Supporting grassroots sports

Tom Flowers Cricket Coaching

Supporting grassroots sports to assist post-Covid recovery

As lockdown restrictions have eased, thousands of small businesses and community organisations linked to grassroots sports have reopened across Leicestershire – many of them supported by Leicester-Shire and Rutland Sport (LRS).

The not-for-profit group, one of 43 active partnerships in England to deliver sports development and physical activity programmes at county level, has helped organisations in the sector to adapt to shifting lockdown restrictions that presented significant challenges to business models.

Indoor and outdoor activity restarted in April, with leisure centres and gyms then reopening, and mixed classes resuming in May. But it came after a year in which many organisations absorbed mounting costs while simultaneously unable to bring in revenue through events and training.

LRS offered support throughout the pandemic through its Sports Organisation Support (SOS) work. It advised organisations, many of them early stage, as they attempted to access central support and helped them pivot to new styles of business.

Ali Clements, Economy and Sport Growth Manager, said: “The sector and the local area as a whole has had a really tough time. Sports businesses across the area will need a good summer to kickstart their recovery.

“The work of the LRS Active Together campaign across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, primarily focusing on health and wellbeing, is driving interest and demand, which in turn supports business and sector recovery.

“We will continue to help organisations navigate the extensive support available through the sport sector, and the business sector, and act as a sounding board as we all progress through the road map out of lockdown.”

LRS has been focused on the local sporting economy since 2016. Before the pandemic, the sector included 515 businesses and 18,000 jobs in the area.

3PL firm welcomes Doncaster business colleagues to opening of new sites

A 3PL business that has recently exceeded 1,000,000 sq ft of warehouse space as it expanded into the Doncaster Borough, has welcomed business colleagues to the official opening of the new sites.

Carlton Forest 3PL, has almost doubled its facilities in just seven weeks after acquiring three separate sites at Bawtry Park, near Doncaster, and was delighted to welcome representatives from Doncaster Chamber, namely CEO Dan Fell and President Jill Wood of Signum Facilities Management, to the socially distanced opening.

“Moving into the Doncaster area seemed like the natural progression for us, and the site at Bawtry Park met with our requirements perfectly,” said Adam Jones, Managing Director, Carlton Forest 3PL. “Our strategic growth plans are ideally suited to the wider logistics and supply chain network for which Doncaster is renowned, and we look forward to ongoing engagement with other logistics providers in the region, such as the Rail Port and i-Port, and working together to consolidate Doncaster’s amazing offering within the logistics and supply chain sector.”

The new sites at Bawtry Park join an existing portfolio of warehouses – 125,000 sq ft at Hellaby and 170,000 sq ft in Barnsley (both in South Yorkshire) and its original headquarters –250,000 sq ft in Worksop, North Nottinghamshire.

“To be able to deliver the first phase of our growth plans in such a short space of time is testament to the great team we have here and the support of Commercial Property Partners (CPP) who helped us source the site and completed everything so efficiently,” said Adam. “Now, we will look forward to continuing the development of our strategic five-year plan and to a very bright and prosperous future.”

Dan Fell, CEO, Doncaster Chamber of Commerce, said: “I would like to congratulate Carlton Forest on this ambitious new venture. They are an innovative and green business that, in many areas, are leading the way in their sector. This is a real vote of confidence in Doncaster and demonstrates that, despite the presently challenging

‘Moving into economic circumstances, many businesses are forging ahead the Doncaster with investment and growth area seemed like plans. I am delighted that Carlton Forest have the natural recognised that Doncaster is a great place to do business progression and look forward to further for us’ developing the relationship between Carlton Forest, the Chamber and the borough to make this venture a huge success.” The growth of the business has resulted in the creation of 25 long term and 50 short term jobs in the local community.

Visit: www.carltonforest3pl.com Email: Alistair.plant@carltonforestgroup.com