We have all seen the awful pictures of the flooding in Cumbria, which bring back worrying memories to those of us who live near the Thames.

Recently the government came up with £1m of emergency funding for all those affected by the flooding in Cumbria - after the FSB announced a £0.5m emergency loan fund for any members in the area whose business was affected.

A colleague of mine who recruits in the area wrote about his experiences:

"Guess where I was working last thursday? Yes, Cockermouth & Keswick. It was a day like no other. I signed 2 businesses up in the morning on main street in Cockermouth and in the afternoon they were both under 4 foot of water! They both phoned me the next day seeking advice about laying their staff off and it was great to be able to firstly put them in touch with the legal advice line and then to be able to tell them that as they were members the minute they signed the form they were eligable to apply to the FSB disaster fund for an interest free loan even though their DD hasn't yet cleared.

One of them said "You must be proud to work for such an amazing organisation." I said "I was extremely proud."

We must not forget that we represent the 'worlds best business support organisation' and that we really do help small businesses in so many different ways, every hour of every day!"  Alan Highes