Birmingham shortlisted for city of culture crown

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has revealed that Birmingham has successfully made the shortlist for the first UK City of Culture title in 2013.

The bid, developed by the Birmingham Cultural Partnership (BCP), is set within the theme of Big City Culture and reflects Birmingham’s status as a global city with a world class programme of cultural activities, with a rich and diverse local heart established within its communities.

Responding to the news, Cllr Martin Mullaney, Chairman of the BCP, said: “To have got so far against tough opposition from across the UK is a fantastic boost for Birmingham. But this is just the first stage and we’re not getting carried away.

“There’s a lot of hard work ahead and now we want people across the city to play a part as we put together the final bid that will mean Birmingham is named the UK’s first ever City of Culture.

“This is very much a Birmingham bid, not just a City Council bid, and we are keen to involve as many people across the city as possible. As we move into the final decisive stage of the selection process, we still want to hear your ideas on http://www.canvasbirmingham.com/ .”

Leader of the Council, Councillor Mike Whitby added: “To be named UK City of Culture would represent a massive economic boost, not only for Birmingham but for the region as a whole.

“This title is worth an estimated £200 million to the regional economy and would create thousands of jobs whilst offering us the chance to showcase Birmingham as a global cultural centre.

“Birmingham already has a strong cultural reputation and this title would further enhance that reputation while supporting our long term drive to increase cultural participation across the city.”

Stuart Griffiths, Chief Executive of the Birmingham Hippodrome, said: “This is fantastic news for culture in the city and I know that all our cultural organisations are supporting the bid and are right behind this whole process.

“Making the shortlist will give us great impetus to really pull out all the stops and win the title in the summer. Winning will be such a huge boost for us in terms of profiling are offer both inside and outside the city and have an immense impact on the opportunities for all arts and cultural organisations across Birmingham.”

The list of fourteen bidders has now been whittled down to just 4 by an independent panel, who assessed applications against a set of criteria such as the quality of the programme and its ability to reach a wide range of people; the use of culture to lead to lasting social regeneration; being able to demonstrable an economical impact and the creation of a legacy beyond 2013.
The other shortlisted cities are Sheffield, Norwich and Derry and the last stage of the bidding process now begins with final bids to be submitted to DCMS at the end of May. The winning city will be announced during the summer

Insolvencies at lowest rate since June 2007

The number of business failures is at its lowest rate since June 2007, according to information services firm Experian.

Figures show that UK businesses across the UK witnessed an 8% improvement in their combined financial strength score from 79.46 in January 2009 to 81.16 January 2010, while the rate of insolvencies fell to 0.07% in January 2010, with seven in every 10,000 businesses failing, compared to an insolvency rate of 0.09% in January 2009 and 0.11% in December 2009.

Rolf Hickmann, managing director of pH, an Experian company, says: “It’s encouraging to discover that not since the current financial crunch started have so few firms become insolvent in a single month. While it is too early to predict whether we are fully out of the woods, this does hint at an improvement in the health of UK businesses, something which is reinforced by the financial strength view provided by January’s data.”

Article source Recruiter.co.uk

BBC iPlayer gets design award nod

Singer Beth Ditto and the BBC's iPlayer have been nominated for the third annual Design Awards on 4 March.

The BBC's radio and TV catch-up service is in the running against Amazon's Kindle 2 wireless reader service in the interactive category.

In fashion, Ditto's clothing label at Evans is up against Alexander McQueen's 2010 spring and summer collection.

Seven winners will be announced at the Design Museum in London, with an overall winner announced on 16 March.

Artist Antony Gormley is chairing the jury which includes designer Tom Dixon and style editor of Grazia Paula Reed.

In the architecture award, the Hutong Bubble 32 in Beijing is shortlisted with the Brandhorst Museum in Munich and the British Embassy in Warsaw, Poland.

A folding plug, designed by Royal College of Art graduate Min-Kyu Choi, is nominated in the the product category.

Last year, Shepard Fairey's iconic Barack Obama poster was named overall winner.

Source of Article

UK unemployment falls for second month in a row

The number of people unemployed in the UK has fallen slightly, figures show.

Total unemployment stood at 2.46 million for the three months to December, down 3,000 on the figure for the previous three months.

But long-term unemployment, covering those out of work for more than a year, rose by 37,000 to 663,000, the highest figure since 1997.

And the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance climbed by 23,500 to 1.64 million in January.

'Tough times'

That was the largest increase since July last year - with analysts having expected the number of claimants to fall by about 10,000.

The rate of unemployment was unchanged at 7.8%, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

This is the second consecutive month that the wider measure of unemployment has fallen.

But the rise in the claimant count could point to further increases ahead, said John Philpott, chief economic adviser at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

"That indicates that the labour market was quite weak at the turn of the year and it might presage further bad news for the reminder of the first half of the year," he said.

Rising levels of people who were underemployed - working part-time when they would prefer to work full-time - gave "a much richer account of the degree to which this recession has impacted on the workforce", Mr Philpott added.

"With a weak economic recovery set to result in further job losses in the coming months, it is highly likely that the unemployment situation will get worse before it starts to get significantly better."

While unemployment for the UK as a whole fell by 3,000, there were some big national and regional differences.

The South East experienced the biggest rise in unemployment during the quarter, up by 12,000, and the West Midlands recorded the biggest fall, down 16,000.

In Scotland, the number of people out of work increased by 10,000, while in Northern Ireland there was a drop of 8,000.

By Stephanie Flanders, BBC Economics Editor

Businesses are hiring again as job opportunities grow

Positive news at last from the recruitment industry. The recent survey of agencies by the Recruitment Employers Federation and KPMG suggests that companies are hiring again in good numbers. Demand for staff is at its highest since July 2007, apparently, but I'm not sure that all sectors of the economy are roaring back to health at the same time. Some canny business owners who prepared themselves during the recession may now be finding their feet, but as industry sectors felt the pain of the recession at different times so they will return to hiring mode again at their own pace.

I am seeing a pattern of increased job openings and activity in a number of businesses within my investment portfolio. From recruitment agencies to web design consultancies – they are showing signs of recovery and are enthusiastic about the year ahead.

Phil Roebuck, managing director of webrecruit, one of my portfolio companies tells me the number of vacancies they're working on each day has increased tenfold. Business confidence, whilst still shaky, is getting stronger and recruitment activities are reflecting this.

He tells me that demand for sales and marketing professionals is increasing, news I'm not too surprised about. These two skills sets are instrumental in a recovery plan. He's also seen a rapid increase in digital media jobs. The REC report suggests it's the IT/computing sector that's in most demand at the moment, and whilst closely related, the digital field is also one to watch.

The internet has been a terrific instrument of change. Virtually overnight it changed the dynamics of business. It's rapid, cheap and effective, so it's inevitable a new army of jobs would be created around this new domain.

This is particularly relevant to Fresh Egg, an internet marketing agency in which I've invested. Their success has been twofold: not only has the demand for search engine optimisation (SEO) increased, but also the size of their expert team. Great SEO consultants are in short supply.

It seems the penny's dropped: more and more companies have realised how important it is to have an online presence, and the marketing tools it provides to reach a wider audience.

But it's not just my web-based investments that are thriving. Tristan Ramus, one of my chief advisers, informs me that two of our key recruitment companies, the Resourcing Group and Eden Brown, are showing positive signs.

The Resourcing Group had its best year ever based on net profit as a result of adapting what they do to survive the volatile market. Eden Brown on the other hand, is showing early signs of growth and reflect the report's findings that the permanent jobs market is rebounding.

I believe many employers will remain cautious for some months, but it is reassuring to see recruitment activity increase. The casualties of the recession are starting to find their feet, with jobs from administration and HR, through to engineering and IT, all seeing modest rises. Let's hope we can maintain this

By James Caan

Over half of Brits say work stress ruins their relationship

Pressure in the workplace is having a strong impact on the nation’s love lives, a survey by Monster.co.uk has revealed.

37% of those questioned in the survey revealed that the stress brought on by their job spoils the time they spend with their partner.

Almost a quarter (23%) revealed that they feel expected to put their work life ahead of their home life. A defiant 9% of workers however ensure that the strain of their job does not affect their relationship as they insist on putting their love lives ahead of their careers.

Monster.co.uk recently asked 2,386 workers throughout the UK, “Does your job ruin your love life?” The main findings are as follows:

•37% Yes, being stressed because of work spoils the time I spend with my partner

•23% Yes, I am expected to prioritise my job over my home life

•31% No, my job and private life are completely separate

•9% No, I put my love life first

As the UK limps weakly out of the recession, it is unsurprising that so many Britons feel the need to put work ahead of their relationships. However, Monster recommends the following tips to help you ease your love/work life struggle:

•Make time for your partner – plan dates on special occasions such as Valentine’s Day to keep the romance in your relationship alive.

•Get organised – plan your work day in advance and set realistic timeframes on projects and clear limits on what you can achieve in the working day. This will help you to leave the office on time, meaning more quality time with your loved one.

•Recharge your batteries – If you regularly take time out to briefly relax, you'll cope much better when things are unavoidably busy or stressful at work.

•Say ‘no’ in the right way – If you are asked to do something you don’t have time for, explain why you need all the hours you’re currently working and make it clear that you would need to delegate some of your workload before taking on a new project.

 

Source of Article Onrec News

Back to Black........

The British economy has finally emerged from recession after 6 consecutive quarters of contraction

House prices increased by a further 1.2% in January, the 9th consecutive monthly increase

Unemployment figures reduced for the first time since early 2008

Are these signs that we have finally turned the economic corner? Well we, we hope so and if it isn’t the end, perhaps it is the beginning of the end of the slump. One statistic I am pleased to report (which can only be considered a good sign) is the increase in new sales, marketing and creative job opportunities we are being briefed on which is a clear indicator that some confidence is creeping back into the Midlands job market. We always experience a New Year job spike, but this year the upturn is definitely more pronounced and prolonged. Why not take a look at the latest jobs we have listed on our website and if any appeal get in touch. We have specialist sales, marketing and creative consultants awaiting your call