FIRST FEMALE CHAIR OF BUSINESS ORGANISATION

Businesswoman Carol Wells has been appointed the first woman chair of the Cornwall branch of Federation of Small Businesses.

Ms Wells is a founder member of the Objective One Business Task Force which works to keep the private sector at the heart of the investment Programme.

She said: "I am very happy and excited to be chair of the FSB."

Carleen Kelemen, Director of the Objective One Partnership, added: "All at the Partnership congratulate Carol on her new chairmanship. She continues to work hard to ensure the Objective One investment is directed towards projects that meet the needs of business so that they can flourish and drive the prosperity of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly."

Ms Wells has been either self employed or managed small companies for more than 20 years. Since retraining in 1998 she has run a specialist technical IT training company. As well as Chair for the Cornwall region of the FSB she is also into a second year as the FSB National Councillor for Cornwall. In May she completed two years as Mayor of her local town council and was a parish councillor in St Columb Major. She also helps out as a panel member for the Princes Trust on a regular basis.

Ms Wells explained: "As a founder member of the Objective One Business Task Force I take the private sector voice into a number of forums including the Cornwall Economic Forum and Cornwall Sustainable Energy Partnership (CSEP). The opportunity to share in this period of economic regeneration in Cornwall is both exciting and challenging.

"My involvement with the CSEP over the last few years has extended gradually and I currently chair the Steering Group, as well as continue to attend the Business Sector Task Group meetings. I feel strongly that the work done here has grown in importance and value and that there is a significant role for us all to play in meeting not only government targets for energy conservation but in taking a responsibility for ourselves and the world that we may leave behind."

She has three children, two girls and a boy, two working in the IT industry, and the youngest daughter studying engineering at the University of the West of England.

For further information please contact the Objective One Communications Team, Tel: 01872 223439 or email: cmorgan@cornwall.gov.uk.