Connect with HR advice and training of The HR Dept for small business support on Enterprise Nation

Connect with HR advice and training to grow your entrepreneurial network of start-ups and small business owners on Enterprise Nation.

HR advice and training, The HR Dept | Enterprise Nation

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Do you need expert HR services you can depend on? &amp;nbsp;You&amp;#39;ve come to the right place. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Our highly qualified and knowledgeable HR experts have a deep understanding of employment law. &amp;nbsp;Whether you need support with disciplinary matters, employment contracts or anything else on your journey as an employer, we can help.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;If you are looking to outsource your HR completely or just need one-off advice or help with projects, our HR and employment law solutions will help you in achieving your business goals. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The HR Dept monthly advice line provides small business owners with the peace of mind they need that we are regularly on-hand and is&amp;nbsp;particularly reassuring because it is covered by employment tribunal insurance. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Contact us to find out about the various ways we work with SMEs so you have more time to focus on your business. &amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;

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David Hudson

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The HR Dept supports small and medium sized businesses through the employment lifecycle.
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I'm here to help. I'm volunteering free advice calls of up to an hour as part of the Recovery Advice for Business scheme, over the next 6 months. Please get in touch to see how I can help your business.

I am a senior level human resources leader with extensive people and business management experience and the owner/director of The HR Dept Clapham, providing practical and pragmatic HR advice and solutions to businesses in the Wandsworth, Lambeth, Clapham, Battersea and Vauxhall areas.

HR Director

The HR Dept supports small and medium sized businesses through the employment lifecycle keeping you compliant and helping to increase productivity.

I&apos;m a <a href=&apos;https://danmartinuk.com/&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>freelance content creator and event host</a> who helps small businesses and the organisations that support them. I&apos;m also Enterprise Nation&apos;s Local Leader for Bristol.
I have 20 years of experience as a small business journalist having interviewed hundreds of entrepreneurs from famous names like Sir Richard Branson and Deborah Meaden to the founders behind brand new start-ups.
I&apos;ve worked for a range of leading small business publications and support groups, most recently as head of content at Enterprise Nation where I was responsible for the prolific output of content on the company&apos;s blog and social media. I now freelance for Enterprise Nation as the website&apos;s <a href=&apos;https://www.enterprisenation.com/business-news&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>news reporter</a> and as the host of the <a href=&apos;https://www.enterprisenation.com/podcast&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>Small Business sessions podcast</a>.
I&apos;m based in Bristol where I run and host regular events with the local small business community in my role as Enterprise Nation&apos;s Local Leader for Bristol. I also have strong connections with other major business organisations in the south west region.
In total, I&apos;ve hosted over 100 events including conferences with an audience of hundreds for international brands like Xero and Facebook and live web chats from inside 10 Downing Street.
With my partner, I co-run <a href=&apos;https://www.lifestyledistrict.co.uk/&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>Lifestyle District</a>, a lifestyle blog focused on culture, art, theatre and photography.

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I am on a mission to level out the international playing field for ESL entrepreneurs by developing their marketing communications in English and helping them build global brands. I CAN HELP YOU IF: ?? You&apos;re a non-native English-speaking business owner (with or without a team) who wants to sell services internationally. ?? You&apos;re a non-native English-speaking business owner (with or without a team) who wants to sell services to a specific English-speaking market. WHAT YOU&apos;LL GET: ?? Get visible and credible in the international market and build meaningful relationships with English-speaking audiences. ?? Stand out globally in your niche and be recognised as a go-to expert in your field to attract international speaking opportunities as well as English-speaking clients. ?? We achieve this by helping you implement a variety of strategies that build your brand equity. WHAT IS BRAND EQUITY AND WHY SHOULD YOU CARE: Brand equity represents the power of a brand - that&apos;s what allows T-shirts with certain logos to cost 10 times more than others, for example. WHY CHOOSE ME: ?? I&apos;ve helped service-based businesses from 18 countries build brands that attract and engage English-speaking international audiences. ?? My methods are based on the brand equity framework developed by the father of branding, David Aaker in 1990, which has been used by millions of businesses to build strong brands. ?? I&apos;ve been recognised for my contribution to the field of marketing and advertising by Marketing 2.0 - the Global Gathering of Brand Builders and Marketers - with an Outstanding Leadership Award. ?? I graduated top of my class with Distinction from my MSc in International Marketing, and my dissertation on brand equity building for services was one of the strongest research pieces of the year. ?? I am a guest lecturer in Strategic Brand Management at Edinburgh Napier University and a trusted brand strategy guest expert at the Business Gateway, the largest organisation supporting start-ups in the UK. ?? I am a business owner and the brand manager of my company that markets internationally. ?? I have lived in 7 different countries, so I have a great understanding of intercultural communication. GET IN TOUCH: Currently, only EN-ABLE provides brand strategy consulting specifically for non-native English speakers who want to attract English-speaking clients and operate internationally. Want to create a global impact and be paid generously for it? Send me a message to get started!

Award-Winning Brand Strategist and Co-Founder

Entrepreneurs who speak English as a second language 

Boost your engagement with English-speaking audiences to increase revenue and drive business growth.



James Hartshorn is a recruitment psychologist and talent strategist, leading The Talent Lens, a recruitment company that goes beyond traditional hiring. The Talent Lens is the only recruitment service that finds, assesses, and delivers tailored candidates to its clients.&nbsp;
Alongside this, the company offers expertise in reward and pay consulting and job ad creation, ensuring roles are crafted to attract and retain the right talent.
With an MBA in Psychology and professional qualifications from the CIPD, BPS, and Saville, James combines cutting-edge AI, psychometric expertise, and organisational insight to deliver smarter hiring solutions. He has worked extensively with pre-IPO start-ups to build agile teams and with FTSE 250 organisations to refine complex hiring strategies.
James is also the published author of It’s Emotional: Decoding the Emotional DNA of Job Ads, highlighting his passion for crafting recruitment strategies that inspire, attract, and engage top talent in competitive markets.

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Struggling with high turnover in customer service roles? Worried about the impact on client satisfaction and the rising cost of repeatedly re-hiring? CXFit™ is your tailored solution.

CXFit™ is at the heart of our Find-Assess-Deliver model. After identifying promising candidates, we use our bespoke CXFit™ Situational Judgement Test (SJT) to evaluate their resilience, empathy, and problem-solving skills—critical traits for success in customer service roles.

Post-assessment, we provide you a pro

My journey to founding Vanda&apos;s Kitchen is a story of passion, health, and evolution. From a childhood spent in a small town in County Kerry, Ireland, with a strong focus on sports and health, to creating a growing catering company in london focused on a gluten and nut free emphasis, my life has always revolved around well-being and inclusivity. Well us Irish are known for the &quot;crack&quot; :-)
Growing up, sports, especially football, shaped my character. Playing competitively taught me discipline, teamwork, and the critical importance of nutrition in optimising performance and recovery. This lifelong passion for fitness sparked an interest in healthier living and mindful eating a value that stayed with me as I explored career opportunities and eventually started my own business.
Moving to London in 2016, going to Middlesex University and then onto various IT jobs with 10 years at IBM and now still running a seperate Consulting role alonside Vanda&apos;s Kitchen.
In 2020, I co-founded Vanda&apos;s Kitchen in London with my then-business partner, Debora. Originally, we embraced the organic and vegan lifestyle, gaining accreditation with the Soil Association and the Vegan Trademark. Our early vision was to provide fresh, healthy meals made with premium, sustainably sourced ingredients for individuals and corporate clients across the city.
However, as time went on, our own health experiences reshaped the company&apos;s mission. Both Debora and I faced personal dietary challenges, particularly with gluten and nuts. I discovered how eliminating these ingredients alleviated long-standing health concerns, and Debora found similar results. These revelations inspired a pivotal shift in Vanda&apos;s Kitchen, steering us away from organic certifications and vegan trademarks to focus on gluten and nut-free offerings. While the early branding and accreditation efforts were valuable, we realised the administrative demands of maintaining these labels were diverting attention from what truly mattered—creating high-quality, inclusive meals and catering services that were required.
This focus on gluten and nut-free options allowed us to better serve a growing community of people with similar dietary needs. By prioritising the health and trust of our customers, we ensured that our meals became a safe and reliable choice for anyone navigating allergies, sensitivities, or specific preferences. Our journey transformed Vanda’s Kitchen into what it is today: a company that delivers delicious, inclusive food for all, while maintaining the values of freshness and care.
At Vanda’s Kitchen, we offer a diverse menu of gluten and nut-free meals, including hearty hot lunches, vibrant salads, and satisfying treats. These are meticulously prepared and crafted to meet high standards of quality and taste. Our storefront at 42-44 Carter Lane, in London’s St. Paul’s area, serves as a hub for locals and professionals alike, while our catering services have become a trusted name for corporate events, private parties, film shoots and beyond.
We are also proud of our retail partnerships, including the availability of our quiches and other exclusive products soon to be in Selfridges. Expanding into retail has allowed us to bring our mission of accessible, high-quality products to even more people and this is one area I want to expand further.
Reflecting on the evolution of Vanda’s Kitchen, I see a journey deeply aligned with my life’s passions and personal challenges. The lessons learned from sports about resilience and focus have shaped my approach to business, while the experience of managing health issues has instilled a personal connection to the work we do. Lockdowns further added to my mental strength as with the company started and investment I made some tough decisions which changed my life. But grit and determination are engrained so I continued and still here in 2025.
As we continue to grow, our mission remains simple but impactful: to create meals that are both delicious and inclusive, catering to people who want food they can trust without sacrificing flavor or variety.
I’m incredibly grateful for the trust and support of our customers, staff, and partners who have helped us turn a vision into reality. Together, we’ve created more than just a food business—we’ve built a community that values health, inclusivity, and the joy of eating.
Whether you’re a business in need of catering, a family looking for wholesome meals, or someone with specific dietary needs, Vanda’s Kitchen is here to provide food that nourishes and satisfies.
For more about our journey, menus, or collaborations, visit our shop near St. Paul’s or follow us on social media.
Me personally want to contact with many high quality current and up and coming business entrepreneurs for collaborations and mutal assistance. I am also available for a chat as I dont sleep much!&nbsp;
Thank you for being a part of our story and I look forward to working with at the wonderful Enterprise Nation to further promote.

Rob Pattwell

My journey to founding Vanda&apos;s Kitchen is a story of passion, health, and evolution. From a childhood spent in a small town in County Kerry, Ireland, with a strong focus on sports and health, to creating a growing catering company in london focused on a gluten and nut free emphasis, my life has always revolved around well-being and inclusivity. Well us Irish are known for the &quot;crack&quot; :-)
Growing up, sports, especially football, shaped my character. Playing competitively

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