Here's how to nominate for the Lancaster Guardian & Morecambe Visitor's 2022 Bay Business Excellence Awards

Sponsored by Lancaster City Council and Lancaster & Morecambe College, the awards have been created to provide a platform to recognise, reward and celebrate all the businesses, and the people who work within them, across Lancaster and the Morecambe Bay area.

If you are proud of your business’ growth, innovation or contribution to the community, we want to hear from you.

You may have an apprentice, manager or team member within your company who is a high achiever, committed to excellence. Why not put them forward for an extra special award?

What makes your business stand out from the crowd? How do you attract new footfall or keep the loyalty of your existing customers? Which is the best leisure destination, eatery, hotel, or beauty business in the area? We want to hear from you now.

The categories and criteria for nominations can be found at www.baybusinessawards.co.uk. Entries can be accepted from owners of businesses, managers, employees and customers. To nominate, complete the online entry form. Closing date is Friday October 14, 2022.

Judging will be undertaken by a panel of judges representing the business sector. Shortlisted nominees will be invited to a glittering gala presentation evening at The Mazuma Stadium on Friday November 18 when the winners will be announced.

A WORD FROM OUR CO-HEADLINE SPONSORS - LANCASTER CITY COUNCIL

Lancaster City Council is a proud sponsor of the Bay Business Excellence Awards, and firmly believes in celebrating our local businesses. We have a vibrant and diverse local economy and the recognition that comes from being nominated for a business award is a boost for our district as well as for the businesses themselves.

Supporting the district’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and investing in projects which build a sustainable and just local economy are at the heart of the council’s plans for the future.

Our Economic Recovery Framework for 2021-2031 aims to create local wealth, support investment and create new jobs and opportunities in the district.

The overall intention is to overcome the impact on the economy from the pandemic and work in partnership to renew the local economy, creating jobs and opportunities by tackling underlying issues, building on strengths and increasing resilience.

As part of this work our dedicated Business Support Hub provides support to help local businesses start, grow and succeed.

We know that every business is different and has its own needs and demands. Our team of experts will work with you on a review of your business to identify the areas where we, or our partner organisations, can best assist.

We can help you with:

*Accessing business grants, finance and funding

*Recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic

*Access to Finance from Boost Business Lancashire

*Skills, training and recruitment

*Business advice and support

*Growing your business

*Finding suitable sites and premises

*Doing business with the council

*Supporting local community groups and organisations

To get the ball rolling, email our Business Support Team at [email protected] or visit www.lancaster.gov.uk/business

A WORD FROM OUR CO-HEADLINE SPONSORS - LANCASTER AND MORECAMBE COLLEGE

Lancaster & Morecambe College (LMC) is proud to be our community’s provider of technical, professional and creative education, focused on providing young people and adults with the skills and knowledge to enable them to progress into employment or on to further study. We work closely with our local employers to shape every curriculum pathway, ensuring our graduating students are highly employable with the skills that local businesses need.

We're aware that we live in challenging and competitive times, which is why we're committed to providing businesses with a wide range of support to help boost their growth and upskill their workforce.

We offer specialist training and skill-development courses which have been carefully designed to meet with the ever-changing demands of local, regional and national industries. We work with businesses to help identify specific training or education requirements and can deliver courses tailored to each employer’s individual needs.

We are proud to sponsor the Bay Business Excellence Awards and look forward to celebrating the successes of our local businesses and employers at the event.

In October 2022 we launch our new Sustainable Energy Hub, which includes a fully-immersive VR suite, robotics lab, CAD workshop and a renewable energy demonstration area. These innovative resources will not only enhance the learning experience for all LMC students, they will be used to create innovative STEM-related activities for local primary and secondary school pupils.

More information on the College’s commitment to promoting sustainable careers across the region is available on our website https://www.lmc.ac.uk/sustainability

A WORD FROM OUR EDITOR - DEBBIE BUTLER

A warm welcome to our awards evening which gives us a chance to celebrate the wonderful businesses in the bay area.

The high calibre of nominations is testament to our fantastic business community who go above and beyond to serve their clients in what are proving to be challenging times.

But the tenacity, creativity and kindness of our businesses, organisations and people stands firm and makes me proud to live and work in this area.

Good luck to everyone.