Organising Busy Lives

Thinking of setting up your own business?

rebecca — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 12:43:00 +0000

If you are thinking of setting up your own business, a new initiative designed to support new business start ups may be just what you need to get your new venture underway. Business in Bloom is a campaign that has been launched by small business support company, Enterprise Nation, to encourage and support new business ventures and help people to become their own boss. So if you are feeling inspired to branch out on your own, this could be just what you need!

On target to help 500,000 businesses start and grow
One week after launch, the Business in Bloom campaign to help 500,000 people start and grow a business in 2011 is on target, having attracted support from small businesses, large corporates and enterprise agencies across the UK.
With pledges of free places on sales courses, access to event space and help for businesses wanting to improve their marketing, the small business community has actively responded to the call of this campaign.

With more government cuts on the way and unemployment expected to rise, the campaign was launched by small business support company, Enterprise Nation, to show people they do have an entrepreneurial future and can become their own boss.

Pledges are in from companies such as O2, enterprise groups including Shell LiveWIRE and Harrow in Business, and small business owners who are coming forward to help others follow in their footsteps.

Amy Bould of Be Bold PR is a recent start-up herself and has pledged a specially designed PR service to help new business owners. Amy says: “Having just left a job of 15 years to start my own business, I understand why other people want to do the same. I’m loving working for myself and on my own terms but it takes confidence to move from employment to self-employment so I want to support others make that move by helping them with PR. The Business in Bloom campaign seemed an ideal way to tell the nation what I can do to help!”

Allen Pluck is from enterprise agency, Harrow in Business, and recognises the importance of helping people grow their enterprise: “Despite government and council funding cuts we are still providing advice, training, information and know-how to would be entrepreneurs and small businesses. We wanted to pledge support to this national campaign that will keep enterprise alive.”

With media partner BusinessZone.co.uk and national agency network NFEA as an advocate, the campaign looks set to keep on growing. Enterprise Nation founder, Emma Jones, says: “With an overall target to help 500,000 people realise their entrepreneurial ambitions in 2011, that’s equal to helping just over 9,600 people per week. We will take count after the first month but with the support pledged so far we’re confident of being on target. If we keep going at this rate, business will be booming and blooming in the UK!”

About Business in Bloom The Business in Bloom campaign has been launched to transform the lives of 500,000 people, by helping them start or grow businesses in 2011.

The campaign has been launched by small business support company, Enterprise Nation.
Research suggests that small businesses will contribute to the UK’s growth and dynamism, but entrepreneurialism needs to be encouraged and supported. Enterprise agencies, business support providers, corporate suppliers and small business owners are being asked to come forward and pledge support.

Enterprise Nation is pledging its support through a number of its own projects, including the Start-Up Kit (www.brightwordpublishing.com/startupkit), which includes “everything you need to start a small business”, Bitsy “the friendliest business to business marketplace on the web” (www.bitsythis.com) and live events, this year in London and Manchester.

Follow the campaign on Twitter @e_nation, #ukbloom Pledge your support at www.businessinbloom.co.uk
Find out more about Enterprise Nation at www.enterprisenation.com

Please contact Emma Jones with any enquiries on: emma@enterprisenation.com 01743 272555 / 0789 9871698 @emmaljones

Example pledges
“With the boom of cottage industry, I have seen many cake makers set up their own business - only to struggle on pricing, marketing etc. I will be organising workshops with new and wannabe cake makers to help them start their own businesses on the right foot.” Laura Helps, Cakes by Laura

“I could give free advice on marketing strategy - particularly social media marketing.” Diane Hall, The Writing Hall

“I mentor several entrepreneurs in Cumbria and the North West of England. Am more than happy to help anyone interested in setting up a business with a free Mentoring Session to get them going!” Archie Workman, The Gamechanger

“Here at O2 we are keen to offer business customers products and services that will help them stay in touch with customers, colleagues as well as friends and family. We promise to help customers get the most suitable solutions to help their businesses grow.” Colin Brown, O2

“I’m an entrepreneur and founder of Consulting Leaders Academy, West London Entrepreneurs Society and Enterprise India. I would love to connect with Young budding entrepreneurs and help them in strategy, multi-channel marketing and business model to be niche market leaders.” Pravash Dey

“I was previously a tender training consultant and sales trainer. I could help by giving my time and experience in training/presenting on sales, specifically on winning business from the Government. I also have an online 1 week crash sales course starting March and can give some free places away on this. Best regards Scott” Scott Barlow

“I can offer workhubs as venues for this campaign” Tim Dwelly, Workhubs Network

“I can promote the Business in Bloom campaign to my mailing list of mums, many of whom are looking to escape corporate life to set up their own “bitsy” business!” Amanda Alexander, Coaching Mums

Parents for Playgrounds initiative to renovate rundown parks & play areas

rebecca — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 15:05:24 +0000

Robinson’s Fruit Shoot and Play England have joined together for the fantastic Parents for Playgrounds initiative to renovate rundown parks and play areas to ensure that kids up and down the country have somewhere great to play!

Abandoned or tired playgrounds can receive a renovation bursary of up to £15,000, so if your local playground, park or play space is in need of some tlc and restoration, why not nominate it at the Parents for Playgrounds website.

Nominations need to be in by 16 March after which date a panel of judges will create a shortlist of entries. From 23rd March the nation will be able to vote for the winners with the results announced on 27th April.

We think this is a great initiative as play areas and parks are such an important part of family life and not just for the kids! I owe my job to one little park in Dorset as it’s where Sarah and I first met!

So if you think your local playground deserves a spruce up, click here to nominate it.

Roasted veggies with rice

rebecca — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 10:35:16 +0000

After all the cooking you’ve probably done over Christmas, we thought this quick and easy recipe of roasted veggies with rice would be just the ticket.

Sweet Potato
Courgette
Cherry tomatoes
Red onion
Red & yellow pepper
4 Garlic gloves
Olive oil
Basil to garnish

Chop the peppers, onion, courgette and sweet potato into chunks and peel the garlic.
Put all the vegetables and cherry tomatoes into a roasting tin and toss them in the olive oil .
Cook in a hot oven for about 15-20 minutes.
For added flavour add chunks of feta cheese and cook with the vegetables.
Garnish with basil and serve with rice.

Spruce up your Christmas tree knowledge

rebecca — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 10:42:42 +0000

Being a bit of an old Scrooge, I decided last year that spending double the price on a non-drop Christmas tree simply wasn’t worth it. How wrong I was. My non-drops of previous years may have lost the odd needle or two, but it was nothing compared to the mountain of needles that swamped my carpet every time someone even breathed near the tree. Unfortunately, come Boxing Day my beautifully decorated tree was little more than a rather sad shadow of the glorious spruce it had once been.

To make sure your Christmas tree stays looking great until twelfth night, we’ve put together the following hints and tips on how to keep your Christmas tree looking great.

When buying your tree, it’s worth considering whether you want a rooted or a cut tree. If you want to plant your tree in the garden after Christmas, you will need to buy a rooted tree. However it is worth bearing in mind that many of the important feeding roots can be lost when the tree is dug so there’s no guarantee that it will survive and the cost for a rooted tree is substantially more than for a cut tree.
Once you get the tree home, if it is a cut tree saw off an inch from the base of the tree. This will expose new wood and ensure the tree can take up water. It’s a good idea to stand the tree outside in a bucket of water for a couple of hours before you bring it in to decorate to give it a really good drink.
Give the tree a good shake before bringing it inside to get rid of any loose needles.
Invest in a proper Christmas tree stand that has a pot in which to stand the trunk and can hold water. A Christmas tree needs watering like any other house plant and will shed needles almost immediately without it.
Avoid putting the tree near to heat sources such as a radiator.
Water and feed the tree daily with a sugar/water solution (500g of sugar to 10 litres of water). The sugar will help the tree to retain its needles.

Christmas Cup Cakes

rebecca — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 10:19:48 +0000

With loads of lovely edible sparkly sprinkles and decorations for cakes, you can really go to town creating these festive cupcakes!

Basic cup cake recipe (makes 12):

100g (4 oz) butter
100g (4 oz) caster sugar
2 medium eggs
100g (4 oz) self-raising white flour

Butter cream:

110g (4 oz) butter
225 (6oz) icing sugar
55g (2 oz) chocolate powder

Method

Line your bun tin tray with paper cases .
Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy Gradually beat in the eggs, a little at time and then fold in the flour.
Half-fill the paper cases. Bake at 190C (375F) Mark 5 for 15-20mins. Cool on a rack.
Meantime, make the buttercream by beating the butter until it is fluffy.
Sieve the icing sugar and chocolate powder and gradually stir into the butter adding a little milk if the mixture is too stiff.
Once the cakes have cooled, apply the butter cream liberally to the top of the cakes.

Suggested toppings:

We found some lovely edible metallic Christmas tree sprinkles which we sprinkled onto the cakes and topped with a dusting of icing sugar to give a snowy alpine look.
An alternative idea is to sprinkly the cakes with edible silver stars and glitter.

Poll: What is the right age for children to have mobile phones?

rebecca — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 11:01:21 +0000

Having recently asked my son if he can write me a list of what he wants for Christmas, I can state with some certainty that a mobile phone will be at the top of his list. He has been asking for a mobile for some time now and I’ve always resisted feeling that having a mobile comes with responsibilities for which he was just too young. However, as he gets older and ventures out on his own, it begs the question what is a good age for children to start having mobiles (if at all!). Are they a great security asset that allow children to develop a life away from their parents or do they prevent children from learning to deal with life’s situations knowing that mum and dad are just a phone call away? With this in mind, we’d be interested to know your views so are asking the question:

What is the right age for children to have mobile phones?

Easy toffee apples

rebecca — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 14:15:49 +0000

A quick and easy recipe for delicious toffee apples. Ideal for eating round the bonfire!

6 apples

6 wooden sticks

4 (100g) packets good quality toffee

2 tablespoons milk

Method:

Give the apples a good wash, remove the stems and insert a stick firmly into each apple. Butter a baking tray.
Place the toffee and milk in a microwave proof bowl, and microwave for approximately 2 minutes, stirring once half way through. The toffee should now be soft and malleable. Allow to cool slightly.
Dip each apple in the toffee until completely covered and place on the baking tray until the toffee has hardened (To make your apples more exciting, you could dip them in chocolate sprinkles or chopped nuts before the toffee sets).

Organised Kids!

rebecca — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 13:35:43 +0000

If, like some of the mums in our office, you’re having trouble getting older children to take responsibility for their own organisation, you can download this handy chart, that might just help.

Showing a week-to-a-view, we’ve designed it to help older children to remember such things as, what they need to take to school that day, what homework needs to be done, what they might need for after school clubs, etc so that they think for themselves rather than relying on good old mum!

Ideal to get Year 6 primary school children standing on their own two feet before they start secondary school next year.

To download the document, just click on the link: organised-kids

Happy Talking Health features Healthy Life Jotter

rebecca — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 13:51:58 +0000

Julie Penfold is a free lance journalist who specialises in health and well-being writing for national magazines such as Natural Health, Ethical Living and Your Healthy Living as well as writing her own blog, Happy Talking Health.

On her site she discusses all things health-related with updates on health news, research and articles. Her latest post is about our very own, Healthy Life Jotter. The latest addition to our fridge list range, this is a handy jotter that you can stick to a fridge to keep a note of food and drink consumed throughout the day and daily exercise. See what Julie had to say about it at http://happytalkinghealth.posterous.com/

Halloween Pumpkin Pizza

rebecca — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 08:08:27 +0000

Pumpkin pizza is very popular ‘down under’ and was one of the first meals I had when I did a gap year there many moons ago. In the UK, we know butternut pumpkin better as butternut squash but as it’s Halloween, I thought we’d stick with pumpkin.

Ingredients

40g unsalted butter
1/2 butternut squash, cut into 1cm cubes
1/2 cup (125ml) chicken or vegetable stock
1 tbs dark brown sugar
100g baby spinach leaves
2 large ready-made pizza bases
Green pesto sauce
125g Feta cheese
Olive oil

Method
Heat the butter in a large frying pan. Add the pumpkin and cook gently on a low heat until it is just tender.
Add the stock, 1/4 cup water and the sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated and pumpkin has caramelised. Add the spinach and stir until just wilted.
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Spread the pesto sauce over the pizza bases and top with the pumpkin mixture. Crumble the feta cheese on top and then drizzle with oil. Bake for 10 minutes or until base is crisp and cheese is bubbling.