Written by Debra Mann, owner of Variety Events, an organisation that provides seminars and workshops to encourage networking opportunities for SMEs.

With signs of the recession starting to ease is it getting better for everyone or just certain sectors?

Last week we were thrilled to hear that Reed Global were taking on lots of new jobs and were really busy. Since April, new permanent vacancy numbers across their UK network are up by 28% compared to the equivalent period last year. During the same period, Reed Specialist Recruitment helped 40% more people find permanent work.

“Prospects for job hunters appear to be brighter than for some time,” commented Richard Post, Chief Executive at reed.co.uk. “Moving forward however, we recognise that public sector spending cuts are likely to have an impact on the overall dynamics of the employment market”. 

We also heard last week that house prices rose by 0.05%, a slight improvement but is it a reality?  Some businesses are still closing their doors, share prices are still falling, and we are told energy prices will rise again this year by another 20% or so. So while there are positives to focus on, there are still areas of concern. 

 The Thames Valley is known as the centre of blue-chip technology companies and the heart and lungs of the economy. Business Link South West  provides assistance for small businesses in three key areas: business development advice and support, business intelligence and information and business skills training. They don’t seem we feel, to be as active as they once were. Organisations like Chamber of Commerce and Federation of Small Business must therefore be at the heart of Local Business and at the heart of any changes. The FSB is calling on the Government to show they are equally committed to growth for small firms as they are to reducing the public deficit in its Comprehensive Spending Review Submission. The FSB is urging the Government to set out plans to help small firms take on new members of staff, to support entrepreneurs and to raise the VAT threshold.

 So what of the banks and their role in all of this? A third of FSB members said their bank was less helpful now than before the credit crunch began, precisely at a time that help is most needed. The FSB sees resolving the stand off between banks and their business customers through this mediator as a clear priority. Our own recent experience with Barclays Business Banking left us wanting to change banks as we found them just trying to sell more and more of their products and not offer any help whatsoever.

Click here to find out more about Variety Events and the Keeping Business Local Expos. Our next event is the Newbury Expo and you can click here to register.

Tags: marketing, Networking, seminars, small businesses