10 December 2019

2019 wrap up

As 2019 draws to a close, join us in celebrating some of the achievements and highlights of the year.

A NEW TRAINING SECTION ON OUR WEBSITE
In order to engage with the next generation, we built a new section of the BPIF website that provides key resources to support you in engaging with your chosen school. If you're an employer, you can find out how you can help inspire the next generation of printers. Meanwhile, student, parents and schools can find out about all the fantastic career opportunities and interesting facts about our industry.
www.britishprint.com/schools

GOOD GRADES
We were delighted to be graded as Good across all aspects of an Ofsted inspection in the summer.  We also received full and final approval from the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) of our Level 3 Print Technician Standard. Having begun in March 2015, we commenced delivery of this standard on 1 August 2019.

NEW INITIATIVES
The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) now allows apprenticeship levy employers to transfer up to 25% of their current annual pot to employers in their area, sector, supply chain, or even charities.

LOBBYING & GOVERNMENT
We have kept members informed and up-to-date with political news through the Brexit section of our website www.britishprint.com/brexit, and have sent a Brexit Bulletin every month since September 2018 with the relevant updates, information and resources to help you and your business.

We were joined by around a dozen MPs at this year's Members' Day at The House of Commons, where members got the opportunity to meet their local MP. Members' Day is a great opportunity to discuss the importance of print and bring to the attention of Parliamentarians some of the challenges and obstacles faced when running a printing business.

A FRESH NEW LOOK
Our whole look changed this year as we launched our rebrand at Members' Day in July. We've been around for a long time, since 1901 in fact, and are proud of our heritage and of print, so we decided to update our image to better reflect what we are - a best-in-class trade association invigorating a modern progressive industry.

"The new brand reflects a modern professional image for a B2B organisation with a nod to our heritage. It aligns with our mission to be a thriving best-in-class trade association invigorating a modern, progressive print industry. Our aim is to inspire those around us to see opportunities for growth." Charles Jarrold, Chief Executive, BPIF

RESEARCH
UK Printing Facts & Figures
We published our new UK Printing Facts & Figures which sets out detailed information on the structure of our industry by region and product, as well as covering its economic importance and its productivity. It also highlights the effectiveness and sustainability of print as a modern communications medium.
You can download a copy of our Facts & Figures by visiting www.britishprint.com/factsandfigures

Printing Outlook
Compiled primarily from an online survey of BPIF members, Printing Outlook has covered all the hot topics this year, including Brexit. It has also registered your top business concerns, orders, output, price levels, capacity, costs, margins, investment, pay reviews, productivity, late payment and payment terms, public sector procurement, Web-to-print, and paper & board prices and supply. www.britishprint.com/printingoutlook

EVENTS & NETWORKING
We have had a number of extremely successful events this year, which provided a great opportunity to network with others in the industry. From national industry awards and conferences to regional seminars and workshops, some of the highlights from our dynamic events programme include:

British Book Design & Production Awards - a BPIF event created to celebrate the beauty of physical, printed books.

Visual Media Conference - organised by CDi, a special interest group of the BPIF, this year's VMC focussed on Innovation & Sustainability, and was a creative triumph with more than 300 attendees.

Members' Day and All-Party Parliamentary Print Group Reception was also popular. In spite of the challenging political landscape, the print industry came together once again to network with each other and local MPs on the Terrace at the House of Commons .

www.britishprint.com/events

TRAINING & EXHIBITIONS
We took a group of our apprentices to visit award-winning market leader in online print, Bluetree Group, where they heard from inspirational speakers in the industry and received a tour of the innovative manufacturing facility
In March, we had a stand at the Leeds Apprenticeship Recruitment Fair, the biggest apprenticeship exhibition in the North. Along with our members, we were on-hand to discuss specific opportunities and career paths that visiting students could undertake in the printing industry.

In June we represented the printing industry at Apprentice19 at The Guildhall in London. We exhibited along with our members to showcase the dynamic and creative world of print

HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR
We'd like to wrap this up by wishing you the best possible festive season from all at the BPIF. We look forward to an even more successful 2020.