Business confidence in the UK has risen to its highest level since the start of the financial crisis, boosting hopes that an end to the recession is at hand.

Based on the findings of its quarterly Business Confidence Monitor (BCM), the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) now predicts third-quarter GDP will rise 0.5pc, breaking five quarters of declining output.

The news comes as positive noises emanate from both sides of the Atlantic.

By Jonathan Liew, Angela Monaghan and Garry White

The economic climate is now bleak for many small firms. These are undeniably tough times for the UK's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

With the recession continuing, many of the country's more than four million SMEs continue to have a fight on their hands to stay in business. Often called "the lifeblood of the economy", the importance of the SME sector should never be underestimated.

Chiara Cavaglieri reports for The Independant

Working from home has potential benefits for employer and employee alike, with studies finding that it can boost productivity and reduce overheads as well allowing employees to fit work around their lives and avoid transport costs. And this Friday marks the third annual Working from Home Day.

With the recession in full flow, having employees work from home could open up more job opportunities. "As technology advances, more and more companies will realise the huge cost benefits," says Paula Wynne, co-founder of RemoteEmployment.com.

Rather than employ a full-time member of staff, many small businesses opt for the services of a Virtual PA service. Calls are usually diverted so that the small business retains their commonly used telephone number.

The majority of businesses using a Virtual PA choose to divert their calls to the service. Virtual PA services will normally give each client a unique telephone number which they divert to, in this way the operators (or Virtual PAs) are able to recognize which company is using the service and answer the call accordingly. By diverting calls to this unique number rather than giving the number out directly means that the small business is always in control of the calls coming in. They can choose to divert all calls, calls when their line is engaged or simply divert when they wish- for instance during lunches or meetings.