East Yorkshire gets £4.3m to continue skills bootcamps
Skills Bootcamps will continue in Hull and East Yorkshire thanks to funding of £4.3m from government to support 1,603 individuals across different sectors.
Hull Training and Adult Education, leading and managing the programme, will work with employers and training providers to support local people to train up to better jobs in growing business sectors such as digital, transport and green skills.
Cllr Linda Tock, Hull City Council’s portfolio holder for Hull Training, said: “This funding from the government allows us to continue our successful Skills Bootcamps programme.
“We want to help people gain the skills they need to meet the challenges of tomorrow and we can achieve this by working with training providers and businesses across Hull and East Yorkshire.
“A skilled workforce is a productive workforce and it is only through giving them the relevant skills, training and support, that they can play their part in driving forward the Hull and East Yorkshire economy.”
As well as supporting the council’s priority of in-work progression by improving skills and opportunities, it also ties in with Hull and East Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership’s Economic Growth Workforce Wellbeing Strategy.
James Newman, chair of HEY LEP, added: “This is an ambitious programme which will provide the higher-level skills needed for our region to become a stronger economy. We are delighted this funding has been secured for Hull and East Yorkshire.”
Skills Bootcamps provide flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving those who take part the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast track to interview with a local employer or acquire new skills to help their existing employer’s growth ambitions.
North Yorkshire pilot project aims to get businesses ready for investment
The York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub and Lifted Ventures have launched the ‘North Yorkshire Stars’ pilot project, an initiative aimed at making start-ups and early-stage businesses ready for investment.
Offering a pathway to pitch ideas and attract angel investment, the programme is a fully-funded 12-hour support initiative, with in-person and virtual events and workshops. Open to all sectors, the pilot project will support diversity and founders from all backgrounds.
Lifted Ventures, Co-Founded by Helen Oldham and Jordan Dargue, exists to increase the flow of early-stage capital for diverse founders outside London.
Helen Oldham said: “As ‘North Yorkshire Stars’ takes flight, we want to ensure that every business owner, with their unique vision and background, has a place to shine and thrive.”
Lifted Ventures will guide participants through the process of making their businesses investment ready. This includes specialist advice and finishes with in a unique opportunity to pitch to seasoned investors.
The comprehensive programme covers several key aspects for investment readiness. These include developing business plans, exploring options for funding, preparing financial projections, legal considerations, support structures, and governance.
Participants will create a winning elevator pitch and their own investor ‘pitch deck’. One-to-one coaching sessions will help refine this and prepare for investor meetings. The programme concludes with the opportunity to present to a panel of angel investors, featuring Q&A sessions and valuable feedback.
The overall goals of the project include introducing businesses to local investors, directly preparing them for investment, and boosting angel investment in North Yorkshire.
Simon Middleton, Delivery Manager for the Growth Hub, said: “I’m really pleased to be working with Lifted Ventures to deliver this first of its kind programme in North Yorkshire. We look forward to hearing from business owners when application open at the end of this month.”
Year will see increase in equity release schemes, says Legal and General
Legal and General predicts a year of renewed interest in equity release schemes and stabilisation of the property market.
A survey by Legal & General Home Finance shows that home improvements continued to be the main reason new equity release customers took out a lifetime mortgage last year – accounting for more than half of the new arrangements.
This includes adaptations to make sure a property remains suitable into retirement, alongside other types of home improvements. Analysis of English Housing Survey data by the Centre for Ageing Better suggests that 91% of homes across the country do not provide basic accessibility features, which presents particular challenges as people age.
Customers taking additional drawdowns, however, were more likely to use the value from within their homes to help supplement their income.
Craig Brown, CEO at Legal and General Home Finance, said: “Property wealth can be a valuable asset, and looking at the new customs who came to us last year we can se that home improvements continue to be the most popular use of equity release, helping people to improve rather than move.”
The company anticipates a renewed interest in lifetime mortgages as customers reconsider using property wealth as the market likely stabilises. Mr Brown added: “It’s worth bearing in mind that house prices are still significantly higher than pre-pandemic figures – up 18% up from the end of 2019 – so property still represents an important asset which homeowners are increasingly likely to draw on.
British Steel invests £10m in rail stocking facility at Scunthorpe
Stocks of rail for use by Network Rail currently held around the country are to be brought together in one central service centre, being built at a cost of £10m in Scunthorpe.
When complete this summer, the facility will contain about 25,000 tonnes of 108-metre long rails from which Network Rail can be supplied.
The investment is part of the company’s strategy to support the supply of rails for Network Rail, ensuring there is rail stock ready, as and when required, for its supply chain.
Rails stocked in the new facility will all have undergone the testing and QA checks so it can be sent out at once, or welded into 216m lengths.
All civils were are complete, and the main towers and gantry sections are currently being erected.
Future works include the installation of the hoist and permanent magnet systems, including electrical installation and integration, which will be used to lift and load the rails in packs of four in and out of individual rail pens..
Council fears Lincolnshire pylon plans will disfigure countryside and harm visitor economy
National Grid’s plans to install new overhead cabling on pylons through Lincolnshire between Grimsby and Wisbech in Cambridgeshire have shocked Lincolnshire councillors, who have pledged to oppose the plans.
They say the ‘Great Grid Upgrade’ won’t be great for Lincolnshire’s visitor economy as the proposed pylons, substations and overhead cables would ‘carve up the landscape’, and point out that they have no power to grant or refuse permission because the plans are deemed a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project.
Cllr Colin Davie, executive councillor for economic development, environment and planning, said: “Alongside our seaside resort towns, a huge part of our coastal charm is the miles of unspoilt nature and beaches that make up the east of Lincolnshire. There are a string of nature reserves along the east coast, not to mention the Lincolnshire Wolds, the beauty of which would be severely impacted by these unsightly pylons.
“I understand the need for infrastructure to connect new sources of renewable energy to the grid. However, elsewhere in the country, National Grid’s plans involve burying these cables under the ground or under the sea; why can’t that be done in Lincolnshire too?
“And this isn’t power being brought in to supply Lincolnshire’s needs, necessarily. This wall of wires and pylons is ostensibly to take power down to London and the south east.
“We refuse to let Lincolnshire be seen as a place to dump unwanted infrastructure projects. But as these pylon plans are classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, permission won’t be determined locally.
“The council, as a statutory consultee, will be sure to make our views on the proposals clear to the relevant Secretary of State who will make the final decision to grant consent or not.”
New letting for Sheffield’s Heart of the City
Another new letting has been announced for Heart of the City – the flagship city centre development scheme led by Sheffield City Council and their Strategic Development Partner, Queensberry.
Independent fashion retailer, The Cream Store, is set to open a 3,000 sq ft flagship shop on the ground floor of Burgess House – positioned on the corner of Charles Street and Cross Burgess Street, fronting the evolving Five Ways junction.
With fit-out aiming to be complete this Spring, the store, which also boasts a raised mezzanine, will stock contemporary clothing and lifestyle accessories for both men and women. Premium brands – which are regularly refreshed and rotated – include the popular Carhartt WIP, Fred Perry, Edwin, Nudie Jeans Co, Gramicci, and many more.
It will be The Cream Store’s second dedicated shop in the UK following the long-term success of the company’s Nuneaton store, which opened in 2005.
Like Nuneaton, the store will also house its acclaimed ‘Sneaker Treat’ service, offering customers a range of sustainable cleaning and restoration solutions to bring their favourite trainers back to life.
Manish Patel, Director of The Cream Store, said: “We have chosen Sheffield for our next venture as it’s a fantastic city with a vibrant and diverse culture. We feel that there is a great opportunity to provide the local community with a ‘go to’ place to shop for quality, durable fashion.
“Customer service is at the heart of everything we do. We welcome and enjoy talking to our customers, sharing our advice and our passion. The store will offer a relaxed, ambient atmosphere for our customers to dwell and view our latest collections.
“It’s all about offering a great accessible experience. Our customer-first approach has allowed us to maintain a loyal customer base over the last two decades and we’re exciting to build something similar in Sheffield.
“We can’t wait to open our doors in the Spring.”
Cllr Ben Miskell, Chair of the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “We are thrilled to welcome The Cream Store to Heart of the City. It’s another significant addition to the scheme’s growing fashion offer and builds on the likes of Weekday, Monki, and the recently signed Fjällräven and Yards Store.
“This is going to be a huge year for Heart of the City and the wider city centre, with the Cambridge Street Collective food hall, Leah’s Yard and Bethel Chapel all set to open in the coming months.”
Alex Hyams, Senior Asset & Leasing Manager at Queensberry, added: “The Cream Store is a contemporary independent menswear retailer, which epitomises the best of modern-day retail, housing premium brands in a clean and smart environment. This letting complements the emerging retailer line-up very well and continues to elevate the quality of the shopping experience in Sheffield city centre.”
Plans to transform former Tramways WMC site in York approved
Oakgate Group has secured planning permission to regenerate the former Tramways Working Men’s Club in York into 35 new homes, with linked improvements to the adjacent park where Dick Turpin’s grave is located.
City of York Council granted planning approval for the club site on Mill Street in York which closed in 2018, when it became commercially unviable and was sold by its members to Oakgate Group, part of the Caddick group of companies.
A thorough consultation was undertaken and various changes were made to the designs, in collaboration with the Council and other stakeholders. These changes included reducing the height and massing of the proposed building and amending the design. The new development has been named St George’s Terrace.
Richard France, Managing Director of Oakgate Group, said: “It’s great news that Councillors have recognised the benefits that these proposals will bring and approved the plans.
“Our proposals will replace an unattractive building to provide high quality new homes and will also bring major improvements to the vital green space, the Rest Gardens next to it – giving the grave of Dick Turpin the presence and profile it warrants, whilst delivering better amenities for the local residents.”
Work on the site is expected to start later this year.
Forge Island leisure destination celebrates final topping out milestone
Rotherham’s transformative Forge Island leisure-led scheme is coming to fruition with a formal ceremony to mark the final ‘topping out’ milestone held on site this week.
The hotel and cinema building structures have now been completed and ‘topped out’ at the landmark destination. This is a key construction milestone for the flagship town centre scheme, which is being delivered on schedule in partnership with Rotherham Council, nationwide placemaker Muse and contractor, Bowmer + Kirkland.
Set to open to the public towards the end of summer 2024, Forge Island will include an 8-screen boutique cinema, delivered by The Arc, alongside a 69-room Travelodge Hotel. All commercial space has already been let with six independent restaurants confirmed including Sakku Samba, The Rustic Pizza Co and Estabulo. This will all be set within attractive and accessible public spaces, designed by re-form Landscape Architecture.
Together with Rotherham Markets, the improvements are a key part of Rotherham Council’s large-scale regeneration plans aimed at breathing new life into the heart of the borough.
Councillor Chris Read, Leader of Rotherham Council, said: “It’s just over a year since we broke ground and here we are topping out these amazing buildings with more exciting milestones to come. Forge Island is the single biggest investment in our town centre for decades and it’s successfully transforming a disused retail site into a landmark family-friendly destination we can all enjoy and be proud to have on our doorstep.”
Raife Gale, Senior Development Manager at Muse, added: “We’re thrilled to have reached this significant and very visual milestone that shows just how far this scheme has progressed over recent months. We have been working closely in partnership with the Council to create something special for the people of Rotherham and this will undoubtedly help to bring families into the town centre and enjoy it as a leisure destination once again.”
The Arc Cinema will be Rotherham’s first movie theatre in more than 30 years and is a major part of the Forge Island’s family-friendly offer.
Brian Gilligan, Director of The Arc Cinema, who attended the topping out, said: “We’re very excited to open on Forge Island later this year and it’s fantastic to be here today and see our cinema taking shape. The Arc Cinema is known for their top-class facilities and we’re proud to say that the new location at Forge Island will be no exception.
“We also place a strong emphasis on building personal connections within the community – which includes recruiting locally – and our aim is to create a meaningful place that belongs to the people of Rotherham just as much as it belongs to us.”
Tony O’Brien, Travelodge, UK Development Director, added: “We can’t wait to open our new hotel later this year and it’s fantastic to witness this significant milestone in development. Rotherham is growing at pace and has one of the fastest growing economies in Yorkshire. Our 69-room Travelodge hotel will also have an on-site restaurant and car parking.
“With the railway station, the town centre amenities and Rotherham United’s AESSEAL New York Stadium within an easy walk, the Travelodge will be ideally located for business and leisure guests. This ground-breaking scheme is an excellent, new leisure destination that I’m sure will be of great benefit to the Rotherham community and visitors to the area for many years to come.”
Now that the external structures have completed, work will continue on the building facades ahead of the fit out of the independent food and beverage outlets, hotel and cinema complex in the spring and final works to the new public realm. The wider project team also includes Arup, Helm Consulting and Arcadis, with a new pedestrian bridge designed by FaulknerBrowns Architects.
Ground broken on £50m student accommodation scheme in York
GMI Construction Group has broken ground on a £50m student accommodation scheme on the site of a former cinema and bingo hall in York.
Developer Olympian Homes is naming the purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) Rialto House, after the cinema that once hosted a performance by The Beatles.
Spanning 80,000 sq ft, the four-storey building in the Fulford area will provide 275 beds alongside modern amenities, including a gym, yoga studio, games room, co-working spaces, group dining areas, integrated cycle parking, and landscaped courtyards. In a nod to its heritage, it will also feature a cinema.
The site of the Rialto Cinema, which opened in 1913 and demolished in 2003, is located within an area of archaeological importance and adjacent to the Centra Core Historic Conservation Area.
Latterly the site of the cinema became a car park for the adjacent Mecca bingo hall, which has also since been demolished and is within the scheme’s footprint.
GMI, which is utilising a predominantly local supply chain on the project, is highly active in the PBSA market, with Rialto House bringing the number of student beds it is building in the city to almost 600. This includes 303-beds at a scheme in James Street on behalf of York-based S Harrison Developments, which is currently under construction.
Andrew Hurcomb, GMI’s Regional Director for Yorkshire, said: “We are thrilled to begin construction on our on-going collaboration with Olympian Homes to deliver a cost-effective, and sustainable design that helps address a shortage of student accommodation in York.”
James Lindridge, COO & Development Director at Olympian Homes, added: “We are delighted to have now made significant progress on such a landmark site within York.
“We would like to thank York City Council for their ongoing support in delivering the scheme, and GMI for their professionalism and deft in getting to this stage. We look forward to showcasing a best-in-class student product to assist with the undersupply of Purpose-Built Student Accommodation within York.”
Land sales and affordable housing partnership agreed at Riverdale Park, Doncaster
Harworth Group’s Riverdale Park development in Doncaster is entering its final phase following a series of land parcel sales.
The transactions comprise the sale of three pieces of commercial land for a total of £5.7m, to Polypipe Building Products, a supplier of construction materials, JCT600, one of the UK’s largest motor retailers, and a private developer for the construction of a drive thru-unit, alongside the signing of a forward-funding agreement with Great Places as part of Harworth’s affordable housing portfolio that was launched in 2023.
Doncaster-based Polypipe Building Products, part of FTSE 250 constituent Genuit Group plc, has acquired a four-acre land parcel adjacent to its existing Neale Road Manufacturing site, which will be used to provide new facilities.
JCT600 has acquired a seven-acre land parcel to develop a new car showroom and forecourt, complementing its existing premises elsewhere in the area, while the private developer has acquired half an acre of land for the construction of a new drive-thru unit. Both land parcels benefit from direct frontage onto Wheatley Hall Road (A630), one of Doncaster’s main throughfares which connects directly to the A1(M) and M18 motorways.
Haworth has also entered into a forward-funding agreement with Great Places to develop 50 new affordable housing units as part of the residential element of the Riverdale Park development. The development will include a mixture of two, three and four-bedroom homes that meet the National Planning Policy Framework criteria for affordable housing. Under the terms of the agreement, Harworth has sold a land parcel to Great Places and will oversee the construction of the homes in return for a development management fee.
Riverdale Park is located on the site of the former McCormick Tractor factory. In 2015, the 112-acre site became one of Harworth’s first acquisitions, and the Group later secured an outline planning consent to deliver a mixed-use scheme comprising 600 new homes and 200,000 sq ft of employment space. While the employment space prioritises accessibility to Wheatley Hall Road, the residential element of the development is arranged around the River Don, creating a desirable new community for waterside living.
Prior to these transactions, Harworth sold employment space at Riverdale Park to Arnold Clark for a new 30,000 sq ft car showroom and to a private developer for the construction of two drive-thru units. The Group also directly developed a drive-thru Costa Coffee unit on the site, which has since been sold.
For the residential element of the scheme, land has so far been sold to Barratt, Taylor Wimpey and Harron Homes, which will collectively deliver over 500 new family homes. Harworth has also undertaken works to repair and restore period riverfront features to create an attractive riverside walkway for residents at the site. The development is expected to be fully built out by 2027.
Ed Catchpole, Regional Director – Yorkshire & Central, Harworth Group plc, said: “Our Riverdale Park development has transformed a brownfield site into a thriving mixed-use community, providing well-connected leisure and employment space as well as much-needed new family homes in a desirable riverside location.
“We are delighted to have transacted with a number of the region’s most successful businesses to help them expand their presence in Doncaster, supporting new jobs and investment in the area, as well as partnering with Great Places to deliver much-needed new affordable homes.”
James Crow, Director of Mixed Tenure, Harworth Group plc, said: “Our affordable housing portfolio is about working with selected partners to meet affordable family housing needs, in a large and underserved sector. We are therefore so pleased to have reached our first affordable housing agreement with Great Places, a highly-respected housing provider that shares our commitment to create vibrant, sustainable communities.”
Matt Williams, Managing Director, Polypipe Building Products, said: “We are delighted to confirm our commitment to the Doncaster area via this investment, which not only allows us to improve our operational efficiency but also opens the opportunity for expansion of our Neale Road facility in the future.”
Helen Spencer, Executive Director of Growth, Great Places, said: “We’re delighted to be part of the Riverdale Park development. Close work with Harworth Group has enabled us to unlock this important site to deliver 50 new affordable homes in the area where we know that demand is high. We’re committed to providing high-quality, sustainable, and affordable housing in the areas we operate and we look forward to working with Harworth Group and other partners to deliver this project.”
