Craft Focus - April/May 2021 (Issue 84)

90 ABOUT FSB As the UK’s business support group, FSB is the voice of the UK’s small businesses and the self-employed. Established over 40 years ago to help its members succeed in business, FSB is a non-profit making and non-party political organisation that’s led by its members, for its members. As the UK’s leading business campaigner, FSB is focused on delivering change which supports smaller businesses to grow and succeed. FSB offers members a wide range of vital business services, including access to finance, business banking, legal advice and support along with a powerful voice in Government. Each year FSB also runs the UK’s Celebrating Small Business Awards. More information is available at www.fsb.org.uk. Yo u can follow us on twitter @fsb_policy and on Instagram @fsb_uk. commitment to good practices recognised by clients, employees and the wider community alike. The application process for small firms now looks at different topics like pay, hours and staff wellbeing, employee representation and diversity, environmental responsibility, sustainability and Net Zero, transparency and ethical sourcing, and prompt payment. Being part of it sends out a clear and bold message to customers, showing that your business is committed to operating responsibly and treating staff with respect and fairness. They are contributing to the community, helping the environment and other suppliers and businesses. Everyone wants to buy from, and do business with, firms that do right by their communities and society as a whole. The charter gives businesses a way of staying on track with their goals in areas like sustainability and wellbeing. By securing this accreditation – and displaying it loud and proud with a logo on their website or in their premises window – firms can show that they are doing just that. One of the key areas in the charter looks at poor payment practice, which is still rife in the wake of the current COVD-19 pandemic. In fact, almost two thirds of small businesses have experienced either an increase in late payments or had payments frozen as a result of the crisis. Cash is still so important for many businesses and withholding it has pushed many to the brink at a time when they’re at their most vulnerable. It’s good to see there’s been progress on this, with Ministers and the Small Business Commissioner toughening up the Prompt Payment Code, bringing it inside the Government and strengthening payment terms for signatories from 60 days to 30. We have long campaigned for good payment practice to be the norm – and swift delivery will be key to helping these firms that have been unfairly used as free credit lines. Customers increasingly want to see that the businesses they are using are ethical practices which is why it’s so great to see prompt payment included in the charter. Creating 30 days as the norm for maximum payment terms is a good step. Small businesses are very much embedded in their communities and do so much good for their employees, supply chains and the planet – it should be recognised.