Small business bulletin for Leicestershire, Northants and Rutland

Local News 29 Jan 2025

Local small business news from Jennifer Thomas, your FSB Development Manager. Updates cover Daventry, Hinckley and Bosworth, Leicester, Leicestershire, Loughborough, Melton, Northampton, Northamptonshire, Rutland, Towcester. Last updated 29 January 2025.

In summary

A huge thank you to all the 100+ attendees, sponsors, exhibitors and supporters at the FSB Business Bootcamp last week. Bootcamp was an early sell-out and returning to last year’s Woodland venue and theme of ‘New Year Refresher’ with an extra interactive format, we knew it would be special. Vital tips and insight were shared, and we couldn’t have done it without our troop of FSB members involved. I hope you’re feeling energised for 2025!

Featured news and events 

Regional Chair Opportunity

We are currently seeking nominations from FSB members in East Midlands to become our new, regional Chair with effect from 1 April 2025. 

Working alongside staff, the regional Chair promotes and champions FSB to external stakeholders and audiences, supports our lobbying on issues important to local businesses and supports activity and membership growth within the region. 

To find out more and request a copy of the full role description, please contact [email protected] before Thursday 13 February. Selection will take place between 14 February and 28 February. 

Business Networking at The Farm

After September’s Autumn event at Mini Meadows Farm where we enjoyed fabulous breakfast catering, networking, a talk on social media and enjoyed a sightly muddy walk meeting pigs, Alpacas and donkeys, we’re heading back for Spring!

Please join us at the farm on Friday, 28 March, for another productive morning.

Join us for:

  • Informal networking
  • Small Business news and updates from FSB
  • Business introductions
  • Guest speaker session to learn something new for your business
  • Breakfast rolls and refreshments

Book here>


In other news

February’s Exhibition bonanza!

The FSB local team will be out meeting the business community at three major exhibitions in February.

Catch the teams, as well as hundreds of other businesses from across the region at these free-to-attend expos. We will be aiming to meet FSB members, help you with your benefits and services and find out about you or your business – do come and see us!

  • Thursday 6 February: Love Business East Midlands, Loughborough. The East Midlands’ biggest business expo, attracting people particularly from Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire for a vibrant day at Holywell Park, Loughborough. Gemma Orton and her team have taken on the expo.
     
  • Thursday 6 February: Your Business Expo, Northampton. The Northamptonshire edition of these popular and well organised exhibitions from the team behind the Business Times Magazine, Pulse Group Media and Your Business Networking, FSB Members Martin and Kerry Lewis-Stevenson. Meet them, hundreds of businesses from the South Midlands and the FSB team at the bright and airy Waterside Campus at the University of Northampton.
     
  • Tuesday 18 February: Black Business Exhibition, Leicester. Organised by EmPOWer Biz at Leicester’s African Caribbean Centre. Join the first, of what will be an annual Black Business Exhibition, supported by British Business Bank, Sir Thomas White Loans Charity and the Federation of Small Businesses.
    The event will be a mix of workshops, a wider variety of exhibitors and engagement with the Empower Biz Team, programme participants and peers.

Could you be a small business champion and FSB representative?

As the UK's foremost small business campaigner, it's essential that FSB is able to represent small businesses at every level of government. We have a number of working groups within Leicestershire Northamptonshire and Rutland where the voice of small businesses is represented by FSB.

If you have an interest in small business issues and policy, and can volunteer to dedicate the time and energy to put forward FSB's research and views, please get in touch!

Some of the latest topics include Leicestershire Rural Partnership, West Northamptonshire and North Northamptonshire economies and economic strategies, Innovation, MP engagement, Government Funded Business Support, Kettering Town Centre, The East Midlands Devolution agenda and developments, Skills in Hinckley and Bosworth, Leicestershire connecting businesses with schools and young people, Rutland Business Reference Group, and Diversity in funding.


Still in the news 

Ashby Connect Business Networking- the FSB Edition

If you’re an FSB member attending Ashby Connect, we’d like to hear from you, and invite you to take part in our presentation as sponsors of the February Ashby Connect, a popular free networking lunch in Ashby-de-la-Zouche. We’re delighted to be February’s supporter and who better to outline why FSB is a good organisation to have your back, than our own members! Please get in touch with us and we hope to see you there.

FSB creates Webinars for Immigrants and Refugees

Area Development Manager Jennifer Thomas was delighted to put together two webinars to support Immigrants and Refugees coming to the UK, to understand the business ecosystem grants and funded business support, and Business Networking. These have been translated into a range of languages by the Spring Educational Society and are being loaded onto YouTube. Please feel free to share these with anyone you know who could benefit. Links to the English language versions below:
Finding and Accessing Business Support.

 

More news and activity near you 


Get in touch

Your FSB Development Manager for Leicestershire, Northamptonshire & Rutland is Jennifer Thomas. If you'd like more information about the topics above, or if you have news about this area that you'd like to share, please get in touch