A GROUP of businesses have not let lockdown get in their way to offer advice and support to businesses.

The Collaboration Board, with representatives from across Bolton and Bury, has helped local companies return to trading after lockdown.

The Board was founded just over two years ago and includes a small group of business men and women from a variety of different fields, such as accounting, HR, finance, business strategy, business insurance, web and graphic design, GDPR and media.

The group meets regularly to share expertise and ideas and havs extended this to a strategy to help companies survive and improve in the business landscape after lockdown.

Founder, business coach Paul Heath, of Ethical Business Mentoring, said: “The Collaboration Board felt it was important to try to help other businesses at a time when the future was particularly uncertain.

“We have all experienced business problems during lockdown and know first-hand about the specific challenges it has brought.

“Some businesses have prospered but others are struggling and need help going forward.

“We created a strategy document of tips and advice which may prove useful to a broad range of businesses locally.

“For example, it offers six simple ways to move an offline business online and how to use content to interact with customers.

“There is practical advice about the changing marketplace and new ways of reaching customers, gaining profile across the media to boost trading and looking at existing terms of business to keep current customers happy.”

HR expert Rachael Franklin, of The People Shed, said: “Getting together as a small group of like-minded business people has already proved really useful to all of us.

“But this is a time when all business people need to help each other and we felt that offering advice in our various fields was a good way of giving a helping hand to others," she added.

Visit collaborationboard.co.uk for more information.