After a successful six months at Connect Derby’s Marble Hall managed workspace, electrical training specialists Just Electrical Training have expanded to new premises at Sawley Park on Nottingham Road in the city. The company, which was launched in 2016 by Richard Bentley and Sarah Stenson-Bentley, took space at the iconic former Rolls-Royce building on Nightingale Road in October last year. Since then, the company has gone from strength to strength and has now outgrown its accommodation at Marble Hall. Following a sustained period of growth Richard and Sarah realised the business also needed a workshop and classroom space and has now moved to the popular Sawley Park which is home to a diverse range of businesses. Just Electrical Training offers a programme of affordable electrical training courses for anyone who is new to the trade, already in the trade and associated trades. Courses range from electrical installation, inspection and testing to fundamental testing, domestic installer and portable appliance testing. Speaking on the move and the help and support the business has received from Ann Bhatti and her team over the past six months, Richard and Sarah said: “When we joined Connect Derby last year, Marble Hall was the perfect base for us with space that suited our needs in an environment that enabled our business to expand, with a broad range of facilities, including car parking, meeting rooms and on-site café. “The help and support from the Connect Derby team has been first class. We received a great service from the reception team at Marble Hall, who were always on hand to help. “It was a difficult decision to leave, but our new premises at Sawley Park have enabled us to embark on the next phase of our growth plan, which is very exciting.” Ann Bhatti, head of Connect Derby, added: “We are sorry to say goodbye to Richard, Sarah and their team at Just Electrical Training after just six months at Marble Hall, but we are delighted to follow their growth and would like wish them all the best at their new premise at Sawley Park.”

UK Anti-Doping, the national body responsible for creating a UK-wide environment of confidence in clean sport and the global fight against doping in sport, has moved into a new extension opened recently at SportPark, Loughborough University. Workplace consultants Blueprint Interiors has been appointed to fit-out the new space to reflect their brand values and identity. Previously based in London, UK Anti-Doping decided that locating alongside other leading sport bodies at Loughborough University would create the ideal office environment. SportPark is a unique facility that embraces the PassivHaus concept – the only internationally recognised, performance-based energy standard in construction. Commenting on the move, Philip Bunt, COO from UK Anti-Doping, said: “In relocating to SportPark, we are now based in an outstanding, energy efficient base alongside other mission-driven and innovative sports organisations and also co-located with the UK’s leading university for sport. “It is therefore an ideal location to support our future ambitions. Our new base will also enable us to influence athletes and teaching curriculums, work closer with other sports organisations, and attract future talent.” Blueprint Interiors has transformed the new office space to create a space that was fit for purpose in a post covid world. UK Anti-Doping recognised that knowledge workers can get tasks done easily at home but this isolated working style meant colleagues missed out on vital opportunities to collaborate and share knowledge across the team. The new location has room for growth with capacity for over 60 people. Rachel Biddles from Blueprint Interiors said: “In order to be as flexible as possible and meet the individual needs of each member all 24 workstations have rise and fall desks. All meeting rooms have been designed to be multi-functional and highly configurable. “There is also a large town hall space area designed for collaboration. This combination of space planning ensures that whatever work is being done, all colleagues have the resources and space to work at their best.” As a PassivHaus building, sustainability was also a key objective. Working alongside an in-house design team who had set the framework for these key requirements Blueprint Interiors used its previous experience of fitting out other spaces within the University campus to help UK Anti-Doping consider their workspace needs and future proof the design as much as possible ready for anticipated growth in their team.

Construction works have now begun to deliver a new boathouse, restaurant space and extended visitor car park at Kings Mill Reservoir, a nature reserve in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire.

Approved for planning by Ashfield District Council in February, works have now started on the new extended car park to accommodate the new boathouse building. The construction of the new building is due to start in late summer, with the demolition of the former sailing club taking place later this year.

As well as the restaurant and function space on the first floor, the boathouse building will provide modern, accessible changing facilities for water sports and a meeting/training room on the ground floor.

These facilities will support activities including sailing, paddle boarding, kayaking, and open water swimming and will allow more residents and visitors to Kings Mill Reservoir the opportunity to access water sports.

The East Midlands-based construction team has been announced as Lindum Group as main contractor, Influence Landscape Planning and Design as landscape architect, BSP Consulting as civil and structural engineer, Gleeds as project management and quantity surveyor, and Player Roberts Bell Architects.

The scheme is part of Ashfield District Council’s £62.6m Towns Fund project, and since submitting the initial planning application, the council has been undertaking surveys and site investigations, including bat surveys, to ensure wildlife is protected and habitats are enhanced by the new facility. The new building will include new bat roosts.

Cllr Samantha Deakin, Executive Lead for Parks and Environmental Services at Ashfield District Council, said: “The plans for Kings Mill Reservoir are extremely exciting. We can’t wait to be able to open up the offer of a variety of great new activities to visitors.

“The location of the new restaurant offering will be a fantastic addition to the reservoir and will bring in even more visitors to Ashfield. I want to reassure residents that the demolition and construction phases of this project will be done sensitively to ensure none of the resident wildlife will be disturbed.”

Cllr Matthew Relf, Executive Lead for Growth, Regeneration and Local Planning, said: “This is another milestone for our plans to make Mill Waters one of the top tourist destinations in the East Midlands. We want to hear from clubs or individuals, who are keen to get involved in developing and running water sports activities at the reservoir. Please get in touch with the team if you are interested.”

Newark-based Influence Landscape Planning and Design is the landscape architect on the project. As part of the planning application, Influence provided visual appraisal and comprehensive landscape design to complement the new building.

Kathryn Dunk, principal landscape architect at Influence, said: “Kings Mill Reservoir is a special place where nature and visitors flock. It’s a place for being close to nature, enjoying the surroundings and experiencing the myriad of water sports on offer.

“I’m really pleased that progress is being made to create the new leisure building which will sit alongside the water sports facilities and provide a place to dine and relax. Naturally landscape plays a key part here and we have created designs that responds to the specific character of the reserve, with a naturalistic planting palette of grasses and wildflowers and native Downy Birch trees reaching across the site to the water’s edge.”

As well as the structural design of the new building, Nottingham-based BSP Consulting’s role includes drainage design, featuring permeable car parking based on sustainable drainage systems (SuDS).

BSP Consulting director, Tony Goddard, said: “Given the sensitive water environment of the reservoir, we were keen to provide a sustainable drainage system which improves water quality, controls the flow of water into the reservoir and minimises pollution.

“As a company, BSP is very pleased to be part of the team delivering this scheme at Kings Mill Reservoir which will provide modern, accessible changing and storage facilities for water sports, along with a multi-purpose social space on the ground floor, with a dedicated restaurant on the first floor.”

Lindum Construction manager, Mark Robertson, said: “We are looking forward to getting started on this project, which will result in a superb leisure attraction for local people. The restaurant will be in a fantastic location with views of the water.

“We have a strong pipeline of local subcontractors who will be working on this scheme with us so the council’s investment will continue to circulate within the economy.

“It is good to be working with Ashfield District Council again. Lindum has a delivered several housing schemes for the authority over the past three years and we’ve developed a strong relationship, based on openness, trust and successful delivery of projects.”

The new leisure facilities will complement the expansion of the existing onsite adventure centre, Mill Adventure Base, to include outdoor activities which will be operational later this year.

The works at Kings Mill Reservoir have been procured through the SCAPE Regional Construction framework and all works are due for completion in summer 2024.