Renfrewshire chamber of commerce Archives

Paisley Abbey and Paisley Town Hall lit up in red

Hundreds attended Paisley Abbey for a special service to mark the centenary of the signing of the Armistice, which signalled the end of the First World War.

Minister for Paisley Abbey, Reverend Alan Birss, led a short service of commemoration for those who gave all in service to their country with a poignant reading and prayer.

Renfrewshire’s Provost Lorraine Cameron was joined by a young person and an ex-serviceman to light a candle of remembrance in the Abbey for all those who never returned home.

The service was followed by a concert of music, song and poetry performed by the Starlight Youth Music Theatre, Chamber Choir and the Johnstone Brass Band, as they honoured the Armed Forces who have given so much.

Renfrewshire Provost Lorriane Cameron prepares to light a candle with a young person

Chamber Choir accompanies by Johnstone Brass Band

Clear outlines represented those who are no longer with us (2)

Communties came together from across Renfrewshire to pay their respects to the fallen

Clear outlines represented those who are no longer with us

The Abbey and Paisley Town Hall were also lit up in red to mark the occasion.

All proceeds from a collection on the night will be donated to Poppy Scotland and There But Not There.

Provost Cameron, who also attended the 10:45am service in Paisley, said: “This was a moving, poignant service in remembrance of those who made the ultimate sacrifice to allow us to have the lives we have today.

“We cannot express enough gratitude to our Armed Forces and it’s extremely important that we continue to honour them on Remembrance Sunday, and all year round as well.

“It was fantastic to see the number of people who attended services across Renfrewshire to pay tribute to the fallen, especially this year as we marked 100 years since the end of the First World War.”

Another nine events were held across Renfrewshire on Remembrance Sunday to allow all communities the opportunity to pay their respects to the fallen.

Renfrewshire’s also hosted its annual Children’s Remembrance Service on Friday 9 November at Mossvale and St James Primary School in Paisley, where pupils performed poetry and sang as they showcased their learning about why we celebrate Remembrance Day.

Veterans from the Royal British Legion Scotland (Paisley Comrades Division) were there to give pupils the opportunity to ask questions about their experiences and the work of the Legion, before a two-minute silence was observed at 10am.

For more information on why we mark Remembrance Day every year, visit www.britishlegion.org.uk/remembrance.

12/11/2018/by Paisley

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

Who are your local heroes?

Renfrewshire’s inspiring local heroes are set to be rewarded as nominations for the Provost’s Community Awards open for 2019.

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

Extraordinary employees, superlative sportspeople and compassionate carers are being sought as the awards recognise the people who make Renfrewshire a better place to live, work and visit.

There are five categories available to nominate in, including a revamped award for employees to recognise those stars in the workplace, and these are:

Community Volunteer (sponsored by Glasgow Airport Ltd)
Community Group (sponsored by the Piazza Shopping Centre)
Sporting Achievement (sponsored by ACRE Industrial)
Employee of the Year (sponsored by UNISON Renfrewshire)
Carers Award (sponsored by former Provost Nancy Allison)
Arts and Culture award (sponsored by Renfrewshire Council)

Renfrewshire’s Provost Lorraine Cameron said: “As the Provost, I meet hundreds of inspiring people and groups every year and it never ceases to amaze me that there is so much fantastic work going on throughout Renfrewshire.

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

“These awards are an opportunity to pay tribute to the unsung heroes of the area who go the extra mile without looking for a reward and give them the recognition that they deserve.

“I can’t wait to read the nominations so don’t miss out on the chance to nominate and start sending them in now.”

Renfrewshire Council Provost awards 9.3.18

The deadline for entries to all categories is Wednesday 12 December.

The Provost will be joined by the award sponsors and other local elected members to choose the winners who will be invited, along with their nominator, to the awards ceremony on Friday 15 March 2019 and the Lynnhurst Hotel in Johnstone.

For more information, and to submit your nomination, visit www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/provostawards2019, email provostawards@renfrewshire.gov.uk or call 0141 618 7102.

17/10/2018/by Paisley

Know a business that gives great service, welcomes you with a smile or you love going there? Nominate them for Renfrewshire’s favourite business ROCCO Award.

To nominate your favourite business in Renfrewshire please email gavin.mcinally@reachplc.com by 12pm on Thurs 27^th Sept. Please include ROCCO AWARD in the subject header. In the email please include the name of the business you wish to nominate and why in <100 words and include your own name, address and phone number. A shortlist of six will be announced early October with online voting open for 3 weeks after that. The winner will be announced at the ROCCO ceremony on the 16^th Nov at the Normandy Hotel hosted by Fred MacAulay.

More info at www.roccoawards.com #2018Rocco

21/09/2018/by Paisley

The Chamber is delighted to announce that Paisley.is has been confirmed as main sponsor for Rocco 2018.

Louisa Mahon, Renfrewshire Council’s head of marketing, said: “I am delighted the new destination brand Paisley.is will be supporting this year’s ROCCOs event.

“The annual awards are a fantastic showcase of the diversity of businesses operating across Renfrewshire and the creativity and entrepreneurialism that have put Renfrewshire firmly on the map as a business destination of choice.

“We have had great support for Paisley.is from the business community and from the chamber and believe we now have the strongest possible platform to sell the benefits of doing business in Renfrewshire throughout the world.

“What makes our proposition so powerful is the strength and profile of our business community and it is a pleasure to be able to honour the best of the best at the 2018 awards.”

The ROCCO’s now in their 15th year are open for entry and are Renfrewshire’s premier business event.

CEO Bob Grant commented “We are delighted to welcome Paisley.is as main sponsor for Rocco 2018. The ambitious brand highlights our strengths as a commercial location and demonstrates Renfrewshire is open for business. Thank you to all our category sponsors, without their support, the ROCCO’s would not be possible. I encourage businesses & organisations from all sectors to consider entering in 2018. Winning a ROCCO is a great achievement and competition is always fierce. There are 17 categories including two new awards for 2018; Developing the Young Workforce and Excellence in Tourism. You have plenty of time to enter the Rocco’s however please don’t leave it to the last minute. You can enter as many categories as you wish, and if you are planning to attend please book early, the ROCCO’s sell out every year well before the event.”

The ROCCO’s are free to enter for members based anywhere plus non-members that are based in Renfrewshire. The 17 categories this year are:

ROCCO Award for Excellence in Customer Service – sponsored by the Scottish Leather Group
ROCCO Award for Developing the Young Workforce (West) – sponsored by DYW (West)
Excellence in Manufacturing – sponsored by University of the West of Scotland
ROCCO Award for Innovation & Technology – sponsored by Creation IP
ROCCO Award for International Trade – sponsored by Glasgow Airport
ROCCO Award for Invest in Renfrewshire – sponsored by Renfrewshire Council / Invest in Renfrewshire
ROCCO Award for Most Promising New Business – sponsored by Business Gateway
ROCCO Award for Employer of the Year – sponsored by Rolls Royce
ROCCO Award for Family Business of the Year – sponsored by The Malcolm Group
ROCCO Award for Excellence in Tourism – sponsored by Paisley.is
ROCCO Award for Young Business Person of the Year – sponsored by West College Scotland
ROCCO Award for Business Leader of the Year – sponsored by Diageo
ROCCO Award for Community Champion – sponsored by Engage Renfrewshire & The Royal Bank of Scotland
ROCCO Award for Outstanding Performing Business with 5 or less employees – sponsored by intu Braehead
ROCCO Award for Outstanding Performing Business <25 employees – sponsored by Renfrewshire Council
ROCCO Award for Outstanding Performing Business >25 employees – sponsorship available
ROCCO Award for Renfrewshire’s Favourite Business – sponsored by the Paisley Daily Express – to nominate your favourite business please email gavin.mcinally@reachplc by noon on Friday 21st Sept and explain why in 100 words. Please include ROCCO AWARD in the subject header, name of the business, your own name, address and phone number.

The awards are open for entry until the 14th September. Shortlist will be announced end September and the winners announced at our awards ceremony on Friday 16th November at The Normandy Hotel hosted by Fred MacAulay.

On the night a charity raffle will support 2 charities including St Vincent’s Hospice

For more info and to enter / book a table – please visit www.roccoawards.com

The social medial hashtag is #2018Rocco

04/09/2018/by Paisley

Register Now for Renfrewshire Chamber’s annual B2B event “Business Matters in Renfrewshire”

Renfrewshire’s largest free business event returns to Paisley for the 8th consecutive year on Thursday 10th May at the Lagoon, Paisley.

“Business Matters in Renfrewshire –your local B2B event” is organised by Renfrewshire Chamber and is open to all members & non-members, business people, start-ups, senior school pupils and students.

With 50+ exhibitors and 6 seminars running throughout the day the event is sponsored by Paisley.is, the new destination brand for Paisley & Renfrewshire.

Seminar line-up:

10.15-11.00 “Paisley.is: how your business can benefit” with the Paisley.is team & Renfrewshire Council
11.15-12.00 “Anti-Social Media” with NSDesign
12.15-13.00 “Start up in Renfrewshire!” with Business Gateway & Invest in Renfrewshire
13.15-14.00 “How to win business using LinkedIn” with fatBuzz
14.15-15.00 “What you need to know about GDPR” with MacRoberts
15.15-16.00 “Leadership – hoping isn’t good enough” with bfpeople

Commenting on the event chief exec Bob Grant said “Renfrewshire’s largest free business event is an excellent way to engage with the wider business community. There is a varied and interesting line-up of six informative seminars for you to attend throughout the day so please register your free place now. We are expecting 50 + exhibitors and where else do you get the opportunity to network with so many companies in one go? It’s a great use of time and I would encourage you and your colleagues to attend. The free informative seminars are an excellent way to learn new skills and refresh old ones. We look forward to welcoming you on the day.”

For more information and to register your place please visit the Chamber events page at www.renfrewshirechamber.com The event is free to attend (there is a cost to exhibit).

Hashtag for the event is #b2bpaisley

16/04/2018/by Paisley

ENTRY DEADLINE EXTENDED TO THIS FRIDAY 15^TH SEPTEMBER

http://www.renfrewshirechamber.com/the-roccos/award-categories/

We look forward to receiving your entry this year – do let us know if you are looking for any support with entering this year and we will advise as best we can.

Submit your entries electronically directly to here – download forms on our website here

11/09/2017/by Paisley

The 2017 Renfrewshire Employability Awards have celebrated the successes and people making a difference to local businesses.

Employees, entrepreneurs and interns were just some of the top talent recognised at the award ceremony on Wednesday (6 September 2017) hosted by television and radio presenter Bryan Burnett at Paisley Town Hall.

Renfrewshire businesses nominated local people who have been supported through the Employability in Renfrewshire Partnership programmes.

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success
Renfrewshire Employability Awards
6.9.17
Paisley Town Hall Top Intern Award Top Intern Award
Debbie Campbell

And after a nail-biting wait, nine winners were announced from the impressive list of finalists.

The award winners are:

Most Promising New Employee: Jamie Drysdale, Power 1 Electrical Contractors Ltd
Most Promising New Entrepreneur: Euan McIntosh, Starkstrom (Scotland) Ltd
Top Intern: Debbie Campbell, I Am Me Scotland
Best Trainee: Homam Sharif, Renfrewshire Council
CV Builder (Youth): Morgan Spence, Johnstone High School
CV Builder (Adult): Laura Connor, Engage Renfrewshire
Apprentice of the Year: Andrew McClorey, Renfrewshire Council
Progression in Work: Laura Currie, Consilium Contracting Ltd
Achiever of the Year: Barbara Brown

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success Renfrewshire Employability Awards 6.9.17 Paisley Town Hall

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success Renfrewshire Employability Awards 6.9.17 Paisley Town Hall Bryan Burnett

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success Renfrewshire Employability Awards 6.9.17 Paisley Town Hall Top Intern Award Top Intern Award Debbie Campbell

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success Renfrewshire Employability Awards 6.9.17 Paisley Town Hall

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success Renfrewshire Employability Awards 6.9.17 Paisley Town Hall CV Builder Youth Award Morgan Spence

RDC Invest awards 6.9.17 Celebrating Success Renfrewshire Employability Awards 6.9.17 Paisley Town Hall Special Achievement Award Barbara Brown

More than 1,000 local businesses have signed up to support the Invest in Renfrewshire programme which support 1400 people each year, providing direct access to vacancies, work experience, training, personal support and finance.

The programme is now based at the recently refurbished Russell Institute building on Causeyside Street, which is also home to Skills Development Scotland.

The night concluded with three Special Recognition awards for local businesses who have shown outstanding support over the last year, enthusiastically helping people prepare for work, enter work and progress in work.

These awards went to Papamacs Gourmet Kitchen in Johnstone; Gormac Coachworks in Renfrew and Carli’s Kindergarten in Erskine.

Councillor Jim Paterson, Depute Leader of Renfrewshire Council said: “Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone shortlisted for these awards which celebrate success and recognise the talent, enterprise and commitment of Renfrewshire’s people.

“The collective cooperation and commitment of our partners in the business community, education and employability sectors is key to our continued economic success.

“Together, we have taken Renfrewshire’s youth employment from 27th in Scotland to being fourth best. Our job totals are at pre-recession levels; regeneration is gathering pace; unemployment is falling; businesses are growing; and we are developing a reputation as a place of enterprise, creativity and drive.

“Paisley’s bid to become UK City of Culture 2021 is already changing how we are seen and how others see us. The Glasgow City Region City Deal’s £274m investment in Renfrewshire will put us right at the heart of a powerhouse regional economy. We will seize this momentum by continuing to support business growth and create jobs. We will work tirelessly to help people find work and succeed in a modern economy.”

Sandra Black, Renfrewshire Council Chief Executive said: “I too want to congratulate all our finalists and partners who have shown what is possible and inspire our continued success.

“These awards celebrate the enterprise, talent and commitment to excellence that characterise Renfrewshire’s businesses and their employees. From the winners and everyone shortlisted we can see that these qualities are having an immense and positive effect on our people and our future.

“Renfrewshire has always had a strong, creative, hardworking and entrepreneurial culture. We also have a strong sense of community and fairness. Through local partnership working, we have made great strides in developing our economy, tackling poverty, regenerating our towns and empowering our communities.”

Find out more about employability programmes in Renfrewshire at: www.investinrenfrewshire.com

07/09/2017/by Paisley