• 18 Jun (Tue)
Chamber of Commerce / Social Media [More]

• 23 Jul (Tue)
Chamber of Commerce (Executive) [More]

• 10 Sep (Tue)
Chamber of Commerce / Voluntary Sector [More]

• 15 Oct (Tue)
Chamber of Commerce (Executive) [More]

• 19 Nov (Tue)
Chamber of Commerce / Event [More]

• 17 Dec (Tue)
Chamber of Commerce / Christmas Meal [More]

[more] (Diary includes other events in and near Melksham)

Melksham is a town with a population of about 22,500 in the county of Wiltshire, England - about 100 miles to the west of London. There are many interesting and historic buildings in the town, and many tourists attractions in the beautiful areas nearby, but Melksham is very much a working town, with a mixture of modern and traditional industries and services, and in town and out of town retail stores. [more about Melksham] - [Melksham in Pictures

What is happening in Melksham? ... See the latest via Wiltshire Times and Melksham Independent News

AGM - 21st May 2013, at Well House Manor. All welcome.

Wiltshire council, and its activities, provide much of the background to business activities, and the future of business, in the county as a whole, including Melksham. With Wiltshire Councillors elected at the start of this month for the next 5 years, we have three new representatives with whom to work on the Melksham Area Board.

The new members (those who were not members of the previous council) have been invited along to the meeting, and early indications are that at least one will be joining us. This is an excellent opportunity to update them on how they can help businesses in Melksham so that we remain a thriving town ... and looking forward to the future, it's very much more practical to plan and get our inputs in while strategic decisions are being made.

Issues include

* Public Transport
* Town Team
* Core Strategy
* The Campus
* Wind Farms
* Replacement of section 106 funding by CIL
* Making Melksham a floral town
* Welcoming newcomers to Melksham
* The Chamber's future and future role in Melksham, in Wessex, and wider


DRAFT APRIL 13 CHAMBER MEETING MINUTES.pdf

MARCH 13 CHAMBER MEETING MINUTES.pdf

You can find the Melksham Chamber of Commerce Twitter feed via @melksham.

Melksham Chamber of Commerce, and indeed many Chambers in Wessex and the umbrella Wessex Association are looking forward - at what local (Melksham) and Association (Wessex) members want for coming years. What's wanted, how it's delivered and how it's funded was the subject of last week's Chamber meeting in Melksham.

Melksham Chamber of Commerce welcomed the enhanced membership package (including HR and and legal help lines, insurance against tax audit costs, and much more) that's to be offered to members of the Wessex Association of Chambers of Commerce from January 2013. These will be of benefit to many smaller businesses, and can be arranged in bulk by the association at a far lower cost than if purchased by individual members.

The Melksham Chamber was, however, concerned at the substantial rise in subscriptions projected for members, some of whom already have such business packages through trade bodies or other organisations, or (in the case of larger members) through their own departments or head offices. It was therefore resolved to support the Wessex Chamber in presenting their new enhanced package to exisiting members, and at the same time to offer a new, clearly defined local membership of the Melksham Chamber of Commerce for businesses and organisations with a commercial interest who wish to support Melksham.

Local membership will start at 45 pounds per annum (sole trader), with additional tiers up to 195 pounds, and a "local Patron" level of 450 pounds. Intermediate tiers are still being calculated, and the income (after admin costs) will be spent to further support in the Melksham Community Area.

Association membership rates will start where local membership rates end, and will purchase the Associaition package, together with membership of many additional groups, mailings to businesses throughout the Wessex area, and the right to attend Chamber meetings and events in at any Association Chamber at member rates. 30 pounds of each association member's annual fee will be paid to the Melksham Chamber to support work in Melksham, with remaining fees covering wider admin and operational costs, the costs of the services provided by the Wessex Association, and further support in the wider (Wessex) area.

Local membership will offer members ... a monthly newsletter, specific to Melksham, on what's happening in the community area for businesses. A monthly meeting (alternating between an executive style meeting and an event such as networking, social media seminar, council update, etc). Mailing to Melksham members. "Contact point" to help put you in touch around the town. The right to use the Chamber emblem. Priority inputs on decisions where the Chamber's involved and can make a difference - recent and ongoing Melksham examples include transport, the Campus, the Canal and Countrywide Farmers. Several of those are ongoing, as are issues such as the Bowerhill to A350 link road, the core strategy planning framework for the future, and waste disposal for businesses.

Working quietly behind the scenes, Melksham's Chamber of Commerce has achieved a great deal for its members and for the wider town over the years, and it's now set out its strategy for doing so into the future. New local and association membership enquiries are welcome at any time - email secretary@melkshamchamber.org.uk - or visit our website at http://www.melkshamchamber.org.uk . If you prefer, simply come along to the next meeting which is at Well House Manor on Tuesday, 27th November.

Most recent posts:

[link] Melksham Chamber of Commerce - Report for AGM, 21st May 2013 (posted 2013-05-21)
What an eventful year! On the development of Melksham for the future, progress has been substantial on the Campus project, and the canal has moved forward. Big new businesses such as Herman Miller and Castle Combe International are moving to town, and smaller businesses are setting up and / or moving to town too, such as a South West Coffee and Melksham Chiropractors. And although our town has som ...

[link] Over a hundred welcoming businesses - Melksham Town Centre (posted 2013-03-17)
Melksham can celebrate a hundred open-for-business doors (shops and services) in its High Street area - I know that because I walked around early this morning, pushing flyers for the Chamber of Commerce meeting that's happening on Tuesday evening through letter boxes. There's a great deal going on in the Melksham area, and it's best for businesses to be aware ahead of time and prepare for changes ...

[link] Report on the last year - Melksham Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Melksham Without Parish Council (posted 2013-03-11)
The last 12 months have seen the Chambers of Commerce in Wessex undergo a radical restructure, with the Melksham Chamber's reliance on the central services of the Wessex Association in Trowbridge much reduced, with our admin and secretarial services returned to Melksham. The Chamber works closely with other organisations such as the Community Area Partnership and the TransWilts Community Rail Par ...

Other recent postings:

[link] Costa Coffee in Melksham - is it a good idea? (posted 2013-02-22)
[link] Images of Melksham you havent seen before (posted 2013-02-13)
[link] Melksham Chamber of Commerce - join us in our future (posted 2013-01-21)
[link] Quiet little town? Advanced Technology Centre? (posted 2012-12-08)
[link] Melksham Chamber of Commerce - whence in 2013 and beyond? (posted 2012-10-12)
[link] Chamber of Commerce - looking forward in Melksham and in Wessex (posted 2012-10-04)
[link] The difficult interface between the business, council and voluntary sectors (posted 2012-09-19)

Read Graham's full daily blog (including technical articles, running a hotel, daily life and the campaign for an improved train service to Melksham here

All local businesses in Melksham are encouraged to join the Melksham Chamber of Commererce and Industry. You gain ... local networking ... a say in local developments ... news updates for business ... access to training ... chamber support ... discounts ... publicity. Your business pays about 18p per day.


Melksham Chamber Brochure 2013.pdf


Standing Order Form - April 2013.pdf

[more] about joining and its benefits to you

Our latest newsletter - [html] or [pdf]

Melksham Chamber of Commerce is a member of the Wessex Association of Chambers of Commerce - 17 chambers of commerce and similar organisations spread across Wiltshire and nearby counties. By working with other Chambers, we can share administration costs, we can be a more powerful voice when talking to County and National Government on business issues, and we can offer members a wider range of business services such as advise, training, referrals, networking and discounts. [Link]

Chairman - Colin Harrison - 0845-094-3558 - colin@chdesign.co.uk
Secretary - Phil McMullen - 01225- 709638 - melksham@mail.com
President - Graham Ellis - 01225 708225 - graham@wellho.net

[Link] Melksham Town Council
[Link] Melksham Without Parish Council
[Link] Wiltshire Council

[Link] Visit Melksham
[Link] Melksham Train Times and campaign for more trains
[Link] Melksham Bus services.