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Aberdeen businesses hear how to hire and inspire young people at Clydesdale Bank Business Week event

15th May 2015

Aberdeen business figures were invited to both hire and inspire young people during a session held in the city as part of Clydesdale Bank’s Business Week.

The session, held jointly with Scottish charity Working Rite, took place at Clydesdale Bank’s Business and Private Banking Centre in Aberdeen on Wednesday May 13.

Working Rite arranges six month work placements for young people within small to medium sized businesses. The placements enable young people to gain experience of the working world and learn new skills. More than 70% of young people who gain work experience through Working Rite are retained at the end of their six month placement.

During the session, attendees heard from teenager Heather Reid, who was recently recruited by Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust after completing a work placement with the organisation.

Heather said: “Working Rite has changed my life, I felt like I had lost all options and needed a push in the right direction. My placement at Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust has not only improved my skills and ability with administration, but my own personal development.”

Ally Prockter [correct], Chief Executive of Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust added: “AFCCT is delighted to continue accessing and developing Working Rite apprentices. The Trust has already retained one apprentice as a permanent member of community staff, and Heather Reid will soon become the second young person to benefit from getting a full time job as a direct consequence of their time spent at AFCCT.”

Clydesdale Bank’s Business Week, which ran from May 11-15, has seen more than 250 customer-focused events take place in the Bank’s UK network of business and private banking centres.

Among the events held across Aberdeenshire were Creating the Jump, a session on growth strategies and an Agri Market Update Seminar, hosted by Clydesdale Bank’s Treasury Manager for the North East of Scotland, Graeme Imrie.

Stephen Hepburn, Head of Clydesdale bank’s Business and Private Banking Centre in Aberdeen, said:

“Business Week is a great example of how we aim to offer added value to our customers by providing them with networking opportunities and advice and insight that could benefit their business. It’s also been gratifying to see businesses coming together to learn from each other and build for the future.

“We’d like to thank everyone who took part in Business Week.”

As part of Business Week Clydesdale Bank is encouraging SMEs to have a full understanding of their business’ value.

Research commissioned by Bank to launch Business Week suggested that the majority of small and medium-sized businesses in Scotland are underestimating their true worth by not taking into account the value of assets such as trademarks, patents and intellectual property. According to the study, only one in three (34%) Scottish SMEs has ever taken steps to value their non-physical assets.

Clydesdale Bank has strengthened its support for UK SMEs by becoming the first to partner with the British Business Bank under its ENABLE Guarantees scheme. Up to £125m of new lending by Clydesdale Bank, guaranteed by the British Business Bank, will help more small businesses achieve their growth ambitions.

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