Welcome from council leader Cllr Izzi Seccombe

Hello and welcome to the November edition of Warwickshire Still Means Business.

I am sure we are all looking forward to the easing of another lockdown and, with it, the small steps back towards greater normality for many businesses.

It has been another challenging month and such a challenging year, but I never ceased to be amazed by, and so proud of, the resilience, enterprise and generosity of the people of Warwickshire...and all those qualities are truly reflected in our business community.

This month has brought some very welcome news. The Government's decision to site a new megalab in Leamington Spa will bring up to 2,000 jobs in the New Year. That is a great boost for the local economy and also testament to the Government's confidence in Warwickshire as a location,

Leamington will also benefit from another exciting development after the county council approved £512,000 funding towards creation of new office space at Holly Walk. The £1million project, supported by a £500,000 grant from Coventry and Warwickshire LEP, will offer state-of-the-art new facilities to businesses in any sector but it is expected to be most attractive to companies in our thriving cluster of gaming companies.

You can be sure that, in these most difficult times, WCC is doing absolutely everything it can to provide business and careers support for all. In this edition of WSMB you can read about some of the many forms that support takes.

House of Carpets and Frog and Mouse are looking to the future with renewed confidence thanks to our Retail and Hospitality Grants. Hiller's have harnessed support from our Survive, Sustain & Grow programme. The Virgins & Castle are well-placed to recruit thanks to our Future Careers Digital Market Place project. Independent retailers are gaining profile by joining our festive A to Z campaign. Schools careers leaders have engaged with us in really positive way to plot the best careers strategy going forward.

There is so much support available from our Economy & Skills and Infrastructure & Sustainable Communities teams and our partner organisations...please do have a look at our website to see how they can support your business.