Business Networks

West Midlands Regional Food Academy

Harper Adams University College is the home of the West Midlands Regional Food Academy, which opened in October 2009. It serves the food industry in the West Midlands by providing training and staff development as well as technical services. It is also a resource for schools and provides the opportunity for pupils to connect with the food supply chain and the work of the food industry. Importantly, it provides a resource for the specialist food courses offered by Harper Adams.

Website: www.regionalfoodacademy.org

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REEDNet

Rural Employer Engagement Development Network

REEDNet is a new and innovative joint venture, a collaborative partnership led by Harper Adams University College and the Royal Agricultural College. Our mission is the transformation of rural education by the creation of strategic alliances with the entire network of land-based colleges in England, and with the country's leading providers of staff training and human resource development to the land-based sector.

We do this by working with our partners to develop a wide range of work-based and in-service programmes and modules. We will also work with firms and training providers to accredit existing programmes, adding a guarantee of quality through independent external recognition. This benefits employers because they can see the standards being achieved by their staff and their trainers, and it benefits staff because of clear investment in their skills with clear evidence of what has been achieved.

Website: www.reednet.org

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OpenFields

OpenFields is a searchable, free to access resource for practitioners, students, managers and other professionals.

The library comprises directly accessible text documents with the capacity to hold other resources such as video and audio clips and pc and web interactive tools.

The library will develop to encompass different types of acquisition including: Technical and Business Information Items; Research Papers; Learning Materials.

Website: www.openfields.org.uk

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ruralconsultancy.com

ruralconsultancy.com provides rural enterprises with specialist business management and marketing consultancy services.

ruralconsultancy.com is a small dedicated team with nearly 20 years experience in marketing research, consultancy and business training. Over this time we have produced professional quantitative and qualitative research reports to meet the strategic marketing requirements of a wide range of clients.

We are based at Harper Adams University College in Shropshire and act as the consultancy team and reach out arm for the Business, Management and Marketing Group.

Website: www.ruralconsultancy.com

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WiRE - Women in Rural Enterprise

WiRE is an organisation for rural women in business, offering a dynamic member package of practical and specific business services and support for women in rural enterprise including; WiRE Local Network Groups (70 across the UK) offering rural women in business the chance to network and do business with like-minded women, a quarterly glossy magazine, monthly e-newsletter and countless marketing opportunities.

Website: www.wireuk.org

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CfRI - Centre for Rural Innovation

The Centre for Rural Innovation (CfRI) at Harper Adams University College is designed to help you to interpret the wide range of research and commercial work undertaken at the Centre.

Website: www.cfri.co.uk

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NRKE - National Rural Knowledge Exchange

NationalRural is a Knowledge Exchange - a service provided by universities and colleges for rural businesses and organisations. It is funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, and is one of 22 Centres for Knowledge Exchange activity in the country.

Website: www.nationalrural.org

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NCFI - National Care Farming Initiative

Care farming is still in its early stages of development in the UK, although numbers of farms are growing. Farmers that have been offering on-farm health, education and welfare services for people in need have often felt isolated in the absence of a national network.

The NCFI(UK) seeks to offer providers the benefits of collaborative action.

Website: www.ncfi.org.uk

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