Warwickshire News Mine

In March the recession pages on the Warwickshire County Council website (http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/recession) were viewed 6,018 times.

This follows a huge surge in interest in the new pages in February when the pages were viewed almost 7,000 times.

And today Warwickshire County Council’s political lead on Economic Development is reassuring local people that the website development is all part of the local authority’s work to provide assistance and advice during the recession.

Cllr Chris Saint, the council’s Portfolio Holder for Economic Development, said: “We are very aware of the situation in Warwickshire and the hardships being faced by businesses and individuals.

“There are a number of initiatives underway to try and help people directly, and for those seeking guidance we have launched new web pages at http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/recession to provide a way to find out what help might be on hand.”

The recession advice pages viewed can be further broken down as follows:
Recession Advice - Main page - 4,169
Recession Advice - Business - 407
Recession Advice - Employment - 485
Recession Advice - Family - 215
Recession Advice - Housing - 206
Recession Advice - Local Support - 228
Recession Advice - Money - 308

The website includes a wide range of activity being undertaken by the county council to help support jobs in Warwickshire. Below are just a few examples of what is available, whether in business or facing unemployment:- 
Help for business includes:
WIPS (Warwickshire Investment Partnerships) engages with many businesses that are expanding in Warwickshire. Even with the economic downturn, we are still dealing with companies who need to find space to grow and take on more staff.  Increasingly we are also helping existing companies who are struggling with reduced order books – but even then we can help them to find more suitable, smaller premises - and so safeguard many jobs.
We are in touch with many small businesses who are struggling due to lack of finance or orders. While our Business Support Team signpost most enquiries to Business Link, we can offer initial advice and additional services including access to small business loans, help with reducing energy and waste costs, advice on web marketing and support to those wanting to start up a new business.
The county council is a national pilot for Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) – which now cover some of our town centres.  Leamington Spa is the latest shopping centre to sign up, and saw sales hold up well this Christmas despite gloom elsewhere in the retail sector.
Help into jobs:
Many people finding themselves out-of-work may consider setting up their own business. For those thinking about taking that step, the county council has its own Business Centres on short-term and flexible terms. This is great for those who can’t raise finance to commit to traditional leases up-front. They have proved very popular over the years, and we now have some units available for immediate occupation. 
The county has a “Skills for Jobs” team, which helps those who have been out-of-work for a while, but want to get new skills and back into employment. There is also a new Employment Officer Team (based in Nuneaton) working closely with JobCentrePlus to help those facing redundancy. 
Cllr Saint added: “The examples just give an indication of the help that the county council is giving to lessen the impact of the recession. We are coordinating many of our activities with other agencies through the `Coventry and Warwickshire Economic Recovery Partnership’.

“The website is far more comprehensive, embracing money, housing and local support groups. We will also keep local people and businesses updated of further initiatives in the pipeline.”

Link to WCC