On Friday, Jack Brereton took part in a local Barclays Business Forum in Longton, an event organised by Barclays UK and held at Gladstone Pottery Museum.
Jack was introduced by David Bruce, Head of Corporate Relations for Barclays in Central England, and the event was hosted by Sharon Harding, Business Relationship Leader for Barclays in Shropshire & Staffordshire.
As part of Jack’s commitment to local businesses within Stoke-on-Trent South, he was pleased to take part in the event alongside Barclays to reassure business customers during the current economic climate of the work being done to support local employers.
Jack and representatives from Barclays were joined by a variety of local businesses from within Stoke-on-Trent South, where a whole range of issues were discussed from energy costs to skills and future economic potential of the area.
Jack presented a brief introduction to the group outlining the ongoing challenges faced for businesses but also the work being done by the Government and huge investment being delivered locally to help support businesses in our city. The meeting involved a large discussion between the group, including a Q&A with Jack where local businesses were able to speak to express concerns affecting their business and also opportunities for the future.
Jack Brereton MP, Member of Parliament for Stoke-on-Trent South said:
It was great to be able to be part of the Barclays Business Forum and speak face to face with local businesses about a huge range of issues. This was an extremely useful session to hear directly from businesses and discuss some of the work being done to improve our local area.
I was particularly struck by figures produced by Barclays which shows growth in business turnover at the start of the year was up more than 17 per cent in Stoke-on-Trent South compared with a UK wide average of 0.1 per cent. This shows how well our local economy is performing, far better that the UK as a whole and reflects the huge efforts of our local firms.
Thank you to those businesses who attended and to the Barclays team for arranging this event.
Sharon Harding, Business Relationship Leader for Barclays in Shropshire & Staffordshire said:
This event was a great opportunity to bring together businesses from the area for a face-to-face discussion with their local MP and to hear first-hand what’s on their minds.
Topics discussed included education, skills and apprenticeships, inflation and the cost of doing business as well as the investment and business opportunities which exist in Stoke-on-Trent.
It is evident that businesses are remaining positive with a strong desire for growth and despite the challenges we are currently operating in there was certainly a degree of optimism around the room.
