Welcome from Cllr Kam Kaur

Hello and welcome to the July edition of Warwickshire Means Business - an edition which, I am delighted to say, is bursting with positive news.

We have all warmly welcomed the move to Step Four on the roadmap out of lockdown this month. It is great that all the wonderful businesses in Warwickshire's tourist and hospitality economy have at last returned to something much closer to normal.

We must all continue to remain vigilant, of course. I urge all employers to continue to take all appropriate precautions to help keep COVID in check - and I would encourage everybody to get doubly vaccinated if they are not already.

This edition of Warwickshire Means Business reflects the wide array of help and support that is available to business across the county as we move forward.

New strands of support are being introduced all the time and we report on the new Local Rewards programme, which is helping businesses increase their connections and visibility through digital technology.

We also outline how the county council's Warwickshire Wellbeing offer can provide important support to employers and employees alike.

Please read too about how the county Fire & Rescue Service has engaged with Warwickshire Skills Hub's Future Careers Filming project to enhance their latest recruitment drive - and how Bright Vision Events and Pug Pubs have benefited from the Survive Sustain & Grow and Duplex Fund projects respectively.

Other recent very positive developments include the opening of the new Megalab and new research which reveals strong levels of Foreign Direct Investment in our region in the last year.

It is brilliant, too that our businesses are already benefiting from Birmingham 2022, with Coleshill-based Incorporatewear appointed as the Games's official uniform provider.

We also report the unveiling of county council's far-reaching £140 million Warwickshire Recovery and Investment Fund. There is so much going on around Warwickshire businesses that is encouraging and positive...let's well remain diligent to help our recovery from Covid remains robust and on track.

Kam