New Yorkshire partnership aims to support start-up businesses nationwide

Stuart Pearcey
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New Yorkshire partnership aims to support start-up businesses nationwide
Business experts at Leeds Beckett University have teamed up with marketing agency, GOLD79, in a new partnership to boost the long-term growth and sustainability of start-up businesses across the UK.
A new programme – GOLD79 MINE – has been launched as a collaboration between Leeds Business School at Leeds Beckett and GOLD79. The programme will support talented and entrepreneurial individuals who want to start their own businesses through academic consultancy, expert business support services, mentoring, networking, business infrastructure and financial support. GOLD79, which has offices in Leeds and London, will also invest a minimum of 10 per cent of its profits into an investment fund for MINE members each year. Professor Lebene Soga, Academic Director of the Centre for Entrepreneurship and Knowledge Exchange at Leeds Business School, said: “GOLD79’s collaboration with Leeds Beckett University in the launch of GOLD79 MINE is a testament to our shared commitment to fostering innovation in the vibrant Leeds City Region and beyond. “Through GOLD79 MINE, we aim to provide a dynamic environment for students, graduates, academics and wider talent from the marketing industry to collaborate with entrepreneurial minds, echoing our dedication to driving growth and sustainability in the marketing agency scene. “This partnership exemplifies our role as an anchor institution, proudly working alongside GOLD79 to offer a central hub in Leeds for engaging with entrepreneurial marketing people, supporting their resilience, and contributing to the overall success for our community.” A key criterion for all businesses applying to the MINE programme is that they must operate within the guidelines and parameters of both B-Corp and Net Zero. A series of 12 modules will be delivered over the course of the 12-month programme, with a selection of sessions delivered by Leeds Business School at The Knowledge Exchange business hub at the Rose Bowl in Leeds city centre. Professor Soga has inputted his academic know-how into all modules across the programme, which will be delivered by a range of academic and industry experts across a broad range of themes. Tamarind Wilson-Flint, co-Founder of GOLD79, said: “We’ve always believed in the transformative power of entrepreneurship. From our beginnings 20 years ago with Jet2.com and Jet2holidays as our first and only client, to becoming industry leaders with a global presence through our L’Attitude network, our journey has been shaped by our ability to spot new opportunities and grow our business. “Now, the launch of the MINE Programme represents a new chapter for GOLD79. We’re not just looking to the future; we’re actively shaping it. By fostering a community of entrepreneurs, we hope to create a ripple effect that extends far beyond our immediate reach. Our partnership with Leeds Beckett University underscores our commitment to education, innovation, and community engagement. “Entrepreneurship has the power to transform lives, economies, and societies. It’s a path filled with challenges, but also immense rewards. Through MINE, we’re excited to support the next wave of entrepreneurs, helping them navigate their journeys and achieve their dreams.”

Business golfers raise £22,000 for Sheffield Hospitals Charity

Stuart Pearcey
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Business golfers raise £22,000 for Sheffield Hospitals Charity
Sheffield businesses have raised more than £22,200 for Sheffield Hospitals Charity at their annual golf day at Hallamshire Golf Club. The annual event which has been supported by IFM Insurance Brokers over the past nine years has raised a cumulative total of more than £201k. The Golf Day attracted over 40 teams drawn from local South Yorkshire businesses, and the money raised will support neurology and neurosciences at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS FT Trust. Alister Smith, Director of IFM Insurance said: “Once again it was great to see so many familiar faces supporting the golf day. The monies raised from this event form a vital part of the ongoing funding of neurology related support in Sheffield, and we are pleased to have played a small part in raising such an amazing sum of money.” Beth Crackles, CEO of Sheffield Hospitals Charity said: “A huge thank you to IFM Insurance Brokers Ltd for their ongoing support and to everyone who took part in what was an incredible day. This year we are funding an outdoor rehabilitation area at the Northern General, so that neurology patients have a dedicated space to begin regaining their physical independence outside of the ward. “In research, we recently committed to funding the exploration of potential links between abnormalities in the immune system and epilepsy. We are also continuing to fund research into FSHD – a degenerative neuromuscular disease. The funds we raise make such a big difference to people across Sheffield receiving care and benefitting from research.”

Yorkshire Building Society employees’ Three Peaks Trek raises £48k for FareShare

Stuart Pearcey
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Yorkshire Building Society employees’ Three Peaks Trek raises £48k for FareShare
Yorkshire Building Society employees have raised more than £48,000 for FareShare, the UK’s largest charity tackling the environmental problem of food waste for social good, by taking on the Yorkshire Three Peaks. Almost 250 colleagues took part in a 10 or 26 mile walk, in torrential rain, wind and even some sunshine, to raise money for the Society’s charity partner. The money raised will fund Building Skills for the Future programmes in seven of FareShare’s regional centres, including London, Bristol, Merseyside, Milton Keynes, Yorkshire, Edinburgh, and Cardiff. The employability programme supports people who are unemployed into good, sustainable work, addressing one of the root causes of poverty. The Building Skills for the Future programme offers participants coaching, support, practical workshops and work experience to help them to gain full-time employment. In addition, the partnership will fund an outreach programme offering free, face-to-face sessions and workshops helping participants overcome financial hardship by supporting the building of important skills such as CV writing, job searching and improving financial wellbeing. It is hoped that the two programmes will help 2,500 people improve their employability and help them become more financially resilient. Tom Simpson, MD of YBS Commercial Mortgages, said: “The walk itself was really challenging but everyone was so determined to complete it and raise as much money as possible for FareShare, Yorkshire Building Society’s charity partner. “We’re delighted that we’ve managed to raise over £48,000 so far, which will help towards our target of raising £1million to fund Building Skills for the Future programmes that will help to lift over 2,500 people out of financial hardship.” Polly Bianchi, Director of Fundraising at FareShare, said: “We’re hugely grateful to all the Yorkshire Building Society colleagues who took on this challenge in support of FareShare. “The Building Skills for the Future employability programme, funded by Yorkshire Building Society, will help thousands of people seek long-term employment, as part of our important work to provide a hand up not a hand out to communities across the UK.”

Leeds design and interiors business acquired to ensure employment for staff following market challenges

Tess Egginton
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Leeds design and interiors business acquired to ensure employment for staff following market challenges
Design and interiors business Dowsing & Reynolds has been acquired in a deal that will help it deliver future growth. Following a recent business restructure and a considered move to enter into an administration process, Dowsing & Reynolds has been acquired by its existing owners, Ally & James Dowsing-Reynolds. This action has been taken to ensure the stability and security of all current positions within the company following a significant post-pandemic market downturn and a challenging economic climate. Since launching in 2013, D&R has become an established brand producing design-led fixtures and fittings such as statement lighting and sockets and switches, appearing in The Times Top 100 list. However, with unprecedented challenges from the pandemic and economic instability causing lower consumer confidence, compounded by the pressures of the ongoing cost of living crisis and the dampened housing market, the industry has been profoundly impacted. Co-founder James Dowsing-Reynolds explains: “We have restructured the whole business to become more streamlined and this acquisition has been able to secure everyone’s jobs and the future of the brand. “Our primary focus has been, and will always be, the welfare and security of our dedicated staff, whose hard work and loyalty have been fundamental to our operations. We are committed to maintaining continuity and are grateful for the unwavering support and loyalty from our employees, customers, and suppliers during these times. “As we embark on this next step of our journey, our commitment to excellence in design remains unchanged. Our team is enthusiastic about the opportunities ahead. We are implementing robust strategies to enhance our operational efficiencies and product offerings, ensuring that Dowsing & Reynolds continues to meet the needs of our customers with high-quality products which help them to create homes and commercial spaces that are loved. We feel really positive about the future.”

Wakefield-based YPO appoints head of procurement

Stuart Pearcey
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Wakefield-based YPO appoints head of procurement
Wakefield-based YPO has appointed Michelle Walker to a new role as head of procurement services. She will lead on forming strategic stakeholder partnerships, nurturing strong internal relationships and collaborating with customers within the supply chain of YPO, one of the UK’s largest public buying sector organisations. She said: “It’s exciting to begin this role at such a pivotal time in the industry, and I am looking forward to strategically working with leaders across YPO and its partners to build opportunities that can develop and grow the organisation whilst delivering an outstanding service.” Simon Hill, MD at YPO, added: “Michelle joins us with a wealth of experience in public sector procurement, working at the NHS for over 20 years in total. She has led teams through some of the most challenging times, such as the pandemic, and truly has a passion for making a difference. The board and I look forward to working with Michelle closely to shape YPO’s procurement strategy for the future.” Michelle is an award-winning procurement professional with extensive experience in the public sector, specifically within the NHS and higher education at Sheffield Hallam University. For the past 15 years she has held a position within the NHS North of England Commercial Procurement Collaborative in Sheffield, with her most recent role seeing her lead a team within the Healthcare Services and Pharmacy category. As well as her category work, Michelle conceptualised and delivered a well-regarded suite of training for procurement and non-procurement staff on a national scale, contributing as a keynote speaker at numerous national events. Michelle also teaches the next generation of procurement professionals, delivering CIPS level 4 and 5 training at the College of York and the University of Hull. Michelle is CIPS qualified and holds a post graduate qualification in Public Procurement Law and Policy from the University of Nottingham.  

Hundreds attend first supplier conference to talk about deployment of Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactors

Stuart Pearcey
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Hundreds attend first supplier conference to talk about deployment of Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactors
More than 130 delegates, with hundreds more joining virtually, attended Rolls-Royce SMR’s first Supplier Conference in Sheffield to discuss their vital role deploying a global fleet of Small Modular Reactor power plants.  Representatives from small, medium and large organisations – from the UK and around the world – met senior Rolls-Royce SMR executives and supply chain specialists to understand how they can get involved in this transformative decarbonisation opportunity. Rolls-Royce SMR’s Chief Finance Officer Peter Morton, said: “The event was the first time we’ve engaged with such a diverse group of existing and potential suppliers to explain what we need and outline how we can work together and, importantly, to better understand what they want from us. “The event has been all about further developing the solid foundations on which we’ll build a strong, resilient and sustainable supply chain – not only is that critical to the success of our business but it will be transformational in terms of jobs, growth and social value creation.” Organisations that have products and services to offer were encouraged to register their interest by signing up to the Rolls-Royce SMR Supplier Portal which is the first step towards becoming a Rolls-Royce SMR supplier. The Rolls-Royce SMR is the first nuclear power station to be designed and built in the UK for over a generation, and offers a radically-different approach to delivering new nuclear power. Each ‘factory-built’ nuclear power station will provide enough low-carbon electricity to power a million homes for more than 60 years and will create thousands of long-term, high-skilled jobs.

Paint reprocessing specialist moves to Temple, Leeds

Tess Egginton
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Paint reprocessing specialist moves to Temple, Leeds
Paint reprocessing specialist, Seagulls Reuse, has relocated to 129 Water Lane within the heart of the Temple district of Leeds. Seagulls will recycle, mix and sell paint as well as running a series of creative workshops close to the city centre in its new 31,150 sq ft warehouse. Cat Hyde, co-founder of Seagulls, said: “We’d love to have the capacity to collect leftover trade paint but, at the moment, we have enough paint from Leeds households to meet our customers’ needs. But we are hopeful that this new city centre location in the fast-growing Temple district will hopefully entice new painters through the door enabling further expansion. “So this is a plea to people across the city to pop in and see significant savings on quality paint, varnish and timber care. Whether painting your home, office, community centre, shed or garden furniture – we have something for everyone no matter the colour. “The new space will also enable us to expand the range of workshops we run, from beginners decorating courses, to mosaics, murals and terrazzo, we will also have decorating pods available for hire.” Seagulls Reuse launched in 2005. It is the brainchild of Cat Hyde and her co-founder. Keen to find new pathways into employment, with a shared passion for environmental sustainability they wanted to create a social enterprise that would benefit their community. They engaged with Leeds City Council and agreed to collect and reuse paint disposed at the nine Household Waste Recycling Centres across the city. They now divert almost 400 tonnes of reusable paint each year, checking and reprocessing it for resale. Antonia Martin-Wright, Director of Commercial Development at CEG, said: “It is fantastic to welcome Seagulls to Water Lane. They join Slung Low and our new Forging Futures training and skills campus at Temple and share many of our values, both in terms of environmental sustainability and the importance of social enterprise. We wish them every success in their new city centre home.” Property Agent Fox Lloyd Jones introduced Seagulls Reuse to its new home. Zac Parker at FLJ Ltd said: “We’re delighted to have negotiated the deal to bring Seagulls Reuse to the Temple District, supporting their immediate and future growth plans, while adding significant value to the wider Temple Community. It has been a pleasure to work with the Seagulls Team on the transaction and we wish them all success for the future.”

Political parties urged to put food security policies on the menu

Stuart Pearcey
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Political parties urged to put food security policies on the menu
Ahead of the general election, party leaders are being urged by the UK’s food and drink supply chain to ensure policies on food security are front and centre of their public campaigns.
The NFU, British Retail Consortium, UK Hospitality and Food and Drink Federation have joined forces to express frustration at the lack of coverage during the campaigns so far as to how the next government will approach the issue despite widespread agreement that “food security is national security”. Given that the food and drink supply chain employs 7.7m people, and is the UK’s largest industrial sector, worth £240bn, political parties have been called upon to set out how they intend to support domestic food and farming sectors, and how they will work to ensure resilient supply chains. In a letter to the party leaders, the organisations say this omission in public election campaigning needs to be urgently addressed before polling day.
The letter states: ‘Our food system has shown itself in recent years to be efficient and resilient, maintaining UK food supply through a series of major challenges, including Covid-19, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and new trading arrangements by leaving the European Union. ‘At times those supply chains have come under severe strain, leading to shortages of some food and drink products and increasing costs at all points of the chain from producer to consumer. ‘It would be foolhardy to assume that our food system will always withstand shocks, especially against the backdrop of increased geo-political instability and climate change.
‘The basic responsibility of any government is to ensure its citizens are safe and properly fed. But while we have heard much about defence and energy security in recent weeks, we have heard very little about food security. ‘The lack of focus on food in the political narrative during the campaigns demonstrates a worrying blind spot for those that would govern us.’ The letter makes the case that a thriving food and drink sector functions as ‘an engine for economic growth’, providing varied employment across all entry levels. Profitable businesses across the food and drink supply chain not only contribute to the UK’s food security but also mean our natural environment can be managed sustainably and protected, and help meet climate ambitions the letter says. ‘A well-functioning supply chain also gives consumers access to a wide range of fresh produce and healthy food, is a crucial aspect of improving diets, alleviating pressure on the health service and improving health outcomes for our citizens.’ The letter concludes: “We should never take our food security for granted, and whoever forms the next government will need to address these issues as a priority. Taken together, these policies can provide the critical ingredient – confidence – that will allow industry to deliver a resilient food system, investing for the future, driving productivity, leading the way in energy efficiency, continuing the journey of protecting and enhancing the environment, and most of all, ensuring that British food remains on our shelves and available for all.”

Sheffield firm makes significant contribution to groundbreaking European project

Stuart Pearcey
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Sheffield firm makes significant contribution to groundbreaking European project
Sheffield clean energy company ITM Power has made a significant contribution to a pan-European flagship project exploring the possibility of producing hydrogen for use as clean energy on an industrial scale. It was REFHYNE, a first-of-a-kind project at the forefront of the effort to supply green refinery hydrogen for Europe, which took place in Germany and supported by the European Commission’s Clean Hydrogen Partnership. ITM Chief Technology Officer Dr Simon Bourne said: “We are proud of the successful conclusion of the REFHYNE project. This groundbreaking initiative has demonstrated the viability and potential of green hydrogen production in a refinery setting at an industrial scale. “The achievements of the project, which saw much of the work take place during the global pandemic, highlight the dedication of all partners involved, and ITM’s ability to deliver electrolyser projects even during the most testing of circumstances. Furthermore, the data gathered from REFHYNE shows ITM’s market leading stack performance together with extreme operational flexibility. REFHYNE has been a true lighthouse project that has made a substantial contribution to the industry.” The project began in January 2018 with the aim to validate the business model for using electrolytic hydrogen as an input to refineries

Small firms need interest rate cut sooner rather than later, says FSB

Stuart Pearcey
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0
Small firms need interest rate cut sooner rather than later, says FSB
Small firms will be hoping that the tipping point for an interest rate cut will be reached sooner rather than later, to help them invest and scale up, according to Federation of Small Businesses National Chair Martin McTague.
In the wake of the Bank of England deciding to hold the base rate at 5.25%, he said: “Yet again, the MPC has opted to stick instead of twist, a move which was widely predicted but which is no less disappointing for it. “The high plateau rates are currently stuck at is now undermining growth, as small firms struggle to access affordable finance to help them expand. “Inflation is now back on target, and holding off a cut in the base rate until a future date risks snuffing out tentative signs of a recovery in GDP, with the flat growth in April a warning sign. “Even with services inflation coming in higher than expected yesterday, the danger posed by stifling growth must not be ignored, as doing so will have potentially devastating consequences for small businesses. “Small firms will be hoping that the tipping point for a cut will be reached sooner rather than later, to help them invest and scale up.”
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