Gove visits future Mansfield Connect hub following successful Levelling Up bid

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Gove visits future Mansfield Connect hub following successful Levelling Up bid

Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, was in Mansfield yesterday (Thursday 18 May).

Mr Gove came to Mansfield to hear directly from local leaders about their ambitions to transform the town’s former Beales building into ‘Mansfield Connect’. The visit follows an announcement in January, which saw Mansfield District Council successful in its bid to the Government’s Levelling Up Fund for £20m to regenerate the site. The ring-fenced funding will see the old retail building in the town centre revitalised into a multi-agency hub – Mansfield Connect – that will house key partners in the district and become a one-stop shop for residents to access key services. Following the whistle-stop tour around the future hub, the minister then held a working lunch with council representatives, the Mayor and local stakeholders, including Mansfield BID and the Place Board, to discuss the challenges and opportunities through the forthcoming Levelling Up Partnership. Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, said: “One of the reasons I’m here today is to see how the Levelling Up Funding, the £20m secured to transform the Beales building site, is being spent. “Levelling Up means giving a town like Mansfield, which has a great heritage and a town in which its residents take enormous pride, it’s giving it a vote of confidence from the central Government. It’s giving it the extra cash required in order to attract high-paying jobs. One of the challenges we have got in this country is that in the past previous Government’s have tended to put their investment in London and the South East; we want to make sure the East Midlands plays its full part in the economic life of the country. “Today’s visit confirms that the £20m we’re spending will help transform this site and give the town centre that hub that it needs. New jobs, new investment from the public and private sector.” The Mansfield Connect scheme forms a vital part of the council’s ambitious long-term town centre regeneration plans, and it is hoped the repurposing of the building will then have a knock-on effect, stimulating the local economy and encouraging private-sector investment into the wider Mansfield district. Executive Mayor of Mansfield, Andy Abrahams, said: “Today gave us the opportunity to highlight our vision and aspirations for the heart of our town centre in Mansfield, as well as the economic challenges we face too. “We are unable to bring about regeneration change alone. We need funding, support and partnerships to make the very most of the opportunities afforded to us through initiatives such as the Towns Fund and Levelling Up Fund to help further encourage inward private investment to Mansfield.” Upon leaving Mansfield, the Secretary of State then went on to visit Infinity Park in Derby to discuss the upcoming devolution deal for the region and the possibility of Investment Zones.

Strike action to hit Derbyshire glass firm

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Strike action to hit Derbyshire glass firm
GMB members at Pilkington Plyglass will down tools next week in a dispute over pay. GMB union has announced two days of strike action at the glass manufacturer. Workers at the firm produce specialist glass materials, including for the building of Dubai’s Palm Tower and the Stonehenge visitors’ centre. The union says the strike comes after workers at the site “were offered real terms pay cut for a third year in a row.” The company have been criticised for disparity in pay between Pilkington sites, with workers in Derbyshire reportedly offered a pay package £750 less than counterparts in other parts of the UK business. Workers will strike on Wednesday 24 and Thursday 25 May. Norma Kerr, GMB organiser, said: “GMB members at Pilkington Plyglass undertake essential and highly skilled work producing glass for iconic buildings across the world. “This is a multi-national company, offering workers here in Derbyshire less than those a few miles up the road. Our members have been forced to the picket line to fight for the fair pay they so clearly deserve. “If Pilkington top brass thought GMB members were going to accept this sitting down; those expectations are about to be shattered.”

Record number of companies raising money through Enterprise Investment Scheme

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Record number of companies raising money through Enterprise Investment Scheme
New figures published by HMRC show that the number of companies raising money through the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) grew to a record high of 4,480 in 2021/22, a 19% rise compared to the previous year, with funding increasing to £2,305m, up by 39% over the same period. The figures show that usage of the EIS bounced back following the pandemic and even surpassed the levels prior to the pandemic. In 2019 to 2020, 4,215 companies raised a total of £1,905 million of funds under the EIS scheme. EIS investment in 2021/22 was largely concentrated in the Information and Communication sector which accounted for £785m of investment (34% of all EIS investment). The Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) offers tax reliefs to individuals who subscribe for new shares in a qualifying company. This allows EIS companies to raise up to £5m each year to grow their business, up to a maximum of £12m over a company’s lifetime. There are a number of qualifying rules for EIS. For example, the scheme applies only to companies that have a permanent establishment in the UK, are not listed on the stock exchange and do not have gross assets worth more than £15m before the EIS shares are issued (and not more than £16m immediately afterwards). The relief also only applies to new or relatively new companies, as EIS investment can only be received if it’s within seven years (10 years for knowledge intensive companies) of a company’s first commercial sale. The new data also shows a similar trend with respect to start-up companies raising funds under the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS). The number of companies raising money through the SEIS also grew to a record high of 2,270 in 2021/22, an 8% rise versus the previous year, with funding increasing by 16% over the same period. The Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme recently received a boost with increased limits from 6 April 2023. Under the SEIS, companies up to three years old (previously two years old) can receive a maximum of £250,000 (previously £150,000) of investment. Companies wishing to benefit from the SEIS must not have gross assets over £350,000 (previously £200,000) when the shares are issued and have fewer than 25 full-time employees. SEIS funds raised in 2023/24 are therefore expected to increase still further to provide valuable support for start-ups and young companies. Commenting on the new figures, David Brookes, tax partner at accountancy and business advisory firm BDO, said: “The latest figures show an encouraging rebound in the numbers of companies benefitting from the Enterprise Investment and Seed Enterprise Investment Schemes. Both offer valuable funding opportunities for new and growing businesses, particularly in the tech space, which are so crucial in helping to drive economic growth. “However, there are growing numbers of advance assurance applications for both EIS and SEIS that are being rejected which is a cause for concern. While it’s absolutely right that the tax authorities are alert to any attempt from parties to benefit from tax reliefs they are not entitled to, there is a growing sense that officials are being a little over-zealous in their interpretation of the rules which is hindering spin outs and follow-on funding for older companies. “The complexity of both schemes and their qualifying criteria are also barriers to greater take-up, and there is a strong case for reform. For example, although the gross asset limit for SEIS companies has increased from 6 April 2023, the gross asset test for EIS qualifying companies remains at £15m. This was a figure first introduced 25 years ago. Raising this threshold to take account of inflation could provide an important source of EIS funding for ambitious and growing mid-market businesses that are currently unable to access growth capital.”

Derbyshire science firm helps engineering charity carry on solving problems to help those with disabilities

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Derbyshire science firm helps engineering charity carry on solving problems to help those with disabilities
Scientists at a Derbyshire firm are helping out fellow engineers who have left the world of work and are now using their skills to help people with disabilities by making free bespoke aids. Through its charities and communities committee, Lubrizol – whose UK headquarters is based at Hazelwood near Belper – has once more given annual financial support to the highly innovative charity Remap, which makes specialist aids provided free to people with disabilities. Remap’s skilful volunteers are mainly engineers who like nothing better than to find solutions for people with disabilities who are having a specific problem for which there is no commercial solution. Over the years, Remap’s volunteers have kept their brains and hands busy coming up with a series of brilliant one-off devices to help people, including a book page-turner for children in Royal Derby Hospital who were in wheelchairs and not able to use their hands; a fork holder to help someone cut meat, who previously did not have that ability, and a specially built swimming pool staircase for a girl with a motor impairment who had become too heavy for her mother to carry. Mike Banks, a former Rolls-Royce engineer who now volunteers his skills with Derby, Burton & District Remap, said: “Engineers like nothing more than a challenge and then to solve it. If that challenge is going to restore a capability to a disabled person, then it’s three times as pleasurable!” Not only do Remap’s engineers use their creative minds to achieve results for people who have lost a specific capability, they are also highly resourceful at recycling odds and ends lying around the workshop. The book page-turner features clever use of a toothbrush and geared electric motors from two old screwdrivers, while Mike said another device he made for a person to be able to use a washing machine used the lifting mechanism taken out of an old bath seat. However, the charity also needs financial support to buy materials when a recycled solution cannot be found. There are also costs incurred when volunteers travel to get what they need. On average, each pound donated to Remap produces twenty pounds’ worth of equipment. Mike said: “I volunteer for Remap because I have received my education for free. I’ve got an engineering degree and it didn’t cost me a penny, but these days students have to pay an awful lot of money to get their qualifications. I really feel I have a duty to feed the knowledge that I have gained back into the community. It’s the way I feel about it. Being an engineer, we are able to provide this help to people who otherwise wouldn’t get help.” Clients are referred to Remap’s services if they require a solution for a problem and there is nothing available on the market that would fix it. The charity helps many people each year by making specifically tailored aids ranging from simple furniture additions to highly complex devices. Mike said the support from Lubrizol meant Remap was able to help more people referred to its services. He said: “We get a huge kick out of seeing what our work does when someone gets a competence back that they may have lost years ago, or even gains a competence that they have never had from birth. “It’s thanks to companies like Lubrizol that we’re able to continue to do this work, and we’re grateful to our fellow engineers for seeing the value in what we do at Remap and supporting us.” Tom Grazier, technology deployment manager at Lubrizol and co-chair of its charities and communities committee, said: “The work that Remap does is just fantastic. It just shows that once you’re an engineer, you’re always an engineer! “We have an engineering department here at Lubrizol and it’s great to see people who are no longer working as engineers continuing to use their professional skills in doing something so important for people who really need it. We support Remap every year and we’re delighted to carry on doing so.”

Great British Railways in jeopardy

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Great British Railways in jeopardy
Plans to repair the fragmented rail system in the UK through Great British Railways (GBR) are in jeopardy, as legislation to give key powers to the organisation could be delayed, with GBR said to not be a priority for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. It comes after Derby was chosen to be the national headquarters of the body in March 2023. Great British Railways is to be the new public body responsible for running Britain’s railways. It aims to deliver the most ambitious changes to our railways in a generation, working with the Government, across the rail sector and beyond. GBR would integrate the railways across the country, owning the infrastructure, collecting fare revenue, running and planning the network, and setting most fares and timetables. According to reports in The Times, however, GBR, will be left out of the upcoming King’s Speech, which sets out the legislative programme Government plans to pursue in the next parliamentary session, and thus not be given the legislative powers it requires to issue contracts and set fares – a major part of its role. The Times indicates that sources within the Department for Transport (DfT) have been told GBR is low on the priority list for Rishi Sunak. With powers not set be given to the body in the next parliamentary session, the publication notes that it is believed that a shadow GBR with less powers will be created. A DfT spokesperson, however, said the government is fully committed to reforming railways and will introduce legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Derby visual marketing company receive Innovation grant to help boost business

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Derby visual marketing company receive Innovation grant to help boost business
A Derby business says it will use money received from a government grant to help grow organisations in the city and boost the local economy. Visual marketing agency Briight are recipients of an Innovate UK grant that was made available to “develop and realise the potential of new ideas, including those from the UK’s world-class research base.” Directors Rob Dawes and Drew Taylour-Davis will use the money – almost £30,000 – to make a creative impact on the area. “The demand on digital and creative industries is huge right now,” said Rob, who has been running an agency with Drew for more than eight years. “We want our studio in Jubilee Business Park to be a creative hub. We want to be able to develop our studio space to increase our capacity and scale of projects, and be a fully functional space that will be hired out to other businesses and creatives in need of a large flexible filming space.” Rob and Drew have worked with some popular local businesses as well as campaigns for household names, including the BBC, Microsoft, and, most recently, HECK; the North Yorkshire-based supplier of sausages to most major supermarkets. They want to share their expertise with the next generation of creatives and creative entrepreneurs by giving local people work experience that could eventually lead to permanent roles within the company. Drew added: “Our ambition at Briight is to host a creative space that can help nurture talent and produce great work. “We want to push people locally to be more ambitious, understand the power of great visual marketing, and apply it at all levels.” The pair believe that post-covid, most young people in the creative industries are wanting a base from which to work and the latest statistics from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) back this up. From September 2022 to January 2023, there was a rise in hybrid working among 35-44 year-olds, who were the most likely to work hybridly. However, 65% of 16-24 year-olds said that they couldn’t work from home, citing reasons including lack of home-office space and equipment. Drew said: “Most companies gave up their office space after covid but for creative businesses like ours, it’s still essential for growth and development. “Creatives need that space and those colleagues who they can bounce ideas off. We’ll use the grant to help us make our workspace even more of a fun and inspiring place to be and somewhere that we can organically grow our team.”

Successful first tests for Rolls-Royce’s UltraFan technology demonstrator in Derby

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Successful first tests for Rolls-Royce’s UltraFan technology demonstrator in Derby
Rolls-Royce has successfully completed the first tests of its UltraFan technology demonstrator at its facility in Derby. The first tests were conducted using 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). This is an historic moment for Rolls-Royce – it’s the first time in 54 years the aero-engine manufacturer has tested a brand-new engine architecture and is proof of what can be achieved when industry and Governments work together. Confirming the capability of the suite of technologies incorporated in the demonstrator is a big step towards improving the efficiency of current and future aero-engines. UltraFan delivers a 10% efficiency improvement over the Trent XWB, which is already the world’s most efficient large aero engine in service. In the nearer term, there are options to transfer technologies from the UltraFan development programme to current Trent engines, providing customers with greater availability, reliability and efficiency. In the longer term, UltraFan’s scalable technology from ~25,000-110,000lb thrust offers the potential to power new narrowbody and widebody aircraft anticipated in the 2030s. Tufan Erginbilgic, CEO, Rolls-Royce plc, said: “The UltraFan demonstrator is a game changer – the technologies we are testing as part of this programme have the capability to improve the engines of today as well as the engines of tomorrow. “That is why this announcement is so important – we are witnessing history in the making; a step-change in engine efficiency improvement. When combined with Sustainable Aviation Fuels, more efficient gas turbine engines will be key to hitting the industry’s target of Net Zero flight by 2050. Today we are closer to achieving this ambition. “Collaboration is key in driving the decarbonisation of air travel and the UltraFan programme is a great example of what can be achieved when government and industry come together with a common purpose.” The tests took place in the world’s largest and smartest indoor aero-engine testing facility – Testbed 80. The 100% SAF, derived primarily from waste-based sustainable feedstocks such as used cooking oils, was provided by Air bp. Testing the demonstrator is the culmination of many years work, which has been supported by the UK Government through the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI), Innovate UK; the EU’s Clean Sky programmes plus LuFo and the State of Brandenburg in Germany. UK Business and Trade Secretary, Kemi Badenoch, said: “This cutting-edge technology will help the transition towards a greener future for aviation while attracting further investment into the UK’s aerospace industry, helping grow the economy. “I’m proud that the Government has backed this initiative through our Aerospace Technology Institute programme, and we will continue to work with manufacturers like Rolls-Royce as we seek to grow the UK’s share of the global aerospace market.” UltraFan has been a decade in the making, with the concept unveiled publicly in 2014.

Water and environment sustainability specialists relocate Derby premises

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Water and environment sustainability specialists relocate Derby premises
One of Ascot Drive’s most prominent industrial properties has been let to Stonbury, the water and environment sustainability specialists who work with the UK’s water companies and the Environment Agency. Stonbury have relocated their Derby premises to Unit 5 Sidney Robinson Business Park, Ascot Drive, in a deal facilitated by Salloway Property Consultants. William Speed, of Salloway Property Consultants, acted on behalf of a private landlord client to secure the new tenant for the 10,000 sq ft industrial unit shortly after the premises became vacant. William said: “There remains exceptionally high levels of occupier demand for industrial space of this nature – a point proven by the fact that were able to secure such a high-quality tenant within just one week of the property becoming vacant. “The property, which benefits from excellent visibility and access, will provide Stonbury with the perfect platform for their planned growth locally and I wish them all the best in their new premises.” Mark Coope, of Stonbury, said: “We are thrilled to be in our new premises and are settling in well already. We have big plans ahead of us and our new premises provides us with the scope and scale to meet these plans and more. “It was refreshing to deal with William from Salloway Property Consultants and we were extremely happy to be able to take occupation as soon as possible following the previous tenant vacating.”

Plans approved for bioscience development at The Island Quarter

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Plans approved for bioscience development at The Island Quarter

Nottingham City Council has approved Conygar’s detailed application for the next phase of The Island Quarter development in the city.

The application comprises a 249,000 sq ft bioscience building, which includes both laboratory and office space.

The permission is subject to the documenting of the section 106 agreement.

Robert Ware, Chief Executive of Conygar, said: “We are delighted that the next phase of development has been approved.

“Nottingham is already home to a large number of exciting businesses in the bioscience space and this scheme will be an excellent addition to the mixed-use development we are creating at The Island Quarter.”

Investment trust acquires significant minority stake in Cubo

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Investment trust acquires significant minority stake in Cubo
Literacy Capital has invested in Cubo, the Derby-headquartered flexible office provider, acquiring a significant minority stake and providing capital to fund further growth of the business. Founded in 2020 by property investors Marc and Rebecca Brough, Cubo has sites in Birmingham, Leeds, Nottingham, Sheffield and Derby. Earlier this year, Cubo announced plans to almost double its footprint by the end of 2023. New workspaces in Nottingham, Birmingham, Manchester and Edinburgh are set to open in the coming months with sites in other regional towns and cities in the pipeline. The investment from Literacy Capital will support Cubo’s expansion plans, which come at a time where the flex office market is experiencing unprecedented growth. Cubo joins a roster of portfolio companies including Grayce, Oxygen Freejumping, Butternut Box and Antler Homes. Marc Brough, CEO of Cubo, said: “We are committed to establishing a network of Cubo workspaces across the length and breadth of the UK. Our model of securing leases in prime locations across all the UK’s core cities is reaping massive benefits for our members with all our sites currently enjoying 98% occupancy. “The opportunity to work with Literacy Capital will enable us to secure further sites quickly and fit-out in multiple locations simultaneously to meet the growing needs of both existing members and other corporate occupiers who have committed to work with Cubo as the business grows a nationwide platform. “We look forward to capturing more of the market for hybrid working in 2023 and beyond.” Richard Pindar, CEO of Literacy Capital, added: “Marc and his team have built a solid track record of investment in flexible office space and client relationships in just three years, which is a great foundation for long-term success in a rapidly growing market. “Cubo is exactly the type of business we are looking to partner with, having executed its plan very well in regional cities which have been less well served by competitors. Cubo is also well positioned to double its footprint by the end of this year and progress plans further beyond this. “We are delighted to be supporting Marc and the business on their continued rollout and look forward to supporting the company as growth is maintained and accelerated following our investment.” Advisers on the deal were: Rigby & Co (Property Adviser); Brown J (Vendor Legal); Walker Morris (Vendor Property Legal); Deloitte (Corporate Finance); Marcussen (Tax); Addleshaw Goddard LLP (Investor Legal); Keystone (Investor); DSW (Investor Finance); GT (Vendor Finance).
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