There was an excellent turnout for Action for Business Limited's annual 'Winter Festive Season' lunch. It attracted over 100 guests including Business Centre tenants, community partners and representatives from the local media. Before settling down to an excellent lunch provided by Carlisle Business Centre (CBC) tenant Aziz, who runs the Carlisle Cafe at CBC, guests were taken on a tour of the recently completed basement, which has added eight new units of office space.
Introducing the guest speakers – David Ison and John Godward -- ABL Chief Executive Jenny Pupius commented that 2009 had been a “tricky” year, but it was great to see so many people at this event. Referring to the major refurbishment in the basement, she thanked Bradford Kick Start and LEGI for their support in what she saw as the next stage of development at CBC.
David Ison, the Dean of Bradford Cathedral praised the work of ABL in bringing different communities together. He allied it to work at the Cathedral which is focused on bringing different faiths within the city together through the respect and understanding of each others beliefs.
The Lord Mayor of Bradford continued this theme, highlighting the great community relations in Bradford, which are vastly different to the negative perceptions given by many outsiders. “Bradford can cope with everything that is thrown at it,” he said, extolling his audience to speak out against racism. “Bradford can be a beacon for others with its many different ethnic groups coming together through business.”
