Bradford’s landmark One City Park office scheme lights up to mark topping out
The project team behind One City Park – a new office in Bradford – gathered on site this week (Wednesday 30 November) to celebrate the building reaching its highest point and on track to complete in Summer 2023.
The event had a festive twist with an official light switch on for a 15ft Christmas tree which now adorns the top of the steel frame to celebrate this major milestone.
One City Park, which will create 56,403 sq ft of sustainable office space, is being brought forward by nationwide place maker, Muse, in partnership with Bradford Council. The building is being built by Caddick Construction, with the steel frame supplied and erected by Halifax-based Elland Steel.
One City Park will combine high-quality specifications, flexible floor plates and strong sustainability credentials, offering businesses an opportunity to locate at the first new office space in city centre for 20 years.
Simon Dew, development director at Muse, said: “The construction programme is being delivered at pace and to be on schedule is testament to the hard work of everyone involved. At Muse, we create kinder and inclusive places in partnership that build brighter futures for everyone and our purpose remains the same here at One City Park.
“Bradford is a diverse city full of potential and we want to attract the right businesses to One City Park and create a wealth of opportunities for the rich talent within the community.
“We know that City Park is a popular place for gatherings and events throughout the holiday season and we wanted to play our part in the celebrations.”
One City Park launched to market earlier this year, represented by commercial agents Knight Frank and Colliers. Once complete, the building will feature five floors of workspaces and a roof terrace, offering flexible floor plans that can adapt to accommodate more agile working practices that promote wellbeing. Designed to suit a range of businesses from home grown starts-up and SMEs, through to larger organisations and multi-nationals – there has been a high volume of enquiries from potential occupiers.
Jason Sims, Caddick senior project manager, said: “We are delighted with the progress at One City Park to date and it’s always gratifying to see the steelwork completing and topped out as a visible milestone for the city centre. It’s a real boost for the site team but we are also getting positive comments from passers-by who see the progress made day-by-day because it’s such a central and significant development for Bradford.”
The building will be complemented by new public spaces around the site including stepped access and attractive seating areas. Surrounded by cultural assets including the Grade I Listed City Hall, St George’s Hall and new music venue, Bradford Live, which is currently undergoing a multi-million-pound transformation, as well as bars, restaurants and cafes – City Park is expected to play a major role in the city’s UK City of Culture celebrations in 2025.
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s Executive Member of Regeneration, Planning and Transport, said: “One City Park is bringing hundreds of jobs to the city centre throughout its construction and once complete will bring hundreds more. It will be a great complement to the Darley Street Market which is also currently under construction.”
One City Park will also feature a range of green design elements including high-performance glazing, photovoltaic panels and air source heat pumps to make sure the building operates on renewable energy. Every car-parking space features an electric car charging point, coupled with secure cycle storage and changing facilities to encourage workers to take more sustainable and healthier modes of transport.
Business dimension of Hull KR boosted by appointment of new man to lead the board
Hull Kingston Rovers have recruited Paul Sewell, Chair of East Hull company Sewell Group, to lead a new board which will work alongside the club’s Chief Exec Paul Lakin and support the owner Dr Neil Hudgell.
Further additions from business and sport will be confirmed soon as The Robins seek to build on their achievements of the last two years and bring in top class governance and people.
One key aim is to maximise the potential of the landmark deal which saw Hull KR complete the purchase in April this year of the Sewell Group Craven Park Stadium.
Alongside that is a “top four, grade A” commitment by the club to seize the opportunities presented by the regeneration of Super League and the wider game under the structure outlined by IMG.
Neil, the founder of Hudgell Solicitors, said: “We are ready for lift off having bought the stadium, and a professional board, led by Paul Sewell, is a massive step forward for us in achieving that goal of top four in everything we do. For me, these are exciting times in being involved with this great club.
“I have been involved with Hull KR since early childhood. I have experienced rugby in this city at the very best and worst of times. I have had the privilege of getting to know very well iconic names synonymous with The Robins, including Roger Millward, Colin Hutton, Phil Lowe and Mike Smith. We have never been better positioned to elevate the club back towards that level than we are now, having put in place solid foundations over the last two to three years.”
Paul Sewell said: “One of the main things that attracted me is the revitalisation of the game itself through Super League’s association with worldwide sporting giant IMG.
“Being a rising club in a declining game is counter intuitive to me so I’m heartened that, through Paul Lakin, Hull KR have been at the centre of driving this change and modernisation as a local club, owned and controlled in Hull, by Hull, for Hull!”
Paul Lakin said the new Chair’s involvement – after a life playing and watching football – inspires confidence that Hull KR can attract more quality to the board.
He said: “Both Neil and myself knew there was no better time for us to attract a top drawer Chair and board to support us in taking the club to the next level. We are truly honoured that Paul, a man with an outstanding business pedigree, has accepted the position.
“In the coming days and weeks we aim to announce other exciting appointments and we are continuing to work to identify individuals of the highest calibre who share our vision for Hull KR.”
Sewell Group and Hull KR are anchor institutions in Hull, both dating back more than 140 years. Under Paul Sewell’s leadership the company has expanded into a multi-disciplined organisation employing around 500 people working across construction, investment, facilities management and fuel and convenience stores.
The company is still based close to its original home in East Hull, where many of its developments have transformed communities, and has become a serial awards winner, most recently with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Promoting Opportunity and a sixth appearance in The UK’s 100 Best Companies to Work For Awards.
The decision to take up the naming rights to the stadium was all about Sewell Group and Hull KR partnering in a joint commitment to the East Hull community.
Paul Sewell said: “My life has been about creating businesses and building their teams and culture – you need this for sustainable success. This is a wonderful club with thoroughly decent people so I hope I can help Neil and Paul get the fans what they deserve.
“This board will NOT be interfering with the playing side – that will be left to the Head Coach and his team, supported by the CEO. Our role is to concentrate on developing the business to be sustainable long into the future.
“Getting things top notch off the pitch doesn’t guarantee results on it, but it does give the playing side a better chance. We have been working quietly behind the scenes during 2022 and I believe we are already in a good place.”
Paul Lakin added: “Over the last two years there has been significant investment both on and off the field resulting in the club being in a much stronger position than previously.
“The business recruitment off field has given us greater depth of quality personnel that’s delivering both financial and operational growth. This mirrors our on field recruitment strategy, resulting in a 2023 squad that has stability, youth and experience with, arguably for the first time, genuine depth.
“However the real game-changer has been the purchase of Sewell Group Craven Park earlier this year and the unique opportunity to develop both our stadium and surrounding land.”
Housebuilder names new MD for its central region
Bourne-based Allison Homes has appointed Glyn Mabey as MD of its Central Region, the largest in the Group.
Since graduating from Bristol with a Degree in Housing, Glyn has spent over 30 years in the housing industry working in senior roles across both the public and private sectors.
He was Head of Development for Sovereign HA and has more than 20 years’ experience at MD level with organisations such as Redrow, Persimmon and Countryside. Glyn has a specific and significant track record for successfully growing regional businesses and has operated in and around the East Midlands and Central areas for the last 10 years, in both the private housebuilding and mixed tenure sectors.
He said: “When John Anderson approached me recently with the opportunity to join Allison Homes, the appeal of joining an early-stage private equity-backed business, at a time of significant change in the economy and industry, was of instant appeal to me and provides a clear opportunity to deploy my experience and play a part in the ambitious growth strategy of the Allison Homes business.’’
Mr Anderson, Group Chief Exec at Allison Homes said: “It’s great that Glyn has chosen to join Allison Homes and be part of our expansion plans. The Central Region is where the business started and is still where the majority of our developments and land are. It’s a very attractive area, with beautiful villages and also some dynamic towns and cities, such as Peterborough, Corby and Grantham and ambitious district authorities such as Huntingdonshire and South Kesteven. Glyn’s experience will help the Allison team here to make the most of the potential.”
Hull City Council appoints leader for ‘culture and place’
Hull City Council has appointed Kath Wynne-Hague to lead the city on Culture and Place.
Since 2007, Kath has worked across Local Government; cultural development; engagement and education; project management; and as an independent practitioner with experience ranging from voluntary and community action; health and wellbeing in care settings; visitor economy and cultural business development.
Kath is skilled in exploring social networks, stories and relationships, to generate new ideas, partnerships and creative solutions. She has a collaborative leadership style and is skilled in creative and systems thinking to support innovation, vision and ambition, whilst ensuring it is grounded in people and place.
Hull City Council Chief Exec Matt Jukes, said: “Kath has a wealth of experience to bring to the city and I look forward to the exciting cultural projects that will develop through 2023!”
Kath said: “The move to Hull is about me going full circle to the place that supported me right at the start of my creative career – in all its twists and turns.
“Living and growing up on the on the southside and getting the bus across the bridge to be the Saturday girl at WH Smith’s on Whitefriargate and going to Ferens Art Gallery to marvel at the paintings in my lunch hour; to having my first piece of work being publicly shown in an exhibition at ArtLink on Princess Ave. Hull was also the first place I was paid for my creative work, when I painted murals in a unit for people with dementia.
“Hull provided me the platforms, the opportunity, the community, and the paid work to start on a path that resulted in me returning some 25 years later to give back. I look forward to taking up this exciting position.”
Kath will begin in post in January 2023.
University works with global materials company to develop longer-lasting water pipes
A new way to lighter, stronger plastic water pipes has been pioneered by the University of Bradford and global materials company SABIC.
The new pipes outperform standard plastic plumbing pipes in pressure tests, are much cheaper to transport and last longer, and will therefore be more sustainable.
It’s the process used to make the pipes that makes them stronger, by changing the physical makeup of the plastic involved.
SABIC aims to capture 20 percent of the market with the new ‘biaxially oriented’ polyethylene and polypropylene pressure pipes.
Dr Fin Caton-Rose, who runs the research laboratory in the university’s globally-recognised Polymer IRC, said: “These pipes are lighter and much stronger than traditional polyolefin pipes. They are easy to make, easy to transport and they last longer, which means they are better for the environment.”
Dr Ajay Taraiya from SABIC said: “Our collaboration with the University of Bradford is crucial in terms of the scientific-based research they are able to conduct, in order to accelerate solutions for commercial products.
“We selected the University of Bradford based on our needs and their expertise. Scientists there have a wealth of knowledge in the solid-phase deformation of polymers, in addition to world-class research facilities, not to mention globally recognized academics and a successful track record of industrial collaboration.”
Professor Phil Coates, who invented the die-drawing process at the heart of the new pipes, said: “This is an exemplary collaboration between a major global company with its significant research and development, plus commercial capabilities and a world-class polymer research laboratory. It is genuinely a win-win collaboration and serves as an example of how the kind of research universities do can have a direct impact on helping industry innovate.”
Over the last few years, SABIC and the University of Bradford have been involved in a successful collaboration to develop the process of biaxial stretching of polyolefin pipes. This has involved linking the material design to the structure and has led to the development of high performance pressure pipes.
These results are being applied to the development of a commercial scale pilot line by Tecnomatic in Italy and Aquatherm in Germany, both in collaboration with SABIC.
Firethorn Trust appoints Leeds logistics contract to McLaren Construction Group
Commercial real estate investor and developer, Firethorn Trust, has appointed McLaren Construction Group to deliver 660,000 sq ft of logistics warehousing in North Yorkshire.
The contract for Sherburn42 marks McLaren’s first appointment to a Firethorn development, and will see the delivery of four highly specified Grade-A units, ranging from 57,750 to 280,000 sq ft.
Set across 37 acres, the site lies adjacent to the Sherburn Enterprise Park in Leeds, and will be constructed to net-zero carbon, with a ‘Excellent’ BREEAM rating. With 15% translucent roof panelling, LED lighting, and future provisions for renewable power generation, the development will offer a modern, flexible and highly sustainable base for occupiers, whilst providing excellent transportation links to the UK logistics network.
Paul Martin, development director at Firethorn, said: “We pride ourselves in creating industry-leading schemes for occupiers, whilst effectively responding to evolving market demands. Not only does McLaren have the expert capability to bring Sherburn42 forward at pace, but the team has demonstrated a shared commitment to quality, sustainability and innovation.
“Having received full planning consent last month, we look forward to moving this project forward with McLaren and beginning works on site imminently, which will put us on track for completion by Q4 2023.”
Gary Cramp, Managing Director of McLaren Construction Midlands & North, says: “We are very pleased to be appointed by forward-thinking developers, Firethorn, on this significant development, situated in one of the most sought-after, accessible locations in North Yorkshire.
“Providing fantastic opportunities for the region’s workforce, the four high-quality Grade-A industrial units will create an attractive, fit for purpose, sustainable workspace for multi-national distributors and ambitious small and medium-sized enterprises.
“We look forward to building a long-lasting relationship with Firethorn, and working closely to deliver this landmark project.”
European medical device company acquires Leeds firm
Winncare, a European manufacturer of beds, pressure care products, patient handling equipment, and hygiene solutions, has acquired Herida Medical, strengthening its pressure area care portfolio and providing entry into the equipment cleaning and decontamination market.
Herida Medical, based in Leeds, has built a successful mattress range and employs more than 70 staff. The business supplies healthcare organisations in the UK and export markets including Australia.
The company has demonstrated a consistent and solid growth over the past years and is expected to exceed £14.5m in revenues this year.
Laurent Faugere, president of Winncare Group, said: “The acquisition of Herida Medical continues to position Winncare as a leading provider of innovative healthcare solutions that improve outcomes for dependent people. Herida joins Winncare Group as our second UK acquisition, and we are excited about the opportunities for growth the combined expertise will deliver.
“Our focus is on supplying quality products that add value for our customers and clinicians, both in the UK and through our export markets. The additional manufacturing capabilities the acquisition brings strengthen and extend the services Winncare are able to offer in the UK and our combined portfolio means we can deliver an unrivalled solutions-based approach to pressure care management.”
Simon Claridge, current Winncare UK CEO, will head the combined UK business, supported by Herida’s Managing Director, Sean Spencer.
Simon says: “Winncare has ambitious growth plans in the UK and globally. The acquisition delivers business synergies both commercially and within the supply chain, which will enhance the service we offer our customers. The Winncare team is excited to talk about the new product portfolio with our clients and introduce the decontamination service to new customers.”
Herida’s Managing Director Sean Spencer, who is continuing in his role, says: “The acquisition by Winncare marks the start of an exciting new era for our business. Over the last few years, we have spent time appointing the right people and the right teams in order to grow and with the strength of Winncare behind us, there is the opportunity to escalate this further. I predict a very bright future for us in the pressure area care sector.”
Leeds vegetable processor snapped up
Troy Foods Limited, one of the UK’s leading vegetable processing manufacturers, has been bought by the Fylde, Fresh & Fabulous Group (FFF).
Fylde Fresh and Fabulous Ltd, established in 2005, is one of the UK’s leading potato growing and processing businesses, supplying ready meal manufacturers, the food service sector and over 500 fish and chip shops with a range of peeled potato products. It also supplies heat and electricity to over 600 homes through its Biogas plant near Preston.
Based in Leeds, Troy Foods Limited is a fourth-generation family business which has grown to become one of the UK’s leading processors of vegetables.
A total of 104 employees have transferred to the Fylde Fresh and Fabulous Group as part of the transaction, which was led by a team from Interpath Advisory and Addleshaw Goddard. FFF was advised by Napthens LLP.
Neil Morley, director at Interpath Advisory, said: “We are pleased to have concluded this transaction which secures the future of the business by providing a new platform upon which it can move forward.”
Colin Bradley, director at Fylde Fresh and Fabulous, said: “We have known and respected Troy Foods for many years. It is a natural fit for our already established business.”
Troy Foods (Salads) Limited (a related entity) is not part of the transaction and continues to trade under its existing management and ownership.
Sheffield’s Harmony Works gets planning green light
Sheffield’s Harmony Works project has passed another significant milestone with the approval of planning and listed buildings application, taking it one step closer towards its goal to create a new home for music education in Sheffield.
The plans will see the historic Grade II* listed Canada House on Commercial Street transformed into a state-of-the-art music facility, bring the building back to life with a variety of teaching and rehearsal rooms, community spaces, a publicly accessible café, and a newly renovated, impressive performance space in the lofty, glass-domed hall.
Last year, Sheffield City Council secured £20m from the Government’s Levelling Up fund to transform the Castlegate area, which included establishing Harmony Works. £1.6m will be granted to Harmony Works by the Council to acquire the empty Canada House building, which was built in 1875. This means it will be possible to secure the future of a building which otherwise would have fallen into disrepair.
The Harmony Works team have been working hard to plan the detail of their vision for the future of the building, working with a wide variety of stakeholders including the Castlegate partnership and the children and young people of Sheffield. The project team has included Evans Vettori Architects, Arup, Turner and Townsend, BWA, Creative Heritage and Hepworth Acoustics.
Harmony Works will bring together the knowledge and expertise of Sheffield Music Academy and Sheffield Music Hub, along with their partners including Brass Bands England and Music in the Round to create a home for music education right in the heart of the city and accessible to all across the City Region.
Harmony Works is continuing to work on the development of the project and securing additional funding.
Sale of York City Centre building kickstarts aparthotel transformation
Following a purchase in August 2021 and planning approval in December 2021, Grantside has agreed a sale to By Mansley Group to revitalise a prominent building in York City Centre with work set to start in the new year.
The former New Look Store at 4-6 Parliament Street, which is currently occupied by The Vintage Store, was bought last year by York developers Grantside and North Star.
Planning was secured to transform the underused upper floors into 19 holiday apartments and this part of the building has now been sold to serviced apartment specialist By Mansley Group and Grantside will deliver the completed apartments to them in late 2023.
The remaining ground floor and basement space is set to undergo an extensive refurbishment to bring it up to modern standards, following the short-term letting to The Vintage Store.
York-based architects Vincent & Brown designed the remodelling of the 15,530 sq ft building which will now include separate entrances for the retail and residential accommodation.
Steve Davis, CEO of Grantside, said: “As a proud York company it is great news to see major progress as we breathe new life into this key building and give it a sustainable new future. We are excited to get ready to start work on updating the existing retail space and refurbishing and renovating the upper floors back into beneficial use for serviced apartments.”
