Business News

A Birmingham company that makes colour-coded musical instruments for young learners has secured two major new export contracts to the USA and Australia and looks set to achieve £1 million worth of overseas orders. Shades CP Ltd, which developed a colour-coding method that enables children to learn a range of instruments such as guitar, ukulele, harmonica, and violin, has seen a significant boost in overseas business after it secured new orders at the globally renowned Nuremburg Toy Fair in Germany in January.

The changing future energy demands of eleven major British cities, including Birmingham, are revealed in a new report published today by Smart Energy GB, the voice of the smart meter rollout. This is the first time that predictions about future increases in energy demand in the UK have been analysed and published on a city level.

Severn Trent has warned its customers to be vigilant after receiving reports that callers from ‘The Water Board’ have been trying to gain entry to people’s homes. Recent reports in both the East and West Midlands have followed similar patterns of individuals trying to con their way into people’s homes by claiming to work in the water sector.

Rising costs and gentrification have put Birmingham’s historic Jewellery Quarter at risk of losing the trade which made the area famous around the world, businesses and academics have warned. The area’s jewellery makers and experts from Birmingham City University have said that spiralling rental costs and ‘inappropriate developments’ are making it difficult for the district’s traditional industry to continue trading.

Cleaner, greener buses will be coming to Birmingham after £3milllion was awarded to a city council-led partnership project by the Department for Transport and the Office for Low Emissions Vehicles. Commenting on the support shown for the scheme, Anne Shaw, Assistant Director for Transportation and Connectivity at Birmingham City Council said: “It is great that our efforts to work in partnership with transport operators to make Birmingham’s air cleaner are being backed by government.

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson is committed to recruiting more BME officers so the force looks more like the region it serves. Mr Jamieson made a pledge at a BAPA (Black & Asian Police Association) student officer development event at Tally Ho! in Birmingham, also attended by Assistant PCC Ashley Bertie who echoed the commitment. The West Midlands is made up of nearly three million people, around a third of whom are from BME backgrounds.

Future Faces - the young professionals’ arm of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce – has announced the shortlist for its second annual awards. The winners will be revealed at Future Faces’ annual dinner at Edgbaston Stadium on Friday 16 September. As well as the five main categories, the Future Faces Ambassador and Venue of the Year awards will also be announced on the night.

McDonald’s have signed a voluntary agreement with Birmingham City Council, promising to pick up litter in the streets immediately around its 18 restaurants in the city. The fast food firm is the latest business to sign up to this pledge, and as part of this McDonald’s restaurants across Birmingham carry out regular litter picks in their local area to help keep it free from related rubbish.

Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) has defended local employers over claims they are encouraging obesity among their workforce. According to a report by Willis PMI Group, almost a third (30 per cent) of Midlands workers claim their employers have directly contributed to higher levels of obesity.

Wolverhampton's Archives and Local Studies service has received a prestigious award from the National Archives. It has been awarded Archive Service Accreditation status, meaning it provides an excellent standard of customer service, preserves collections in line with national standards and is a robust, sustainable service which plans and delivers ongoing improvement.

Black Country Chamber of Commerce are delighted to announce that FSC Investment Services Ltd have become the latest member to join The Chamber Patron Group, the highest level of Chamber membership. FSC Investment Services Limited was established in 1997 and specialise in independent financial planning offering a nationwide coverage to their clients. They provide advice in all areas of financial services, including investments, inheritance tax planning, life assurance, wills, trusts & retirement planning to both the corporate and private sectors.

There have not yet been any signs that Brexit will, as some experts predicted, have a negative impact on the UK’s rental market, according to property specialist Leaders. Indeed, new statistics suggest the sector has actually grown since the British public voted to leave the European Union (EU) on 23rd June. Rightmove has revealed rental enquiries were up by two per cent in Q2 in comparison with the same period last year, while they rose by one per cent in the two weeks after the referendum versus the same fortnight in 2015.

Lawyers from Clarke Willmott LLP in Birmingham have warned players of the new smartphone game Pokemon Go to be careful when hunting the digital monsters, in case they find themselves facing court proceedings for trespass. Since the game was released in the UK on Thursday morning, swarms of smartphone-equipped hunters, young and old, have hit the streets attempting to catch virtual ‘Pokemon’ creatures at specified locations around the city.

City Council leader Cllr John Clancy is seeking urgent talks with new Prime Minister Theresa May to make the case of Birmingham's role in the post-Brexit UK economy. Cllr Clancy has written to the new PM explaining why he feels Birmingham has a big contribution to make. And he has urged the new PM to ensure that cities have a voice in negotiations to exit the European Union.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has told of his favourite places to eat, drink and relax in his South London neighbourhood as he backs a new drive to encourage more tourists to explore some of the city's undiscovered areas and live like a local. The Mayor, who lives in Tooting – made famous in popular culture by the 1970's classic BBC comedy Citizen Smith, starring Robert Lindsay - has spoken about how the area is home to the best South Asian restaurants in the capital, has a vibrant nightlife comparable to Soho, a tranquil common and an outdoor swimming pool which can boast Hollywood actor Brad Pitt as a visitor.

The nation’s water supplies are among the healthiest in the world – with 99.96 per cent passing stringent standards. However, of those which do fail, nearly a third are due to problems in people’s own homes, a report has shown. Poor plumbing practices and sub-standard fittings are among the main causes of a deterioration in the quality of drinking water, after it has been transferred from public water mains into private pipes and properties.