Race Cottam Associates announce directors’ promotions
The board of directors at award-winning architectural practice, Race Cottam Associates (RCA) has been reorganised to lead the next phase of growth as the firm celebrates its 30th anniversary.
Paul Foster has been promoted from associate director to director while Laurie Cottam has become the practice’s MD after its current incumbent, David Speddings stepped into a senior design lead role. Pauline Lake’s role as director responsible for business development and David Cottam’s role as chairman both remain unchanged.
“This reorganisation of our Board has been carefully planned to implement our vision for growth but more importantly, to ensure business continuity,” explains Laurie Cottam. “David Speddings has been a familiar face for RCA clients for almost 30 years and will continue to act as our design quality champion, mentoring the next generation with his expertise in the advanced manufacturing, industrial and energy sectors.
“Similarly, as our work in healthcare has significantly accelerated, it was right to recognise and reward Paul’s substantial contribution with this promotion. A popular and proactive ambassador for the sector, Paul is best placed to lead this growth and ensure we remain a leading authority on design for health.
“Together with Pauline continuing to lead our education work and drive our sustainability credentials and business development, we’re confident we’ve orchestrated the best possible team to take RCA into its next 30 years,” concluded Laurie.
The directors’ revised roles follow a period of success for RCA. In healthcare, the recently completed new main entrance and paediatrics department at Hull Royal Infirmary won the Award for Design Excellence at the national Planning Awards 2023.
In education, RCA has secured a position on the University of Nottingham’s design consultancy framework, whilst both St Anne’s SEN School in Hessle and CAPA College in Wakefield are both shortlisted in the forthcoming Education Estates Awards.
The practice’s work on industrial and new infrastructure also continues to thrive, with planning permission recently gained for Smith + Nephew’s flagship manufacturing and R&D facility, and a fifth phase is nearing completion at AESSEAL’s precision engineering factory in Rotherham.
Laurie adds: “To record such a series of successes is a testament to the talent and creativity of our team. I am proud to be the custodian of the RCA brand and our recent Board changes ensure sustainable growth for future generations.”
Smart Works Leeds launches its inaugural ‘Fashion as a Force for Good’ Ball and Yorkshire Fashion Awards 2023
Smart Works Leeds, the charity that dresses and coaches unemployed women for job and interview success, has announced a major fund-raising ball and awards ceremony this November.
The inaugural Fashion as a Force for Good Ball will take place at The Marriott Leeds on November 15, 2023. It promises to be a glamorous celebration of the best of Yorkshire fashion, hosted by a team of super-stylish Yorkshire personalities.
Attendees are encouraged to dress in an occasion outfit that makes them feel confident and tells a story. Smart Works Leeds co-chair of trustees Tracy Fletcher says: “We invite you to wear that outfit you never thought you would, that has perhaps been stored in your wardrobe for too long, or it might be a favourite piece that reminds you of a wonderful time.”
The evening will include eight awards, four recognising individuals and companies who have supported Smart Works Leeds, and four awards celebrating Yorkshire fashion designers, influencers, stylists and retail outlets, all promoting fashion as a force for good throughout their work. They will each be judged on their commitment to sustainable fashion, to their community, to diversity, inclusivity and innovation.
The four fashion categories are:
- Force for Good Indie of the Year – An independent fashion designer, shop or online boutique, based in Yorkshire, with community and/or sustainability at their heart as they deliver brilliant design and/or excellent customer experience and quality.
- Force for Good Retail Team of the Year – Open to all fashion stores, from small independents to large retailers with multiple stores and Yorkshire-based online retailers. We are looking for teams who strive to engage with and make a difference to their community and their environment. Is there a fashion store in Yorkshire that you love, where the staff always go that extra mile to make you look fabulous and feel confident?
- Force for Good Emerging Designer of the Year – For students, graduates and emerging designers, based in Yorkshire, who have a strong focus on sustainability and/or inclusivity challenges. Who has impressed you with their innovative portfolio, collections and projects? Who is the One to Watch?
- Force for Good Influencer of the Year – Which Yorkshire-based social media fashion icon do you admire most? Who wears it well, but also does so much more than that, highlighting issues of inclusivity, sustainability and ethics, championing others and striving always to use fashion as a force for good?
Flood defence plan costing £29m has begun on the Humber
A £29m project to manage the risk of flooding to people and major industry in north-east Lincolnshire has begun with improvements made to 4.5 kilometres of coastal defences along part of the Humber estuary’s south bank.
The defences will benefit 2,300 properties, nationally important infrastructure, vital industry, and areas outlined by North East Lincolnshire Council for future development.
This is the third phase of the Stallingborough Sea Defence Improvement Scheme, which has repaired and strengthened sea walls between Immingham and Grimsby in stages over the last 15 years.
This latest stage of work will see the installation of large rocks called rock armour along three kilometres of the seaward side of the flood defence. The rocks will cover from the Middle Drain to the northwest to the New Cut Drain to the southeast. The remaining 1.5 kilometres of defences will be repaired. In addition, the four river outfalls will also be repaired and improved to make them more sustainable and resilient to flooding.
The majority of the work will be undertaken over 3 years, with pauses through the winter to reduce ecological impacts to the seaward side of the defence.
Dom Freestone, Operations Manager for the Environment Agency, said: “Low-lying communities along the Humber are at high risk of tidal flooding and rising sea levels.
“Works to improve the flood defences are vital to manage that threat and will help drive business confidence and investment in the area. But despite our best efforts, flooding can still happen.”
Rock armour is one of the most sustainable and low-carbon options available and minimises the potential impact on the area’s internationally important habitats. It will help fortify the walls and prevent the sea undermining them, ensuring they continue to reduce flood risk for at least a further 25 years, taking account of climate change predictions.
The work is expected to generate economic benefits valued at £1.1 billion over the next 25 years.
Councillor Stewart Swinburn, Cabinet member for the Environment at North East Lincolnshire Council, said: “Our coastline is an incredibly important one to protect, not only for the wonderful natural habitat, but also for the economic and industrial growth on the South Humber shore.
“The Humber Estuary’s natural tidal flow is something we have to embrace and work with, but by providing this investment in flood protection measures, the risk to people and businesses in this area is significantly less.”
Stallingborough’s coastal walls were originally built following devastating floods in 1953. They are now at increasing risk of damage from rising sea levels and more frequent storms.
South Yorkshire grant enables Danuta to bring her business to Barnsley
A Tech Welcome Grant funded by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority has allowed a civil engineer specialising in complex 3D modelling to move her business to Barnsley to expand into the UK market and deliver training in CAD design software.
Danuta Rak’s 3DR Design and Training Studio Ltd, is the first recipient of such a grant, and has used it to part-fund an office at DMC 01 in Barnsley.
Moving from Rzeszów, in Poland, Danuta plans to use her new base as a springboard for growth, delivering 3D digital model applications for clients in a range of sectors including design and construction, medicine and research. Danuta will also offer training in AutoCad software.
Tech Welcome Grants aim to encourage tech businesses to move to the region – and also start-ups already here, to move into their first physical office space.
The grants provide help with accommodation costs for up to a year, with the percentage of rent covered dependent on the number of jobs the business brings to the region. Qualifying companies can choose to move into any South Yorkshire workspace.
3DR is the first company to gain a Tech Welcome Support Grant, which will cover 40 percent of the company’s rent for a 209 sq ft office at DMC 01 in Barnsley for 12 months.
Danuta said: “I was very keen to move to the UK to explore opportunities here; and the Tech Welcome Grant was a big help in taking this decision. The application process was quick and easy and the DMC team have been very helpful and welcoming.
“Every new business needs some financial support to move forward and develop; and this grant has helped me follow my ambition to work in the UK.
“DMC is a very friendly place and is more than an office but already a second home. It is good to be among so many smart, enterprising people.
“I am impressed with Barnsley too as it is an up-and-coming town. I am passionate about my work and excited about my company’s move to South Yorkshire.”
Beal secures planning approval to complete £210m Goole development
Beal Homes has secured full planning permission to complete the award-winning housebuilder’s largest-ever development, The Greenways in Goole.
The planning approval from East Riding of Yorkshire Council is for 600 homes, giving the green light for Beal to continue to deliver the £210m development, which will ultimately extend to 806 properties.
Construction of the remainder of the development will represent a further £156m investment by Beal in one of Yorkshire’s fastest-growing towns.
East Yorkshire-based Beal has now sold more than 180 homes at The Greenways, with continuing strong demand from a wide range of househunters, including first-time buyers, professionals, families and downsizers.
Many have been local people achieving their dream of owning a high-quality new home in their home town, with the Beal investment addressing a shortage of new-build properties in Goole.
The Greenways is on a 73-acre site equivalent to almost 50 football pitches off Rawcliffe Road in Goole and is the largest housing scheme in the town for decades.
The development is a key element of an ongoing wave of investment in Goole, including Siemens Mobility’s £200m-plus rail village and a worldwide distribution hub for FTSE 100 company Croda, which are creating hundreds of highly-skilled jobs in the town.
Demand for The Greenways has been exceptionally strong, validating Beal’s confidence in the town.
Beal Chief Executive Richard Beal said: “We identified the rich potential of Goole many years ago now, as well as a pent-up demand for high-quality new homes in the town.
“The strong sales we have achieved and the continuing high demand we are seeing at The Greenways has justified our confidence.
“We’re now pleased to have secured full planning permission to continue our long-term investment and the critical contribution we’re making to Goole’s remarkable rejuvenation.”
The 600 homes that have now received full planning consent will comprise a selection of Beal’s most popular two, three and four-bedroom properties.
Beal Land Director Chris Murphy said: “The Greenways has transformed the quality and variety of housing in Goole, providing luxury, contemporary homes for local residents as well as attracting new people to the town.
“As the largest single development in our company’s history, securing full planning permission for the remainder of The Greenways marks another significant milestone in our delivery of this long-term scheme.
“It builds on our proud history of delivering high-quality developments that enhance local communities, provide desirable places to live, and support economic growth.”
Ex-BBC presenter Rod offers experience to Carrington Communications
BBC Radio Lincolnshire’s longest-serving breakfast show presenter Rod Whiting is bringing his 35 years’ broadcasting experience to businesses across the UK as professional media trainer for Lincoln-based Carrington Communications.
Rod, who has worked for the BBC, ITN and commercial networks for over three decades, provides media training through his own brand, Ultravox Media Training.
Now, Carrington clients are also able to access Rod’s media training, adding to the agency’s existing digital marketing services for clients in manufacturing, professional services and tourism.
It also means Rod – now a presenter on commercial station Boom Radio – has been reunited with his former BBC colleague David Sykes, who worked alongside Rod at BBC Radio Lincolnshire before joining Carrington where he leads the agency’s PR team.
Mr Sykes said: “I used to be a reporter and producer for Rod’s programmes on BBC Radio Lincolnshire, and he is a truly formidable interviewer who knows exactly how to get the best from an interviewee or put them on the spot.
“As valuable as media coverage can be, there’s a good reason why people find the prospect of speaking to journalists or appearing on TV and radio daunting because the consequences could be either fantastic or disastrous. Fortunately, good media training and preparation can help ensure interviews go the right way, helping organisations and individuals get their message across to large audiences while proving themselves as experts that people can trust.
“We’ve arranged for Rod to train spokespeople from a few of the companies we work with already, and the feedback has been excellent so I’m really excited that we’re able to go this next step further and join forces properly.”
Rod said: “It’s been an aspiration to collaborate with a high quality PR organisation for a while and it’s good to be working with David again.
“Ultravox began trading as Rod Whiting Communications in January 2021, but, having now grown the business from a stand-still, the time is ripe for the next stage of development for the Ultravox Media Training brand. This, for me, is a natural and sensible progression in what is likely to be a challenging economic environment where media communications will be a critical business function.”
Yorkshire Business Myth Drinks recognised as one of UK’s most impressive firms
Myth Drinks in Yorkshire has been selected as one of the nation’s 100 most impressive small firms by the Small Business Saturday UK campaign, as it kicks off its second decade in the UK.
Myth Drinks is already a multi-award-winning business, creating alcohol free rum for those who enjoy good taste and good times with friends and family.
Founded by Colette Safhill in 2022, it was designed to offer something a bit different that’s not available elsewhere in the market.
Following a nationwide search, it has been chosen as part of this year’s SmallBiz100 line-up, which showcases 100 of the most inspiring independent businesses from across the nation.
Colette commented, “It’s wonderful to be selected as a SmallBiz100 and to have all our hard work recognised alongside the other fantastic businesses across the UK. We launched Myth Drinks to offer something special to customers, because that’s what it’s all about isn’t it. Innovating and creating new products that customers will want to choose time and time again.”
Myth Drinks was profiled by the campaign on August 25th as part of the 100-day countdown to Small Business Saturday UK.
Small Business Saturday will return on 2 December 2023, with a mission to support and celebrate the UK’s 5.5 million small businesses. With small firms facing huge challenges due to the cost-of-living crisis, the campaign is more vital than ever as it moves in to its second decade in the UK.
“It’s fantastic to celebrate Myth Drinks as part of this year’s campaign” said Michelle Ovens CBE, Director of Small Business Saturday UK.
“The impressive small businesses featured in this year’s SmallBiz100 sum up the phenomenal contribution that small firms make to our economy and local communities.”
Small Business Saturday is a grassroots, non-commercial campaign, which celebrates small business success and encourages consumers to ‘shop local’ and to support businesses in their communities.
The campaign was originally founded by American Express in the U.S. in 2010, and the brand remains the principal supporter of the campaign in the UK.
On Small Business Saturday customers across the UK go out and support all types of small businesses, from independent boutiques and eateries to small service and b2b based businesses like wholesalers and digital marketers. Many small businesses take an active role in promoting the day by hosting events and offering promotions.
Over the time the campaign has run in the UK it has engaged millions of people each year and seen billions of pounds spent with small businesses across the UK on Small Business Saturday.
Small Business Saturday attracts huge attention on the day itself, with an impact that lasts all year. Last year the campaign trended at number one in the UK on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), with the Prime Minister and the Mayor of London among those publicly supporting the campaign. Over 90% of local councils also supported the campaign
Businessmen plan cross-country cycle ride to raise charity funds
A group of business professionals from the Humber are gearing up to repeat the 250-mile three-day Bridge to Bridge 4 (B2B4) cycling challenge to raise money for the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation ten years after the inaugural ride.
Eight riders will start their journey from Llanfairpwllgwyngyll on Anglesey, riding over the bridge on the Menai Strait. The first leg of the challenge will see them take on a 120-mile route to Bollington, near Macclesfield. Day 2 will provide the riders with a challenging 60 mile trek over the Pennines, and their final day involves a 70-mile ride to the Humber Bridge.
The group is raising money for the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation. The eldest son of one of the riders contracted a virus on his spine, causing paralysis from the chest down. Following news from doctors that he would never walk again, thanks to his commitment and determination to rehabilitation and physiotherapy, he is now able to walk with sticks. The aim of this ride is to raise funds and awareness of the ground-breaking research work into a cure for spinal cord injuries being supported financially by the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation.
Participant and Chairman of Forrester Boyd Chartered Accounts, Mike Beckett, said: “This ride will be a real challenge of stamina and determination. I have embarked on a number of cycling challenges over the years but I am really looking forward to this one. Not only because of the route that we will be riding and the great group that I have as company, but also to try and raise much needed funds for this charity. With a firm belief that a cure for spinal cord injury is within reach, it is now more important than ever that we try to support the Nicholls Spinal Injury Foundation in reaching its goal.”
Other riders taking part in the challenge alongside Mike are, Andrew Cooney, Ronnie Fletcher, Mark Hague, Richard Hardy, Bobby Pye, John Pye, and Grant Stables.
South Yorkshire businesses urged to share employment experiences
South Yorkshire’s trio of Chambers of Commerce want to hear from businesses in their region about their experiences of recruitment and staff retention.
The Chambers are running a repeat of the People Survey to gauge whether or not the situation has improved much for employers over the past twelve months, and to observe any new trends that may be developing.
Among other things, the form asks searching questions about how long vacancies are being left unfilled, what strategies & incentives are currently being used to retain staff, and the necessity of increasing salaries for new starters.
Equipped with these insights, Chambers for Sheffield, Barnsley & Rotherham, and Doncaster will then be better placed to represent the business community on all of these pressing issues.
Feeding into the nationwide Quarterly Economic Survey, the poll also asks organisations a number of questions, about the state of the economy and overall business conditions, including sections on cashflow, turnover, capacity, and price pressures, all of which are repeated in every single iteration of the QES. Meanwhile, there is an opportunity for respondents to explain what more their local authority and national government could be doing to supporting them during these uncertain times.
Encouraging businesses to take The People Survey, the respective Chief Execs for the three South Yorkshire Chambers issued a joint statement: “Last time we ran The People Survey, we discovered that a staggering 89% of businesses trying to recruit at the time were experiencing difficulties. We know that this is a perennial struggle of course, which is why we have decided to circle back around and ask those very same questions again, in order to see if the situation has improved or worsened.
“With that in mind, it is important that organisations take the time to have their say here and to articulate their own experiences. The findings from this survey will enable us to understand the major obstacles that the private sector is facing right now and to really get under the bonnet of this complicated issue.
“As representatives of the business community, we always strive to amplify the voice of South Yorkshire employers and will lobby for meaningful change on their behalf.
“In fact, just last week we published our Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP), which outlines 36 practical recommendations for how the skills system in our region can be changed to better meet the needs of employers. We were only able to produce that document with the help of businesses, who kindly shared their insights with us and engaged in the consultation process.
“Their input was instrumental in the creation of the LSIP, and we are asking for it again now with The People Survey, so that we can better understand the issues that organisations are facing when it comes to recruitment and retention. We need as many responses as possible to this questionnaire and it only takes about 10 minutes to complete, yet every single form completed counts.
“As part of the national Quarterly Economic Survey, the results will not only be analyzed by ourselves but also by our umbrella body the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) and will be closely watched by policymakers as well. So it’s important that they’re hearing from South Yorkshire.”
The People Survey is open from now until Monday the 18th of September. Businesse
Doncaster gets green light for second University Technical College
Doncaster is to have a second University Technical College by September 2025, it has been announced, with a focus on the Health & Wellbeing sector.
Dan Fell, Chief Exec of Doncaster Chamber, said: “After a number of high-profile setbacks in recent months, this is a much-needed win for our city and an encouraging sign that we can turn things around.
“The original UTC has been a real asset for us. Indeed, helping to get that off the ground — by chairing its bid, drumming up political support, getting buy-in from the business community and even getting into the granularity of its design— is one of my proudest achievements as Chief Exec of the Chamber.
“I am confident that this new college will open up doors for Doncaster’s next generation of talent, especially those who are determined to pursue careers in health and wellbeing.
“There is always high demand for talent in these areas and anyone who decides to hone the relevant skills will undoubtedly have bright futures ahead of them. Young people who enrol at this second UTC will therefore be in a very strong position when it comes to entering the workforce later in life.
“In terms of employment partners, the college — and by extension its students — will be working closely with the NHS and other big players in the health sector.
“These are certainly promising foundations to begin with but, in order for the new UTC to be every bit as successful as its forbear, we need the voice of business to be at its heart. That’s why I’d like to encourage any other employers who are invested in fostering the next generation of talent to similarly reach out and see what role they can play in the college’s future.
“Once again, I’d like to welcome this much-needed positive news for Doncaster and to congratulate everyone involved for making it happen, especially those at the Brighter Futures Learning Partnership Multi-Academy Trust, who have done so much to diversify Doncaster’s education offer and embed work readiness in what they do. If today’s news is anything to go by, it seems that our city is getting back to its winning ways. And long may it continue.”
