Chamber member Riverford Organic, based at Stockley Farm in Cheshire, are having a special Easter Day Out  on Saturday 10 April.

Riverford customers get free entry (just bring your customer number or a receipt), or £20 for non-customers.

There will be fab farm fun for the kids and an Easter Egg Hunt (£1.50).

Keen cooks can pick up a tip or two on using seasonal vegetables at Riverford cooking demonstrations.

There’s no need to book, but for more information call 0845 600 2311 or email stockleyeaster@riverford.co.uk.

To get you in the mood, here’s a sample recipe usiong seasonal broccoli:

Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Mustard and Tarragon Hollandaise
By Jane Baxter, Riverford Field Kitchen
Taken from the Riverford Farm Cook Book

Serves 4

Ingredients:
400g purple sprouting broccoli, trimmed

For the mustard and tarragon hollandaise:
250g unsalted butter
3 egg yolks
juice of 1 lemon
a pinch of cayenne pepper
2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp chopped tarragon
1 tsp chopped chives
salt and freshly ground black pepper

To make the sauce, melt the butter slowly in a pan, then remove from the heat. Put the egg yolks, lemon juice and cayenne in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water, making sure the water doesn’t touch the base of the bowl. Using a balloon whisk, whisk until slightly thickened, then whisk in the melted butter a little at a time until it has all been incorporated. The sauce should be thick and glossy. Stir in the mustard and herbs and season with salt and pepper. The sauce will keep in a warm place for about an hour.

Cook the purple sprouting broccoli in a large pan of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain and refresh in cold water, then dry well. Heat on a ridged grill pan (or a barbecue) until very hot, then place the broccoli on it. Cook, turning occasionally, until slightly charred. Arrange on a serving dish and drizzle over the hollandaise sauce.

Are you aware of Light Night on Friday 14th May – a fantastic evening city centre cultural festival that coincides with Museums at Night, an EU wide festival?

Liverpool will be staying open late into the night, celebrating our cultural and entertainment venues.

Visit the Light Night website to find out what it’s about.

But it’s also a great opportunity for local companies to get involved, boost your profile and attract more and new trade.

Maybe you are a restaurant, cafe or coffee shop? Why not stay open and give weary culture vultures somewhere to rest their feet?

Or you could keep your shop open into the night and get extra custom on top of the day’s trade.

You could even lay on something special for the event. A tour of your premises? Free samples or introductions to what you do?

Don’t miss out on this chance to open up a whole new audience for your business.

If you want to be a part of the Light Night, simply complete this online form. Please click on the link, follow the step by step instructions and once submitted all your info will automatically be added to the giant spreadsheet http://tinyurl.com/LightNight2010

Deadline for submissions is Midnight 25th March 2010.

Your listing/s could be for anything special and unusual happening on the evening of Friday 14th May (4pm - late), indoor or outdoor. Already we have some great people and organisations signed up with the likes of The Walker Art Gallery, Tate Liverpool, the Bluecoat, FACT, Biennial, St Georges Hall, Radio City and Steve Binns and now it’s your turn.

The Light Night will be heavily marketing within Liverpool and the Northwest and the likes of Culture24 will make a greater impact nationally. We’ll provide a strong marketing campaign; online and in print with 1000’s of Light Night brochures, full listings on Open Culture www.culture.org.uk and www.Liverpool.gov.uk.

There is no cost to signing up to be part of Light Night, but we must remind you there isn’t any funding to subsidise any costs you may have. 

Don’t forget to sign up for Culture 24 www.culture24.org.uk to get your events online nationally.

Liverpool City Centre Breakfast Briefing
25 March, 9.30am, Odeon, Liverpool One

To celebrate International Business Continuity Awareness Week, Liverpool Commercial District Partnership members are being invited to an exclusive breakfast briefing.

The event, which is being presented by Liverpool City Council’s Emergency Planning Unit, will offer tips and advice on how ‘fit for purpose’ continuity management can benefit businesses.

The event takes place next Thursday, 25 March, at 10am at Odeon Liverpool One, with refreshments being served from 9.30am.

International Business Continuity Awareness Week runs from Monday 22 to Friday 26 March and is organised by the Business Continuity Institute with the purpose of promoting the provision and maintenance of business continuity arrangements.

Places are limited. For more information or to book your place email: emergency.planning@liverpool.gov.uk

The deadline for entries into the 2010 Chemicals Northwest Awards has been extended.

Businesses across the Northwest now have until March 26 2010 to take part in this year’s awards, which showcase the world-class chemical companies in the region in the media.

Building on the success of 2009’s inaugural awards, the 2010 awards fly the flag for industry in the UK and highlight the achievements of the chemical sector in the region in the past 12 months.

The chemical industry in the North West is the largest chemical producing area in the country and includes 650 companies which employ more than 50,000 people.

This the last chance for these companies enter the Chemicals Northwest Awards which culminate with a prestigious high-profile dinner at the Midland Hotel, Manchester, on Thursday May 20, 2010.

There are nine categories in which companies can enter:

• Innovation - Product or Process
• Sustainable Manufacturing
• Environmental Technology for the Chemical Industry
• Investor in Training 
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• International Trade
• Service Provider
• Young Achiever in the NW Chemical Sector
• Chemicals Northwest Company of the Year 

 Dr Jenny Clucas, Chemicals Northwest’s CEO, said: “The Chemicals Northwest Awards is a major celebration.

“The chemical sector contributes a staggering £10bn to the Northwest economy and continues to be a strong and diverse industry.

“We hope companies across the sector will make use of the extended deadline to enter the awards and help us showcase their fantastic work.”

For more details about entering or attending the awards dinner, please call Alex Heys on 01928 515678 or email alex.heys@chemicalsnorthwest.org.uk 

Alternatively please visit www.chemicalsnorthwest.org.uk

Have a great meal, raise money for a good cause and have your tea cooked for you by the beautiful people off the telly!

Natasha Hamilton, Phil Olivier and Chloe Cummings combat to cook up a storm for Alder Hey’s Imagine Appeal.

Two teams of celebrities will be Under Starters Orders as they go head to head in a hell’s Kitchen style event at top Liverpool restaurant Panoramic to raise money for the city’s Imagine Appeal at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.

Atomic Kitten’s Natasha Hamilton will be greeting guests at the sky-high restaurant on the night, joined by model Amanda Harrington, actor Phil Olivier and DJ Rick Vaughn front of house.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Hollyoaks star Helen Noble will be joined by model Chloe Cummings, Brookside actors Louis Emerick and Suzanne Collins who will head up a red and a blue teams and Heartbeat actor David Lonsdale among others, who will prepare and dish up two menus designed by Chef Director at the award-winning restaurant.

Diners, who will have paid £75 a ticket, will then vote on which team served the best food.

After the meal, an auction will help raise further funds for the charity which cares for 250,000 children a year and all the money raised will go straight to helping improve the quality of life for the children at the hospital.

The event takes place on Wednesday 7 April, on the eve of the Grand National at Aintree, of which Imagine is an official charity.

The full list of auction prizes are:

• Meal and deal for four at Frankies in Knightsbridgeowned by Frankie Dettori and Marco Pierre White
• One night’s stay at the Liverpool Marriott
• Gordon Ramsey signed cookbook
• Signed sofa from Summer Pops 2006
• Spa day
• LFC signed Ball
• EFC signed Ball
• Aintree celebrity dresses that will be auctioned onebay in the lead up to the Grand National
• Wii and DS + games

Under Starters Orders takes place at Panoramic on Wednesday 7 April at 7.30pm. To book call 0151 236 5534

For further information contact Laura Brown The Design Foundry +44(0)151 709 1633 laura@design-foundry.co.uk

Chamber member Mace & Jones would like to invite you to a free event they are holding on Tuesday 30 March:

The recession has claimed many victims, however for the economic survivors there are opportunities to grow and increase their market share as long as they can ride out the remainder of the financial downturn. If you are an opportunity seeker and you want support to plan your future growth then this event is aimed at you.

Timings: 5.30 pm for 6.00 pm start. 7.30 pm finish

Venue: La Cubanita, 2 Campbell Street, L1 5AX

Cost: Free of charge (Booking essential)

Topics:

• Revenue creation through better/cheaper process to grow your market/market share
• Advantages of giving HR strategic fit especially through periods of change
• How to build a business case to gain investment
• Applying best practice to your business to enhance profitability and ‘The Human Audit’.

If you which to reserve your free place, please click here.

Need some help finding your dream home and business premises?

Kirsty and Phil are back for a brand new series of Relocation Relocation and they’re looking for small business owners. If you’re on the hunt for the best new home and business premises and would like our help, we’d love to hear from you. 

To apply send your name and number to location@iwcmedia.co.uk or call 0141 353 8409

Here’s a couple of events coming up for your arty calendar:

Life in Paper Exhibition
Opening on the Thursday 18th of March 5.30-7.30pm at MerseyBio

An exhibition of paper sculptures by Julie Dodd. Julies works are based on cells and exploring the concepts of repair and emotional renewal.

Exhibition runs until 12 May 2010.

For more details, location and parking visit www.merseybio.com

Make Sundays Art & Craft Event @Leaf on Sunday 14th March 

Leaf Tea Shop & Bar and LOACA.ARTS hold interactive arts and crafts events called ‘Make Sundays’ .

Enjoy workshops, tasters and demos with local makers. Explore the acclaimed Elevator and Arena Art Studios granting sneak previews to the work of some of the North West’s top artists and also purchase quality arts and crafts from a selection of the region’s best makers.

Second Sunday of every month - 11 April, 9 May 2010

11am-5pm - FREE

Saturday 3rd – Sunday 11th April 2010

9 days … 4 cultural venues … tons of prizes … bags of fun!

Liverpool is inviting everyone to get crackin’ this Easter, on a magical mystery trail with a difference.

Liverpool’s Crackin’ Easter Trail invites super sleuths of all ages to get creative, crack the clues and be in with a chance of winning £500 or one of the many cultural gifts and prizes on offer … and all for FREE!

Open Culture and Culture Liverpool have teamed up with the Bluecoat, FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology), Tate Liverpool and Walker Art Gallery to make you all very happy bunnies this Easter! This Trail is a legacy of the Great Royal Liver Easter Hunt, produced by Open Culture in Liverpool’s Capital of Culture year 2008.

Simply pick up a free Crackin’ Easter Trail, earn your stamps by taking part in the free activities and solve the clues inside our four great venues. The more you see and do this Easter, the more you could win!

How do you get involved?

From Saturday 20 March you can pick up the Crackin’ Easter Trail from the Bluecoat, FACT, Tate Liverpool, Walker Art Gallery, Lady Lever Art Gallery, 08 Place on Whitechapel and Albert Dock Visitor Information Centre.

Or you can request one by post or email, simply email info@culture.org.uk but be quick; there are only a limited number available. So what are you waiting for? Hop to it and get cracking!

Prizes include the £500 grand prize; fabulous family meals at the Tate Liverpool café and the Bluecoat Bistro, jam packed Rennies Arts & Crafts art hampers provided by Walker Art Gallery, fantastic FACT family cinema tickets, the Bluecoats brilliant crafty art bags and much, much more. 

And what’s more, with every stamped Crackin’ Easter Trail you can gain 10% discount in the participating cafes or shops (please see trail map for details).

For more information on this free event please visit Open Culture www.culture.org.uk or check out the participating venues websites.

1.00-4.30pm, Wednesday 24th March 2010
Hosted by National Museums Liverpool (venue tbc)

No charge to attend

Purpose of Event
Positioned at the end of the first quarter of 2010 Year of Health and Wellbeing, at the end of another financial year and at a time when the development work and fantastic buy-in to 2010 is translating into an exciting collaborative programme, this is a time of transition of ideas into reality.

The reality of projects set against development of new partnership structures and policies for health and wellbeing which give the City and the City/Region a clear opportunity to make significant progress in collectively tackling the health inequalities we face.

So this event will act as a milestone, to reflect on progress over the last few years, in particular in terms of the recommendations made at the successful Big Conversation event in 2008, and to look forward in terms of aspirations for the next period of planning and development work.

The title Comissioning Culture s about exploring the way in which commissioning practice is developing a culture with partnership-working at its heart, as well as raising awareness of cultural projects which have the potential to deliver on health and wellbeing outcomes in the longer-term.

Building on the creative engagement process for 2010 and the small-scale conversation with Commissioners during Living Sketchbook, the purpose of this event is:

• to share good practice of work in development through 2010 and beyond
• to share understanding of commissioning process and to continue to build a common language
• to look at collaborative opportunities in research and evaluation
  Progress

Dovetailing with the Health and Wellbeing strand of the Creative Communities Programme of Liverpool 08, Liverpool PCT invested in a portfolio of projects in 2009.

A loose-leaf publication of case studies of these projects, categorised against the six recommendations made in the recent Marmot Review of Health Inequalities will be launched at this event.

By April 2010 the Waiting programme will have renewed energy, with a new post being established at FACT. With investment from all Merseyside Local Authorities and PCT’s and Arts Council Englane, we will finally have a Merseyside Arts and Health Co-ordinator starting in Spring 2010.

The 2010 Workstreams include a focus on Singing, Dance and involve strategic collaborations with key partner organisations to deliver flagship collaborative programmes this year and beyond to continue the strong legacy from 2008 and build consensus around the key elements of what is needed for Liverpool to become a Thriving, International City in 2024.

Outline Programme
1.30pm  Year of Health and Wellbeing Context & Progress
Gideon Ben-Tovim & Andy Hull, Liverpool PCT

1.40pm  Maintaining the Open Nature of the Big Conversation
Phil Redmond (and Julie Hanna)

2.00pm  Commissioning Culture & Priorities
John Prescott & Dr Paula Grey, Liverpool PCT

2.20pm-4.00pm World Café or Format which enables case studies to be featured and explored within mixed groups of Commissioners and people from Cultural Sector

4-4.30pm  Learning Points and Going Forward

Key Stakeholders
Arts and Cultural Sector Directors, Heads of Learning and Interested Parties
PCT Directors, Commissioners, Public Health & Stakeholder Engagement Staff

NHS Partners – NHS Trusts, Directors, Arts Co-ordinators, Neighbourhood Staff working on engagement and programming of events

To book contact: pollymoseley@mac.com /    07990 518107