Launched at the Chambers’ Annual Dinner, which was held at Windsor Castle on Friday 1st December, the Chamber’s 7th annual Business Manifesto sets out the issues and challenges faced by the Thames Valley business community and the opportunities that our membership wants its Chamber to work on and champion.
Five main priorities frame the Manifesto:
- Infrastructure network resilience and adoption – promoting the opportunities of the technology and supporting investment that can future-proof our region. At our International Technology Conference at 3M on May 9th 2024 we will aim to prepare the readiness of Thames Valley SMEs for developments and implications of Artificial Intelligence.
- Shaping our future skills needs – implementing the next steps of the Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs) and shaping the future of the Thames Valley Skills Unit. Our work will continue as we spearhead BCCs national evaluation of the Chamber led Local Skills Improvement Plans and promote the merits of new curriculum co-developed between local business and educators. In response to the skills shortages, we will launch new training to support local businesses in their recruitment, retention, upskilling, and workforce development.
- Pathway to net zero (and climate change) – advancing the work around sustainability as outlined in our State of the Region report.
- Trade and Inward Investment – Delivering services that enable high value and volumes of trade and inward investment continues to flow. We will redouble our efforts on behalf of the business community to promote the Thames Valley as a leading international location through a refreshed and focused presence on our website. With new trade consultancy and value-added services, we will continue to champion opportunities for local businesses in key markets and deliver the national BCC hub for the Osaka 2025 World Expo.
- Delivering regional leadership, championing the Thames Valley – putting and representing businesses at the heart of stakeholder engagement and political decision making, ensuring they invest in success, and that we promote our wider sector and market strengths. The scope and influence of the Thames Valley Assembly continues to grow as we amplify the voice of our regions key industry sectors, and businesses large and small. We will contribute to the new BCC National Business Council and to the wider development of the UK Accredited Chamber network as the voice of local economies.
Paul Britton, CEO, TVCC said: “Our seventh annual publication sets out what our members believe are the priorities for the region, and what you can expect from the Chamber in the year ahead in response.
“The five strategic priorities will require significant collective effort from the business community at a time of economic strain across the UK. We will use our reach and links into the British Chambers of Commerce to lobby for investment that is essential to help the Thames Valley and wider UK community reach its potential and initiatives such as the Local Skills Improvement Plans with the full support of local business and educators”.
Bill Gornall-King, President, TVCC said: “The success of the Business Manifesto lies in its simplicity, its direct message, and calls to action. As our membership knows and values, our policy work, trade services and inward investment activity informs and influences Government policy and priorities.
“The unique nature of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) network and our capacity to directly engage with Ministers, senior officials, and Members of Parliament (MPs) on a weekly basis means we are representing the region directly and at the highest levels.”
