In his regular column for Caerphilly Observer, Caerphilly Business Forum’s chair Tony Sheehan looks back at two significant job announcements in Caerphilly.
It’s always very satisfying to witness our labours bear fruit – especially when there are no guarantees of any success.
And so it is in Caerphilly at the moment where in the last two weeks we’ve witnessed to big inward investments bringing much needed jobs to the county borough.
The first was DS Smith Recycling, the international supplier of recycled packaging, which invested in centralising its IT, HR and finance operations at Caerphilly Business Park. The development will bring 100 jobs to Caerphilly as well as securing some of the existing jobs
And, last week, IT support company Attenda was tempted to set up its second base in Caerphilly, and it will bring up to 150 new IT jobs in the next few years. Apparently, it had been considering locations outside of the UK but Caerphilly once again managed to turn the heads of the Attenda board.
Both investments were made possible by the work and financial support of the Welsh Government and at a time when every penny the Government spends comes under scrutiny, it must be recognised that this was money well spent.
Last week, I was also at another event with Caerphilly Business Forum called Get Caerphilly Working. This was born out of discussions among forum members who were interested in Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Traineeship scheme.
A lot of people were encouraged by this scheme which was designed to help get young people working. We wanted to know how businesses could access it – and so the event was set up to help show businesses how to get support from this and other similar schemes.
And with help from not only the local authority but also Jobcentre Plus, the National Training Federation Wales and Careers Wales, the Get Caerphilly Working evening was another step in linking businesses – potential employers – with the employees they are looking for, a route map for employment.
It may now take a little longer for those businesses which attended to be able to create those jobs, but it will happen and it’s another good example of how government and businesses working together can make things happen.
If you have a vacancy or an apprenticeship, we can help you get funding – it’s a win, win situation.
Tony Sheehan
Chairman, Caerphilly Business Forum
For more information about Caerphilly Business Forum and its events call 029 2125 1395 or email Natalie@cbforum.co.uk
That must be a first, a Business Organisation actually claiming that the Welsh Government had spent money wisely.