BMW Group UK has kickstarted the year by acknowledging the incredible success and hard work of BMW and MINI retailers throughout the past year at the annual Retailer of the Year 2025 awards. Hosted by comedian Jimmy Carr, retailers were celebrated across a host of categories, recognising exceptional dedication to the BMW and MINI brands, and industry-leading customer service. Winners were selected across a range of categories, from Sales, Customer, Used Cars and Electric. A new award for MINI this year, ‘Rookie of the Year’, served to spotlight those who, with just a minimum of six months under their belt,…

Ferrari North Europe has been invited to join the “National Apprenticeship Week Supporters Club,” which highlights organisations dedicated to continuous professional development through diverse and impactful apprenticeship programmes. Between 10 – 16 February, all 15 UK-based Ferrari Dealerships will open their workshop doors to host a range of events, giving young people a chance to learn about potential opportunities through the “Ferrari North Europe Apprenticeship Programme”, now in its 15th year. The 15 Ferrari dealerships taking part in this activity are as follows: Dealership Date of Activity Carrs, Exeter Friday 14 February Charles Hurst, Belfast Saturday 15 February Dick Lovett,…

I’m sure we’ve all heard the phrase, ‘You never stop learning’, but sometimes it can be hard to keep learning when we are so busy with business and personal lives. Even more difficult can be actually completing a piece of learning and that’s usually because we don’t set clear targets. We are often very good at doing this for our businesses, outlining clear outcomes such as increasing sales by 5% in December or taking on three new employees within the next three months, but we don’t do this with things we want to learn. Instead, we give ourselves vague unsatisfying…

A £20 million investment into the Canalside South regeneration scheme in Wolverhampton was today announced by Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands. The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) has provided the loan facility to Wavensmere Homes to bring about the £150 million redevelopment and provide hundreds of new homes, including 109 affordable plots. Canalside South is one of the biggest regeneration projects of its kind in the region with more than 530 new energy efficient homes to be delivered across the former British Steel and Crane Foundry site and land off Qualcast Road, which has lain derelict for 15…

Telling road users to not let worn tyres be the third wheel this Valentine’s Day TyreSafe, the UK’s road safety charity dedicated to raising awareness of tyre safety, is kicking off its February ‘Love Your Tyres’ campaign, a light-hearted yet crucial reminder to all road users to prioritise regular tyre checks. Despite an estimated three in five Brits parting with hard-earned cash to celebrate Valentine’s Day, a recent survey conducted in partnership with the RAC, revealed that only a third (33%) of drivers check their vehicle’s tyre tread at least once a month – the minimum recommendation by road…

Britain’s new light commercial vehicle (LCV) market fell by -20.5% in the first month of 2025 with 19,050 vans, pick-ups and 4x4s registered, according to the latest figures published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). A second consecutive monthly decline follows robust growth in 2024, and is set against a tough economic backdrop and weakened business confidence to invest. Falling demand hit all but one segment, with small van registrations recording the only increase, up 89.8% to 668 units but still just a fraction (3.5%) of the market. Registrations of the largest vans were down -22.3%…

1,200 young people, parents and carers learned about local opportunities at the Solihull Apprenticeship Show. The event took place on Wednesday 29 January 2025 at North Solihull Sports Centre. Those in attendance had the opportunity to find out more about Apprenticeships up to degree level, Supported Internships and entry level work opportunities, demonstrating the wide variety of career paths available for young people. More than 40 employers and training providers across various sectors including construction, financial, creative, digital and engineering were on hand to talk to visitors. Exhibitors included JLR, the NEC group, Rolls-Royce, Solihull College & University Centre, West…

New Park Village estate today saw a historic milestone as the excavators moved in to start demolishing decaying 1960s maisonettes and pave the way for new homes. It is part of a major redevelopment of council housing in the area that will see 205 outdated residential properties flattened and replaced with 188 new energy efficient homes. Poor quality bungalows on Valley Road have already been removed by contractor DSM Demolition and now the main flats at Ellerton Walk, which sit within 8 linked deck access blocks each with integral garages at ground floor level are being pulled down. The regeneration…

The event, hosted by Connexions Sandwell, saw 2,542 young people/parents attending, which easily beat the previous record attendance of 2,329 in 2024. The record number of visitors were able to meet 50 exhibitors, all keen to inspire, recruit and educate the next generation of Sandwell young workers. Connexions advisers were on hand to give independent careers information, advice and guidance. In addition, and one young person on work experience with Connexions helped the event to run smoothly. Sandwell Council Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Councillor Jalal Uddin, said: “Sandwell’s young people are the future of the borough. We…

EVs take more than a fifth of new car registrations as overall market contracts by -2.5% to 139,345 units. Slowdowns recorded by both fleet and private buyers against backdrop of weak economic confidence. Industry calls for halt to EV tax hikes as latest outlook anticipates 23.7% market share for 2025 below government targets. The UK new car market fell by -2.5% to 139,345 units in January, according to data released today by the Society of Motor manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), as weak consumer confidence and tough economic conditions combined to deliver the fourth consecutive month of decline. Registrations by both…