It’s National Sickie Day on Monday and, as mental health related illnesses are the number one cause of employee absence, here are some tips from absence management specialists, Activ People HR on how businesses can better support mental health  Research tells us that more ‘sickies’ are likely to be pulled on Monday 7th February, commonly known as ‘National Sickie Day,’ than any time of the year. While people are typically more ill during the winter months, Adrian Lewis, Director at Activ People HR says employers should be vigilant and monitor whether sickies are signs of more serious employee mental health issues,…

Getting through to HMRC isn’t always plain sailing. There are number of different channels and services available for contacting HMRC, including telephone, online contact options and post. The Institute of Financial Accountants (IFA) offers a brief guide to HMRC’s communication channels to effectively engage and source information and achieve answers to queries. How to contact HMRC Fundamentally, HMRC provide a digital self-help library, alongside webchat, email, post, telephone lines and dedicated helplines, and phone numbers reserved for your accountant or tax agent. Often, using your accountant will secure you the quickest response, although you can of course approach HMRC yourself.…

The Analox Group, based in Stokesley, has been named Best Global Gas Sensing Products Manufacturer, In receiving the Northern Enterprise Award, officials from the Analox Group said the Award recognizes the hard work, dedication and commitment to excellence exhibited by Analox Team members over the past 12 months. According to award officials, the Northern Enterprise Awards represent the innovative, driven and pioneering businesses based in the North of England. The pandemic has hindered many businesses and industries and continues to do so as we move forward, but the business sectors in Northern England have displayed a solid sense of resilience…

As 2022 gets into full swing, many business owners are considering how they can give their tech setup a refresh. 5G first hit the UK’s shores in May 2019, but it’s taken a while for the rollout to expand enough to make it a viable commercial option. Here, Kristian Torode, Director and Co-Founder of business mobile expert Crystaline, explores why opting for 5G is a connectivity upgrade worth considering, and how it translates into business benefits. Although 5G has been around for a couple of years now, in 2022 we’re going to see further expansion of the market both in terms of…

Kelly Swingler, an executive coach for professional women, has launched a new podcast ‘Core-Led Women’ for female entrepreneurs experiencing, or fearing, burn-out. The podcast will be available for download every Tuesday morning from 8am and will feature an episode a week exploring a different theme. Kelly runs her own coaching business and has a background in HR. She was the youngest HR director of a corporation with over 3,000 staff when she left in 2014 after struggling to cope due to burn out. She since went on to create her own HR consultancy – which still runs today – and…

Inspirational award-winning speaker, empowerment coach and best-selling author of ‘Unleash Your Awesome’, Taz Thornton, is looking for 25 self-employed people or business owners to become the Elite25 – all people who want to create positive change in the world. Elite25 will launch later this month, so those taking part will be able to start the year with new ideas and processes to make positive changes through self belief and by transforming their own outlook, message, business and brand. Taz, who lives in Lincolnshire, has had more than her fair share of negatives to overcome to get her in the positive…

Covid-19 arrived in Britain on 31st January 2020.  On 23rd March 2020, the Government reacted to the widening outbreak with a stay at home order banning all non-essential travel and social contact; this included shutting businesses.  The Police were given emergency powers and the world was to change forever, although at that time none of us knew exactly what lay in store. I reacted immediately to the Pandemic by creating what I called “The Friend Programme”.  My instinct told me that business owners would need all the help they could get in the weeks to come. At the time, I…

As the first month of the new year ends and Plan B Covid-19 restrictions are lifted across England, it’s interesting to reflect on how the pandemic impacted new company formations last year, and what further trends we may see in the coming months of 2022. Before Covid-19 was a household name, research by business intelligence specialists, Business Data Group, shows that 672,716 new companies were formed during 2019. Of course, there were peaks and troughs throughout the year, due to seasonal events, but on average over 56,000 new businesses were starting out every single month. It wasn’t until the pandemic…

With the Government’s announcement to scrap work from home guidance from Monday, many will expect to see a wave of businesses returning to their offices. However, new findings suggest small businesses in the UK look set to stick with home offices in the long term, spurred on by substantial savings each month.  By April 2022, the proportion of small businesses working entirely from home will still outweigh those hybrid working (27% vs 23%) Small businesses continuing to work from home estimate total savings of £3,860 a month on average 86% are putting this money back into the business, with top…

BNI’s (Business Network International) sole aim is to help businesses and individuals grow, and at no time during its 25 years in the UK and Ireland has this been more important. The COVID pandemic has meant a rollercoaster of furlough, cash flow issues, and in some cases forced closure for periods of time. All business owners have been affected; some are busier than ever but have recruitment issues, others have seen a complete slowdown. One thing all business owners agree on is the importance of a strong support network. Over the past 25 years, BNI members have generated £5.78bn of…

Payroll experts, Staffology have investigated the statistics of the coronavirus pandemic, discovering how the vaccine saved the UK’s job market, and how various lockdowns and restrictions impacted the number of coronavirus cases and people on payroll. Despite a monthly increase of 1.8 million cases of coronavirus in December ’21 compared to November ’21, payroll increased by 106,000 Since March 2021, payroll has consistently grown by at least 66,000 During 2020, cases of coronavirus had a direct and negative impact on payroll The first national lockdown from March to the end of May controlled the virus regarding rates of infection, however…

Legal and General’s annual State of the Nation research has revealed that over half (57%) of the UK’s small and medium size businesses have a positive financial outlook for 2022. According to Legal & General’s findings, one in three are planning to expand their businesses in the next 2 to 3 years. Over half of the UK’s small and medium size businesses have a positive financial outlook for 2022 75% of small and medium size businesses now carrying some level of debt, up from half (51%) in 2019 However, nearly a fifth of UK businesses say their biggest concern is…

Working To Wellbeing, the return-to-work rehabilitation specialist, has today launched a new Line Manager Helpline, with an initial focus on supporting employees suffering with Long Covid. The telephone-based Helpline will enable line managers to talk through their concerns and worries and get some guidance on how to help team members who may be experiencing the wide-ranging symptoms of Long Covid. In the UK there is an estimated 1.3 million sufferers of Long Covid1, with 64% reporting that their symptoms affect their daily activities, while 20% said it limited their daily activities “a lot”.  Given that the average age of someone…

As the pandemic taught many of us how to work from home remotely, many people are now picking up their laptops and venturing to a sunnier working destination. Spain is one of the most recent countries to introduce what is called a ‘Digital Nomad Visa’, encouraging start-up founders and entrepreneurs to work and settle in the country for up to five years temporarily.  However, there are also several other countries around the world that already have this visa opportunity in place.  If you are looking to spread your wings this new year, the language team at Preply, have pulled together some…

The public switched telephone network (PSTN) switch off is scheduled for 2025, and will mark the end of the copper-based telephone network. In the lead up to the switch off, businesses must transition away from PSTN-based products to newer services ― including FTTP and SOGEA. Here, Kristian Torode, Director and Co-Founder of business communications services provider Crystaline, explains what FTTP and SOGEA services are, and how they will support businesses navigating the PSTN switch off. The PSTN consists of traditional telephone lines that use copper wire to transmit voice communications. Many businesses and residences still use the PTSN for telephone…

2022 will be dominated by change, capital and competition for the UK’s privately owned businesses yet holds promise of growth, according to the recent Regional Economic Outlook from KPMG. Here Chris Hearld, Head of KPMG Private Enterprise, outlines the key issues that private businesses will do well to pay attention to as they pursue their ambitions. Digital transformation This is the year that many privately owned businesses will transform to become digital first. With the pandemic survival measure wave of digital transformation behind us, the development of digital backbones throughout businesses is now underway. Retiring legacy systems – A particular trend…