UK businesses and consumers could benefit from lower prices on imports of everyday essentials like spices and juices as the Government takes further action to make the UK the best place to do business and kickstart economic growth. In a further demonstration of the government’s commitment to free trade and responding to business need, the UK Global Tariff will be temporarily suspended on 89 products saving UK businesses up and down the country at least £17 million a year. The products include plywood and plastics, which are essential for construction – making life easier for chippies all over the country.…

Council homes in a Wednesbury neighbourhood have undergone a major refurbishment, with two new apartments also created to help provide much-needed housing. Sandwell Council and its contractor SWG Construction have completed the refurbishment and new-build project in Thorn Close, Wednesbury. SWG has revitalised 12 one-bedroom and 16 three-bedroom two-storey apartments, while also adding two brand new one-bedroom single-storey apartments within the original under-used underpasses. The project not only improves the quality of housing for residents but also enhances the surrounding environment with new landscaping, garden roofs, modernised communal spaces and upgraded facilities. Alongside the new apartments, SWG completed essential works…

The London Eid Festival returned in spectacular fashion this past weekend at Westfield London, welcoming thousands of visitors from all faiths and diverse backgrounds to mark the end of Ramadan in a joyful, sunlit celebration of food, culture, and community. Taking place from Friday 4th to Sunday 6th April, the first weekend of this two-part event began with early festivalgoers arriving at Westfield Square well before the 11am opening to enjoy freshly cooked halal street food. From there, guests made their way into the central area of the Westfield mall, which had been transformed into a vibrant indoor market…

The facility, located at Grenfell Allotments, had gone unused for 10 years prior to work. To deliver the work at no cost, a collaborative approach was pulled together through Walsall Council’s Corporate Social Responsibility Programme (CSR). Barhale and sister company BCS Group provided labour, tools, PPE and signage for the project. Travis Perkins provided all the materials free of charge while Flannery Plant Hire provided a heavy plant dumper and mini digger, including transport to and from site. For groundworks, Speedy Hire provided strimmers. For the work to be carried out, vegatation had to be removed, along with the dilapidated…

Young Driver®, the UK’s foremost under-17s driver-training school, has steered clear of leasing for the first time after taking delivery of its brand-new 170-strong Suzuki Swift fleet, which will provide 150,000 driving lessons for children each year. After 15 years, 1.5 million lessons, and multiple fleet changes, Young Driver has bucked the industry norm and purchased its new fleet outright, rather than leasing the cars. Due to a combination of strong residual values for the Suzukis, and the ability for Young Driver to only offset its loan interest and depreciation against profits – rather than the entire lease payment -…

The £1.5m mass spectrometer will enable the study of proteins, lipids and metabolites in cell membranes in exceptional detail The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) awarded the funds and Dr Ivana Milic leads the Aston University research team The spectrometer will be a resource for the Midlands membrane and bioscience communities. Aston Institute for Membrane Excellence (AIME) and Aston University College of Health and Life Sciences have installed a cutting-edge mass spectrometer to study biological membranes, following a grant of £1.5m from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). The research team is led by Dr Ivana…

The Royal Automobile Club Motoring Book of the Year Awards are now open for entries! These prestigious awards welcome submissions of all motoring and motor racing books published between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2025. Now in their twelfth consecutive year, the Motoring Book of the Year Awards are widely regarded as the highest honours in automotive book publishing. “Our Awards have a simple yet important goal: to champion the very best in automotive literature – honouring outstanding books, authors and publishers,” said Jeremy Vaughan, Head of Motoring at the Royal Automobile Club. “Once again, we invite authors and…

After ten years, and with more than 100,000 young minds inspired, Nissan has announced that it will double its pioneering Skills Foundation STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) provision to 16,000 children annually. Officially launched in 2015 by King Charles, the then Prince of Wales, the Nissan Skills Foundation began as a single interactive workshop aiming for about 1,000 students. Fast forward ten years and the foundation has beaten that target 100-fold, expanding to 13 different STEM courses for students aged six to eighteen. To mark the double milestone, Nissan invited 200 children from across the North East onto the…

People can learn about activities taking place in their community and have their say about local issues at a series of regular drop in sessions held across Wolverhampton. The Love Your Community sessions give residents the chance to meet with representatives from Wolverhampton Police, the City of Wolverhampton Council, Wolverhampton’s Anti Social Behaviour team and more, and to share information about issues and activities in their neighbourhoods. Councillor Obaida Ahmed, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for Digital and Community, said: “These sessions are an important forum for residents to meet with organisations and discuss the priorities for their…

Come along to our Bump to Baby Fayre to find out what help is available in Sandwell to support you and your family on your exciting journey. Find out about antenatal education, tips for caring for your baby, advice on infant feeding or chat to one of our midwives, grab a goody bag and even create your own baby vest – all free. Book your free ticket for a slot between 10am and 2pm on Saturday 5 April at Bromwich Hall, Hall Green Road, West Bromwich, B71 2EA. Sandwell Council’s Cabinet Member for Adult Services, Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Jackie…