Accsys, the supplier of sustainable wood building materials, has announced that it will discontinue the Tricoya plant in Hull owned by Tricoya UK Limited, a wholly owned entity of Accsys set up for the construction and operation of the Tricoya plant.
The Accsys Board is said to have thoroughly evaluated all available strategic and funding options for Tricoya UK. With a review now completed, the Board has decided that it is in the best interests of Accsys and its shareholders to discontinue the Tricoya plant.
A final exceptional non-cash impairment charge of €20m and an exceptional cash cost of €4.5m will be recognised in the company’s H1 FY25 results for the discontinuation and winding up of the Tricoya plant.
Accsys retains the intellectual property for Tricoya and will continue producing materials for the Tricoya product range from its production site in Arnhem to meet growing demand from existing customers.
Dr Jelena Arsic van Os, CEO Accsys Technologies PLC, said: “Whilst this is a difficult decision, the Board is confident that this is the right course of action for the company and its shareholders.
“Discontinuing the Hull plant further derisks and simplifies our business and enables us to fully focus on maximising returns from our existing assets. Today’s actions, alongside our expansion in Arnhem and newly opened Kingsport facility, underpin our confidence in delivering profitable growth as we progress towards our target of 100,000m³ production by the end of FY27.”
Transformation of East Riding Leisure Goole into dynamic leisure and community venue takes next steps
The next step of the redevelopment of the Goole Hub, the project to transform East Riding Leisure Goole into a dynamic leisure and community venue, is set to proceed. East Riding of Yorkshire’s Cabinet gave approval for the construction contract to be concluded.
Builders Willmott Dixon has been selected as the preferred contractor, with preparatory works set to start in October. The Hub is due to be completed by the summer of 2026, opening in Goole’s Bicentenary year.
The Goole Hub, funded by East Riding of Yorkshire Council, will provide new and enhanced leisure facilities, collocate services, and introduce new activities, such as bowling that will enhance engagement and the offer in Goole. A sum of £3.372 million is being contributed by the £25 million Goole Town Deal regeneration programme.
While the facility is closed, the council will continue to offer gym facilities, group exercise classes, and health programmes, at the Goole College site on Boothferry Road.
Councillor Nick Coultish, Cabinet Member for Culture, Leisure, and Tourism, said: “I’m excited to announce the awarding of the contract to build a brilliant new leisure facility for Goole and our surrounding communities. This project reflects the East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s commitment to invest in Goole and to fostering a vibrant, active, and healthy community. I look forward to seeing the renewed Goole Hub, and all the fantastic facilities it will provide.”
Phil Jones, Chair of the Goole Town Deal Board, said: “The Goole Town Deal Board has allocated a share of the town’s £25 million in Town Deal funding towards the development of East Riding Leisure Goole because we see it as an important anchor destination within the town centre that, alongside the seven other strategic projects that we’ve chosen to fund, will help to increase footfall and boost the local economy.
“This exciting project will transform the venue into a truly modern community hub with a vastly enhanced leisure offer for local people of all ages. We’re delighted to see it progressing.”
Park Hill’s newest homes given the go-ahead in Sheffield
Urban Splash and Places for People, the joint development partners restoring Park Hill in Sheffield, have secured planning approval for more new homes at the building.
The pair has redeveloped the building over the past decade establishing a new cultural quarter for the city with 455 new homes, accommodation for 356 students, more than 50,000 sq ft of workspace, and extensive landscaping and green space.
A fourth phase comprising 125 apartments – 20% of which will be affordable – new public realm, EV charging, a car club and bike storage was awarded planning in late 2023.
Approved plans for the newest phase – phase 5 – include 105 new homes. Among the homes will be one-, two-, three- and four-bedroomed flats, duplexes and townhouses – some of them affordable, while the ground floor will include 2,000 sq ft of commercial space providing a platform for independent, local businesses, and adding to the already diverse Park Hill ecosystem – home to native brands such as South Street Kitchen, The Pearl, and the Grace Owen Nursery.
Mark Latham, Regeneration Director at Urban Splash, said: “Park Hill has been a long-term vision and investment, a building which we have approved in different phases to ensure that we are creating a space that serves the needs of the city – be that homes, workspaces for independent businesses, or green spaces.
“I am thrilled that we have secured permission to move forward with another stage – with plans that will further contribute to Sheffield’s cultural and economic vitality.”
Sammie Steele, Managing Director of Placemaking and Regeneration at Places for People, added: “We are delighted to have secured permission for the next phase of Park Hill, continuing our great partnership with Urban Splash.
“Park Hill is an iconic area of Sheffield both culturally and architecturally and we are proud to continue supporting this thriving community and uplift its long and fascinating history. This phase will allow us to not only pave the way for new homes in Sheffield but also to create new commercial spaces where we hope to see an array of local businesses set up and thrive.”
Holtec confirms decision to bring £1.5bn investment to South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is set to become the new home of US nuclear energy company Holtec, which will build a factory to build Small Modular Reactors, the latest step in delivering nuclear energy.
Holtec’s decision comes after Rolls-Royce SMR also chose South Yorkshire to become the home of its new multi-million pound facility earlier this year. Rolls-Royce SMR will manufacture and test prototype modules for SMRs in South Yorkshire further strengthening the region’s clean tech cluster.
Gareth Thomas, Director at Holtec Britain, said: “South Yorkshire overcame stiff competition from other areas of the UK to be our preferred location for our advanced SMR factory.
“Holtec Britain was impressed by the resounding interest in our new SMR factory across the UK and the strong support received by the local authorities during our engagements. However, after a rigorous process, South Yorkshire was finally selected as our preferred location.
“In addition to the technical, supply chain, training, and logistics criteria for the formal evaluation, we were also impressed by the history and pride of the people we met during our visit to South Yorkshire, which demonstrated the workforce really cares about the quality and reputation of their work. For Holtec, that translates to a workforce that can be trained and will remain committed to delivering the high-quality nuclear products that Holtec, and our customers, demand.
“Holtec has been part of the nuclear ecosystem in this country for many years and is absolutely committed to creating high-quality local jobs, supply chain opportunities and partnerships that will help South Yorkshire and the UK grow and prosper. Our new UK factory is central to that commitment. Holtec is working to finalise its factory business plan to support its Final Investment Decision, based on its UK and international order book.
“Holtec’s SMR-300 is a PWR reactor enabling the factory to also produce large naval reactor components to not only support the country’s energy security, but also its national security”
South Yorkshire is already home to the UK’s largest clean-tech cluster and has unique strengths in SMRs, Hydrogen and Sustainable Aviation. Holtec’s decision to build its new major SMR facility in the region has cemented South Yorkshire’s place as the natural home for emerging clean energy sectors.
The selection process involved 13 potential locations which were shortlisted down to four, from which South Yorkshire was chosen. The finished plant will serve the UK, Europe and the Middle East. The factory represents a major £1.5bn investment and is set to create hundreds of well-paid and highly-skilled jobs.
Oliver Coppard, South Yorkshire’s Mayor, said: “In South Yorkshire, we’re building on hundreds of years of innovation and engineering heritage to create world leading facilities, skills and expertise today; assets that will power the clean energy transition in the UK and beyond. We are right at the cutting edge of the new nuclear, hydrogen and sustainable aviation sectors, and proud to be home to the largest clean tech sector in the UK.
“That’s why Holtec have chosen South Yorkshire as the home of their £1.5bn manufacturing facility, because they recognise we are the new home of the emerging clean energy sector in this country. Their decision to invest in South Yorkshire has the potential to support hundreds of high-paying jobs, while their SMR Learning Academy will help train the next generation of nuclear engineers and experts.”
Accountancy practice taken over by Manchester firm
An accountancy practice with offices in Doncaster and Sheffield has rebranded following an acquisition by Xeinadin.
Chesterfield-based Smith Craven, employing more than 50 there and in Doncaster, Sheffield, and Worksop, will join Xeinadin under its Manchester Central and North region, led by KJG Xeinadin Group.
Xeinadin is a firm of business advisory and accountancy practices in more than 100 locations across the UK and Ireland that provides over 40 service lines to over 50,000 clients, predominantly SMEs and their owner-managers. It was formed through a merger of the offices in 2019 and is now structured into 14 regional hubs, following dozens of new business acquisitions each year.
With the power of a Top 20 accountancy firm behind them, they are able to enhance their client experience through collaboration across other Xeinadin offices and the phased approach to rebrand.
Martyn Langley : “We are looking forward, and proud, to be moving to the next stage in the firm’s development, and to helping local businesses get the most out of the opportunities available to them.
“Chesterfield is a great location geographically, and has a thriving business community. With the number of businesses, and help from the local professionals in the area (who work well together as a team), and the many transport links – the region is well-placed for exciting times ahead.
Hull City and East Riding of Yorkshire Council leaders welcome devolution deal sign off
Cllr Mike Ross and Cllr Anne Handley, leaders of Hull City Council and East Riding of Yorkshire Council, have welcomed the news that creation of Hull and East Yorkshire’s Mayoral Combined Authority has been signed off by the government.
The agreement means that Hull and East Yorkshire’s devolution deal will progress through the next steps towards a mayoral election in May 2025.
The deal will give local leaders the power to make decisions in areas such as transport, adult education, and housing, boosting economic growth and opportunity.
The announcement was made by Jim McMahon, Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, who, in his letter confirming agreement to the deal, recognised the work that is being done to grow relationships between Hull and the East Riding and Greater Lincolnshire, which has also had its devolution deal accepted.
Cllr Ross said: “After years of being left out in the cold on devolution, the people of Hull and East Riding can now get the fair deal they deserve.
“This is a big step forward in unlocking huge investment into the city, achieved by the two local councils working together.
“This devolution deal was backed by residents and businesses right across our communities. I look forward to seeing it becoming a reality, including the mayoral election next May.”
Cllr Handley added: “We’re delighted that the Hull and East Yorkshire devolution deal has been approved.
“This will be a fantastic opportunity to unlock investment for the region and improve strategic collaboration between Hull and East Yorkshire council areas.
“The mayoralty will provide a strong voice for the East Yorkshire region and support communities and local businesses.”
Thomas Martin, chairman of the Hull and East Riding Business Engagement Board, said: “Finally, the breakthrough that we in this region have been working towards for more than seven years.
“The politics and the economics have come together at last to create an exciting future for our region.
“I commend both local authority leaders for their courage and determination to make this happen, and I believe that investors will see our region fully open for business.
“This is another significant step on our journey towards economic regeneration, and I look forward to further progress on multiple fronts.”
MPs open new facility at CATCH on the south bank
MPs Melanie Onn and Martin Vickers have opened the new facility at CATCH’s Skills and Apprenticeships Centre.
Backed by £1.5m from sponsors in the region, the facility is said to represent a significant milestone in CATCH’s commitment to fostering the green skills needed for the energy transition whilst helping to deliver economic growth locally in the Humber, Lincolnshire and Yorkshire regions.
Melanie Onn said: “Investment in green initiatives like this is vital as we work to grow North East Lincolnshire’s economy. It’s great to see so many businesses putting funding into our area, and I look forward to seeing how things progress as the Humber Skills Plan unfolds.
“This new facility is really exciting in particular. It will provide so many new opportunities for young people across the region, helping to get more of them into STEM careers.”
Sponsors in the region included Viking CCS members Phillips 66 Limited, Harbour Energy, Drax and ABP together with Air Products, Uniper, the ECITB and Humber Freeport.
CATCH is poised to play a pivotal role in steering more young individuals towards STEM careers, as part of the broader Humber Skills Plan to increase training output by tenfold by 2029. This latest funding initiative has had a substantial impact on its facility:
- More than doubling the entry capacity, CATCH will increase its intake from 100 to approximately 220 apprentices.
- Tripling the welding and grinding bay capacity to 80 bays, which have been identified as critical skill gaps needed to power the UK’s energy transition.
- The facility has already welcomed a new cohort of apprentices this September 2024.
Leeds City Council sets out scale of financial challenges
Leeds City Council has published an update on its five-year medium term financial strategy, outlining the severe difficulties it faces to deliver balanced budgets in the face of the continued need to make significant savings.
The report, discussed at the council’s executive board meeting, explains how the council needs to find £273.7million in further savings over the next five financial years.
Leeds and all councils across the country are facing extreme financial challenges as a result of significantly increased costs to provide services and rising demand, especially for vulnerable young people and adults.
This is being seen in supporting looked after children, especially the most vulnerable with high levels of need requiring costly external placements, as well as for adult social care with increases in demand for older people, adults with learning difficulties and those needing support with mental health.
The need to find further significant savings in the coming years follows on from the council having had to deliver savings totalling £794.1million from 2010 to the end of the current 2024/25 financial year.
Commenting on the report and the ongoing position facing local authorities, Leeds City Council Deputy Leader and executive member for resources Councillor Debra Coupar said: “It is not an overstatement to say that this is the most challenging financial period so far facing local authorities, following on from more than a decade of needing to make major savings year on year.
“Over the last four years alone six councils have issued section 114 notices, in effect declaring that they cannot achieve a balanced budget, and a survey from the Local Government Association at the end of last year indicated that as many as one in five thought it was likely or very likely that they would have to do the same before the end of the next financial year.
“Following fifteen years of sustained reductions in local government funding, we are now reaching a stage where councils simply cannot continue to balance their budgets in the face of escalating demand for some of the most costly services for our most vulnerable adults and children.
“In Leeds the reductions equate to a real-terms decrease in funding of £465.9m or 70 per cent over those fifteen years. Whilst we’ve made significant savings already of £730.2million, including reducing the council’s workforce by nearly a fifth, we need to find a further £63.9million of savings this year and then in addition to that over £273million more across the next five years. It is an incredibly difficult situation.”
The medium term financial strategy outlines further savings totalling £273.7million needed across the next five financial years. The pressures of £63.9m for this year alone equate to 10% of the council’s annual net revenue budget.
The annual breakdown for those five following years is: £106.7m in 2025/26, £45.7m in 2026/27, £42.1m in 2027/28, £37.3m in 2028/29 and £41.9m in 2029/30.
All council assets and services are being continuously assessed and reviewed to see how they can help mitigate the financial position. The council will also continue its current freeze on recruitment, as well as on non-essential spending except where necessary for health and safety or statutory reasons.
Council tax in Leeds remains the second-lowest of the eight core cities in England, with an increase of 4.98 per cent (including 1.99 per cent dedicated to adult social care) in this financial year.
Whilst funding from council tax and business rates in recent years has increased, these have been outweighed by reductions in funding from the government grant alongside increases in pay, service delivery prices, the impact of the cost of living and demand pressures.
Siemens launches internship for students with learning disabilities
Working with Selby College, Siemens Mobility has launched an internship scheme at its Goole Rail Village to provide supported work opportunities for young people between the ages of 18 – 24 with learning disabilities.
They’ll gain valuable work experience alongside education, and six candidates have started at Siemens Mobility’s Goole Rail Village, where they will rotate through work placements alongside their college courses.
CEO of Siemens Mobility, Sambit Banerjee, said: “We are thrilled to announce the launch of the DFN project SEARCH supported internship scheme, which builds upon our commitment to fostering a culture of inclusivity at Siemens Mobility.
“Our goal is to equip participants with essential skills and confidence needed to thrive in the workforce. We understand the challenges these individuals face in accessing employment opportunities, which is why we are committed to providing equal opportunities and support, enabling everyone to feel like they belong at Siemens Mobility.”
“We are excited to welcome the six successful candidates to the Siemens Mobility Goole Rail Village and look forward to witnessing the positive impact this program will have on their lives.”
The supported internship scheme is tailored to equip participants with the essential skills and confidence needed to thrive in the workforce. Working with a job coach and a tutor, the individuals will have access to specialised training and hands-on practical experience across various areas of the Rail Village. Placements will rotate through the Components Facility which services rail gearboxes and motors, the warehouse, office and administration, and security and facilities maintenance.
Kirsty Matthews, Chief Executive of DFN Project SEARCH, said: “Each new group of talented individuals brings with them a unique set of skills and perspectives, which not only enriches their own lives but also the workplaces they join. At DFN Project SEARCH, opportunity and inclusion is at the heart of all our work. I am confident that these interns will leave a lasting positive impact on their organisations and community while gaining the essential skills to build brighter futures for themselves.”
Siemens Mobility is currently investing up to £200 million in a rail village in Goole, creating up to 700 skilled jobs, as well as a further 1,700 supply chain roles. This includes 11 apprentices at Goole, with 25 more arriving this month.
Finance Yorkshire appoints new board chair
Finance Yorkshire has appointed Nigel Ward as its new chair.
Ward succeeds James Newman OBE who has been chair of Finance Yorkshire since its creation in 2009. Ward joined Finance Yorkshire as a non-executive director in 2021. He was a partner at PWC and spent more than 30 years advising companies across a range of industry sectors.
Ward will oversee investment from Finance Yorkshire’s new fund which is expected to provide more than £50m to SMEs across Yorkshire and Humber over five years. This fund was created using the legacy from Finance Yorkshire’s previous investment support to regional businesses through its Jeremie Fund.
Newman was the founding chair of both the Sheffield City Region and Hull and East Riding LEPs and has held many other prestigious and influential roles nationally and in Yorkshire in the business, academic and charity sectors. He was Master Cutler in 2009 and was awarded an OBE for services to business, the economy and charity in Yorkshire in 2017.
During his time as chair of Finance Yorkshire, Newman oversaw the successful delivery of its original Jeremie Fund and an Extension Fund which saw £113 million invested in over 500 companies in Yorkshire and Humber.
The investments created and safeguarded more than 16,000 jobs, enabling businesses to increase their turnover by a total of £474m and attract a further £374m from private sector sources. Utilising the legacy from this fund, Newman negotiated the development of the new evergreen fund which will allow Finance Yorkshire to continue to invest in the region for many years to come.
Newman said: “I have very much enjoyed my time as Finance Yorkshire chair, overseeing the growth of the brand and delivery of investments which have made a real difference to individual businesses and the wider economic health of the Yorkshire and Humber region.
“It has been a privilege to lead such a committed board and I look forward to witnessing Finance Yorkshire’s continued success with Nigel at the helm.”
Ward said: “I am very pleased to be taking on the role of Finance Yorkshire chair. Finance Yorkshire has a formidable reputation for supporting the region’s SME community led by the board who will continue to steer the organisation as we deliver further investments for the benefit of businesses.”
Alex McWhirter, Chief Executive of Finance Yorkshire, said: “James has led the company since it was established in 2009 and has been pivotal in the successful delivery of our previous investment funds and its key objectives to deliver jobs and business growth across Yorkshire and Humber. His chairmanship has not only delivered a legacy we are proud of but the returns on our investments which are enabling us to continue to support SMEs.”
McWhirter added: “Since joining the board, Nigel has provided strong direction for Finance Yorkshire’s investment activities. I look forward to working with Nigel to ensure that Finance Yorkshire continues to invest in SMEs that will make a difference and deliver a positive benefit to the regional economy in the future.”
