Frightful fun at Dobbies' Southport store; Little Scare-lings Howl-o-ween party for kids

DOBBIES Garden Centres is welcoming kids along to its Little Scare-lings Howl-o-ween party this October for a frightfully fun time, taking place in the Southport store.

Suitable for families with children aged:- 3 to 10 years old, this event is a great chance for the little ones to get dressed up and have a spooktacular time. Under 3s can also join in on the fun with their parents' supervision.

Kids can sink their fangs into;- scary scones, coffin sandwiches, crudit�s and terrifyingly tasty sweet treats, paired with an orange squash before getting stuck into the activities. A spooky gourd decorating challenge and fun games with the Dobbies':- 'monster' will have children totally immersed in the Halloween fun.

Adults can sit back in the Southport store, relax and enjoy a hot cup of coffee or tea with a sweet slice while the kids play the afternoon away. They'll have the choice of a chocolate orange roulade, coffee and walnut cake or Persian lemon cake.

Dobbies' Events Programme Manager, Ayesha Nickson, is looking forward to seeing everyone strut their costumes and get stuck into some Howl-o-ween fun at the Southport store. She said:- "Our Little Scare-lings event is a great opportunity for families to get together and celebrate Halloween. Little Scare-lings takes inspiration from our Little Seedlings programme and has been very popular with families at our Southport store in previous years, so we're encouraging customers to book in advance to save any disappointment."

Dobbies' Little Scare-lings event takes place on various dates in October and is priced at �10.99 per child and �7.50 per adult. Bookings can be made at:- Dobbies.Com.

Dobbies offers a full programme of autumnal events. If you're looking to create a stylish Halloween decoration, the garden centre is hosting Planting and Afternoon Tea: Autumn Edition, with the chance to create a pumpkin succulent planter where you can make your very own display to take home (worth �40). This takes place on:- Tuesday, 8 and Saturday, 12 October and is priced at �45 per person.

Customers can also gather the family for a pumpkin picking experience. Dobbies' Pumpkin Patch experience is kicking off on:- Saturday, 19 October, offering children the chance to enjoy activities, seasonal treats and pumpkin of their choice to take home, priced at �9.99 per person.

Known for its love of dogs, Dobbies has also introduced a Pup-kin Patch for those who want their pooches to join in the fun. Priced at �8 per pup, this event allows dogs at Dobbies to explore the Pup-kin Patch and pick out a Halloween-themed toy to take home before getting their photo taken in an autumnal setting by a Dobbies colleague.

To learn more about the autumnal events taking place at Dobbies' Southport store and to make a booking, visit:- Dobbies.Com.

Small businesses in Merseyside and Cheshire to benefit from late payment crackdown

NEW laws to hold larger firms to account, boost cash flow for small firms and the economy by �2.5 billion; comment from FSB Merseyside and Cheshire's Michael Sandys.

The Government has responded to lobbying from the Federation of Small businesses (FSB) by announcing a raft of measures to tackle late invoice payments, which forces 50,000 firms out of business each year.

The crackdown was announced at a high profile event at FSB's Westminster office with Small Business Minister Gareth Thomas, co-chaired by Policy Chair Tina McKenzie and the Government's Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, who later expanded on the announcement at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool.

The new proposals feature a requirement for payment practices to be included in annual reports, new legislation on audit requirements and responsibilities for large firms and a Fair Payment Code with stronger measures than the existing Prompt Payment Code.

FSB Merseyside and Cheshire's Michael Sandys said:- "At any event we do with small business owners virtually all of them indicate they have been impacted by late invoice payments. It is devastating and all too often forces otherwise viable firms to cease trading, so this development is good news for businesses in Merseyside and Cheshire and across the UK. Over many years FSB has lobbied tirelessly on this issue, particularly in response to the collapse of Carillion in 2018. We have exposed poor payment practises and secured a Small Business Commissioner and Duty To Report process so every big company has to share how long they take to pay. We influenced a stronger prompt payment code, including:- enshrining 30-day payment terms, and worked to improve public procurement payment right down the supply chain. This has made poor payment practices far less acceptable. However, until now, successive Governments have not done enough to stop it altogether. At the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool the Business Secretary pledged to work with FSB to legislate against late payments, ensure transparency from big firms, and introduce a new Fair Payment Code. We co-created the policy on this, and it's great to see it will finally be put into action; improving payment times to the level we see in better economies around the world would add �2.5bn to the UK's economy."

Since the FSB-influenced Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act 1998 businesses have been able interest on outstanding payments, but the problem has persisted in the FSB's 2023 report:- 'Time is Money.' The Case for Late Payment Reform showed that:- 52% of UK small businesses have experienced outstanding invoices, with 25% reporting an increase in late payments and average delays in excess of 6 weeks. Some never receive payment for the work they have done.

New research published by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has found payment problems multiply further down the supply chain, resulting in smaller businesses experiencing more issues with late invoices than larger firms.

FSB's Policy Chair, Tina McKenzie, added:- "This is what real change looks like. Listening to small firms and prioritising action to tear down each and every barrier to growth. There will be so many decisions the Government needs to get right, early; an actively pro-small business budget, a good industrial strategy and tackling late payment. Announcing this programme of work is a huge confidence boost for the small business community and a clear signal the new Government intends to stand up for small firms."

Enforcement will also be stepped up on the existing late payment performance reporting regulations which require large companies to report their payment performance twice yearly on:- Gov.UK.

Under current laws, responsible directors at non-compliant companies who fail to report their payment practices could face criminal prosecutions including:- potentially unlimited fines and criminal records.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said::- "Late payments are simply unacceptable and this Government is determined to level the playing field for small business. When the cashflow runs dry, small firms go under which is why we need to hold larger business to account with their payment practices and foster an environment that supports growth and jobs."

Small Business Minister Gareth Thomas said:- "Small businesses deserve to be paid on time, it's as simple as that. I'm optimistic that today's 1st big step will help pave the way for real change that supports SMEs to thrive and help to grow our economy."

The new Fair Payment Code will be open to signatories from this autumn. Businesses will need to prove they have met good payment standards before being awarded official code status. This will be designed to push businesses to pay faster more often, with either gold, silver or bronze status awarded. The Code will also shine a light on those responsible businesses doing the right thing by their suppliers and small firms.

A consultation which will be launched in the coming months, will also consider a range of further policy measures that could help address poor payment practices.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:- "We're determined to back small businesses by unlocking their barriers to growth, and stamping out late payments is at the heart of this. We know how important it is for business owners to have the peace of mind and certainty around their cashflow to keep their businesses alive. Late payments cost businesses tens of thousands of pounds and is 1 of the biggest reasons businesses collapse."

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Frightful fun at Dobbies' Southport store; Little Scare-lings Howl-o-ween party for kids

Small businesses in Merseyside and Cheshire to benefit from late payment crackdown