Skills Bootcamps have launched in Surrey, giving businesses a low-cost way to upskill their teams and grow their organisations.

Surrey County Council is offering anyone aged 19 and over the opportunity to gain new skills and boost their earnings via Skills Bootcamps.

Courses are available in nine exciting and growing sectors which are crucial to the region’s future economy.

These government-funded courses are flexible and can be completed in up to 16 weeks – meaning individuals can learn new skills easily and quickly at a time that suits them.

Businesses in Surrey can also use them as a low-cost way to upskill their current workforce.

More than 500 courses are available across Surrey until March. Sectors include health and social care, gaming, cyber, construction and advanced engineering.

For most courses, no previous knowledge of the subject is required.

And all of the Skills Bootcamps courses have been developed closely with industry. This ensures they meet the future needs of local businesses and the wider economy.

View a full list of courses and start dates on the Surrey County Council website.

Why skills matter to Surrey

Matt Furniss, Surrey County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Economic Growth, said: “Our continuous support of improving skills in Surrey is essential to our local economy. Whether learning a new skill or upskilling existing skills these courses will help Surrey residents.

“We are delighted to have been successful in securing £2.7 million from the Department for Education to support residents improve their career prospects through these Surrey Skills Bootcamps. 

“Ensuring our residents have the right skills to secure good-quality jobs in growing sectors within Surrey is vital to us maintaining our position as one of the UK’s largest regional economies. These free flexible courses are a great way to do that.

“Supporting local people into great careers is good for our economy and good for our communities – ensuring we can offer a better quality of life for all, ensuring no one is left behind.”

How can Surrey businesses use Skills Bootcamps?

Any adult living in Surrey can sign up to a course. This is providing they have the right to work in the UK and they can commit to completing the course.

Skills Bootcamps can also be used by local businesses to upskill current employees at a discounted rate.

Large employers will need to contribute 30% of the cost. Small or medium employers (SMEs) will contribute 10%.

There is no cost to a business recruiting someone who has recently completed a Skills Bootcamp.

Are you a business wanting more information? Email skillsbootcamps@surreycc.gov.uk.

Or contact our team of experts direct via our Contact Us form.

“Invest in Surrey to boost your business” was the message promoted loud and clear by a delegate of Surrey County Council representatives at UKREiiF 2024.

A team from the council’s Inward Investment arm – which is part of Business Surrey – attended the three day event in Leeds this month.

They were supported by representatives from Guildford Borough Council, Reigate & Banstead Borough Council and Mole Valley District Council.

During the three day event, the team spoke to hundreds of people interested in relocating, investing or promoting the county as a fantastic place to do business.

A portfolio of 20 sites was also promoted, with the aim of encouraging investment in the county, which is one of the UK’s leading regional economies.

Delegates were also presented with a prospectus championing Surrey’s strengths – including our fantastic location, world-leading sectors and highly-skilled workforce.

Download the prospectus via the Invest in Surrey website.

About UKREiiF 2024

UKREiiF – which stands for the UK’s Real Estate, Investment & Infrastructure Forum – is an annual event.

The aim is to connect people, places, and businesses to accelerate and unlock sustainable, inclusive, and transformational investment.

This three-day event brings together key decision-makers from every area of the built environment. This includes the public sector – with every core UK city and region involved – alongside government, investors, funders, developers, housebuilders.

Check out these numbers for 2024:

• 12,000+ Event Attendees
• 2,500+ Fringe Event Attendees
• 800+ Speakers Across 30 Stages
• 40+ Stages
• 150 Exhibitors
• 100+ Fringe Events
• 250+ Local Authorities Attending
• 1,500+ Investors Attending
• 750+ Occupiers Attending
• 500+ Developers Attending

Why Invest in Surrey

Invest in Surrey is a dedicated resource to help you relocate your business to Surrey.

Thanks to our desirable location, reputation for innovation and collaborative business
ecosystem, Surrey is a top business location of choice.

Our specialised team offers free and confidential services. We assist companies looking to invest in Surrey.

Whether you’re a start-up, SME or international company, you can benefit from specialist expertise, local knowledge and business support to help ensure a faster, more successful investment. This is regardless of where your business is in the relocation or expansion decision-making process.

Companies looking to relocate to Surrey originate from all over the world. Most direct inward investment enquiries are currently coming from the USA, India, and Germany.

For more details contact our team of experts via our business support form.

Surrey Hills Enterprises has announced the appointment of Maggie Howell as its new Chief Executive Officer.

Maggie succeeds Wendy Varcoe, who is retiring after seven years of dedicated service. She brings a wealth of experience and a relentless commitment to advancing the organisation’s vision of fostering a thriving sustainable rural economy in the Surrey Hills.

Her appointment marks an exciting chapter for Surrey Hills Enterprises, which is the Community Interest Company arm of the Surrey Hills National Landscapes. It was set up in 2012 to support and develop the rural economy and tourism and to promote and enhance the Surrey Hills.

Surrey Hills Enterprises core activities are focused on ‘clean growth’, environmental sustainability and building a strong local economy and tourism industry.  It has a strong membership of local businesses who receive business support including training, mentoring, collaboration and a Surrey Hills marketing platform.

With over 20 years of experience in running two award-winning local, national, and international businesses, as well as three decades of expertise in marketing, event management, team leadership, and stakeholder management, Maggie is primed to build on Wendy’s work.

Maggie Howell said:

“I am honoured and thrilled to lead Surrey Hills Enterprises into its next phase of growth and development. Wendy’s legacy is undeniable, and I am committed to continuing her remarkable work of supporting environmentally sustainable businesses, promoting our members to the wider community and forging collaborations with key partners.”

Maggie’s deep understanding of Surrey Hills Enterprises, gained from working for the organisation for the last five years, positions her as the ideal leader for this role.

As an entrepreneur herself, Maggie brings a profound empathy for small businesses. She couples with a relentless drive for collaboration and business support.

Maggie will host her inaugural event on May 23rd, in partnership with the Surrey Sustainable Business Network, coinciding with the launch of the new Guildford Zero premises in Guildford.

This collaborative event will bring together a diverse range of organisations committed to Surrey Hills Enterprises’ vision of creating a more sustainable business community in the Surrey Hills. Book tickets on the Surrey Hills website.

Surrey Hill Enterprises is one of dozens of services in the Business Surrey Support Directory. This lists local, regional and national schemes to help your business grow and succeed.

Are you a local business leader who wants to be a driving force in shaping Surrey’s economic future, be a voice for businesses in Surrey, and use your experience to help inform the delivery of projects that will bring tangible benefits to the local business community and residents?

Business Surrey – which is a Surrey County Council service – is expanding the membership of the Surrey Business Leaders’ Forum to ensure it is reflective of the diversity, innovation, and growth that is happening across Surrey’s economy.

As a member, you will bring your knowledge and expertise from your business and wider sector to share insights about the opportunities and challenges your business faces, help inform local decision-making, and shape new initiatives and investments designed to support local economic growth.

To register your interest in joining the Surrey Business Leaders Forum, please email economy.growth@surreycc.gov.uk.

A member of the team will be in contact to set up a call to share more details about the Forum and discuss your interest in joining.

About the Business Leader’s Forum

The Surrey Business Leaders’ Forum is a diverse and representative group, bringing together companies from across the county, including business representative organisations, SMEs and representatives from major Surrey employers and priority sectors.

It plays a critical role in elevating the voice and role of business in local decision-making.

The forum supports the One Surrey Growth Board and Surrey County Council with business insight and expertise and represents a diverse local business voice related to Surrey’s key economic strengths.

It will provide challenge and insight into the business impact of public sector initiatives and raise awareness of local business and economic needs.

For further details on how the Business Leaders’ Forum supports the work of Business Surrey visit the How We Work page.

About Surrey’s economy

With 110,000 businesses, Surrey fosters a thriving and diverse economy which generates £50 billion a year to the UK economy.

Alongside an impressive mix of international enterprises such as Samsung, Sony and the WWF, among many others, Surrey is also home to innovative start-ups and a high level of micro-businesses, adding to the county’s entrepreneurial spirit.

Surrey has a highly skilled workforce. Fifty-four per cent of residents have a degree or higher. The area also has prestigious educational and research institutions, including three prominent universities and national research agencies. The business success rate is high, at 88%, compared to 81% nationally. As a result, it is well-suited to nurturing some of the UK’s most successful companies and world-leading sectors. These include createch, cybersecurity, AI, space and satellites, health, and gaming.

Read more about Surrey’s economy here.

Business Surrey, Surrey County Council’s new business facing brand and website, has now gone live.

The start of April saw Surrey County Council formally absorb the key functions previously held by the county’s two Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), Enterprise M3 and Coast to Capital.

It means for the first time there is a single organisation responsible for driving sustainable economic growth across the whole of the county. 

The transfer also means the Council gains formal responsibilities to deliver business support through the new Surrey-wide Growth Hub and deliver government-funded programmes focused on skills. 

A new business-facing website for the whole of Surrey is fundamental in ensuring the Council starts delivering for businesses and residents from day one – placing it ahead of the national curve, which is positive news for it’s 1.2 million residents and 110,000 businesses.

What is Business Surrey?

Business Surrey provides free and accessible support for all businesses in Surrey – through targeted bespoke support for high growth companies, highlighting available funding and grants, and easy signposting to relevant national and local initiatives.

Anyone looking for help and support for their business in Surrey can contact the team of experts via the business support section of the new website. Topics include Access to Funding; Talent, recruitment and apprenticeships; Starting a business; and Innovation and technology.

A detailed and easy-to-use Support Directory also contains more then 100 national, regional and local schemes, providing businesses the chance to search for and contact external providers for help on a range of topics.

Those with more general queries can also contact the team via the Contact Us form.

News, events and networking opportunities will also be promoted on the site.

To keep up-to-date with news and events then sign up to our newsletter and follow Business Surrey on LinkedIn.

Do you have events and news for Surrey businesses?

Business Surrey is a gateway to support, advice and information for businesses across the whole of Surrey.

If you have an event you would like listing, you can upload this directly via our Submit an Event form.

If you have relevant news or a service to include in the directory then send through details via our contact us form.