XPO Logistics enters the Big Logistics Diversity Challenge for the third year

XPO, a provider of transport and logistics solutions, entered a team in the Big Logistics Diversity Challenge 2023 for the third year in a row.

The challenge, which was held this year at the Newark Showground in Nottinghamshire, brings together companies within logistics to take part in mental and physical team building events that all support inclusion and diversity. The XPO team successfully collaborated to achieve the competition’s highest score.

Lynn Brown, vice president, human resources – UK and Ireland, XPO Logistics, said: “It may be a cliché that teamwork makes the dream work but at XPO we genuinely believe in the potential of our people, working together to deliver excellence for each of our stakeholders.

“By leveraging the diversity of our colleagues, we achieve truly great things – together. The Big Logistics Diversity Challenge is a practical demonstration of effective teams working together to succeed, and we’re proud to support and take part in this unique event.” 

XPO is currently running numerous diversity and inclusion initiatives across its business, including supporting women within logistics, encouraging veterans into logistics and supporting Pride. It also is launching its neurodiversity programme across the UK and Ireland.

Luxury apartments and retail space reach practical completion in Matlock

Derbyshire-based, privately-owned property company, Clowes Developments, together with contractor, Roe Developments, have completed the development of 47 luxury one- and two-bedroom apartments in Matlock. Marc Freeman, director, Clowes Developments, said: “We are incredibly proud of the quality and design principles we have applied to Riber View Apartments. This is truly a unique residential development at the heart of the iconic Derbyshire town of Matlock. “I would like to personally thank Mark Weston, the project manager at Roe Developments, Peak Architects, our legal team at Gateley’s and especially our in-house team at Clowes for delivering this scheme to such a high standard. We would also like to take the time to thank Matlock Town FC for their support and patience during construction.” The residential scheme benefits from secure key fob access, which leads directly into a reception and postal area. There is also off road parking with an undercover car park, bicycle storage, and electric vehicle charging points. A management company is providing a fully serviced building and landscaped grounds. Clowes also opted to install solar panels to the roof – providing sustainable energy for the common areas of the buildings. The apartments, ranging in size from 450 to 765 square foot, were designed by Peak Architects to transform the former run-down site into a residential development that retains and enhances the vitality of Matlock town centre. Peak Architects’ focus has been to create a scheme that acknowledges and refers to the town’s architecture and local context using locally sourced stone on the Causeway Lane elevation. Sally Botham Estates have been handling “a high volume” of off plan enquiries for the apartments located on Causeway Lane since construction began in 2022, and the first few residents have moved into their new homes. Meanwhile, Clowes Developments have brought the commercial element of the development to the market. The commercial ground floor space, available via agents, Brasier Freeth, consists of a 3,000 sq ft high-street unit suitable for retail, cafe/coffee, or lifestyle operators. The space has the potential to be divided into two units to suit occupier requirements.

Greatwell Homes names new chair

Northamptonshire-based housing association, Greatwell Homes have named Mike Kay as their new chair of the board. As a chartered building surveyor, he has over 45 years experience of property management and development, with the last 28 years in the social housing industry. He also has significant experience as a non-executive director, most recently as chair of the ACIS Group. He also has substantial knowledge and understanding of the Northamptonshire area as he has recently retired as Chief Executive at Northampton Partnership Homes after eight years. He said: “I am delighted to have been appointed to the role as chair of the board at Greatwell Homes. “I am joining them halfway through their Live Greatwell corporate plan and I can already see how committed the team are on providing safe, secure and sustainable homes for people in and around North Northamptonshire – an area which I am already very familiar with. “I can’t wait to get started and I am very much looking forward to working with the team at Greatwell.” Jo Savage, Chief Executive at Greatwell Homes, said: “We’re very pleased to have Mike joining us as chair of the board later in the year. “Mike has a wealth of experience, both in the housing sector and in our local area. After working in Northamptonshire for almost 10 years, Mike already has extensive knowledge of the area we operate in and will be familiar with some of the challenges our communities face, as well as many of the local partners we work closely with. “This knowledge will be invaluable in helping us to shape great communities and deliver services that work well for local people. “We also look forward to working with him – along with the rest of our board, customers and colleagues – to shape what our corporate plan will look like from 2025 onwards to continue to support those living in our communities.” Mike will officially take on the role in September and will replace John Lewis who has been on Greatwell Homes’ board for nine years – five of those as chair. Jo added: “Of course this means that our current chair, John, will be stepping down in September. On behalf of everyone at Greatwell Homes, I’d like to thank John for his commitment and dedication during his time with us and wish him all the best for the future.”

Chesterfield care home sold to expanding operator

Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co, has sold Hazeldene House residential and dementia care home in Chesterfield. Hazeldene House is a two-storey, 21-bedroom, residential care home with a profitable trading history and a ‘Good’ CQC rating. It sits in the Clay Cross area of the East Midlands market town of Chesterfield. The home has been owned by Pavanveer Singh Grewal for five years and was brought to market to allow him to pursue other business interests. Following a confidential sales process with Rosie Turner at Christie & Co, it has been sold to an expanding West Yorkshire care group. Rosie Turner, business agent – care at Christie & Co, says: “We were delighted to be able to assist the owners in the sale of Hazeldene House. We ran a confidential marketing process which received a strong level of interest due to the home’s ‘Good’ CQC rating and its registered manager in place and, when reviewing the offers with Pavanveer, the buyer stood out due to its business structure and operational knowledge. “This is another great example of the demand that exists for a range of homes in the East Midlands. While there are new challenges within deals, such as the interest rate rises and wider economic factors, signs still point towards a positive outcome for going concerns within the sector in the region. I wish the vendors all the success in their future projects and look forward to watching the buyer expand its West Yorkshire offering.” Hazeldene House was sold for an undisclosed price.

Long term waste management contract settled out of court

Ongoing litigation related to Derbyshire County Council and Derby City Council’s long term waste management contract has been settled out of court. Derby City Council and Derbyshire County Council have paid a joint total of £93.5million to Resource Recovery Solutions (Derbyshire) Ltd’s (RRS) administrators. It comes after several months of negotiations between the councils and RRS’s administrators, who were claiming £187million was owed – a figure which the councils disputed. In 2009, RRS – a partnership between infrastructure firm Interserve and waste management company Renewi – was awarded a contract by Derby City Council and Derbyshire County Council to manage the Councils’ residual waste and design, build, commission, and operate a waste treatment facility in Sinfin, Derby. RRS paid for the facility – which under the councils’ contract with RRS was planned to be completed in 2017 – to be designed and built, in order to divert 190,000 tonnes of waste per year away from landfill. But after RRS failed to pass commissioning tests by the agreed date, the councils lawfully terminated the contract in August 2019. Following termination, the councils and RRS began a process to determine the Adjusted Estimated Fair Value (AEFV) of the contract. The AEFV was the sum due as compensation (to either RRS or the councils) following the termination of the contract, and is designed to reflect the future value of the long term waste management contract. RRS and the councils were contractually required to go through the AEFV process, and all parties to litigation are expected to make every effort to negotiate a settlement outside a formal litigation process, in order to avoid unnecessary costs to either party. At respective Cabinet meetings earlier in July, both councils resolved to accept the settlement, and pay RRS £93.5million to protect council tax-payers from the risk of further significant costs. If a sum had not been agreed through negotiation, the dispute would have been resolved through the courts, and formal litigation – a lengthy process with unknown outcomes and additional costs. With this settlement, litigation ends, and RRS has no further involvement. The total sum of £93.5million has been split by the councils in accordance with their agreed split; 50:50 up to £50million, and all sums thereafter split proportionately; 73.4% by the county council and 26.6% by the city council. £36.57million therefore paid by the city council and £56.93million by the county council. In anticipation of litigation, or a settlement, finances were earmarked as part of Derby City Council’s Medium-Term Finance Planning process for 2023 to 2024, meanwhile Derbyshire County Council has earmarked reserves to cover the settlement costs.

Beaumont Market to close in light of trading losses

Leicester city council has announced that Beaumont Market, located in Beaumont Leys, will close from September this year in light of current and predicted trading losses. The 15 traders currently operating there are being offered stalls at Leicester Market until planned redevelopment work begins in October. Peter Chandler, head of economic regeneration at the city council, said: “Shopping habits have changed since the market opened in the 1980’s, and there has been a gradual decline in shopping there over several years. This has resulted in fewer stallholders and a reduction in the income needed to give the market a viable future. “We are in the process of giving the current stallholders notice to leave, and talking to them about whether they wish to take up the offer of trading space at Leicester Market. “We realise this will be disappointing news and it is not a decision we have taken lightly. We will be doing all we can to help the traders find alternative places to trade, either at Leicester Market or in other suitable council-owned premises.” The council is looking at the options for selling the land on which the market operates, next to Beaumont Leys Shopping Centre. Work is set to begin on the redevelopment of Leicester’s historic city centre market in the autumn. During the refurbishment, traders at Leicester Market will be temporarily relocated to Green Dragon Square, behind the Corn Exchange. Improvements to Leicester Market will include more than 80 new stalls, new lighting, green roofs and solar panels, new paving around the market and more outdoor seating.

Main contractor chosen to deliver Nottingham’s new Green Heart

Nottingham-based Willmott Dixon has been confirmed as the main contractor to deliver the next phase of Nottingham City Council’s Broad Marsh Green Heart regeneration scheme. Procured through the SCAPE Construction framework, Willmott Dixon is already on-site nearby creating a new public space outside the new Central Library. Work will commence on the Green Heart this Autumn as a key element of the vision for Nottingham’s 20-acre Broad Marsh area, transforming a site that was previously a large shopping centre before it was demolished by Willmott Dixon in 2022, working closely alongside multi-disciplinary consultancy Pick Everard. Nick Heath, director at Willmott Dixon, said: “Nottingham’s Broad Marsh Green Heart vision is a regeneration project with valuable green space at its core. Green space is important for the beating heart of all urban environments, and brings major benefits too, according to the World Economic Forum’s ‘BiodiverCities by 2030’ report which looked at the importance of changing the relationship between nature and our towns and cities. “Having been responsible for the original shopping centre demolition in 2021-2022 and sharing insight on this complicated, historic site with interested parties throughout the process, we’re excited to be maintaining a role in the transformation and using our skills to deliver the next phase. “As a local business with a strong Nottingham presence, we’re looking forward to seeing an important area of the city re-emerge and provide benefits for people that live and work here – creating a new legacy to be proud of.” The Green Heart introduces green, ecologically rich areas and diverse natural spaces providing habitats and food for wildlife, forming a green infrastructure network linking the Broad Marsh area from Nottingham Castle through to the 36-acre Island Quarter regeneration site and beyond. A key aim is to put the ‘marsh’ back to the Broad Marsh, introducing new urban wetlands on land that was once a marshland ecosystem to capture, slow and filter rainwater, potentially preventing flooding and creating pockets of biodiversity. A long bench will arc through the planting and marsh allowing people to sit, enjoy and experience nature. Leader of Nottingham City Council, Cllr David Mellen, said: “More green space was by far the most popular response when we asked people what they would like to see happen around Broad Marsh as part of the huge Big Conversation engagement exercise the council ran a couple of years ago. “Anyone who has visited the area recently will see how much it has changed with lots of greenery, pedestrianised areas and seating. The creation of the Green Heart will take the transformation of Broad Marsh a major step further and be a beautiful addition to the city centre which is unique to Nottingham. I’m particularly pleased that Collin Street will be a family-friendly space that people can enjoy right outside the new Central Library.” Mark Robinson, Group Chief Executive at SCAPE, said: “It is fantastic to be supporting the next phase of this iconic regeneration scheme, with a nature-first design that will encourage rewilding and improve biodiversity. “With a laser focus on sustainability, the Green Heart will create a vibrant, unique space that reflects the changing needs of society for urban, city centre locations. Providing accessible green space is not only essential for supporting the health and wellbeing of Nottingham’s residents and visitors but it also plays a key role in helping Nottingham City Council achieve their target of becoming net zero by 2028.” The design of the Green Heart is unique to Nottingham and has been developed by Townshend Landscape Architects along with Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust with Ares supporting the contractor on the landscape design for the scheme.

Nutrition brand becomes latest tenant at Northern Gateway Enterprise Centre

Chesterfield’s Northern Gateway Enterprise Centre has welcomed nutritional supplement brand, Nuzest as its latest tenant. The business joins a list of several successful organisations to move to the centre in the heart of Chesterfield, which is now more than 80% occupied within its first year of opening. Nuzest’s Adrian Beckett, who will be working from the firm’s new Chesterfield location, said: “We have operated totally virtually as a team even before Covid. Having the Enterprise Centre available to us creates a new base for all things Nuzest in the UK. A place for us to collaborate in the same space and execute some exciting initiatives much faster. “Chesterfield is favourably located to our CEO plus some of our existing team, it has fantastic transport links and is centrally located for the rest of the team to access also. “The Enterprise Centre is an ideal home for us, it is the place where we see the business taking leaps and bounds in the coming year or two. We are focused on growing all of our main sales channels both in the UK but also the EU. We also have a healthy pipeline of new products which will start to feature online and in-store in the coming months, watch this space.”

The Nottingham sees strong performance in “pivotal six months”

The Nottingham has hailed a strong performance despite a volatile economic environment in what its CEO has referred to as a “pivotal six months” for the building society. In its half year report, for the six months ended 30 June 2023, the firm highlighted growth in mortgage lending as it continues its transformation plan. £457.1m in gross new lending represented an increase of £204.6m on the same period of 2022 (£252.5m), while pre-tax profits hit £11.7m, increasing from £11.3m. Total mortgage assets were £3.3bn, up from £2.9bn.

Sue Hayes, Chief Executive of The Nottingham, said: “This has been a pivotal six months for the Nottingham.

“Our strong performance in a volatile economic environment demonstrates the progress we have made towards transforming our building society. We know this has been a challenging time for our members and I am proud that we have done everything we can to support them, by passing on rate rises and paying savers the best rates we can.

“The last six months has seen the biggest impact on mortgage holders in 15 years, which is why we were one of the first to sign up to the new ‘Mortgage Charter’  ensuring our borrowers can access the best solutions for them and helping them through this challenging environment.

“As we look to the future, we will support an even broader range of people to own their own home, and we have introduced a range of lending criteria changes in recent weeks that will help enable this. In addition our partnership with Generation Home to make property ownership more achievable continues to develop strongly. We look forward to delivering on these goals during the second half of this year.”

Nomination deadline looms for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2023

As the nomination deadline (Thursday 31 August) draws nearer for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2023, don’t miss out on the opportunity to showcase your business, teams, outstanding developments and boost morale with an entry for the annual celebration of the property and construction industry. Taking place on Thursday 28 September, the Bricks shine a light on the exceptional work of those shaping the landscape of our region, recognising development projects and people in commercial and public building across the East Midlands – from offices, industrial and residential, through to community projects such as leisure schemes and schools. We also highlight the work of architects, agencies and those behind large schemes. The glittering awards ceremony revealing winners, at the famous Trent Bridge Cricket Ground, will also offer the ideal chance to establish new contacts with property and construction professionals from across the region. The event will additionally feature Mike Denby, Director of Inward Investment and Place Marketing at Leicester City Council, as keynote speaker. Entries for the awards are open until Thursday 31 August. To nominate your (or another) business/development for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2023, please click on a category link below or visit this page:
The Overall Winner of the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2023 will also be awarded a year of marketing/publicity worth £20,000.

Book your tickets now

Tickets can now be booked for the East Midlands Bricks Awards 2023 – click here to secure yours. The special awards evening and networking event will be held on Thursday 28 September 2023 in the Derek Randall Suite at the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground from 4:30pm – 7:30pm. Connect with local decision makers over canapés and complimentary drinks while applauding the outstanding companies and projects in our region, and hear from Mike Denby, Director of Inward Investment and Place Marketing at Leicester City Council, our keynote speaker. Dress code is standard business attire. Thanks to our sponsors:                                                             To be held at: