We recently joined the team at Alembic Strategy for their latest 'Strategy Cafe' where Nick Mayhew engaged in a great conversation with John Harte, an expert in board composition in governance. The webinar was recorded and the link to watch/listen is below where the conversation covers: Where John's passion for good governance started How to manage the challenges of resolving conflict at the board level The three currencies of honesty, trust, and respect Board legacy and decision-making Adopting an adaptability and contribution mindset The Chair's facilitation role and board processes The Four Lines of Sight This session offers practical insights and strategies for enhancing governance practices and fostering effective board dynamics in today's dynamic and demanding business environment. As Paul Andrews, Founder and CEO at Family Business United concludes. "This was a refreshing insight into the future of family business boards, their need to embody the family values of the business owning family but to reflect the needs of the business in the ever-changing world in which we live and operate. I found the concept of currencies of real value to the family business community and the discussion around diversity interesting and relevant and all family businesses with a board should consider the four lines of sight in the context of their family firm as they seek to follow best practice and remain fit for the future." Check out the recording here:

The fundraising efforts of the IT team at Letchworth-based contractor Willmott Dixon have resulted in local Herts homeless charity Feed Up, Warm Up receiving over £6,104 to support its work providing safe spaces for the county’s most vulnerable people. This is the result of a busy 12 months of activities by the IT team for the charity that included a family fun day, gruelling hiking challenge, and a company-wide fantasy football league. The money will help Feed Up, Warm Up’s work offering food and friendly support to homeless people, and those at risk of homelessness. It will also help the charity’s homeless outreach work where they send teams into the community to offer support directly to those in need, right across Hertfordshire. Each year Willmott Dixon’s IT team select a local charity to support, with Feed Up, Warm Up the chosen beneficiary in 2023, with activities led by management trainees who work with colleagues across the company. In 2024, the team’s charity is Letchworth’s Garden House Hospice, which provides free specialist palliative care for patients, families and carers facing life limiting illnesses from across North Hertfordshire, Stevenage and towns and villages in Central Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. Willmott Dixon management trainee Mahsa Dehghani says: “It was a pleasure to raise so much money for this fantastic charity – they do brilliant such work and given Willmott Dixon’s strong roots in Hertfordshire, along with our ethos to help those less fortunate in society, supporting Feed Up, Warm Up was a natural fit. We are so proud to have helped make a difference and look forward to doing the same in 2024 with Garden House Hospice.” Willmott Dixon is well known for its purpose beyond profit and its commitment to leaving a positive legacy where it works. It was awarded the King’s Award for Enterprise for Promoting Opportunity, the fourth such accolade for the company, and the first from HM King Charles III.

Seven in ten people say they are not confident the UK will meet its 2050 net zero milestone, according to a new survey of nearly 6,000 adults. The findings come from the latest State of the State, an annual report on attitudes to government and public services published by Deloitte and Reform, an independent think tank. This year’s report, which includes a survey by Ipsos UK, has a special focus on the country’s path to net zero, exploring levels of public confidence in the UK’s progress, its ability to meet its net zero commitments and their own willingness to make sustainable lifestyle changes. Confidence levels in whether the UK will reach its target for achieving net zero emissions across the economy by 2050 were low – only 23% said they are very or fairly confident the UK will meet the target while 70% said the opposite. The research found that younger people are significantly more likely than older age groups to believe the goal will be met (although still pessimistic overall). A third of 16-34-year-olds (33%) surveyed are confident about reaching net zero targets, compared to just 13% of the 55-64 age group and 14% of the 65-75 age group. Achieving net zero A third pointed to recycling and reducing household waste (35%) as making the biggest difference to people having a more sustainable lifestyle, the top priority from a list of 11 different options. Changes such as flying less (16%) or buying an electric car instead of a petrol or diesel (16%) are much further down the public’s priority list. A fifth (21%) of the public said they would change their shopping habits (such as sticking to seasonal produce). When asked which actions they might personally take, people aged 55-75 are more likely to say they plan to recycle more (58%), drive less (24%) and fly less (20%) compared to other age groups. Whereas younger people, aged 16-34, are more likely than older groups to say they will switch to a more environmentally friendly way of heating their home (16%). There are also some sizable differences by gender, with women being more likely than men to say they expect to change their lifestyles in several measures; over half of the women surveyed (56%) said they would recycle and reduce household waste more, compared to 44% of men who would do the same. When asked about which actions government could take to have the biggest impact on emissions, the top answer was to switch energy use away from fossil fuels (45%). In contrast, when asked about what they personally would do, only 16% of the public said they plan to use more environmentally friendly methods of heating their own homes, such as replacing gas boilers with heat pumps or using more insulation. Other priority actions the government could take included the encouragement of greener transport (29%), but when asked if they are likely to buy an electric car instead of petrol or diesel – only 12% of people said they are likely to do so in the next couple of years. Jayson Hadley, UK head of government and public services at Deloitte, said: “Our survey outlined two conclusions about the general public mood on achieving net zero: it's a priority, but not something they expect will massively change their lifestyles." “It’s also notable that bigger actions involving individual changes of behaviour are much lower down the public’s list. However, the cost of living crisis may be having an impact here because many of the measures people can take require money." “All of this suggests there is more work to do in order to convince the public that net zero is achievable and that this relies on their participation. There needs to be a broader shift towards more sustainable lifestyles and environmentally conscious public policy, if the UK is to make its transition to a greener economy.” Public concern grows for immigration, infrastructure and NHS waiting lists For the second year running, the cost of living crisis is the public’s top concern, with nearly eight in ten people (78%) citing it as a priority for improvement in the next few years. The next biggest issue for the public is the NHS, where worries about waiting lists have grown from 66% in the previous survey (September 2022) to 73% now. The issues the public believe will get worse in the next few years also include NHS waiting lists, with 59% of the public saying this, followed by the cost of living (55%) and housing (53%). Other notable shifts since last year’s State of the State are around immigration and the country’s infrastructure. The percentage of the public who want to see improvements in how the UK controls its borders has risen in the past year from 37% to 43%, and the percentage concerned about the UK’s infrastructure has risen from 29% to 36%. On tax and spending, the survey found that the UK public’s attitude is split. Three in ten (31%) said the UK should aim for lower taxes and lower public spending, but only 17% think that will happen in the next few years. In contrast 30% would favour higher taxes to fund higher public spending and similar (31%) expect this government to do this. Charlotte Pickles, Director at Reform, said: “The public are deeply concerned about the state of public services, but most worrying for politicians, not only is there a sense that things are getting worse, the public do not believe things will improve any time soon. Yet at the same time, there is little appetite for more spending. That’s a difficult circle for any government to square.” Public priorities remain consistent across the nations Overall, across the nations in the UK, people in Scotland (30%) and Wales (24%) are slightly more optimistic about their government’s ability to deliver on net zero, compared to the UK government. The majority however are still not confident the goals will be met, according to the survey. The top two priorities of cost of living and NHS waiting lists are consistent across the four nations, but there are some differences on other areas. Most notable of all are that concerns around crime (48%) and immigration (45%) are significantly higher in England than the UK average. In Scotland the third biggest concerns are housing, growth and climate change (all 46%), in Wales the third issue is jobs and economy (48%) and in Northern Ireland it is social care for the elderly and vulnerable (49%).

A brewery near Bristol has installed hundreds more solar panels on its roof with the aim of using as much renewable energy as possible to fuel its beer production. Hare Brewery, which is owned by St Austell Brewery, will now be able to generate an additional 230,511kWh electricity per year. This added to the energy the existing solar panels at the site generate is the equivalent of powering around 150 homes. The new solar array which takes up the entire roof space of the brewery’s distribution centre in Warmley was installed by ZLC Energy Limited. The Cornwall-based company is also responsible for the solar arrays at St Austell Brewery’s head office and Cornwall Distribution Centre in St Columb, as well as the 892 solar panels previously installed on Hare Brewery. The 608 new solar panels add to St Austell Brewery’s efforts to champion sustainability and reach its net zero goals. During the summer months, Hare Brewery is expected to be able to brew its beer and operate on the energy the panels produce, with the system designed so that almost 100% of the generated power will be consumed on site. In the winter the site will draw a minimal amount of electric from the grid. It’s estimated that the arrays will save a huge 50,000kg of CO2 per year – which equates to 85.5 passengers' roundtrip flights to Munich. Elle Sambrook, St Austell Brewery’s Head of Sustainability, said: “This is a really big step towards our net zero plans to eliminate our avoidable emissions." “We set ourselves an additional goal to increase our on-site green energy and reach 50% energy consumption from renewables across all sites by 2030. These solar panels are a big part of making that goal a reality and we are already at 40% onsite generation at Hare Brewery with this installation.” ZLC’s Managing Director, Matthew Shepherd, added: “We are proud to have worked with St Austell brewery since 2012 to support them in working towards their sustainability goals. St Austell Brewery is a great customer to work with and there is nothing better to celebrate the completed install with than a cold pint of Tribute.” As part of the brewery’s overall sustainability aims, Will Hartley, Production Manager for Hare Brewery, has also been leading on brewing beer with less energy. He said: “Our teams are focused on several different improvement projects to reduce our energy consumption and waste. The method with the biggest impact is likely to be optimising our boil evaporation; effectively we will use less steam to achieve our boil. This will mean we reduce the amount of natural gas we use to make our beer.”

A renowned artist and former Windermere school pupil has been given the chance to display her works in a new art exhibition. Kitty North, who studied at St Anne’s School, Windermere, is bringing an exhibition of her work to the Atrium at Low Wood Bay Resort & Spa. The gallery display, called Buildings in the Landscape, has been organised in partnership with contemporary and modern British art specialists Gavagan Art. It features some of Kitty North’s most prominent works, including Moonlit Night, her painting of Levens Hall, and The Old Rectory, once home to the English poet John Betjeman. Kitty’s growing reputation as an artist has resulted in a number of prestigious commissions across the UK. These have included projects at Levens Hall, Bolton Abbey, Chatsworth and Salts Mill Saltaire, where a large exhibition of her work, ‘Continuum’, is currently on display. Kitty’s links with Cumbria have continued beyond her school days. A solo exhibition of her work was held at the Abbot Hall Gallery, Kendal in 1998, and in 2012, she was ‘artist in residence’ at Levens Hall, the Elizabethan mansion with its famous topiary garden. General manager at English Lakes Hotels Resorts & Venues Mark Needham explains: “Our inaugural art gallery at Low Wood Bay was a great success and many of our guests commented on our use of the Atrium space to showcase contemporary pieces of art." “Kitty's work has been widely exhibited and collected around the world. So we expect the display to draw art lovers to Windermere and be a big talking point for guests and visitors to the spa resort.” Kitty lists several key influences which led her to paint, in particular being taken as a child to see an exhibition of David Hockney’s paintings, and in the same year seeing an exhibition of the British artist JMW Turner. And yet the overriding and continuing influence on her art has been the experience of living in the Northern landscape. Kitty North says: “I have the fondest memories of my early life and schooldays in the Lake District. My formative years were spent at Blackwell, now the arts and crafts museum, and St Anne’s, now Windermere School. These two beautiful places are a large part of my artistic journey, as well as my experience as artist in residence at Levens Hall." “This part of the world is etched deep into my soul and the landscape and the people are an unending source of inspiration in my work.” Gavagan Art owner Mary Gavagan adds: “This exhibition of Kitty’s work at Low Wood Bay is a wonderful opportunity to bring her paintings to a wider audience. Kitty is a prolific artist and colourist. I have exhibited her work previously both in Lancashire at Lancaster University’s Peter Scott Gallery and in Yorkshire.” The exhibition of Kitty North’s paintings is the second ‘Art in the Atrium’ gallery display to be held at Low Wood Bay Resort & Spa. It runs until 24 April 2024 and is freely open for viewing throughout the day. To find out more, visit here .

Perdue Farms truck driver Robert Timmons, who has been with the fourth-generation, family-owned U.S. food and agricultural products company for 44 years, is celebrating four million accident-free driving miles professionally for Perdue. In the company’s almost 104-year history, he is the second driver to achieve this milestone. Timmons, who goes by the handle Holly Trolly on the road, commented: “I am so excited that I achieved four million miles of safe driving. I’m excited and proud that I was able to do this while working at Perdue." Timmons is part of Perdue’s nearly 800 certified professional drivers who are the heart of the company and touch every part of the supply chain. At Perdue, there have been 184 Perdue drivers who have reached one million accident-free miles; 45 are two million safe-mile drivers; and 12 have achieved three million accident-free miles. Timmons joins Alvin Smith as the company’s only four million safe-mile drivers. Tim O’Hea, senior director of transportation for Perdue Farms, commented: “Our drivers are among our most visible brand ambassadors and have the most direct contact with our customers." “Robert achieving four million safe driving miles in just 43 years is no small feat and is a testament to his dedication not only to Perdue but also to our customers and those he shares the roads with every day.” Throughout his time at the company, Timmons has delivered dressed poultry from Salisbury to Lewiston, North Carolina, delivered live haul and oil, has been an over the road driver delivering as far west as Iowa and throughout the entire Perdue marketplace and currently delivers local short haul loads. When he is not on the road, Timmons spends time with his children and grandchildren and enjoys carpentry. He is currently building an addition to his home in Salisbury. He also enjoys cruises and has been on 16.

Staff at a Wimborne business have raised more than £1,000 for University Hospitals Dorset NHS Charity - and every penny raised will go towards the Ladybird Breast Unit at Poole Hospital. Funeral Director Amy Turvey and colleagues at Douch & Small funeral directors carried out a number of events to raise the money. The business is part of Douch Family Funeral Directors that has seven branches across east Dorset and raises money for many causes. A cheque for £1,089 was presented to Hayley Harris, corporate fundraiser for the charity. Amy, whose mother Jan was treated at the clinic after being diagnosed with breast cancer and who is now in remission, led the effort. Her fiancée Robert Atkins and his friend Andy Forrest cycled from Wimborne to Bristol and back again to help raise the money. Other events included raffles and skittles evenings. Amy said: “The Ladybird clinic was brilliant for mum and diagnosed her on the same day she had the test. Treatment was excellent and now she is in remission and we wanted to give something back." “As a company we do a lot of fundraising for local charities and my colleagues really got behind the effort. Every year about 11,500 women and 85 men die from breast cancer so getting diagnosed early is very important.” University Hospitals Dorset NHS Charity’s Corporate Fundraiser, Hayley Harris, received a cheque for £1,089 and said: “We are extremely grateful to Amy and the staff at Douch & Small who raised such an amazing amount." “We can work with the team on the Ladybird Unit to use the funds towards items they need that are over and above NHS funding. Most of all, we are thrilled to hear Jan is in remission. Go Jan. “

The Cornish Arms, owned by St Austell Brewery and run by husband and wife duo John and Emma Hooker, has scooped second place in the prestigious Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropub list. The pub which is set on the foothills of Dartmoor in the stannary town of Tavistock has continued to move up the rankings over the years for its delicious food and top-quality dishes. On the pub, the Estrella Damm listing states: “The Cornish Arms is a gastropub that serves the simplest of food crafted with the highest care. “The pub serves unpretentious, mouth-watering dishes, featuring superb local produce which has bumped them all the way up to number two [on the list] in the UK.” Since opening in 2013 the pub has gone from strength to strength, having been placed as one of the top 50 Gastro Pubs in the UK within six months of opening. In 2014 the pub gained a Michelin Bib Gourmand which has been retained to date. 2015 saw the pub win Food Pub of the Year at the annual St Austell estate award and John was named Chef of the Year in the Coveted Trencherman's awards. At the start of 2016 at the annual St Austell estate awards The Cornish Arms was named Customer Service Pub of the Year. 2023 the pub won the food magazine readers award for best dining pub. With John’s 25 years of experience as a chef, having held 3AA Rosettes, featured in the Good Food Guide, competing on BBC 2’s Great British Menu in 2010 and 2011, he makes the most of the best ingredients from the South West cooked with the seasons produce and using classic combinations with big hearty flavours. On placing second on the respected list, John said: “We’re buzzing – it’s a phenomenal achievement." “For us, we cook for our customers first and make sure we have a commercially viable business - particularly in this current climate - but to get the accolades is the icing on the cake." “When Emma and I first took on the Cornish Arms 10 years ago we thought it was going to be us taking on a great pub in our hometown that we would want to go and visit ourselves, but it’s turned into this gastronomic destination now which is amazing. It’s mind-blowing really.” The Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs has been running since 2009 with the purpose of recognising the best in the gastropubs industry. The list is voted on by 100 industry professionals, with judges coming from leading pub businesses, editors of media brands and food writers across the UK. Photo credit: Nick Hook.

Pioneering Leicestershire firm Abacus Flooring Solutions has announced its imminent move to bigger premises following an incredible year of continued growth. The resin flooring specialist will triple the size of its facility when it moves from its current site in Coalville to a new 3,000 sq ft industrial unit in Belton Road, Loughborough. Established only three-and-a-half years ago by husband-and-wife-team Nick and Amanda Megson, Abacus has also grown from nothing in 2020 to a £1m-plus turnover last year – with a current forecast that it will break the £2m barrier by the end of this year. The multi-award-winning company’s rapid success is largely the result of a ‘world-first’ innovation developed by Nick called Abaplas. Abaplas is a resin flooring system that uses 100 per cent recycled waste plastic as a bulking material instead of the traditionally used silica sand, which is damaging to human health and the environment. The firm’s expansion will trigger the launch of a new umbrella company, Abacus Materials Ltd, which will consolidate the trading and handling of all recycled plastics and resin flooring systems. Nick said the Loughborough move is initially expected to create up to five new jobs, adding to the eight full-time staff already employed by Abacus. He will also establish a new training centre to encourage a new generation of younger workers into the resin flooring industry. “If you’d told me three years ago that Abacus would grow to a £2m company operating from a 3,000 sq ft site, I simply wouldn’t have believed you,” said Nick. “I often have to pinch myself to convince me that this is not a dream." “But our order book has gone through roof and continues to grow. After winning multiple awards, mostly as a result of the Abaplas invention, we are now making great strides in the global market as well as the UK." “Business is certainly booming. People have quickly caught on to the fact that Abaplas is hugely sustainable; it cuts the carbon emissions produced by the heavy mining of silica sand as well as preventing vast quantities of waste plastic ending up in landfill or the world’s oceans.” Abacus Flooring Solutions racked up eight international and regional industry awards in 2023, adding to another eight awards picked up since it launched during lockdown. The Abacus count last year included a global bronze award at the Green World Awards in Miami, where the Coalville-based firm pipped 500 international nominees to the post. The team also won two prized FeRFA (the resin flooring association) awards, another brace at the Leicestershire Live Business Awards, best start-up firm in the East Midlands Business Masters Awards and both innovation and environmental impact plaudits at the East Midlands Chamber Business Awards. The first resin flooring installation using the Abaplas 100 per cent recycled plastic system was at JCB’s global headquarters in Staffordshire. The firm also recycled old plastic seats at Wembley Stadium in order to use within the stadium’s new Abaplas flooring in the royal box in addition to numerous other installations in healthcare, logistics, commercial and manufacturing sites. Nick, who is travelling to the US this month to discuss the expansion of Abaplas with US, Canadian and other British firms, said: “We’re the only company in the world doing this. It’s more important now than ever to protect our planet so I will not rest until I’ve shared our innovation with the rest of the world." “Our new training centre is also designed to ensure the next generation of flooring professionals puts the environment at the forefront of their priorities.”

The family founders of a multi-award-winning business have announced a significant restructure after two decades of helping customers to enjoy a better night’s sleep. Alan and Elizabeth Colleran became a Dragons’ Den success story with their patented Duvalay Memory Foam Sleeping Bag in 2011. National Bed Federation Award wins, major contracts and retail partnerships fuelled a decade of expansion and diversification, with sub-brands Summerby Sleep and Raskelf Contract Beds joining Duvalay in the portfolio. Following the recent acquisition of the UK’s foremost baby mattress manufacturer, Nursery Connections, Alan gave this insight into the decision to unite these various business interests under a single umbrella, Raskelf Group: “Twenty years ago, we incorporated our business after initial experiments with memory foam – conducted at our kitchen table – proved to be promising. We have since grown to become a global presence that actively exports products and secures distribution agreements worldwide – selling handmade mattresses in locations as far afield as Korea and China." "‘The Duvalay brand and our Dragons’ Den experience will always be a special part of our story. We are extremely proud to be associated with that name and grateful to everyone who has invested in a Duvalay product for home or leisure. Looking to the future, each of our brands will now have its own unique place under the Raskelf Group umbrella, with dedicated support to reach its full potential. That is what we believe our customers deserve, and how we will continue to grow and thrive with a focus on excellence.” This announcement marks a pivotal moment for the Raskelf Group, which capitalised upon its strong financial position to buy Nursery Connections out from administration last year. The strategic acquisition substantially broadened the spectrum of sleep products offered by the Group – ranging from sleeping bags, mattress toppers and bedding to mattresses for online retail, hospitality and children’s cots. In addition, the Group’s workforce has increased to 120 skilled craftspeople, who produce 10,000 sleep products each week across its sites in West Yorkshire and Northamptonshire. “All the hard work we have put in as a family over the years has been more than worth it,” added Sales & Marketing Director Elizabeth Colleran. “The Raskelf Group is the legacy we have created for our sons, their wives and our grandchildren." "Along the way, we have helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide to have a good night’s sleep across the retail, leisure and hospitality sectors, as well as providing work opportunities for craftspeople in their home counties." "We are ready to embrace our new era as an umbrella group – and the future has never looked brighter.”

Family Business United is delighted to announce that the 2024 Global Family Business Summit will be taking place from November 12 to November 21, 2024. Building on the success of the past three years, the 2024 Summit will bring together the global family business community for a series of web based sessions - masterclasses, meet the authors, insights and panel discussions - all seeking to raise awareness of the important contribution that family businesses make to the global economy, celebrating their success and discussing some of the challenges unique to family businesses too. As Paul Andrews, Founder and CEO of Family Business United explains: "The Global Family Business Summit was born during the global pandemic and has become a core component of our annual calendar of events." "Technology has enabled us to bring together an incredible array of family business talent over the years, presenting and sharing their insights and we are really excited about what 2024 has in store and are planning some new sessions for the programme this year." "We are creating a programme that touches on some of the issues around family dynamics, stewardship, sustainability and leadership with global insights from experts across the world." The full programme will be published in due course but for now anyone interested in getting involved by way of sponsoring the event or presenting during the Summit should get in touch via the contact us page with details of their proposal.

Possilpark-based Allied Vehicles is on course to have its most successful year ever and has been recruiting heavily to facilitate this. In the last 12-months alone an additional 200 employees have joined, taking the head count to nearly 700 staff. Allied Vehicles primary revenue stream is to adapt vehicles for the wheelchair accessible vehicle market. These vehicles truly change people’s live and support people with disabilities to maintain their independence. January saw Allied Vehicles bring in another 40 members of staff, their largest single increase in employees, and that promises to continue. Allied Vehicles owner, Gerry Facenna said, “When I first started Allied, I wanted to create jobs and opportunities for people in the local community. As we succeed and grow, it’s been fantastic to see this continue at pace.” Allied Vehicles also contributes nearly £250,000 annually to the local and wider communities through its Charitable Trust. In January £20,000 is being donated to worthy causes including local schools, sports teams and community food pantries. Mr Facenna added, “Our Charitable Trust is so important to so many north Glasgow charities and community organisations. Supporting organisations like The Courtyard Pantry, who are doing amazing things to help local people in food poverty is the reason the Trust was created in the first place." "Seeing the smiles on the faces of local school children who we support to go on school trips that would otherwise be out of reach due to the cost-of-living crisis and increasing poverty gaps makes it all so worthwhile.” Expansion plans are in place for Allied Vehicles to continue to grow and expand both locally and internationally. The demand for wheelchair accessible vehicles has never been higher and capacity to be able to adapt these vehicles has already doubled in the past 12-months. Mr Facenna concluded, “It’s such an exciting time for Allied as we continue to see record levels of success. We will carry on creating jobs and investing in the community. This is the area I grew up in, the area where the Allied story began, and we want to see Possilpark flourish again.” .