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Leicester rag trade £1.3m tax fraudsters handed jail terms
Final handover of family homes for new Bestwood community
Vistry Group, the provider of affordable mixed-tenure homes, has celebrated the final handover of new family homes at their Ridgeway development in Nottingham. The final home was completed and handed over 20 months after the development received planning permission.
Situated on a 4.2-acre brownfield site in the Bestwood area of Nottinghamshire, the 71 one-, two-, and three-bedroom properties comprise 33 affordable homes, built on behalf of Nottingham City Council and 38 homes for private rent through Start Living, the single-family build-to-rent platform established by Gatehouse Investment Management and TPG Real Estate Partners.
All the homes were built using modern methods of construction (MMC) reducing the carbon footprint of every property. The properties were manufactured off site using open panel timber frames from the Vistry Works East Midlands factory in Bardon in neighbouring Leicestershire. Each home built using these panels emits 14,460kg CO2e less than a traditional brick-and-block house and has a faster construction time.
The development’s completion heralds a new era of enhanced living standards for residents and the local community, with landscaping, public open spaces, and road improvements. The wider community has also benefitted from investment with £1,911,255 towards local educational and a further £85,764 going to other services.
Lee Parry, Managing Director of Vistry North East Midlands, said: “We are thrilled to mark the successful handover of the final homes on our Ridgeway development. This milestone represents not just the final stages of this project but also the beginning of a new chapter for the residents as this new community flourishes.”
Councillor Jay Hayes, Portfolio Holder for Housing and ward representative for Bestwood at Nottingham City Council, said: “I’m delighted to see these new properties reach completion, ready to become family homes in a part of the city with high levels of housing need. We’re creating new communities that everyone who lives in the area will benefit from.
“The amount of housing being delivered currently in Nottingham is a positive sign and it’s also a clear indication of the willingness for developers to invest here. Construction activity has a large and positive impact on jobs and the local economy, so this is great news for Nottingham.”
John Coles, Head of Acquisitions at Gatehouse Investment Management, added: “Ridgeway was one of the first Start Living locations to be acquired, forming part of our wider investment in the area, and it is hugely pleasing to see the final properties delivered.
“Many residents are already enjoying the high-spec homes and fantastic local amenities that Ridgeway has to offer, and we look forward to more families moving into these last few homes. We are also due to launch an additional 64 plots at the adjacent Padstow site in the coming months, which is already generating strong interest.”
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New Leader and Deputy Leader of Nottingham City Council officially appointed
- Councillor Linda Woodings, Executive Member for Finance and Resources
- Councillor Cheryl Barnard, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Education
- Councillor Jay Hayes, Executive Member for Housing and Planning
- Councillor Corall Jenkins, Executive Member for Communities, Waste and Equalities
- Councillor Pavlos Kotsonis, Executive Member for Adults Social Care and Health
- Councillor Sam Lux, Executive Member for Carbon Reduction, Leisure and Culture
Future of Buxton Brewery secured following pre-pack deal
Topps Tiles sees slip in results
Rob Parker, Chief Executive, said: “Trading conditions in the first half have been challenging in a tile market which is down 20% on 2019. Against this backdrop, we are continuing to take market share, our online pure play businesses are growing strongly and the Group remains in a robust financial position.
“Lead indicators of market activity such as mortgage approvals, consumer confidence and smaller ticket DIY spend are improving, and while we are yet to see this feed through into our customer’s spending patterns, as market leader Topps Group remains well-positioned for recovery.
“Notwithstanding the challenges of current market conditions, we believe that Topps Group has a substantial opportunity to increase sales and profitability over the medium term through our new growth strategy of Mission 365.
“Mission 365 includes the development of new digital platforms for Topps Tiles trade customers; an increase in our addressable market of 75% by entering new product areas adjacent to our core tile specialism; a drive for accelerated growth in B2B markets through a more co-ordinated Group-wide approach; and continued momentum in our high growth online pure play businesses, Pro-Tiler and Tile Warehouse.
“Together these initiatives represent an opportunity to grow sales to £365 million over the medium term, while delivering profit before tax margins in the range of 8-10%.”
Shoe Zone delivers “robust performance”
Revenue at the business grew to £76.5m, up from £75.4m in the same period of the year prior. This was supported by a 19.6% increase in digital revenue, to £17.1m, while store revenue dipped, down 2.8% to £59.4m.
Adjusted profit before tax meanwhile stood unmoved at £2.5m.In a statement to the London Stock Exchange, Shoe Zone said: “Shoe Zone delivered a robust performance in the period against a continuing backdrop of consumer uncertainty and macroeconomic volatility. Total revenues increased by 1.5% having traded out of 27 fewer stores compared to 12 months ago, with digital revenue increasing by 19.6%. The performance further demonstrates the resilience of our business and the success of our ongoing strategy.
“Trading over all channels was positive with total revenues of £76.5m (2023 H1: £75.4m), store revenues were £59.4m (2023 H1: £61.1m – trading out of fewer stores), digital revenues were £17.1m (2023 H1: £14.3m) with strong performance across all online channels with additional growth from our online exclusive range and range extensions.
“Adjusted profit before tax was £2.5m (2023 H1: £2.5m), which is in line with management expectations for the period.
“We ended the period trading out of 309 stores, which is a reduction of 27 compared to 12 months ago and 14 lower compared to last year end. In the first half we closed 29 stores, opened 15 new format stores and refitted 15 Original stores to our new format. In total we are now trading out of 147 Original stores and 162 new format stores. We are actively working to relocate and refit further stores in the second half of the year, together with a number of stores currently in the pipeline, opening before Christmas.”