In 2006 the Government, responding to the views of business, decided to simplify business support and cut the number of publicly funded business support schemes from 3,000 to 30. At that time business mentoring was not identified as one of the services. Since then, the value of the DorMen scheme, amongst others, has helped to persuade the Government that a mentoring service pilot should be established. Regional schemes the North West and East Midlands have also been agreed whilst, in the South West, only the DorMen scheme in Dorset will be involved.

The Dormen programme, which started in 2005 and is hosted by East Dorset District Council and supported by Business Link and every local authority across Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole, has helped well over 500 small businesses improve growth and weather the recession.

Like all effective schemes, the principle is very simple. Owners and managers of young or developing businesses are matched with experienced business people who volunteer their expertise and skills to give something back to their community. Mentors cannot work miracles, but they can help clients to review their operations and plans, and act as a sounding board.

“It is a tremendous boost to receive this recognition. We owe a great debt to the mentors who are so generous with their time and skills” said Cllr Simon Tong, East Dorset District Council’s Lead Member for the Environment. He added “It also only works because of the full support of partners involved in the Multi Area Agreement.”

Vivian Dunn, Dormen’s Programme Manager, said “This is a real feather in Dormen’s cap and great recognition for the time and effort that all our volunteer mentors put in to supporting our clients. It is a great honour to now be able to use the official ’Solutions for Business‘ logo which will help to raise Dormen’s visibility.”

L – R: Kevin Poulton (EDDC), Cllr Alex Clarke (EDDC), Ken Moon (FSB), Tim Colman (FSB)

Cllr Alex Clarke (EDDC) receiving an award from the Federation of Small Business (Wessex Branch) for the Dormen programme

At a recent ceremony in East Stour, a representative of the British Standards Institution presented Ed Highnam, Managing Director of Metal Design, with the official certificate.

Trevor Dutton, Metal Design’s mentor, said: “This is a huge and very well deserved achievement for Ed and his team. It reflects the way in which they have raised their game as a business and I wish them every success for the future”.

The company manufactures a wide range of products including railings, staircases, balconies, gates etc., using steel or wrought iron. Further details and pictures can be found at www.metal-design.co.uk.

L-R: Vivian Dunn, Ed Highnam, Trevor Dutton and a member of the Metal Design team

Teresa joined Dormen from the Prince’s Trust where she has worked in the Dorset and South Wilts area for a number of years, following a successful career in Barclays Bank.

Vivian Dunn, Dormen’s Programme Manager, said “Teresa has enormous experience of working with small businesses as well as volunteer mentors. I know she will therefore be a great asset to the Dormen team”.

Teresa Allwood

Despite a very large number of entries, the award for the best West Dorset Small Business went to Catwards Draughting Ltd www.catwards.com, run by Cathy Warne and based at the Granby Industrial Estate. This was a particularly outstanding achievement as Catwards also won the award last year.

Cathy, who has been mentored by Dormen mentor Geoff Mullis for several years, was delighted with the result and said: “It is absolutely fantastic to be recognised for all our hard work & I would like to extend our thanks to everyone for their continued support.”

Cathy Warne, MD of Catwards

To see Cathy Warne’s Catwards video case study – http://www.dormen.org.uk/about-dormen/case-studies-video/catwards/

To see the Open 4 Business Awards – http://www.o4business.co.uk/index.php/news/105-and-the-winners-are.html

L – R: Kevin Poulton (EDDC), Cllr Alex Clarke (EDDC), Ken Moon (FSB), Tim Colman (FSB)

To see the Echo’s report on the FSB Friendly Awards ceremony, click here

After hearing about Dormen – Dorset Business Mentoring – and how it operates, Jim Knight said: “I was very interested to hear about Dormen, which is undoubtedly making a valuable contribution to businesses and the local economy in Dorset. I am particularly grateful to all the volunteers who give freely of their time and experience, and so make it all possible. The Government supports mentoring schemes in many forms right across the UK, as they can be extremely useful and represent remarkable value for money.”

L-R: Vivian Dunn, Rt Hon Jim Knight MP, Tony Garvey

Mr Letwin took a great interest in the programme and hearing about its clients and said “I was enormously impressed by what I heard about Dormen”.

L to R: Vivian Dunn, Tony Garvey, Oliver Letwin MP, Kevin Poulton

A few days later, in his ‘In my view’ article in the Western Gazette, Oliver Letwin wrote:

“A few days ago, I met some of the remarkable people who constitute Dorset Mentoring (or Dormen for short).

As its name suggests, this is a home-grown Dorset-based organisation that makes use of the fact that some very distinguished businessmen and businesswomen have retired here and are more than willing to offer considerable chunks of their time for free to help people who are trying to make their way in new businesses. The fact that the whole thing is voluntary, enables it to operate in a flexible way.

It is just a question of two people – one the helper, the other the helped – being put in touch with one another and then, hey presto, amazing businesses come to life.

I was shown examples of local companies that have established themselves as market-leaders in double-quick time - making things that people really want, and making profits for their originators. The secret is putting the energy and inspiration of the entrepreneur together with the battle-scarred experience of the mentor.”

For the full article, see http://www.oliverletwinmp.com/archives/288.

BBC South recently featured a Dormen business client as part of its series ‘Finn’s Country’.

Roger Finn reported on Richard Lee and Jane Dennison’s remarkable Plankbridge business, based near Puddletown, which builds new Shepherd’s Huts, based on traditional designs.

Last year Richard and Jane built and sold about one a month. This year, despite the recession, orders have been coming in so fast that the couple have taken on a full time employee and an apprentice with the aim of stepping up production to three huts a month.

Richard and Jane have been supported since 2006 by Dormen mentor, Tony Garvey, who is delighted with the success they have achieved.

Finn’s Country article

Finn’s Country video

Plankbridge website

Vivian Dunn, Dormen’s Programme Manager, said: “I am delighted that, as Dormen becomes ever better known in Dorset business circles, the number of clients requesting the support of a mentor increases. We have also been fortunate in being able to recruit a number of new mentors recently in order to meet this growth in demand, and so we now have a total of over 50.”

To find out more about Dormen and mentoring, please click here.

The Feb/Mar 09 issue features Matt Smith who runs ‘Tony Hair’, a hairdressing business in Highcliffe. Matt has been mentored by Ann Abernethie, who has been a Dormen mentor virtually from the start of the project in 2005.

In the article, Matt says: “The Dormen scheme was a revelation. The mentor I had was really on the ball. In just a few hours of talking things through I learned so much – partly about the salon’s appearance and the importance of it to the client, but particularly about cutting costs and controlling costs. It was exactly what I needed – someone who was completely unbiased, who was asking me why are you doing that and have you thought about doing this?”

The Mar/Apr 09 issue includes features on two businesses which have Dormen mentors. Wellworths is the new Dorchester store, based in the old Woolworth’s premises, which has attracted so much media attention across the country. The manager of the store, Claire Robertson, now has a Dormen mentor, Valerie Stevens, to support her.

Another article features Honeybuns, the bakery near Sherborne, run by Matt and Emma Goss-Custard who are supported by Mike Collins, another very experienced mentor.

Emma says: “Mike Collins, the Dormen mentor, has been very good at challenging our thinking and helping us with a revised business plan, looking further forward than we might have done otherwise. We are now looking five to 10 years ahead.”