Biffa has been awarded the City of Lincoln Council’s £5.5m-a-year waste/recycling and street cleansing contract, starting on 1 September 2026 and running for at least eight years.
This redesigned, respecified, and repackaged contract reflects the council’s commitment to delivering improved efficiency, enhanced sustainability, and high standards of service for Lincoln’s community.
The waste/recycling service includes comprehensive collection of residual waste, dry recycling, garden waste, and clinical waste.
The street cleansing service includes street sweeping, litter collection, fly-tipping removal, clearing abandoned vehicles, and graffiti cleaning.
The new contract will also include improved environmental credentials, including the use of electric vans and solar panels at the depot.
The tender process attracted significant interest from leading industry players, ensuring a strong competition. Biffa’s bid was selected based on a combination of factors to assess the value for money that each tenderer provided.
The award has been made in good time to permit opportunity for specialist vehicle procurement, and opportunity to plan for the delivery of the various changes required by the new contract format.
This new partnership emphasises sustainability, aligning with the council’s vision for a cleaner, greener Lincoln. Key investment in new vehicles and modern IT, will ensure the city’s services continue to develop positively while reducing the environmental impact.
Cllr Bob Bushell at City of Lincoln Council, said: “This new contract represents a significant step forward in how we manage waste and ensure our city’s cleanliness.
“As a council, we’ve incorporated innovative and environmentally friendly measures to meet the evolving needs of our community and to address our upcoming Vision 2030’s priority, ‘Let’s address the challenge of climate change’.
“City of Lincoln Council is proud to have secured a contract that balances quality, cost, and environmental responsibility for the benefit of Lincoln residents and visitors alike.”
Battery-operated trains in Germany demonstrate the future for the UK rail network
Innovative technology behind Siemens Mobility’s British battery trains has been rolled out in the East Brandenburg network in Germany.
More than 30 of the company’s Mireo Plus B trains are being phased in on the Berlin Brandenburg metropolitan region, and are said to be the latest proof of the technology that underpins the Desiro Verve project in Britain, which would be assembled at Siemens Mobility’s new Train Manufacturing Facility in Goole.
Sambit Banerjee, Joint CEO at Siemens Mobility UK & Ireland, said: “It’s fantastic to see the innovative technology that will underpin our British Desiro Verve trains already being put into action. The completion of these latest journeys demonstrates that the technology for our British battery trains is here, is working and is ready to transform rail travel.
“The Desiro Verve would be assembled at our state-of-the-art Goole Rail Village in Yorkshire and offers an integrated solution to replace Britain’s aging diesel trains without having to electrify hundreds of miles of track, saving the country £3.5 billion over 35 years and providing a practical path to decarbonising British railways.”
In June, Siemens Mobility identified how the Desiro Verve could save Britain’s railways £3.5 billion over 35 years compared with using diesel-battery-electric ‘tri-mode’ trains. This would support the Government’s aim of removing diesel-only trains from Britain’s railways by 2040.
The British trains would be powered by overhead wires on already electrified routes, then switch to battery power where there are no wires. That means only small sections of the routes and/or particular stations have to be electrified with overhead line equipment, making it much quicker and less disruptive to replace diesel trains compared to full electrification.
Doncaster Chamber awards business prizes
More than 900 people attended the 26th Doncaster Business Awards ceremony organised by the Chamber of Commerce.
Dan Fell, the Chamber Chief Exec said: “A dependable highlight in the calendar, the Awards always showcases our city’s business community at its finest. And while the competition is fierce year after year, I must confess to being absolutely bowled over by the calibre of 2024’s various nominees & winners.
“The judges have selected some truly incredible organisations and entrepreneurs, all of whom are a credit to Doncaster. Indeed, the astounding entrepreneurialism, fierce tenacity, bold innovation, inspiring behaviour, and general excellence on display last night was quite something to behold.
“It was therefore an immense privilege to be in the room with everyone celebrating all of the exemplary success stories that are unfolding right here on our doorstep and it instilled with me great confidence about where Doncaster is heading in the future. With that said, I would like to thank everyone who made this inspiring evening possible, from our hosts at Doncaster racecourse right through to our amazing roster of finalists, our generous sponsors and, of course, the fantastic team I am privileged to lead at the Chamber.”
A special lifetime achievement prize was given to Richard Sprenger, Founder and Chair of the market-leading Highfield. President of Doncaster Chamber, Fabian Braithwaite, said: “It was a privilege to present this accolade to Richard, who has done so much to put our city on the map and whose individual contributions cannot be understated. Indeed, over the course of his storied career, Richard has been a distinguished pilar of the community and a great ambassador for South Yorkshire on the international stage.”
The winners were- Lifetime Achievement Award – Sponsored by DN Colleges Group Richard Sprenger, Chairman of Highfield – Winner People’s Choice Award Exceed Learning Partnership – Winner
- Campaign of the Year – Sponsored by MultiWebMarketingYorkshire Wildlife Park – Winner
- Self-Employed Person of the Year – Sponsored by Yorkshire Wildlife ParkQuinlan Couture Bridal – Winner
- Partnership of the Year – Sponsored by Polypipe Building ProductsClub Doncaster Foundation – Winner
- Green Business of the Year – Sponsored by The University of Sheffield and South Yorkshire Sustainability CentreEnviro Electronics – Winner
- Micro Business of the Year – Sponsored by Aggregates R UsBerjen – Winner
- Local Impact of the Year – Sponsored by Westfield Health First Bus – Winner
- Charity of the Year – Sponsored by Eco-Power GroupFlourish Enterprises – Winner
- Medium Business of the Year – Sponsored by King Asia FoodsUrban Burgers Group LTD – Winner
- New Business of the Year – Sponsored by Launchpad Stride Yorkshire – Winner
- Innovation of the Year – Sponsored by Haith GroupAutomated Analytics – Winner
- Apprentice of the Year – Sponsored by the South Yorkshire Apprenticeship Hub Liam Thorton – Certex – Winner
- Small Business of the Year – Sponsored by Sheffield Hallam UniversityBST Detectable Products – Winner
- Employer of the Year – Sponsored by Orb RecruitmentDolphin ICT – Winner
- Education Provider of the Year – Sponsored by KeepmoatTrinity Academy – Winner
- Customer Service of the Year – Sponsored by HandelsbankenFireplace Studio – Winner
- Large Business of the Year – Sponsored by TwentyFour IT ServicesHighfield Group – Winner
UK becomes first European nation to join global trade bloc
The UK has become a fully-fledged member the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, potentially boosting the UK economy by up to £2 billion a year.
CPTPP is a major trade bloc whose members – Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and now the UK – have a combined GDP of £12 trillion.
Membership means that businesses will face lower tariffs and fewer barriers when selling to economies across three continents, with the financial services, manufacturing and food and drink sectors in particular set to benefit.
CPTPP is designed to expand over time, further growing the economic and strategic benefits of the agreement. Costa Rica was recently announced as the next country to go through the process of joining, and other economies such as Indonesia – the largest economy in Southeast Asia, with a GDP of over £1 trillion and home to around 280 million people in 2023 – have already expressed an eagerness to join the bloc.
CEO of HSBC UK Ian Stuart said: “Being part of the CPTPP signals that the UK is open for business with some of the world’s most exciting growth markets. Since the announcement of the UK’s accession in July 2023, we have seen an increase in payments between the CPTPP markets and the UK, and we expect this growth to continue.
“As the world’s leading trade bank, with deep roots across many CPTPP countries, we are well-positioned to connect UK businesses with growth opportunities in markets such as Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Australia.”
Yorkshire firm wins prestigious prize for electricity generation technology
Elland-based green energy business FeTu has won one of applied physics’ most prestigious
accolades, the Institute of Physics Business Innovation Award.
The award recognises the company’s work in developing technology converts low-
temperature waste heat into electricity, and building it into a viable commercial enterprise
with a product that the IOP judges described as a “revolutionary heat engine”.
FeTu technology enables industrial firms to recover their waste heat and convert it to electricity, vastly reducing both energy costs and carbon emissions.
Founded in 2016 by Yorkshire-born designer Jon Fenton, FeTu has grown to a team of 15, securing over £12m in sponsorship, investment and grants. In October the firm established a new manufacturing arm in Huddersfield to enable the commercial roll-out of its clean-energy technology with a pan-European pilot programme. A group of blue-chip food production firms, data centres and industrial manufacturers are rigorously trialling the product this winter.
Mr Fenton said: “It is a real honour to receive this award. FeTu is a beautiful example of British ingenuity, overcoming the impossible to enable access to abundant green energy sources that already exist.
“Our ability to generate electricity from heat sources as low as 40°C is a critical development for the UK to recover £4bn in industrial waste heat into free, green electricity.”
Local authority backs small farms with funds from council reserves
Lincolshire County Councillors are to offer more financial support to family farms and to write to Government to express concern about the impact of recent government announcements on family farms and businesses in Lincolnshire.
The money will come from council reserves to support the Lincolnshire Rural Support Network and the Business Growth Hub.
Council Leader Martin Hill said:“We have a proud agricultural heritage and landscape in Lincolnshire and our farms contribute strongly to the nation’s food needs.
“With so many agricultural and food manufacturing businesses, we’re concerned about the impact of some of the recent government announcements.
“Today, we pledged to do all within our powers to protect our farming community, including urgently writing to the government to explain the impacts on removing Inheritance Tax Relief on farmland and restrictions on Business Asset relief.
“The removal of these, combined with employer National Insurance increases, will have a devastating impact on small farms and businesses which are the heartbeat of our county. On top of the other pressures facing the industry, including through new environmental legislation, many may not survive in the future.
“With this and plans for massive amounts of industrial infrastructure including pylons, huge solar farms and onshore wind turbines with no direct benefits to our residents on top of increased house building, it is no surprise that rural counties like Lincolnshire are feeling under threat.
“The future of our own finances is also uncertain with the recent announcement of the £9.4m Rural Services Delivery Grant removal by government. However, we have committed to increasing our financial support to the Lincolnshire Rural Services Network who help farmers with a whole range of issues, and to Business Lincolnshire to provide more specialist Growth Hub advice to small rural businesses.”
HBD and Feldberg Capital launch Origin mid-box industrial and logistics platform seeded with c.£100m development portfolio
HBD, the property investment and development arm of Henry Boot, has formed a UK focused industrial and logistics platform in joint venture with Feldberg Capital, the specialist in rapidly scaling sustainability-focused real estate ventures in high-growth sectors.
The platform will be known as Origin, with seed assets including the first phase of SPARK, a major employment scheme in Walsall.
With a GDV of £53m, the 13-acre first phase of SPARK has full planning consent and comprises two units totalling 270,000 sq ft. Work will begin on the construction of the first phase in February 2025.
Origin, subject to market conditions, intends to deliver circa £1bn of high-quality industrial and logistics schemes across the UK over the next seven years. Alongside SPARK, two further HBD schemes will be among the seed assets; ARK, a new £19m GDV development at Markham Vale in Derbyshire, and INTER a £27m GDV development in Welwyn Garden City.
All three initial sites have the potential to deliver around 450,000 sq ft of prime industrial and logistics space, with the construction of each to commence in H1 2025 for delivery from H2 2025. All developments will target market leading ESG credentials, including BREEAM Excellent and EPC A.
The venture will draw on both HBD’s development pipeline as well as acquiring sites from third parties for further pre-let and speculative industrial and logistics development.
Ed Hutchinson, Managing Director of HBD, said: “We are delighted to be able to announce the launch of Origin which will strategically help HBD to expand its industrial and logistics pipeline across the UK.
“The first phase of SPARK is one of the seed assets within the new venture, with the first two units expected to start on site early next year. Feldberg Capital share our commitment to ESG and sustainable development and SPARK is no exception, with net zero carbon, BREEAM Excellent units ready to occupy from H2 2025.”
David Turner, Managing Partner at Feldberg Capital, said: “Having held back from the industrial and logistics market while assets looked overpriced, we believe now is a highly attractive entry point, with land values having come down over the last 24 months and entry yields being at more sustainable levels.
“The positive tail winds within the sector remain, driven by structural trends including the continued growth of e-commerce and more firms serving the UK market looking to ‘onshore’ their production here in the face of a shifting regulatory and geopolitical backdrop.
“Our aim is for Origin to become a market leader in the mid-box space. We’re excited to be working together with HBD, using our tried-and-tested ESG framework to deliver the next generation of units for modern, environmentally responsible occupiers, and driving strong risk-adjusted returns for our investors in the process.”
Origin is immediately well capitalised and will own and develop next generation, ESG compliant industrial and logistics assets, predominantly in the mid box market, across the UK. The venture will be seeded with an initial portfolio of three sites from HBD’s pipeline with a combined GDV of c.£100m (HBD share: £25m).
HBD has a 25% share of the joint venture, while Feldberg Capital will hold a 75% share. HBD will be the development manager, receiving a fee for doing so, and Feldberg Capital will act as investment manager.
Shoosmiths and Linklaters advised Feldberg Capital and HBD was advised by Pinsent Masons.
Major expansion set for Production Park
Production Park in West Yorkshire is making its most significant investment so far with a major expansion of its facilities. By 2025, the campus will grow to 145,000 square feet of state-of-the-art studio space, solidifying its position as the largest production studio campus in the North of England.
This expansion reflects the increasing demand for cutting-edge production spaces. The newly acquired space will include four additional production studios tailored for live music and film, as well as expanded facilities for education and collaboration with supply chain partners.
Production Park’s expanded facilities will enhance its ability to host live music rehearsals, TV, film, and commercial productions, as well as specialised education programmes. The Academy of Live Technology, housed within the park, will benefit from a larger campus to deliver innovative training programs, preparing the next generation of professionals in live entertainment and creative industries.
Additionally, the new space will provide room for supply chain partners, encouraging closer collaboration and boosting the efficiency of the live events ecosystem.
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said: “This expansion solidifies Production Park’s reputation as the leading live experience production hub in the North of England, and one of the best and the biggest in Europe.
“As a major player in driving the success of our creative industries, this game-changing investment will pave the way for even greater innovation and collaboration, attracting world-class TV, film and live productions to our great region to create jobs and grow the economy.
“With this expansion, Production Park will boost the opportunities for creative talent to thrive in West Yorkshire for generations to come, helping us create a stronger, brighter region.”
Councillor Michael Graham, Wakefield Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Growth, said: “Production Park’s reputation in the industry is second to none in Europe. And it’s fantastic to have a locally based business at the very top of its game.
“Expanding its facilities can bring even more business into our district, which means more jobs and investment locally.
“I was delighted to agree the £3.2m funding that will keep Production Park going from strength to strength. And continue to grow Wakefield and West Yorkshire’s reputation as the home of world class creative industries.”
Lee Brooks, CEO of Production Park, said: “Production Park’s expansion represents a transformative step forward for our business and the creative industries.
“By increasing our studios offering to 145,000 square feet, we’re not only enhancing the scale and scope of services we provide but also firmly positioning Production Park as the largest multi purpose production campus in the North of England.
“This investment ensures we can meet the growing global demand for world-class production facilities while fostering closer collaboration within our ecosystem of live events, music, and TV & film production. It’s a testament to our vision of delivering unmatched value to our clients and partners.”
The phased expansion will begin in early 2025, with the first new studios for live music and film production expected to open in the second quarter of the year.
Wakefield cyber security firm secures backing for growth
Palatine Growth Credit’s Growth Credit Fund has completed a deal to provide growth capital to tech businesses Talion, a BAE Systems spin-out.
Headquartered in Wakefield, Talion provides defence industry-grade cyber security services to large corporates around the world.
Employing security, information and event management (SIEM) technology and a designated Security Operations Centre (SOC), it offers end-to-end cyber services including threat detection and response, dark web tracing and sensitive data storage.
The business was originally established as BAE Systems’ Cyber Security Unit, set-up at the request of the UK Government to provide critical infrastructure protection for the 2012 Olympic games. In 2020, Talion was formed through a management buy-out led by Keven Knight and Mike Brown. It has grown to annual revenues of £7.5 million.
Palatine are providing the business with £3 million of growth credit to support Talion’s organic growth and team expansion. The business also has VC backing from Mercia Asset Management.
Ryan Sorby, Partner and Head of North at Palatine Growth Credit, said: “Talion has an exceptional product which provides a best-in-class, end-to-end cyber security for a high-profile and distinguished client base.
“Cyber security is a competitive and growing market and Talion is a genuine front runner focussing on continuous product innovation and exceptional client service.
“We’re thrilled to have completed Palatine Growth Credit’s first deal in West Yorkshire.”
Mike Brown, CEO at Talion, said: “Talion is thrilled to have Palatine’s support as we look to increase our headcount further and accelerate our growth within the cyber security industry.”
Palatine received legal support from Anna Robson and the team at Shoosmiths.
Lindum Group gets permission for Newark development
Lincoln-based Lindum Group has been granted outline planning permission for a commercial development at Overfield Park in Newark.
The consent allows up to 130,000 sq ft of industrial, storage, distribution, R&D and office space, where it is expected up to 120 new jobs will be created.
Overfield Park is a 21-acre site off Godfrey Drive, at the intersection of the A1, A17 and A46, which presents an ideal opportunity to create high quality business units with national transport connectivity.
Newark and Sherwood District Council’s planning committee approved the development, with detailed design for individual units, including sustainable build features such as solar panels, low carbon materials and EV charging points, to be submitted during the detailed design stage.
Travel plans will also feature in future reserved matters planning applications, to help promote and secure sustainable travel provision for site occupants.
Dean Bower, Senior Development Manager, Lindum Group, said: “This is another big milestone at Overfield Park, adding to the previously developed Farol dealership, Wirtgen UK head office and Starbucks restaurant.
“New build development of this bespoke nature is limited in the area and this planning permission will allow further high-quality complimentary development to be delivered in the next 12-18 months to meet occupier demands.”
