Agenda and info - FSB HSBC event Guildford 24th March 2026
Surrey Networking Guildford
With HSBC / hosted by CIFAL at Surrey University
Surrey SME Owners – Are You Ready for What’s Next?
The business landscape isn’t slowing down. Economic pressure, procurement changes, sustainability demands and rising costs are all reshaping what growth really looks like for small businesses.
So how do you stay resilient and position your business for real, sustainable growth?
Join us on 24 March at Surrey University for a powerful (and free) event hosted by CIFAL Surrey, in partnership with the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and HSBC.
You’ll hear from:
• HSBC Economist Liz Martins – breaking down the latest Economic Outlook and what it actually means for SME decision-making, investment and growth.
• Dr Nayanee Silva, Sustainability Specialist – sharing practical insight into how sustainability is influencing procurement, cost reduction and long-term resilience (and why it’s increasingly a growth driver, not a tick-box exercise).
• Hosted by Professor Amelia Hadfield, Director of CIFAL Surrey, who will bring the discussion together in a way that is relevant, accessible and meaningful for the SME community.
We will be exploring:
• What the economic outlook means for your business
• How to build resilience in uncertain times
• Why sustainability is becoming a competitive advantage
• Winning government and corporate contracts
• Practical ways to reduce costs and strengthen your organisation
This isn’t theory. It’s insight, tools and real-world context you can take back and use immediately.
In addition, you will be networking with fellow ambitious business owners in one of Surrey’s most impressive venues.
Dr Nayanee Silva shares insights on why business should look beyond compliance and discover sustainable growth opportunities. Through a multidimensional approach that connects resource and energy efficiencies, ethical sourcing, and social impact, she reveals how SMEs can build competitive advantage through a responsible, resilient business model that delivers value to stakeholders.
11.00am: Prof. Amelia Hadfield (Host), Liz Martins, Heeral Shah, Dr Nayanee Silva Panel Discussion
Prof. Amelia Hadfield / CIFAL Update
11.20am: Tracey Carter / FSB FSB update
11.30am: Heeral Shah / HSBC
Close – introduction to HSBC Team
11.35am: Networking and coffee
12.00pm: Event Close
Speakers
Liz Martins– Economist / HSBC
Liz Martins joined HSBC in 2010 in the Dubai office where she covered fifteen Middle Eastern economies, bringing HSBC's view on the region to clients across the world. In 2014, she moved to the London office to join the Global and European Economics teams. Since 2016, she has led HSBC's analysis of the UK economy, formulating views and forecasts and presenting HSBC's analysis to institutional and corporate clients. She is a regular television and radio guest and an experienced conference presenter. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Cambridge University.
Professor Amelia Hadfield
Director, CIFAL Surrey, Associate Vice-President of External Engagement, Founder of the Centre for Britain and Europe, Head of Politics & IR, University of Surrey UK
Amelia joined the University of Surrey in January 2019 as Head of the Department of Politics, and Chair in European and International Affairs. Amelia is a long-standing Jean Monnet Chair in European Foreign Affairs, allowing her to successfully obtain Erasmus+ funding for the University of Surrey’s Centre for Britain and Europe (based in the Department of Politics), establishing it in 2020 as a Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence.
Amelia’s researching, teaching, consulting & postgrad supervising covers a wide range of areas on EU foreign and security policy, as well as new forms of EU-UK relations. In January 2021, Amelia was appointed Dean International of the University of Surrey, leading the International Engagement Office in supporting the strategic goals of the university on partnership with other universities and networks world-wide. From October 2023, Amelia was appointed Associate Vice-President of External Engagement, helping to deliver the University of Surrey’s international strategies, alongside community engagement, public affairs, and developing new partnerships at local, regional, national and international level In December 2024, as a result of her work with UNITAR, the UN’s research and capacity building agency, and complementing her role as Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Centre of Excellence on Ageing (April 2023), Amelia was appointed inaugural Director of the CIFAL Surrey Centre, a knowledge exchange hub based within the Institute for Sustainability, dedicated to training and capacity building climate literacy, climate leadership and sustainability more broadly.
Dr Nayanee Silva FCA FCMI FRSA
Corporate Sustainability Specialist | Business Strategy & Transformation
Dr Nayanee Silva serves as Senior Advisor in Corporate Sustainability and Strategic Partnerships at CIFAL/UNITAR Surrey, where she is a member of the faculty for UN-certified training courses on sustainability. She is also a Research Fellow at the Centre for Social Innovation Management at Surrey Business School and a Sustainability Fellow at the Institute for Sustainability at Surrey. Her research spans corporate sustainability, the net zero transition for business and sustainable development.
With over 25 years of varied experience as a business professional, consultant and a business and nonprofit founder, she collaborates extensively with private, education and nonprofit sectors. Nayanee holds Fellowships with the Institute of Chartered Accountants (UK), the Chartered Management Institute (UK), and the Royal Society of Arts. She is a mentor for the Surrey Women’s Entrepreneurship Network, SETSquared startup incubator and the King’s Trust. Nayanee is a guest lecturer, trainer and international speaker for higher education and business, and became a TEDx speaker in 2025, delivering a talk on Beyond ESG: Seven Dimensions of Business Sustainability.
Heeral Shah
SME Business Banking | Regional Director - HSBC
Heeral is passionate about Diversity and Inclusion, particularly for Ethnically diverse colleagues, women’s empowerment and the ability to make a difference.
She is passionate about multicultural and gender diversity in financial services and particularly about creating an environment where colleagues feel they can bring their whole selves to work.
She founded and the Asian Professionals Forum at Barclays which is part of Embrace, the multicultural diversity network. She chairs the Corporate Bank Embrace network and influences senior leaders at Barclays around multicultural diversity, leads programmes including mentoring to provide career pathway support for colleagues across Barclays and provides access to senior leaders across the Bank’s businesses through spotlight career sessions.
Directions and parking
Institute for Sustainability - University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, UK
March 2026 – Guest / Event Parking Registration
Dear Guest,
Thank you for choosing to attend an event at the University of Surrey. To ensure your vehicle is registered for parking, please follow the steps below carefully:
Step 1: Complete the Microsoft Form
Please complete the Microsoft form using the link below. Conference & Event Parking Registration March 2026
This will ask for:
- Your name
- Start and end date of your visit
- The event name
Once submitted, you will be directed to a parking registration page.
Step 2: Register Your Vehicle
After submitting your personal details in the form, you will be redirected to a vehicle registration page (Evology).
On the parking registration page:
1. Enter your vehicle registration number
2. Tick the confirmation boxes
3. Submit your details
Once successfully registered, you will see this box however, you will not receive a confirmation email:
Where can I park once registered?
Once registered, you will be eligible to park in any University of Surrey car park. Please see the attached map for guidance.
(Please note that the Surrey Sports Park is not included in event parking)
Directions to venue
The event room is located on the ground floor of the James Clerk Maxwell Building in the 5G/6G Innovation Centre building
This is the exact location on campus using Google Maps: https://maps.app.goo.gl/s3BxTmPzwRknWhus9
There are different parking spaces on campus. We recommend you park in North car park and then make your way to the 5G/6G Innovation Centre. Please bear in mind the car parks can get busy during term time, so please allow plenty of time to park.
You will find the building along Spine road:
You will find the building along Spine Road:
The entrance to the room is located on the side of the building, see picture below:
