I had the privilege this week to represent Nottingham and Nottingham Means Business at the ICAEW Northern Business Conference in Manchester.
On the panel (see below) I had the opportunity to present Nottingham’s offering to 70 accountancy professionals alongside representatives from Manchester and Liverpool.
Topics discussed included devolution, LEPs and driving growth outside of London.
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A Press Release kindly put together by Cartwright Communications ahead of the event tells the story:
Simon Gray will be attending this year’s Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) Northern Business Conference in Manchester on 25 November, where industry experts will come together to discuss regional economic development.
Simon, who heads NMB, the local organisation working to support and encourage investment in the city and county, will be on a panel discussing local growth initiatives.
“This will provide me with a fantastic opportunity to promote Nottingham and highlight how the city is developing and quickly becoming the place to invest”, said Simon.
The conference will work to establish a dialogue between businesses and local enterprise partnerships (LEPs), providing attendees with valuable insight into the important decisions being made across the region.
“Nottingham is a core city and one of the most dynamic cities in the UK, offering much to businesses which choose to locate and grow here. This conference will provide me with the ideal place to speak about our city, and share its success stories with professionals from across the country,” Simon added.
David Smith from the Sunday Times gives an economic outlook ahead of the panel discussion.
Speakers and panellists at the event include: David Smith an award-winning journalist and author who has been economics editor of The Sunday Times since 1989, Michael Taylor another award-winning journalist and chairman of Downtown Manchester, Robert Hough chair of Liverpool Local Enterprise Partnership, Mike Emmerich chief executive of New Economy Manchester and Katie Gallagher managing director of Manchester Digital.
During the conference attendees will also have the opportunity to learn more about how businesses can maximise their cyber security and also gain knowledge on how to effectively use management tools that can help their finances.
Simon added: “I represent Nottingham in London as the ICAEW’s business representative for the East Midlands and also sit on the ICAEW’s Regional Strategy Board. The ICAEW has a strong heritage and powerful links with business and government and I’m very proud to represent this organisation, NMB and our great city at what should be a very interesting and thought provoking event.”
Stephen Ibbotson, Business Director at ICAEW in London said: ICAEW’s members bring a wealth of expertise and experience in helping local economies grow. Through their work in and advising local businesses, they have a unique perspective on the challenges they face. It is crucial for the economic recovery that growth occurs across all areas, and the panel on local growth will help add key voices to this issue.”
Tom Madden, Regional Director Midlands at ICAEW added: “This conference is another solid step in driving the UK both regionally and nationally into long term sustainable growth. This revitalisation will require the right kind of growth and need higher business investment. LEPs will receive over £2bn of public money next year and therefore will be vital in achieving economic growth throughout the country.”
The conference takes place on 25 November in Manchester. For more information please visit – http://www.icaew.com/en/events/2014/november/mscnf141125-northern-business-conference