Business as usual for regional Business Link service until November 2011 (From Watford Observer)

Business as usual for regional Business Link service until November 2011

9:10am Monday 10th January 2011 in Business News

Chris Parkhouse, Chairman of Business Link in the East of England, has urged businesses to take advantage of the dedicated regional Business Link service, before it closes on November 25.

The Government confirmed this week that the regional advisory service, which has served some 100,000 customers each year since April 2007, will be streamlined into a national Business Link web-based offering and contact centre at the end of the year.

Parkhouse said: “What’s important to remember here is that Business Link is not closing its doors today; the current service comprising one-to-one adviser support, tailored events and an in-region information advice service will remain open until November 25.

“The Government’s decision to streamline the regional service into one national Business Link offering comes at a time when purse strings are being tightened to get the economy back on track.

”There’s no question that our skilled and experienced team have delivered a consistently outstanding Business Link service to the region’s businesses and entrepreneurs. Last year alone, over 3,500 new businesses were created with their help, leading to the creation of 5,626 new jobs, and 6,711 established businesses received one-to-one support from a Business Link adviser.

“With current customer satisfaction levels of 92.5 per cent, we remain committed to delivering a high quality service and will work with our stakeholders to provide a smooth transition to the future business support landscape.”

Additional future business support services announced by the Government today include: New Enterprise Allowance Scheme to support the unemployed into self-employment; Business Coaching for Growth programme to fast track high-growth businesses; and a substantial business mentoring network.