Around the North Staffordshire Branch Area

What do health and safety regulations, social media, trading standards, marketing and looking after your money have in common?

They're all important to small businesses – and they've also all been topics for discussion at events held by FSB North Staffs branch for its members during the last year.

Our branch covers a pretty big area, and all sorts of small business, from the hill farms of the Staffordshire Moorlands in the north down to Cannock and the county town of Stafford, home to the University of Staffordshire and a major centre for transport, engineering, research, development and manufacturing.

As well as more rural and traditional industries, like the ceramics for which Stoke-on-Trent is famous, Staffordshire is seeing growth in many developing sectors, including retail, hospitality, care, financial services and technology.

Our aim as a branch is to reflect common concerns and challenges facing small businesses, whatever sector they're in, whether start-ups or long-established companies, and provide practical help and advice from local experts in addition to the support and benefits available through FSB on a national level.

As well as our own events, we work closely with other branches in the West Midlands to keep our members informed of any learning and networking opportunities FSB is offering elsewhere in the region.

And we link up with our FSB colleagues to represent small businesses across the West Midlands on occasions like the Staffordshire Show and to make our members' voices heard by policy makers and related organisations such as the new local enterprise partnerships being developed to boost the area's economy.

If you'd like to join us as a member, or to attend events open to non-members, get in touch with any of the North Staffs branch committee listed below. We're a friendly bunch, and would love to hear from you. And if you have any ideas for subjects you'd like to hear more about at an FSB event – or you'd like to share your own expert knowledge with other small businesses – let us know.

For details of forthcoming meetings please go to the Meetings and Events page for this branch or contact the Development Manager for Staffordshire and the West Midlands, Karen Woolley, on 01332 517176 or email for further information.

North Staffordshire Branch