Welcome to last the Newry Chamber Newsletter of 2024.
It has been a very busy 2024 with the Chamber membership growing significantly to 345 members and our influence growing with policymakers across these islands with our robust lobbying approach across our core strategic policy pillars of addressing the infrastructure deficit in the Greater Newry Area to create a positive investment environment and tackling our workforce challenges by playing a lead role in shaping and developing a locally focused Recruitment and Skills Strategy.
Newry Chamber continues to be one of the most active business organisations in Northern Ireland and 2024 saw many successful events, seminars, conferences and Ministerial engagements.
We have an action packed programme of activity planned for 2025 and we look forward to welcoming you all to our events programme launch in January.
I would like to thank our Members, Corporate Patrons, Sponsors and Partners for your valued support throughout 2024 and look forward to working closely with you in 2025. Without your support, Newry Chamber could not function and be the strong voice for business for this region that it is.
To the Chamber Board and Chamber Council, thank you for your support, insight and guidance throughout the year and I look forward to more exciting developments in the year ahead.
The Chamber Offices will close on Friday 20th December and reopen on Monday 6th January. On behalf of the Chamber Team, I would like to wish you and your families a very Happy and Peaceful Christmas and a Prosperous 2025.
In this month’s newsletter, we have included information on:
- Newry Chamber President’s Christmas Message
- Chamber Meets with Shared Island Unit to Discuss Funding of Mutual Benefit
- Renewing Newry’s Relationship with Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 2025
- Newry Chamber Annual Report 2024
- Exhibit at the Newry, Mourne and Down LMP Careers Fair in January
Michael Savage
Chief Executive Officer
Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade
NEWRY CHAMBER PRESIDENT’S CHRISTMAS MESSAGE
As President of Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade, I would like to wish all our Members, Corporate Patrons, Sponsors, Partners, Suppliers, their families and their staff a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.
Reflecting on 2024
This year has been an incredible success for Newry Chamber. Our membership has grown to nearly 350 and we have delivered a packed calendar of events, forums, conferences and our annual awards night.
It’s hard to forget that this time last year, Greater Newry was grappling with the aftermath of severe flooding, which posed unprecedented challenges for many of our members and city centre traders. One year on, those businesses have demonstrated incredible resilience and are hopefully enjoying a bustling festive trading season.
At the start of 2024, we unveiled our development strategy built on three core strategic pillars:
(1) Growing the Chamber
Developing Newry Chamber into one of NI’s largest and most active business organisations with an engaged membership base.
(2) Advocating for Infrastructure
Leading the call to address our infrastructure deficits, unlocking development and investment potential in the Greater Newry Area.
(3) Tackling Recruitment & Skills Challenges
Uniting businesses, education and training providers to create a localised strategy addressing recruitment and skills shortages.
I am proud to say we have made significant progress in all of these areas. Our lobbying efforts have been particularly impactful, addressing the issues that matter most to the businesses and people of Greater Newry.
Edwina Flynn
President
Newry Chamber of Commerce & Trade
READ MESSAGE IN FULL HERE
NEWRY CHAMBER MEETS WITH SHARED ISLAND UNIT AT
DUBLIN CASTLE TO DISCUSS FUNDING OF MUTUAL BENEFIT
Michael Savage, Chamber CEO and Conor Patterson, Newry & Mourne Enterprise Agency Chief Executive and Chamber Board Member met the Shared Island Unit at Dublin Castle on Wednesday 4th December to discuss potential cross-border funding options for wastewater treatment to unlock stalled development in our region.
Speaking after the meeting, Michael said:
“Conor and I travelled to Dublin to meet the Shared Island Unit to discuss how the Shared Island Fund and other cross-border funding options could be explored as part of a potential cocktail of funding to unlock the severe wastewater treatment capacity issues we face in Newry which are holding up significant development plans for the city and region.”
“NI Water met with us a few weeks ago and informed us they urgently need £100 million of funding to upgrade and expand the Newry wastewater treatment plant at Greenbank in the city and its associated networks.”
“At present the funding is not in place and as a result many housing and commercial developments across the Greater Newry Area are being stalled due to NI Water placing restrictive planning conditions on applications due to lack of capacity in the system.”
“The Greenbank wastewater treatment plant flows into Carlingford Lough which is a shared waterway on this island. We met with the Shared Island Unit to explore how cross-border funding may provide a solution to getting the upgrades we badly need to the system over the line to allow major development of our city to take place and much-needed private housing to be built.”
READ MORE HERE
RENEWING NEWRY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH PITTSBURGH
ARE YOU ENGAGED IN THE US MARKET OR YOU HAVE PLANS
TO DO SO? IF YOU DO, WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
The Greater Newry Area has a long and cherished relationship with Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and we are working to reconnect with our friends in the Steel City in 2025.
This relationship was forged through the commitment to our local area of the late Dan Rooney, former owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and former US Ambassador to Ireland, who founded the Rooney Fellowship which facilitated work placements in Pittsburgh for local FE College students and was instrumental, alongside the late Tony O’Reilly of Heinz in forming The Newry-Pittsburgh Partnership.
Dan was very proud of his ancestral roots in Newry and the links between the city and Pittsburgh. The Chamber is working to reconnect with our friends in Pittsburgh in 2025 and we hope to host a business delegation from Pittsburgh here in our city and district on 2nd & 3rd July and hope to engage with businesses in Pittsburgh in March as part of our visit to the United States.
We are working with Invest NI to link companies in the Greater Newry Area, that are already trading in the United States or in a position to look at the US market as part of their expansion plans, with potential trading partners in Pittsburgh.
Newry Chamber is developing a directory of businesses across the region that are keen to develop relationships with businesses in Pittsburgh and the wider Western Pennsylvania area.
If you would like your company to be included on the directory, please complete the form below and if you have any questions in the meantime, please email our CEO, Michael Savage via: michael@newrychamber.com
We look forward to hearing from you.
PLEASE COMPLETE THE FORM HERE
NEWRY CHAMBER ANNUAL REPORT 2024
Our Annual Report 2024 & Accounts Review 2023 is now available to view by clicking on the link below.
It provides a record of the year with membership levels increasing to a record 340+ organisations and increase in our Corporate Patrons Programme to 40 businesses and continuing financial stability for your Chamber.
Attendees at our events was also up this year to 2,500+ with over £10,000 raised for a number of local charities and an increase in social media followers to 20,000+.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our Corporate Patrons, Members, Sponsors and Partners that have supported our work throughout this year.
We will continue to represent the priorities for you, our valued members at a local, regional and national level to very best of our abilities and provide you with even more networking opportunities through our events in 2025.
VIEW ANNUAL REPORT HERE
NEWRY, MOURNE AND DOWN LABOUR MARKET PARTNERSHIP
CAREERS FAIR AT NEWRY LEISURE CENTRE IN JANUARY 2025
Newry, Mourne and Down Labour Market Partnership are calling for employer exhibitors for their Careers Fair in Newry Leisure Centre on Tuesday 21st January 2025.
The Careers Fairs is aimed at 5th year students from all post primary schools across the Newry and Mourne Area and organised in association with the Newry & Mourne Area Learning Community.
The benefits for employers exhibiting include:
- Raising company profile to future employees
- Promoting current and future employment possibilities
- Providing the opportunity to highlight potential suitable opportunities in your organisation, including availability of Apprenticeships
- Gaining an opportunity to make positive links with local post primary schools
- Promote the local area as a great place to live and work to future generations
If you or you are interested in exhibiting at the event, please complete the expression of interest form below and return ASAP to business@nmandd.org.
VIEW EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FORM HERE