Chamber Conversations Special: International Women’s Day 2026 – Give To Gain
For International Women’s Day 2026, we’re celebrating Chamber members who are championing women in business, empowering communities, and inspiring change.

At Business West, we’re proud to champion a diverse network of organisations – from growing SMEs to established businesses and charities – all contributing to a stronger, more resilient region.
This April, in recognition of World Day for Safety and Health at Work (28th April), we’re highlighting the importance of creating safe, supportive workplaces.
We’re pleased to feature Jim Jones from Passion First Aid as our Chamber Member of the Month, recognising the vital role they play in equipping businesses and individuals with essential first aid training and workplace safety skills to respond in critical moments.
I’m Jim Jones, director and founder of Passion First Aid. Most days are filled with looking for opportunities to help people save lives and keep people safe. Whether that’s following up on leads, staying on top of local and national news, or spreading the word about the impact of our work.
Passion First Aid is not just a first aid training company. We deliver a wide range of first aid and health and safety training courses, working within workplaces, in early years settings and schools, the care sector, hospitality, and with members of the general public and community groups. We also deliver lifeguard training.
We believe first aid training should be taught by those who have lived it. Our team isn’t just qualified; they bring real-world experience from frontline emergency response, healthcare, law enforcement, and community safety.
Our trainers include First Response Emergency Care (FREC) 3 and FREC 4 qualified professionals, nurses, community first responders, lifeguards, former firearms officers, and even ex-dentists, each with hands-on experience in high-pressure situations. This means we don't just teach theory; we share insights from professionals who have applied these skills in real emergencies.
Our services are complemented by our event medical services, providing responders and other medical resources for events, from village fetes to larger events in our region.
We are also an approved business partner of Zoll Medical, supplying Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) to businesses and local communities, supporting the vital need for more public access defibrillators.
Being prepared in the workplace not only saves lives but also ensures your business remains compliant with legal requirements. At Passion First Aid, we offer a range of Ofqual-regulated workplace first aid training courses to suit the specific needs of your workplace, delivered by experienced trainers who can tailor the training to your day-to-day operations.
In addition to our wide range of training courses, we also provide health and safety auditing along with health checks for individuals to support their health and wellbeing.
Fear: Fear of treating someone’s injury or condition, with concerns of getting it wrong.
Not my job: It's someone else’s problem, not mine.
I have been a member of the Business West Chamber of Commerce since October 2025. Part of my strategy this year is to increase my geographical footprint, and with the Chambers covering Bristol, Bath, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, it is an ideal platform to get my message out.
The ability to develop relationships with other businesspeople, listen to their challenges, and share best practices has been extremely useful.
Don’t think of it as a sales opportunity. That is not what it is. Focus on building relationships with people, and when they come across a client with a problem that they cannot fix, they will refer the client to you.
Whether you’re a charity, SME, or multinational company, Business West Chambers of Commerce is here to help you connect, grow and thrive. By becoming a Chamber member, you gain access to:
◀ a vibrant network of businesses
◀ networking and profile-raising opportunities
◀ local influence and business representation
◀ dedicated support from our expert teams.
To find out more about the benefits of becoming a Chamber member, click here. And if you are already a Chamber member and would like to be featured in a blog just like this one, then please get in touch with Amy.
For International Women’s Day 2026, we’re celebrating Chamber members who are championing women in business, empowering communities, and inspiring change.
This month, to mark Children’s Mental Health Week, we're featuring Cogito as our Chamber member of the month. We caught up with Marc to explore how businesses can play a role in supporting mental wellbeing for people at all stages of their lives.
As part of International Day of Education (23rd January), we’re proud to feature Hartpury University and Hartpury College as our Chamber Member of the Month, recognising their commitment to education, skills development and strong links with industry.