Slough’s proximity to London, and investment in housing and facilities.
The infrastructure is improving (albeit not fast enough for some businesses caught in the endless roadworks), but Slough does not currently have as joined-up an approach to delivering business knowledge to its businesses, as it needs to have in this competitive environment. This inability to easily access locally-based but nationally renowned advice and support decreases confidence to produce, export, grow and develop.
As any business owner knows, managing knowledge, making it work for you, and juggling conflicting advice to arrive at the best solution is not only time consuming and wearing, but it reduces productivity and increases time to market. Slough’s broad base of manufacturing and service sectors provides resilience to the city and to the business community, and creates the need for advice that can be delivered by place, technical area and sector.
What IBB and its colleagues will bring is a different attitude to the provision of advice and services; one built upon fostering a wider perspective and understanding of what business owners want to achieve, and working together and with other local advisers, to deliver advice that works on the ground to get the job done.
Following an initial inaugural breakfast, the programme will include further regular networking events, with a strong emphasis on delivering valuable and applicable knowledge, along with business accelerator meetings with all three advisers, who will jointly discuss with individuals how to take the best advantage of opportunities, avoid potential pitfalls and develop long-term strategies.
IBB Solicitors, in conjunction with KPMG and NatWest, will be holding the inaugural breakfast on Tuesday May 23 at 8am.
ibblaw.co.uk/sloughbusinessaccelerator
*all statistics taken from Cities Outlook 2017, January 2017, Centre for Cities
(centreforcities.org)
