NatWest Enterprise: Midlands & East of England Community Newsletter - January 2023

Happy New Year! Another cycle around the sun complete and a fun festive break enjoyed.

Whether you are a resolutions setter, a fresh diary nerd (like me!) or just breeze into the new year with no pressure on new beginnings- with goals ongoing and a stellar vision in place, you might be interested in some personal development opportunities and business growth masterclasses. Read on. It would be remiss of me not to mention that ACCELERATOR APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN for the March cohort too.

I'm looking forward to kicking off the year tomorrow delivering a Content Creation & Strategy session with Digital Boost on their masterclass series. They have a tonne of free mentoring available and so many masterclasses to help you get digitally savvy!

At the end of 2022 I completed my training with #IAmRemarkable to deliver empowerment and self-celebration workshops. Designed by Google to support particularly (but not exclusively) women and minority ethnic demographics to find your voice, build confidence and remind you that 'it's not bragging if it's based on facts' for those who feel somewhat icky about self promotion. After all; your accomplishments DO NOT speak for themselves! Will you support my first delivery session online? Book here.

I'll be joining the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) for their #NewYearEnergiser which is a fantastic virtual event designed to get you set for a successful Q1. Have you signed up? Make sure that you are connected to Sally Wood ACMA CGMA and Jennifer Thomas MIED too!

Find out more about us:

Want to find out more about our NatWest Enterprise Hub based in #Warwick at the University of Warwick ? Adam Walters will be showcasing the space, our NatWest accelerator programme (applications are open!), the specialist 'Clean Transport Accelerator, mentorship and the Warwick innovation collective, Oh and they'll feed you too! Simply choose from January 18th or February 1st.

Birmingham Hub Discovery Events for the Accelerator are all listed here hosted by Harinder Kunor supporting Chloe Lloyd-Jones & Chelsea Pickering . You can also join their public 'networking' events on a monthly basis free of charge and open to all.

Milton Keynes Hub have Discovery Events on the 26th January with Ricke Williams & 2nd February with Asy Ho supporting Michele D'Souza . Additionally you are welcome to join our free of charge monthly 'networking' events.

Other events that we are hosting or involved in:

NEDonBoard are back for a matchmaking session (our network with their non-executive directors) on 25th Jan via zoom. It's always highly targeted, super effective and exceptionally good value for the time invested.

On 26th January in Cambridge Yvonne Greeves our Women in Business director will join local enterprise manager Ricke Williams for a session co-hosted with BIPC Cambridgeshire to support #FemaleFounders with their 2023 strategic growth plans.

Leicestershire Innovation Festival Event - NatWest & British Business Bank are collaborating on an 'Access to Finance Hackathon' , Tue 7 Feb at 10am.

Need some help with digital banking? Ciara Labrum is running some free Digital Banking drop in sessions at the new MK branch (no need to book) Thursday 19th Jan / 9th Feb / 23rd Feb. 10am-3pm

Every month on the first Tuesday between 10am-1pm we offer #CoffeeAndCoWorking across the region with Women's Business Club who believe that no woman should have to build a business alone. It's free of charge; we provide the refreshments and wifi, you bring the sparkling personality and your preferred work device.

Opportunities / Awards:

Our friends at Buckinghamshire Business First are hosting a NetZero MK Power Hour: Overcoming your Energy Fears on 24th January. Find out more here.

The FSB Business Awards close on 26th January. You do not have to be a member and they are totally free to enter.

National Business Women's Awards from SME Business Awards are open with a whopping 23 categories to choose from. Early bird entry rates end March 27th.

Know a 'start up'? The Enterprise Nation #StartUpShow is taking place in London on 28th January and its not too late to sign up.

In the beauty industry? I've just recorded a Goal Setting & Visioning webinar for Katie Godfrey s #CoffeeCakeAndChat mastermind group - Check it out.

#FundingFridays Podcast and Vlog are available covering #grantfunding available in your region.

Have you joined our Regional Linked In Community Group of business owners, mentors, support organisations and ambassadors? Join the conversation.

Want to become a mentor on our Accelerator? Email Shuhan Liu shuhan.liu@natwest.com.

Finally; if this isn't your geographic region, or perhaps you need some 121 support, reach out to our local enterprise managers who can be found here.

If I've missed off your event or announcement please pop it on the comments below and I'll edit it in.

Until next time, see you on the socials! Mrs D Lewis x