< Previous10 Business Link www.blmforum.net A brighter future Across Yorkshire cities are embracing regeneration, with myriad schemes set to provide residents with a brighter future. Coney Street Riverside A brighter future COMMERCIAL PROPERTY www.blmforum.net Business Link 11 T ransformational plans are abound throughout Yorkshire’s cities, to revitalise, regenerate and repurpose sites. Business Link highlights some recent milestones for these schemes, creating a brighter future for the region. In Bradford, plans to transform the city’s former retail heart into a new sustainable ‘City Village’ have taken a leap forward. Bradford Council has appointed ECF, the partnership between Homes England, Legal & General and Muse, as its preferred development partner to deliver the scheme. Bradford City Village is set to deliver up to 1,000 new homes, three new community parks and public spaces, along with shops, cafes, restaurants, and offices. Bradford Council’s Executive Board has also approved plans to enter into a grant funding agreement with Homes England, the government’s housing and regeneration agency, to release £29.9m of provisional Brownfield Infrastructure & Land (BIL) funding, subject to final Homes England approval before the end of this year. The new funding will facilitate improvements to the road network and public spaces, as well as support the demolition of the Oastler and Kirkgate Shopping Centres. The Oastler demolition is set to commence in summer 2025 and will enable the future regeneration opportunity to come forward. It is hoped the initial BIL funding will also help attract further investment to unlock future phases of the masterplan, which aims to completely transform Bradford city centre. ECF will now work in partnership with the Council to progress a planning application, expected to be submitted in spring 2025. Bradford Council’s Lead Member for Regeneration, Transport and Planning Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw said: “This is part of a much bigger picture of regeneration across Bradford as our current regeneration programme like One City Park, Darley Street Market and the pedestrianisation works start to complete. City Village is the next big regeneration programme and will re-define the centre of Bradford.” Meanwhile, in York, Helmsley Group’s Coney Street Riverside masterplan has been given the green light. The Coney Street Masterplan will see the creation of 250,000 sq ft of mixed-use retail, leisure, commercial and residential space. A riverside walkway will be established alongside nationally significant green and accessible public realm, both on the waterfront itself and also through the creation and rejuvenation of historic lanes and passageways between Coney Street and the River Ouse. Situated in York’s Central Conservation Area, the site consists of 19-33 Coney Street and 39 Coney Street to 2 Spurriergate and includes four listed buildings and two buildings of merit, and is in close proximity to a number of other listed buildings and buildings of importance. Max Reeves, Development Director at Helmsley Group, said: “We are absolutely thrilled that the planning committee approved both the full application for our Coney Street Riverside masterplan and also the separate listed building application. As a business based in York and with more than 40 years of experience delivering impactful development, we have always said that we are committed to this scheme for the long term and that it will bring many positive benefits to the city and wider region. We are pleased that these factors were taken into consideration by the planning committee alongside our 12 Á12 Business Link www.blmforum.net positive efforts working together with City of York Council, the public and stakeholders to ensure these plans are shaped collaboratively and supported. This is a wonderful opportunity to sensitively and sustainably redevelop historic Coney Street into the social heart of York and reconnect it with its riverfront.” Subject to planning conditions, Helmsley aims to start on site by 2026. In Leeds, the City Council has approved Watkin Jones’ plans for the conversion and repurposing of Headrow House at 42 The Headrow, into 230 co- living homes. Headrow House is a vacant office block in the centre of Leeds. When completed in 2028, the project will deliver a supported communal living environment, offering managed homes for city centre living and will help to address the demand for rental accommodation that continues to outstrip supply in Leeds. The project offers an opportunity to restore and repurpose an historic building and contribute to the regeneration of vacant buildings in the city centre. The scheme will retain retail units on the ground floor, helping to support local residents and businesses. The development aims to attain BREEAM ‘Excellent’ certification, and the retrofit will enhance thermal efficiency and air permeability, with electric heating for net zero carbon, energy-efficient windows, and air source heat pumps. Photovoltaic panels, efficient lighting, and energy-saving controls will optimise performance. By reusing the building, the scheme will reduce embodied carbon by 78% and Watkin Jones will use sustainable landscaping throughout. Headrow House will further provide its occupiers with a gym, shared kitchens and dining areas, a cinema, co- working lounge, library, laundry room and bicycle parking in addition to personal storage rooms. Iain Smith, Planning Headrow House www.blmforum.net Business Link 13 COMMERCIAL PROPERTY Director at Watkin Jones, said: “We are very excited to announce planning approval for Headrow House, our first co- living project in Leeds. Ranked the third largest city by population in the UK, Leeds is a vital commercial and residential centre, and we are committed to providing high-quality, sustainable co- living accommodation that will help to address the on-going demand for rental homes in Leeds city centre.” Finally, in Hull regeneration of the historic Burton building by specialist Wykeland Group has taken a major step forward, with removal of scaffolding from the art deco property. Once completed, the building, now called Burton House, will offer 12,700 sq ft of prime city centre space, set over five floors. Central to the restoration of Burton House is the replacement of much of the granite cladding which adorns the building. Replacement granite has been sourced from the same quarry in Norway, to match the geographical origin of the original stone, which dates back to the mid-1930s. Art deco windows have also been replaced, with new signage to be installed. Wykeland Development Director Jonathan Stubbs said: “There has, unsurprisingly, been a huge amount of excitement and anticipation surrounding the regeneration of the Burton building. As one of the best- known landmarks in Hull, we’ve approached this project with a great deal of care and sympathy. With the scaffolding now removed, and the restored exterior of the building revealed, people can envisage how Burton House will transform the entrance to Whitefriargate.” On the upper floors, significant restoration work has already seen the original lift refurbished, and work is progressing on creating desirable spaces for businesses to call home. Internal walls will be removed to create light, modern open-plan areas. A proposed retail or restaurant area on the ground floor will offer 2,400 sq ft of floorspace, with the basement providing 1,600 sq ft of useful back-of-house space. The first, second and third floors each cover 2,500 sq ft, and are suited for office and wider commercial uses. The property has been empty since Burton owner Arcadia Group went into administration in 2020. Wykeland purchased the site in 2021, following the previous acquisition of the former Marks & Spencer and Littlewoods buildings in Whitefriargate. In all, Wykeland has purchased nine properties between Whitefriargate and Alfred Gelder Street since 2020, as part of a long term regeneration project. These are just a handful of the schemes revitalising our region, with many more helping to re-define its future. © Neil Holmes Photography Regeneration specialist Wykeland Group is delivering the major restoration of the art deco former Burton building.14 Business Link www.blmforum.net END OF YEAR SUCCESS STORIES Successes in the storms W ith a year of continued geopolitical uncertainty, economic stagnation, a cost of doing business crisis, skills shortages, a tough budget for business after a landslide general election, further trade challenges thanks to Brexit red tape, the collapse of household names, and increases in insolvency-related activity, these are just a handful of the headline issues that have made 2024 another concerning year for businesses. Positively, the country managed to emerge from a short recession, saw slight improvements to stubborn inflation (though expectations remain for this to rise again), and high interest rates finally started their slow decline. Fortunately, 2024 has not been all doom and gloom for Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, with businesses working hard to find their own success, make more out of less, and bolstering their resilience. Indeed 2024 has seen many bright spots for the region, providing hope amidst a nationwide air of pessimism. Devolution has been a key topic this year, with a significant milestone being the launch of the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority to deliver the area’s devolution deal, worth more than £540m over 30 years. The first year will see more than £56m delivered, which includes projects to build hundreds of new homes and schemes to help the transition to net zero. Subsequently York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority’s first Mayor was appointed, David Skaith, to champion the region and bring a host of benefits to hundreds of thousands of residents and businesses. In an earlier stage of implementation, 2024 also saw devolution for Greater Lincolnshire get the go ahead, bringing together North East Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, and Lincolnshire County Council as the Greater Lincolnshire Combined County 2024 has been another bumpy year for Yorkshire and Lincolnshire businesses, but there have also been bright spots. 16 Áwww.blmforum.net Business Link 15 END OF YEAR SUCCESS STORIES © stock.adobe.com/U-JINN Photography16 Business Link www.blmforum.net END OF YEAR SUCCESS STORIES Authority, with a mayoral election scheduled for May 2025. The deal involves a total investment fund of £720m over the next 30 years for priority areas of jobs and skills, housing and highways, transport, the environment and nature, net zero, digital improvements, and innovation and trade. There is also an initial capital funding pot of £28m. Moreover, creation of Hull and East Yorkshire’s Mayoral Combined Authority was signed off by the government, meaning Hull and East Yorkshire’s devolution deal will progress through the next steps towards a mayoral election in May 2025. Additional highlights for the year can be seen in the investments that the region has attracted. South Yorkshire for example is set to become the new home of Holtec’s planned Small Modular Reactor (SMR) factory. The factory is estimated to provide £1.5bn in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the economy and is set to create hundreds of well-paid, high-skilled jobs. 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 its national security. Holtec’s decision followed Rolls-Royce SMR choosing South Yorkshire to become the home of its new multi-million pound facility. Meanwhile, Humber Freeport has helped to attract another major inward investment, securing a £250m development by a world-class business. Mitsubishi Chemical Group UK Ltd, part of one of the world’s largest chemical producers, has committed to invest in a new production line at Saltend Chemicals Park, which is located within one of the three Humber Freeport tax sites. Preparatory works have begun to make way for construction of the new production line, which will double Mitsubishi Chemical Group’s capacity at the site, east of Hull. The investment in a second production line will create dozens of new jobs while safeguarding the existing 130 roles at the Mitsubishi Chemical Group facility on site. The new production line is expected to become operational in 2026. Saltend Chemical Park’s status as part of Humber Freeport’s Hull East tax site has been a key factor in securing the investment, with plans for Mitsubishi Chemical Group to extend its lease with the chemical park’s owner and operator, px Group, until 2060. Furthermore, the City of Doncaster Council and Hybrid Air Vehicles Ltd, the sustainable aircraft technology firm, have agreed to locate the production programme for Airlander 10, the world’s most efficient large aircraft, at Carcroft Common. The freehold for the site will be acquired by Hybrid Air Vehicles under the terms of the agreement and the business will now initiate activities leading towards a planning application. Subject to planning approval, Hybrid Air Vehicles will develop new flagship facilities for Airlander 10’s production, testing, and certification operations, capable of producing up to 24 aircraft per year at the site. The reserved orderbook for Airlander 10 stands in excess of £1bn, with the first aircraft set to enter service from 2028. In partnership with the City of Doncaster Council, Hybrid Air Vehicles will establish Carcroft Common as a hub for advanced manufacturing and sustainable aviation in South Yorkshire, creating over 1,200 new jobs and thriving supply chains. Considering other exciting prospects for the region, 2024 additionally saw West Yorkshire and Nashville, Tennessee, sign a landmark agreement to turbocharge their health technology sectors, helping encourage the flow of trade, investment and knowledge sharing between the two. According to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the Mayors plan to establish a “Healthtech Bridge” connecting both sides of the Atlantic. In practice, this would mean greater partnership working between West Yorkshire and Nashville’s businesses, universities, chambers of commerce and regional government authorities. It will see the UK and USA working together to overcome shared healthcare challenges through the use of technology. Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said: “This groundbreaking new partnership with Nashville will deliver www.blmforum.net Business Link 17 END OF YEAR SUCCESS STORIES © stock.adobe.com/ Andy real results at home – new jobs, more investment, and better care for patients. It’s a major vote of confidence in West Yorkshire, and a testament to the strength of our healthtech sector, the talent in our universities, and the innovation of our businesses. By working together, our great regions will reignite growth and transform the lives of patients worldwide, as we work to build a stronger, brighter West Yorkshire that works for all.” These instances represent just a few of the major milestones for Yorkshire and Lincolnshire in 2024, with more success stories to be found in each city, town, and businesses across the region. Though challenges remain as we look to 2025, our region is an innovative and resilient one, with the past year’s highlights offering hope for the future. © stock.adobe.com/ teamjackson18 Business Link www.blmforum.net INVOICE AND FINANCE SOLUTIONS © stock.adobe.com/Natalliawww.blmforum.net Business Link 19 INVOICE AND FINANCE SOLUTIONS L ate payments are a longstanding problem, particularly for small businesses, hitting firms’ cashflow, reducing their ability to invest, and wasting valuable time chasing unpaid invoices. The scourge of late payments is costing SMEs £22,000 a year on average, according to the Smart Data Foundry, and as noted by FSB research, leads to 50,000 business closures a year. New research published by the Department for Business and Trade further shows that payment problems multiply the further down the supply chain you go; as delays to payments increase with each business along a supply chain, this sees smaller businesses generally experience more issues with late invoices than larger firms. The research found that there is a clear imbalance between big and small businesses, and that administrative errors are a major factor in creating slow payments with 24% of firms saying that invoices being incorrectly handled added to delays. Leaving many businesses struggling to survive, the issue is only getting worse, with small businesses facing the longest late payments times since the pandemic, according to the latest Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) data from Xero. To help crack down on late payments, in September the government unveiled new measures to support small businesses and the self-employed, revealing it would consult on tough new laws holding larger firms to account and get cash flowing back into businesses. The package of measures includes replacing the current Prompt Payment Code with the Fair Payment Code, launching in the autumn, with businesses looking for official recognition under the code needing to prove they have met good payment standards before being awarded official code status. This is designed to push businesses to pay faster more often, to be awarded either gold, silver, or bronze status. The measures also involve legislation requiring all large businesses to include payment reporting in their annual reports — putting the onus on them to provide clarity about how they treat small firms, allowing company boards and international investors to see how they are operating. Enforcement is also to be stepped up on the existing late payment performance reporting regulations. Under current laws, The late payment problem With late payments rife, businesses are left on the brink of closure. 20 ÁNext >