Gritstone Computers has joined the Federation of Small Businesses which is the largest campaigning pressure group promoting and protecting the interests of the self-employed and owners of small firms.
 
Formed in 1974, it now has over 210,000 members across 33 regions and 230 branches. The Federation offers benefits, assistance and support 24 hours a day. One of the major benefits is the FSB's legal helpline which operates 24 hours a day. Last year, the helpline received over 100,000 calls, the majority of calls on employment matters but also dealing with issues such as commercial contract, landlord and tenant and consumer affairs.
Vision

A community that recognises, values and adequately rewards the endeavours of those who are self employed and small business owners within the UK

Mission Statement

To be and remain the largest and most effective organisation promoting and protecting the interest of the self employed and small business owners within the UK.

The North Yorkshire Region has five branches with over 3100 members and provides support and advice to small business. The membership is diverse and unlike other business associations it is the people in those businesses who make up the members not the business. The FSB represents a wide variety of sectors and categories from shops, pubs, haulage, accountants, solicitors and management consultants and regular meetings in Craven are held at Herriots Hotel in Skipton.

If you are already a member please do check the FSB Website and join us for the Craven Meeting at Herriots Hotel in Skipton once a month.

 
For further details about the FSB or future events please email june.kemp@fsb.org.uk
www.fsb.org.uk/

The best business is referred business - That's why Business over Breakfast clubs are being opened all over the UK and internationally. Offering just one place for each different type of business at each club means that every member benefits from having between 30 and 40 other members promoting their goods and/or services by word-of-mouth recommendation.

Gritstone Computers is a member of the Skipton BoB Club which meets at The Rendezvous Hotel on alternate Tuesdays. For further information, please contact Michael Frankland on 01200 445308 or 07828 574715 mf@bobclubs.com

The clubs are all about helping members not only to get more quality business but also helping them improve their presentation skills and being able to meet with and develop mutually beneficial relationships with other business people on a regular basis. The success of Business over Breakfast clubs is due to the success it brings to its members.

Business over Breakfast Clubs (BoB clubs) are possibly the newest and fastest growing chain of B-2-B network clubs in the UK.

Visitors can attend any club (they only have to pay for their breakfast £5-£9 dependent on venue) before joining. Members receive a £20 voucher, which can be redeemed against next year's membership costs for every guest they bring along as a visitor who joins our clubs. Discount for FSB members, all receive a membership pack and are also invited to free seminars each year.

Because each member of each BoB club is aware of the products that each of the other members are able to offer, they are able to recommend their co-members to any business contact they meet.

BoB clubs meet either every week or every fortnight. The meeting is structured to maximise the time that the members are together. Although the meeting has a defined structure, the atmosphere is relaxed and fun. Visitors are given the same opportunity as members to explain to the other attendees about the goods and/or services that they offer.

Every member is given between 60 and 90 seconds to do a quick presentation about their business. One member each week/fortnight is given 10 minutes to give a more comprehensive presentation about their business.

Please do mention Gritstone Computers if you contact Michael Frankland regarding a guest visit or membership.

The New Year has got off to a great start for Carole Clarkson who has won a laptop donated by North Yorkshire based Gritstone Computers in a lucky draw organised by Forward Ladies, the North’s fastest growing womens’ networking and business support group.

Forward Ladies, which is supported by Yorkshire Forward as part of its commitment to encouraging greater levels of female entrepreneurship in the region, now has over 3,000 members on its database.

Etta Cohen, managing director of Forward Ladies explained: “Just before Christmas Edward Barker from Gritstone offered our members the opportunity to win the laptop which was a fabulous prize worth more than £1000.”

Carole Clarkson travelled from Hull, where she works for Sirius Enterprise Agency, to collect her prize at a recent Forward Ladies event held at The Harrogate Grille in Harrogate. She said: “I was so surprised when I heard that I had won the laptop, which will be extremely useful when I attend business meetings and events.

“We also threw in a package which included mobile technology, Microsoft Office Professional 2007, Antivirus software and a year’s back up support,” explained Charlotte Foster, sales and marketing associate with Skipton based, Gritstone and a Forward Ladies member herself. She added: “The flexibility of a stylish, slim laptop computer is ideal for busy career women, such as the Forward Ladies.

For further information on Forward Ladies visit www.forwardladies.com

Gritstone Computers comprehensive service includes the following benefits:

THERE ARE NO CALL-OUT CHARGES
WE HAVE A NO FIX - NO FEE POLICY
OUR ADVICE IS FREE

Our services include:

Onsite & Remote IT Support with priority response times day or night.
Computer Sales, Repairs, Upgrades, Troubleshooting & Solutions.
Installation & Maintenance of Hardware, Software, Servers & Networks.

Please call us on 01756 730030 or e-mail info@gritstone.co.uk if you would like to discuss any aspect of IT or to arrange a free consultation

Gritstone Computers can provide the right support and IT solutions for you and your business.

If you are worried about your business's computer & networks we are here to help.

• Do you suffer from network problems slowing you down
• Are you concerned about your backups and data security
• Are you losing time through computer malfunctions

As always our advice is free and we are happy to talk so contact us to arrange a free meeting to discuss your problems.

We now rely on computers heavily and they hold a great deal of information which is important to us, backup has become requirement not an option.

If you are a home user who just wants to backup pictures and music or if you work from and and need to backup everything to a business network with specific requirements we can provide the right solution for you.

For peace of mind and stress free computing contact us today.

If your antivirus protection is due for renewal or you have purchased a new computer and are not yet protected please contact us to discuss our recommended antivirus solution.

We can provide competetive pricing for new customers and those who are changing from other software such as Norton or McAfee to our recommended solution.

Also we offer discounts to our customers who are renewing their license for our recommended antivirus solution.

If you think you have been infected by a virus or need help upgrading to our antivirus solution or renewing your license with us we can help through a combination of remote & onsite support.

Please visit the software section of our website for details of  other software solutions we can provide for you.

If your computer is slowing you down? Can you no longer play the latest games? Does everything seem to take forever? We can help you.

You may be in need a hardware upgrade, it could be time to spring clean your computer,  or  a new computer maybe required. Contact us for help and advice to get moving again and take the step forward into stress free computing.