Red Door Rentals first stepped through the door to become a property letting agent in February 2010. Female entrepreneurs, Joanne Mahood and Kim Lawrence decided it was time to take the step towards self-employment. As the recession hit, the opportunity arose for a new letting agency as rentals increased and less people could afford to purchase their own property. Kim told us “It has always been an ambition to set up my own business and it just felt like the right time to go for it” Their expertise in this field was vast, having both come from a rental and building background.

David Stronge dived into the challenge of self employment last year when he set up SwimStronge Ltd. An award-winning swimming talent combined with many years of knowledge and training has proved to be a winning strategy. It is apparent that David has an enthusiasm for training the next generation and believes swimming is a sport for all. It can be fun and most importantly has many health advantages.

Innovation Vouchers are designed to enable small Northern Ireland registered enterprises to access knowledge and expertise to develop innovative solutions to business issues.

The programme provides a voucher of up to £4000 to enable small enterprises to engage with one of the 41 universities, colleges and other publicly funded research organisations throughout Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

In this edition the Arthur Cox Belfast Employment Group’s Employment Alert will focus on the Agency Workers Regulations, discuss some recent decisions of interest and examine what’s on the horizon with regards to the two NI Employment Bills, the extension of flexible working rights and the proposed phasing out of the national default retirement age.

Tax levels on Northern Ireland businesses are to be examined by a committee of MPs, it has been revealed.

The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee will consider whether the level of corporation levies should be made the same as in the Irish Republic or what alternative measures could make the economy competitive.

A record number of people will start their own business this year in the face of rising unemployment, an industry group has predicted.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said 300,000 people will become their own boss, helping to create new jobs, as well as boosting the economy.

Young people see business leaders as their new role models, claims a survey.

 A total of 43 per cent of young people admire Sir Richard Branson and Simon Cowell more than Victoria Beckham, Katie Price and Rio Ferdinand (6 per cent), finds a report from charity Media Trust.

On 20^th April 2010 Ulster Bank said it has set a target of providing £300m in new lending to small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Northern Ireland over the next 12 months.

The figure is an increase of 20% on the £250m that the bank committed to lending to local SMEs last year, although Ulster Bank highlighted it had beat its target and lent more than £290m to around 1,000 businesses over that period.

Placement – A positive impact on your future

Studies have shown that students and graduates with relevant work experience are highly regarded by today’s employers.

Our objective is to facilitate Belfast Met students in getting involved in a work partnership throughout their time of study at the College.

Invest Northern Ireland are launching their new Enterprise Development Programmes, comprising of the Go for it and the Growth Programmes.