Networks Issue 7

Commercial Vehicles A more flexible approach At Enterprise Flex-E-Rent, we know that providing you with the right commercial vehicles requires more than just in-depth understanding of the latest specifications and relevant legislation. That’s why we take the time to understand your business before we make our recommendations.

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Diane Birch, Executive Director of BITA, asks ...

What makes you content?

W

e are creatures of habit. This isn’t something that people want to hear, but if we are honest with ourselves it’s mostly true. Is being called a creature of habit, or predictable, just a code for being boring, or is it saving valuable brain space?

Our habits take place in a small patch of ground that we’ve cleared for ourselves in our minds and lives. Things may change slightly; perhaps we’ll go for chicken chow mein instead of chicken fried rice tonight, or we’ll grab a drink before going home; but for the most part the things we do are in this same patch of land that we consider safe.

Within our patch, we’ll have doctors’ appointments, catching up with friends, the time we set our alarm in the morning and when we go to bed. Some of us may have gym sessions or singing lessons in our patch, others won’t. But the tracking mechanism on google maps (check your timeline!) will usually be quick to show you how little your life deviates from one day, week, month to the next.

There is nothing wrong with this, doing something new every day would be exhausting. Trying to consider doing something new can become difficult when

we are tired, and it’s much easier to stick with our tried and true methods instead of risking disappointment.

Problems arise when our habits are damaging to us. We are still moving around the same patch of ground, but now there is broken glass everywhere and we don’t realise we need to move on. It’s here that many get stuck, afraid or unable to move, caught in harmful cycles.

We all have responsibilities; Gen x and Boomers get a bad press, but we often have children and grandchildren that we care for, as well as elderly parents. We still work, we need wages and are time poor. And the younger generations, struggling to find a permanent full-time job with good pay, are worried about being left short of money and often priced out of homeownership, leaving them in unsecure tenancies or living with their already time-poor parents.

Despite, or more likely because of these responsibilities, many of us get home and ‘zone-out’ by watching TV instead of planning meaningful change for our lives. Planning for an extraordinary life takes time and effort. Change takes action.

We are always being told to budget our finances, but we need to start

Helping you think differently!

TNORF OT KCAB AND ROUND THE CORNER

FAT

IS

OUT THE

THIS ISSUE OF

CUTTING

WELLBEING

WE NEED TO DECIDE WHAT WE WANT, WHAT WE REALLY, REALLY WANT.

budgeting our lives and free time, it’s the most valuable resource we have as we can’t generate more. Cutting the fat from our lives will leave us with only the best cuts and a healthy marbling of obligation.

To quote the 1990’s sages, the Spice Girls, we need to decide what we want, what we really, really want. Clear some time and have a think about what you need to be content. Is it an afternoon a week to relax alone, or perhaps you have always wanted to take up the piano?

Do you yearn to ramble across the countryside, or crave to get under a fix-her-up car in the garage?

Making time for things that will enhance your life is key to unlocking the extra from your ordinary. The areas that you concentrate on depend on what you feel you are compromising in the first place. We need to stimulate those patches that we have allowed to gather broken glass in the first place and rewire our brains.

Helping people rewire their brain is something I assist many of my clients with, and each of them have found the following exercises helpful. The first step of which is to clarify where it is that you’ve been compromising. A rather morbid but useful exercise is to consider what it is you would regret not doing if you were on your death bed, right now.

To take one example, perhaps a main key to contentment is playing rugby with friends at the weekend, which would mean health and fitness would be number one.

Examine what it is that each of these areas will help you achieve; health and fitness would lead to rugby at the weekends, but it would also mean not being out of breath going up three flights of stairs at the office and fitting nicely into an old suit.

The next step is to consider what the impediments are to playing rugby; a bad knee may require physio, being too out

Take a look at the 10 areas opposite and rate them 1 – 10 in order of importance to you and your new extraordinary life.

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NETWORKS

Sponsored by www.kerrylondon.co.uk

of shape to play might mean taking up jogging. The main issue may be a lack of friends, could you reconnect with old ones or join a local rugby group? Once these roadblocks have been identified, and a solution decided on, the last thing to do is action change.

Book the physio, call old friends, or get your running shoes on. Sometimes roadblocks can’t be moved, at which point consider adapting your goal. If a bad knee can’t be fixed, perhaps coaching your child’s rugby team will be a worthy substitute. Keep the goal in mind to help you focus, work in manageable chunks and take it slow; none of us can change overnight.

This is a 12-month plan, to be started whenever, not just at the new year! 12 months to identify, consider, plan and effect change to make your life extraordinary and something to relish.

Contact Diane; Email: diane@bita.ie Tel: 00 44 7887947163

Health and Fitness

Career

Finance

Emotional Life

Social life Intellectual life Family Love Relationship Environment Spiritual Life

COMMUNITY

HELPING PEOPLE REACH THEIR FULL POTENTIAL

I

n keeping with BITA’s mission we have teamed up with South Essex College to provide opportunities in NetWorks for students who are studying journalism and print media.

These students are between 16 – 18 years old and are studying for their level 3 diplomas. BITA attended sessions at the college to introduce the magazine and themes for upcoming issues, and the students have been working on their entries over December. We are holding space in each issue of NetWorks in 2020

Over the past year one of the goals for the SOS Group was to incorporate a company that can simplify the process of finding a quality, reliable and cost-effective manpower solution to our highly respected Clients encompassing all levels of White and Blue-Collar Labour within the Construction, Engineering, Mechanical and Electrical industries.

With the kind help of Paul Whitnell, the BITA team and various fellow BITA members, we can now proudly introduce Saturn Manpower Ltd. Based in Dublin, Ireland, Saturn Manpower Ltd. rovide that desired solution to supply specialist technical personnel to various Blue-Chip organisations across Europe, with an emphasis on mass mobilization.

With a dedicated team in place to select, screen and hire to mass order, we adapt our highly experienced Group

for the best article/s submitted in terms of topic, content, writing style and relevance to our readers.

The piece that made it through for this issue is ‘A Load of Rubbish’ (page 8) by George Green, Reece Gowardun and Jack Fox and we would like to thank them for their hard work. This is a timely and relevant article looking at the impact of littering and fly tipping, as well as how to encourage change. George, Reece and Jack said; “Thank you for this opportunity and we hope the article rises awareness on littering”.

BITA’s mission is to offer a helping hand to people of both countries who are relocating or adapting to cultural changes in either country. Providing education and making positive change for people who are struggling with life are at the top of our CSR agenda. We ethically serve our employees, customers, partners, community members, environment/planet and those seeking a fair, financial return.

We seek to inspire and educate people to reach their full potential.

We hope you enjoy reading their article; look out for student submissions in future editions!

to incorporate client needs, and with proven expertise, quickly gauge a unique solution that is tailored to suit.

Our in-depth research enables Saturn Manpower to utilise the correct markets in search for that exact match of workforce with the latest technology used to ensure efficiency.

Saturn are capable of onboarding a high number of operatives in short spaces of time in line with exact Client timescales, with the supply of workforces that are familiar with one another, can hit the ground running, and therefore allow projects to mobilise and become operational fast.

With a service that produces results, we are always measuring and reviewing to reduce bottlenecks in the hope to provide the most structured and as mentioned above, most efficient mass mobilisation processes in the market.

Part of

WWW.SATURNMANPOWER.COM For more information please contact the team:

Tel: 00 353 (1) 6917429 Email: Info@saturnmanpower.com www.bita.ie

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MOVING

FORS SCHEMES DRIVING UP SAFETY STANDARDS OVER 500 PEDESTRIANS, CYCLISTS AND MOTORCYCLISTS ARE KILLED OR SERIOUSLY INJURED IN COLLISIONS WITH HEAVY GOODS VEHICLES (HGVS), MANY OF WHICH ARE SERVICING CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS. 120 OF THOSE DIE – FOUR TIMES THE NUMBER OF FATALITIES THAT OCCUR WITHIN THE HOARDINGS (ON CONSTRUCTION SITES) MOST YEARS.

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T

hese collisions are a tragedy as they are mostly preventable. They’re traumatic for the casualty, their family, the driver and witnesses. This needs to change. Everyone needs to take action.

Everyone needs to implement CLOCS – Construction Logistics and Community Safety. This is something that BITA is getting behind too, to encourage take up of the initiative on both sides of the Irish Sea, as well as in cities farther afield.

The CLOCS Standard sets out very clear actions for each stakeholder – actions proven to make a difference e.g. local authorities implementing CLOCS through planning policy requirements have reported 47 per cent reduction in collisions and 37pc fewer complaints by residents.

It requires planning/highways authorities, construction clients, principal contractors and fleet operators to take simple good practice actions that are good for business too, saving lives, money and reputations.

Those stakeholders all have the corporate responsibility and power to make sure their construction projects ensure and enable the safest construction HGV journeys at little or no financial cost. Planners/regulators must require Construction Logistic Plans that minimise vehicle journeys, progressive procurement to select the safest principal contractors and their subcontractors using HGVs (by requiring them to meet the Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) Silver standard), effective monitoring to recognise the best and drive continuous improvement.

The construction site’s arrangements are also critical in enabling the safest construction HGV journeys, so it’s important to know they work for all.

CLOCS is developing the CLOCS Vox app to give HGV drivers a voice – collecting anonymous ratings from drivers on a site’s conditions so it can be aggregated with others to provide anonymous constructive feedback to the site’s management.

Drivers are asked to take 30 seconds to rate the site on four key aspects – ‘last mile’ required routing, streamlined logistics, fair/efficient gate teams, and ground conditions.

The CLOCS Vox app will be free to use, as its development in partnership with Arriva Digital is headed up by BITA stalwart Noel Byrne and his technical partner Dan Pinnell who aims to drive greater digital adoption in the construction industry .

The operation is funded by coinvestment from 350 progressive authorities, construction clients, principal

contractors and fleet operators that are all CLOCS Champions – organisations that have made a public declaration to work together to protect our communities and our reputations.

In Ireland, eight cyclists lost their lives last year. The eighth one, occurred near St James’s Hospital, the site of the new National Children’s Hospital in Dublin, when a cement mixer truck collided with cyclist Neeraj Jain.

BITA President Paul Whitnell said: “Traffic congestion in Dublin, and the

accredited operators across 17 countries and is regarded as ‘the’ accreditation scheme by fleet operators, their clients and enforcement agencies alike.

FORS has an evidence-based approach, and accredited operators (gold/silver/ bronze) are 76pc less likely to involved in Licence/insurance offences, 64pc less likely to be involved in serious offences, and 50pc less likely to be involved in drivers’ hours offences.

Operators who join FORS (gold/silver/ bronze) see on average a 41pc reduction

IN IRELAND, EIGHT CYCLISTS LOST THEIR LIVES LAST YEAR.

in injury collisions, and a 25pc reduction in total collisions. Accredited operators also see an improvement in their fuel efficiency by up to 14pc, and there are knock-on benefits in terms of lower vehicle emissions.

“Major cities around the world are taking a stand to end the toll of deaths and injury seen on their roads and transport networks by committing to Vision Zero.” Says Vince Dignam; “London is at the forefront of this approach and the Mayor’s Transport Strategy sets out the goal that, by 2041, all deaths and serious injuries will be eliminated from London’s transport network.”

The initiative focuses on safer streets, safe behaviours and safer vehicles, with a world-leading bus safety standard across London’s entire bus fleet. A new direct vision standard will also apply to HGVs, which will eventually be the only ones allowed to operate on city roads.

Whitnell adds; “BITA may be a business network, but we can also call on our connections in the cause of cultural and societal issues. These best practices could make a difference. Together with other cities, Dublin and Irish authorities can begin a conversation towards a shared objective, in the hope that no more cyclists will lose their lives.”

increasing volume of road users of all types in the city means that we all need to think more purposefully about this issue.

“I’m calling on the government, its agencies and Dublin City Council and other authorities to adopt the best practice of the Construction Logistics and Cycle Safety (CLOCS) standard, which aims to eliminate the risk of lorries servicing the construction sector harming people.”

Whitnell has collaborated with BITA London chapter chairman Vincent Dignam, transport group manager for the City of London to encourage Dublin and Liverpool to adopt the practices, and Dignam has initiated conversations with the Mayor of Dublin.

While growing links with business there, the Alliance is engaging with the Mayor’s’ offices in New York and Washington about the schemes.

FORS was established by Transport for London (TfL) in 2007, but now has

www.bita.ie

John Reynolds

BUSINESS

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A LOAD OF RUBBISH SOLUTIONS TO A COMMON, COSTLY PROBLEM Every day in the UK, two million pieces of litter are dropped, a figure that continues to rise. But why is this the case? Are people inconsiderate of the effect that littering has or is the problem just as simple as there not being enough bins?

CIGARETTE BUTTS ARE THE MOST LITTERED ITEM ON THE PLANET; 4.5tn BUTTS PER YEAR.

Thanks to our authors, college students George Green, Reece Gowardun and Jack Fox, see page 5

ENVIRONMENT

B

ritain has been referred to as the ‘Trash Can’ of Europe as it is one of the continents most littered nations.i Despite longterm hand-wringing by a string of politicians keen to make an impact with the electorate, the numbers are getting worse; more litter on the streets, more fly tipping, higher cost of cleaning. The cost to the taxpayer for street cleaning is currently £1bn a year.ii There is no doubt that this money could be better spent but as litter doesn’t take care of itself, councils are left with little choice.

Fly tipping is a very common form of littering and it occurs mostly on our motorways. There is a punishment for fly tipping, a £50,000 fine or 12 months’ imprisonment, however, instances continue to rise as does the clean-up bill - £49.8m in 2015/16. So, is it that people just don’t care or does fly tipping occur because proper collection by councils is interrupted, people aren’t aware of the law, or costs of proper disposal is not justified?

According to a report from UCLiii, although there are increasing instances where a single black bag is abandoned on the roadside, it is far more common to see amounts consistent with a small car load, car boot load and transit van load, as the council designates amounts. This and follow-up interviews report that the fly tippers are mainly small businesses that can’t afford or don’t want to pay commercial waste costs. Trades people interviewed stated that local practices regarding waste disposal may make them more expensive than a competitor which they saw as unfair, they didn’t see the benefit in buying a waste carrier licence, and the costs for disposal in general were by far the biggest motivators.

For individuals the biggest motivator was convenience; if the local tip was closed, the queues too long, or there was no available transportation to the tip, people reported they were more likely to fly tip. Although the figure remains low at 1% of householders.

The UCL report finds that the best methods to tackle fly tipping are to increase the difficulty and risk (cameras, patrols, social approbation) and reducing

the reward (lower costs of disposing properly). Reducing or amending the cost of proper waste disposal may seem counter-intuitive to cash strapped councils, but the loss of revenue may be made up with the reduction of costs for dealing with fly tipping.

Littering is also proving difficult to curb. Wrappers, gum, food and cigarette butts are all litter, and an education campaign may be beneficial with reducing these numbers.

Many people consider dropping food on the floor to ‘not count’ however food attracts rats and other vermin, and animals native to the UK high streets generally don’t eat apple cores which means they don’t break down quickly and need removal. This lack of awareness when people think they are feeding wildlife, has a large impact on the amount of litter dropped.

More litter that people think doesn’t count, is cigarette butts. Cigarette butts

When looking at a beach, there may be ample bins for users 90% of the time, however in hot days during summer holidays when the tourists flock, there may need to be four or five times as many bins. Lee Cairns, Director of JM Clark, suggests that “councils should look to develop a strategy to handle the increase with either portable additional bins, or increased collections that take place throughout the day.”

Councils have the power to issue fines to people who litter, up to £80 which can rise to £2,500 if found guilty in court. They also have a duty to handle litter clean up and members of the public can report them for not doing so. The difficulty comes in proving who littered. A family in a park, surrounded by wrappers, may look like the obvious culprits but proving that they didn’t just chose to sit down in a spot surrounded by rubbish that was already there is difficult. If littering became more socially unacceptable and

THOSE BLACK DOTS YOU SEE ON THE PAVEMENT AREN’T STAINS – THAT’S SPAT OUT GUM. YUK! are the most littered item on the planet; 4.5tn butts per year. Many smokers think of them as bio-degradable, however they are formed of microplastics which take years to break down, and they contain thousands of chemicals that can kill plants and animals when they leach into the soil, are eaten, or used as lining for nests.iv Investing in ballot bins may be an easy way to cut down on cigarette butts. The new voting bins for cigarette collection have been very effective and are shown to cut littering of butts by 46%. Hopefully someone can come up with an idea for voting with used gum!

Anecdotally, it seems that another issue affecting street litter is collection.

Councils have cut spending on collections services which seems to be very visible when looking at an overflowing bin, surrounded by rubbish.

This is more apparent when an area is used intensively for a short period.

people felt emboldened to approach litterers, the disapproval and comments from society may prevent incidences of blatant littering.

In the UK it is estimated that from all the British households we build up a mass of 26m tonnes of waste each year, and food waste accounts for seven million tonnes of this, the majority of which could have been eaten. This waste includes 3 million unopened yoghurts each year and 600,000 eggs each day.v Germany, Austria and South Korea are the world leaders in recycling with 60 – 70% of their waste recycled, compared to 45% in the UK. It would seem that littering, and waste in general, is a cultural issue in the UK, and can best be curbed using a variety of solutions; innovative and engaging waste disposal, lower costs on commercial waste disposal, increased collection, strategies for tip opening days, and most importantly, education.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/may/30/litter-rubbish-keep-britain-tidy www.keepbritiantidy.org iii www.tacklingflytipping.com iv https://theconversation.com/cigarette-butts-are-the-forgotten-plastic-pollution-and-they-could-be-killing-our-plants-119958 v https://www.recyclingbins.co.uk/recycling-facts/ i

ii

www.bita.ie

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ACTIVE COMMUNITIES NETWORK TACKLING POVERTY, CREATING

COMMUNITY

OPPORTUNITIES, INSPIRING CHANGE

I

n the mid-2000s, several small groups and project workers in London came together to develop a strategy for growing and sustaining projects primarily funded by the Active Communities Development Fund. These like-minded agencies developed new ways of working to improve outcomes for young people when they were stigmatised and labelled as troublesome.

In response to this a new charity, London Active Communities, was formed with a remit to deliver services in South London and by 2009, the charity was rebranded to Active Communities Network (ACN) due to expansion far beyond London.

Using sport, physical activity, arts and cultural activity, their programmes offer young people pathways into vocational training, education, citizenship and employment skills. They also provide the experience needed to address a range of social issues to ensure everyone has the opportunity succeed, regardless of their background.

ACN’s work in Northern Ireland began in 2009 when a collective of voluntary and community sector groups working with young people in West Belfast approached ACN. The organisation set up

a pilot programme in 2009 called GOALS (Generating Opportunities and Learning Through Sport), working with a small group of high-risk young people in the West Belfast communities of Ballymurphy and Whiterock. After the success of this programme, ACN now works across Belfast and other areas in Northern Ireland.

Local and regional collaboration along with multi-agency working with local authorities, health providers, local clubs, community groups and voluntary sector partners, is crucial in providing outcomes and safeguarding young people.

Julian Wadsworth MBE, Head of Programmes in Hampshire; says the work in his area has the “flexibility to deliver a multi-tier approach, offering young people a wide range of activities and progression routes.”

One of the biggest barriers to engaging people who feel isolated or forgotten, is finding a connection. This is why ACN employs local people from the areas they are supporting, often the project workers are people that benefitted from the ACN’s services in the past. Over 50% of the staff teams across regions are young people and young adults who have progressed through the charity’s methodology.

“The impact we are having is tremendous; not only are we helping offer stability and engagement with the participants, we are helping them take their next steps back into education or into employment, increasing the enjoyment of learning and achieving.” Julian continues; “It is vital that we focus on prevention and early intervention and support young people to build resilience and achieve their goals. We are operating in communities with complex issues, including the increasing presence of Organised Crime Groups and higher risk of exploitation, gang association and violence.” The importance of ACN building trust and relationships with communities and young people over a sustained period can bring spectacular results.

Since beginning their work, ACN has engaged 2,810 young people in sports activities, accreditation and volunteering, with 2,245 involved in sports activities, 1,204 involved in accreditation programmes and 1,014 people engaged in volunteering.

Tayah’s experience through ACN programming in Leigh Park, Hampshire is a testament to their work; ‘I was a 14-year-old who wanted to rebel due to the personal challenges that I was facing and was not optimistic about my future before I got involved with ACN. I started boxing with them and went on to volunteer, gaining numerous qualifications.

I am now in my second year at University of Portsmouth, studying Social Work, whilst continuing with ACN as a paid project worker.’

This testimony and others like it, show why it is so important to think differently around working with people, no matter where they are from.

WE ENSURE EVERYONE HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO SUCCEED REGARDLESS OF THEIR BACKGROUND.

BUSINESS

S

ince antiquity, deploying efforts to win over adversities and challenges has been a human concern. These strategies have come under many guises; from ancient wars to defend our territories and survival, to current business approaches to win

changes to the high-level strategy, will help adapt to changing situations and environments we may face.

Around two hundred years after Sun Tzu, Alexander of Macedon, who went on to be known as Alexander the Great, started forging his empire. He was taught

COLLABORATION – AN ANCIENT STRATEGY

Christiane Hutchinson MBA, BITA Manchester chairperson and CEO of Biramis Management Partners considers how we plan for success when we don’t know what’s around the corner

WHAT ALLIANCES CAN YOU CREATE TO SPUR YOUR GROWTH? market share and create wealth and prosperity. When considering challenges that we face today, whether personal or in business, we can learn a lot by listening to our ancestors.

In the fifth century BC the influential Sun Tzu, Chinese general and army strategist, told us that we must not focus on whether the enemy may come or not, but instead focus on building our readiness to face him. In order to win, we must not debate on the chance of being attacked but make our position unassailable.

Therefore, in the face of the current uncertainties, we should take measures to protect and preserve what we have and invest further to become stronger.

Business should make sure that the continuity plans are in place and up to date, and clearly understand the areas in our businesses that call for readiness.

Spinning out scenarios based on pertinent and accurate facts whilst incorporating a range of ‘what if’ options to allow tactical

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by the best tutor and mentor of the day, none other than Aristotle.

Aristotle trained Alexander in the Socratic method of questioning; instructing him to seek facts and analyse them properly. Likewise, we need to consider what key facts are required about the current environment so we can prepare for readiness.

There is always someone who can impart wisdom and experience to us; the challenges that we face today have, in one form or another, been around for millennia and it is important to learn from the experiences and knowledge of those we respect. An excellent way to do this is to find a good mentor you trust, and who has faced those challenges before.

Experience is key.

What are actions without morality?

Aristotle encouraged Alexander, and by extension his soldiers, to consider the moral implications of their decisions.

Without a moral direction, he suggested,

their actions would lack conviction.

Review your values and let them drive your decisions when creating the future of your business, especially when confusion prevails. Knowing what you won’t do and why, is as important as knowing what you will do. Unleash your values to act as your guide.

Although conquering is all well and good, most strategists will tell you that you get more flies with honey than with vinegar and many empires have been founded on cooperation and marriage, rather than war. While a conqueror, Alexander the Great also created alliances, in order to resource his evergrowing empire, and none of his occupied territories ever rebelled against him.

In periods of uncertainty, it is even more important to feel cohesive as a business, so whatever may come from around the corner, it is not going to weaken your core. How can you become unassailable? What alliances can you create to spur your growth, especially in international markets, which is going to be key in our post-Brexit environment?

Whatever is around the corner will come our way for sure, so let’s not waste time on thinking whether it is coming or not.

Success is not based on what changes or challenges we face, but on how we react to them, and how prepared we are. Learning from the great ancient strategists, it is not about what will come our way, but how we react to it, and how ready we will be. We must be aware of the nature of the risks that our businesses face and have a strategy to mitigate those. In doing so, let us consolidate and continue to invest in growth. This strategic energy will create a future where we achieve our goals and therefore control and achieve our desired certainties, rather than keeping focused on uncertainties we cannot control. Invest now in building your businesses, don’t retrench and wait.

BUSINESS

HOW DO YOU BRING HOUSE BUYING

INTO THE 21ST CENTURY? MAKE IT EASY, FAST AND ENJOYABLE!

BOLDLY GOING WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE, RICCARDO DAWSON; YOURKEYS CEO, IS ON A MISSION TO REVOLUTIONISE AN ANCIENT PROCESS AND DRAG IT WELL AND TRULY INTO THE 21ST CENTURY. IF HE HAS HIS WAY, WE WILL EVENTUALLY BE BUYING NEW HOMES WITH A SINGLE MOUSE CLICK. HE SAYS: “WHY NOT? WE ALREADY SEE THIS FUNCTIONALITY ON MANY WEBSITES SO IT CAN BE DONE!”

C

onsider this. If you buy a property today, it takes (on average) more than 60 days to get to exchange of contracts. As a result of this, almost 40% of property sales can fall through, and the customer experience is routinely ranked as one of the most stressful events in modern life. For the biggest purchase of your life? In 2020, there must be a better way.

With digitalisation, there is and our members Yourkeys have managed to design an online platform that dramatically improves the new build house purchase customer journey and shorten the process to just 21 days and in some cases as little as 10! Good news for buyers as the process is far easier and a lot less stressful and a coup for sellers as the quick turnaround means they’re not waiting around for their money.

The process of buying a house, is a system with huge inefficiencies and a bloated, overly complicated process, involving lots of people, resulting in massive delays where deadlines are rarely achieved. This not only imposes enormous stress on house buyers, but house builders suffer huge financial losses due to delays or buyers pulling out of the process.

Riccardo Dawson (Yourkeys CEO) says “When you really break the process down it becomes much clearer where the blockages are and how to leverage technology to overcome them. Clever tech and smart integrations are a key part of our approach. We are constantly looking at the elements of the transaction to re-order them, combine them, or even remove them if it makes sense. This is a

process that hasn’t changed in almost 100 years so it is ripe for a tech update!”

Yourkeys is all about simplifying business and cutting out inefficiencies.

The system automates the first 25 tasks required by stakeholders to start a conveyance - background checks, source of funds, ID verification, AML and so on which means up to 40 days can be shaved off the time it takes to exchange contracts.

Riccardo Dawson (Yourkeys CEO) has come a long way from the boy who sat on diggers on the construction sites his dad worked on, watching in wonder as a new building took shape. Driven by his early love for the trade, he studied construction, then architecture, followed by a formative period as Sales Director of a housebuilder. Fast forward to where he is now, busy building something of his own.

A digital business to revolutionise the way new houses are sold, by taking most of the unnecessary strains, lags, and pain points out of an archaic process which he says is primed for disruption.

This innovative approach also has the support of the Ministry of Housing who are tasked with improving the home buying and selling process. In their 2018 White Paper, they pledged to “encourage digital innovators so that they can use their skills and expertise to transform the process” so Yourkeys is well positioned to support the government’s strategic agenda.

www.bita.ie

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STRESSED OUT

AT WORK?

CHANGE HOW YOU THINK ABOUT AND HANDLE STRESS

By Ches Moulton, The Stress Master, an international stress management expert, life-coach and author

D

o you feel totally stressed out every day you come to work? If so, you’re not alone. According to surveys, three out of four employees in the UK have felt so stressed in the past year, they’ve been unable to cope.

This is reflected in the 12.8 million working days lost because of time off with stress-related illnesses. Such absenteeism can create a huge dent in a company’s perfor-mance and profits.

The question is, what can be done to alleviate stress’s debilitating effects on the workforce? All too often much of what passes as remedies for stress relief is a surface cure.

Drinking cups of herbal tea, going for long walks, buying pot plants to calm the surroundings – none of which address the underlying cause of stress.

Wired for stress Stress is a natural part of our body’s wired-in defence mechanism, helping us deal specifically with life-threatening dangers. It provides all the essential resources we need for support, re-leasing chemicals that give us energy and provide our brain with increased focus. In an instant, we have extra stamina, our reaction time is speeded up, and our concentration becomes sharpened, ready to face the threat.

Once the danger has passed our body returns to its normal, relaxed state.

The problem is, when our thinking gets out of hand, everything – whether it’s heavy workloads, traffic jams making us late, or dealing with others who are difficult – appears to be a life-threatening situation. When that happens, our stress system repeatedly kicks into action, so the body never gets the chance to return to its calm, balanced condition. The result makes you continually stressed, with resultant physical and mental health problems.

It’s all about control The only successful action to get control of your stress is to change the way you think. We can process our thoughts in a stimulating, motivating and inspiring way, or we can introduce errors into how we depict the world around us, causing us pain, suffering – and guaranteed stress.

Who says that not meeting a deadline or being late to work is on par with coming face-to-face with a man-eating tiger? It’s down to our own thoughts. So learn to look at situations from a rational viewpoint and plan accordingly.

For example, managing your workload means being realistic in terms of how much time is needed. Rather than getting

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stressed, break down everything that needs to be done into man-ageable actions and activities. If you’re anxious about specific upcoming events, analyse all of the possible outcomes and make positive contingency plans for each one. What about interact-ing with certain individuals who you may not like?

Work on your communication and social skills, and improve your ability to engage and work with others by developing greater emotion-al intelligence. Determine your own skills and resources to deal with your day-to-day work, and if there are gaps in your knowledge and understanding, fill them.

As Greek philosopher Epictetus declared: ‘We are disturbed not by events, but by the views that we take of them.’ Get your thinking right, and you’ll put your stress exactly where it should be – under your total control.

DEVELOPING A SMART GROWTH STRATEGY Managing a fast-growing business presents both opportunities and challenges. The chance to become an industry leader is attractive, but it comes with the risk that demand will outstrip capacity.

To avoid that pitfall, you need a strategic plan that’s backed by adequate financing, empowered employees, and technology.

So how does a company grow in just a few years, from a small team operating out of a shed, to a well-established sector leader?

Defining your objectives Be strategic about your growth. Ask yourself some very basic questions in order to determine your key objectives.

Am I having cash flow problems, or am I managing well?

Do I have assets that I could turn into cash? Am I collecting my receivables fast enough? Do I have the necessary capital to finance growth? Am I expanding and hiring too fast?

Conduct a growth diagnosis Analyse how you manage your company and how to control the aspects of your business that affects your cash. A comprehensive growth diagnosis includes an analysis of sales, overheads, receivables, inventory and assets.

Assess whether your inventory and capital assets are absorbing too much of your cash, and take the necessary steps to

control them. This will help define your refinancing requirements and help avoid future liquidity problems.

Rapid growth is a doubled-edged sword Sudden growth may sound like a dream come true, but for the unprepared, it can be the end of a business.

The opportunity to expand and make more money will be lost if demand outstrips capacity, leading to disgruntled employees and strained client relationships. It’s vital that business owners step back from the daily routine and ensure their fundamentals are in order.

A well-planned growth strategy EFM Growth advises companies to create a growth strategy that identifies the human resources, processes and tools needed to meet targets. A successful growth strategy depends on a flexible management which will allow your business to respond quickly to demands.

Our business advisors provide solutions to help your business achieve growth. Get in touch by email or call 01582 516300

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WORKING

THE BALANCE BEING IN THE OFFICE DOESN’T EQUAL BEING PRODUCTIVE!

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eople in the UK work some of the longest hours in Europe. We are also some of the most stressed and anxious; according to the OECD in their 2019 study. Ranking the 13 best and worst countries for work-life balance they found that the UK is the 13th worst in the world.

Quite a statement, I’ll give you a minute to reflect on that.

So, what does that mean to our workforce? With people in the UK working some of the longest hours in Europe, it’s unsurprising why there are more people than ever seeking the elusive work-life balance.

Technology was supposed to make it easier, however mobile devices are the biggest contributor to that feeling that you are never out of the office. In our culture of associating good workers with long hours, it can be very difficult to buck the system and leave on time let alone early. We need to start working smarter, not longer.

Growing evidence, including a recent report from Microsoft, contradicts this wisdom. The above OECD study ranks Japan as 5th worst in the world, and they experience a phenomenon called ‘Karoshi’ which translates as death by overwork; they strongly

associate good employees with exhausted ones. In a bid to counter this culture, Microsoft in Japan recently switched to a four-day week and saw productivity increase by 40%.

Big businesses making changes like this, are still so few and far between that they make headlines. But there are a growing number of smaller businesses, entrepreneurs and start-ups that are stepping in to counter this culture of overwork.

One of the biggest driving factors is more women in the workplace. Women are more likely to be caregivers, which requires more flexible working, and they often struggle to get ahead in male dominated industries as people value different traits in men and womeni. Women in the workplace have increased from 57% in 1975 to 78% in 2017; this means that there is very nearly parity between men and women who work (80% men in 2018 were in employment). The increase of working women has led to a shakeup of the workforce, with leaders Sheryl Sandberg, Susan Wojcicki, Mary Barra and many others as the new poster-women of success.

Ariana Huffington has said that she “used to live under the delusion that I had to burn out to succeed” and it was only after she collapsed from exhaustion in 2007, she realised that

L-R: Anita Racz, Amy Brown, Tunde Racz

i

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something had to change. She and other female business leaders (we featured Mary Portas’ book ‘Work like a Woman’, her manifesto for change in the workplace, in NetWorks Issue 3) are now shaping a new type of working environment lead by productivity, a healthy work-life balance, and employee satisfaction. It appears to be working.

BITA Members; The Soulutionists are a block management company founded in 2018 by sisters Tunde and Anita, and good friend Amy. A cancer diagnosis made them reassess their priorities and create a business where work-life balance, inspiring other women and maximising customer satisfaction is key.

Anita Racz Founder and Senior Property Manager of the Soulutionists, has proven that in their business the team are more productive when they have the flexibility to give their home-life the priority it deserves. She also believes that flexible working promotes a happier and more positive outlook which benefits her customers too. “I always believed that the universe works in favour of people who are genuine and that’s what The Soulutionists are all about. At the point when you appreciate what you do, it’s not work anymore, it becomes a passion, a lifestyle.” Says sister Tunde.

The biggest change they made was prioritising their time.

“We implemented ways that achieve maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort or expense. By providing an on-the-go service, we make sure that we have a real flexibility on location.” says Amy. “For us it’s quality over quantity. We truly believe that a company’s success is not measured by its annual revenue or how many blocks/units they manage, but by its approach to people and their homes/investments, customer satisfaction rate and annual savings we achieve for our clients.” adds Anita.

Laura Watkins

BUSINESS

There are people that will associate this kind of flexible working with a lack of dedication, however this isn’t the case. They see flexible working as a way of giving their all, rather than trying to be in three places at once and suffering from stress and exhaustion as a result. Values have never really changed; people have always wanted to spend more time with family or at home, have more flexible working and jobs they enjoy, it just wasn’t something they expected, or felt able to influence. It’s only recently that people have felt able to do anything about it. There is a culture shift at play wherein the easier it is to talk about mental health, burnout and exhaustion, the easier it is to acknowledge that these things are happening, and to address them.

The need to stick to ridged structures and ways of operating have led to soaring levels of depression, burnout and exhaustion.

This isn’t about men vs women, but about working together to find solutions in the workplace that work for everyone, accepting differences and making adjustments so that people can be as happy and productive as possible.

It’s very easy to keep repeating that happy employees are productive, and that 3-day weekends increase productivity, but unless businesses are willing to make changes en masse, they will not benefit; rhetoric doesn’t equal revolution.

Most changes will be led from the top; CEOs, we’re looking at you.

IF WE CAN DO THIS, THEN SO CAN OTHER WOMEN. YOU CAN HAVE A BABY, YOU CAN HAVE A DAY OFF, YOU CAN STILL GET IT DONE, MAKE MONEY AND MAKE YOUR FAMILY PROUD. Amy Brown

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DR. ECE AKSER ON HOW TO MAXIMISE BENEFITS OF R&D INCENTIVES

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ith the turmoil and uncertainties facing the UK, never has cash flow become more important for a company. None of us can completely and accurately predict what’s coming around the corner or how the UK economy will be affected.

With this in mind, it makes sense to take advantage of the incentives that are available; especially those available (and encouraged by Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs) to any company subject to UK corporation tax.

One of those incentives is Research and Development (“R&D”) Incentives. R&D sounds really complex for most businesses and as a result can often be overlooked, however it isn’t as complicated as many think. R&D Incentives do not only relate to the groundbreaking developments that are performed by scientists and engineers – they are also available for many businesses that are developing new products or manufacturing processes or even improving existing ones. R&D Incentives is there to reward companies for doing what they do best – running their business!

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I speak to so many businesses across a wide range of sectors and backgrounds, including those that would traditionally be seen to be undertaking R&D, that believe they do not qualify for relief as they feel they are simply “doing their day job”. During my time as an R&D practitioner, I have helped companies ranging from pharmaceutical, engineering, manufacturing to construction, software and technology.

So, ask yourself, are you working on: New products and/or making improvements to existing products e.g. different materials/better performance?

Making improvements to manufacturing process e.g. increased efficiency/yield/recyclability, reduced wastage?

Undertaking software development e.g. to increase functionality/speed, achieve system integration, reduce downtime.

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“We’re already claiming” But are you claiming everything you are entitled to?

Almost every business is probably doing some sort of activity that meets the criteria for claiming the incentives. Sadly, a lot of these businesses are missing out, either in full or in part, by not including everything they can and with up to 33.35% cashback available, that’s criminal!

Also, you might not be calling it “R&D” and instead might be calling it process engineering, applications engineering, value engineering, light weighting, miniaturisation, environmental or legislative requirement changes. In reality, the motivation for the work is not relevant and nor does it have to be identified as R&D. If you are undertaking any of the activities or even something similar, then the chances are you are undertaking R&D activities that may allow you to access R&D Incentives.

“We’re just doing our day job; we couldn’t possibly qualify” Before practising as an R&D advisor, I trained as an Engineer and worked in industry as a Senior Scientist. Looking back, such a large majority of what I did on a day to day basis would have qualified, but I assumed that R&D incentives were for companies that undertook blue-sky research. However, R&D Incentives can be applied to any business that designs or makes something!

Choosing the right specialist to help you I have often heard “advisors have come and talked to us about R&D, claiming to be ‘experts’ but this is the first time we’ve ‘got it’ and can see why we might have something to claim”. This is why it is so important to choose the right advisor, with the right experience, as articulating what “R&D” means within the context of your sector and your business, can be challenging.

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There are four things that make the Cooper Parry team different, and why our R&D Incentives team is on a roll. These are the “golden 4” in R&D circles: Technical background – in our R&D team we have 4 PhDs and specific expertise in materials science and construction, as well as pharmacology, software and technology, mechanical and marine engineering, chemistry, the list goes on. Our team is full of people who know the industries we work in and know what is needed to find it.

Tax qualified – of course, as well as having the industry knowhow, Chartered Tax qualified and accountants who are part of an award-winning tax team. The Best Practice in the UK. Experience – I’ve been working in R&D Incentives for over 13 years, with the Head of our Team, Chris Knott, having over 19 years’ experience (since the scheme started in 2000). We know how it works and the context behind each change – as does the whole team.

Policy Setters – Chris is also part of HMRC’s R&D Consultative Committee, knows the changes coming up and has input into them. Chris is also one of only 5 to be part of the Chartered Institute of Tax Professional Standards Working Group, looking at raising standards in the R&D claims industry. Put simply, we are true experts in this area of tax.

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Dr Ece Akser Bio Dr Ece Akser is a Director in the R&D Incentives team at Cooper Parry, having joined with over 13 years of experience as an R&D practitioner preparing and agreeing R&D claims in the Big 4.

Before working as an R&D advisor, Ece worked as a Senior Scientist at Procter & Gamble for over 5 years, leading technical teams to develop and deliver new product launch from concept to on-shelf, through the total supply chain. Ece has extensive knowledge of the R&D regime in the UK with an in depth understanding of the guidance and legislation on the definition of R&D for tax purposes and how this can be applied across a wide range of industries.

Have a question about R&D Incentives?

Then call or email me on 07786 438 296 or ecea@cooperparry and we can discuss how R&D Incentives can be applicable to your business. This would be a no obligation discussion, so what have you got to lose?

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ne of our first members, Crannull, are working to break ground in Australia.

Crannull was founded by Tom Fitzgerald and James Maguire and is an outsource lead generation company that works exclusively in construction and the built environment.

In mid-2018, Crannull started operating in Australia, in part due to Tom’s love of the nation. “I went there for the first time in 2000 to work on the Olympics, and I fell in love with the place” says Tom. In the last year and a half business has started booming, and Crannull have taken on two full time salespeople to handle the load. “It’s not enough to support a new office, in a new continent, by only working remotely at night, and flying over a few times a year” says Tom; “They need proper support to really help the business fly.”

The success of the new office in such a short space of time is an achievement that shows how much their services are in demand. James says, “We are working well in Australia, and I haven’t found another business that does what we do. We were in the same position in the UK when Tom and I founded the business in 2010, there weren’t any other businesses doing what we did in our industry.”

It is this attention to the market and a clear understanding of where businesses are struggling, that has helped to make Crannull a successful business in the UK. Prior to establishing the business, both Tom and James worked in construction in business development, and it was clear to them where the industry could improve.

“Instead of carrying on business as usual, we took the opportunity of creating a business to fill the gaps that we’d both noticed.” Says Tom. It’s incredible to see that these two friends from school have great plans for

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COMING TO

AUSTRALIA BITA MEMBER CRANNULL IS HEADING DOWN UNDER

WE’VE BEEN BRINGING PEOPLE TO EVENTS FOR YEARS AS WE KNOW THAT BITA CAN HELP BUSINESSES.

their company, with growth planned in Perth first, and then onto Sydney.

In addition to his work for Crannull, Tom plans to put his experiences with BITA to good use and will act as an Ambassador of BITA in preparation for a future chapter. “I met Paul in 2011 and he told me what he was planning to do, and I thought that BITA would just be another networking organisation. It’s proved much more than that. It’s definitely helped grow our business, and we’ve been bringing people to events for years as we know that BITA can help businesses.”

Planning ahead and developing a strategy for success is of course one of the most important and difficult aspects when setting up a business, but Crannull already

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have a template. 2020 is the business’ 10year anniversary and they have a tested and true strategy for success.

“Promoting from within and investing in young talent is a massive part of what we do,” says Tom; “over the past 10 years we have taken on six apprentices and from those, three have gone on to hold senior positions in the business.” It is this ethos that they want to replicate in Australia.

In addition to this, Tom plans to continue with his networking; “Networking has always played such a huge role for me and how I operate in business, it’s the best way to create new business and new relationships with people” By the end of 2020, if everything goes to plan, Crannull Australia should be employing five members of staff, and Tom should be soaking up the sun and enjoying attendance at the Luton Town Curry Club, which, improbably enough, is based in Sydney.

Crannull have been attending lunches and other events since BITA was founded and it’s wonderful to see their business thriving and growing so well.

Good luck from everyone at BITA, and we look forward to hearing updates!

Looking for more sales leads?

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Contact us at sales@crannull.co.uk 01582 256 010

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C

ontacts, community and perseverance are key to overcoming any set-back, as Eoin Ryan of the Galtee Group knows only too well; they were unlucky enough to suffer a fire in July 2018. The company is now almost back to pre-fire levels of production; we spoke to Eoin to find out how they did it.

The Galtee Group is a family business based in Ballylanders, Co. Limerick founded in the 1980’s by Sean and Marie Ryan.

Originally established to produce kitchen doors and components, the business has changed over the years and the group now offer decorative sheet material, surface lamination and internal fire rated doors through Galtee Panels and Pronto Doors.

The irony of suffering a fire in a warehouse that stocks fire rated doors is not lost on current owner Eoin Ryan. Sadly, there wasn’t much to be done in this instance; 2018 had a very hot summer with days of 30C+ temperatures; this, combined with stock predominantly made up of dry wood, resulted in a fire that destroyed 30% of their buildings. Eoin is pragmatic about what happened and is focused on protecting the business moving forward; “You never know what is going to happen; a lot of business I’ve spoken to don’t even have a fire assessment, let alone one that is up to date. They’re so important, I’d recommend that anyone reading this checks their paperwork to see what they have in place.”

Eoin took over the business from his parents and runs it now with his brother-inlaw Pat Meade, and his sister Elaine works in the accounting department. In 2018 the company employed 90 staff and was working on expansion until the 8th July: the fire destroying the offices, finishing line and some wood machining areas. Believing that the insurance would soon step right in, Eoin set about hiring additional staff to help him

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optimise performance and get the business back on track.

Sadly, after about three months it became clear that the insurance wasn’t going to be resolved quickly and the company had to let around 40 people go.

policy as this will affect coverage.” This is good advice for any policy or contract being signed, but in the case of insurance it was a few very small clauses, one of which Galtee weren’t aware of, that caused the problem. Eoin recommends

ONWARDS AND UPWARDS BITA MEMBERS GALTEE GROUP, OVERCOMING ADVERSITY

WE HAVE ALWAYS FOUND BITA TO BE A VERY POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT AND A VERY FRIENDLY NETWORK.

“We lost around 45% of our turnover at this time; to hear that we were now going to have problems with the insurance was another blow.”

The insurance has recently been settled, and Eoin is keen to move on.

He would recommend that you always read your policy and any warranties and endorsements that exist on it. “Make sure that you know if you have an insurance company or underwriter holding your

that everyone use a knowledgeable insurer and use experienced assessors should you need to make a claim.

BITA was able to assist Galtee Group by helping them make new connections.

To adapt and survive they had to change the business back to a simpler, more trade focused model. “Paul helped us create new connections to expand the customer base.”

Eoin goes on; “We have always found BITA to be a very positive environment and a very friendly network where everybody has the same motivation. It’s not a pushy network and was so helpful to us when finding new clients.”

The Galtee Group are now back to 75% of what they used to do and are planning in the next one or two years to be back at pre-fire levels. They have created new capacity with some of the new facilities they put in place, and they have lots of opportunity for growth.

BITA has a wide and deep pool of experts across many different areas, and many will offer favourable rates to BITA members. If any member does need help in an emergency, call head office and we’ll do our best to connect you with someone that can help.

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THINKING

AROUND CORNERS RIGHT TO LIGHT Neon Mavromatis, Managing Director, Construction for Kerry London, discusses Right to Light

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construction project, whether commercial or residential, can be full of complexities. Despite the fact you may have done your due diligence and have all necessary safeguards in place – from architects, to planning consultants, surveyors and lawyers – it’s impossible to predict every eventuality. Even ‘minor’ issues have the potential to derail a schedule or halt a project entirely. One of the more common claims that may be lodged by a neighbouring property owner is that their right to light has been infringed by the development.

What are ‘rights to light’?

In law, a right to light is an easement: similar to having a right of way over a neighbour’s land. Laws surrounding rights to light in the UK go back several centuries.

As a property owner, if you have a right to light it means you are legally entitled to receive sufficient light through an opening so that you may enjoy ordinary, comfortable use of your dwelling, or ordinary, beneficial use and occupation of other buildings, such as a greenhouse or warehouse.

It’s important to note that a development which blocks light to a garden or grounds will not normally amount to an infringement of a right of light unless it also prevents light from passing through a window into a building. That’s because there is no such thing as a ‘right to light’ for open ground.

As part of any development, factors which could affect light levels include:

• • •

the height, size and orientation of the proposed development, the distance from the neighbour’s boundary, the topography of the surrounding site.

Acquiring a right to light A right to light can be acquired in several ways. One of the most common is simply to occupy a property which has experienced uninterrupted access to daylight for at least 20 years, openly and without threat. Another route is by way of an express legal agreement.

It should be noted that owning a property which was constructed more than 20 years ago doesn’t automatically grant a right to light. In the cases of older properties, it is necessary to check the history of the building and its surrounding area.

UK rights to light and planning requirements Planning applications may not resolve all issues around rights to light in the UK. When local authorities consider an application for a development, they will usually consider the effect it may have on any neighbouring properties, including levels of sunlight and the duration of exposure to daylight. It is important to note

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this is not the same as resolving a right to light issue, and is not a guarantee of protection in the event a legal claim is brought against the developer at a later date.

How much light is a property entitled to?

Surveyors have established best practice guidelines, known as the Building Research Establishment (BRE) guidelines. These include something called the ‘45-degree guide’ which helps planners determine the impact a development may have on a property.

However, this should not be confused with how a court may decide a right to light issue.

Due diligence and right to light indemnity insurance Due diligence on the part of the property developer is essential and should begin before purchasing land or property for development. It’s important to check the proximities of any nearby land or properties, particularly with the height and dimensions of the development in mind.

This can require complex calculations and physical inspections. It may also be necessary to check the title deeds. Even if the land is vacant, a right to light may still exist if there was a building on the site which has since been demolished.

If there’s any risk of right to light issues arising, you should consider renegotiating the purchase price and reconsidering your financial plans for the project. In some cases, you may decide not to proceed with the purchase.

Right to light insurance policies If there’s a chance your development may be at risk due to r ight of light issues, you should consider right to light insurance.

The earlier you do this the better; ideally it should be well before you know of any issues. Once you’ve been made aware of a specific right to light issue, it will be much harder to get appropriate coverage.

A right to light indemnity insurance policy will protect against potential claims and, depending on the policy, can cover a few different costs. These normally include:

• • • •

the legal costs of either settling the case or defending the case in court, compensation settlements and payments, abortive design and construction costs, loss of land value if the development cannot proceed.

In order to obtain cover, you will normally need to provide a right to light report with details of the location and development.

The consequences of not taking out right to light insurance Right to light issues are not uncommon; the courts will form a robust opinion, based on close scrutiny of the associated factors.

As a developer, right to light issues introduce a distinct risk to your project. The need to mitigate or eliminate that risk cannot be ignored; a development can end up being altered or abandoned, incurring significant financial loss. A right to light insurance policy can be the difference between a project’s success or failure.

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Georgia Churchill

SECTION

57% OF THE PRISON POPULATION HAVE THE LITERACY LEVELS OF AN 11-YEAR-OLD, NEARLY HALF LACK FUNCTIONAL NUMERACY AND NEARLY A THIRD HAVE A LEARNING DISABILITY OR DIFFICULTY. OFFENDERS ARE OFTEN THE MOST DISADVANTAGED IN SOCIETY.

PROVIDING A

SECOND CHANCE?

THE UK PRISON SYSTEM COULD DO BETTER

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COMMUNITY

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he ongoing debate of how our justice system should handle offenders is extremely controversial; members of the public possess strong ideas about whether prisons should be centres of rehabilitation or retribution.

In 1779 the British Government passed the penitentiary act, making state prisons an alternative to transport or death.

Prison as retribution has been around a long time and will likely always play some role in our justice system. It assures that the offender receives punishment for their crime, which is very appealing to those who have been affected by crime and want justice.

By the start of the 20th century, more focus was put on the rehabilitation of offenders. Education, counselling and skill-based courses have become extremely popular in prisons but continue to prove controversial with the public who see it as unfair the tax-payer funds courses and schemes to better the lives of prisoners upon release. However, research suggests that the more opportunities a person has, and the more stable their lives, the less likely they are to reoffend, impacting both crime numbers, and costs of running prisons.

Considering rehabilitation, it is important to remember that the root of crime is usually a result of a person’s alienation from society. Their background, upbringing and status in society are all factors in what kind of crime they are likely to commit. According to The Skills and Funding Agency, 57% of the prison population have the literacy levels of an 11-year-old, nearly half lack functional numeracy and nearly a third have a learning disability or difficultyi. Offenders are often the most disadvantaged in society.

With this in mind, the modern-day criminal justice system in the UK is trying to focus on the rehabilitation of offenders.

The prison system is not only a means of removing the offender from posing any danger to the public, and punishing them with lack of access to friends, family and society, but it also prepares the offender for when they are released back into society. Rehabilitation can be a very long process including different types of therapy like anger management, as well as creative workshops used to help prisoners express themselves. The hope is that once offenders are released, they have the skills to manage their lives and gain employment, helping them re-establish their lives.

Despite the aims of the prison system, the recidivism rates of UK ex-offenders remain stubbornly high at around 50%, which costs around £13.5bn each yearii. This is very high when www.bita.ie compared with Norway which sits at 20% (See box out), but less than the US which is at 75%.

The UK currently has the highest Prison population in western Europe. According to The Office for national statistics (June 2019) fraud has seen the highest increase with 15% followed by robbery at an increase of 11% and knife crime at

7%. It seems that our current system isn’t working as well as it could, and new schemes are needed.

At first glance it appears that these new schemes are being developed and implemented with over 118,000 offenders have participating in pilot rehabilitation schemes.

Looking closer though, the numbers look shakier.

According to the BBC, just 16,434 of those 118,000 are or were prisoners, the rest are offenders serving community sentences. Lastly, this covers the period between 2009 and 2017. Given that the UK prison population in December 2019 was 82,771, having just 16,434 over an eight-year period taking part in trial projects, seems very low indeediii.

RESOLVE is the most commonly used programme to rehabilitate prisoners. The programme is aimed at males who have been convicted for violent and aggressive behaviour and have been assessed as a medium risk to society. It is designed to tackle behaviours and attitudes and understanding self-control, preparing them for when these conflicts are faced on the outside. There are many programmes like this all over the country focusing on different issues and different groups of people. However, it appears that one of the most effective means of rehabilitation is education. One study of 37 years of research in the USA showed that prisoners that participated in education programs were 28% less likely to reoffend, and participants of vocational and educational training schemes in the UK show similarly reduced rates of re-offendingiv.

Despite the successes of rehabilitation when implemented, there are several risk factors as seen in recent cases that need to be considered. The recent violent attack on London Bridge by the radicalised Usman Khan doesn’t give the state-run rehabilitation courses a good reputation.

He committed his attack after completing two counter terrorism courses and the Home Office’s Desistance and Disengagement Programme (DPD). Radicalisation, substance misuse and detrimental familial ties are high-risk factors that jeopardise successful rehabilitation.

MP’s Revelation Across the years many MP’s have confessed to previous class A drug use. During the race to succeed Teresa May; Boris Johnson admitted to using cocaine as a teenager at Oxford University in an interview with Pierce Morgan for G2 Magazinev. This became a catalyst for other MP’s to come forward on their drug experiences.

Michael Gove come clean on using cocaine several times whilst working as a journalist. While trying to keep his campaign for the conservative leadership he faced many accusations of hypocrisy as he oversaw a clampdown on drug usage during his time as Justice and Education secretary.

There is a general stereotype for drug users, those from a low-income background living in an area with a high crime rate are more at risk to suffer from scrutiny. There is a large amount of evidence to suggest that higher earners are more likely to use cocaine. In fact, those earning over £40,000 a year are nearly twice as likely to do so.

Drug use is very much overlooked apparently, depending on your finances. A former senior drug adviser to the government, Prof David Nutt, said Gove’s disclosure was more proof that privileged politicians felt able “to break the law, but not for others to do the same”vi. www.bita.ie

27

INSIDE NORWAY’S MOST LUXURIOUS PENAL INSTITUTION:

Georgia Churchill

SECTION

HALDEN PRISON

Norway has an unusual and extremely laid-back approach to their prison sentences and the treatment to prisoners.

However, with a re-offending rate of only 20%, the lowest in the world, it appears to be working.

A

life sentence does not exist in Norway, the maximum sentence is 21 years. If an offender is still believed to be a risk to society, they will remain in prison for another 5 years, which can be repeated. There is only a small percentage of offenders that serve their full sentence, and most serve no more than 14 years. From a first glace you would assume Norway is running riot with ex-convicts; in fact, Norway has one of the lowest crime rates in Europe.

With their relaxed approach comes a lot of luxuries and freedoms that allow prisoners to continue a normal life behind bars. Free education, the right to vote, drug treatment, mental health and training programs are all available. New mothers in prison are allowed a ‘sentence break’ after childbirth to allow them to spend a few months outside with their child and postpone their sentence.

Halden (maximum security) Prison is one of the biggest and luxurious prisons in the country. It was designed to mimic a normal life of living in a town full of people with the exception that they are there for either murder, rape or other violent offences. Prisoners can walk freely sur-rounded by a forested landscape, interact with prison guards and can attend school and/or any other lessons they wish to gain qualifications. Living conditions couldn’t get much better in Halden Prison, each prisoner lives in individual dorm rooms with a comfortable bed, desk, mini fridge and a private bathroom with a shower.

On average the price of running a prison in Norway is £84,000 per inmate per year which is a considerable amount more compared to the UK which spends about £38,000 per inmate per year. Norway’s spend per head may be considerably high however it is proving to work. The Office for National Statistics claims that for every 100,000 people in England, 139 are in jail, which is more than double Norway’s 63 in 100,000vii.

The question is, would this method work in the UK? In the 1980’s, the recidivism rate in Norway was at around 60 – 70% which is higher than the UK is now. It was the

overhaul of their system, reframing prison as rehabilitation over revenge, offering training and education, and an overhaul of the role of the guards that has reduced the rates so much. Although this system may work for Norway, we lack evidence from programs in the UK where the culture and support structures are different. We suggest that it merits a closer look all the same.

https://www.learningandwork.org.uk/our-work/life-and-society/offender-rehabilitation/ https://www.learningandwork.org.uk iii https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-48516286 iv House of Lords Library Briefing; Rehabilitation in Prisons v https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/boris-johnson-drugs vi https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jun/08/michael-gove-branded-hypocrite-after-admitting-using-cocaine vii http://www.kcwtoday.co.uk/2019/08/incarceration-rehabilitation-uk-versus-norway/ i

ii

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NETWORKS

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COMMUNITY

THE BITA AWARDS

YOUR COMPANY’S TIME TO SHINE!

E

very year BITA hosts an annual Gala Ball and Awards Ceremony to shine a light on our incredible members.

These awards are the chance for member businesses to gain recognition from their peers, and to showcase the hard work of their teams.

The awards are only open to members of BITA, so make sure your membership is up to date!

Entering is easy, just got to https://bitaawards.org/ and fill in the nominee form. Businesses can nominate themselves or another member business.

The nominations will be closed on the 17th April, when we will send out follow up forms to all the businesses that entered. The Executive Board of BITA will then decide on the final three from each award category, and independent judges chosen from our members will decide on the winner.

The worthy winner of each category will be announced at the Gala Ball and Awards Ceremony in October 2020. Last year at The Savoy in London, blu-3 won the Growing Business Award much to the delight of executive chairman Danny Chaney; “I was absolutely thrilled to receive the award on behalf of all the blu-3 team at such a fantastic event. To be recognised in this way is incredibly important to us.”

Categories this year are Business to Business, Growing Business, Young Entrepreneur, Socially Conscious Business, BITA Supporter and the Charles Darwin Award.

Last year we were blown away by the number of businesses that entered, and the quality of the submissions, so we’re looking forward to reading through the entries this year!

Just go to https://bitaawards.org/ to enter now.

The closing date is the 17th April www.bita.ie

29

SECTION

TIP OF THE ICEBERG BASEMENTS IN LONDON ARE AS POPULAR AS EVER

F

MOST BASEMENTS IN HOMES WILL BE SWIMMING POOLS, CINEMAS AND LIVING ROOMS; ONE EVEN HAS AN ARTIFICIAL BEACH!

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NETWORKS

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igures are difficult to come by, but it appears that if you’re in the business of building basements in London, business is good. Knight Build is a developer based in the outskirts of London that specialises in ‘iceberg basements’ and their pre-tax profits for 2019 were double that of 2018. Not bad for what could be termed a difficult market in light of the political quagmire of the past few years.

Research from the Labour party has shown that planning applications of 12 London Boroughs more than doubled between 2010 and 2015, and a recent paper from Newcastle University examined the extent of residential basement developments in seven of the most affluent London Boroughs between 2008 and 2017. They found that 4,650 had been granted planning permission, of which the vast majority, 3,755, were ‘standard’ basements of one storey, 783 were ‘large’, consisting of two stories or one storey extending well under the garden. The basements that get the most press, the ‘iceberg basements’, only made up 112 of those granted planning permission.

Iceberg basements aren’t an official designation; however, they are generally considered to be at least three-stories, or two if they extend under the garden.

For many, adding basements isn’t about improving property values, it’s about adding a different kind of value. In a city where real estate is so costly and options for moving limited, basements are often seen as the solution to add space but remain in your geographical area. London has strict above-ground space limitations and many buildings are listed or in conservation areas, making adding stories above ground or extensions difficult to impossible.

There has been some bad press about basements in the capital in recent years, in 2016, Westminster Council introduced a £8,000 fee on new basement planning applications. This is a great way of generating cashflow from the 100+ basements built in the Borough each year, but the inconveniences to neighbours of pollution, noise and general disruption that justify this fee, are real. Flooding, subsidence and issues with the water table are genuine risks and legal battles by neighbours are not uncommon.

Other councils also introduced policies to restrict the size of basements lead by concerns about the water table and disruption and damage, especially in areas with many developments.

Despite this, the study from Newcastle found that although there were less applications being made in recent years, the amount being approved were still at 2008 – 2012 levels. Those being approved are mainly standard or large basements, rather than the iceberg, so it appears that the restrictions have had some of the desired effect.

Basements in new developments are showing an uptick in popularity while basements in pre-existing dwellings have remained static, as land is developed and either new residential or multi-residence buildings are built.

“Most of the basements that we do are additions to preexisting buildings, but certainly including basements in plans for new builds are gaining in popularity.” Says Paul Lavelle, MD

BUSINESS SECTION

SO, ARE BASEMENTS GOING TO ADD VALUE TO A HOME, OR ARE THEY A BURIED COST? There’s no doubt that adding a basement can help add additional luxury to your home; one basement in London features an artificial beach; although the majority stick to pools, cinemas, dance floors and games rooms.

Beyond adding space to your home, potentially to lounge by a beach, a basement can significantly add value, up to 15% by some estimates. Factors that need to be considered are things like headroom, natural light (from light tunnels and reflective mirrors), and use. As previously mentioned, having your master bedroom in a basement is unlikely to add much money to the property. As with all home improvements, people looking to invest will need to consider the price ceiling in their area.

The legal wrangling, disincentives by councils and general disruption caused by building basements seem to have hardly made a dent in the capital’s enthusiasm for digging down. As long as restrictions on building up, and high property prices remain in effect, we think that the trend for basements will continue, perhaps even spilling over into other areas of the UK with high property prices.

of Foran Construction. “Most multi-story buildings have piled foundations, so if you’re paying for that already, the cost of increasing this to create a basement space is negligible compared to what you’re going to gain.”

It is location dependant though and will depend on the property prices in the area. “If a home is built in zone 1, it will definitely have a basement.” Says Paul. As there are restrictions on the amount of natural light a residence needs to get (see page 24), the basements in multi-story buildings are often used for car parks, storage and gyms, rather than apartments. This holds true for residences as well; Paul tells us “most of the basements in homes will be swimming pools, cinemas and living rooms, even storage. People don’t want to go downstairs to go to bed, or put their children to bed downstairs, we haven’t seen subterranean bedrooms ourselves, people like natural light.”

Having said that, Rokstone Estate Agents who cater to the London super-rich, have seen demand growing for basements in which to accommodate nannies and other

staff members; it appears it’s not a universal ‘no’ to fitting in bedrooms below ground.

Kildare builder Darren Size’s construction firm Size Group, which caters to the expensive tastes of some of London’s wealthiest residents, booked a €52m turnover last year.

“We don’t normally work for developers, but we did carry out major works, including constructing a double basement with pool, cinema, two passenger lifts, a car lift and 13 bedroom suites, all on a single home in Belgravia, being sold for £125m (€140m).”

Says Darren. “We’ve been involved in some of the largest basement extensions in the UK. One in London we worked on includes a pool, spa, beauty salon, cinema, nightclub, games room and parking for eight cars underground.

“One house we’ve worked on will soon be the subject of a Channel 4 TV documentary.”

Whether they are a smart investment choice or not (see pop-out above), it appears for London at least, the basement trend isn’t slowing down.

www.bita.ie

31

FINANCE

W

e are all generally interested in what is happening in the short term, whether it is the result of the 3.30pm race in Kempton this afternoon or the weather outlook for next weekend.

Some of us who provide business advice and consultancy services are also very interested in the medium term and primarily the ebbs and flows of the wider economy.

However, very few of us have a time horizon of decades and beyond.

If we look back to where we came from, human history can roughly be divided up into four periods of development namely foraging, farming, industrial revolution and the information age.

At one stage our ancestors were all hunter gatherers and roamed the earth in a nomadic fashion. This period of history lasted 200,000 years up to circa 10,000 BC. Subsequent to the above came the agricultural revolution which lasted approximately 12,000 years until the middle of the 18th Century. The industrial revolution then followed which has now essentially ended. This period only lasted 250 years to the turn of this Century ending in the year 2,000.

There is a clear pattern here in so far as the major economic cycles in human history have all reduced in

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? Martin Mockler of Evans Mockler –

Accountants, Auditors, Business and Tax Advisors

duration; beginning with 200,000 years and ending with 250 years.

I am not suggesting that the current cycle, which will be dominated by technological advances, will only last about 25 years. However, the important point is that the pace of change is accelerating rapidly and will continue to do so.

Most of us watched the MP Jacob Rees-Mogg during the many Brexit debates and interviews of 2019. What many people are not aware of is that his father William Rees-Mogg wrote a book called The Sovereign Individual. Tony Blair’s former press secretary Alastair Campbell described this work as the most important book you have never heard of.

The Sovereign Individual was written in 1997 and Rees-Mogg senior predicted that the information age would bring disorder and a huge increase in competition, with the result that the world would become more unequal and unstable. The book was received poorly in the UK in the relative prosperity of the late 1990s and some of the early forecasts (such as Colin Powell becoming the first black president of the United States) were wide of the mark.

In contrast, audiences in the US were much more interested in Rees-Mogg’s work, including Peter Thiel the founder of PayPal who said that the book influenced him more than any other.

The book contains general predictions about the potential of the internet along

THE PACE OF CHANGE IS ACCELERATING RAPIDLY AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO.

with the following specific forecasts which turned out to be very accurate: the development of crypto currencies smartphones online bots imitating humans cyber warfare

-

In addition, Rees-Mogg predicted that the nation state would reduce significantly in terms of its relevance and that welfare states “will simply become unfinanceable” The message from William Rees-Mogg, which may not be particularly palatable to a lot of people, is every man and woman for him or herself.

Irrespective of the above predictions, one has to admit that we are living in unusual and fast changing times.

Interest rates remain at a level not seen since before the industrial revolution in the late 1600s, stock markets are at all-time highs and assets generally appear to be fully valued.

The unprecedented pace of change increases the importance of forecasting.

What is also very important is the ability to adjust forecasts, predictions and assumptions in a dynamic fashion based on the ever-changing economic environment. Business and individuals have to be nimble and stream line their respective decision making.

Your forecasts can then be used to formulate plans which can be business or lifestyle related.

At Evans Mockler we deal with business plans which can range from short term cashflow forecasts to medium/long term profitability and sales budgets. Small changes in input data can have a large impact on results such as changes in gross profit margins etc.

Whether your plan is to retire in ten years or finally buy that dream holiday home, an up to date forecast can help you achieve these goals. With the increasing speed of change, it has never been more important to constantly review your forecasts and future plans. www.bita.ie

33

Lee Reynolds

SECTION BUSINESS

GAMECHANGER

SHOWCASING THE PERSON BEHIND THE CV

CANDIDATES WHO APPLY FOR ROLES THAT UTILISE VIDEO TECHNOLOGY BECOME FAR MORE INVESTED IN THE PROCESS. Kingsley Consulting

F

ilm has become an intrinsic part of most modern businesses’ activities. From customers to clients; partners to employees; video is an engaging, personal and direct form of communication that has been proven to provide results. Video connects your company to others, providing them with the opportunity to see the people they’re buying from face-to-face, whether they’re based two or two thousand miles away.

However, when it comes to recruitment, the most important aspect of film is in the candidate interview process. Anyone who has been involved in hiring staff will understand the difficulties in matching the right person with the necessary technical and soft skills to a role. Qualifications and experience are imperative, but an individual is just that – a unique human being with their own personality, values and goals for the future. Generally, it isn’t until that first meeting that a client is able to get a better sense of whether they will ‘fit’ into their business.

First impressions count Video technology not only massively streamlines the hiring process but improves the level of service for everyone involved in the recruitment journey. It gives the client the opportunity to see both the CV and the person answering questions posed by the recruiter in real time via a video recording. It enables client and candidate to become more ‘connected’ during the process as responses are natural and genuine, creating buy-in from both parties in what can be a congested job market.

Because of this, it allows the client to save on hiring costs as it creates space in diaries; instead of taking every suitable CV at face value and setting up multiple meetings that may go nowhere, only ten minutes are needed to watch a video of the candidate and form an initial impression. Better decisions can be made at the front-end as clients have the opportunity to ‘meet’ candidates before any face-to-face meeting takes place, removing needless first stage interviews and barriers to location.

34

NETWORKS

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Suiting the candidate With a current job market that is 90% candidatedriven, it is imperative that recruitment consultancies and their clients create an experience that suits candidates’ needs. Video aligns with the way that modern jobseekers look for work. A recent study has found that 89% use mobile platforms to search for jobs and 16% of applications are submitted via mobile.

Watching a video job posting is a much easier proposition than trying to read screen after screen of text on the go.

Time to hire benefits Lee Reynolds, Managing Director of Kingsley Consulting, has been successfully implementing video technology for over 18 months. “We have seen numerous benefits to both clients and candidates,” he explains. “Candidates who apply for roles that utilise video technology become far more invested in the process.

In these cases, our experience of successfully getting candidates to interview is maintaining at 100%. When it comes to more traditional methods candidates turning up to interview is at the industry standard of around 75-80%.

However, it is in the ‘time to hire’ aspect that video really comes into its own. “The typical recruitment process is fairly simple but can be very time-consuming – advertise job, source candidates, CV submission, first and second interview and offer or rejection,” Lee continues. “Video as part of the submission process combines the initial CV review and around two thirds of the first interview. In addition, clients can pre-determine questions to be asked, further recreating the value of a first interview and sometimes mitigating the need for a second interview. This can reduce the time to hire even further.”

The flexibility of video technology is also a huge benefit.

“We find that many roles require stakeholders from various departments and locations to be part of the first interview, which carries cost and time implications to the business,” Lee comments.

“A video profile can be shared to multiple users to view, comment and provide feedback, and can be viewed at any time or location.”

Whilst video can never replace the impact that a face-to-face meeting creates, it can attract more candidates to a role, connect and engage the people in the process, reduce time to hire and increase success rates. For modern recruiters, video is the future of the industry.

BUSINESS SECTION

IR35: New tax rules re IR35 for the Private Sector are scheduled to come into force on 1st April 2020. This is a fundamental change to the IR35 legislation which has been around since 2000.

This will affect businesses who engage freelancers where the freelancer uses a Personal Service Company to provide their services. From April 2020 the IR35 responsibility and liability passes from the PSC to the client or engager. These new rules are a significant change to what has existed for the last 20 years and businesses need to be prepared.

The Government announced on the 7th January 2020 a consultation into the new IR35 rules but many believe the decision has been made and the consultation will do little to alter the timing or direction of these changes. This seems to be reinforced by a statement from the Financial Secretary to the Treasury Jesse Norman stating “The purpose of this consultation is to make sure that the implementation of these changes in April is as smooth as possible.” So, any hope of a last-minute reprieve seems unlikely.

Ardent Tide has a wealth of experience in dealing with IR35 in the private and public sector. Many of the

I

am excited to announce that our first lunch of the year will be held at The Venue at the iconic Royal Liver Building on the 28th February. We will still be working with Anfield and have two lunches planned there, before hosting our first ever Christmas Party in December; I’ll see you there.

Although BITA Liverpool had a great 2019, we know that for businesses it was tougher. Many people that I have spoken to and worked with have said it was a difficult year, however these same people are telling me that 2020 is already incredibly busy.

With movement in Westminster and local development schemes coming to fruition, long may it last!

Regeneration has been a keyword for Liverpool in recent years, and a masterplan from Liverpool City Council to facilitate this, was approved in November 2019.

This plan includes the delivery of up to two million sq ft of commercial space over the next 15 years across 12 crucial sites.

Over 900 homes aimed at students and young professionals have also been given the green light by the council in anticipation for the

BIG TAX CHANGES FOR FREELANCERS

changes that are proposed came in to the Public Sector in 2017 and Ardent Tide has helped its clients navigate safely through these significant changes. If you would like to discuss the forthcoming change, and how it might affect your business, please get in touch.

WWW.ARDENTTIDE.CO.UK For more information please contact the team:

Tel: 0208 452 4286 Email: hello@ardenttide.co.uk

increased migration into the city. As Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson has said; “To be a world class business location a city needs a commercial district that can offer opportunity, flexibility, connectivity and quality.” Increasing population, job creation and a vibrant community has all contributed to Liverpool being named as the second-best property investment location in the UK

by Seven Capital.

Liverpool is exciting, vibrant and diverse; backed by a council that wants to improve the city for all, the sky’s the limit!

LOOKING FORWARD Sarah McCartney, BITA Liverpool Chairperson, looks at what 2020 holds for the North West

www.bita.ie

35

Laura Watkins

SECTION

PUTTING

HOUSING

FIRST

A NEW WAY OF ADDRESSING

HOMELESSNESS

T

he weather is drizzly and cold when I meet Jo Prestidge, the Senior Project Manager for Housing First England, for a coffee in January. Just the kind of weather that makes you really appreciate not being homeless.

Homelessness is rising in the UK; by 25% for unsheltered homeless people (as opposed to those sofa surfing or in short-term hostels) in the past 10 years.

These figures are often met with surprise; the UK has a welfare system, council and social housing available. Sadly, many people who are long-term homeless or unsheltered homeless have multiple needs that prevent them from getting the help they need.

Homeless Link is the national membership charity for organisations that work directly with people who become homeless in England. They are working to improve services and campaign for policy change that will help end homelessness.

“Housing First is a specific model” explains Jo; “it was pioneered in the 1990’s in New York and offers affordable housing

36

NETWORKS

as quickly as possible to those experiencing homelessness. Most importantly, it is accompanied by intensive, wrap-around support to help them keep their home and integrate into society.”

Dr. Sam Tsemberis was the founder of Pathways to Housing in New York City in 1992, based on the belief that housing is a human right. It was through his work that the Housing First model was developed and was primarily targeted at those who had mental health problems, issues with addiction, or both.

Jo informs me that these are significant factors contributing to increased homelessness in England.

However, welfare support, our health system and councils’ homelessness and housing support still “provide the UK with a fairly good safety net for many people, it’s those with complex needs [a combination of, amongst other things, addiction and mental health issues] that struggle to navigate and benefit from the system.”

Traditionally, many homelessness services believe that certain criteria

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THERE IS THIS IDEA OF THE DESERVING AND UNDESERVING POOR.

COMMUNITY

must be met before someone is ready for a home of their own; someone with a mental health issue may be told to tackle that first, or a drug user might be told to get into recovery before they are offered a tenancy. Sadly, for those on the streets with these issues, recovery can be extremely difficult, especially without stable housing.

The Housing First model assumes that everyone should have the right to a home, and provides the support needed to help someone not only keep their home, but to re-join society. A big difference with this model is that people are offered tenancies, rather than licence agreements, and that those tenancies aren’t conditional on accessing other services. This means that formerly homeless people have the same rights as any other tenant, compared to licence agreements; an insecure type of lease which means people have fewer rights and can lose their accommodation more easily.

It is the wrap-around support that makes a real difference and is the key to Housing First being a success.

Support staff work holistically with small caseloads, usually around seven people, and work end to end with their clients – from the streets to when the client decides they want to end the relationship.

This builds trust and helps form genuine connections. Their aims are recovery, integration and sustaining tenancies, and the impact is huge.

The effect of this work spreads far beyond the individual; it has an impact on the community and wider services.

“When Housing First has been rolled out in an area, there can be noticeable knockon effects on services across the board.”

Jo explains; “A&E, emergency shelters, hospitals, police, courts, prisons and more all see an improvement to how their resources are used.”

It is this that also makes a difference to the wider community; shorter wait times at A&E, more beds available, reduced use of the custodial system: increased engagement and assistance of homeless people with complex needs has a positive impact on everyone.

One of the biggest challenges can be the public’s perception of this client group “There is this unconscious idea of people being deserving or undeserving of housing because of their personal

WHEN HOUSING FIRST HAS BEEN ROLLED OUT IN AN AREA, WE HAVE SEEN NOTICEABLE KNOCK-ON EFFECTS ON SERVICES ACROSS THE BOARD.

situation.” Explains Jo; “In fact people have become homeless for a range of complicated reasons, and ultimately they need effective support.”

The problem with society based on meritocracy is that the flip side of the coin means that those that don’t do well, deserve it. Sadly, the truth is a complex picture of childhoods of poverty or trauma and untreated mental health issues, often impacted by a reduction in care services in the community and closures of residential homes.

There have been many studies conducted around the impact and effectiveness of Housing First that make it clear, this is a model that works. The Government has backed Housing First and in 2017 announced £28m to pilot Housing First across 3 regions: West Midlands, Liverpool City and Greater Manchester.

This exciting project was launched in 2018 and includes funding to measure external evaluations to test the model ‘at scale’ across England.

This project will be supporting around 1,000 rough sleepers with the most complex needs. “The evidence shows

Housing First has an incredible rate of success in providing rough sleepers with the support they need to get off the streets and to rebuild their lives.”

Said Housing Secretary Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP when making the announcement.

This is part of the government’s plan to halve rough sleeping by 2022 and end it by 2027. In Europe, Housing First has been successful in ending homelessness for 8/10 of their service users, whereas the traditional solutions in the UK have had only around a 50% success rate in keeping people off the streets.

It is only through the innovative thinking of Dr. Tsemberis that the Housing First model was developed; through engaging with the people he wanted to help and seeing the complex issues behind the situation, he has changed the lives of 1000’s of people for the better.

If you want to be involved, you can go to www.hfe.homeless.org.uk Housing First services would benefit from support such as furniture, clothing, and appropriate, affordable housing and the team at Homeless Link are happy to talk to anyone who would like to get involved.

www.bita.ie

37

Laura Watkins

T

here are a lot of reasons for those bleak headline figures; men don’t like going to the doctors with intimate issues and don’t like to ‘make a fuss’. There is more junk food, more chemicals, and we’re all living longer. All of these elements need tackling if we are to reduce instances of fatal prostate cancer, with special focus on tackling the fear that some men feel when going to the doctor.

If anyone reading this has any concerns at all, please book an appointment with your GP. Although unpleasant, an exam should only take 5-minutes and will most likely result in peace of mind. In the less likely result of a diagnosis, early detection can make a huge difference in outcomes not just for mortality, but in quality of life.

Something that many people aren’t aware of is the journey after a diagnosis, something that charity Prost8 is trying to change. Prostate cancer treatments are improving all the time, options available today are less invasive and mean that men with early stage cancer can enjoy better lifestyle outcomes. Sadly, these new options are rarely offered as a first choice and more than 8,000 men diagnosed with early stage cancer this year will receive the same invasive treatment as those with advanced cancer. On the surface this doesn’t seem like bad news, we associate strong measures with effectiveness.

However, these invasive treatments can have a long-lasting and devastating impact, carrying with them a very high risk of permanent incontinence and erectile disfunction; as well as the associated psychological, emotional and relationship side effects that these can cause.

Paul Sayer is from Southend-on-Sea in Essex and was diagnosed with prostate cancer in his early 60s. ‘My surgeon was strongly in favour of surgery,’ remembers Paul; ‘the radiotherapist told me radiotherapy was better. I was worried about both options – as they’re both

TACKLING

PROSTATE CANCER

KNOWING YOUR OPTIONS IS KEY TO A SUCCESSFUL OUTCOME The top line figures make for bleak reading. This year, more than 48,000 men in the UK will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, a 44% increase since the 1990’s.

11,000 will die, mostly due to late diagnosis.

pretty final when it comes to maintaining normal sexual function.

“I was less scared of having the disease than I was about what would happen after treatment. I was in my 60s, active and happily married. I didn’t much like the idea of having to wear pads in my underwear for the rest of my life. What man would choose that?’

In light of this devastating news, Paul did what many people do and researched options online. This is where he found HIFU (high-intensity focused ultrasound) therapy. HIFU is a minimally invasive treatment that targets the cancer with ultrasonic waves that can be used to destroy tissue, including cancerous cells. They target the cancer rather than the prostate and are successful for many people in the earlier stages of cancer diagnosis.

Unlike the traditional invasive surgery, recipients of HIFU have only a 1% chance of short-term incontinence after treatment, 75% of men will have no issue with ‘sexual potency’ and a further 20% will only need over the counter medicine.

It seems clear that for those in the early stages of prostate cancer, patients should be offered the minimally invasive and low side-effect option of HIFU. Many are not.

“My doctors were very much against it” recalls Paul; “they weren’t interested in discussing it with me and told me that I wasn’t a suitable candidate.” Not to be deterred, Paul decided to meet with a surgeon he’d read about online, Professor Hashim Ahmed at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. Professor Ahmed assured him that he was in fact a perfect candidate, and after insisting his GP refer him for treatment Paul underwent the procedure in July 2018.

“I was an outpatient, and the fact it was non-invasive meant that I could just get on with my life. I make sure I get regular check-ups of course, but I’m happy to say that the cancer is gone.

“I think it’s awful that if I had listened to my original doctors, I could be incontinent, or my sex life would be suffering. If I hadn’t insisted and done my own research, I would have undergone the standard treatment; this is why I am passionate about helping other men with a diagnosis to make the right choice” As a result of this experience Paul founded Prost8 UK, a charity dedicated to championing alternate treatments for prostate cancer; alternative treatments that are scientifically proven to be effective for early stage cancers. Their aim? Nothing more than raising money to donate at least one HIFU treatment

DON’T BE A PROSTRICH! KNOWING YOUR OPTIONS ISCancer KEY now…

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HEALTH

unit to each of the 23 NHS regions across the UK, as well as raising awareness and providing information that will lead to better life outcomes for 1000’s of men.

They have a plan that includes three steps to improve outcomes: 1. Get men to talk, and to address symptoms sooner 2. Help improve access to easier and more effective screening 3. Donate equipment to provide less invasive treatment options The HIFU treatment that Paul had is used for many cancers including breast, liver, pancreatic, brain and more and is one of the new treatments available under the banner of Focal Therapy. Focal therapy also includes cryotherapy, a surgical technique that can treat localised prostate cancer by freezing and destroying cancer cells. This is a relatively new treatment, and longterm outcomes are still being assessed, however it is recognised alongside HIFU as effective in treating early cancers and has markedly fewer side effects than a surgical prostatectomy or radiotherapy.

Cryotherapy is also an outpatient procedure and although slightly more invasive than HIFU, it is considerably less invasive than traditional treatments offered by doctors as standard.

Ultimately, Paul’s aim via Prost8 UK is to arm men with information and encourage them to speak up; “too many men don’t want to cause a fuss and would rather stick their heads in the sand over troubling symptoms than ask a doctor to perform an exam.” It is important to note here, that although a third of diagnoses are in men over 75, an increasing amount of over 50’s are also receiving the bad news.

“If they receive a positive diagnosis, they just want to deal with it immediately and ask the doctor what to do. People often don’t question doctors, and surgery to cut out cancer happens to be very effective.”

Says Paul; “I just want men to be more

If you want to learn more about alternate treatments please email Paul at info@prost8.org.uk or visit online at www.prost8.org.uk where you can also donate to the charity; they are seeking corporate supporters

likely to get an early diagnosis, which means they would probably be a candidate for these non-invasive treatments and have better lives as a result.”

You can book a prostate exam through your GP and the charity’s website provides information on a man’s right to be screened. Sadly, there is still a reluctance among a large number of GP’s to screen if a man does not present with obvious symptoms. Paul’s case is typical as he had none of the expected symptoms yet by persistence was checked to discover a sizeable tumour in the left side of his prostate.

Paul is very happy to be contacted by anyone who needs help. “I founded this charity, but I’m also a cancer survivor who was lucky enough to find a doctor that would help me. I don’t want others to rely on luck, they need information.”

I WAS LESS SCARED OF HAVING THE DISEASE THAN I WAS ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAPPEN AFTER TREATMENT.

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Henry Hathaway, Partner Silver Shemmings Ash LLP

COLLATERAL WARRANTIES

O

ne of the most misunderstood and misapplied sequences during a construction development is the use and application of collateral warranties. These are documents that are ordinarily left to the end of a project and can sometimes cause quite a number of difficulties, when especially subcontractors or other parties have left the project and perhaps have been paid.

It is quite common for solicitors to be instructed to review the wording of a collateral warranty but usually only take receipt of that draft without the underlying contract. It is important to note that a collateral warranty creates a contract and that the collateral warranty or Third Party Rights provisions, allow for others not party to the contract to derive benefits from it. Defective design or workmanship by a professional consultant or contractor could cause the parties with different interests in a construction project different losses. While an employer is likely to have a contract with the party responsible for a defect, other affected parties may not.

Without a contract, a party affected by this defective design or workmanship may not be able to recover its losses from the professional consultant or contractor

responsible. It would be an extraordinary suite of documents if all parties were to directly contract with one another.

In order to review and/or consider the collateral warranty, the underlying contract should be considered as the initial agreement between the parties; very important for the Fund and/or those who perhaps will be a first purchaser or tenant.

This is especially true when considering the rights granted under the contract itself (as there certainly will be no greater obligations), as well as when considering the sub contracts which may be required during the currency of the project. In all instances, the collateral warranty should be drafted back to back and considered in tandem with the contract.

In addition, and this applies to the actual contract itself, the insurance provisions must be quite certain. Those entering into such agreements would be well advised to have their insurers review the terms of the contracts and the levels of insurance required. Ordinarily, this is important for all parties, from the warrantor’s position, in such an event or breach where losses arise, it will hopefully rely upon its insurance provisions instead of being potentially sued directly. It is certainly in the interests of the Beneficiary

to ensure that the terms of any policy insurance meets those as required.

Often parties including, for example, the contractor as the procurer of the collateral warranties from the relevant sub-contractors when there is an express requirement in the main contract itself to do so. Such provisions may include a condition precedent where there is an amount withheld if upon being given seven days’ notice the contractor fails to procure and deliver the warranties as required under the contract. It is not uncommon that contractors fail or forget to include those provisions or clauses in its own sub-contracts leading to much difficulty.

This is made all the more problematic on account of the fact that at the start of a main contract, it may not be known who the sub-contractors will be. It is important therefore at this stage that the disciplines at least are captured, and in the instance where the Beneficiary is not known, that the class or classes are identified.

It is important to understand whether the collateral contract is to be signed or to be executed as a Deed and whether the underlying contract has been executed in the same manner as this affects limitation.

Lastly, it is still the position that consultants, sub-contractors and contractors will all have to sign the collateral warranty! You will be surprised at how many do not!

Author Henry Hathaway is a Partner with Silver Shemmings Ash and is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin (Civil Engineering) Tel: 00 44 207 167 6602 - Email: henryhathaway@silverllp.com At Silver Shemmings Ash, we provide seminars and training alongside our core activities in contentious and non-contentious matters to facilitate a greater knowledge and understanding of construction and property law.

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We are a leading law firm of Construction and Property Solicitors, based in the City of London. We have a real understanding of the legal issues facing those working in the Construction and Real Estate sectors Many of our Construction team are dual-qualified from a technical background (Chartered Surveyors, Quantity Surveyors, Civil and Structural Engineers) with first-hand experience of the challenges faced by our clients. We have a team who understand the pressures our clients operate under and we strive to provide clear, practical and innovative commercial advice & solutions Our Real Estate team have a wealth of experience in dealing with commercial and residential property. We act for UK and international developers and financial institutions on both residential & commercial developments. We also act for both landlords and tenants including acquisitions and disposals, lettings, portfolio management, requirements of occupiers, and corporate support Over the past 10 years we have built a strong reputation for results. This is based on our ability to offer clear, quick, practical and commercial advice in connection with construction and development projects throughout their lifecycles We regularly provide in house training courses to our clients as well as running our complimentary breakfast / evening seminars and networking events. These cover a broad range of subjects and areas of interest ranging from legal updates to the latest versions of standard forms and much more

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41

SECTION

BUILDING GREEN

THE CHALLENGES FACING ENERGY EFFICIENT BUILDINGS IN A RECENT PROJECT, WE RENOVATED AN 1850’S 6-BEDROOM HOME, RESULTING IN MORE THAN AN 80% REDUCTION IN CO2 EMISSIONS. Simon Green, Green Building Design Consultants

W

ith UK renewable energy capacity surpassing fossil fuels for the first time in 20191, and government plans to ban mains gas central heating systems in new homes by 20252, sustainable and energy efficient construction is fast becoming a necessity. Yet, despite all the renewable and ‘green’ technologies available, implementing and using them correctly is not without its challenges.

According to Imperial College London, in the past five years the amount of renewable capacity has tripled while the use of fossils fuels has fallen by a third3; a milestone that some would have considered impossible just a few years ago. Earlier this year, the UK Government announced plans to ban gas boilers from all new homes in 20252, in a bid to lower CO2 gas emissions.

Whilst these are both positive and important steps towards a more sustainable future for all, there is still a long way to go for all buildings to implement and, most importantly, use and maintain green technologies efficiently and effectively.

When it comes to designing buildings that incorporate environmentally friendly

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technology, solar panels on the roof are the least of it. There are many ways that architects can use computer modelling, up-to-date materials and tech to ensure that their buildings retain a low-carbon legacy.

Thermal insulation is an extremely effective green technology; it is possible to make significant energy savings by improving the thermal insulation values of a building. Achieving optimum levels requires careful calculation. Too much insulation can lead to overheating, especially in summer which can lead to using artificial cooling systems, negating the environmental benefits. Fortunately, the ideal amount of insulation, ventilation and heat exchange a building requires can be accurately calculated using energy modelling software.

Equipment such as ground-source heat pumps, which extract heat from the ground beneath a property, and airsource heat pumps, which are powered by electricity (a renewable source in contrast to natural gas), also help a building maintain its green credentials.

Architects today even have the capability to control the amount of fresh air flowing into a building; CO2 monitors in air extract ducts can be used to reduce the volume of fresh air coming into a building at times of low occupancy. LED lighting and Building Management Systems (BMS) fall into the green technology category too, as LED lights use significantly less energy than traditional light sources, and BMSs allow for heating and lighting to be switched off when they are not needed.

The World Green Building Trends 2016 Smart Market Report reveals that the demand for green buildings is doubling every three years4. Yet, installing green technologies does pose a number of challenges, and there are considerations that people must take into account.

First of all, there is the cost. Many

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people believe sustainable building to be expensive and they are partly correct. The initial costs of using green and renewable technologies is often much higher than standard technologies, however rewards further down the line in terms of energy savings, are significant. Payback periods vary for each project, ranging from 18 months to 20 years in extreme cases, but engineers can forecast the payback for each technology through modelling the effects of various green technologies.

Overall, the complete lifecycle cost of using green technologies is considerably cheaper than standard technologies.

And it doesn’t just boil down to money, there is also the bigger issue of the environmental cost to consider.

As guardians of our planet, we have a responsibility to future generations to protect and maintain our world.

Significantly reducing CO2 emissions will have an even greater impact on all our lives, as well as saving money.

Another key challenge to the adaptation of green technologies is the available space. Air source heat pumps, for example, tend to be larger and require much more air space to operate correctly, which can prove challenging in smaller buildings or buildings with limited space.

Green technologies also require more commissioning and maintenance than standard services, meaning people must be prepared to undertake this to ensure optimal efficiency of the technology.

The last, and perhaps hardest challenge that green technologies pose, is a mindset change. It is important to understand that green technologies sometimes come with compromises, compared to standard installations, which may affect quality of life.

For example, ground source heat pumps tend to operate at lower temperatures than gas powered heating systems and will take longer to heat

BUSINESS

the building up to temperature.

Hot water provided by storage heaters takes a long time to warm up and requires a recharge period once the hot water has been used, compared with a gas fired boiler which provides constant hot water.

However, by using a professional engineer to calculate your water loads and usage, you can have the right size hot water tank, low water-use shower heads and taps installed to suit your individual needs.

Simon Green, Director of Green Building Design Consultants, comments “Designing green buildings is not a straightforward process. Using an engineer to help guide you and accurately calculate the potential savings is a necessity, as is being fully on board with the new technologies and how to maintain them and your own lifestyle, in order to see

1

National Grid.

2

optimal results. However, when it is done well, the results are seriously impressive, as we showed with a recent exemplar project. An 1850’s 6-bedroom semi-detached house was renovated, resulting in more than an 80% reduction in CO2 emissions, proving that even Victorian housing has a huge energy saving potential.”

With electrical energy costs averaging three and a half times those of natural gas, only through planning ahead and having the correct design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of your green technologies, will you be able to lower your CO2 emissions, reduce energy usage and save money.

Chancellor’s Spring Statement 2019.

3

SOLAR, SO GOOD Humans have long harnessed the sun for power, but it’s only recently we’ve been able to convert its energy into electricity.

On a bright sunny day in July in 1913, the great and the good of Egyptian society gathered together to witness a scientific miracle – a water irrigation plant run on solar power.

This wasn’t solar power as we know it; carefully placed, high shine metal plates were set out in the sun, and the heat generated from them created enough steam power to operate an irrigation pump for water to get from the Nile to the fields.

As incredible as it seemed at the time, it was in the same vein as humans had been using the sun for millennia; in the 2nd century BC, Archimedes is said to have set fire to enemy ships using mirrors.

It wasn’t until 1954 when the first photovoltaic cells were developed in America that could convert energy from the sun into electricity to power everyday objects.

Starting at 4% efficiency and getting as high as 11%, these first solar panels were based on a patent filed in 1908, and they haven’t changed much today.

Imperial College London.

4

World Green Building Trends 2016 Smart Market Report.

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BUSINESS

THE EV CHARGING

REVOLUTION: ARE YOU JOINING? 44

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Ryan Dignam – Director of Marketwide NRG

T

he year 2020 heralds the start of a new decade and the UK Government is providing a £1.5billion funding package with the aim of 50% - 70% of new car sales and up to 40% of van sales to be of the ultra-low emission standard by 2030. Climate Change and associated protests around the world have meant many countries have set bans on the sale of petrol and diesel cars and vans to start as soon as 2025.

Public protests and general discontent have meant the government are having serious conversations about the need to switch to this eco-friendlier mode of transport. But where can you charge? How much power do you need? How long will it take to charge your vehicle? These are just a few questions that newcomers to the EV revolution are asking as they question how convenient EVs are.

Paul Whitnell has recently switched to an EV; “I think it’s important for us all to take steps to reduce our carbon footprint, and so far, so good!” Says Paul; “I was doing so much driving on behalf of BITA, I felt it essential take a step back and reassess our needs, and the impact our organisation was having on the environment. We are now electric and are telecommuting more often as well.”

There are now more than 25,000 charging points across the UK, by the end of 2020 this is expected to reach 100,000, a remarkable increase. With more charging points, newer technology and more affordable vehicles entering the market, going electric is more accessible than ever.

The average person in the U.K drives 26 miles a day and the average person in London drives just 6 miles per day. With electric vehicles now boasting ranges of

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nearly 400 miles per full charge, the vast majority of people will be completely covered and there is no longer much need for range anxiety. So the EVs are living up to expectations, leaving us to beg the question; is the infrastructure ready?

“The need to develop a cleaner alternative to traditional ICE engine systems is clear, but the sheer ubiquity of the petrol station and the few minutes it takes to refill a car continue to make these vehicles an attractive option for many.” Says Alexander Pocklington- Principal Assessment Engineer at Croydon Council; “To encourage the switch to better technology, it is vital to have an EV infrastructure including high-capacity charging points distributed across the country. Affordable, upgradable and modular charging points are key to this as they will allow significant investment in advance to the essential infrastructure which can then be brought online as demand rises, instead of an expensive constant patchwork of noninteroperable systems.”

Although charge points are increasing, we aren’t at this point yet, and won’t be for a while. Although publicly available charge points are more common, by far the best way to charge your EV is to focus on home, work and destination charging. This typically offers a lower charging rate which enables network operators to better manage peak charging times. It also means that they can delay the expensive network upgrades that are usually required for higher-powered, rapid chargers. This means that more people can go electric whilst managing the effect on the national grid.

Imagine everyone leaving the house every morning with a full tank of petrol, how often would we stop at a

SECTION

Ryan Dignam

THERE ARE NOW MORE THAN 25,000 CHARGING POINTS ACROSS THE UK, BY THE END OF 2020 THIS IS EXPECTED TO REACH 100,000

forecourt on an average month? The answer for most is hardly ever. With an electric vehicle this is now a reality, we have the ability to charge it at home and leave the house every morning with full range. Very convenient and at a small fraction of the price of petrol.

Vince Dignam is the Business and Improvements Manager at The City of London, and very much a convert of the EV revolution; “With the first zero-emission street coming to London (Beech street) it is clear that we need to act now to put the right infrastructure in place for electric vehicles in London and the UK.” When asked what are the plans for the future of The City of London, Vince says “[The City of London] is working towards having a fully electric fleet by 2025, most recently we have been trialling fully electric 18-Tonne refuse collection vehicles along with an 18-Tonne mechanical sweeper, these are now being built and have been ordered. We are working tirelessly on infrastructure, introducing smart charging points at our depots in the square mile.”

It will always be a struggle, if not impossible, to change the whole world to EV technology overnight (especially the Jeremy Clarksons of the planet), but creating more charge points, increasing the range of the EV, and spiralling petrol and deasil costs mean that more people are being converted.

Against this, tackling global warming seems like an insurmountable chance, we all think that small actions won’t make a difference, but en masse we are no longer talking about small actions but a tide of change. We can all take steps to reduce our carbon footprints and with the current changes, EVs seem like a good place to start.

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45

THE FATHER OF SECTION

INVENTION INNOVATE, REFINE,

IMPROVE

“The first step is spotting a gap in the market,” says Colleen McCoy of J G McCoy Engineering, “then the hard part begins; developing something that is trustworthy, fulfils a need, and is cost effective.”

The process of invention is one that we don’t really think much about; people are inspired, they imagine a product, they build and refine the product and then, hopefully, send it to market. Quite often a person will think of something that would make their lives easier, but rarely do they take the difficult next step towards developing and refining a product.

The father/daughter team behind JG McCoy Engineering has made a business out doing just this after James McCoy realised that his passion for inventions and design, which he was already working on out-of-hours, could offer solutions to common problems for people on building sites. As a result of this he and his daughter Colleen set up the business in 2007, with the intention of offering products with real-world applications to the construction industry.

James McCoy was working in private contracting and using evenings and weekends to make improvements on tools and processes that he used. One of these was the now patented JG McCoy Kicker System; a simple wire-formed bracket that offers a fast, accurate and easy system for casting monolithic concrete upstand details.

Not only does this innovative design reduce the risk of accidents around site, and the likelihood of accidents from power saw usage, it also cuts down on waste and reduces carbon footprints.

“He’s able to come up with these ideas because he’s lived it, he worked on sites for years and knows not just how people work in the real world, but also what businesses are looking for, and where their stressors might be.” Says Colleen; “I think it’s difficult to exactly say when or where an idea for a new product might come from, all of our products have been born as my father has just done what he enjoys; he

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likes refining things and creating solutions to problems that he has faced.”

It was only once he started experimenting with the idea for the Kicker System, that James and his daughter realised this was a design that could be marketable to other businesses, and work really began to refine, improve and test the Kickers.

Backers are needed to help get items to market, and it’s when talking to investors and potential buyers, that James’ experience is also crucial. “He knows exactly what he is talking about, and how a new product will help out, both in terms of what the workers will think of it, and what it will do for management.”

Aware that you are only as good as your product, the Kicker was put through very stringent testing, culminating in a rather ad hoc experiment. “We were just about to order 25,000 parts, and a labourer called Durken decided to experiment with it. When he stood on it, it collapsed.” These items aren’t supposed to be stood on, but James knew that these things happen on site, and it had to stand up to this level of use. “We had to scrap what we had and redesign it to make something better. Now we ask ourselves, can it take the weight of a man? Does it survive things it may not have been intended for, but may happen? We call it Durken testing!”

Their System was launched in 2008 and has been followed up by two more innovative products; their FAB Bench,

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MY FATHER HAS JUST DONE WHAT HE ENJOYS; HE LIKES REFINING THINGS AND CREATING SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS THAT HE HAS FACED.

and most recently, Box Beads which help with the professional finish for plastering around sockets.

To keep up with the old adage that the best things come in threes, Colleen has offered to share the McCoy top tips for bringing innovation to market with our readers. Firstly, a product must serve a purpose that is better and easier than any pre-existing method. Secondly, cost.

Innovative design is an investment of wise spending from contractors rather than big spending. Lastly, trust in the product equals sales. J G McCoy will not release a product for tooling, let alone let it be taken to market, until it measures above and beyond the aims and objectives of site conditions. In short, getting innovation to market is no easy feat.

James McCoy continues design and invent things, using his experiences on site, and conversations with colleagues to inform where he should be looking, and to hone in on what they would find useful. The pace of patented designs from JG McCoy is increasing as he refines his processes, so we’ll expect their next great product soon.

PEOPLE WHO KNOW PEOPLE THAT HELP PEOPLE

geasontraining.co.uk

CONTENTS 44

PEOPLE WHO KNOW PEOPLE THAT HELP PEOPLE

www.bita.ie

38 46

The Father of Invention

44

The EV Charging Revolution

42

Building Green

40

Collateral Warranties

38

Tackling Prostate Cancer

36

Putting Housing First

35

Looking Forward

34

Gamechanger

33

Where do we go from Here?

30

Tip of the Iceberg

29

The BITA Awards

26

Providing a Second Chance?

24

Right to Light

26

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PEOPLE WHO KNOW PEOPLE THAT HELP PEOPLE # 7 I February 2020 I the innovation issue

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THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS

08 22

Onwards and Upwards

20

Coming to Australia

18

R&D

16

Working the Balance

14

Stressed out at Work?

13

Into the 21st Century

12

Collaboration – An Ancient Strategy

10

Active Communities Network

08

A Load of Rubbish

06

Moving FORS

05

Helping People Reach their Full Potential

03

Cutting out the Fat

03

TEAM

Editor: Diane Birch, BITA Executive Director Sub Editor: Laura Watkins

Features Editor: John Reynolds BITA Contributors: Georgia Churchill, Events and Marketing Assistant; Ryan Dignam, Marketwide; George Green, Reece Gowardun and Jack Fox, College Students; Lee Reynolds, Kingsley Consulting Design and Production E jules@stimula.co.uk Printer Aquablue

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Published by BITA Ltd HEAD OFFICE: The Hive Enterprise Centre, The Old Central Library, Victoria Avenue, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, SS2 6EX www.bita.ie T +44 (0)1702 417132 E laura@bita.ie

©

N

WELCOME

o, you’re not holding the magazine the wrong way around! We always set themes for our magazine, we’ve previously looked at Opportunity, The Future and Change; this time we are Thinking Around Corners.

We decided to push the theme further for this edition and reverse the magazine, hopefully encouraging our readers to think differently while they are reading it.

This theme seemed particularly relevant; it’s the start of a new decade and we want to nurture new ideas and encourage innovation to improve our lives and face down challenges. ‘Things are what you make of them’ we are told, and for the most part this is true. We can move forward with trepidation about what may come our way, or we can stride forward into 2020 with hope and decide to make a positive impact on our world.

Businesses will hopefully find 2020 a great year, with some certainty around Brexit coming our way, and increased investment in green infrastructure. To help support member businesses, 2020 will also be the year that we introduce our Procurement Hub, Training Division and Members Library, all of which should help fuel business growth.

We hope that you are as excited about these developments as we are!

In this issue, we have taken a look at the UK’s litter problem (page 8), had a much needed investigation into prostate cancer (page 38) and investigated how accidents are being reduced across the capital (page 6); hopefully you’ll find lots of new information and solutions in these pages. True innovation is difficult, something that Colleen and James of J G McCoy Engineering could tell you (page 46), but the important thing is to keep pushing forward.

So, keep an open mind, don’t be afraid to try thinking a little differently, and enjoy issue 7!

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Reproduction without prior permission is forbidden. Every care has been taken in compiling the content of the magazine, but the publisher assumes no responsibility in the effect arising therefrom. Readers are advised to seek professional advice before acting on any information which is contained in the magazine. Neither BITA Ltd or NetWorks accept any liability for views expressed, pictures used or claims used by advertisers.

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We are business and tax advisors and recognise that our clients require more than just annual compliance.

We understand the many challenges that businesses face, particularly within the construction industry. We work closely with our clients to ensure that they overcome these challenges and achieve their goals.

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PEOPLE WHO KNOW PEOPLE THAT HELP PEOPLE

www.bita.ie • Edition 7 • 2020

TACKLING PROSTATE CANCER

PROVIDING A SECOND CHANCE?

BUILDING GREEN

Make sure you’re informed

Rehabilitation as a solution to crime

Challenges facing energy efficient buildings

PEOPLE WHO KNOW PEOPLE THAT HELP PEOPLE