East Midlands furniture manufacturer awarded £2m fitout contract in Scotland
Mansfield-based fitout specialist, Deanestor, has been awarded a contract worth over £2m by Robertson Construction Tayside for the new Monifieth Learning Campus in Angus. This brings Deanestor’s furniture and fitout work for Robertson in Scotland to 15 contracts, totalling around £17m.
Due to open in August 2025 and to be fully completed by summer 2026, the £66.5m facility and for around 1,200 pupils is designed to meet Passivhaus standards and will combine energy efficiency with a high level of user comfort.
Deanestor will fit out 379 spaces across the three-storey campus and will design and manufacture or procure more than 13,000 items of fitted and loose furniture and equipment for the project. These will include dining tables, chairs and seating, lockers, storage solutions, shelving, teaching walls, mobile cabinets, sports equipment, changing benches, musical instrument racks, and kitchens for life skills and home education.
According to William Tonkinson, CEO of Deanestor, “We are delighted to be working with Robertson once again – a longstanding Deanestor contractor client – and on our first education project for Angus Council.”
“The high quality standards we work to and our consistent on-time delivery of major and complex school fitout contracts meant we were well placed to be awarded this latest contract. We look forward to starting on site early next year.”
Councillor Beth Whiteside, Leader of Angus Council, said, “This new learning campus will have a hugely positive impact on the education of young people. Monifieth High School has high aspirations for all of its young people, and now it will soon have a building to match this ambition.”
The building’s construction and fitout will take place in a live school environment as the current Monifieth High School will remain operational until the new learning campus is built and ready for occupation. The existing school will then be demolished to make way for all-weather and grass sports pitches.
The 13,800m2 high school campus will feature a central atrium with a social stairs, a learning plaza around the dining hall, classrooms arranged over three storeys, an early learning and childcare facility, swimming pool and access for out-of-hours community use.
Bank of England holds interest rates at 5.25% for seventh time
The Bank of England has held interest rates for the seventh time, at 5.25%, in line with expectations.
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) sets monetary policy to meet the 2% inflation target, and in a way to help sustain growth and employment. At its meeting ending on 19 June 2024, the MPC voted by a majority of 7–2 to maintain Bank Rate at 5.25%. Two members preferred to reduce Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 5%.
Twelve-month CPI inflation fell to 2% in May from 3.2% in March, though is expected to rise slightly in the second half of this year.
Alpesh Paleja, Interim Deputy Chief Economist, CBI, said: “It’s unsurprising that the Monetary Policy Committee kept interest rates on hold this month. Recent data has been a bit of a mixed bag: while inflation is falling and the labour market is loosening, wage growth remains stubbornly strong and services inflation is higher than the Bank’s forecast. Signs of continued persistence in domestic price pressures will have prompted caution among the Committee.
“We still expect the MPC to cut rates in August, but this is not a done deal – they remain very data-driven, so the evolution of key indicators over the coming month will be key. Furthermore, the pace of any rate cuts beyond August is likely to be gradual, if the Bank remained concerned about the persistence of underlying price pressures.”
93,000 sq ft prime distribution warehouse sold in Leicester
MK2 Real Estate, acting on behalf of Royal London Asset Management Property, has sold Unit 21 Thorpe Way, Leicester, for an undisclosed sum.
The 93,000 sq ft prime distribution warehouse has been acquired by Wesleyan Assurance Society.
Located on Grove Business Park, in Enderby, Leicester, within the established logistics ‘Golden Triangle’, the unit is let to fashion retailer White Stuff until 2028 at an annual rent of £706,276.
MK2 was instructed to market the property for offers in excess of £11 million.
Mark Rooke, director in MK2 Real Estate’s investment team, said: “We are pleased to have concluded the sale of Unit 21 to Wesleyan Assurance Society, on behalf of Royal London Asset Management Property.
“The industrial and distribution market in Leicestershire has proven to be a strong performer over recent years, with rental growth above the national industry average. Coupled with high levels of demand for space in the region and a shortage of available and pipeline industrial stock, the investment fundamentals are compelling.”
Joe Curlett, head of property at Wesleyan Assurance Society, said: “The acquisition of Unit 21, Grove Park, Leicester, is a great addition to Wesleyan’s growing commercial property investment portfolio.”
Day aims to highlight role of women in engineering
Women working in Chesterfield’s manufacturing and engineering sector will be celebrated on Sunday as part of International Women in Engineering Day.
The day aims to raise awareness of careers in the sector for women, with 2021 figures showing that just 16.5% of engineers in the UK are female.
With many businesses in Chesterfield working to reduce skills gaps in their workforces, attracting a diverse range of skilled people is a key priority for the future, says Nick Catt, Destination Chesterfield Board Member and MD of Weightron Bilanciai.
He added: “Celebrating International Women in Engineering Day is not just about recognising the remarkable achievements of women engineers worldwide, but also about inspiring future generations to break barriers, innovate without limits, and reshape the world with their ingenuity and passion.
“I would strongly recommend that young women and girls across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire to look into what a rewarding career in our sector can offer. By encouraging more women to work in engineering, we are able to futureproof our businesses and help them to thrive for future generations.”
Mortgage broker wins three awards at national industry events
Chesterfield-based Mortgage 1st has won some of the most competitive categories in three nationally recognised industry events.
In the space of just 17 days, Mortgage 1st picked up awards at three financial and mortgage sector awards ceremonies:
• Mortgage Strategy Awards – Best Mortgage Broker
• Financial Reporter Awards – Broker Firm of the Year
• Legal & General Mortgage Club Awards – Best Broker Firm for Overall Quality
MD Jon Stones said: “This remarkable level of success is true testament to the skillset, culture and commitment of our amazing team at Mortgage 1st. To be recognised as the best mortgage broker firm in the UK across three separate awards events signals that we are very close to achieving exactly what we set out to 16 years ago.
“Being trusted to provide first class advice comes with huge responsibility, we aim to provide this as seamlessly as possible whilst keeping the customer at the heart of every improvement we make as a brand.
“We are still in a state of shock to be completely honest but thrilled that the judges and the readers of industry publications have recognised our achievements over the last 12 months. Winning these awards leaves us feeling immensely proud but also fuels our ambitions to enhance our offering even further.”
The business was established in 2008, but has since grown into a company with over 50 employees based at its head office just off junction 30 of the M1.
Bakery business takes on new premises in Market Harborough
The Garage Bakehouse is moving into a 1,500 sq ft unit at Market Harborough’s E1 Welland Business Park.
The bakery’s retail outlet is on Roman Way in the town – an area of huge commercial activity for Eddisons, where employees understand the bakery element of the business will move to E1 Welland Business Park to allow for business growth in expanding its current Roman Way setting.
Museum forms partnership with heating tech giant to build industry skills for the future
Derby Museums has formed a new partnership with Vaillant, bringing new investment to develop future engineering skills in the region.
Vaillant is the largest employer in Belper with additional sites across Derbyshire and is a manufacturer of heat pumps, boilers and complimenting heating system products. Having invested more than £50m into the region, it is now partnering with Derby Museums on a new suite of educational programmes designed to inspire the apprentices, engineers and makers of the future.
This partnership will also see Vaillant as the exclusive sponsor of the Assemble: Derby’s Making Festival which will be hosted on Saturday 26 October. For the next three years, Vaillant will collaborate on special workshops for visitors to get involved and understand low carbon alternatives in heating and new initiatives in education and skills development for the region.
Visitors to the Museum of Making will be able to learn more about a low carbon future through its new Power Pod display. The display showcases the innovations from both Vaillant and its sister brand Glow-worm, looking at heritage boilers from the past and heat pump technology for the future, alongside other industrial artefacts from Derby Museums’ collections.
The partnership will also see the creation of a ‘Launch into Engineering’ project – where secondary school pupils will be invited to spend time in the Museum of Making’s Workshop, visit the Vaillant manufacturing plant and get a taste of life in the heating industry.
Henrik Hansen, Managing Director of Vaillant in the UK & Ireland, said: “Our partnership with Derby Museums is a great way for us to celebrate our local manufacturing heritage. We’ve been in Derby for 90 years with Glow-worm and this year we are proud to celebrate 150 years with Vaillant.
“We are a major employer in the area and are looking to promote engineering and manufacturing in the region and to continue investing in Derby, making the city attractive for current and future generations.
“We value the opportunity to support Derby Museums through educating the public on manufacturing engineering skills. We are especially excited to link the partnership to our Apprenticeship programme with Derby College, as a major manufacturer in the region it is our responsibility to support and invest in our young people to secure the future of low carbon home heating.”
Cathy Putz, Director of Programmes at Derby Museums, said: “We are delighted to have secured the support of Vaillant through this multi-year partnership to support Derby Museums’ ambitions to grow, develop and inspire a community of makers and engineers in the area.
“The Museum of Making is committed to exploring Derbyshire’s making past, present and future and we are excited to be partnering with Vaillant to build on successful existing industry partnerships.
“In a world where sustainability and climate consciousness is paramount, through this partnership Vaillant is continuing this legacy of innovation and invention and aligns well with Derby Museums’ goals to empower makers and engineers of the future and facilitate discussions on how we might live in a more environmentally conscious way considering lower carbon alternatives.”
Duo of major student schemes get go-ahead in Nottingham
Two major student accommodation schemes have been approved for Nottingham, creating more than 980 new bedspaces in the city.
The first development, on Norton Street, on part of the former John Player factory in Radford, is to comprise two accommodation blocks of 7 storeys. Each block would accommodate a mix of studios and 3 to 10 bed cluster apartments, comprising 587 bedspaces in total.
The ground floor of ‘Block D’ would have extensive communal and ancillary areas including a lounge, study area, gym, spa, laundry room, and bike storage. A lounge area with roof garden is additionally included at level 7. ‘Block E’ would also have a lounge area at ground floor level. Landscaped outside space is to be provided within a ‘green heart’ area.
Hyson Green Developments are behind the plans for the site, currently a former car park.
The second development, which sits at the junction of Wilford Road and Traffic Street, involves the erection of an up to 17 storey building.
The site has historically been used for industrial and commercial purposes since the 1880’s and was latterly occupied by Sentinel House, used by Boots as offices and a laboratory. This was demolished and the site cleared in 2008. The site is currently hoarded and in use as a construction compound and parking area associated with the development of sites on Traffic Street.
The scheme comprises 396 bedrooms across a range of cluster flats and studios. The lower ground, ground and first floors would accommodate communal facilities such as a gym, cinema, private dining space, games area, amenity spaces, meeting rooms, a cycle store, laundry and waste storage facilities.
Externally, a sunken entrance space incorporates soft landscaping and tapering steps to provide informal seating, whilst a further courtyard space with soft landscaping and seating is also proposed. Jensco is behind the plans.
Harworth appoints development director for the Midlands
Harworth Group plc, a regenerator of land and property for sustainable development and investment, has appointed Gareth Thomas as development director for the Midlands region.
Reporting to Midlands regional director, David Cockroft, Gareth will be responsible for expanding the Midlands portfolio to support Harworth’s strategic growth ambitions, including progressing its major developments in the region. Gareth has over 15 years’ experience in the private and public sector, having held senior leadership positions at both JLL and Deloitte, advising a range of institutional investors, financiers and property companies on commercial acquisitions and lending across the UK. Prior to joining Harworth, Gareth led the development team at The Coal Authority, which is sponsored by the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero. Whilst there, Gareth also led teams that advised on land management, acquisitions and disposals, as well as leading its permitting and planning functions across Great Britain. David Cockroft, regional director – Midlands, Harworth Group, said: “Gareth is an excellent addition to the team at Harworth and strengthens our capabilities in the Midlands region. Gareth’s senior expertise and extensive experience will help drive growth in the region and support the successful delivery of a wide range of projects.”Derbyshire entrepreneur purchases golf club with multi-million pound transformation plans
Charjen Capital has purchased the 19th century Horsley Lodge Golf Club in Derbyshire for an undisclosed sum – with long-term, multi-million pound plans to transform the 200-acre site into one of the UK’s outstanding golf and lifestyle destinations.
Led by Derbyshire-based entrepreneur Marc Brough, Charjen has kickstarted its overarching programme by enhancing the existing golf course and members’ areas – as well as refurbishing 14 hotel rooms and creating two new ones. In just three months since the purchase, Charjen has invested £500,000 on works to the golf course and equipment, members’ area and bar.
With further significant investment on the horizon, Charjen has kicked off further plans for Horsley Lodge by applying for planning permission to demolish existing conservatories within the main members’ building to create brand new restaurants and terraces for member and non-members alike.
Originally built by the Earl of Sitwell as a wedding present for his son in 1863, Horsley Lodge has earned a reputation as one of Derbyshire’s finest golf courses, country hotels and wedding venues, set in the foothills of the Peak District.
Marc Brough of Charjen said: “We saw an opportunity to own one of Derbyshire’s finest golf courses in a stunning location and have grand plans to enhance the golf course itself – as well as upgrade the hotel and venue space in a sensitive and sustainable manner.
“We have a three-year strategy to make the most of this vast, stunning destination, creating a larger wedding venue, enhanced facilities for golfers – including a new driving range with simulators – more rooms for guests to stay and, of course, an elevated dining experience for all, supporting local producers.
“We intend to build on the existing success of Horsley Lodge – investing in a planned programme of works. We have short-term plans for refurbishment which includes the upgrading of the current wedding venue on site, and longer-term plans to create fantastic new facilities.”
The former Horsley manor house was restored by the Salt family creating the golf club itself, retaining the original character and charm – from the sweeping drive into the exposed limestone walls and original tiled floors.
In its current application to Amber Valley Borough Council, Charjen’s architect Sigma has set out transformational designs to create a high-end brasserie of 85 covers, a signature fine dining space with 18 covers and a chef’s table for eight people and private dining space for 22. There will be a kitchen garden growing produce for the restaurants and providing a stunning backdrop for diners – overlooking the garden and ninth hole. If planning is approved, the restaurants are expected to open later this year.
“We are really excited about the new restaurants – creating a destination for diners locally and nationally and using the finest local producers in Derbyshire. Horsley Lodge will be opening its doors to members and non-members alike to enjoy all the fantastic upcoming facilities that we have in store,” added Marc.
“The golf course will be at its core – and one we want to appeal to local and regional golfers and guests, but also create a venue that appeals to a national audience with the ‘Soho House’ crowd in mind,” he said.
“We intend to put Horsley Lodge on the map as a great place to play golf, stay a few days, enjoy our fantastic dining experiences and leisure facilities – and of course, to enjoy this stunning part of Derbyshire and all that it has to offer.”
In the longer term, Charjen intends to build a new wedding venue with space for hundreds of guests, further accommodation throughout the estate, a new state-of-the-art driving range and simulators, high end spa facilities and swimming pools.
Charjen purchased Horsley Lodge from the Salt family. Lawyers involved in the deal were Browne Jacobson.
