Author: hmorgans

Aston Bond at the Thames Valley Business Awards 2020

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Aston Bond took part in a night of celebration at the 2020 Thames Valley Business Awards on 30th January. The Annual Awards, which celebrates the great businesses that operate in the Thames Valley area, hosted their 2020 awards ceremony at The Hilton in Reading.
We were honoured to be shortlisted as nominees in the Employer of The Year Category. Meaning the team enjoyed a fantastic night of celebration, great food, live entertainment and keynote speakers.
Although, we did not win this year we’d like to give a shout out to the well deserved winners of the various categories held that night!

Business of the Year

JOINT WINNERS: Cotswold Fayre Ltd & Warburton Building Services Ltd

Female Entrepreneur of The Year

Ann Mumby

New Start-Up of The Year

Clean Green Living

Young Entrepreneur of The Year

JOINT WINNERS: Jodie Pope & Charlie Hiscox

The SME of The Year

Imaginera Ltd

The Employer of The Year

Warburton Building Services Ltd

The Networker of The Year

Jem Piggott

The Apprentice of The Year

Lewis Armstrong

Outstanding Contribution to The Community

Helen & Douglas House

The Charity of The Year

Play2Give – Andrew Baker

The Leisure & Tourism Award

Newbury Racecourse

Lifetime of Achievement

Dame Steve Shirley

Male Entrepreneur

Robin Phillips

Aston Bond MacMillan Coffee Morning 2019

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Every year we at Aston Bond love hosting one of thousands of MacMillan Coffee Mornings, where we invite our clients, friends and family along to our office. Bake and sell cakes, have a cuppa, host competitions and raffles, all to raise money for MacMillan Cancer Support.

And this year is no different, the Aston Bond team are pre-heating their ovens and dusting off their cake tins to bring you a selection of delicious treats and cakes for another Coffee Morning, so why don’t you join us!

1 in 2 of us will be diagnosed with cancer in our life time. And, it’s fantastic charities like MacMillan that provide the support for those who battling or living with those with Cancer; whether it be physical, financial or emotional support, MacMillan do a great job of being there with you.

And that’s why we think they’re a fantastic charity, well worth supporting!

When is it?

It’s on Friday 27th September, 10am to 12pm.

Where is it?

At our Aston Bond head office in Slough.

What should I bring?

Bring some friends, money and an appetite!

If you want to come along simply click here to go to our Landing Page and fill in the form!

See the articles from some of our previous successful coffee mornings!

Coffee Morning 2015

Cofee Morning 2016[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Claims in the Employment Tribunal

Posted on by hmorgans

In July 2017, the Supreme Court ruled to abolish Employment Tribunal fees on the basis of them being unlawful and unconstitutional. Since then, there has been a significant increase in the volume of Employment Tribunal claims being made.

Whilst Tribunal fees were still a requirement, the number of cases between April 2016 to March 2017 were as low as 88,461. However, in the following twelve month period in which tribunal fees were abolished (being the period of 1st April 2017 – 31st March 2018) the number of applications rocketed up to 109,685.  This means that the removal of tribunal fees meant that there was around a 130% increase on outstanding Tribunal claims. This is the highest they have been since 2012, a year where there were no Tribunal fees, and the number of claims reached 191,541.

In the few months between April and June, claims went up by 165% compared to the same time frame the previous year. 

Here at Aston Bond, we are experiencing the repercussions of these increases.  Claims that are issued now can often experience a wait of over 6 months simply to get to the preliminary hearing stage (where directions are given for the next steps to be taken). A full hearing of just one day can often be listed more than a year after that – with longer hearings taking even longer.  These substantial delays affect both claimants and respondents negatively. Claimants find it difficult to move one and find the experience extremely stressful. Respondents face uncertainty and on-going legal fees to deal with these matters.

New Employment Tribunal judges are being recruited but that takes time.  Meanwhile, Employment Tribunals are struggling with demand.

Businesses need to ensure that disciplinary and grievance procedures are not only in place but are followed properly, thoughtfully and carefully.  We would urge all employers to take advice at an early to stage to ensure formal litigation is avoided later on down the line.   

If you would like any more advice on this or to discuss generally, please contact our Head of Employment, ilinca Mardarescu on 01753 486 777

Aston Bond at 2019 London Legal Walk

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The team at Aston Bond completed another London Legal Walk for the fifth year in a row! With a record number of people in attendance coupled with a gorgeous sunny day, it was an awesome event with a fantastic atmosphere!

We’re pleased to announce we raised £562 for Legal Aid.

If you’d like still like to help us raise more money from this great charity please head to our just giving page! http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/AstonBond19

The London Legal walk helps raise money for Legal Aid and a whole other range of charities, who help to provide support for those unable to support themselves not only in legal matters but welfare. We’re pleased to have contributed to the cause in our way.

Here’s the team taking on the 10km walk!

Aston Bond Walks for the London Legal Walk 2019

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London Legal walk here we come!

We are walking with the Lord Chief Justice and thousands of lawyers to raise funds for the London Legal Support Trust which funds Law Centres and pro bono agencies in and around London.

The London Legal Walk returns on Monday 17th June 2019. A 10km walk all through central London, and it’s something Aston Bond enjoy being part of year in year out.

Giving back and raising money is something that underpins the core values of Aston Bond, and knowing that the sum of our efforts can help bring justice and change to those who are less fortunate or unable to seek basic legal advice is fantastic. The company always hits the pavements of the big city to show their support and raise as much money as possible to help a great charity, who are doing great things.

We know that these agencies do a fantastic job in preventing homelessness, resolving debt problems, gaining care for the elderly and disabled and fighting exploitation.

We also know how short they are of the funds to continue that work.

Click here to go to the JustGiving page and donate as much as you can, thank you.

Here’s the team taking on the 10km walk last year!

Winners Slough Business Awards 2016

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This is the second consecutive year Aston Bond were nominated as finalists in three different categories at the  prestigious Slough Business Awards, held at the Hilton T5. The black tie event highlighted the strengths of the local community, from growing start up business to large corporations.

The evening started with drinks and casual networking, in which companies big and small rubbed shoulders, showing how Slough is place of great opportunity for all involved. Continue reading “Winners Slough Business Awards 2016”

Good news for home-buyers at last! Stamp Duty Fee’s reform

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Click here to see the infographic in full size

 

Home buyers will be pleased to hear that there is good news for them at last (apart from having wonderful solicitors). Stamp duty will now be banded in the same way as other taxes, so you will now not be moving into a higher percentage rate just because you pay £1 more for your property!

Continue reading “Good news for home-buyers at last! Stamp Duty Fee’s reform”

Expression of opinion vs defamation – bad TripAdvisor reviews

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[vc_row type=”in_container” bg_position=”left top” bg_repeat=”no-repeat” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left”][vc_column][vc_column_text]Tony and Jan Jenkinson were fined £100 by the Broadway Hotel in Blackpool for a leaving a negative TripAdvisor review about it, where they described the hotel as a ‘rotten, stinking hovel’.

The hotel introduced a policy of charging people who left bad reviews with the hope of preventing customers from ‘defaming’ the business. After seeing the bad review, the hotel charged £100 to the couple’s credit card. Continue reading “Expression of opinion vs defamation – bad TripAdvisor reviews”