POSITIVE BUSINESS
Business against Poverty member profile :
Inspire Away
Business against Poverty ( BaP ) is a local community of business people who care about the issues of poverty and ethical standards . They are taking action through their charity People against Poverty , based in Trowbridge . Each edition of TBE we profile one of their members to find out more about them . This edition we meet Sharon Firth of Inspire Away .
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Inspire Away specialises in training and developing staff through interactive courses , workshops and away days . Business owner , Sharon also runs a church with her husband in Melksham , who recently raised funds for the BaP Tractor Appeal .
What motivates you ? The longer I ’ m in this business , the more I realise that it ’ s helping people that motivate me more than anything else . I am a facilitator – which literally means ‘ someone who makes things easier ’ and that ’ s what I love to do if I can . I get the biggest buzz from hearing that people have succeeded
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in doing something they couldn ’ t do before because they ’ ve been to one of my workshops or I ’ ve worked with them in their organisation
What is your business philosophy ?
I want my business to make a difference to my clients – to make them more effective by developing individuals and teams . I try to support charities and non-profits by offering one free place on all my open workshops – please contact me to take me up on this offer .
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Who do you admire the most ?
As a facilitator , I ’ m privileged to be involved with many organisations and I know there is a demand for acquiring exceptional employees . There is a huge trend for talented people to be looking at much more than the salary on offer when they are deciding which business to join . They are increasingly looking at organisations and wanting to see their CSR ( corporate social responsibility ). What is the organisation doing for the less fortunate ? How is it putting something back into the community ? Are there
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initiatives that employees can get involved in ? Business against Poverty can help organisations to demonstrate that they are doing something tangible and worthwhile to alleviate poverty around the world . In addition , Business against Poverty is a great community of people to network and do business with .
If you are interested in donating to the Business against Poverty Tractor Appeal visit :
www . mydonate . bt . com / fundraisers / peopleagainstpoverty1
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SUPPORT WILTSHIRE AIR AMBULANCE ’ S NEW AIRBASE
Businesses from across the county have pledged their support for Wiltshire Air Ambulance ’ s major fundraising appeal for its new airbase at Semington , near Melksham , by joining The 100 Club .
Each business who joins The 100 Club pledges to raise £ 10,000 for the Airbase Appeal . The appeal is raising the remaining £ 1.25 million towards completing the building and equipping of the new airbase .
The founding members of The 100 Club are Kingstons Estate Agents , Hartham Park , Excalibur , Coombe Castle and Goughs Solicitors .
Among the new 100 Club members is The Consortium , the education and care company based in Trowbridge .
Cathryn Petchey , HR Director at The Consortium , said : “ We have been fundraising for Wiltshire Air Ambulance for several years – it ’ s a very popular charity with our staff . We love supporting the charity because everyone
For more info : www . wiltshireairbaseappeal . co . uk / support-our-appeal / 100club / realises that they , or their loved ones , could need the services of Wiltshire Air Ambulance at any time .”
Baroness Jane Scott , leader of Wiltshire Council , urged businesses to get on board when she spoke at the launch of The 100 Club at Hartham Park , Corsham on March 10 .
She said : “ The 100 Club campaign is a fantastic opportunity for businesses to not only support such a valuable community service as the air ambulance , but also help raise their own profile and give their own business a boost . Your support will be directly helping save peoples ’ lives and we really can ’ t put a price on that .”
Cheryl Johnson , Head of Wiltshire Air Ambulance ’ s Airbase Appeal , said : “ By joining The 100 Club , businesses will be playing a big part in helping us to create a legacy for Wiltshire , with a custom-built airbase that will enable us to save lives for many years to come .”
100club @ wiltshireairambulance . co . uk
Mental health at work
Mental health difficulties are on the increase ; the official figure is that 1 in 3 of us will have a problem at some stage and we all know that stress and anxiety related issues are becoming more common for all age groups . In Wiltshire there are over 60,000 people registered as having common mental health disorders , but not all cases are reported .
There is still a stigma attached to mental ill-health and many people are unwilling to talk about it openly – particularly in the workplace where there may be a fear of being labelled a failure or being seen as weak in some way . Wiltshire Mind often receive calls from people experiencing mental health issues who are struggling to continue at work . Mental ill health is an unseen condition which can affect everything we do , our lives , relationships and of course ability to work .
Wiltshire Mind is a very local charity , based in Melksham which provides support to anyone experiencing mental health issues in the county . They provide six Support Groups in ( Melksham , Trowbridge , Chippenham , Malmesbury , Devizes and Salisbury ), two groups for Carers of those with mental health issues in Chippenham and Devizes ( in association with Carers Support Wiltshire ) and a Men ’ s Support Group . In addition to the above groups they provide 1-1 Counselling in both Melksham and Trowbridge and a Polish Counselling Service too .
Wiltshire Mind also want to help local businesses . They offer Mental Health
Awareness Training which can be tailored to the needs of the business . £ 26bn is lost to the British economy due to time off work / sick and loss of output .
The charity is urging businesses to make contact with them if you need help or if there is an opportunity to provide Mental Health Awareness Training to your business .
Wiltshire Mind is not funded by National Mind or supported by any statutory authorities , raising their own funds to survive . This is very difficult and they are appealing for support from both businesses and individuals . There are a number of ways you could support Wiltshire Mind ’ s work including :
• Visit their boutique style charity shop in Church St , Melksham – lots of bargains to be had .
• Provide Corporate Support
• Fundraise – marathons , dress down Friday , cakes sales etc
• Purchase their Mental Health Awareness Training ( all income goes directly to support services )
• Volunteer your time and skills
For more info : www . wiltshiremind . co . uk
01225 706532 office @ wiltshiremind . co . uk
32 THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017