Do you want to study a master’s course at a top British university?

If so, you can apply for the British government’s flagship scholarship programme – Chevening – any time between now and 5 November.

Chevening offers full financial support for a year’s study on one of 14,000 eligible master’s degree courses at UK universities. In addition to furthering their academic studies, Chevening scholars also benefit from access to a wide range of exclusive academic, professional, and cultural events and experiences.

The British Ambassador to Somalia, Ben Fender, said:

The scheme is for people who have already started their careers. We are looking for leaders of the future, people with talent and ambition who want to make Somalia the best it can be, and who we can help on their way by giving them a world-class education.

Since we started the scheme in Somalia, over 50 Somalis have won awards.This year we have doubled the number of scholars. In the next few weeks, eleven more will be heading to the UK. Many past scholars now play leading roles in Somali public life.

We’re now opening the application process for 2020/21. I would strongly encourage people to apply.You of course need a excellent academic background and English, but also initiative, leadership skills and a strong commitment to public service. We’re especially keen on applications from women and members of groups who are under-represented in public life.

The Head of Scholarships at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Ben Coates, said:

Chevening represents the very best of the UK, welcoming exceptional people from across the world to study, grow, and thrive at some of the world’s best universities. Chevening can be a transformative experience, not just for the scholars, but for their communities and countries as they return and use the benefit of their UK experience to make a positive difference in their chosen field.

Our universities promote the creation and exchange of information and ideas, as well as the building of knowledge and networks. Chevening Scholars find themselves immersed in that world, and leave the UK after their studies having grown academically, professionally, and personally as a result.

See more information on the application process.

Trustees of the Birmingham Diocesan Trust are responsible for mismanagement and/or misconduct in the administration of charity over failings in the oversight and governance of safeguarding, the charity regulator has found.

The Trust, which oversees the Roman Catholic Diocese of Birmingham, and provides services accessed weekly by around 60,000 people, has been investigated by the Charity Commission over concerns about its record on safeguarding, which came to light when the charity was selected as a case study by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA).

The Commission launched its investigation in December 2018, after the trustees were unable to reassure the regulator that they were managing risks to the charity’s beneficiaries promptly or robustly enough.

Today’s report points to serious shortcomings in the charity’s safeguarding governance in the past, of which the trustees “appeared to be either insufficiently aware” or which they “did not adequately address with the pace or in the way expected”.

It finds that the charity’s approach to safeguarding “fell short of the culture and environment expected of a charity of this nature” and finds that safeguarding was not sufficiently prioritised by the trustees and that safeguarding risks were not adequately managed. The trustees’ initial response to safeguarding concerns highlighted prior to the Commission’s investigation lacked urgency, the regulator finds.

Problems identified by the investigation include chaotic record keeping, including of files relating to members of the charity’s congregations who had served a sentence for sexual offences and should have been monitored under so-called Safeguarding Agreements. A report by a safeguarding expert appointed to review and improve the charity’s work in this area, produced in November 2018, pointed to “people we know should be subject to restrictions but may have been forgotten”.

Other shortcomings highlighted by the Commission’s report include a historic lack of safeguarding skills and experience among trustees and within the charity.

As a result of the Commission’s investigation and the work undertaken by an interim Head of Safeguarding Transformation, appointed by the charity in November 2018, the charity has now taken significant action to improve safeguarding, including by reviewing and updating all Safeguarding Agreements, and recruiting new staff members with the necessary skills and experience.

But the regulator has made clear that further improvements are required, and has issued the trustees with an Order under Section 84 of the Charities Act 2011. Among other things, the order requires the trustees, to identify, implement and maintain a new safeguarding case management system, develop and implement a strategy for monitoring safeguarding in parishes, and develop an action plan for improving the culture on safeguarding throughout the charity’s operations, including to ensure it “feels safe for people to criticise or discuss safeguarding matters within the charity”.

The Commission will be monitoring and assessing the charities’ compliance with its order.

Stephen Grenfell, Head of Investigations and Enforcement at the Charity Commission, said:

I am pleased that, as a result of our investigation, the Birmingham Diocesan Trust is now providing a safer environment for the many thousands of people who are beneficiaries of the charity. The trustees of the charity have engaged positively with our inquiry and have already made some important changes.

But there is no room for complacency. The trustees must demonstrate that continued momentum in their work to strengthen and prioritise safeguarding, and we will be holding them to account against the legal direction we have issued. It is an essential duty for trustees to take reasonable steps to safeguard beneficiaries and to protect them from abuse or harm.

The public have a legitimate expectation that charities are places where the welfare and wellbeing of people are prioritised.

ENDS

London participants will include Peter Murray, London’s International Design Advocate, the City of London Corporation, Foster + Partners, and Zaha Hadid Architects.

Programme

• 12:00 – 12:30 Registrations and Refreshments
• 12:30 – 12:35 Welcome speech, Nick Archer, Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Czech Republic
• 12.35 – 12:50 Prague Keynote, Ondřej Boháč, IPR Director, Prague
• 12:50 – 13:20 ‘Square Mile’ Keynote, Peter Murray, International Design Advocate of London, Chairman of New London Architecture
• 13:20 – 14:20 Networking Lunch
• 14:20 – 14:50 City of London Corporation: Visions and Practicalities, City of London Corporation and City Property Advisory Team
• 14:50 – 15:35 Embracing Modernity, Dan Sibert, Senior Partner, Foster+Partners
• 15:35 – 16:05 Showcasing Prague, Prague Institute of Planning and Development / City of Prague
• 16:05 – 16:20 Tea & Coffee Break
• 16:20 – 17:20 Roundtable Dialogue: The Old and The New with Peter Murray, Eva Jiricna, James Woolf
• 17:20 – 17:50 Zaha Hadid project in Prague, Petr Palička, Country Director, Penta Real Estate and Jakub Klaška, Architect, Zaha Hadid Studio, London
• 17:50 – 18:20 Eva Jiřičná and her work in Prague, Eva Jiřičná

• 18:20 – Reception

• 19:30 Public Lecture by Peter Murray at CAMP
• 19:50 Roundtable Dialogue with Peter Murray, Dan Sibert and Jakub Klaška

The event is held under the auspices of the City of Prague.

Further information for guests:

Please note there is no parking available at CAMP and the easiest option is to arrive either by a taxi or by tram to the station Karlovo náměstí or Moráň.

A professional photographer and videographer will be present and your picture may be taken at the event. Should you disagree, please feel free to let us know by email.

Published 3 September 2019

This new government funding is now available to help businesses train staff in making customs declarations, and to help businesses who support others to trade goods to invest in IT. This will ensure that trade with the EU continues as smoothly as possible after Brexit on 31 October.

Customs agents currently help businesses who trade outside the EU. This funding will help increase the capacity of the sector as businesses trading with the EU consider whether to get an expert to complete customs documentation for them after Brexit. Ministers have been determined to support the industry in both training up more staff and becoming more efficient, in order to ensure that we are fully ready for leaving the EU on 31 October, whatever the circumstances.

More than 3,000 agents have already been trained as part of an £8 million investment earlier this year, which has also been used to develop new online learning products for customs staff such as an electronic learning package and a new UK Customs Academy, launched on 12 August. This second wave of government grants launching today will go further, with the additional £16 million to be invested to help ensure businesses have all the support they need to get ready for Brexit.

Businesses based in, or with a branch in, the UK can apply for funding ahead of the UK leaving the EU. Grants can be used to support:

• training costs for businesses who complete customs declarations, or who intend to in the future
• funding for IT improvement, which is available to small and medium sized employers who are currently involved in trade as an intermediary

Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Jesse Norman MP said:

Brexit takes place on 31 October and we urge all businesses to make the necessary preparations to be fully ready. The government has doubled the support available, so that thousands more customs experts are on hand to help businesses on and after Brexit day.

Ministers are continuing to move forward with Brexit preparations, with the Chancellor allocating an extra £2.1 billion for government departments last month to prepare for no deal, and doubling Brexit funding for this year. As part of the cash injection, border and customs operations will receive an additional £344 million to be ready for Brexit, including by hiring more border officers and improving transport infrastructure around ports.

To ensure maximum impact, the second wave of the grant scheme allows businesses to apply for the full cost of training, within certain limits as set out in the guidance.

Notes

Businesses who would benefit from the funding should apply early and those who applied for the first wave may apply again as part of this new wave of grants for expenditure incurred on or after 31 July 2019. Applications will close on 31 January 2020, or earlier once all the funding is allocated.

Background:

1. The customs intermediaries market consists of a wide range of third party firms that facilitate the import/export process, helping businesses to move goods and to comply with customs formalities.

2. Following an initial £8m investment, on 31 July the Chancellor announced that HMG would be doubling the support made available for customs agents, traders and hauliers to train new staff or invest in better IT so businesses can get the support they need to complete customs declarations. This has enabled HMRC to launch a second, improved wave of the Customs Intermediaries grant scheme with a £16m investment.

3. The initial £8 million investment announced in December 2018 also continues to support the sector through new learning products which are now available. These include an electronic learning package, available through a number of organisations, and a new UK Customs Academy which provides online courses and industry-recognised qualifications.

4. An electronic learning package, was developed in partnership with business representative bodies and training providers, which was made available in March 2019.

5. A new UK Customs Academy will provide online training courses and industry-recognised qualifications as part of a long-term training offer that will sit alongside the existing high-quality training offered by providers across the UK. This learning programme consists of four courses; the first is already available with the remaining three to launch between September and November.

6. Course fees for both of these new learning products can be funded through the training grants which are now available. Other training providers also offer courses on this topic, so businesses are encouraged to consider all options and what suits their needs.

7. PwC is administering the grants on behalf of HMRC as an accredited grant administrator. Businesses who wish to apply for funding should not contact HMRC directly but can apply online, for more information see GOV.UK.

Your Excellency,

I have the honour to present the warmest compliments and greetings from Her Majesty the Queen, Prime Minister Johnson and the people of the United Kingdom to you personally and through you to the people of Kenya. This country holds a very special place in the heart of Her Majesty and in those of Her family and so many of Her subjects in the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom’s relationship with Kenya is a strategic one, based on deep respect, partnership and mutual interest. We must live with, and honour, our shared history, and the pains and joys that it has brought. And we also recognise that these experiences have resulted in deep connections between our peoples, our Governments and our businesses. Our present and our future are intertwined.

We stand today as two vibrant and modern countries, crucial to the success of our respective regions and with important roles in the Commonwealth and in supporting the rules-based international system. We are each safer and more prosperous when the other is so.

The United Kingdom is, therefore, deeply committed to supporting your agenda on The Big Four – affordable housing, food security, manufacturing and universal healthcare. The Africa Investment Summit in 2020 provides further impetus to support this agenda and in helping you deliver a dynamic business environment that welcomes international trade and investment.

I hope also, as High Commissioner, to work with Your Excellency and Your government to deliver a strengthened strategic partnership between our countries: a boost to our economic partnership following the UK’s departure from the European Union, our strengthened and mutually beneficial security and defence partnership, including in the fight against Al Shabaab, and a climate partnership to tackle the generational challenge of our time, where Kenya can lead the way. I would also like to pay our respects to the continued commitment and sacrifice of your security and defence forces and society leaders who fight against extremism and terrorism.

I have the honour to present to Your Excellency the Letter of Recall of my Predecessor and my Credentials by which Her Majesty the Queen has appointed me to be the next High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to the Republic of Kenya.