Mazars grows with purpose to deliver record revenue

Mazars, the international audit, tax and advisory firm, has today announced its full-year results for the financial year ended 31 August 2021 (FY21).

Phil Verity, CEO, said: “Throughout 2021 one common thread has remained unbroken across our firm: the resilience and adaptability of our people. Despite multiple lockdowns, remote working and any number of individual and collective challenges, our teams have provided outstanding positive support for our clients in these challenging times”. Growing with purpose With the launch of the firm’s One24 strategy in 2021, Mazars has set a clear direction for growth and in achieving its purpose of building the economic foundations of a fair and prosperous world. In building the team of the future, the firm has strengthened the team preparing for future growth with a record intake of 359 trainees. Committing to the future with purpose and reflecting the importance of caring for its team, the firm has made significant investments in teams responsible for Innovation, Inclusion, Diversity and Wellbeing.

The firm has achieved this while significantly reducing its environmental impact thanks to a radical reduction in business travel, printing and energy use in its offices. The last year has demonstrated what is possible and, moving towards hybrid working practices, the firm will not be returning to the status quo: the progress towards its sustainability goals is ongoing.

Taking account of lessons from the last 23 months, and continuous open dialogue across the firm, Mazars has fully embraced a hybrid working model, empowering its teams to make choices about how, when and where they work to provide the best outcomes for its clients and teams. This cultural shift will be supported by modern workspaces that facilitate a range of working styles: Birmingham’s Paradise location and London’s forthcoming office at 30 Old Bailey are tailored specifically towards a hybrid approach: a trend which will be replicated across the UK as Mazars adapts and upgrades its estate.

Phil Verity concludes: “Thanks to our exceptional team and strong relationships with our clients we continue to grow through the delivery of high-quality work. We are excited about our future prospects as we maintain a clear focus on delivering a strategy based upon seizing our market opportunities, ensuring that we promote excellence in the way we work, and continuing our journey towards developing Mazars into an ever more purposeful firm”.

At an international level, Mazars delivered revenues of €2.1bn over the same period, representing a 12.3% increase (excluding forex impact of -1.6%) compared to the previous financial year. The increase in fee income comprises strong organic growth (9.4%), complemented by external growth of 2.7%.

Phil Verity, CEO at Mazars

www.mazars.co.uk

You Can’t Outrun a Bad Diet

– But you Can Learn to Love Exercise

You have probably heard of the saying ‘you can’t outrun a bad diet.’ What that means is, you can’t expect to indulge in high sugar and highly processed food on a regular basis and think that you can throw in the odd 5k run and it will undo the effects. For weight loss purposes, any healthy eating regime should be supplemented with regular exercise rather than be seen as a way to out thwart poor eating habits.

Notwithstanding this, the benefits of regular exercise cannot be underestimated. It will certainly help as one of your tools in achieving weight loss, however the myriad of additional benefits of exercise should also be taken into consideration. Exercise can: • Reduce your risk of heart diseases. Exercise strengthens your heart and improves your circulation. The increased blood flow raises the oxygen levels in your body. This helps lower your risk of heart diseases such as high cholesterol, coronary artery disease, and heart attack. Regular exercise can also lower your blood pressure. • Help your body manage blood sugar and insulin levels. Exercise can lower your blood sugar level and help your insulin work better. This can cut down your risk for metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.

If you already have one of those diseases, exercise can help you to manage it. • Improve your mental health and mood. During exercise, your body releases chemicals that can improve your mood and make you feel more relaxed.

This can help you deal with stress and reduce your risk of depression. • Help keep your thinking, learning, and judgment skills sharp as you age. Exercise stimulates your body to release proteins and other chemicals that improve the structure and function of your brain. • Strengthen your bones and muscles. Regular exercise can help children and teenagers build strong bones. Later in life, it can also slow the loss of bone density that comes with age.

In particularly post-menopausal women would benefit. Doing muscle-strengthening activities can help you increase or maintain your muscle mass and strength and reduce the risk of osteoporosis. • Reduce your risk of some cancers, including colon, breast , uterine, and lung cancer. • Reduce your risk of falls. For older adults, research shows that doing balance and muscle-strengthening activities in addition to moderate-intensity aerobic activity can help reduce your risk of falling. • Improve your sleep. Exercise can help you to fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. • Increase your chances of living longer. Studies show that physical activity can reduce your risk of dying early from one of the leading causes of death, such as heart disease and some cancers.

The secrets to ensuring you exercise regularly is making it a non-negotiable part of your routine and try and fit it in every daily. Here are some tips: • May is National Walking Month and what better form of exercise is there. It’s free, we can nearly all do it and even a 30-minute brisk walk will make a difference. Other

options are to take the stairs instead of the lift or walk to your colleague’s desk, rather than emailing them, Alternatively park your car further away from your destination. • Plan your activity with a friend, to help keep you accountable. The social aspect can also help to motivate you. Having a workout partner can help to make exercise more enjoyable. • Keep track of your progress by downloading a fitness tracker. These are great for helping you set goals and stay motivated. You can share with your friends or partner to encourage each other.

You can even set up work department challenges and see which department does the most steps in a given month.

The best advice is to find something that you enjoy. Try a range of different exercises and don’t be disheartened if some aren’t for you. There will be something that you enjoy and once you have found it, then be consistent and most of all enjoy it.

Mental Health Awareness Week | 9th – 15th May

This year’s theme is focussed on loneliness.

This subject was brought into sharp focus during the pandemic, when many people were unable to go out and socialise with others. For people living alone it was a particularly difficult time. The week will raise awareness of the impact of loneliness on our mental wellbeing and the practical steps we can take to address it. Reducing loneliness is a major step towards a mentally healthy society.

We continue to run events that highlight mental health and provide opportunities for people to connect and share their stories and ways to build resilience.

Last month we hosted our second GU6 event, sponsored by Lester Aldridge, which was another great success. Our fantastic speakers were uplifting and informative in equal measure. We continue the work in building our supportive network where bosses can feel empowered to open up and share their concerns. We will be hosting our next event in November on 11th 2022 so please keep a note of that date.

Our next Health and Wellbeing online workshop will take place on 17th May and will focus on Strategies for Managing Mental Health. This event is free of charge to members, and you can register online on the Dorset Chamber website, under events.

Our Connecting in Nature morning walks are proving to be a real success, despite the challenging weather we have had on the first two. As ever please keep an eye on website for all upcoming events. www.dorsetchamber.co.uk

Magdalena Lipinska Solicitor at Lester Aldridge

Lester Aldridge lawyer receives older client care qualification

Lester Aldridge has announced they now have two fully accredited members of Solicitors for the Elderly (SFE).

Solicitor Magdalena Lipinska has completed the SFE Older Client Care in Practice Award, joining Parisa Jones, Partner, as an SFE fully accredited lawyer.

Both lawyers are based at the firm’s Bournemouth office in the Tax, Trusts, Wills and Probate team and specialise in advising older and vulnerable people along with their families and carers.

Magdalena commented on her new membership: “I am thrilled to become a fully accredited member of Solicitors for the Elderly. The SFE Older Client Care in Practice Award (OCCP) is such a highly specialised qualification, which focuses on an in-depth understanding of vulnerable and elderly clients.”

SFE is an independent, national organisation of lawyers who supply specialist legal advice for older and vulnerable clients. SFE members are trained in older client care and have a wealth of experience that helps put people at their ease when dealing with complex, life-changing issues.

Before they can join the organisation, lawyers must complete the externally accredited SFE OCCP award. The qualification is all about non-legal skills, focusing on understanding the key illnesses and frailties of old age and vulnerability – hearing, sight, capacity, mobility, dementia. SFE members are then able to provide the best support to their clients, helping them to make their wishes understood. They also learn the skills to help them check that their clients are not being pressured, coerced or abused.

Bournemouth Airport launches official cargo operation, Cargo First

Bournemouth Airport is cementing itself as the fastest developing cargo airport in the UK, and the one of the country’s newest trade links, with the official launch of its dedicated cargo handling service, Cargo First.

From a standing start with almost no cargo in April 2020, Bournemouth Airport will see 20,000 tonnes of throughput by the end of March 2022, which makes it the fastest growing UK cargo hub based on 2020 statistics, and on the verge of breaking into the UK’s top ten busiest cargo airports. The Airport is playing a central role in enabling commercial exports from the UK to the USA with European Cargo Limited, which now operates a fleet of wide body cargo aircraft. It also provided relief during the Covid-19 pandemic, bringing in hundreds of millions of items of PPE and test kits to the UK.

Andrew Bell, CEO, Regional & City Airports, says: “The launch of Cargo First consolidates the critical work of the team at Bournemouth Airport during the past two years. We quickly recognised the opportunity to stand up a new trade lane and facilitate exports from the UK to the USA, as well as supporting the temporary demand for PPE and test kits.

“Cargo First is well connected to London by road and we can have consignments in the market faster than through hub airports. Additionally, our unique One Team approach means our customers don’t have to deal with multiple vendors, giving them greater simplicity, efficiency, and speed-to-market.”

Privately owned as part of Regional & City Airports (RCA), Bournemouth Airport has 24/7 capability and ample airfield space to establish new facilities. This, coupled with uncongested airspace, open slot availability and cheaper tariffs versus larger hubs, makes Cargo First a compelling competitor in the cargo handling market. The RCA leadership team has an ambitious development plan in place for Cargo First, including a multi-million-pound investment in infrastructure during the coming year.

Steve Gill, Managing Director, Bournemouth Airport, adds: “We are excited to be putting energy and investment into our cargo operation, especially considering we’ve come from nowhere to be knocking on the door of the top 10 cargo airports in the country. We’ve already added nearly 100 jobs, and there is potential to create hundreds more over next five years. It is an exceptional achievement, and we look forward to seeing our excellent service enjoyed by many more customers.”

We’ve already added nearly 100 jobs, and there is potential to create hundreds more over next five years.

www.cargofirst.co.uk