Surviving The Credit Crunch With the UK now officially in a recession, March’s Castle Vale Business Group breakfast meeting concentrated on this and talked about how small busi... Gemma Donnelly - 6/22/2009 Tiggy Winkles Updates Easter With Tiggy Winkles Children at Tiggy Winkles had a smashing day in preparation for Easter Sunday on the 9th March with the annual Easter ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/22/2009 Supporting Local Businesses Throughout the whole project of creating the Training Centre, Merlin Training have used local businesses at all times such as H & M who constructed th... Gemma Donnelly - 6/22/2009 Star Awards Our latest Star Award winners are Paul Clarke and the CCTV team. This month’s Star Award goes to Paul Clarke, Merlins Business ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/22/2009 Help Us Save Valley Travel! Valley Travel is Castle Vale’s only community bus, running since 2000 and providing a hail and ride service to residents, helping them to access many ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/22/2009 CVBG Put A New Spin On Networking Spitfire House hosted the latest networking meeting of the Castle Vale Business Group, which brought together representatives from businesses acro... Gemma Donnelly - 6/22/2009 Star Awards June’s Star Award goes to Brian Martin, Merlin’s Plumber. Local tradesman Brian has been working with Merlin for the past few months, helping with t... Gemma Donnelly - 4/1/2009 Merlin Training, by Robert Brown “Merlin Venture has helped over two thousand local people since we were set up ten years ago, but we must do more, particularly during these diffi... Gemma Donnelly - 4/1/2009 Merlin Training Special Last month’s newsletter showed you that after months of planning and building, Merlin Venture had finally moved into their new premises in Erdington I... G - 4/1/2009 Merlins New Premises After months of planning and building, Merlin Venture have finally moved into their new premises! The move, from Venture House in Castle Vale Ent... Gemma Donnelly - 3/1/2009 Star Awards April’s Star Award winners are Jackie Elston and Maria McLeod, for their hard work on our Support For Redundancy programme covering West Midlands ma... Gemma Donnelly - 3/1/2009 Goodbye and Goodluck Merlin Venture were sorry to see the departure of five members from the Merlin JETS team at the end of March. The redundancies, necessitated by th... Gemma Donnelly - 3/1/2009 Making The Media Work For You he first Castle Vale Business Group meeting of 2009 was held at the new home of Birmingham Post & Mail, Fort Dunlop, with guest speakers from BPM prov... Gemma Donnelly - 3/1/2009 Tiggy Winkles Offers! Tiggy Winkles two Day Care Nurseries based within Pegasus Primary School and next to Chivenor Primary School are running a numbe... Gemma Donnelly - 2/1/2009 Castle Vale Business Group Meeting November 20th saw the final meeting of 2008 held at Castle Vale School. ‘Facing The Future’ was fuelled by the recent ‘credit crunch’, potential fina... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 Merlins 10th Anniversary On Thursday 11th December, Merlin Venture held their ‘10th anniversary celebrations’ at Castle Vale Campus; inviting local residents and organisations... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 A Huge Thank You Merlin Venture would like to say a huge thank you to all those that donated products for our ‘Mums Pamper Packs’. The packs will be being distribut... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 Keep Your Children Safe Councillor Lynda Clinton, Lead Member for Public Protection was recently appalled to learn that around 95% of children’s’ car seats failed a recent ... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 Developments With Merlin Training Throughout the last few newsletters, we have been bringing you the latest news of Merlin Training. In the previous newsletter, we told... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 Maria Shares Her Success Story Merlin Ventures’ Maria Mcleod, Senior Employment and Training Advisor for Merlin JETS has many success stories working wi... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 Anthony and Kirsty's Luck With Merlin “ I heard about Merlin Training through my sister Kirsty; she had started the course after speaking to an Employment Advisor on the Merlin JETS Jobs B... Gemma Donnelly - 1/8/2009 February Fun Despite Britain coming to a standstill as heavy snow falls brought chaos to the region, Tiggy Winkles managed to make the most of the snow at the st... Gemma Donnelly - 1/3/2009 Star Awards March’s Star Award winner is Business Engagement Manager John Lewis, nominated by both Nicol Wagstaff and Jackie Elston. “ I have nominated Joh... Gemma Donnelly - 1/3/2009 Star Awards February’s Star Award winner is Marketing Manager Ian Gilbert, nominated by both Robert Brown and Paul Clarke. During the past 18 months, Ian’s r... Gemma Donnelly - 1/2/2009 Castle Vale School Awards Presentation Following on from the final meeting of 2008 held in November at Castle Vale School, selected students from years 10 and 11 were handed special ... Gemma Donnelly - 1/2/2009 Calling All Local Businesses The Valley Travel 696, Castle Vale’s ONLY community bus is offering local businesses large and small the chance to advertise around the estate. The... Gemma Donnelly - 1/2/2009 Thank You! Tiggy Winkles Chivenor was re-opened in mid-November following severe flood damage in early September.... Gemma Donnelly - 1/2/2009 Janine Worthington Shares Her Story “ I first saw Buster Werkenbak when it was dropping people off to work at the industrial estate in Tamwor... Gemma Donnelly - 1/2/2009 Castle Vale School Progression Event Continuing to work closely with Castle Vale School, the Merlin JETS team went along to the Progression Event that the school held on the 21st January ... Gemma Donnelly - 1/2/2009 Tiggy Winkles Maternity Packs For New Mums Tiggy Winkles Day Care Nurseries are working in partnership with Castle Vale Primary Care Trust to offer new mums some fabulous pamper packs! Tiggy... Gemma Donnelly - 12/9/2008 Tiggy Winkles Chivenor Re-Opens After Flood Damage Despite estimated re-opening times of Christmas, Tiggy Winkles Chivenor was back open by mid November complete with new flooring and toys after seve... Gemma Donnelly - 12/9/2008 Have You Been Helped By Merlin? Here at Merlin, we like to share our success stories with everybody and what better way to do that than with Merlin News! We are looking for Cast... Gemma Donnelly - 12/9/2008 Merlin Training - New Premises Continuing Merlin’s commitment to enable people to access employment and training, Merlin Training was created to fill a gap in trades based trainin... Gemma Donnelly - 12/9/2008 New Year Opening Hours Merlin Venture Head Office We will be back open on Friday 2nd January 2009 at 9am Merlin Training We will be back open on Friday 2nd January 20... Gemma Donnelly - 12/9/2008 Your Invitation To Celebrate With Us Don’t forget to come and celebrate with us at Merlin’s 10th Anniverary! On Thursday 11th December at Castle Vale Campus from 12.00 - 3.30pm, Merlin... Gemma Donnelly - 12/9/2008 Spitfire Cafe Spitfire Cafe based in Castle Vale Enterprise Park (by ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Merlin JETS Update In less than two years, Merlin JETS (Jobs, Enterprise and Training Support) have helped over 300 local people into work and training and they are... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 10th Anniversary invite Look out for your ‘10th Anniversary Invite’ and your chance to win £100 with Merlin in the November issue of the Vale Mail! Merlin Venture are cele... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Merlin Stars Well done to Mick Rogers, who has won this months Star Employee Award. Mick, who works at Chivenor Tiggy Winkles as their part... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Eric Shaw They don’t come much more dedicated to Castle Vale than Eric Shaw, and he continues to support Merlin and many other community organisations behin... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Tiggy Winkles Go Green A piece of land at the back of Tiggy Winkles Pegasus has been transformed into a vegetable garden, complete with a greenhouse, compost bin an... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Valley Travel Advert Proving popular with organisations in and around Castle Vale, Valley Travel is offering a special offer for a limited time only. For businesses lar... g - 10/31/2008 'How Merlin Helped Me' Wendy Stokes, Assistant Management Account for Merlin Venture found help after 9 months unemployment through Merlin’s recruitm... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 'How Merlin Helped Me' Viscount House Children’s Home based in Castle Vale houses up to 8 young people at any one time and has found Merlin Security essential and of g... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 CVBG Member Article Sonia Spence, Castle Vale Business Group (CVBG) member and Castle Vale resident sought advice from Merlin Enterprise back in 200... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Castle Vale Business Group Meeting “Save Your Costs, Save Your Environment” was the topic of the latest Castle Vale Business Group (CVBG) meeting, held on the 17th September at... G - 10/31/2008 Stay Safe and Play Safe With Tiggy Winkles For the second year running, Tiggy Winkles Day Care Nurseries worked in partnership with the West Midlands Fire Service to give children a lesson in f... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 Looking Towards The Future Continuing Merlin’s commitment to enable people to access employment and training, Merlin Training was created to fill a gap in trades based train... Gemma Donnelly - 10/31/2008 New JETS Service Last month, we told you about the new Merlin JETS service that launched in July following the successful Tyburn JETS service that ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Floods Don't Stop Tiggy Winkles Having Fun Staff at Tiggy Winkles Chivenor had a nasty surprise over a wet September weekend! As heavy rain hit the Midlands, Nurs... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Investing In Your Safety Since launching in 2003, Merlin Security have recorded and logged over 10,500 incidents and crime is being targeted much more efficiently. ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Merlin Welcomes The Latest Member To The Team Merlin Venture would like to welcome new staff member Mark Mason to the team. ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Tiggy Winkles Staff Updates Deputy Managers Jayne Swann and Shelly Murphy have stepped up as Tiggy Winkles Pegasus Acting Managers whilst Debbie Hawkins is off on ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Special Advertising Offer on Valley Travel Local organisation Castle Vale Community Housing Association (CVCHA) have taken up a special offer being run by Valley Travel. As part of CVCHA’s con... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Star Awards Well done to Gemma Donnelly who has won this months Star Employee Award. Nominated by Community Advisory Gro... Gemma Donnelly - 10/6/2008 Castle Vale Business Group Meeting The latest Castle Vale Business Group (CVBG) meeting was held at the SappHIRE Meeting and Training Facilities in the new and luxurious gr... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Castle Vale Business Group Meeting May 21st saw the latest breakfast meeting from Castle Vale Business Group. Facilitated by Merlin Venture, the groups topic of ‘Marketing’ turned ou... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Merlin Stars Well done to this month’s Star Award Team, Jai Jarvis and Robin Jones from Merlin Training. “They have taken on the task of setting up the new tra... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Student Success With Castle Vale Business Group Many great things have come from Castle Vale Business Group meetings including strong working relationships between local organisations and the promot... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Celebration at Tiggys It was celebrations all around on the 18th and 19th June when over 20 toddlers and pre-schoolers at each nursery were recognised for their success... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 New Employment and Training Service To Launch Following the successful Tyburn JETS service that helped hundreds of people into work during the last two years, Merlin JETS (Jobs, Employment and... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 ...And Another Happy Customer For Valescapes Valescapes have successfully completed yet another transformation of a garden with a very happy customer. Castle Vale resident Sheila Arthurs... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Tiggy Winkles Offers! With many new parents starting their children at Tiggy Winkles in September, the nursery has lots of offers as a way of saying welcome inc... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Merlin Says Goodbye Now that Merlin’s Landlords have decided to carry out all site management duties themselves, they have terminated our contract to provid... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Local Events Update Party In The Park Heavy showers kept some residents away but hundreds of people went to Castle Vale’s Centre 8 Park to enjoy the entertainment at ‘... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Job Of The Month **Immediate Start** A telemarketer is required to work for a global vehicle management company based in Birmingham. Duties include: ... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Star Awards Congratulations to both Paul Clarke and Nicol Wagstaff who have won this month’s Star Team Awards. Nominated by Chief Executive Robert Brown, ... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Successful Endings and New Beginnings For The JETS Team Merlin Venture held a celebratory lunch on the 26th June at Castle Vale Campus for staff who had been involved in the co-financing projects. The ce... Gemma Donnelly - 9/11/2008 Tiggy Winkles Welcome Pack As well as the brilliant offers Tiggy Winkles currently have on, the day nurseries based next to Chivenor School and within Pegasus School are now... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 Tiggy Winkles Brand New Pre-School and After School Service! Tiggy Winkles Pegasus and Chivenor are launching an exciting new Pre-School and After School service. Merlin Play Care will be an extra care serv... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 Merlin Staff Case Study After approaching Merlin JETS back in 2007, Castle Vale resident Fiona Ravenhall has proved herself to Merlin’s Tiggy Winkles Nursery and ha... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 Merlin Stars! Congratulations to Wendy Stokes who is this month’s star employee. Nominated by Community Advisory Group (CAG) attendee Eric Shaw, Wendy was nomina... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 New Advice Bureaux Councillors Lynda Clinton and Mike Sharpe will be holding a brand new advice bureau open to residents of the Tyburn Ward to discuss any issues they ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 Merlin Training Have Moved! Merlin Training have now completed their relocation to Aston, sharing premises with partners JAC Training. As they did in their first venue at R... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 Community Interest Group Update The Community Interest Group has engaged over 80 people to participate in meetings, bringing together the community & stakeholders from the four ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/12/2008 Business Offer - Merlin Recruitment Merlin Recruitment Offer For Businesses For a limited time only, Merlin Recruitment are offering a special offer for members of the Castle Vale Bu... Gemma Donnelly - 5/22/2008 Merlin Outreach Venues East Birmingham...Wheelwright Based within St Chads Church, Stoneyhurst Road in Erdington, the JETS team will be on hand to help anybody looking for ... Gemma Donnelly - 5/22/2008 Merlin Stars Congratulations to Lynnette Douglas who is this month’s star employee. Lynnette has overseen the development of Merlin Training, which offers... Gemma Donnelly - 5/22/2008 Tiggy Winkles Offer 2008 Tiggy Winkles Day Care Nurseries based on Castle Vale are offering this fantastic offer for a limited time only! If you start your child with ... Gemma Donnelly - 5/22/2008 Job Of The Month A Maintenance Administrator is required to work for an established construction company based in North Birmingham. You’ll be responsible for ensuri... Gemma Donnelly - 5/22/2008 Local Events For more information on any of the events, call Bob Brueton at The Astral Centre on 0121 464 9220. Castle Vale At The Lord Mayors Show What an e... Gemma Donnelly - 5/22/2008 Job Of The Month JOB OF THE MONTH A Telemarketer Supervisor is required to work for the market leader in fleet management. Based in Birmingham, you’ll be responsibl... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Castle Vale Business Group CVBG 2008 January 23rd saw the first Castle Vale Business Group meeting of 2008. A different approach was taken for this first meeting of the ye... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Welcome Merlin JETS As previously mentioned in earlier newsletters, Merlin Recruitment and Enterprise have undergone a re-branding. Well, it's finally complete and the... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Merlin Training Update With the second group of students completing the courses at Merlin Training, Sutton Coldfield, we thought we would bring you the latest updates. ... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Tiggy Winkles Smart Readers Book Club Tiggy Winkles Get Smart! Did you make your new years resolution? We did! Tiggy Winkles goal for 2008 was to in... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Goodbye and Good Luck Catherine James, Manager of both Tiggy Winkles Chivenor and Pegasus and indeed founder of the excellent service before Merlin became involved, left ... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Merlin Stars! Merlin Stars Congratulations to Andrew Jones who is this month’s Star Employee. Andrew is described as ‘very willing and committed to p... Gemma Donnelly - 2/21/2008 Castle Vale Business Group Engaging with the Community Following yet another successful Castle Vale Business Group breakfast meeting back in November 2007, its focus on education has proved an achie... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Merlin Celebrates Matrix Award Merlin Venture is proud to announce that they have achieved “Matrix” accreditation standard, recognising the hard work and success that they have achi... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Merlin Support for New Community Group Following the closure of Birmingham Community Empowerment Network (b:cen) due to the lack of grant funding, the community network known as the Erdingt... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Merlin Stars! Steve Horden is this month’s star employee. Having joined us on an intermediate labour market placement as a community engagement officer, one of ... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Merlin Training Success On Friday 7th December the first group of youngsters completed the new practical trades course at Merlin Training. Based in Sutton Coldfield at the... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Merlin Training Success On Friday 7th December the first group of youngsters completed the new practical trades course at Merlin Training. Based in Sutton Coldfield at the... G - 1/4/2008 Job Of The Month JOB OF THE MONTH An Account Manager is required to work for an established Telecommunications company in Coventry. As part of a team, you’ll be res... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 FREE Training Courses for 16-19 year olds! Merlin Training are now offering four week trade taster courses which are FREE for 16-19 year old Tyburn and Stockland Green ward residents. The trai... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Parents Evening For Nursery Tiggy Winkles Pegasus held their first ever Parents Evening on 21st November and it went extremely well. Approximately 18 par... Gemma Donnelly - 1/4/2008 Local Training Success On Friday 7th December the first groups completed the new practical trades course at Merlin Training. Based in Sutton Coldfield at the Royal Works th... Gemma Donnelly - 12/13/2007 Merlin Celebrates Matrix Award Merlin Venture is proud to announce that they have achieved “Matrix” accreditation standard, recognising the hard work and success that they have achi... Gemma Donnelly - 12/13/2007 Lord Coe Presents to Local Businesses Members of the Castle Vale Business Group were invited to a breakfast audience with Lord Sebastian Coe, held at and organised by the Ramada Hotel and ... Gemma Donnelly - 12/13/2007 Tiggy Winkles Full of Fun and Festive Parties! Tiggy Winkles Full of Fun and Festive Parties!, Wow...what a busy couple of months children at Tiggy Winkles have had! As well as their learning ... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Success as Training Centre Opens! Success as Training Centre Opens! Merlin Training is now open in Sutton Coldfield, providing practical trade training for 16-24 yr olds. ... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Merlin Stars! Merlin Stars Christopher Preston is this month’s Star Employee. Nominated by Employment and Training Advisor Jackie Elston, Christopher is descr... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Castle Vale Business Group Following September’s successful 15 year anniversary meeting, by the time you read this newsletter the Castle Vale Business Group will have... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Spray Tans at Home Warm your skin up for winter with Castle Vale Business Group’s latest member Spray Tans at Home by Body Candy. As the name suggests, mobile spray t... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Fare's Fair Despite what you may have read, Valley Travel is still only £1 to travel around Castle Vale and £2 for a daysaver! Rumours are that t... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Job Of The Month An experienced Book Keeper/Administrator is required to provide accounts and administration support to an established security and s... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Limited Offer at Tiggy Winkles! HALF PRICE CHILDCARE FEES FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY! * Is your child aged 3 years or over? * Do you need them to get used to a school environment qu... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2007 Congratulations Jackie Elston Merlin Venture would like to congratulate Jackie Minnis, now known as Jackie Elston, on both her wedding and her 40th birthday. Jackie celebrated b... Gemma Donnelly - 10/19/2007 Merlin Stars Congratulations to Vicky Brierley who is this month’s Star Employee. Since Vicky has changed from part time to full time, she has taken on more... Gemma Donnelly - 10/19/2007 Constructing a secure future Getting that first step onto the career ladder for many trades has become increasingly difficult over the last few years, fewer and fewer places avail... Gemma Donnelly - 10/2/2007 More opportunities to learn about learning For anyone curious about training opportunities whether for fun or for career advancement a new free and impartial advice service is available. Now... Gemma Donnelly - 10/2/2007 Goodbye and Hello It is with mixed emotions that we inform you that Merlin Maintenance will be no more. Sadness because we will no longer be able to offer you a great ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/2/2007 Macmillan Support The Merlin Venture Ltd would like to thank Castle Vale residents for helping us in supporting Macmillan Cancer Support. By taking part in the World’... Gemma Donnelly - 10/2/2007 IT Lab Goes Full Circle Merlin Venture’s FREE IT Lab based in Spitfire House is now under new management. Nicol Wagstaff, Recruitment and Enterprise Assistant is now respons... Gemma Donnelly - 10/2/2007 Celebrating 15 years of local business networking Business representatives from Castle Vale and the surrounding area gathered together on the 19th September to celebrate 15 years of the Castle Vale Bu... Gemma Donnelly - 10/2/2007 New CVBG Member Local business, Raj’s Spices are the latest company to register as a Castle Vale Business Group Member. Raj Patel, Manager of Raj’s Spice has been... Gemma Donnelly - 9/5/2007 Merlin Stars Kashimar Munroe, one of Merlins Employment and Training Advisor is this month’s Star Employee. ... Gemma Donnelly - 9/5/2007 Castle Vale Computing New start up Birmingham Telecom is planning on making new technology that little bit easier and more affordable to residents of C... Gemma Donnelly - 9/5/2007 Merlin Runners Race For Life has become the biggest women only fundraising event in the UK since it started in 1994. Over two million women, so far, of all ages h... Gemma Donnelly - 9/5/2007 Pound Stretcher on Community Bus With a special one pound, one day unlimited travel offer during August, Merlin Venture has provided a break from the torrential downpou... Gemma Donnelly - 9/5/2007 Twice The Transport Buster Werkenbak North Warwickshire are proud to announce that they are soon to begin working in partnership with Atherstone based Car-go B... Gemma Donnelly - 8/15/2007 Merlin Stars! Jennie Giryn, Merlin’s Business Development Manager is this month’s Star Employee. Ov... Gemma Donnelly - 8/15/2007 It’s Raining Fun At Castle Vale Carnival! With hundreds of people turning out for last year’s carnival; sunshine, entertainment and brilliant marquees were the highlight of the day. ... Gemma Donnelly - 8/15/2007 Driving Local Business Forward The Castle Vale Business Group burst back onto the scene with the first of its revamped breakfast meetings which took place on 20th June at Spitfire H... Gemma Donnelly - 6/26/2007 Tiggy Winkles Achievement Day 2007! It was celebrations all round on Thursday 21st and Friday 22nd June at the Tiggy Winkles Achievement Day when over 50 toddlers and pre-schoolers were... Gemma Donnelly - 6/26/2007 Merlin’s latest bus service After a number of years successfully transporting passengers to out of reach locations Buster Werkenbak has launched it’s premier daytime timetabled s... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 Castle Vale Business Group Returns Although there have been no Castle Vale Business Group meetings for a few months, there has been a great deal of activity behind the scenes, with Merl... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 Star Awards Catherine James, Merlin’s Childcare Manager with overall responsibility for both our Tiggy Winkles Nurseries, is this month’s Star Empl... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 Jumping on the Jobs Bus Since the launch of Merlin Recruitment and Enterprises new jobs bus, The Tyburn JET last month everyone’s been hopping on to find out what it is all a... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 New 696 Community Bus Timetable Merlin Venture is pleased to confirm that following agreement with the Castle Vale Endowment Trust Fund over continued funding, the 696 Community Bu... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 CCTV Success With the installation of over 70 camera’s around Castle Vale estate, crime is being targeted much more efficiently. We began monitoring in... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 Get set for the summer with Valescapes Charlie Dimmock may not be included but if you are looking at having a ground force style makeover Valescapes are now able to help. With excellent ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/1/2007 Buster are spreading their wheels! Buster Werkenbak, the innovative answer to accessing hard to reach employment is travelling into even more locations. Now operating into ... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 Taking job opportunities out into the community With the recent success of Merlin Recruitment and Enterprise within Castle Vale and the rest of the Erdington district, assi... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 Merlin Venture are expanding! The Merlin Venture Limited would like to welcome new starters Kash Munroe, Albert Kelly, Jean Gardner, Joanna Swinton, Albert Kelly and John Lewis to ... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 Star Awards The Merlin Venture Ltd have introduced yet another new scheme to recognise hard work and achievement in our staff. As well as a Star Employee, Merlin... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 HP Redundancies With the recent redundancies from the HP Sauce factory in Aston, staff were given the chance to get a head start on finding their next jobs. ... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 Tiggy Winkles staff scaling great heights! On Sunday the 25th of March Maddison James from Tiggy Winkles Nursery risked life and limb raising money for the Stroke Association, by participating ... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 Merlin Recruitment's brand new jobs bus! Merlin Recruitment and Enterprise now have a fabulous new way of bringing job opportunities to you with the brand new jobs bus! The Tybu... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 Red Nose Day! A big thank you is in order for The Merlin Venture staff for their excellent efforts in raising money for Red Nose Day. With contribut... Gemma Donnelly - 5/15/2007 This Space To Let Would you like to have Spitfire House as your business address? Are you running your business from home but beginning to need more space? The solu... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Star Awards Winner! The Merlin Venture Ltd recently introduced a new scheme to recognise hard work and achievement in our staff. Every month, Merlin chooses a star emplo... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Ready To Mind Your Own Business! As part of our commitment to developing local businesses Merlin Recruitment and Enterprise have recruited a new Enterprise Advisor to their team. Bas... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Merlin Recruitment Are Expanding As well as being able to offer companies a low cost recruitment service, Merlin Recruitment can now offer you even more ways to get your next job. ... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 50 And Rising For CAG The Community Advisory Group that monitors Merlin's activities recently held its 50th meeting. If you would like to become involved in your communit... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Local Talent! Castle Vale DJ’s; DJ Toddy and DJ Phil B from Kick Start Productions kick started their career by putting on a DJ workshop taster session for staff at... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 New IT Lab Based at Spitfire House, Jamie and Phil will be in Merlin’s IT lab providing additional support for newcomers to the software. From helping... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 February Fun Despite Britain coming to a stand still as heavy snow falls brought chaos to the region, Tiggy Winkles managed to make the most of the snow! On the d... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Merlin Sponsors Local Football Club At Merlin we believe in the local youngsters which is why we are proud to be able to sponsor the local under 8’s Junior Kickstart team. This year’s... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Charity Collection The Merlin Venture Ltd., was delighted to hand over a Cheque for £250.00 to the Norman Laud Association based in Wylde Green. Tiggy Winkles Nursery a... Gemma Donnelly - 2/15/2007 Kick Start For Local Wannabe DJ's Castle Vale DJ’s; DJ Toddy and DJ Phil B from Kick Start Productions kick started their business by putting on their first DJ workshop session for sta... Gemma Donnelly - 1/17/2007 The Merlin Venture & Norman Laud Charity Raffle Prizes FORT SHOPPING PARK = Boots:Large gift bag including Christian Dior make up, Miss Sixty, Max Factor and more! Vision Express:A free eye test! Wareh... Gemma Donnelly - 11/28/2006 Not Just Santa Dropping Through Chimneys With Christmas just around the corner there will be lots of celebrating taking place. Crime doesn’t take a break just because it’s Christmas so to en... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 Merlin Venture and Norman Laud Charity Raffle Norman Laud are absolutely delighted to be the chosen charity of The Merlin Venture Limited to benefit from the Valley Travel Christmas Raffle. Everyo... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 Community Support It’s always good to practice what you preach which is why whenever we have a vacancy the first place we look is candidates registered with Merlin Recr... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 Intermediate Labour Market Merlin Recruitment and Enterprise are running a new Intermediate Labour Market with funding from the Birmingham City Council and the Castle Vale Endow... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 Calling All Budding Entrepreneurs Merlin Enterprise has increased the range of services we are able to offer and has restructured itself to operate even more successfully. Marilyn T... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 FREE Shopping Trips & Childcare for YOU As an early Christmas present to Castle Vale residents, on 12th, 14th, 19th and 21st December the 696 community bus can take you Christmas shopping at... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 Build Your It Skills - Build Your Prospects Now available at the Castle Vale Community Campus is a brand new IT lab, which is FREE to use and available for everyone. Merlin Venture will be offe... Gemma Donnelly - 11/21/2006 Expanding protection to estate Merlin Security has recently expanded its control centre operations employing a new CCTV operator to monitor its cameras. Having extra staff means ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/4/2006 Castle Vale resident drives to success Local resident Robert Bierd has recently joined the ranks of Buster Werkenbak’s night drivers operating the 95 Airport Link between Shard End/North So... Gemma Donnelly - 10/3/2006 Working together for Castle Vale Merlin Venture, working in partnership with the TRA, Josiah Mason College and Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, has recently been awarded funding to e... Gemma Donnelly - 10/3/2006 Christmas Timetable for Valley Travel This year Valley Travel are offering you the chance to have a say in its 696 “community hopper bus” timetable for the week leading up to Christmas. F... Gemma Donnelly - 10/3/2006 Nothing Beats Experience Merlin Venture are well aware that deciding on a career is always difficult, no matter what age you are therefore try and actively encourage self deve... Gemma Donnelly - 10/1/2006 9:54:01 AM Tiggy Winkles Rewards Parent Tiggy Winkles Nurseries have just celebrated their 13th Birthday on the 24th June by holding a special fundraising funday at Pegasus Nursery to raise ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/1/2006 9:54:01 AM Free Recruitment Service Over the past few weeks, some changes have been happening to Merlin Recruitment. Due to our operational structure we are now able to offer you a ... Gemma Donnelly - 10/1/2006 9:54:01 AM New Link Opens Up To The Airport Birmingham International Airport has just become easier to get to. With the launch of a new Airport Link bus service running from 8.00pm until 7.00am... Gemma Donnelly - 10/1/2006 9:54:01 AM Recruitment Service in Stockland Green The Merlin Venture Ltd, a community enterprise, dedicated to improving the opportunities of the community are proud to launch their new service in S... Gemma Donnelly - 9/14/2006 Recruitment Success Operating from within the new JMC Campus at Spitfire House has enabled even greater numbers of people to come and register with Merlin’s Recruitment a... Gemma Donnelly - 6/9/2006 9:54:01 AM Buster Werkenbak Returns to Castle Vale Responding to popular demand Buster Werkenbak is now returning to Castle Vale and will be able to take people to and from work at both Hams Hall and B... Gemma Donnelly - 6/9/2006 9:52:47 AM Tiggy Winkles Birthday Funday On Saturday the 24th of June Tiggy Winkles Daycare Nurseries are celebrating their 13th Birthday by holding a special Funday at Pegasus Nursery. The ... Gemma Donnelly - 6/9/2006 9:51:23 AM New Recruitment Service Following the continuing success of our Employment and Training service, Merlin Recruitment are delighted to introduce a new service which will provid... Ian Gilbert - 6/9/2006 9:42:31 AM New Recruit for the Recruiters Maria McLeod recently joined Merlin Recruitment as an Employment & Training Advisor. She comes to Merlin’s team with a wealth of experience of advisi... Ian Gilbert - 3/3/2006 12:46:47 PM Tiggy's offers the chance to be a child again Tiggy Winkles Day Nursery which operates at Chivenor House and Pegasus School is giving a limited number of parents the opportunity to relive their ch... Ian Gilbert - 3/3/2006 12:46:06 PM Merlin Maintenance Launched Merlin Venture is delighted to announce to local residents that it can now offer a low cost kitchen and bathroom fitting service through its Merlin Ma... Ian Gilbert - 3/3/2006 12:45:14 PM Castle Vale’s Sneak Peek at Fort Dunlop. Fort Dunlop was formally launched to selected members of the local business community on the 18th November. After 25 years of dereliction, building w... Ian Gilbert - 11/21/2005 4:58:22 PM Merlin Making the Community Safer. Merlin Security is proud to be the first CCTV security provider in the country to be staffed by fully accredited and certified operators. With the... Ian Gilbert - 11/21/2005 4:56:41 PM GOOD PRACTICE AWARD FOR CASTLE VALE BUSINESS GROUP! On the 3rd of November Castle Vale Business Group (CVBG), Connexions Birmingham and Solihull, and Cardinal Wiseman Catholic Technology College achieve... Ian Gilbert - 11/21/2005 4:54:52 PM Sharing Knowledge across the Atlantic Merlin Venture, based in Castle Vale, welcomed twenty-three delegates from the 20th annual British American Project (BAP) on Saturday November 5th 200... Ian Gilbert - 11/21/2005 4:52:55 PM Valley Travel 696 Christmas Schedule The 696 Bus service which runs from 8.20am until 5.00pm and covers the whole of the Castle Vale Estate, will be operating as usual over the Christmas ... Ian Gilbert - 11/21/2005 4:51:34 PM How to Get That Job Merlin Venture launches exciting new workshops aimed at people returning to work. During October we will be running our latest “Job Preparation Wo... Ian Gilbert - 9/13/2005 1:47:16 PM Recruitment and Training Bus On Wednesday 31st August 2005 Merlin Venture Ltd will be hosting a Recruitment and Training Bus at Sainsbury's car park, Castle Vale. Our Experienc... Ian Gilbert - 8/23/2005 3:51:43 PM Castle Vale Business Group meetings CVBG meets again on 14th September at Marston Farm Hotel at lunchtime, 12-2 p.m. Then on 25th October the new Director of Planning and Regeneration, ... Vince Brennan - 8/17/2005 4:20:42 PM Castle Vale Business Group The next meeting of the Business Group will take place in September 2005. Further details later.... Vince - 4/15/2005 11:14:27 AM MAKING HIS MARK Earlier this year, Mark Lee, a Castle Vale resident who had been unemployed for 18 months, approached Merlin Venture for help and support in finding a... Ashlee Walsh - 3/22/2005 10:10:59 AM WATER GREAT FEATURE FOR VALESCAPES For the last two years Valescapes, the local community landscaping business, has been maintaining the grounds at Mencap in Arbor Way, Chelmsley Wood. ... Jennie Giryn - 6/30/2004 2:36:24 PM BUSTER WERKENBAK - TAKING PEOPLE TO WORK AND BACK Buster Werkenbak, the quirkily named mini bus service, has now been in operation for 9 months and is going from strength to strength. The service, ope... Jennie Giryn - 5/6/2004 12:01:08 PM MERLIN AND THE COMMUNITY Merlin Venture’s Community Advisory Group (CAG) meets at Merlin’s offices in Venture House, Castle Vale Enterprise Park once a month. The ... Jennie Giryn - 5/6/2004 11:09:33 AM TIGGY WINKLES NURSERY OPENS AT CHIVENOR Chivenor Tiggy Winkles Day Nursery opened on Monday 29 March. It is situated on the lower ground Floor of Chivenor House and provides a total of 36 ch... Jennie Giryn - 5/5/2004 3:49:32 PM