New dating website Swoon.co.uk, has revealed the results of research that shows four out of five middle-aged Brits (35-54) have suffered a romantic break-up. Surprisingly, over a third of those recently separated would still date their ex even if they had known more about their personality beforehand.

When it comes to dating, it seems that having foresight makes little difference to many Brits' choice of partner. Across all ages, only one out of three (35%) men and two out of five (43%) women say they would definitely not have dated their ex if they had known more about their personality before they got together.

Commenting on the results, Harley Street relationship therapist and life coach, Trevor Silvester, said: "Ultimately, we're all looking for love, but it’s the romantic thrill of unpredictability that we secretly seek. With many online dating websites focusing on compatibility matching for long-term happiness, it appears they are overlooking the very aspect of a new romance that excites singles the most.

"Online dating may have changed the face of dating making it easier than ever before to find a potential partner, but it seems that it hasn't altered the natural rules of attraction."

Latest statistics reveal there are over 16 million single people living in the UK, with more UK singles admitting they are dissatisfied with their lone status than anywhere else in Europe (35%).

Silvester continued: "In my 20 years experience as a relationship therapist, the reason couples split is rarely that they don't love each other enough, it's that they don’t understand and embrace the differences between them."

Indeed, across all age groups only a third of respondents (37%) said they felt understood by their ex partner, with one in five females saying "It was like we were speaking different languages." Only 4% of those recently separated said they didn’t feel loved enough by their ex.

"The problems we face with our partners are often caused by differences in the way we think that most people are unaware of. We can often be puzzled, frustrated or driven to madness by the things our partners do, without realising that they're having the same experience, and that their behaviour is often their attempt to improve the relationship," Silvester concluded.

Trevor Silvester is the brains behind the new online dating site swoon.co.uk, which offers dating advice and aims to help daters right from the very start by explaining the differences between them and how to use these differences to make their relationship work. Through answering a simple set of questions, members will be able to discover their 'Swoon Appeal', giving other daters an insight into their world and what makes them tick.

British Transport Police has reduced senior ranks by 20% to help boost front line policing.

Twenty one officers of Chief Inspector, Superintendent and Chief Superintendent rank have taken voluntary severance under a scheme designed to save £9m over the next five years.

BTP Chief Constable Andy Trotter said:“I am determined to protect our front line service from budget cuts. I want more officers out there, particularly late at night, to tackle crime, anti-social behaviour and to provide a visible reassurance to the public.

“I have taken swift action to reduce back office costs and senior ranks. This has been a quick and cost effective way of reducing salary costs, which safeguards money that will help increase the visibility and availability of front line officers and staff.”

Ensuring BTP has the leadership and resilience to improve its service following the departure of these experienced officers is a key management task for 2011/12.

London Executive Aviation (LEA) is celebrating the company’s 15th anniversary, looking back on sustained success through dramatic years for global aviation.

Founded in April 1996 with one aircraft, LEA has rapidly grown to become one of Europe’s largest and most respected executive aircraft operators, now flying a diverse charter fleet of 25 jets. Starting out at the company’s headquarters at Stapleford Airport, LEA today operates seven bases around London and holds a worldwide air operator’s certificate (AOC).

Chief executive Patrick Margetson-Rushmore says: “I feel very proud when I reflect on what we have achieved. We’ve operated over 20,000 charter flights, for more than 2,000 customers, flying 12m miles in total. Our aircraft fly to nearly 300 locations around the world every year.

“Just like LEA, European business aviation has matured immensely in the past 15 years, developing into a cohesive cross-border industry. The launch of the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in 2001 has undoubtedly been a catalyst for that progress. Perhaps what our industry needs next is even more unified cooperation on a truly European level.

“And in the next 15 years, wouldn’t it be great to see the business aviation industry finally embraced and recognised by the wider community for its true worth and contribution to the global economy?”

The pioneering spirit of Margetson-Rushmore and LEA’s managing director George Galanopoulos has been vital to the company’s success.

Galanopoulos says: “We were the first company to introduce the Cessna Citation Excel to the UK charter market in 2001. In 2008, we launched Europe’s first light jet fleet, with five Cessna Citation Mustangs, and in 2010 we became the first European charter operator of the Embraer Legacy 650. And we were the first business jet operator to be based at London City Airport.”

But both Galanopoulos and Margetson-Rushmore agree the proudest moment of all remains the day they launched the company, with the very first European Union AOC to be issued. “There were nine months of very hard work and very late nights leading up to that day,” says Margetson-Rushmore, “but it was worth it.”

“The global aviation industry has certainly experienced dramatic times since that day,” adds Galanopoulos, “not least the recession from which we are finally emerging. But at LEA we have always continued, as we continue now, to employ new pilots and operations staff and to add aircraft to our fleet. If the next 15 years are as much fun, and bring as many pleasant memories, we can hardly wait!”

Research carried out by academics from Aberystwyth University in conjunction with Compton Group, an SME based in Swansea, has resulted in a discovery which could lead both to an improvement in milk and meat production and to a significant reduction in methane emissions from cattle and sheep.

The research team, led by Professor Jamie Newbold of Aberystwyth University, found that by adding sandalwood (or a sandalwood analogue) to animal feed the growth of pathogenic bacteria such as E.coli and Listeria in the rumen is reduced. As a consequence, energy which would otherwise be lost through the production of methane is diverted to increased milk and meat production.

At the same time there was a significant reduction in the emission of methane, a greenhouse gas with 23 times the global warming potential of the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide. It is estimated that livestock produce 18% of all global greenhouse gas emissions, more than all forms of transport combined.

Trials in a rumen simulating fermenter (Rusitec) confirmed that Javanol, a sandalwood analogue, reduced methane production by up to 25%. A reduction of 20% in methane emissions was achieved in field trials with sheep when 2ml of Javanol per day was added to their diet.

Other members of the research team are Dr Kenton Hart, previously of Aberystwyth University (and now at Harper Adams University College), and Dr Ahmed Ali, Research Director of the Compton Group, who is based at The School of Biosciences of Cardiff University. More detail on the research can be found in the international patent application (PCT/GB2009/001547).

“This is an exciting discovery in two ways,” said Dr Ahmed Ali. “Firstly, there would be benefits to the agricultural industry through increased milk and meat production: this increase in productivity would be set against a background of growing pressures on global food supply. Secondly, there could be a significant reduction in methane emissions.”

“Overall, the project is a good example of a University and an SME collaborating on cutting edge research. If this project and projects like this, can be commercialised in global markets, that has to be the way forward for the knowledge economy of Wales.”

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has today announced the start of its consultation for the fast track review of Feed in Tariffs (FiTs), to close on the 6th May 2011. It proposed new tariff rates for Solar Photovoltaics (PV) over 50kW and for Anaerobic Digestion (AD) up to 500kW. DECC aim to finalise the changes in July and bring them into effect from 1st August 2011.

AD Rates from August 2011
14p/kWh for installations with a total installed capacity of up to 250 kW
13p/kWh for installations with a total installed capacity of between 250 kW and 500 kW

Miles Thomas, Head of Operations at Savills Energy commented: "This is very bad news for the PV industry and effectively renders most schemes unviable, slashing returns to unattractive levels. As one of the most proven and reliable technologies, PV was particularly suited to larger rooftops on public and private sector buildings such as schools, hospitals and industrial buildings and so on, allowing them to contribute to renewable energy generation targets. It is likely to mean more complex solutions will now have to be sought and we anticipate working closely with our clients to identify and develop the alternatives."

"On the other hand, the increase in tariff rates for AD is positive news, albeit that the increases are fairly small. At the larger end of the scale, at around 0.5MW, this is likely to put a couple of percentage points on potential returns - around the 'tipping point' this may make all the difference".

For the second year in running, the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) will be supporting the Financial Mail's 'Breaking the Mould' careers conference, and inspiring young women to consider the exciting career opportunities available in the food and drink industry.

The food industry might not be the first place young women think about when they are deciding on a career path to follow, so FDF will be getting the message out to over 400 girls at the event, that if they are looking for an exciting, rewarding, diverse career with good pay and long term prospects they should consider a career in food.

FDF is hosting a panel session led by inspirational women from a variety of food and drink companies including Coca Cola, Dorset Cereals and United Biscuits, who will talk about how they\'ve built their stimulating careers and why they love working in food.

FDF Director of HR, Angela Coleshill said: "We are delighted to be sponsoring this valuable event once again. The focus on science and technology at this year\'s Breaking the Mould is very fitting, as whilst the numbers of trained female food scientists is well represented, the actual number employed in industry is under represented. We hope that by showcasing some of the exceptional woman working in industry, young women will be inspired to consider a career in our innovative sector."

This activity forms part of FDF\'s careers campaign \'Taste Success - A Future in Food\' which aims to show potential entrants that the UK food and drink manufacturing sector is a 'career of first choice'.

For more information, please visit www.fdf.org.uk.

East Midlands Trains has revealed the face of its new marketing campaign as Queen of the Jungle and X Factor finalist, Stacey Solomon.

From now and throughout the summer, Stacey will be appearing on billboards, on TV and radio, and in regional newspapers in a bid to let the public find out more about East Midlands Trains great value fares.

Stacey will be featured trying out East Midlands Trains award-winning online Best Fare Finder, which provides access to the cheapest fares to London in seconds.

The Best Fare Finder compares ticket prices and shows the cheapest tickets at different times of the day and days of the week on one easy to read page. This means if customers can be flexible about their travel arrangements, they can quickly and easily find the cheapest train ticket available for East Midlands Trains journeys to and from London, plus a further 400 different UK train destinations. Exclusive discounts are available on East Midlands Trains fares and with no booking fees and no credit or debit card charges for tickets purchased through www.eastmidlandstrains.co.uk the website is the cheapest place to buy East Midlands Trains tickets.

Marc Turley, Head of Marketing for East Midlands Trains, said: "We know from our research it's commonly perceived that train companies don't have any cheap fares or provide easy access to them.

"We're challenging that perception through the launch of our new marketing campaign which really does demonstrate just how easy it is to use our Best Fare Finder. In just a few seconds, passengers can find fares to London priced from just £11 one way. Our Best Fare Finder has already proved very popular with travellers and we've had some great feedback.

"We're hoping that Stacey's warm personality and enthusiasm will encourage even more people to give it a try, and see just how quickly and easily they too can find a bargain train ticket."

Stacey Solomon comments in the campaign: "Best Fare Finder makes it really easy to find cheap fares - and you get a choice of times and trains!"

East Midlands Trains is becoming known for its marketing campaigns, which have also seen famous Irish twins Jedward helping to communicate messages about the company's great value fares and its website.

Following the launch of its Best Fare Finder in September 2009, East Midlands Trains has seen a 9% year on year increase in the number of passengers who said their ticket represented good value for money. East Midlands Trains Best Fare Finder also recently picked up an award for Information Technology Excellence at the Rail Business Awards.

For more information about East Midlands Trains or to check fares using the Best Fare Finder, visit www.eastmidlandstrains.co.uk.

Ernest Doku, technology expert at uSwitch.com, comments: "Today's ruling will affect anyone that dials up a mobile phone number, be it from a mobile or landline. Consumers have been unwittingly lining the pockets of the mobile phone "cartel" with billions of pounds. These hidden charges have up until now cost as much as 4p for every minute of every call made.

"It is still disappointing Ofcom has not taken on board the European Commission's recommendation to reduce these rates in half the time, reaching 0.69p by the end of 2012 instead of 2014.

"Nevertheless, this is a clear victory against the bully boys. While termination rates have served as a tidy revenue for the big networks, the minnows in the market such as Three have struggled to make headway. There's no doubt that this news will really give a boost to competition in the mobile market.

"Network rates are going to be virtually halved almost immediately, making it in theory much cheaper to call a mobile. But whether consumers will see these rate cuts as quickly as the networks make them is another matter. The good news is that BT is already planning to include calls to mobiles in a new 'all you can eat' tariff and we call on its competitors such as Virgin Media and TalkTalk to also ring in the changes.

"In theory, mobile bills should also come down - but in reality, the networks may look to introduce charges elsewhere to make up for the loss in income. New charges for paper billing are just one way for the networks to cushion themselves from the blow, but may not go far enough to compensate for the enormous revenue losses that they could see."

For more information visit www.uswitch.com or call 0800 093 0607.

The Co-operative Group has announced it has awarded its own-brand milk contract to Robert Wiseman Dairies under a new two-year agreement commencing August this year.

The new agreement, which will see the Group move to a dedicated milk supply scheme, follows The Co-operative's successful integration of the Somerfield supermarket chain.

Around 350 British dairy farmers are expected to benefit from the new dedicated supply scheme, by receiving a premium for supplying some 363m litres of milk a year to around 4, 000 Co-operative food stores from August onwards.

By moving to dedicated supply, The Co-operative is also committed to setting clear standards in animal welfare, minimising environmental impact and encouraging bio-diversity on the farms selected for the scheme.

Tim Hurrell, Chief Executive of The Co-operative Group's food business, said: "We are delighted to be fulfilling the commitment we made to farmers at the height of the Somerfield integration. In partnership with our processor, we will set up a dedicated group of dairy farmers from the Wiseman Milk Partnership, and we will develop long-term, transparent relationships. The foundation for this will be our Food Ethical Policy and the DEFRA 'dairy roadmap', with the focus on animal welfare, environmental stewardship and carbon footprint reduction."

He added: "Wiseman has been a valued supplier to The Co-operative for many years, and has consistently demonstrated high service levels and has proved to pay, on average, a higher standard farm gate milk price to British dairy farmers than any other major liquid milk processor.

"Wiseman is focussed on sustainability, and its flagship site at Bridgwater is one of the most efficient and environmentally advanced dairies in the world."

Billy Keane, Managing Director at Robert Wiseman Dairies, commented: "We are very pleased to further extend our relationship with The Co-operative Group, and delighted that this important customer has taken the decision to set up a dedicated group of dairy farmers drawn from the Wiseman Milk Partnership who will benefit from a premium farm gate milk price.

"We have invested heavily to create a network of dairies focussed on fresh milk and worked hard to build a reputation for quality and service. We now look forward to working closely with The Co-operative Group over the next few months to put these new fresh milk supply arrangements in place."

The move to a dedicated milk supply chain forms part of The Co-operative's ongoing support for British agriculture as Britain's biggest farmer and its fifth largest food retailer. Through its farming business, The Co-operative Farms, it grows a range of products including strawberries, potatoes, onions, shallots and apples, all of which are stocked in Co-operative stores, which always support British fresh produce, when in season.

In addition, all Co-operative brand fresh and frozen primary beef, pork, chicken, duck and turkey is 100% British, and all Co-operative brand bacon, sausage, gammon and ham (excluding continental products) is produced using only British meat.

As part of the Group's Ethical Operating Plan, The Co-operative Farms is aiming to supply 25% of all fresh produce sold in Co-operative stores by 2015, and later this month it will extend its higher welfare Elmwood standards for chicken and turkey to pork.

Business information expert, Equifax, has released its analysis of Business Failures for the first months of 2011 which seem to suggest a continuing downward trend in enterprises going under. With a 7.9% drop in failures for January-February 2011 compared to the same period in 2010, this should provide some positive signs for business leaders and government.

The latest figures from Equifax come hard on the heels of the latest data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) which showed total industrial production rose by 4.4% in January year-on-year, while manufacturing output rose by 6.8% over the same period.

Key Numbers
* 7.9% fall in failures overall in January-February 2011 compared to same period in 2010
* Yorkshire & Humberside sees biggest regional fall at 22.8%
* Wales records highest regional increase at 23.9%
* Construction sector sees biggest drop in year on year failures at 20.3%
* Hotel & Catering sector sees biggest year on year increase at 14.6%

Equifax comment
"We saw a steady drop in the number of organisations failing throughout 2010 - and these latest figures are continuing that trend" explained Neil Munroe, External Affairs Director, Equifax.

"Whilst there is no question that conditions remain difficult - and certainly at the end of last year and the first two months of 2011 the inclement weather paid its part in hitting sales we believe that good business management has paid off for many organisations. In particular pay freezes and tight control on invoice payments provided the essential focus on cost control and cash flow management to aid survival. But of course it is still early days for 2011 - and there will be much expectation on next week's Budget to help stimulate further growth."

The Regional Picture
In the regions the strongest performers year-on-year for January-February 2011 were Yorkshire & Humberside, Scotland and the South West with 22.8%, 21.5% and 20.4% drops in failures respectively. Wales (23.9%), West Midlands (4.5%), the East of England (3.3%) and the North West (0.2%) were the regions were there was a year on year increase in failures.

The Sector Story
Only the Hotel & Catering sector saw an increase in failures year on year - at 14.6%, but all other business areas reported decreases, with the Construction industry showing the best performance at a 20.3% drop year on year.

"These figures should give lenders confidence that businesses are taking all the right measures to protect their financial stability and, therefore, encourage new lending to support cash flow as well as growth" concluded Neil Munroe. However, it's crucial that businesses take note of the importance of monitoring existing customer performance because the knock-on effect of one organisation's failure can ripple throughout a region or sector very quickly.

"By operating best practice and harnessing the power of the latest risk management solutions, firms can minimise the threat of bad debt and secure the future of their own business."

The National Chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has called on the Government to create a country fit for entrepreneurs in its Budget due next week.

Speaking to delegates in his opening speech at the FSB's Annual Conference in Liverpool, National Chairman John Walker said that small businesses are key to sustaining economic recovery across the UK and urged the Government to ensure that next weeks Budget had the needs of small firms at its core calling for:

* The extension of the national insurance contributions holiday to include existing businesses
* The introduction of a fuel duty stabiliser to help firms' cash-flow

He also highlighted the FSB's key achievements since the Coalition Government came to power including: a commitment to reduce regulation, including the exemption of micro-businesses from time to train legislation; the extension of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee and the re-introduction of the Enterprise Allowance Fund as well as a commitment from central government to make the procurement process simpler.

And, as elections across local authorities in England and the devolved countries approach, Mr Walker urged members to go back to their constituencies and put the message to local and devolved government's that the small business community is integral to generating wealth and prosperity, but it needs a helping hand.

The Government has committed to making the procurement process easier for small firms around the country - but for many, these promises won't have an effect until local governments follow suit and make the same commitments.

John Walker, National Chairman, Federation of Small Businesses, said: "2010 was a tough year, and 2011 looks like it's going to be much of the same as the public sector cuts begin to bite, unemployment remains high and GDP contracts.

"The UK's 4.8 million small businesses are best placed to help the recovery, but they need a helping hand. We need to see the Chancellor use the Budget to create a country fit for entrepreneurs by providing incentives for businesses to take on staff and for self-employment to become a viable choice for the unemployed."

FACTFILE:

The FSB is Britain's leading business organisation with over 210,000 members. It exists to protect and promote the interests of the self-employed, and all those who run their own business. More information is available at www.fsb.org.uk

With Spring around the corner, Ambius, the workplace enrichment company has revealed its top plants for workplaces based on both feedback from its customers and the suitability of plants for different office environments. With almost 20% of the UK workforce spending over 45 hours a week at work*, the list has been produced as part of Ambius' focus on supporting employee well-being and engagement through the use interior planting, artwork and scenting.

Kenneth Freeman, International Technical Director for Ambius said: "We know that plants have proven benefits in reducing stress and anxiety as well as alleviating sick building syndrome and we are seeing more and more businesses keen to reap the benefits of interior planting to help boost staff well-being and increase productivity. It's not uncommon for workers to spend more than 12 hours at their desk - the humble office plant could be their only opportunity to connect with nature."

BIG AND BOLD
Plants that make a bold statement and are particularly liked by office staff:
* Monstera deliciosa (Cheese plant)
* Dracaena fragrans and Dracaena 'Janet Craig'
* Phiodendron scandens and Epipremnum aureum - colourful vining plants that are usually trained around a pole but will sometimes be unwound and trailed around desks and filing cabinets
* Philodendron 'Red Emerald' or Anthurium 'Jungle King' - both big leafy, fleshy plants
* Kentia palm (Howea forsteriana) - an ageless classic that is great in almost any type of design environment from retro to ultra-modern.

BRIGHTENING DIM AREAS
Plants for dimly-lit areas, such as board rooms, dark corners or places with subtle "mood" lighting:
* Aspidistra elatior - old Victorian favourite, sometimes called the Cast Iron plant for its robustness.
* Chamaedorea metallica. A small, bushy palm with metallic-looking foliage will tolerate near darkness.
* Rhapis excelsior - the Lady Palm. Expensive but elegant and pretty robust in low-light areas.

IMPROVING AIR QUALITY
For plants to contribute a little more to indoor air quality:
* Spathiphyllum species and hybrids are good.
* Chrysalidocarpus lutescens (Butterfly palm) is also implicated in good air quality experiments.
* Some ferns are good too, such as the Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)

TO FILL A TIGHT SPOT
For areas where space is a premium, tall thin plants are good - most Dracaenas would fit the bill here.

FACTFILE:
Ambius is the world's largest provider of plants, replica foliage and flowers for commercial environments. Ambius also offers a broad range of products and services including ambient scenting, and artwork which can help improve employee productivity, reduce absenteeism and boost well-being in the workplace. Ambius is a Planet Positive Certified Business. Find out more at www.ambius.co.uk/sustainability.

Golfers looking for a new set of clubs for the 2011 season will be able to try and buy the latest equipment from a host of the biggest manufacturers at the National Golf Show.

Nike, TaylorMade, Mizuno, Wilson, Yonex, Titleist, Cobra and Benross will be among the brands showcasing their newest clubs at the golfing extravaganza from April 15-17.

Visitors will be able to test out the latest clubs from all the big names as well as enjoying a full custom-fitting service and buying equipment at some exclusive show-only prices.

Internet Golf Store.co.uk will be running a huge purpose-built shop for the three days of the show and as well as offering some great bargains and deals will also give all visitors a £5 voucher to spend at the event.

In addition it will also offer a dedicated full custom-fitting service to visitors on the show's enormous indoor driving range where clubs from all of the brands will be available to test.

The strong line up of manufacturers bodes well for the launch event which is aiming to provide golfers from across the UK the best opportunity to see everything available within the sport.

The National Golf Show takes place from April 15-17 and a strong focus on visitor participation will mean golfers are greeted by a host of opportunities to swing a club, with free tuition from fully qualified coaches and the chance to win fantastic prizes on a variety of innovative fun and games among the show's main features.

Advance tickets to the National Golf Show cost just £7.50 - a 25 per cent saving from the on-the-door price - and come with a selection of exclusive golfing offers and benefits for visitors.

For more information or to buy tickets call 0844 581 0801 or go to www.nationalgolfshow.com.

HSBC and the Rosslyn Park National Schools Sevens Tournament have today announced a new sponsorship which sees the world's local bank further extend its investment in Rugby Sevens since the decision to include the sport in the Olympic Games from 2016.

The Rosslyn Park HSBC National Schools Sevens will be staged from 28th March until 1st April. The 7,500 participants age from 13 to 19 with boys and girls taking part in the various different competitions during the week. Over 700 teams of all levels from across the UK as well as five international visiting teams from Denmark, Spain, Nigeria, Romania and Kenya, play in the tournament, which is now in its 72nd year.

The tournament has an unrivalled roll-call of former participants including England Coach Martin Johnson, Gareth Edwards, Lawrence Dallaglio, Will Carling and current England Sevens captain Ben Gollings. They have all played in the tournament which was first won by St George's Harpenden in 1939.

Ben Ryan, England Sevens head coach, commented: "The National Schools Sevens is a fantastic event and one that showcases the talents of the England Sevens players of the future. The bulk of the current England squad taking part in the HSBC Sevens World Series have played - and won - there in recent years and the likes of Ollie Lindsay-Hague have stepped up into the international game. That's a testament to the health of the game in our schools and the stage that Rosslyn Park provides."

Speaking on the announcement, Giles Morgan, Head of Group Sponsorship for HSBC Holdings plc said, "HSBC has a long term investment in rugby and is proud to add the world's biggest schools Sevens tournament to our portfolio. An important part of all of our rugby sponsorships is the aim to help develop and grow the sport - both XVs and Sevens - and by working with Rosslyn Park, we hope to ensure even more youngsters are excited and committed to the sport over the coming years. Not only do thousands of children of all ages play in the tournament, but schools who have only played rugby for one season also participate in the tournament enabling youngsters of all abilities and experience to be part of the same event.

"This is a tremendous occasion that is known and loved throughout the rugby world, and HSBC is looking forward to partnering such a major youth event over the coming years."

Shaun Justice, Managing Director of Rosslyn Park RFC, said, "Rosslyn Park and everyone associated with the tournament is delighted that such a major international company as HSBC, with such a strong standing in rugby around the world, has chosen to come on board and officially support the event.

"This is particularly exciting as it coincides with a resurgence in the performance of Rosslyn Park, both on and off the field. The Rosslyn Park HSBC National Schools Sevens is one of the highlights of the school's sports calendar and we are confident that over the coming years the tournament will continue to grow and thrive through this exciting new partnership with HSBC."

The 2010 winners of the tournament were Millfield (Colts), Tonbridge (Festival), Hartpury College (Girls), Wimbledon (Juniors), Millfield (Open) and Millfield (Preps).

The 2011 Rosslyn Park HSBC National Schools Sevens will be staged from Monday 28th March until Friday 1st April.

For more information please visit www.ns7.co.uk

British mobile phone users want to talk for only 10 minutes a day on their mobiles - preferring to surf, text and go social instead

Mobile phone users prefer sending text messages and surfing the net to a good old fashioned chat!

That's according to www.DialToSave.co.uk, a top mobile phone price comparison websites

The site's statistics show 51% of people looking for phone bundles now search for a maximum of only 300 inclusive talk time minutes per month, compared with an average of over 600 minutes just a year ago.

That's more than 3 times as many people as those looking for 20 minutes a day (600 minutes a month), and 7 times as many as those requiring 30 minutes a day (900 minutes). A year ago, people were mostly hunting for deals of 600-1000 minutes.

A massive 87% of consumers are searching for 24-month contracts. That's 8 times as many as those hunting for 18-month contracts and 19 times as many as those reviewing 12-month deals.

Richard Cappin, DialToSave's founder says: "The inclusive minutes trend is an indicator of just how important mobiles and smartphones in particular have become - for everything other than talking!

"Over half our consumers don't want anything more than 300 minutes of talk-time a month. They want to surf, use their social networks, and send texts, much more than they want to talk. A lot of people seem more comfortable sending text messages in public places than they are making voice calls.

"It's the other handset offerings that count nowadays. People are using features such as text messaging and social networking apps to communicate - even more than they're using their own voice.

"The growing importance of mobile apps also increases the need for high speed data access via HSDPA and WiFi, which is now included with many low minute tariffs.

"The smartphone also acts as a camera and MP3 player so the ability to make voice calls is just one of many features to take into account.

"We think there's a clear trend of people having conversations over multiple text messages rather than talking, as over 70% of people using our site want unlimited texts every month.

"People are also choosing longer contracts, largely due to the lower handset costs and better cashback deals made available by retailers and networks for longer contracts."

DialToSave uses revolutionary search tools to help people choose their perfect mobile phone package. It was founded in 2003 and is one of the first websites to enable users to find phones by searching features, from QWERTY keyboards to video calling, WiFi to MP3 players.

The site also enables users to easily filter deals on everything from monthly cost to inclusive minutes, number of texts to data download limit.

DialToSave's hugely popular news and features section covers everything from upcoming handsets to the latest network news, software updates, tablets and developments in technology.

The statistics are based on the records of mobile phone deals searched for and clicked on using DialToSave's Deal Selector tool during February 2011 and can be found at http://www.dialtosave.co.uk/febstats

Actinic (www.actinic.co.uk), a leading ecommerce software supplier, announces the latest edition of the book 'Selling Successfully Online - Over 300 top tips for running an ecommerce website' by CEO, Chris Barling. The 145 pages provide objective guidance and practical advice for entrepreneurs, start-ups and small to medium-sized businesses on every aspect of selling on the internet.

Selling Successfully Online is available as an A5 paperback from Amazon for £7.99 (www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0955068819), or for a limited time as a free PDF download from www.actinic.co.uk/top-tips.

Written and laid out in an easily digestible format which allows readers to dip in and out of particular topics, Chris Barling has collated the best tips from his own articles published over the last 15 years, as well as including real world advice from online shop owners and ecommerce site developers. As a result the book offers a wealth of vendor-neutral ideas and sound professional advice to those thinking about ecommerce, as well as anyone already selling online.

Topics covered include:
* Introduction to selling online including a FAQ about selling on the internet and setting up advice;
* Marketing a website - attracting people, digital marketing, SEO, PPC, email marketing, social networks, using video/audio and measuring performance;
* Selling - maximising sales with optimal product pages, turning browsers into buyers, avoiding abandoned shopping carts, pricing and promotion;
* Operations - fraud prevention, staying legal and shipping considerations;
* Advanced ecommerce - selling abroad, mobile commerce and multi-channel retail;
* Customer relations - showing customers you care, interaction and feedback.

Book reviewers have described it as:
"A must read for anyone thinking of selling online, Chris Barling has packed in over 300 practical tips based on his experience of helping thousands of businesses setting up ecommerce websites. The book is divided into easy to follow sections and covers all the aspects of selling online. If you are thinking of selling online this book will be invaluable to have and keep returning to." Brian Jack, managing director of www.is4profit.com.

Rory MccGwire, founder of www.startupdonut.co.uk and www.marketingdonut.co.uk says, "The ecommerce advice Chris gives visitors to our business advice websites is always sharp and insightful. Here it's condensed into more than 300 practical tips for increasing online sales that anyone can follow -- if I were you, I'd get hold of this book before your rivals do."

FACTFILE:

About the author:
Chris Barling, CEO and co-founder of Actinic has provided advice and insight for small and medium businesses over the past 15 years. He has 30 years' experience in the IT industry, having held senior positions in Reuters, Cable and Wireless and GLS before joining Actinic and is also a non-executive director with Hargreaves Lansdown plc, the independent financial service provider.

His articles, blogs and interviews have appeared in the leading ecommerce and small business media including .net, BCS Annual Review, Better Business, Business Matters, BusinessZone, Catalogue e-Business, Internet Retailing, is4profit, MarketingDonut, New Business, New Media Knowledge, Retail Systems, Retail Technology, StartupDonut and many more.

The new Inspiron R series joins Dell's expansive collection of laptops and desktops equipped with the latest Intel processors and are fun, stylish and lightning quick. Available today at Dell.co.uk, the new Inspiron R 15- and 17-inch laptops deliver incredible mobile entertainment, high-definition displays and outstanding battery life, but that's just the beginning.

The perfect combination of brains and beauty - the latest addition to the Inspiron family also introduces an innovative new design twist: new SWITCH by Design Studio interchangeable lids that switch the look of Inspiron R laptops with just a pop and a click. The SWITCH by Design Studio collection includes 23 new eye-popping lids sporting vibrant colours and unique designs. Start the day with a Peacock Blue lid, and switch it out for a design-inspired look at night. SWITCH by Design Studio will be available with select lids at launch, with more options introduced in the coming weeks.

But the Inspiron R shouldn't be judged by its cover(s) alone. Packing the latest 2nd generation Intel Core technology, the Inspiron R laptops benefit from sleek form factors, up to 13 hours of battery life[ii] with the optional 9-cell battery and incorporate the latest USB 3.0 technology to make transferring photos, videos, music and other graphics-rich files faster than ever.

Performance? Check! What about the lids? Curated collections carefully selected from Dell Design Studio are coming soon. The contemporary art and graphic designs available from SWITCH by Design Studio and will offer exclusive selections from outstanding independent artists, designers and partners including OPI and Threadless and (PRODUCT)RED™, where a portion of proceeds go to The Global Fund to help fight AIDS in Africa .

"Our Inspiron R models equipped with 2nd gen Intel Core processors deliver the ultimate in entertainment and mobility and because customers value both performance and style, the eye-catching lids are designed to suit your mood or style at any given moment," said Sam Burd, vice president Dell's Consumer & SMB Product Group. "With the Inspiron-R series, we're living up to our heritage of delivering the performance you need to do more, and with SWITCH by Design Studio, you can look good while doing it," Burd added.

FACTFILE:

What Dell has to say:
With a range of entertainment, storage, productivity and show-stopping design options available on the Inspiron R, Dell makes it easy for people to go online and choose the perfect Inspiron R laptop with confidence, knowing it will be a smart investment that will deliver the ideal technology-by-design for them.

Inspiron R: Key Features

* 2nd generation Intel Core i3, i5 and i7 processor options and up to 8GB of memory
* Weight starting at 2.65kg / 5.84 lbs for the Inspiron 15R
* 6-cell battery included with 9-cell battery options
* SRS Premium Audio and high-definition video performance
* Intel Wireless Display technology for wireless projection of full 1080p video and 5.1 surround sound to your home theatre for a breath-taking movie-viewing experience
* Support for Blu-ray 3D movie playback when equipped with the optional Blu-ray drive and connected to your 3D TV (HDMI 1.4 required)
* Integrated Dell Stage software, providing one-click access to photos, music, videos, social-networking sites, e-books and more
* HD capable webcam
* ChicletTM-style keyboard
* Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium with option for Professional
* Optional SWITCH by Design Studio lids featuring the new India Collection and designs from OPI, Threadless.com, (PRODUCT)RED™ and various artists

Pricing and Availability

Inspiron R
The new Inspiron R models are available today in the UK on Dell.co.uk

* Inspiron 15R (SWITCH by Design Studio model with black lid): Starts at £479 inc VAT and shipping
* Inspiron 17R (SWITCH by Design Studio model with black lid): Starts at £529 inc VAT and shipping
* SWITCH by Design Studio lids: Start at £29

Tweet This: Pop. Click. Switch. New Dell Inspiron R Series w/interchangeable lids lets you change your look at any moment. http://dell.to/gteGEk

www.dell.co.uk/inspiron

Broadbandgenie.co.uk has joined communications regulator Ofcom in condemning the use of the word 'unlimited' when selling broadband and mobile phone tariffs that are anything but.

Confused consumers have received huge bills, leading to anger and mistrust of broadband and phone suppliers. Ofcom's own research shows a host of examples of 'bill shock' where charges reach hundreds of pounds, or where internet speeds have been slashed within weeks of starting a new contract due to exceeding the 'fair use' policy. Broadbandgenie.co.uk users regularly contact them with similar stories.

Broadband Genie editor Chris Marling added: "There is no excuse for advertising a broadband product as 'unlimited' - suggesting you can download as much as you want - and then bury the times you are allowed to do that in the small print. The same goes for texts and minutes on mobile phones.

"While the recent 'up to' recommendations from Ofcom to the ASA took the headlines, this is another significant announcement that will further help consumers get some transparency in the broadband deals they are offered. Complaints about speed are born of frustration, but those about bill shock can have very real consequences."

The majority of leading UK internet and mobile service providers use the term 'unlimited' in their advertising, despite putting heavy restrictions on usage in the small print.

On using the word 'unlimited' in advertising, Ofcom's report told the Advertising Standards Authority: "It is clear some consumers are currently being misled by the use of the term 'unlimited' and that many consumers signing up to such packages are not made aware of the relevant fair usage policies." It concludes, "Ofcom recommends that this term only be used when a service has no usage caps implemented through a fair usage policy."

It should put an end to a practice many have called dishonest and misleading. The likes of BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk all currently offer supposedly 'unlimited' broadband deals that in fact carry strict fair usage polices. Of the large brands, only Sky and Virgin Media offer any actual unlimited deals at all. The Ofcom proposal will put a stop to this confusing and arguably dishonest advertising practice - a move fully backed by Broadband Genie.

Ofcom Examples
* A consumer had a pay monthly mobile and was told at the point of sale that she would receive unlimited SMS, call and mobile internet. The consumer was subsequently and unexpectedly billed £350 for exceeding the fair usage policy which applied.
* Another consumer took out a mobile phone contract on the basis it had free unlimited texts. He had then had his service suspended as he had spent £157 on texting, after exceeding the fair usage limit of 3000 texts per month.
* A consumer stated that he entered into a mobile phone contract to a provider that offered unlimited internet usage because the 3GB per month limit on his previous contract was not sufficient. The consumer then found that there was a Fair Usage Policy which limited his usage to 500 MB per month, i.e. considerably less than his previous service which he found to be inadequate.
* A consumer signed up to an unlimited broadband service but within the first few weeks received an email from the provider stating that the fair usage limit of 100GB had been exceeded and their broadband service would be slowed down as a result.

FACTFILE:

Broadband Genie is a leading independent broadband, mobile broadband and smartphone comparison website, providing consumers with an unbiased source of information on prices and contracts and allowing them to compare providers in an independent environment. Broadband Genie was launched in March 2004 as the first dedicated consumer comparison site for broadband, while Mobile Broadband Genie was the first independent mobile broadband comparison site, launched in October 2007. The sites were combined in 2010, with the addition of smartphone comparison. The site is one of the most popular in its field, regularly featuring in the national press. www.broadbandgenie.co.uk

The spy camera watch is a truly innovative piece of technology- it combines a camera and a video recorder into a normal-looking watch. It has various applications, such as accumulation of evidence, private investigation, the recording of business meetings, and more.

The waterproof spy camera watch offered by Ankaka comes with either 4GB or 8GB. From looking at it, you would never guess that it is equipped with so many functions. It has the ability to take photos and record both video and close range audio simultaneously. It can even function as a portable flash drive!

This is the best way to record all your encounters, interviews, meetings and on-the-scene discussions without anyone even knowing what you are up to. If you have ever had to spontaneously have a meeting or had a sudden encounter with someone that just needed to be caught on camera, now you can instantly and secretively record that conversation for later review.

The stylish watch is suitable to wear with both casual and formal outfits. Around the dial plate, there is an adjustable direction indicator which helps add even more practicality to this watch.

This spy watch has a high-quality 2.0 megapixel camera which can let you take crystal-clear photos. To copy photos or video to your computer, simply use the USB 2.0 port.

Ankaka's spy watch is designed for simple and easy operation, and can be worn on either arm. The video + audio format it records in is AVI, at a surprising resolution of 1280x960 at 30 frames per second. That's right, this amazing watch records in HD! And even when the battery for the video recorder runs out, it will still keep time, since the watch runs on its own separate battery.

The battery can be used for 2 hours of continuous recording. Specific methods for operating the watch are detailed in its English instruction manual.

FACTFILE:

Ankaka is a wholesale electronics supplier located in Shenzhen, China. You can check out their spy camera watch by visiting this link: http://www.ankaka.com/Wholesale-spy-cameras_c10086

Due to continued growth and expansion, business flights specialist CT Business Travel is moving to pastures new.

UNIGLOBE member CT Business Travel is one of the UK’s leading business travel agents providing corporate travel services to an impressive range of national and international clients.

Established in 1988, the company has grown from strength to strength, and in recent years due to its expansion the business has had to spread itself across several offices within Tunbridge Wells.

With the business set to continue to expand, Managing Director Mark Kempster decided it was time to find alternative premises.

Moving to one large location means the business can finally pull all departments under one roof bringing IT, marketing, operations, accounts and not forgetting the hub of the business - its call centre - together for the first time.

The new office, still located in Tunbridge Wells is an industrial unit being converted into a modern office building providing staff with exceptional working facilities. The refurbishment programme has already begun and is set to take approximately 5 months to complete. The business is expecting to be settling into its new offices this summer, compete with air conditioning, a first for CT Business Travel staff.

CT Business Travel’s Cardiff office still remains an important arm to the business, and this office is also steadily growing and increasing its staff numbers accordingly.

Managing Director Mark Kempster commented, “Whilst the industry is still experiencing challenging times, CT Business Travel is managing to buck the trend with the levels of business we’re securing. There have been several contributing factors to this, such as making our services more accessible to businesses by removing contractual terms. With our business focusing on providing exceptionally high levels of service in addition to very competitive fees, we are able to retain new clients who have initially tried our services without us tying them into lengthy contract terms”.

For more information about the travel management services CT Business Travel provide and its competitive business flights prices visit www.ctbusinesstravel.co.uk or call 01892 673 427.

Winter sports fans will be pleased to learn that a new guide to ski holidays has been launched by the international mountain holiday experts SkiHorizon.

The guide covers topics as diverse as ‘the essential slopes to try before you die’, Michelin-starred restaurants near ski resorts and activities for non-skiing friends in the mountains, and is available in three languages – English, Dutch and French.

This is a rich resource for anyone who is interested in skiing, snowboarding, or indeed, just interested in Europe’s mountain resorts. It is also intended to help winter sports enthusiasts to choose from the vast array of ski holiday destinations, so they can pick the right location for their interests and abilities.

Many online ski holiday guides are destination-based, but the SkiHorizon Ski Holiday Guide is different. The articles and navigation are based around different holiday types (family holidays, snowboarding, travelling in groups etc.) as well as the experience level of the skier or snowboarder.

SkiHorizon Ski Holiday Guide editorial team also understand that new skiers have very different needs to people who have a wealth of skiing experience to draw on, so there are a number of articles that have been written specifically with beginner skiers in mind. New skiers are given guidance on ski lessons, etiquette on the slopes and simple (but essential) details such as what to pack in their suitcases.

This doesn’t mean that experienced skiers won’t enjoy the SkiHorizon Ski Holiday Guide too. On the contrary, readers will discover lesser-known skiing areas, get insights into unforgettable off-piste adventures and are invited to share their tips and experiences.

Frédéric Lanier, Search & Affiliation Marketing Manager for the Travel Horizon Group says: “The articles have been put together by an expert and enthusiastic team who are delighted to share their skiing, snowboarding and travel experiences with other snow sports fans.”

“Anyone who has experience of booking ski holidays knows that the biggest challenge is making a decision about where to go – there is just so much choice! Our Editors have produced guides based on their personal experiences so our readers are better informed about what the facilities, activities and general atmospheres are at Europe’s many ski destinations.

FACTFILE:

The SkiHorizon Ski Holiday Guides can be found at http://www.skihorizon.co.uk/ski-holiday-guide
Updates to the guide will appear weekly throughout the 20-11 winter ski season and new articles will continue to be published throughout the year, when there will be news and reviews of summer mountain activities.

Power Efficiency, the energy procurement and carbon strategy consultancy, is today urging Government and industry to work together to develop energy efficiency policy that will save UK business over £6 billion every year.

Julius Brinkworth, Director of Energy Projects at Power Efficiency, and co-Chair of the recent Carbon Connect Inquiry into energy efficiency in the private sector, said: “UK business cannot afford to ignore the financial benefits of being energy efficient in such economically difficult times. By being smarter about how and when we use energy, the private sector can start making sizeable savings quickly – many within just one year.”

The Carbon Connect Inquiry produced a report with 15 recommendations for improving energy efficiency in businesses across the UK. Amongst these is the suggestion that Government should pilot a new-build energy performance contract to demonstrate the energy savings achievable.

“Although there are various PFI contracts with carbon targets,” said Brinkworth, “an example contract and project would provide a basis for industry to develop new contracts and performance criteria for buildings. Input from the Government to develop an example that accurately specifies how much extra energy could be reduced by implementing efficient designs, commissioning and operation of buildings, would be invaluable, creating a robust business model for change.

Focusing on specific sectors, the report also recommends that Government should work with the insurance industry to develop suitable low cost insurance policies for energy efficiency projects.

Commenting on this, Brinkworth said: “Experience on large energy projects shows that failure is often not due to lack of funding, but to the complications of insuring the whole project. The project management on energy projects is often disjointed, involving a range of specialist contractors and equipment and creating ‘dead zones’ where there is a lack of connection and responsibility. To ensure the project is kept on track, the insurance industry could create a series of products designed to manage the risk between investors, building owners and contractors.”

Brinkworth also calls on the Department for Communities and Local Government to get involved in discussions about offering local tax rebates to businesses that improve their energy efficiency. This would be linked to the energy performance of a building, as assessed through Display Energy Certificates, with business rates to create an incentive to both building design and operation. Additionally, he would like to see landlords and tenants being able to pass tax incentives like the enhanced capital allowance on energy efficiency equipment between them, which will encourage long-term tenants to invest in energy efficiency.

“Some of these recommendations are very simple to implement, but they require commitment from both Government and from business,” he said. “If we can achieve this, it will not only save UK companies a great deal of money, but it will also have a huge impact on our carbon emissions, which as a nation, we are legally bound to reduce drastically by 2020.”

The Carbon Connect report “Energy Efficiency: The Untapped Business Opportunity” can be accessed at www.policyconnect.org.uk/cc/research

Journalists are increasingly turning to professional enquiry tools to satisfy their thirst for content, says Daryl Willcox Publishing.

Use of the company’s Response Source enquiry system rose by 17% from 2009 to 2010.

While the majority of requests came from journalists in the consumer press, which includes magazines such as Bella and FHM, the second largest users were journalists from national publications including the Daily Mail, The Sun and The Guardian.

Out of 22,431 enquiries sent to PR professionals in 2010, 4,235 came from a national newspaper title. 8,895 came from consumer titles while 3,800 came from a website or blog.

“There is real pressure on journalists to create quality content often in short timeframes,” said Daryl Willcox, founder and Chairman of Daryl Willcox Publishing. “More are turning to online tools to help them hit their deadlines; putting them in touch with relevant contacts in the PR industry.”

Analysing requests sent through Response Source last year, Daryl Willcox Publishing found that freelance and staff journalists made up the majority of requests, with 87% (19,430), the remaining 13% coming from broadcast outlets, bloggers and PRs.

The company’s Response Source query system allows journalists to send requests and questions to PR professionals within their sector. It is free to use, with journalists often using it to source expert comment, review products and case studies.

Willcox added: “Specific information for stories, such as interviewees, case studies or photos, can be sourced quickly when deadlines are tight.”

FACTFILE:

Daryl Willcox Publishing (www.dwpub.com) provides information services for people in journalism, public relations and marketing. Launched in 1997, the company connects media professionals to create opportunities for timely, relevant press coverage. Products include the Response Source Journalist Enquiries System, SourceWire and Response Source press release wires, the Freelance Journalist Directory and the and FeaturesExec PR software. Over 2,500 companies use Daryl Willcox Publishing's media relations services, including around 120 of the top 150 PR Companies.

(EDITOR: I have been a very happy user of the services provided by Daryl Willcox Publishing for a number of years. In my opinion, if you are a journalist or a PR professional who does not use Responsesource, you are only doing half of your job!)

Over 60 government contractors and architecture and engineering firms have purchased Deltek Connect for Microsoft Outlook since it was released; enhanced solution is now compatible with Microsoft Outlook 2010

Deltek, Inc. has announced the availability of an enhanced version of Deltek Connect for Microsoft Outlook that is now compatible with Outlook 2010. Connect for Microsoft Outlook integrates Deltek Vision, Deltek Costpoint, and GovWin CRM with Microsoft Outlook, enabling business development and marketing professionals to perform important Vision, Costpoint, and GovWin CRM tasks in Microsoft Outlook, ensuring that all sales and marketing activities are recorded in one CRM system of record.

Connect for Microsoft Outlook offers numerous innovative capabilities, allowing business development professionals to manage their business appointments, emails and contacts, as well as manage clients, activities and opportunities – all from Microsoft Outlook. By enabling personnel to manage their CRM records directly in Microsoft Outlook, user adoption of Deltek CRM can expand significantly within organisations that use both solutions.

Connect for Microsoft Outlook was created in partnership with InvisibleCRM – a leading technology custom solutions developer. Leveraging technology from InvisibleCRM, Deltek was able to successfully launch Connect for Microsoft Outlook in 2010. Since its launch, 60 government contractors and architecture and engineering firms have purchased the solution including organisations such as Overwatch Systems, Ltd. and Sebesta Blomberg – a nationally-recognised engineering and design services firm and one of the largest engineering firms in the United States.

"It was a struggle to keep our CRM data maintained and current," said JJ Brantingham, CIO at Sebesta Blomberg. "With Connect for Microsoft Outlook, our users have more power and can access data through a familiar environment, making adoption of this new solution smooth and simple. We didn’t have to change what we do, but overall, we're much more efficient.”

“Our partnership with Deltek proves once again that our solutions work to bridge business applications," said Vlad Voskresensky, CEO of InvisibleCRM. “Our key design principle ‘Do not change the people, change the software’ can be seen working inside Deltek’s Connect solution. Our technology helps to deliver the integration and synchronisation that Deltek’s customers leverage on daily basis to power their business development initiatives.”

“Leading government contractors and professional services firms are embracing technology to streamline and improve their sales and marketing processes," said Namita Dhallan, Executive VP, Product Strategy and Management for Deltek.“In conjunction with InvisibleCRM, we were able to deliver Connect for Microsoft Outlook to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of our customers’ business development processes, and as a result, these Deltek customers are seeing a better adoption rate of their CRM software across their organisations.”

FACTFILE:

InvisibleCRM is a technology provider of tools engineered to increase user adoption and ROI of enterprise applications by seamlessly integrating them into the way business people work every day. These tools enable users to work with their customer and corporate information, without leaving their favourite applications – Microsoft Outlook and Windows. InvisibleCRM was named Cool Vendor by Gartner and was an “Under the Radar” winner in 2007.

Deltek is a top global provider of enterprise software and information solutions for professional services firms, government contractors, and government agencies. For decades, we have delivered actionable insight that empowers our customers to unlock their business potential. Over 14,000 organisations and 1.8 million users in approximately 80 countries around the world rely on Deltek to research and identify opportunities, win new business, optimise resources, streamline operations, and deliver more profitable projects.

www.deltek.com.

Two Companies Combine to Provide First Class Training and Simple Route to MCS Accreditation.

Trade Skills 4U and Easy MCS, today, announced their collaboration to deliver first class training with award winning MCS accreditation. This type of partnership will enable both parties to provide better and extended services to their customers.

MCS accreditation exists to protect the consumer by ensuring the products installed and the installer feeds back to the national grid and meet the approved standards. If an installation is not certified then the home owner will be unable to sell their energy back to the national grid. An installer can only gain MCS accreditation if they have both relevant accredited training and the appropriate QMS package in place.

“We are excited to be offering this new service to provide trainee’s with a straightforward route to MCS accreditation. It’s great to have found a company like Easy MCS that provide a professional and supportive service which echoes our own philosophy, when delivering relevant training” says Quality Coordinator Donna Latimer at Trade Skills 4U.

Thomas Farquhar, Sales Manager for Award Winning Easy MCS Ltd comments “We are thrilled to be partnering with Trade Skills 4U undoubtedly the UK’s most forward thinking Renewable training provider. The installers we are working with who are starting up in the Renewable’s industry often need a high levels of support and training, Trade Skills 4U has unrivalled training facilities and a full suite of courses to suit each individual installer’s needs and we are pleased to be recommending them to our customers”.

FACTFILE:

Trade Skills 4U LTD are the UK’s largest independent electrical training centre that specialises in electrical training courses. Their Renewable Energy Training facility will be launching in May where a range of Renewable energy skills such as Solar PV courses will be on offer.

For more information please visit www.tradeskills4u.co.uk or call 01293 554010.

Easy MCS LTD provides award winning MCS accreditation for installers by offering a complete MCS accreditation mentoring package. This is built to ensure your company meets all the requirements of the MCS scheme.

Responding to the publication of Review of Vocational Education – The Wolf Report (3 March, 2011), Ann Watson comments: “I fully support the findings of Professor Wolf’s Review of Vocational Education – qualifications will only lead to long-term career opportunities if they incorporate an element of work-based experience and are more closely tailored to the needs of industry. Training should not be about getting bums on seats but preparing learners to make a valuable contribution once in the workplace.

“I especially welcome Professor Wolf’s view that employers taking on 16-18 year old apprentices should be eligible for payments; worthwhile investment in an apprentice is a big consideration for employers, particularly in these times when the cost of running a business seems to be risings with little material return or gain. For too long now employers have been paid lip service, with no financial incentive or reward for their input into training – this must change. I would, however, also like to see employers incentivised to take on the 19 plus age group, many of which are desperately seeking support to start their careers. With youth unemployment pushing the one million mark, the Government cannot afford to allow the UK’s economy to rest with the training of 16-18 year olds only.

“I am heartened by Professor Wolf’s recognition and support of the NVQ level 3 as a target standard of attainment. The vocational route doesn’t hinder alternative careers, especially when we consider sectors such as engineering, where transferable skills obtained in maths, science and management are core components. Look to any role within the manufacturing industry and you’ll find a range of skills being developed which only strengthen their employability. Understanding this is crucial if vocational education is to be seen as a credible option for young people, and vital in securing a skilled workforce.”

www.eal.org.uk for further details.

Accredibase™ second annual report into diploma and accreditation mills activity has revealed an astounding 48% increase worldwide in the number of known diploma and accreditation mills in the last year. As the Internet is the primary home for these bogus education and accreditation providers, little action is taken to stop them from helping unscrupulous candidates deceive unsuspecting employers.

According to the 2011 report, the UK remains Europe’s bogus university capital with 57% percent of European diploma mills claiming to operate from its shores. This year has seen a 25% increase in known diploma mills in the UK, with the number rising from 271 to 339, whilst in Europe as a whole the total number has risen from 454 to 593, an increase of 31%.

Top 10 European locations of the ‘degree con’ by country:

United Kingdom with 339 mills and 25% change over last year
Italy with 43mills and 207% change over last year
Belgium with 36 mills and 33% change over last year
Netherlands with 34 mills and 13% change over last year
Switzerland with 21 mills and 31% change over last year
Ireland with 20 mills and 25% change over last year
Germany with 13 mills and 0% change over last year
Spain with 12 mills and 33% change over last year
Austria with 11 mills and 0% change over last year
France with 11 mills and 57% change over last year

The world’s biggest concentration of fake universities remains the USA according to the 2011 Accredibase report which exposes 1,008 known bogus institutions, a rise of 20% in the last year.

Diploma mills are largely online entities whose degrees are worthless due to a lack of valid accreditation and recognition. The wide reach and anonymity of the Internet offers these operations the perfect market to exploit, which is alarming not just for prospective employers but for society as a whole.

Perhaps the largest and longest running network of diploma mills, University Degree Program, is still thriving despite action by the US Federal Trade Commission back in 2003. Accredibase found 18 active “university” and “accrediting agency” web sites linked to UDP, all hosted on the same IP address. Whilst many of these UDP mills claim to be based in the UK or have UK sounding names (eg. Chelsea University), there has been no action against them by the UK Government.

Eyal Ben Cohen, Managing Director of Verifile Limited said: “The most effective way to combat credential fraud is to share information on diploma mills through international cooperation and raise awareness of the problem. This year’s Accredibase report examines the current status of the diploma mill situation and considers what can be done to protect the public and businesses. Information resources like Accredibase make it easier for regulators, law enforcement agencies and the private sector to access information on bogus institutions and aid in the detection of diploma mills.”

The Accredibase report identifies the following red flags that may help in the identification of diploma mills*:

• The institution does not have authority to operate or grant degrees from the education authorities where it claims to be based.

• Degrees are delivered in a very short space of time – sometimes just a few days.

• Degrees are granted based entirely on work or life experience.

• Contact details are limited to an email address and the institution is vague about its location.

• The institution will allow the student to choose his/her own course title and specify the graduation year to appear on the certificate.

• Sample certificates, transcripts or verification letters are available to view on the website.

• Institutions make over-complicated or misleading claims about accreditation or recognition.

• The institution’s name is similar to that of a recognised and respected education institution.

• Internet domain names are misleading – such as ‘.ac’ instead of the regulated ‘.ac.uk’ used by higher education institutions in the United Kingdom.

• The website is poorly designed, has poor spelling and grammar or it plagiarises copy from other institutions.

Verifile’s proprietary database of diploma and accreditation mills, Accredibase™, keeps track of the credential fraud industry. Verifile’s Accredibase has identified approximately 5000 suspect educational institutions and accreditors, including 2,615 known bogus education and accreditation providers. In addition to the huge number of confirmed mills known to Accredibase, new suspect institutions are discovered on a daily basis – more than 2,000 are currently under investigation by Accredibase for inclusion in the database.

For further information or to read the Accredibase report for 2011, please visit http://www.accredibase.com

Award-winning copywriters Big Star Content are pleased to announce a rebrand as BigStarCopywriting.com with an updated website and a renewed focus on their core copywriting services: web copywriting, SEO copywriting, blogs, articles, press releases email and white papers.

Big Star Copywriting – new inspiration

“Our new name reflects not just our position in the industry and how our clients engage with us,” explains Big Star Copywriting’s managing director Derryck Strachan. “We’ve also made a conscious decision to return to a more straightforward but powerful offering: producing top quality web content for brands, digital agencies, search agencies and SMEs. Basically we do words for websites.”

Web copywriters for leading brands and organisations

Over the last five years, Big Star Copywriting has developed an impressive portfolio that includes several leading search agencies (Walker Media, Arena, Clickthrough Marketing) and copywriting work for major brands.

“Through our search clients, we’ve written web pages, blogs and articles for some of the biggest, household name brands in the UK. They include large retail, travel, financial and online gaming clients but unfortunately we can’t tell you who they are!” says Derryck. “We’ve also worked directly with dozens of brands, agencies and SMEs including Mascus, Ecco Shoes, Mintel, Dartmouth Smokehouse, Daily Mirror Shopping, Together UK and Visit South Devon.”

Looking to the future for UK copywriting

Big Star Copywriting consists of a team of highly experienced professional copywriters that produces everything from fully researched legal and medical articles through to product descriptions, landing page content, blogs and white papers. They also create effective press releases and email marketing content. Whatever the writing the focus is always on quality.

“We create the kind of content that appeals to both search engines and human visitors. We help businesses use content to attract customers, inspire them and then convert them into leads or sales. Once you’ve got those customers, we can then help you continue that relationship using the right content,” explains Derryck.

“Most online businesses now realise just how important fresh, original and engaging content is to the success of their business. Big Star Copywriting is here to help businesses get the most from their content, affordably and with the maximum impact.”

FACTFILE:

Big Star Copywriting is an award winning copywriting agency and is one of the UK's leading copywriting agencies; offering a broad range of copywriting services including web copywriting, seo copywriting and copywriter training courses.

www.bigstarcopywriting.com

Bupa has revealed the average British person is at risk of cutting more than a decade off their life through unhealthy lifestyle habits. This is according to new research from BUPA.

The Bupa study assessed lifestyle behaviours such as smoking, alcohol intake, diet and exercise as well as other factors, in nearly 5,000 adults across Britain to calculate the nation's average Health Age, which is the impact that lifestyles are having on Briton's life expectancy.

The results showed that on average, Brits have a Health Age 12 years older than if they adopted healthy habits. Worryingly, more than one in eight people are at risk of cutting their life short by 20 years or more.

Being married or in a long-term relationship has a positive impact on Health Age across all age groups, increasing potential life expectancy by more than four years.

Women in their 50s had some of the unhealthiest behaviours, being more inactive and overweight than women in other age groups. Men in their 50s and 60s were also more inactive and overweight than other men.

Dr Annabel Bentley, medical director, Bupa Health and Wellbeing said: "We all know that bad habits such as smoking and drinking too much alcohol damage our health but these findings show the real impact of our habits and the number of years we're knocking off our lives unnecessarily.

"But it's never too late to make a change for the better. Whether you're in your twenties or in your seventies, you could add years to your life by making lifestyle changes."

A link between happiness and healthiness also showed that nine out of ten of the healthiest people (91% - those within 6 years of their ideal health age) thought they were as happy as or happier than other people, while less than 7 in 10 of the least healthy people (66% - 25 or more years away from their ideal health age) thought so.

Even making one change to lifestyle can have a significant impact on life expectancy. For example, a 25 year old female who drinks 20 units a week (ten standard glasses of wine), could add up to three years to her life by drinking three fewer glasses of wine a week.

Users can discover their health age by completing the health age calculator at www.bupa.co.uk/findhealthy.

The calculator asks for basic information such as height, weight and age and for details on smoking, drinking, diet and exercise habits. The calculator then quantifies how far users are rolling back the clock or fast-forwarding their life if they continue in the same way.

To help empower people to make changes, the calculator also provides a figure of how many years someone can add to their life and provides recommendations, in likely order of priority, as to how to start lowering their health age.

The activity coincides with the launch of Bupa's 'Helping You Find Healthy' campaign which is a drive to engage the public to be as healthy as they can be.

Stena Line, one of the world's largest ferry operators, has announced it is predicting a 100 per cent increase in Indian passengers in 2011 on its twice daily ferry service between Harwich and the Hook of Holland.

Some 10,000 Indian tourists travelled the route between Harwich and the Hook of Holland in 2010 and 20,000 are expected to travel it in 2011 as Indians holidaying in Europe are trying to avoid the Air Passenger Duty (APD) costs that would be incurred if they chose to fly back home from the UK.

India is in the APD band C which means that the tax has doubled at the end of 2010 to £100 for standard class passengers and to £150 for premium passengers. Indian tourists who traditionally travel around on a trip to Europe are deliberately planning their itineraries to avoid flying back to India from the UK to prevent paying the newly increased charge.

Lars Olsson, general manager of Stena Line said, "Whilst I am not condoning the hike in APD, there has definitely been a huge upturn in traffic for Stena Line, particularly from the Indian market, who are ensuring they create a comfortable and relaxing itinerary that means they do not have to fly back from the UK."

Stena Line offers six hour overnight and daytime ferry crossings between Harwich and the Hook of Holland, aboard the largest Superferries in the world, the Stena Line Hollandica and Britannica, which were launched in 2010.

A regular global survey of hiring and firing trends covering over 14,400 organisations in 47 countries has found that the global recruitment market is steadying.

The ‘Global Snapshot’ project from the international recruitment firm, Antal, asked 14,465 companies in major markets such as western and eastern Europe, Africa, India, China and the USA whether they were currently hiring at professional and managerial level.

It then asked whether they planned to do so in the coming quarter and whether they were currently letting staff go or were planning to do so in the next three months.

Current hiring across the globe was down from 57% of respondents in the last survey in September to 50% now. However, the percentage of organisations intending to shed staff had dropped by 7% to 16%, indicating that the dip in recruitment activity is largely down to companies retaining their staff.

Western Europe

The highest current hiring levels were in Luxembourg (86%), the UK (66%), Belgium (65%), and France (58%). The lowest levels of hiring of professionals and managers were in the Netherlands (34%), Spain (33%) and Austria at just 23%.

Eastern Europe and Eurasia

The highest recruiting levels in this region were in the Ukraine (75%), Russia (72%) and the Czech Republic (64%).Hungary’s well-documented economic problems meant that it continued to have the lowest level of hiring in the region, but showed a modest improvement of 3% on last quarter, with 30% of businesses questioned actively seeking new managers or professionals this quarter.

Africa and the Middle East

Saudi Arabia registered the highest level of recruitment at professional and managerial level in Africa and the Middle East (76%) with Egypt just behind at 75% and Kenya and Qatar at 73%. The lowest level was in the UAE at just 46%.

Asia

The Philippines scored the highest in this region (73%) Pakistan followed with 67%, and China at 66%. The lowest score came from Singapore, with just 35% of organisations currently hiring.

The Americas

The Americas region is currently the most active recruiter in the world, with an average of 70% of business currently taking on managers and professionals. The highest scores came from the USA and Mexico, both at (76%) and the lowest scoring country was Argentina at a still relatively high 60%.

Australasia

Activity in Australia is up, from 78% in September to 79%. However, recruitment activity is down from 74% to 50% in the New Zealand.

Winners and losers

Across the globe, the sectors with the highest levels of recruitment at managerial and professional level were:

1. Social media
2. Business Services
3. Healthcare
4. Retail
5. Banking and Financial Services.

The lowest were legal, communications and pharma/medical, all falling below 40%.

Conclusions

“The good news is that the employment market is finally rightsizing and steadying,” says Tony Goodwin, Chairman and CEO of Antal International, “Although current recruitment activity is down by 7% from last quarter, this is matched by the percentage of organisations letting staff go, which has also dropped by 7% from 23% last quarter.”

He continues, “Western Europe has taken a hit, recording the lowest levels of recruitment activity of all regions. However, the Americas region has overtaken the Asia-Pacific region in having the highest demand for professionals and managers, signifying a small rebalance in economic power.”

He adds, “Although recruitment is down slightly on a global level, the percentage of organisations that are currently recruiting is still relatively high and staff retention is on the rise and is predicted to remain consistent in the coming quarter.”

omart Group, the cloud computing and managed hosting services company, continues to see strong demand through its iomart Hosting business, for the outsourcing of IT services to the cloud.

iomart Hosting is now closing between 30 to 40 new orders per month from both new and existing customers, having won several significant new contracts in the past few months.

Four recently signed contracts, from both new and existing customers, for the provision of a range of complex hosting environments, have a combined contractual value in excess of £1.8m.

These contracts provide further evidence that cloud and virtualised environments are fast becoming the de facto method of delivering technology services and applications at the enterprise level.

New contracts have been secured with office2office, the specialist provider of managed procurement and business critical services, GMG Radio, part of Guardian Media Group, one of Britain's leading radio businesses encompassing the Real Radio, Smooth Radio and Rock Radio brands, a leading pan European network provider and a well known recruitment company.

Angus MacSween, CEO of iomart Group commented, “We believe that cloud computing has reached a tipping point, and has significantly moved through the early adopter phase over the past six months. Almost every company, regardless of sector or size that we speak to is considering either a full or part cloud solution for their IT needs.”

“The differing flavours, or definitions, of cloud computing are now becoming widely accepted and understood, and definite purchasing trends are beginning to emerge. We are finding that the micro business is embracing the public cloud, whilst the enterprise and mid market is seeking the reassurance, scalability, security and reliability that a high availability hybrid or private cloud offers.”

MacSween added: “Managing diverse computing environments consisting of multiple hardware platforms, operating systems and applications is becoming the critical success factor for the enterprise when migrating and consolidating in the cloud, and they are seeking a trusted supplier as an enabler. It is our high availability cloud offering that represents our sweet spot, with our proven technical capabilities, coupled with our own UK data centre and network infrastructure, proving an attractive and compelling proposition for both new and existing customers.”

iomart intends to issue a group trading update around the end of its financial year, being 31 March 2011.

FACTFILE:

iomart Group is one of the UK’s leading providers of managed hosting and cloud computing services. From a single server through to private cloud networks, iomart specialises in the delivery and management of mission-critical hosting services, enabling customers to reduce the costs, complexity and risks associated with maintaining their own web and online applications.

By physically owning and managing its own network infrastructure, including five state-of-the-art data centres in the UK, iomart offers world-beating levels of service to its customers. The Group offers a unique 100% uptime guarantee with all hosting services being engineered to ensure no single point of failure.

Services offered include: Cloud Computing, managed hosting, Colocation, Complex Hosting solutions, Content Delivery Networks, IP Transit, Data Centre Services and Cloud Applications

www.iomart.com

“Mindful of Silver”
The journey of a vessel from conception to completion: A dynamic and revelatory exhibition by 12 leading contemporary
British silversmiths

At Goldsmiths’ Hall
From Friday May 27 to Saturday July 16, 2011
Admission Free

“Mindful suggests a thoughtful awareness and respect; it also references a mind that is full of ideas and thoughts.” Julie Chamberlain, Exhibition Curator

Mindful of Silver is an exciting and stimulating exhibition which challenges our perceptions of the modern day silversmith and illustrates the intellectual and practical design process involved in the making of innovative, design-led contemporary silver.

Twelve stunning, yet contrasting silver vessels form the core of the exhibition, each made by a different leading British silversmith. The participating silversmiths namely Vladimir Böhm, David Clarke, Rebecca de Quin, Sarah Denny, Alistair McCallum, Grant McCaig, Hector Miller, Peter Musson, Theresa Nguyen, Michael Rowe, Toby Russell and Lucian Taylor were chosen as they embody differing philosophies and approaches to their craft and demonstrate interesting, diverse making processes.

The exhibition curator Julie Chamberlain explains; “We are all familiar with the vessel as part of the technical heritage of the silversmith so each was challenged to design and make a silver vessel of their choice. This became the shared starting point for their individual thoughts. The silversmiths were also asked to keep a ‘metaphorical box’ into which they put anything and everything that contributed in some way to the intellectual and physical development of their piece.” The result is an energetic and honest reportage animated with a fascinating, disparate collection from tea stained scribbles, drawings in differing mediums, photographs, text, objects, models and material samples.

Creativity remains at the vortex of the exhibition but whirling round it are the complex, demanding and sometimes pragmatic elements of the design process. Hours of contemplation and practical experimentation are involved before an original, beautifully conceived vessel demonstrating the highest skill of the craft and individual intellect eventually emerges. Throughout the journey, which can be both playful and torturous, each silversmith has to make numerous decisions and incremental adjustments - it is an insight into these decisions which makes the exhibition so fascinating.

One distinguished participating silversmith and Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company, Hector Miller said: “As a designer I am often asked where ideas come from. This exhibition presents some of the creative processes that prompt new work and illustrates the varied ways in which I, and my colleagues, arrive at our own unique solutions to the challenge of a commission. The exhibition is not just about finished silver vessels, it is about drawings and models, images and objects, because although it is often the logic of thoughts and words that start a design process, it is by embracing the material world with the intuitive use of eyes and hands that a new piece comes into existence”.

Hector has delivered a “tour de force” and pushed the boundaries both creatively and technically with his elegant silver vessels. At first glance the vessels look like stunning decorative silver sculptures but in fact the tops unhinge to form natural handles thus making a practical pair of jugs. Inspired by the Dragon Tree, Hector’s design sequence from its conception to completion is documented by a series of drawings and models.

David Clarke has a reputation for producing engaging, intelligent and challenging domestic objects. His take on a vessel was to start with a spoon: “I respond to spoons and see them as the beginning. In the background is the tradition of silversmithing. My reaction is to subvert the subject and place strange, odd or humorous objects back into this dull predictable and stiflingly conservative arena.” In keeping with his design ethos David uses old squeezy bottles and mangled spoons to help him formulate his ideas. Despite his radical thoughts his resulting vessel, with its graceful narrow shape and spoon on the top, serving both as handle and lip, is extremely sophisticated and elegant.

The design process can be more abstract and intellectual. Michael Rowe takes a radically conceptual approach looking at the relationship between containers and what they contain. The humble Ryvita provides the vehicle for an exploration of geometrical proportions in silver for the table. Ryvita is made to the golden proportion, a formula that is followed through in its packaging making for an economical use of space and this, together with other geometrical ratios forms the basis of his group of vessels, treated as a site-specific display. The textured silver foundation echoes the crinkly, grained surface of the cracker.

In order to produce his scored and sheet folded jug, Toby Russell had to overcome the challenge of converting his final design from a card model into silver. He explains “Paper has its own unique quality and in some ways is less flexible than silver sheet. I never truly know how the design will convert or how far the silver can be pushed”. The image that inspired Toby throughout the design process was that of a prow of a boat cutting through water and as a keen swimmer and surfer, he is naturally drawn to images of waves.

Theresa Nguyen’s “Spiritus”, is a conceptual vessel for aesthetic effect. She has interpreted the notion of containment by producing an open and fluid form composed of multiple leaves unfurling from a tightly packed core. Theresa began by visiting some of the country’s most renowned gardens and freely sketching the form, movement and overlapping patterns of leaves. The proportions and scale of the design then evolved three dimensionally through model making in paper, wire and real leaves.

The ancient Japanese metalworking technique of Mokume Gane (wood grain metal) is taken to new heights in a bowl by Alistair McCallum made using an incredible 128 layers of silver and gilding metal. The final bowl emerged after considerable deliberation, documented by numerous drawings and a series of smaller hand-raised bowls made with much fewer layers. The layers were then dramatically increased in scale and number, and finally the bowl was hand-raised to produce a simple form that harmoniously complements the random organic nature of the pattern.

While the results are totally different, both Peter Musson and Lucian Taylor like to fuse the precision of modern technologies with the unpredictability of traditional hand-raising skills. In contrast Rebecca de Quin’s silver vase, its elegant lines echoed in a two-dimensional silhouette of blue aluminium, takes on the form of a still-life painting, while Sarah Denny’s sculptural vessel “Plunging Form” seeks to express simple changes of movement within an object and celebrates the natural beauty of her native Yorkshire. Sarah’s vessel went through the physical process of pencil to paper, to plasticine and then papier-mâché models followed by hours of hammering to raise the form from a large single blank of silver. Equally fascinating stages were also undergone before Vladimir Böhm produced his flat, rounded and textured dish which took its inspiration from the weight and solidness of a centuries old cattle trough in a village in his native Croatia. Likewise what complex thought processes and practical experiments did Grant McCaig go through before his vessel and associated beakers emerged?

The exhibition is a journey of visual and thoughtful discovery for both the maker and viewer – hence the title “Mindful of Silver”.

FACTFILE:

Julie Chamberlain is a practising designer/silversmith and educator. Since graduating from the Royal College in 1984 she has pursued an individual exploration of design-led silver from functional tableware through to a more conceptual approach. Recognising the importance of the history and tradition of her craft, she works towards these within a contemporary context whether it is as a designer, maker, educator or curator.

Julie particularly values and enjoys the exchange of knowledge, skill and experience. As a lecturer in design she is able to regularly participate in this exchange with her students while encouraging and supporting an understanding of the value of both design and craftsmanship.

As an active member and past Chair of Contemporary British Silversmiths, Julie has endeavoured to help raise the profile of contemporary silver, introducing it to a broader audience and increasing the understanding of the value and importance of design within the crafts. She freely admits to being “passionate about silver”.

SILVERSMITHS
CVs and artist statements of all participating silversmiths are available on request.

“Mindful of Silver” - At Goldsmiths’ Hall
Friday May 27 to Saturday July 16, 2011
Admission Free
Monday to Saturday 10am to 5.00pm

Goldsmiths’ Hall,
Foster Lane,
London EC2V 6BN
Tel: 020 7606 7010
www.thegoldsmiths.co.uk

UNDERGROUND STATIONS:
St Paul’s, Mansion House, Barbican, Bank
BUSES:
8, 11, 25, 100, 242, 56, 521

For further information and images please contact:
Amanda Stücklin, the Goldsmiths’ Company, Tel: 020 7367 5913
Email: Amanda.stucklin@thegoldsmiths.co.uk
www.thegoldsmiths.co.uk

www.whoswhoingoldandsilver.com

The Goldsmiths’ Company’s on-line directory for jewellery, silver and works of art enables the public to browse on line to make contact with the maker of their choice. With more than 300 craftsmen, all approved by the Goldsmiths’ Company, the website is the ultimate resource for any requirement in precious metal.

SPONSORS of the ‘ideal gardens section’ at this year’s landmark consumer event, Hydropool Hot Tubs will create an Oasis of Outdoor Living at this year’s Ideal Home Show from March 11 to March 27 inclusive at London’s Earls Court.

With the largest range of home hot tubs and swim spas ever seen in one location, the Hydropool Hot Tubs team will provide the essential ingredients for turning even the most mundane garden into an outdoor haven for fitness, fun and relaxation.

To complete the outdoor living experience, the Hydropool team will have a host of ‘must have’ accessories for transforming the garden into an outdoor room including an outdoor kitchen, a range of gazebos and cabins and the UK premier of the world’s first fully automated hot tub cover.

Celebrating its 15th year as the UK’s top sellers of hot tubs, Hydropool offers the world’s only self-cleaning hot tubs and swim spas and already has an estimated 8,000 spas installed in British homes.

The Hydropool team will be offering a number of special offers including £1,000 worth of accessories free with every spa sold during the opening weekend of the show.

A team from Swim Expert, the UK’s leading swimming improvement service, will be putting on demonstrations, three times daily, in a fully working model of a swim spa – so much more than a swimming machine with its capacity for underwater gym equipment, aqua-aerobic work outs and ideal for rehabilitation.

(PICTURED: Hydropool Hot Tubs will create an Oasis of Outdoor Living at this year’s Ideal Home Show from March 11 to March 27 inclusive at London’s Earls Court)

GreenRoad has announced that it has recently deployed its service to Bunzl, through its relationship with Marsh, the world’s leading insurance broker and risk adviser. Marsh’s GreenRoad clients have all achieved impressive results as they reduce risk and improve fuel consumption.

Using GreenRoad’s service, Bunzl healthcare has seen its driver risk drop 63%; its crash rate reduced by 89%; and fuel consumption dropped by 6% since February 2010. With these figures Bunzl calculates a return on investment (ROI) of just three months.

Based on the stellar results in its healthcare division, GreenRoad is now being rolled out to LCVs and HGVs in Bunzl’s retail, catering supplies and Greenham divisions. “We are impressed by the reduction in accidents since GreenRoad’s service went live. During the first three months we did not have a single accident,” said Mark Moore, group transport manager at Bunzl Healthcare.

“We calculate that GreenRoad’s service started delivering an ROI after just three months and that’s not counting long-term benefits such as a reduction in wear and tear and the renewed drivers’ pride in their vehicles including washing them every day. This minor investment is paying dividends,” said Moore.

GreenRoad 360 is also changing the relationship between depot managers and the drivers. “Thanks to the information available through GreenRoad depot managers are engaging more closely with drivers,” said Moore. “An improved understanding of what is happening out on the road means safety is top of the agenda.”

Another Marsh client, Securitas Mobile has deployed GreenRoad 360+ across its new fleet of Peugeot 207 cars in 2010. GreenRoad 360+ is the first integrated solution that addresses mobile resource management (MRM), safety and driving behaviour in a single platform. Securitas Mobile is now revealing that it saw a 61% drop in risk immediately and this has improved to a steady 72%. At the same time it has halved the number of accidents compared to 2009.

Marsh aims to help its clients reduce their accident claims rate and reduce insurance premiums. It is also gaining new intelligence about risk and safety levels leading to more effective risk management strategies. “With GreenRoad’s service we now have visibility down to the driver and vehicle level on an ongoing basis enabling us to continuously assess the ongoing risk. This helps us further understand clients’ insurance needs and respond with tailored solutions that reflect the reduced risk,” said Wendy Chalkley, Motor Placement, Marsh.

GreenRoad provides the most effective, proactive approach to smarter and safer driving. Because driving decisions are responsible for 90% of all accidents and up to 33% of fuel spend, the only way to truly reduce risk and improve efficiency is by focusing on driver decision-making.

GreenRoad 360 provides drivers and fleet managers with real-time, comprehensive feedback, online reporting, analysis and coaching on their abilities, manoeuvres and patterns. As a result, GreenRoad 360 positively impacts both conscious and unconscious driving behaviours –the key to creating more fuel-efficient and safer drivers. A typical GreenRoad customer sees up to a 10% reduction in fuel-consumption and emissions as well as a 50% reduction on crash costs.

FACTFILE:

Marsh, the world’s leading insurance broker and risk adviser, has over 24,000 employees and provides advice and transactional capabilities to clients in over 100 countries. Marsh is a member of Marsh & McLennan Companies, a global professional services firm with over 50,000 employees worldwide and annual revenue of $10 billion, which is also the parent company of Guy Carpenter, the risk and reinsurance specialist; Mercer, the provider of HR and related financial advice and services; and Oliver Wyman, the management consultancy. Its stock (ticker symbol: MMC) is listed on the New York, Chicago and London stock exchanges.

GreenRoad delivers the future of driving: smarter, safer and more fuel-efficient. We offer the industry’s most sophisticated, customisable technology-based programs to maximise driving safety and efficiency, generating immediate cost savings. GreenRoad 360 provides real-time feedback integrated with comprehensive online visibility. We engage drivers on an ongoing basis to deliver lasting improvement to driver and fleet performance. The company is headquartered in Redwood City, California, with offices throughout the US and UK, and Israel. Investors include Benchmark Capital, Virgin Green Fund, Amadeus, Balderton Capital, DAG Ventures and Generation Investment Management LLP. For more information, visit www.greenroad.com.

As the spring weather arrives at last, many motorcyclists will be pulling off the covers, checking their bikes over and heading out for the first ride of the year. While they only make up a tiny proportion of the UK’s road traffic, motorcyclists account for a disproportionately high number of serious accidents on Britain’s roads every year – 10% of all serious and fatal accidents, according to research from the Department of Transport.

To try and reduce this number and to make other road users more aware of the vulnerability of motorcyclists, the government relaunched the ‘Think Bike’ campaign in 2006. But has the campaign had the desired effect? Are road users more aware of motorcyclists?

Shock value

Statistics suggest that despite a visually striking campaign on the television, motorists are still having trouble recognising the dangers that motorcyclists face on a daily basis. “Unfortunately, we still represent a lot of clients who have been involved in a serious motorcycle accident,” comments Matt Dixon of serious accident claims specialists Sherrington Law. “While some drivers may have become more aware of the vulnerability of motorcyclists through the advertising campaign, the majority of car drivers don’t realise just how serious the message is until they are actually involved in a collision with a motorcyclist themselves. It seems that the ‘shock value’ of some adverts created by the DoT has been wasted on an apathetic driving public,” he adds.

One of the complaints about the campaign is that it appears to be aimed more towards motorcyclists themselves, rather than four-wheeled road users. Critics believe that this is a case of the DoT ‘preaching to the converted’, as motorcyclists already know how vulnerable they are. Another problem is the image that ‘public safety information films’ have with viewers. “Most people tend to ‘zone out’ when they see a public safety advert, believing it doesn’t apply to them,” says Matt Dixon. “Unless they ride a motorcycle themselves, the majority of the viewing public believe that the onus of responsibility is still on the motorcyclist and not the car driver. The truth is that everyone using Britain’s roads should be aware of all road users and not just other cars,” he adds.

A waste of money?

So is the campaign a waste of money? Those dealing with the consequences of a serious motorcycle accident and the devastating effect they can have on an entire family's lives think not. “If the campaign saves just one life from being wrecked by a moment’s inattention on the part of another driver, then it’s worthwhile,” believes Matt Dixon of Sherrington Law. “It’s taken people nearly 40 years to get the message about wearing seatbelts in cars, so it may be that the Think Bike campaign just needs more time to really connect with the public. Perhaps showing the long-term consequences of pulling out in front of a motorcyclist at a junction might drive the message home a little more powerfully. If people could actually see what it means to have to deal with a serious head or spinal injury for the rest of your life, they may be a little more considerate towards their two-wheeled colleagues on the road,” he concludes.

Article written with the kind assistance of www.seriousinjurylaw.co.uk

The doors to Canada will be changing once again within the upcoming months, causing an urgency to apply for the Canadian skilled worker visa.

Last year, Ministerial Instructions published in the Canada Gazette on June 26th 2010 introduced substantial changes to the Canadian Federal Skilled Worker program. The Federal Skilled Workers Eligible occupation list was reduced from 38 to only 29 skilled occupations. This list is up for change; the first year began on June 26, 2010 and will end on June 30, 2011.

The beauty of being on the eligible list is that it allows an eligible person to apply for permanent residency without the need of a job offer.

The Canadian Government have set a maximum of 20,000 Federal Skilled Worker applications considered for processing each year. Within the 20,000 cap, there is a maximum of 1,000 applications per eligible occupation considered for processing each year.

Samantha Skerrett a UK based Certified Canadian Immigration Consultant and Director for Migrate Nu-Life, said that this is an opportunity for those who fall on the list and wish to pursue a life in Canada to act now.

“We have no idea how this list will change, be updated or the occupations that will may be removed this year. People who do not take this opportunity may find their occupation removed or the cap filled. The cap has already been filled for the Professional occupations in Business and Services to management and Registered Nurses, there are a few more occupations working their way to the cap.”

She said “Once an occupation cap is filled, many people will have to find a job offer first, which entails getting approval through Human Resources and Development Canada this can be very tough, employers are not always patient enough to go through this process”.

The Canadian government identifies the occupations required through analysis of updated labour market information and consultations with provinces, territories, stakeholders and the public.

They are looking for people with skilled work experience, good education including apprenticeships in the following occupations:

Publication of 29 in demand occupation list:

0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers
0811 Primary Production Managers (Except Agriculture)
1122 Professional Occupations in Business Services to Management (Cap filled)
1233 Insurance Adjusters and Claims Examiners
2121 Biologists and Related Scientists
2151 Architects
3111 Specialist Physicians
3112 General Practitioners and Family Physicians
3113 Dentists
3131 Pharmacists
3142 Physiotherapists
3152 Registered Nurses (Cap filled)
3215 Medical Radiation Technologists
3222 Dental Hygienists & Dental Therapists
3233 Licensed Practical Nurses
4151 Psychologists
4152 Social Workers
6241 Chefs
6242 Cooks
7215 Contractors and Supervisors, Carpentry Trades
7216 Contractors and Supervisors, Mechanic Trades
7241 Electricians (Except Industrial & Power System)
7242 Industrial Electricians
7251 Plumbers
7265 Welders & Related Machine Operators
7312 Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics
7371 Crane Operators
7372 Drillers & Blasters - Surface Mining, Quarrying & Construction
8222 Supervisors, Oil and Gas Drilling and Service

Skerrett also said that Citizenship Immigration Canada is currently proposing further changes to the selection system which is a point based system. These changes will not alter the selection criteria but would affect the number of points assigned to the criteria and the way they are assessed.

The following criteria are subject to change under these proposals:
• Requiring a minimum level of language proficiency
• Placing greater emphasis on younger workers
• Making the programme more accessible to skilled tradespeople
• Redirecting points from work experience to other factors
• Reducing the potential for fraudulent job offers

The Last Six Months is a daughter’s personal account of her elderly mother’s plight during her treatment in an NHS hospital for a hip operation and how her condition deteriorated during the terrible and tragic course of events.

Joanna started to write a blog as she wanted the public to have greater awareness of what can happen when our loved ones go into hospital.

Joanna says; “It is so hard to try and remember every detail, but by making a diary from the day your loved one has been admitted to hospital it will help if unfortunately things do go wrong and enable you to refer back to your notes as it’s so easy to forget. What we may think would be just a short stay in hospital could turn out to be weeks or even months.”

In this unique and original way, the author started publishing the first entry from the day before her mother went into hospital from 18th July 2007 in blog format, http://joanna678s.wordpress.com . The blog is updated daily and the reader is able to follow as the story unfolds day by day.

The Last Six Months started out as notes when Joanna’s mother, Kay, went into a hospital in London for a hip operation on 18th July 2007. Six months later, while still in hospital, she died. It has taken the author three years to make her diary public, three years to go back on her notes filling in all the details which has brought back all the hurt and pain her mother went through.

This is a story that should be brought to the attention of the public as this is still happening in our hospitals today.

Joanna’s notes have become an up-to-date diary of her mother and how her condition deteriorated during this terrible and tragic course of events. It has also allowed her to capture all the memories of their time together while she was in hospital: the laughs, the tears, the precious words that were spoken.

FACTFILE:

The population of the UK is ageing. Over the last 25 years the percentage of the population aged 65 and over increased from 15 per cent in 1984 to 16 per cent in 2009, an increase of 1.7 million people. Over the same period, the percentage of the population aged under 16 decreased from 21 per cent to 19 per cent. This trend is projected to continue. By 2034, 23 per cent of the population is projected to be aged 65 and over (from The Office of National Statistics)

http://joanna678s.wordpress.com

There is a wealth of internet advice on coping with life as a debtor and what action to take if a County Court Judgment (CCJ) is served against you, but there is very little easily accessible information available for creditors seeking information on how to recover money or goods owed.

Research from the Bankers Automated Clearing Service (BACS) estimates that the total amount of money owed to SMEs across Britain is £24.6 billion. According to the Registry Trust, which logs the number of CCJs (consumer, corporate and non-corporate) registered in the UK, the use of CCJs is increasing - in Q3 of 2010 over 193,726 CCJs were made for a total amount of £671.7 million which was an increase of 19.4% on the previous quarter.

David Carter, Director of The Sheriffs Office explains: “As experts in debt recovery, we believe that everyone pursuing a debt in the current economic climate should be aware of basic enforcement facts. Although CCJs are becoming the most popular means of debt recovery, many creditors are simply unaware of the powers available to them and for debts over £600 High Court Enforcement is an often overlooked option - mainly due to a lack of awareness on the part of both creditors and many solicitors who wrongly believe it is only applicable to debts over £5,000. A CCJ for over £600 can be transferred to the High Court for just £50 and High Court Enforcement Officers are only paid for the debt they collect.”

Media coverage has added mis-information to the debate and caused further confusion about the process of debt recovery, the options available to creditors and the real costs involved.

Carter adds: “We believe education is vital - in today’ economic climate creditors need to understand how High Court Enforcement could work for them to recover their debt. The Sheriffs Office has created a ‘Guide to Enforcement’ available free of charge from www.thesheriffsoffice.com This indispensable guide, written in easy to understand language, answers all the questions a creditor might have before commencing action, including checks on whether a debt is recoverable, locating the debtor and taking the necessary steps to secure successful enforcement.”

FACTFILE:

• The costs of a CCJ will depend on the amount of the debt. The judgment debt, interest, court fees and all enforcement costs will be collected from the debtor.
• Currently, debts under £600 can only be enforced by County Court Bailiffs.
• If the debt is over £600 then High Court Enforcement gives creditors more options.
• Creditors can transfer a CCJ up to the High Court for enforcement by a High Court Enforcement Officer (HCEO) for a court fee of £50. Some HCEOs will charge for managing this; however The Sheriffs Office will handle the entire process for free.
• HCEOs can enforce a judgment anywhere in England & Wales.
• Judgments for debts of £5,000 and over can only be enforced by a HCEO.
• High Court Enforcement Officers work under the authority of a Writ of Fieri Facias (fi fa). If the HCEO is unable to collect then an industry standard abortive fee of £60 plus VAT is payable for each address visited. There is no abortive fee for Employment Tribunal Awards and ACAS Settlements enforced by HCEOs.
• HCEOs have more powers than a County Court Bailiff and tend to recover more debt as they do not have to give advance notice of a visit to the debtor. They are also permitted to force entry into commercial premises - a power not permitted to County Court Bailiffs.
• HCEOs are only paid when they successfully enforce a judgment. County Court Bailiffs are salaried civil servants.

“Local TV is not about mass audiences or massive spending” says Information TV – the latest company to submit an ‘Expression of Interest’ to DCMS.

Information TV has joined the bidders for the DCMS Local TV initiative, but unlike the majority of other companies expressing interest, the company is the only broadcaster that has already made Local TV happen. And this, two years before anything will emerge under Government plans and without excessive funding, new legislation or regulatory changes.

Information TV is an innovative and award-winning TV services company, prepared to dedicate an entire channel to showcase Local TV programmes – and confident it can do so on a proven, sustainable, commercial model. It has already been active in broadcasting various Local TV initiatives (e.g. Lakes TV, Liverpool City of Culture, Man United Fans TV) and has the support of other, similarly interested parties, many of whom will shortly be launching new Local TV programming.

Information TV CEO, Fred Perkins observes that “whilst the Local Media Action Plan states that ‘it is not for Government to design a local TV solution in isolation’ it then describes a ‘new network channel’, an ‘affiliate/network construct’, the arranging of ‘EPG prominence’ and ‘new multiplex capacity’. The Secretary of State, Jeremy Hunt, , seems to have decided on the solution so it’s no surprise that big companies with big ideas have been quick to seize an opportunity which will not necessarily deliver the aspirations of the Local TV providers”.

“The Government wants to create the Big Society – empowering individuals and local communities to work with and for one another. But Big Society will not be served by the reinvention of regional ITV, run by big companies and even bigger egos, spending tens of millions of pounds on a new ‘national’ TV channel”.

“Local TV is not about mass audiences or massive spending,” Perkins continues, “it’s about bottom-up engagement with LOCAL capabilities, where the stakeholders in Local TV are the entire local community. And it doesn’t require millions of pounds of funding, particularly the £40m from the BBC – which, in these times of austerity, could be better deployed”.

Perkins concludes that “the top down approach is one which patently does NOT address the aspirations of the many local stakeholders who, for several years, have been campaigning for ‘Local TV’ across multiple fronts”.

Www.information.tv 

Despite major cuts to front line services in the NHS, the health service is still short of specialist medical staff. That’s the message from the new white paper on the medical employment market from Your World Recruitment, who also warns that the government must be careful not to store up problems for the future of the NHS.

The report reveals that although cuts across the board in the healthcare sector have led to a decline in medical jobs across the UK, at the same time there are still a number of opportunities out there, especially for GPs, nurses and other medical experts with very specialist skills. These skill shortages include cochlear implant specialists within audiology, paediatric occupational therapists and MRI / ultrasound experts within radiology. Although pay levels have frozen for many, certain jobs or hospitals that are struggling to find talent are driving up remuneration to attract the right people.

The white paper also tells of the increasing number of locum healthcare staff moving into permanent positions, mainly due to the increased job security in what is a challenging time for the public sector. With less jobs, longer waiting lists and less locums to fill temporary positions when hospitals get busy, Your World is warning that investment in staff needs to continue in order to avoid future problems and staff shortages.

“With the UK’s huge deficit, it was of course necessary to make cuts everywhere, including the NHS”, comments managing director of Your World Recruitment, Tony Moss. “However at the same time, people aren’t going to stop getting ill just because we’re in tough economic times – the health service perhaps needs more attention than ever before. Although agencies are often seen as a drain on resources, they are in fact going to become even more important in 2011. Agencies need to make sure that locum healthcare staff receive competitive pay and don’t take their skills elsewhere to ensure they can supply key specialist staff at very short notice to fill critical positions.”

To download your free copy of the white paper, which includes salary levels and employment market updates for over ten different healthcare sectors please visit http://www.yourworldmedical.com/news/healthcare_recruitment_....

The Communicative Relations Awards from PR Professionals (The CRAPPs) have been launched to celebrate the special relationship between the media and public relations professionals.

To celebrate the relationship between journalists, bloggers and PRs, www.theCRAPPs.com has been launched by 10 Yetis PR Agency, in association with Daryl Willcox Publishing, the company behind Response Source, FeaturesExec and SourceWire.

The light-hearted awards are split into three steps:

1. Nominations – open until 30th November 2010
2. Voting – open from 1st December until 14th December 2010
3. Results – will be released 15th December

There are five personal award categories, and one group award.

Categories are as follows:

1. The journalist that makes you feel warm and furry on the inside
2. The ‘most likely to tell you to sling your hook’ award
3. The ‘best blogger’ PR award
4. Least twattish Twitterer – the must follow journo
5. Journalist you'd most like to bring to the dark side (employ as a PR)
6. Most approachable national newspaper

Nominators can tweet their nominations, and nominate as many times per category as they wish.

The ten most nominated names will be shortlisted for step two on Wednesday 1st December, where voters will get the chance to vote for their favourite per category.

Final results will be made public in time for Christmas, on Wednesday 15th December.

Rich Leigh, account director at 10 Yetis PR Agency, www.10yetis.co.uk, had the following to say: “We wanted to have a bit of fun in the run-up to Christmas, and what better way than to make light of such a hugely contentious issue as media relations?

“The public relations calendar is already full of awards, but the difference here is recognising the relationship between journalists and PRs in a way that hasn’t ever been done before, whilst having a laugh at the same time. Knowing some journalists, being the recipient of the PR-voted ‘most likely to tell you to sling your hook’ award would be the perfect way to kick off Christmas!”

Daryl Willcox, chairman of Daryl Willcox Publishing, www.dwpub.com, said of his company’s involvement in the awards,

“As a provider of services that help PR professionals and journalists connect with each other we couldn't resist being involved in these awards and look forward to the nominations and votes rolling in.

“Journalists and PRs may not always see eye to eye, but with the festive season fast approaching I’m sure hatchets can be buried momentarily as PRs doff their respective hats in the direction of the media.”

The CRAPPs can be found on Twitter at www.twitter.com/thecrapps

Big news for the Ground Source Heat Pump Industry is the Government last week confirmed that the Renewable Heat Incentive will be launched in June 2011. £860 million of funding, over the spending review period, will be provided from DECC’s own budget and not through the levy on energy companies as originally planned by Labour. This is still a substantial amount of funding which has been welcomed by Kensa Heat Pumps and the Renewable Heat Industry.

DECC says this will drive a more-than-tenfold increase of renewable heat over the coming decade, "shifting renewable heat from a fringe industry firmly into the mainstream".

“This is great news for Kensa Heat Pumps and our customers,” said a spokesman.

“Finally, the doubt has been removed from the market about whether this incentive will go ahead, which Kensa Heat Pumps expect will lead to a significant increase in enquiries from people who were holding on their decision making process until the RHI was guaranteed to happen. As ever, Kensa Heat Pumps are happy to assist you with any such enquiries you may be getting through our free quotation service. Simply submit project details, or call the sales team on 01392 826020 if any assistance is required.

“Unfortunately the details of the scheme are yet to be announced other than the official launch date has been put back to June 2011. However, Charles Hendry MP recently confirmed in the house of commons “Following this decision (to proceed), we are currently finalising details of the RHI, including how the tariffs will be paid out, and we expect to be in a position to confirm these details shortly.” Kensa Heat Pumps are hopeful that this translates to an announcement by the end of November. We will of course be in touch with further details as soon as they become available.

“Until these details are available we are continuing to refer interested customers to the details of the original proposal made in May in 2010, whilst ensuring to remind people these figures are provisional and are likely to be subject to some changes by the time the scheme starts next Summer.

To download the latest Kensa Factsheet regarding the RHI, you can visit the Kensa Heat Pumps website which includes details of Ground Source Heat Pump Funding, Ground Source Heat Pump Costs, Ground Source Heat Pump Solutions and advice about Ground Source Heat Pump Design.

Kensa Heat Pumps is a member of the Ground Source Heat Pump Association.

Contact Kensa Heat Pumps on 01392 826024.

 www.YourSalesAd.com a new UK-based free classified ads website has just been launched and is drawing buyers and sellers from throughout the UK. The site is ideal not only for people wanting to empty the attic, clear out the wardrobe and get rid of things the children have grown out of, but also to find themselves some bargains in the run-up to Christmas. There’s a wide selection of new and pre-owned items with some fantastic deals on offer.

The website which also links to social media, offers three 45 day packages for private sellers – a free ad complete with picture, a silver service with 4 photos at £1.99 and a gold service with 8 photos at £4.99. Trade sellers can choose from three packages too – the first at £7.49 for a 60 day subscription allows traders to upload 50 ads with eight pictures, the top package, ‘trade superstore’ at £24.99 for a 60 day subscription allows 500 ads.

Managing Director Rod Kay said: “We wanted to introduce a free classified ads website that was simple for people to use to sell and buy, even those who are not terribly computer literate. The packages are easy to understand, offer excellent value for money and there’s a chance to try the system out as many times as you like with free ads until you’re confident.”

The current listings range from a £20,000 painting by Leonard Campbell Taylor to free kittens to good homes, so there are bargains to pick up and unusual items to find! Categories range from cars to computers, fashion to fine jewellery, bikes to bedroom items, so there’s plenty to browse through. For more information simply visit www.YourSalesAd.com

Europcar, the European leader in passenger car and light utility vehicle rental, has announced the launch of a new, more user-friendly website designed to further enhance the customer reservation experience.

Europcar worked together with London-based Fortune Cookie, Europcar's e-commerce agency since 2008, on developing a website that will correspond to customers' need for simplified booking process and transparent information on Europcar products and offerings.

"This website was designed with the ambition to help users make the right choice quickly in a fresh and engaging brand experience," said Jehan de Thé, Global Marketing Director of Europcar International.

This improved user-friendly version integrates the latest technological innovations, such as automatically adapting to customers' needs by memorizing previous entries and displaying on the first page only the most frequently used elements.

The website offers a simple and fast three-step booking process with innovative maps and predictive search to help users find their locations easily. When looking for a station, it is enough to type three letters and a list of suggested rental stations appears. In addition, the new website features an interactive Google Map which allows customers to easily locate the nearest Europcar rental station or calculate their itinerary to the arriving point.

Vehicle information is clearly and attractively presented; including extras and flexible pricing options. More information on the car can be obtained by opening a pop-in window, while remaining on the initial page. Extras can be added or deducted up to the last moment before the payment. As car accessories are being selected, the price is automatically calculated and is visible on the same page. Furthermore, customers can now choose their car not only based on price or size, but also based on CO2 emissions reflecting Europcar’s commitment to "caring for the Earth".

Once the payment is completed, a location map of the car rental station appears on the payment confirmation page to help the customer plan his/her itinerary to and from the chosen station. This map is also sent to the customer’s e-mail address. The rate information can also be sent by e-mail to 1 address.

Customers gain time with every visit on the Europcar website. The new features include an option for the customers to create and update their profile and preferences, to put in the criteria of their Frequent Voyager Card and gain benefits. The research parameters are also saved for seven days, facilitating the customer’s next visit. The online renting experience is further enhanced with a car rental FAQ section answering many questions that Europcar customers may have, which guides them during and after the reservation process.

"We believe that renting a car online should be a great experience. To achieve this, we tested our work throughout the process with sophisticated user-testing technologies to ensure that we were creating an experience that would meet their needs," said Justin Cooke, CEO of Fortune Cookie.

About Europcar
Europcar is the European leader in passenger car and light utility vehicle rentals. The company serves business and leisure customers throughout Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Excluding franchise operations, in 2009 Europcar signed 9.5 million rental contracts, with 7,000 employees and a fleet exceeding 190,000 rental vehicles. In September 2008, Europcar and U.S. market leader Enterprise Holdings joined forces in a strategic commercial alliance to form the world's largest car rental network, with more than 1.2 million vehicles and 13,000 locations around the world. Europcar is owned by the French investment company Eurazeo.

Europcar is the European market leader and is also leading in its environmental approach to car rental. It opened its first "environmental agency" in Paris in 1999, and in 2008 it was the first company in Europe to have its "Environmental Charter" - which formalizes its commitments in favor of sustainable development - certified by Bureau Veritas.

For more information: www.europcar.com/corporate

Able Skills are delighted to announce the launch of a new website which makes it easier to enrol on the latest construction training courses.

For the first time, visitors to the Able Skills website will be able to check the availability of all the courses provided and have the opportunity to book online with secure payment.

The new look site is simpler to navigate, more accessible and there are clearer course details so trainees can discover how to progress in their chosen construction career or purely improve their practical skills.

Updated videos, images and instructor information demonstrate the cutting-edge facilities on offer at Able Skills, so whether you want to take plumbing courses or DIY decorating courses you will know which one is right for you.

Several new NICEIC, BPEC and City & Guilds-accredited renewable energy courses have been added to the website to coincide with the opening of Able Skills' state-of-the-art renewable energy training centre.

The new centre gives trainees the opportunity to learn how to install, design and maintain the latest in renewable energy technology such as heat pumps, solar photovoltaic appliances and wind turbines.

Gary Measures, Managing Director, said: "We are very proud of the new site because it reflects our position as one of the leaders in the delivery of construction training.

"Able Skills are at the forefront of the training industry and are continuing to invest in our facilities while other providers fall by the wayside."

Able Skills was established in 2002 and is currently in the position to provide qualifications in every subject they cover up to NVQ level 3 at their dedicated training centres in Dartford, Kent.

Trainees who are based outside of Kent can take advantage of three fully furnished properties that provide quality accommodation for Able Skills students. Visit the website at http://www.ableskills.co.uk/ or call 0808 100 3245 for more information.

The new Able Skills site was created by web design London agency PureBlue.

British Airways flights to Mexico's most important tourist destination, Cancun, took off for the first time at the start of November.

Customers checking in for the inaugural flight were given a taste of Mexico with a Mariachi band to send them on their way.

Flights to Cancun will depart every Wednesday and Saturday from London Gatwick. Due to popular demand, British Airways has already increased the original frequency to three times a week from next summer.

The airline previously flew to Cancun between April 1998 and April 2002.

Richard Tams, head of BA UK & Ireland sales and marketing, said: "We're delighted to be the only UK scheduled airline offering direct flights to Cancun. With sweeping beaches, innovative parks, relaxing spas, sports on land and sea, fabulous hotels and unique opportunities to explore the ancient Mayan culture, the Yucatan peninsula truly offers something for everyone."

A Boeing 777 will serve the route, offering a choice of three cabins, including BA's Club World business class with fully flat beds.

British Airways is offering a wide variety of holidays in Cancun to suit all tastes and budgets. Customers can experience exceptional boutique luxury at the 5 star Zoetry Paraiso de la Bonita Riviera Maya which offers 90 luxury beach suites that focus on wellness, serenity and romance, as well as environmental responsibilities. Travellers can also stay at the 4.5 star Dreams Puerto Aventuras Resort and Spa, serenely placed on a secluded beach. The comfortable and affordable oceanfront 3 star Holiday Inn Cancun Arenas, located five minutes from downtown Cancun, is the ideal resort for couples and families.

British Airways flies to domestic, European and longhaul destinations from Gatwick.

Flights and holidays to Cancun are available on www.ba.com/cancun.

 When you turn on the TV or open the newspaper, there doesn’t seem to be a day pass by, without hearing that someone has gone missing in the UK. Whether by fair means or foul, it’s an extremely distressing time for their families and friends and questions are always asked as to “what could I have done differently?”

Now, with over 11.5million* people over 18 using internet dating websites or ‘find a friend’ columns in newspapers looking to meet new friends or start relationships, it’s even more important to let people know details about when and who you are meeting. However, telling a responsible friend what you are doing isn’t always easy and this is where new personal safety service GuardianStar can help. Working with input from current and former police officers around the UK, GuardianStar have devised the ultimate ‘personal safety check-in service’, which is perfect for those who wish to keep their private life private, but safe at the same time.

For a small fee per month, your personal details are registered with the specially trained team at GuardianStar’s UK office – things that would need to be given for a missing persons report such as next of kin, height, weight etc. which is then entered onto the database. This process has been designed to make it quicker to action help, in the hopefully unlikely event that it is needed. Next you supply details of your date to the system, who they are, where and when you are meeting and a time as to when you expect the date to be finished. GuardianStar can also give you a check up call or text during the date to make sure all is OK and there will be a specially agreed panic code word you can use if you feel uncomfortable with the person you’re with and if you need assistance.

Should help be needed, GuardianStar, acting as your designated ‘next of kin’, will alert the relevant services and you can rest assured that someone knows where you are and is acting to keep you safe. Hopefully though, it will be just a case of notifying GuardianStar that you have reached the end of your date and that’s it until next time. Also, if you’re finding that you’re having a great time and want the date to go on for longer, you can always extend that too by calling or texting – GuardianStar is as flexible as you want it to be.

Using GuardianStarr there is no embarrassment that you are on a blind date or you're with someone your family and friends might not approve of and all of the information given to GuardianStar is confidential. Perfectly timed for the Christmas party season this new safety service is being welcomed by pubs and clubs across the East Anglia region and the Suzy Lamplugh Trust says ‘the GuardianStar concept offers a valuable addition to personal safety.’

This new service launches in East Anglia 24th November with a national roll-out Christmas 2010. GuardianStar - a service that never sleeps, never forgets and never loses information.

* Figures courtesy of Dating Direct and Match.com

Small business owners and entrepreneurs should not shy away from a bit of self-promotion to boost their company profile, according to media specialist Daryl Willcox.

The founder and chairman of Daryl Willcox Publishing, which helps SMEs raise their media profile, explains the benefits of business-owners becoming the “face” of their company in a new podcast - part of a series entitled ‘How to market your business on a shoestring’. “It’s all about promoting your business - people don’t buy from companies, they buy from people,” said Willcox. “If you make yourself visible as the figurehead of your organisation, then people will feel much more comfortable about trading with you. It’s a fantastic way to raise your profile without having to invest a huge amount in marketing your business brand. You simply put yourself out there as an expert or a specialist in your particular subject.”

Those with a modest ego and a hint of humility will have to fight their natural urge to resist the limelight.

Willcox continued: “It’s a very natural response to feel ‘why would I want to do that’ or ‘it feels very egotistical’ but I think you’ve got to put those things to one side. A lot of people think that promoting themselves is wanting to be famous, and maybe it is to a certain extent, but at the end of the day the reason for doing it is sound because it’s all about promoting your business. If you’re able to promote yourself, that will reflect well on your business.”

The full podcast can be heard and downloaded at www.dwpub.com/smallbusiness - an online advice hub set up by Daryl Willcox Publishing to help budget-conscious small businesses with their PR and marketing.

The hub offers free tips and advice such as ‘how to’ guides on writing and distributing press releases.

FACTFILE

Daryl Willcox Publishing (www.dwpub.com) provides information services for people in journalism, public relations and marketing. Launched in 1997, the company connects media professionals to create opportunities for timely, relevant press coverage. Products include the Response Source Journalist Enquiries System, SourceWire and Response Source press release wires, the Freelance Journalist Directory and the FeaturesExec media database. Over 2,500 companies use Daryl Willcox Publishing's media relations services, including around 120 of the top 150 PR Companies.

npower has reported that one of the UK’s largest installations of photo-voltaic (PV) cells on a historic building has been fitted to the roof of the National Trust's carriage museum at Arlington Court near Barnstaple in Devon.

The 113 m2 installation will generate up to 6.3 megawatt hours (mWh) of energy each year, saving the museum about £600 from its electricity bill and generating income of around £2,270 per year by feeding energy back into the grid.

The project has been funded by sales of National Trust Green Energy which is supplied by the charity's energy partner, npower, and raises money to support low and zero carbon energy savings projects at Trust properties.

So far 25 National Trust properties have benefited from the partnership with npower with solar panels biomass boilers and ground source heat pumps helping generate energy and save money on fuel bills, as the Trust works towards its commitment to cut its overall energy demand by 20 per cent by 2020 and to switch to renewable energy.

The installation will also help protect the historic carriages in the museum, with the cells helping to reduce the amount of ultraviolet light that enters the building.

The completion of the work comes at the same time as the Trust and npower announce the extension of their partnership for another two years.

npower spokesperson Matthew Cole, commented: "It's great that customers who choose National Trust Green Energy are getting to see these big investments in renewable energy technologies at their favourite Trust places. The new agreement means more customers can get green electricity and we'll be able to improve the carbon footprint of more Trust properties."

A new global survey by KDS, the leading European supplier of integrated travel and expense (T&E) management systems, reveals many business travellers are still using costly and old-fashioned T&E processes.

Yves Weisselberger, chief executive officer of KDS, says: “There are just as many people submitting expense claims on paper as there are employees making online expense submissions [43.3% of respondents in each case]. That’s an extraordinary statistic in the year 2010. With so much scope for increased automation in the T&E arena, therefore, it’s easy to see where many companies need to look for greater cost efficiencies. Paperwork, in a computerised world, is costing staff and employers time and money.

“Too many businesses and organisations continue to underestimate the financial importance of strong T&E management,” continues Weisselberger. “More than half of the respondents to the survey [54.9%] said their organisations make no attempt to quantify the benefits of T&E. Surely, especially in the current economic climate, companies need to justify and maximise every Euro spent?”

One of the most damning statistics to emerge from the survey is the revelation that over half of the respondents (51.2%) admitted some of their business trips, in retrospect, are not worth the time or cost involved. Furthermore, 55.5% of respondents acknowledged that on several occasions they would have reconsidered business trips had they known in advance the total cost – including travel, accommodation and other expenses.

Weisselberger says: “The industry is clearly calling out for the kind of total trip cost forecasting now offered by KDS.”

A failure to unify T&E within a company’s processes, as revealed in the survey, confirms Weisselberger’s fear that many organisations do not yet realise the financial significance of T&E management. For example, most commonly, in 24.4% of cases, the travel policy at respondents’ organisations falls under the responsibility of the human resources department. In only 16.5% of cases is travel a matter for the finance department. Yet in 36.6% of cases, the expenses policy is the responsibility of the finance department, showing that many companies are not managing these complementary areas in unison – a certainty to lead to inefficiencies.

The survey also reveals that, once submitted, expenses typically go unquestioned by employers – 56.1% of respondents said their expenses are rarely queried and 28% of respondents said their expenses are never questioned at all.

“Companies might well need to take a more proactive stance in ensuring policy compliance during the travel booking process,” says Weisselberger. “In a culture where expenses are rarely retrospectively questioned, policy compliance at the booking stage becomes even more important for any cost-conscious organisation.”

The KDS Travel & Expense Survey 2010 gathered the opinions of 164 T&E professionals and regular travellers. Respondents were predominantly based in France, the UK and the US, ensuring the survey provides an international perspective on current T&E issues.

The winners of the prestigious mumandworking 2010 awards have just been announced. There were over 400 nominations in these awards that reward and recognise companies and individuals that are proving that flexible working employment policies work.

Well-known TV presenter Sarah Beeny, who also attended the champagne awards lunch at Hilton St. Anne’s Manor on 4th November 2010, supports the mumandworking 2010 awards (visit www.mumandworking.co.uk/awards).

Sarah said: “Promoting flexible working is important so families have essential time together. I'm delighted the mumandworking 2010 awards are going all out to praise the businesses and people who are making this possible for parents across the UK. I'm very proud that I can support this programme and the mumandworking website.”

There are 6 awards and the winners included big children’s retail brand Hippychick alongside regular working parent Sabina Iqbal from Islington Council and Deaf Parenting UK, winning over £3000 worth of prizes between them.

Claire O’Connor of babyballet scooped two of the awards and is no stranger to such endorsement of her business having won ITV’s This Morning programme’s Mumpreneur of the Year in 2009.

The survey to launch the mumandworking 2010 awards showed that 80% of parents have changed their working pattern since having children. The main reason parent change the way they work is to spend more time with the family.

Changing the way you work after having children has a big financial impact – seven out of 10 families have seen a drop in income and for nearly half of those this reduction is £10-£40k a year. Three in 10 feel they are financially ‘fine’, while four in 10 are ok most of the time but struggle sometimes. Nearly a quarter struggle financially more often than not, with just under one in 10 finding they never have enough money or even have serious debt problems.

Money is not the top priority for parents, however. When asked to list their top three priorities, time with the family came out first for a massive 17 out of 20 parents, while flexible hours were a priority for three in four. Seven in twenty prioritised how much they earn and three in ten prioritised job security. Career progression was a priority for just one in 10.

Sam Willoughby, owner of mumandworking, part of the award-winning company What’s On 4, said: “It’s so important to shout about companies that are giving parents family-friendly employment opportunities – and how their business is benefiting from doing so.

"I’m proud that the mumandworking 2010 have been able to do this so publicly and I hope this will encourage all companies to really put some effort into creating flexible working opportunities - otherwise they are missing out of a huge number of highly skilled and experienced people.”

Woolworths, the online family superstore, will fleetingly return to the high street to set the Guinness World Record for the largest ever game of pass the parcel, and is appealing for towns and cities across the UK to take part.

By visiting the Woolworths Pass the Parcel site between the 1st and the 15th November 2010, families can nominate their town to be visited by Woolies' loveable snowmen, Stan and Ollie Snow who will bring along with a giant parcel the size of a small car. The parcel will contain thousands of pounds worth of toys, including some of the most sought after gadgets, games and playthings for Christmas 2010, as well as an abundance of Christmas spirit to start the town's festive celebrations. All items will be given away over the course of Woolies' world record breaking pass the parcel Christmas adventure.
 
The 10 towns or cities with the best letters of nomination will win a visit from the record breaking parcel in the weeks leading up to Christmas, with the writer of each letter invited to tear one giant layer off the parcel and take away some of the top toys for Christmas valued at close to £500. These will include a Jet Pack Buzz Lightyear, Pumpaloons, a Paper Jamz Shark Guitar and a V Tech KidiZoom video camera, all cult toys that could sell out on the high street as the 25th of December draws near.

Small gifts will be given to the first 100 people who come along and greet Stan and Ollie as they pass through their town.  In total, over £1,000 worth of toys will be given away per visit.

The lucky town that gets to peel off the last layer of the parcel will get a very special celebrity surprise.
 
Stan and Ollie, who will be touring the UK with the parcel, said: "We want everyone to know that Woolworths.co.uk is the home of family fun, bursting with toys and surprises for Christmas.  We're bringing thousands of pounds worth of toys to UK towns so we can break a world record as well as spread some festive cheer.

"The kinds of letters we'd love to get would give a good reason why the writer's town deserves to get a visit. It could be that they believe their town is the most festive in the UK, or they really miss their local Woolies, or they simply want to have the best Christmas ever.  Perhaps one family would just really enjoy rallying their town to break a Guinness World Record."

A Guinness World Record adjudicator will be present to watch the start of the record breaking road trip and to wave the snowmen off on their journey.
 
The Woolies snowmen are also planning on making a surprise visit to the children's ward at each town they visit, to deliver a selection of the most popular toys from Woolworths.co.uk. 

For those towns that don't make it to the final 10, Woolworths is still alive and kicking online at www.woolworths.co.uk
 

Despite the best (worst?) efforts of Google/Blogger to kill off That's News (Apparently That's News was publishing too much material for the liking of Google, so rather than pointing out that That's News should move operations to another provider, Google decided to pretend that That's News was spamming and closed all of That's News sites down without warning.

A spokesman for That's News said: "The loss of all of the archives as well as the goodwill lost when Google took their arguably unfair and utterly arbitrary decision to shut That's News down is a nuisance. However, it has been a blessing in disguise as That's News is now entirely hosted by Mr Site, a UK-based web hosting service and no longer relies on the whims and fads of Google."