Business News

Laura Moore

Following COP26, and recent reporting from the UK Green Building Council that the built environment sector is contributing around 40% of the UK’s total carbon footprint, unsurprisingly those involved in the property industry are wondering how can we go greener. The tide is changing on the perception of ‘green leases’ and whilst there is no industry standard, the property industry is experiencing an increase in negotiating commercial lease terms to align with businesses running in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way. The prevailing message is ‘collaboration is key’ to promote sustainability. Working together means that we can come up with fresh ideas for a greener property future.

Laura Moore, Commercial Property Solicitor at mfg Solicitors, suggests If you’re about to negotiate a new lease, ‘green’ provisions should form part of the negotiations. Some existing leases may already include ‘green’ provisions and as every lease is different the terms should be reviewed carefully. If in doubt expert legal advice should be sought. At an important time for property owners, investors, occupiers and developers alike, let’s continue to work together in our efforts to ‘go greener’. To discuss this further readers can contact Laura Moore at

Many companies and education establishments take advantage of the suite of programs in Office 365 (now known as MS365). The Teams app is also part of Office 365, and became invaluable to us all during the pandemic. But did you know that when you add MS Dynamics 365 as your CRM, these programs and communications channels really come into their own? During the pandemic Microsoft further advanced the apps and integrations to help with hybrid working. They declared that ‘Teams is the new front end’, and that really rings true. Your team can literally spend their day in the Teams app, as the integration with your CRM is near instantaneous. Using the Teams app, you will also be able to communicate and send data to anyone in your selected networks, and with your clients. Any data transmitted via the app, e.g. documents, will be security protected under the MS Dynamics 365 hub too, so you are protected from Malware and other risks factors that affect email. Using MS Dynamics 365 and Office 365 in the cloud-based environment takes advantage of the tight integration that they have, and enables hybrid working, as you can work from anywhere, and across all media devices. If you have a legacy CRM platform or use a sector specific web platform, these can invariably be integrated with MS Dynamics 365 too, so Dynamics acts as a hub. When this is in place, data from the legacy platforms can benefit from all the above advantages.

Leading Midlands college group WCG has been awarded The Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education in recognition of its work in the engineering sector. The prestigious award recognises WCG (formerly Warwickshire College Group) for how it has developed future engineers through innovation and partnership over the last quarter of a century. Angela Joyce, CEO of WCG, represented the College at a Prize Winners Reception held at St James Palace where the 2020-2022 Winners were announced. The college has established itself as a leading provider of engineering apprenticeships in the Midlands and across the UK. Angela Joyce, CEO of WCG, said: “This is a very proud moment for all of us here at the college group and is the culmination of more than 25 years of tireless work to establish WCG as a leader in the delivery of engineering training. “We put employers at the forefront of all of our training and this pioneering approach to employer-led education is what has been the driving force behind us receiving this award. “The college group has been a trailblazer in engineering apprenticeships for many years and we believe these foundations have put us in the perfect position to develop the skilled individuals required to support the government’s skills strategy and the future economy, not just in engineering but in all industry sectors.”