5 minute read
BUSINESS HOUR
John Chesworth Executive Chairman of Harrison Dury Solicitors and Chair of Preston’s Towns Fund Board, chats to Alma Stewart about supporting Preston throughout his life and career. Photography: Michael Porter Photography
You can’t get much more ‘Preston’ than being born in Preston Royal Infirmary and here is where John’s journey began in 1971.
Preston born and bred, John’s parents both worked and lived at Larches House, a residential school for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties, in Ashton and so John’s childhood is full of memories of this area where he now lives. He also loved rugby and started playing for Preston Grasshoppers from the age of eight and continued to play for the First XV for 13 seasons. Since retiring in 2003, he remains involved with the club as a member of the management committee.
John went on to study A Levels at Newman College but wasn’t sure what he wanted to do as a career. “I was told that if you are not sure which career you want, study something you like, and for me that was history.” So, John went on to study Modern History and Economics at the University of Manchester.
HAVING A LAWYER WITH A GOOD LOCAL REPUTATION IS KEY
It wasn’t until the early 90s recession hit, when many workers were losing their jobs that John realised the safer careers lay in law and the professions. After completing work experience, he decided to study a conversion course at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston then went on to the College of Law at Chester.
John’s first job was at Banks Wilson & Co, later Brabners, with offices in Preston, Liverpool and Manchester where he qualified as a solicitor in 1997, becoming a partner in 2003. “Because of my expertise in resolving property disputes, I was working at the Manchester office, then Liverpool and found I was commuting three hours a day. With a wife and children at home, I felt I was missing out on home life.”
Around the same time, introduced by a mutual friend, John went to meet a rather engaging character, Eddie Starkie, who was a senior partner at Harrison Drury. “Eddie was a real character with a loyal client following, but the firm needed modernisation. When I joined in January 2007, the office only had one computer connected to the internet and the firm wasn’t really plugged into the local business community, so I saw an opportunity to change this and took the jump to buy Eddie out in 2008, which of course was the beginning of the financial crash, but the opportunity was one I didn’t want to miss.”
The firm weathered the storm and John committed himself to recruit lawyers who had local roots to work with clients in the city centre and later, to the subsequent five branches in Garstang, Kendal, Clitheroe, Lancaster and Lytham. John said: “When opening new branches, having a lawyer with a good local reputation is key, and local clients appreciate the investment in their area when we open an office. The aim of our branch strategy is to deliver the full range of our legal services to businesses and individuals as close to our clients as possible.”
Because of his passion for serving local people, John sits on various boards. He is Chair of trustees at St Catherine’s Hospice, Lancashire, a member of the Preston Youth Zone committee and a founder member of the Winckley Square Community Interest Company (WSCIC). John sits on the board for Preston’s Business Improvement District and is also Chair of the Preston Partnership. He also became Chair of Preston’s Towns Fund Board. Preston was one of the cities awarded £20.9 million of funding to support a series of regeneration projects in the with the aim of improving Preston city centre's leisure and cultural offer.
“The Towns Fund is a fantastic opportunity to revitalise the city. A strong Preston is a strong Lancashire. We have brilliant, bright people moving here to work and we need to provide them with good places to live too and there has been significant investment in providing city living. Within 15 minutes of the city centre, you can be in the countryside. In a lunch break you can take a walk in the beautiful Winckley Square Gardens and historic Avenham Park – not many cities have wonderful open spaces so close, so this is a real asset.
PRESTON HAS IMPROVED SO MUCH OVER THE YEARS
“Preston has improved so much over the years; you can see this all around the city centre. There is still a way to go, but the city has such an exciting future particularly with the amount of recent investment. Some of the projects that will make a real difference include Animate, the new £40 million cinema and leisure complex, the Harris Quarter regeneration, the Station Quarter Project, the City Living Strategy, the Preston Youth Zone – a planned state-of-the-art facility for young people aged between eight and 19 and the reimagining of the Harris Museum, one of Preston’s best loved buildings.
“These improvements are what the people of Preston deserve. Prestonians are typically down to earth – what you see is what you get –and Preston has created deep seated bonds with all sections of the community. The future of the city is bright and I can’t wait to see the impact of these exciting projects coming to fruition which will make the city Proud Preston indeed.”
