Melksham Chamber of Commerce - join us in our future
Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2013-01-21 15:48:19 - Graham Ellis
Melksham is my adopted town - quietly handsome, conveniently arranged, a wide variety of services, reasonably accessible, a kind climate, and a welcoming population who embraced Lisa and myself when we moved here in 1999. We plan to be in Melksham for the forseeable future - and we'll do what we can in our own way to help take Melksham positively forward, listening to views around us to make sure that our view of "positive" agrees with what others around us think of as positive too. And one of the ways we've formed those combined views, and then been able to present them more strongly too, is through our membership of the Melksham Chamber of Commerce.
Forward planning - looking at months, years, or even decades ahead, isn't everyone's cup of tea. Indeed, if you speak with many local businesses - espcecially the smaller ones - you'll find they haven't given much thought if any yet to Autumn 2013 and next Christmas, let alone next year. [Written January 2012, by the way!] You'll also find that few businesses have the time / resources to keep up with the mountains of information that's required, nor with the complex consultations and inputs requested from all sorts of places. Just this morning, I've received or come across...
• Notification of business awards with 9 x £1000.00 prizes
• Request for comment by Wiltshire Council on Consumer protection, Community safety, Fire safety, 2012 Legacy, Health and wellbeing, Budget planning.
• Suspension of green bin collections meaning no collection in January for some
• Invitation to First bus user's consultation on 13th March
• "Local people asked to help shape council’s priorities" roadshow in Melksham on 28th
• Station Travel Plan workshop
and as all these things can have a significant effect on our nows and futures - things like the rubbsih collections need to get to people quickly, things like the Station Travel Plan may effect our town, and its connectivity, for decades to come. Forward planning isn't everyone's cup of tea - but it's vital.
Looking back twenty years ago, each town in Wiltshire had its own independent Chamber of Commerce. Each had its own office, secretary, phone line, fax machine. And progressively the administration cost of this was sucking the combined income of members, which should have been spent on member support and information and forward planning, into keeping the operation running. And so the Wessex Association of Chambers of Commerce was born, and has served us well. But times change, and technology allows us to move full circle. We moved from 6 offices to one (larger one, but not 6 times the size) when the association was formed, but it's now possible to move back to something that's much more local. A special phone line, an office manned throughout the working week, a dedicated person, fax machine and copier are no longer needed and the better balance is once again for Melksham issues to be dealt with within Melksham, with a far lighter hand from a central organisation. Indeed - in the middle of last year the Melksham Chamber moved forward in this way. Just as we need to look forward for our town, so our Chambers of Commerce needs to look forward at its own future and indeed it's something that's been in the planning for the last few months.
So ... Melksham Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce a new local membership package, offering
• Ten newsletters per annum, via email, updating you on local news
• Ten meetings a year, currently five executive and five events / talks
• Right to display the Chamber of Commerce logo on your web site and business
• Local mailings and contact within the town
• Encouragement to put forward your views via Chamber reprsentatives in Melksham
• Melksham officer to member and member to member help
• Local discounts available for employees with other Melksham based members
• A pride in Melksham - a knowldege that you're supporting the town.
At an annual subscription starting at just £45.00 + VAT for new businesses that aren't employing anyone yet, through to £185.00 + VAT for businesses with over 200 staff. We're also encouraging sponsors - companies and organisations who are based in the community and want to support it through us - to sign up as sponsors for £500.00
The Wessex Association carries on; they're offering a much enhanced product which includes
• The benefits of local membership (£30 is passed back to cover this)
• Mailings throughout the Wessex area
• HR, Tax and legal helplines
• Tax Fee Protection scheme
• Right to attend networking and other meetings across Wiltshire at member rates
• Ability to join specialised Wessex Business networks at member rates
• Member benefits (discounts and special deals) negotiated by the Wessex Association
• Representation on wider Wiltshire issues to Wiltshire council
• and many other benefits listed on the Wessex Association Web Site.
Starting at £199.00, association membership isn't for everyone - but for those for whom the package includes many service they need, it's excellent value. For members of Trade Associaitions and other business groups such as the FSB, Melksham membership may be the better option.
A very great deal of thought has gone into the new packages - both in Melksham and at the Wessex Association, and indeed we've been liaising with other Chambers in North and West Wilts and Kennet and each is taking its own - but often similar view of the future. There are one or two breakaways from the Wessex Association completely, there are some chambers that are likely to be offering only the Association membership, and there are a number like Melksham who believe that the best way forward is to offer members both sets of options, with us taking advantage of the far stronger local capabities at a sensible price that the modern Information Technology world brings for us.
Launching the new look Melksham - on 12th February at Well House Manor - we have some interesting information which may help members and local businesses make a significant saving on their business rates. We'll have an update on the Campus project (that week, architects are being interviewed / selected from the shorlist pool drawn up by Withshire Council), and we'll receive updates from the Community Area Partnership, on the Canal, and on the public transport front now that the procedure to reaward the franchise for trains in our area has been suspended. There will be an opportunity for networking too.
We want to encourage as many businesses as possible to take a pride in Melksham, and to join as local members at the very affordable new fee scale - see [here]. That will not only give to access to the resources we have on offer, and the ability to make inputs for the future - but it will also let you support your town with pride, and be seen by your customers to be supporting your town.