Leading south east law firm Furley Page is to join the sponsors of a prestigious annual event – Medway Business Awards 2008 - which recognises the hard work and innovation of the area’s 10,000 small enterprises.

Other sponsors are Lloyds TSB, Medway Council, Medway Messenger, University of Kent, Business Link Kent, Medway Enterprise Gateway, North Kent Enterprise Agency, Reeves & Neylan, University of the Creative Arts, Thames Gateway Chamber of Commerce, and EON.

Furley Page, which last year launched a new office in the Clocktower building at the Historic Dockyard, Chatham, is supporting the business awards as part of its dedicated community sponsorship programme.

Peter Hawkes, senior partner at Furley Page, said: “The awards are a prestigious event in Medway and turn the spotlight on some outstanding achievements of small businesses across the area.

“The firm’s already strong presence in Kent and the south east was enhanced by the expansion into Thames Gateway in 2007 and our presence in Chatham means we can engage in local issues and events which will shape the structure of north Kent and the Thames Gateway area in the years to come.”

Medway Business Awards, now in its 24th year, offers a cash prize of £5,000 plus the opportunity for businesses to ‘stand out from the crowd’.

Eligible businesses must have traded for more than 12 months on July 31, 2008 with an annual turnover of less than £5.6 million. Entries close on July 31 with a gala awards ceremony on November 14.

For further information on the awards go to www.medwaybusinessawards.co.uk

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