West & North Yorkshire Business Q3 2021 by West & North Yorkshire Business

West & North

Yorkshire

usiness PRODUCED & PUBLISHED BY WEST & NORTH YORKSHIRE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

On the

road to net zero West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce British Chambers of Commerce Accredited

CONNECTING, SUPPORTING & REPRESENTING BUSINESS IN THE REGION

Q3 2021

Up to 66% off † Business Breakdown Cover for Chamber members Service level

Roadside

Relay

Relay Plus

Home Start

Accident Management

Offer Price

Standard Price

Difference

Fleetwide 1

£87.49

£236.50

£149.01

Fleetwide 2

£78.69

£202.50

£123.81

Fleetwide 3

£64.74

£189.50

£124.76

Fleetwide 4

£55.94

£155.50

£99.56

Fleetwide 5

£47.27

£114.50

£67.23

Fleet Europe

£16.44

£44.50

£28.06

Minibus Rescue

£193.16

£316.50

£123.34

£174.32

£387.00

£212.68

Specialist 2

Specialist 4

£149.66

£306.50

£156.84

Specialist 5

£96.99

£202.50

£105.51

The table below gives you more details about the specific services which can be included within our Business Breakdown cover Roadside

Repair or recovery to the AA’s choice of appropriate local repairer.

Relay*

Transportation of vehicle, driver and up to 7 passengers to a UK mainland address if prompt local repair not possible.

Relay Plus*

Extended Relay service to include one of three alternative arrangements for driver and passengers; car hire, accommodation or public transport services.

Home Start

For breakdowns at or within ¼ mile of your home address.

Accident Management

Takes the hassle out of arranging repair, recovery and insurance claims after an accident or vandalism.

For more information, please contact your local Chamber of Commerce Direct Debit. To make life easier, you can now pay for your breakdown cover by Direct Debit. Based on Fleetwide 3 Standard rates for 3-6 vehicles. All the above prices are per vehicle per year, inclusive of IPT (Insurance Premium Tax). All prices are subject to change. Fleetwide cover does not apply to: specialist vehicles, ie: taxis, mini cabs, hire vehicles, ambulances, police vehicles, vehicles on tradeplates, minibuses, privately owned vehicles (unless used for business purposes), motorcycles and courier vehicles (all of which can be covered on Specialist rates as above), or any vehicles over 3.5 tonnes gvw. Terms and conditions apply. *Relay and Relay Plus services are not provided at or within ¼ mile of driver’s home address. Offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. Offer prices are only available while your Chamber membership is current. We reserve the right to review pricing at any time. Full terms and conditions available on request by calling 0800 55 11 88. Business Breakdown cover is provided by Automobile Association Developments Limited (trading as AA Breakdown Services). Relay Plus is underwritten by Acromas Insurance Company Limited. Acromas Insurance Company Limited is authorised and regulated by the Commissioner of Insurance, Financial Services Commission, Gibraltar, and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, United Kingdom. Acromas Insurance Company Limited is a member of the Association of British Insurers. Head Office: 57-63 Line Wall Road, Gibraltar. Registered Number 88716 (Gibraltar). UK brand address: Acromas Insurance Company Limited, Enbrook Park, Folkestone, Kent, CT20 3SE. Automobile Association Insurance Services Limited is an insurance intermediary authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered Office: Fanum House, Basing View, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 4EA. Registered in England and Wales number 2414212. †

BSF_BCC_0360 (0217)

West & North Yorkshire Business

WELCOME 3

Positive changes

The Chamber is in its regular cycle of change when all three Presidents complete their two years’ service, some nonexecutive directors leave the West & North Yorkshire Chamber Board and new members join the three Leadership Groups, committees and the Board. Everyone involved brings their own knowledge, expertise, style and enthusiasm and the Chamber is very fortunate to be able to draw on those. You’ll find details of changes in the magazine and I would thank to say a big thank you to them all. Sandy Needham DL Chief Executive West & North Yorkshire Chamber

This quarter’s theme is the environment and there are examples of how some companies are changing the way they operate. They are larger businesses, but enterprises of all sizes and sectors will need to look at what they do in order to remain competitive, so we aim to give you access to information, help and funding to go green. Virgin Money give their case study of supporting a benchmarking tool for any business to look at sustainability. Key issues for businesses remains staff shortages, price rises, international trading issues, especially logistics, and recovering resulting from the pandemic. As you’ll see from “Members’ News” there are positive stories too, including those where companies are supporting the wider community as shown by Raising the Bar Pledge campaign.

08455 240 240 editor@yorkshire-business.com www.yorkshire-business.com @WNYChamber

Physical events start once more in September and we will be hosting three Annual Dinners before the end of November. So Michele Taylor and her events colleagues have been busy arranging speakers, venues and a range of activities. It will be great to see members in person again.

West & North Yorkshire Business

4 CONTACTS EDITORIAL marketing@wnychamber.co.uk

MEMBERS’ NEWS News from Bradford, Leeds, York & North Yorkshire

ADVERTISING marketing@wnychamber.co.uk

SUBSCRIPTIONS marketing@wnychamber.co.uk

WEBSITE yorkshire-business.com

TWITTER @WNYChamber

PROFILE

West & North Yorkshire Business is a quarterly business

ENVIRONMENT

magazine produced by the West and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce. The audience for this publication is comprised of a targeted audience of the major decision makers and senior executives across both the Yorkshire region and the wider UK business community.

of the editorial team. West & North Yorkshire Business has taken all reasonable

care to ensure that the information contained in this magazine is accurate on the date of publication.

This magazine is published by the West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce.

Chamber of Commerce.

ENVIRONMENT BT

Virgin Money

Future Fit Foundation

CityFibre

ENVIRONMENT TransPennine Express

ENVIRONMENT Smart Meters

ENVIRONMENT BioYorkshire

ENVIRONMENT Transdev

ENVIRONMENT

SOCIAL IMPACT

www.hartandclough.co.uk

Business Enterprise Fund and West & North Yorkshire

ENVIRONMENT Chamber supports COP26

Printed by Hart & Clough

The Chamber group includes Chamber International,

REGIONAL NEWS News from across the region

B&M Waste Services COVER STORY

Raising the Bar stories and opportunities

33 EDUCATION

Bradford Manufacturing Weeks

West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce British Chambers of Commerce Accredited

34 REPRESENTATION

Changes to the Chamber policy groups

35 PROPERTY

Bradford Property forum

36 REPRESENTATION

Local government review

37 TRANSPORT

Retaining intercity services

38 MEMBERSHIP

New members website

40 INTERNATIONAL Case Study

41 INTERNATIONAL Trade opportunities

42 PROFILE

Leeds Beckett University

44 MEMBERSHIP

New Chamber members

45 MEMBERSHIP

New Chamber charities

46 SUPPORT Case Study

50 EVENTS

WNY Chamber AGM

52 SOCIAL

What you missed online

54 EVENTS

Featured events

West & North Yorkshire Business

CONTENTS 5

Reduce your climate impact

Driving success

24 Get smart with your energy

Greener, fairer and stronger

7 Business is blooming

Fit for the future

West & North Yorkshire Business

BRADFORD NEWS

Looking ahead Some of you, hopefully, may be aware that I recently succeeded Suzanne Watson as President of Bradford Chamber of Commerce. I have been involved for many years in Chamber activities and yet I’m still surprised and honoured to be in this position. I hope I’m able to follow in the footsteps of many of my successors as we support our business community and grow the economy after what has been an unprecedented 18 months for so many people. At the risk of sounding like a regurgitated business strategy, ahead of me, I see opportunities and challenges for the Chamber, the wider business community and the Bradford District. As a business support organisation, we need to ensure that we move with the times to find the best possible measures, activities and connections that assist our members to not only survive but to also develop and grow as we emerge from the pandemic. In order that we can best represent members and lobby on their behalf, we also need to carefully monitor and track economic trends (as with our quarterly economic survey – a widelyaccepted crucial tool in this regard), and be aware of issues coming over the horizon. As a District, we need to reinforce and press home with regional and national stakeholders, the strengths of Bradford and the role it can and does play in a devolved and ‘levelled up’ economy. We in business, in particular, have a key role as ambassadors here; and, so, I’m looking forward to engaging with other business and civic leaders to both find out what they need from our organisation and to pass on any information about the local business community that I can. Victoria Wainwright President Bradford Chamber

Bradford garden centre is first retail outlet for hand crafted Yorkshire furniture A former PE teacher’s business has created hand crafted wooden products exclusively for a Bradford Garden Centre. Halifax business, Off the Grain has made bespoke solid wood planters and a companion bench exclusively for Tong Garden Centre. Off the Grain’s founder, Dom Walsh is excited about his company’s first retail listing: “Off the Grain was born out of a desire to create beautiful, hand crafted furniture that is unique, full of character, made to order and built to last. “The business has grown organically based on web based sales and word of mouth, but we’re excited to take Off the Grain to the next level with space in Tong, our first retail outlet, so that people can see the quality of our work first hand.” Tong’s Sundries Buyer, Phil Hemmings is pleased to welcome the new supplier to Tong: “We love to showcase great local producers and Off the Grain caught our eye after a visit to their workshop where we were impressed by the team’s care and attention to their craft and ethical approach to product sourcing and sustainability. “It’s good to be able to offer our customers something hand crafted, unique and custom made in Yorkshire.” In addition to the planters and companion bench, Off the Grain’s hand crafted oak table and bench sets will be on display for bespoke customer orders. Off the Grain employs 22 people at its workshop in Greetland. Tong Garden Centre occupies a 19 acre site in Tong village. It is one of Yorkshire’s biggest independent garden centres with 125,000 square feet of retail space and parking for up to 700 cars.

Opportunity Centre creates 30 paid placements Employability, training and careers guidance service provider The Opportunity Centre, is to give 30 young people a chance to start their journey into employment through the government’s Kickstart scheme. The job creation scheme helps 16-25 year olds on universal credit secure a six-month paid work placement, in order to build skills and increase their employability prospects for their future career.

As well as creating jobs, The Opportunity Centre will be providing wrap around employability support for all those on the Kickstart scheme. This will include action plans, relevant & industry recognised training, as well as CV building workshops. The Opportunity centre will offer roles across all aspects of its business, including the organisations social enterprise café The Canteen and Event space.

Joe Grant, Catering and Hospitality Manager said: “Our organisation is committed to changing lives for the better through learning and work. Supporting the Kickstart scheme just seemed like a fantastic opportunity to continue our work to help bridge the gap between unemployment in sectors that are in desperate need for skilled workers.”

TF Automation build laser marker for medical devices

Eddisons invests in new talent with three student placements

Christeyns UK ups green credentials with new Project Terra

TF Automation have just completed the build of a repeat machine of one produced some 15 years ago for Intersurgical’s plant in Lithuania. Intersurgical is a global designer, manufacturer and supplier of a wide range of high-quality medical devices for respiratory support.

Property consultant Eddisons has appointed three placement-year students from the BSc building surveying courses at Sheffield Hallam and Northumbria universities.

Already known for its green credentials, hygiene chemical and engineering specialist Christeyns UK is driving the company’s environmental agenda from Board level down.

Third-year students Samuel Pearson, George Greenwood-Bartlett and Eleanor Kent, have joined the firm’s growing building and project consultancy team. The triple hire marks continued expansion for Eddisons’ student placement programme, which until 2019 had appointed one building surveying student each year to work with the firm for 12 months, before returning to university to complete the final year of their degree.

Christeyns has invested significantly into developing efficient laundry systems, incorporating both equipment and chemicals, and is guided by the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The new machine was required because of an increase in demand for these types of products in relation to the COVID pandemic. TF Automation worked effectively and quickly with the team at Intersurgical and were able to re-create the existing machine, which incidentally is still in use to support the demand.

At its own facilities, the newly introduced Terra Project (meaning earth) looks into every aspect of Christeyns business across all its UK sites, in relation to sustainability and the environment.

New website for all your members news and offers

yorkshire-business.com

West & North Yorkshire Business

LEEDS NEWS

Constant change I am thrilled to have been elected in July as the 78th president of Leeds Chamber of Commerce as we celebrate 170 years supporting and representing the region’s business community. I want to thank my predecessor Amanda Beresford for her passion and commitment in representing the Leeds business community over the last two years. The last fifteen months have been the most challenging in peace time and Amanda has played a vital role in ensuring the business voice has been heard by regional and national policy makers as firms sought to adapt and survive. History has shown that crises bring out the best in all of us, and we have seen first-hand throughout the pandemic the increased levels of collaboration across the public and private sectors. The innovation and agility demonstrated by firms to be able to trade against a backdrop of crippling uncertainty and volatility, as the virus and the Government’s response to it evolved has been a source of great pride. Covid has changed the way organisations work, perhaps forever, and looking forward I want to continue to build on our activities as our economy starts to recover. Whilst Covid will undoubtedly be with us through the years to come we must also look to develop solutions to ensure climate challenges are addressed. Supporting the de-carbonisation of buildings and transport will be on my agenda, as will the development of support and advice to help firms move to a future net-zero economy. We must also remember that Covid has had a huge impact on education and opportunities for young people and the Chamber will look to play its part in ensuring future generations have access to learn about career opportunities and the skills needed to develop fulfilling careers for themselves. Aligned to this I have nominated the NSPCC as my charity of the year. I look forward to working with all of you over the course of my presidency and hope to see as many of you as possible at future Chamber events. Mike Briffett President Leeds Chamber

Consilia Legal welcomes trio of new recruits A spike in new client wins and a focus on growing the business has led to a recruitment drive at Yorkshire-based law firm, Consilia Legal. To bolster the Family Law team, Sophie Arrowsmith and Sandeep Sandhu have been appointed as Associate Solicitors. Joining from Lupton Fawcett LLP, Sophie said, “I am thrilled to have joined such a forward-thinking firm of like-minded lawyers. Consilia Legal put the client first and work pragmatically to encourage alternative dispute resolution. Having worked in the family law sector for many years, I had heard of the firm’s positive reputation, which I’ve now seen first-hand and couldn’t be happier to be a part of.” Sandeep Sandhu added: “I am delighted to join Consilia Legal, especially at time when the firm is going through an exciting phase. The client testimonials prove that the firm is passionate about client care, which is something that is very important to me. The firm has embraced new technology which means that we can extend our services.” Strengthening the Employment Law team and helping to manage an influx of new cases, Laura Huntington has been appointment as a Paralegal at the firm. Having previously worked at Addleshaw Goddard LLP, Laura is studying for her CILEx qualification and is working towards becoming a Chartered Legal Executive. Speaking on behalf of the new appointments, Marie Walsh, Co-Director, Employment Solicitor and Mediator at Consilia Legal said, “We’ve reached a pinnacle point in the business where we need to invest in people to ensure we can maintain our high standards of client care now and in the future. Ensuring we have the right people on board to deliver the very best results for our growing client base is paramount. Whilst having only worked at the firm for a short time, the new recruits have all immersed themselves into our company culture and fit perfectly with our values centred around looking after our clients. We are delighted to have three talented women join our expanding team of professional and passionate people.”

West & North Yorkshire Business

Blooming marvellous A 21-year-old university student, who started her floral business during lockdown, has moved into a state-of-the-art studio at the awardwinning Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.

Furniture Design at Kingston University in London, decided to launch Pampas & Bloom during lockdown because she had time on her hands,and was studying online.

Amelia Harker’s flourishing Pampas & Bloom, which specialises in sourcing and selling pampas grass and dried flowers, has moved into the recently refurbished Mending Rooms at the mill complex.

“I started sourcing and selling bunches of natural hand-tied dried flowers online from home and soon, to my astonishment, my bedroom was overflowing with flowers.

Amelia, who is studying Product and

“So we started looking for business premises in the Leeds area and

Sunny Bank Mills fitted the bill perfectly. It is a stunning environment, a beautifully refurbished old mill, full of creative businesses. My studio in the historic Mending Rooms is absolutely gorgeous, light, airy and spacious, while our landlords have been incredibly helpful and supportive. William Gaunt, co-managing director said: “Altogether there are now 75 companies with more than 350 employees on site.”

Lupton Fawcett secures STEP accreditation

Leeds-based Pegasus takes flight with new factory in China

CitiPark Merrion Centre awarded Park Mark Plus

Yorkshire law firm Lupton Fawcett has achieved Platinum Employer Partner accreditation for the second time from STEP – the worldwide body for professionals specialising in private client work.

Pegasus China has invested in brandnew, state-of-the-art towelling manufacturing premises in Nantong in the south east of the province of Jiangsu. The smart new premises will enable the Pegasus Group to continue its rapid expansion programme, working very closely with the UK’s largest laundries and hotels through its flourishing Pegasus Textiles division.

Leading car parking operator, CitiPark’s Leeds Merrion Centre and first direct arena branch has been the first Multi Storey car park in the North of the country to receive the new and elite Park Mark Plus status by the British Parking Association (BPA).

STEP members are lawyers, accountants, financial advisors and other professionals. The organisation has more than 20,000 members around the world. Platinum Employer Partner accreditation is the highest level awarded by STEP within its Employer Partnership Programme and is for three years. The Programme accredits trust and estate businesses’ learning and development provision.

Pegasus Textiles will now be able to meet the increased demands of the hospitality industry, following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions in the UK. These exciting plans also include an increased product offering for Pegasus Homeware, as it expands further into the retail market in the coming months and years.

Following the BPA’s well-regarded Safer Parking scheme and Park Mark award, the new Park Mark Plus award recognises only the highest-quality car parks, with the award assessing a range of criteria including services, operations, design and build. To qualify for the award, car park’s must already have the BPA’s Park Mark award and meet the Disability Parking Accreditation criteria.

New website for all your members news and offers

yorkshire-business.com

West & North Yorkshire Business

YORK & NORTH YORKSHIRE NEWS

Challenging climate The opportunity to represent and bring together our community of fantastic businesses, spanning many and all sectors, is one I relish. My presidency begins following a period unlike any other in recent memory; with Covid reshaping the way we live and work. Given the challenges faced through these obstacles, I’d like to put on record my sincere gratitude for those in our local authorities and Local Enterprise Partnership who have done a wonderful job in supporting regional businesses. But it is now more important than ever to continue to support businesses, creating an environment that is conducive to recovery and maximising their potential. As we begin to look forward we must tackle the regional issues that have taken second place. The issue of climate change has surged to the fore, not least with Britain hosting COP26, bringing our national credentials into the spotlight. North Yorkshire, along with being a beautiful part of our country, is also home to many emerging green-tech innovations. The potential for our region to be a world-leading powerhouse in this sector should be celebrated, especially as the issue of sustainability becomes more prevalent with the influx of younger, more environmentally-conscious consumers and entrepreneurs. Ensuring these companies, and indeed companies spanning all sectors, size and areas, have access to employees who have the greatest quality skills must now also return as a primary objective. Plugging the skills gap is essential to meeting our shared goal of making York and North Yorkshire the best place it can be to not only work, but live and prosper. As Chamber President, I will continue to ensure your views are heard and accounted for by the organisations we work with, and very much look forward to working with our members over this period. Laurence Beardmore President York & North Yorkshire Chamber

York Handmade nominated for four awards at brick Oscars The York Handmade Brick Company, one of the leading independent brickmakers in the country, has been nominated in a number of categories in the prestigious 2021 Brick Awards. York Handmade, based at Alne, near Easingwold, in North Yorkshire, is up for the awards following the company’s acclaimed role in the new library at Magdalene College, Cambridge; the restoration St Albans Cathedral in Hertfordshire; and the brand-new Valentine House at Allostock in Cheshire. Magdalene College is nominated in the Education category, while St Albans Cathedral is shortlisted in both the Craftsmanship and Public categories and Valentine House is in line for the Individual Housing Development award. These national awards will be presented at a glittering ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in the heart of London’s West End on Wednesday November 10. Run by the Brick Development Association in conjunction with Building magazine, they are the brick industry’s Oscars. York Handmade Chairman David Armitage said: “We are particularly proud to be involved in these three fantastic projects this year, all of which have been shortlisted in the Brick Awards. “Huge thanks are due to the management team and employees at York Handmade for their imagination, enterprise and hard work, which all combined to make these projects so successful and so memorable. “It is vitally important to stress that our three shortlisted entries are completely different jobs in design and execution, graphically illustrating our ability to work in a wide variety of colours and styles. We believe we can tackle any brickwork project successfully

University supports inspirational awards York St John University is once again backing an inspirational awards scheme to celebrate the achievements of young Asians in Yorkshire. Professor Karen Bryan, Vice Chancellor of York St John University, said: “We celebrate diversity and take pride in our dedication to providing equal opportunity to students from all backgrounds. The Yorkshire Asian Young Achievers Awards – known as The YAYAs – launched for the second year on June 17, after an incredibly successful first event last year. The awards are open to any young person of South Asian heritage (Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi etc.) who was born in, or lives and works in, Yorkshire.

York St John University are the headline partners for the YAYAs, which are being organised by the Bradfordbased QED Foundation. Rob Hickey, Chief Operating Officer at York St John University, said: “These awards highlight examples of personal endeavour, selfless determination and breaking barriers; qualities which we value and look to replicate.” Dr Mohammed Ali OBE, Chief Executive of QED, said: “Yorkshire has more than 600,000 BME residents. We had humbling and life-affirming stories of people overcoming the odds to carve their way in life and we feel enormously proud of all those who entered. They were all truly inspirational.”

Recognition for York law firm in leading industry guide

Cheer for charities as Rollits resumes annual golf day

A year of excellent performance and well positioned for 2022

The York office of Andrew Jackson Solicitors LLP announces that Chambers & Partners, one of the leading industry guides to UK law firms, has ranked its private client practice for the fifth consecutive year.

Two of the region’s major charities breathed a sigh of relief as businesses provided a fundraising boost by taking to the golf course for the first time in nearly two years.

Barratt Developments PLC have seen continued strong demand for our high quality, energy efficient homes on welldesigned developments, enabling us to deliver 17,243 home completions this year. We enter the new financial year in a strong position and remain focussed on our medium term targets, including delivering 20,000 homes a year.

Mark Pearson-Kendall, Managing Partner, said: “The Chambers’ rankings and feedback always matter to us, as they are based on objective research and interviews with our clients, which provide us with a clear picture of how we are performing. The aim across the whole firm is to provide exceptional legal services built around our clients’ needs.”

Dove House Hospice and Muscular Dystrophy UK expect to receive a significant cash injection from the proceeds of the Rollits’ Charity Golf Day which took place at Brough Golf Club and attracted 20 teams from the firm, its clients and contacts. The charities voiced their appreciation for the support of participants and for the businesses which sponsored prizes and each of the 18 holes.

David Thomas, Chief Executive, said: “It is thanks to the hard work, resilience and flexibility of our employees and sub-contractors that we made such excellent progress this year, whilst maintaining our high standards of quality and service.”

New website for all your members news and offers

yorkshire-business.com

West & North Yorkshire Business

WEST & NORTH YORKSHIRE NEWS

At the front, if not on the front line Standing back from the front line of business operations and management, as I’ve recently done, does allow you some flexibility to see and assess things somewhat differently from the way that you have previously. It’s a double-edged sword, of course: I’ve got more time to devote to Chamber Board activities and related matters, plus other projects I’m involved in, but I’m no longer privy to the day-to-day cut-and-thrust of managing the business, over-hearing office conversations (somewhat constrained since Covid, of course) and urgent factory floor problem-solving. This is not a whinge though – you cannot have your cake and eat it, as they say! I’m still as determined as ever I was at leading the Chamber from the front, whether that’s with strategic thinking and planning, supporting specific projects such as connecting our businesses and young people together, or being the spokesperson from time to time. Though you will have heard plenty of other people say how important it is right now for businesses to get the right support and platform for them to survive and recover, I cannot help but echo and reiterate that again here. However, I’m pleased to hear from many businesses (and this is supported in our economic survey work) that they continue to trade buoyantly, and we hope that they can now feel more confident about their future prospects. As always, this magazine illustrates many good examples of great businesses, case studies of how the Chamber is helping, and the opportunities available to them to develop and grow. I hope that you enjoy reading it and I hope that I’m able to see many of you again soon. Nick Garthwaite Chair of the Board West & North Yorkshire Chamber

Hope and opportunity for Yorkshire and Humber A new report from a Yorkshire and Humber planning and development consultancy lifts the lid on the state of the region’s town centres and funding driving regeneration and job creation. The ‘Moving on up? Levelling up town centres across Northern England’ Insight report by Leeds firm Lichfields, comes at a time of ‘seismic’ change for local cities and towns. The last 12 months have been challenging, says the report, as pandemic and lockdowns have had a huge impact on regional communities as working patterns have changed. High street retailers also face significant challenges, notably the growth in online shopping, competition from out-oftown developments, the burden of disproportionate business rates, and changing consumer habits. The report identifies how places such as Wakefield, Halifax, Rotherham, Barnsley, Grimsby and Scarborough are fighting back to meet the challenges and benefitting from a £522m funding package allocated to the region. This includes £96m from the £830m Future High Streets Fund which is helping to deliver transformative change to struggling high streets, while £413m secured from the £3.6bn Towns Fund is seeing regional towns bringing forward imaginative proposals for economic growth. Funding the development of space to accommodate new digital and creative industries and repurposing retail space as affordable and attractive living space, is seen as critical to the future vibrancy and culture of towns and creating hundreds of new jobs. The report says ‘…maintaining a meaningful 24-hours population in town centres will…drive demand for services and facilities, which contribute to the vitality of the centres’. However, there are many positives on the horizon and our research points to a strong, vibrant and successful future for those northern towns that take advantage of the funding streams and pursue exciting and innovative strategies designed to transform the heart and soul of our high streets.

West & North Yorkshire Business

Consumers in Yorkshire ‘look local’ New research* by Barclays Corporate Banking reveals that 17,000 local high street stores could open across the UK in the next 12 months as shoppers adapt to a post-lockdown world by ‘looking local’.

anticipating a part-home, part-office model. Just over a quarter of consumers across Yorkshire now say that the best way a retailer can appeal to them is to open stores in their local area.

In a new thought leadership report, Retail Unlocked, Barclays’ data shows that consumers in Yorkshire have returned to physical stores. A significant portion are planning on stepping up their in-store shopping.

Karen Johnson, Head of Retail and Wholesale for Barclays Corporate Banking, said: “Our report shows how innovative UK retail businesses are looking to build back better to meet the challenges of a reshaped and revitalised retail landscape.

However, the benefits are most likely to be seen in local high streets rather than in big cities. The research shows that home and hybrid working patterns will persist into 2022 for nearly a quarter of workers in Yorkshire with 23% expecting to work entirely from home and 17%

“Ecommerce has been the undisputed winner of the pandemic but not far behind are community high streets, as shoppers seek to ‘look local’ and support the stores on their doorstep.”

Building futures together

BT launches low-cost fibre package

HSBC: Fraud and how to avoid it

Barratt Developments Yorkshire West, which includes the Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes brands add six new apprentices.

More than half (54%) of people across Yorkshire and The Humber feel more vulnerable compared to the start of the pandemic, with more than a quarter (28%) needing additional financial support

Scam texts, fake emails, robotic phone calls, we’ve had them all. Fraud is everywhere, and so is the potential risk. But here’s the good news: we at HSBC UK have put everything you need to know about fraud and what to do to avoid it in one handy place.

The new hires come as Barratt Developments announce it will be creating around 745 construction jobs as a direct result of new sites that are due to launch this year. Darren Johnson, Construction Director at Barratt Developments Yorkshire West commented: “As one of the country’s top housebuilders, we are always committed to developing talent and we are incredibly proud of the opportunities we can provide”

BT has launched Home Essentials to help 4.6 million low income families across the nations with half-price fibre broadband and calls BT’s 12,000 customer service colleagues to receive bespoke training to better support customers who need extra help, and a range of support services are also available in new Here for You section of BT.com

Our HSBC UK Security Centre will help keep you up to date with advice on the latest scams and fraud activity, helping you to protect yourself. Join HSBC UK online to take part in one of our fraud prevention webinars. Whether you’re tech savvy or not, fraud can happen to anyone.

New website for all your members news and offers

yorkshire-business.com

Chamber network supports COP26 The issue of climate change has rapidly risen towards the top of many key business leaders’ priority lists. Whether it is promoting a more sustainable office environment, or meeting consumers’ increasingly prevalent demands for ethical production by decarbonising their supply chains, the cultural shift is gaining pace and shows no signs of slowing.

West & North Yorkshire Business

ENVIRONMENT 15

Climate challenge is your business The Covid-19 pandemic has brought about an upheaval in well-established business practices, as the period saw many firms being forced to implement working from home policies and getting to grips with modern technology. As we begin to emerge and rebuild, many firms are now looking ahead to see how else they can better reorientate their business, and its practices, towards a wider social benefit. Adapting to the ambition of net-zero is increasingly becoming as good for business as it is for the planet, with roughly two thirds of customers declaring a willingness to spend more for sustainable products and services. With COP26 bringing the international spotlight on the UK’s green credentials, British Chambers of Commerce is leading a national campaign to drive awareness of COP26 and its goal within the business community. Launched on August 30th, the campaign is branded #ChambersUnite for a #GreenerFuture, with the aim of helping businesses reduce their carbon footprint. We plan to do this by rolling out guides, events and online toolkits that will enable businesses of all sizes, across the nation, to find out which easy-wins they can achieve, as well as what support is available to them to go further.

This cultural shift experienced across the world has no doubt fed through into consumer demands and expectations. The rise in ethically produced and sustainable products is the hallmark of an era where price and quality are no longer the only variables that drive widespread consumer behaviour. One recent study suggests that sales of new products marketed as sustainable grow 5.6 times faster than those that were not. Furthermore, research published in August of this year, by the World Economic Forum suggested that young people are concerned about climate change, sustainability and conscious consumerism more than ever and certainly more than previous generations. Inevitably, investors and directors are beginning to pick this up across most sectors, whose own demands have often shifted in order to keep up with market trends. Among Britain’s asset management firms, in 2020 around 71% of for-profit investments were made into ventures that highlighted sustainability as a core business practice. It would appear that beyond the implementation of any future ‘Green New Deal’, many businesses are indeed working to close the gap themselves. Chamber research nationally has demonstrated that most firms are taking some form of action to reduce consumption or carbon emissions.

This is no doubt great news. Quick wins are out there, a few small changes can make a big difference. However, our research also suggests most firms do not have net zero targets or policies in place, with cost presenting itself as the greatest barrier, alongside the inevitable and arduous Covid-19 recovery. To combat this, many businesses have signalled that direct financial support in order to mitigate these challenges would help in enabling all businesses regardless of size or sector to take part in the push to lower carbon emissions. It is important to remember that there is no single business view on achieving net zero. Attitudes and activities diverge widely, with capabilities often dependant on a variety of key factors, such as business model, industry sector and premises type. Climate action, sustainable business models and a pathway to a net-zero future is clearly something businesses must work towards; and whilst we aren’t all agreed on the ‘How’ there is certainly much more agreement on the ‘Why’. The Chamber is working with members in developing a toolkit to help firms respond to this agenda. We are especially keen to hear from Chamber members who offer products or services which can help firms make the transition to a greener and more sustainable future. Please get in touch mark.goldstone@wnychamber.co.uk

Placing sustainability at the heart of public sector BT has been a leader on climate and sustainability action for almost 30 years and now the technology and telecommunications firm has outlined its commitments to become a net zero carbon emissions business by 2045. To help reach its goal, BT is using 100% renewable electricity worldwide, meaning that consumers who buy mobile or broadband from EE, BT or Plusnet are already supplied by networks that are powered by 100% clean energy. However, rather than simply focusing on its own ambitious targets, BT also wants to use its technology and expertise to help its public sector partners and customers work towards a more sustainable future. Andy Wales, Chief Digital Impact and Sustainability Officer at BT, said: “2021 kicked off what is widely referred to as ‘the climate decade’. A ten-year period where our collective actions will determine the kind of world our children and grandchildren will inherit. ‘Collective’ is the critical factor here because no person, business or Government can tackle climate change single-handedly. “Sustainability is increasingly topping the agenda of many organisations and rightly so. The UK and the US have both announced ambitious climate change commitments ahead of the COP26 summit in November, and real change is taking place at a local level, with 230 local authorities across England and Wales declaring a climate emergency, with two-thirds of those in England committing to being carbon neutral by 2030.

“Among growing calls for the Government to place more power into local hands to help tackle the issue, decisions taken by local authorities will have a significant impact on building a more sustainable future and it goes far beyond adopting greener tech. The links between climate change and the future of people’s work, health, and wellbeing must be widely understood – and citizens guided to recognise the importance of climate change and the role they can play.” BT has outlined plans to electrify up to 28,000 of its 33,000 vehicles by 2030 and has teamed up with The Climate Group and 29 other organisations to form The UK Electric Fleets Coalition. Together, the partners helped to shape the UK Government’s announcement ending the sale of new conventional petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030 and will continue to call for the right policies to support the mass adoption of electric vehicles. The company is also working with Small Business Britain and the UK Government to help SMEs overcome barriers around reducing carbon emissions. As founding members of the supply chain leaders initiative, BT helped to launch the SME climate hub in 2020 and recently backed the UK Government’s SME climate hub.

Supporting a green recovery through innovation Working with the University of Stirling, BT has helped to launch a “living laboratory”: a state-of-the-art environmental monitoring system designed to help businesses in central

West & North Yorkshire Business

ENVIRONMENT 17

100% renewable electricity worldwide*, achieving our goal for 2021

Scotland make more intelligent, data-driven, and sustainable business decisions. Using sensors, satellite data, and AI, the laboratory will capture, process, and share data from across the Forth Valley using BT’s EE 5G network. This will provide vital information to inform decisions that could help deliver major economic and sustainability benefits in the area.

BT progress on environmental matters

BT has also partnered with the University of Hertfordshire to transform Hatfield Business Park into an innovation centre for smart technology. The county council’s Hertfordshire Living Lab project is designed to facilitate experimental services and explore how future communities can use digital technologies such as driver-less cars, drones, and robots to enhance and deliver a more sustainable way of life.

• 57% reduction in the carbon intensity** of our operations since 2016/17, on track to achieve our 87% goal by end of March 2031

Mr Wales added: “A change in culture is needed to amend how things have always been done, so smaller steps taken at innovation hubs provide a look into the future. “And just last year, we teamed up with US-based tech company Plug and Play to launch our Green Tech Innovation Platform. The aim of the platform is to uncover new green technology solutions to help our business and public sector customers reach net zero carbon emissions. “The public sector has an important role to play in encouraging and supporting citizens as they look to reduce their carbon footprint, and take small individual actions that, collectively, will help minimise the harm done to the planet. “It’s a daunting prospect, so partnering with organisations who share sustainability ambitions, and have the necessary networks, technologies, and infrastructure to support, is imperative. All organisations, large and small, have an important role to play in reducing worldwide carbon emissions, so we’re urging every organisation to do their bit to achieve the Government’s 2050 zero emissions target for the economy.”

• 100% renewable electricity worldwide*, achieving our goal for 2021 • £358m saved since 2009/10 through our energy efficiency management programme

• 29% cut in carbon emissions across our global operations over the last year (Greenhouse gases scopes 1 and 2) • 19% cut in supplier carbon emissions since 2016/17, towards our expanded reduction target of 42% by end of March 2031 • Expanded our 2045 net zero target to include our supply chain as well as our operations * 99.9% of the global electricity BT sources is renewable. The remaining 0.1% represents where markets don’t allow due to non-availability of renewable electricity ** Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gases per unit of gross value added calculated as EBITDA adjusted (before specific items) plus employee costs.

Business banking for Yorkshire Virgin Money (3 Pages)

Future-Fit Foundation methodology identifies sustainability issues relevant to businesses

Head of Regional Banking (Yorkshire), John Bullock, explores the Virgin Money business banking offering in Yorkshire

West & North Yorkshire Business

ENVIRONMENT 19 Commitment to our Customers This year we have launched Virgin Money Business which will bring together the expertise and experience of our three heritages of Yorkshire Bank, Clydesdale Bank and Virgin Money under a single brand. In Yorkshire, we continue to have our team of dedicated and highly experienced relationship managers catering for a full range of businesses from SMEs, to large companies and we remain committed to supporting our business customers within the county. Virgin Money Business however allows us to grow the scope of our local offering and to focus on tackling more real customer problems. We have spoken to customers to understand what their pain points are and customers told us that they often have difficulty in managing disparate pieces of financial and business information to make sense of where their business is. Customers also felt they needed greater assistance in understanding their Environmental, Social, and Governance impacts and goals. To tackle these key issues, we have partnered with a number of organisations to create solutions for customers.

Sustainability Matters More and more we see conversations turning to sustainability as an issue that all businesses – from farming to manufacturing to professional services – need to face into. For many of our customers, knowing where to start can be a big hurdle. This is why we have partnered with the Future-Fit Foundation, a non profit organisation to help businesses, especially SMEs, to identify and prioritise the sustainability issues most relevant to them. Using Future-Fit’s methodology, we have worked together to develop a learning and assessment tool which measures and tracks an SMEs ESG progress and offers guidance on ways to improve. The Virgin Money Sustainability Benchmarking Tool identifies the areas a business should consider and provides an overview of a company’s current ESG impacts. It then provides a score and guidance to help make improvements and it’s been designed to be completed over time, encouraging businesses to track their progress. It takes around 20-30 minutes to complete and it’s not just available for Virgin Money customers so go ahead and see the progress your business is making here.

Building Back Digital At Virgin Money, our aim is to shake up the business banking market and as we look towards recovery, we want to ensure that we act as a trusted partner to our customers to build back better by improving the banking experience. This year, we will launch our new business current account proposition, and we have been working with a range of fintechs to create a market-leading proposition. When speaking with customers, they talk openly about the fact that they manage lots of disparate information when running their businesses and need to bring all of this together to make sense of where they are. We know this takes a lot of manual effort, so we have been working to bring together this information and data into a personalised dashboard to prioritise the information they need most. When launched, this dashboard will give businesses the information they need to focus on improving productivity and growth. Earlier this year we also announced our partnership with Virgin StartUp, to support entrepreneurs across Yorkshire and the UK with a wealth of insights, tools and mentoring on how to run a business. We have been running monthly digital MeetUp events where attendees can hear from inspiring founders on a range of topics and also can ask questions. The partnership is giving customers unique access to a network of more than 90,000 founders, which is invaluable insight for businesses, and we’re excited to see the difference we can make together.

Find out more To find out more about our business banking offering in Yorkshire, please contact the Head of Regional Banking (Yorkshire), John Bullock on 07730 540867. Our sustainability web page and further information on our partnership with Future-Fit can be found at virginmoneyukplc.com/corporate-sustainability/future-fit/

West & North Yorkshire Business

20 ENVIRONMENT

Foundations of a greener future

Virgin Money partnered with the Future-Fit Foundation, a non profit organisation to help businesses identify and prioritise the sustainability issues most relevant to them. Our sustainability web page and further information on our partnership with Future-Fit can be found at virginmoneyukplc.com/corporate-sustainability/future-fit/

What is the Future-Fit Foundation? Future-Fit Foundation is a UK-registered charity and the developer, promoter and steward of the Future-Fit Business Benchmark. Our vision is a Future-Fit Society – one which protects the possibility that humans and other life will flourish on Earth forever, by being environmentally restorative, socially just and economically inclusive. Given where we are today, this vision can only be realised through a rapid and radical shift in the way our economy works.

What is the Future-Fit methodology? Our mission is to catalyse this shift – by translating systems science into practical free-to-use tools designed to help business leaders, investors and policy makers respond effectively to today’s biggest challenges. That’s why we have created the Future-Fit Business Benchmark, to help any business guide, measure and report on real progress.

What makes the Future-Fit methodology credible? The methodology collates and curates the most credible and robust third-party resources into one unified self-assessment tool. It is aligned with global initiatives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals and is used by companies and financial institutions worldwide.

West & North Yorkshire Business

22 ENVIRONMENT

How can we work together to tackle the digital divide? With lots of everyday services moving online, from healthcare to shopping, access to technology is becoming vital to our day-to-day lives. But some in society face major challenges when trying to access the world online. In the UK it’s estimated that 16.3 million adults lack core digital skills, and 1.9 million homes have no access to the internet – meaning there is a whole section of society which needs support to ensure they can access the opportunities presented by the digital world.

Donate Digital upgrades and redistributes donated technology and equipment

The digital divide has always existed but has become more evident in the last year as the Covid-19 pandemic forced big changes to parts of our lives. In order to bridge the divide, people need access to three key things: equipment, connectivity and skills. Currently, charities up and down the country are working to ensure everyone has access to technology. CityFibre has worked to support this, partnering with charities including The Hive, a digital library which loans equipment to those that need it, and Donate Digital, which upgrades and redistributes donated equipment. A device is just the beginning – a reliable internet connection is vital to accessing online services. CityFibre is investing up to £4 billion to bring the best connectivity - Full Fibre - within reach of up to eight million homes, 800,000 businesses and 400,000 public sector sites.

Connect to Full Fibre To find out more and see if you can connect to Full Fibre, visit cityfibre.com/wny

We are also working to ensure that people have the skills and confidence to use technology. CityFibre has supported numerous Introduction to Games Design courses across Yorkshire, partnering with local company Insight2Games, and have been a firm supporter of Leeds Digital Festival for many years. We are also supporting the next generation, working with coding workshops to help young people and their families develop technology skills in partnership with Leeds Libraries. Our Full Fibre networks also support the development of skills, as a reliable and fast connection ensures that people have a good experience online, encouraging them to explore technology and make full use of the opportunities it brings. Our investment into community-wide Full Fibre networks is an important step in getting more people online, but there is lots we can do as individuals too. Don’t throw out your old technology - donate it to charity; and If you see someone struggling, support them to get online. This will make sure that as we move into a new, more digital world, noone gets left behind.

West & North Yorkshire Business

ENVIRONMENT 23

Ambitious sciencebased target to achieve net zero emissions by 2050

Reducing CO2 emissions TransPennine Express has already reduced CO2 emissions by almost 20 per cent in recent years and now vows to do even more TransPennine Express (TPE) has now made a public commitment to significantly step up its plans to help address climate change and reduce its carbon footprint to net-zero. The train company, which runs services across the North and into Scotland, has pledged to join the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and will now put together a clear set of targets to map out how it will drive down emissions and help care for the planet. Science Based Targets (SBTs) provide companies with a clearly defined path to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goal to limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees. They show companies how much and how quickly they need to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to prevent the worst effects of climate change. TPE has already taken steps towards addressing climate change and is on track to reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent per vehicle kilometre by April 2023. The company has already cut carbon emissions by 18 per cent since 2019 and its Nova train fleet, which includes bi-mode and electric trains, helps reduce passengers’ CO2 by 77 per cent compared to travelling by car*. TPE is part of FirstGroup, which has become the first bus and rail operator in the UK to formally commit to setting an ambitious science-based target to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 at the latest. *Based on TransPennine Express data across all fleet for FY19/20 compared to single occupancy average car data published by the Government Greenhouse gas reporting: conversion factors 2020

Do you have enough on your plate running a business? A smart meter could help Running your very own restaurant, coffee shop or bar might be a dream, but you are up against huge competition, and it can be tough out there. For survival and success, you may want to consider the following: • Find your niche: small independents can compete with the big chains – but you need to find your USP. How are you different? • Location is key: aim for areas of high footfall with few competing businesses nearby • Build the right team: you need to find great staff who can deliver outstanding customer service – you can’t do it on your own • Pick your suppliers carefully: your customers will only turn into regulars if you’re offering quality food and drink • And finally, don’t forget your bottom line: you also need keep an eye on regular outgoings such as your energy bills Energy is a key expense for small catering businesses which makes it a crucial area for these businesses to save money and take control of their finances. Smart meters

could give businesses additional visibility over energy use and costs to make it easier to identify where changes and savings can be made. In addition, sustainability is a key focus for many businesses across Great Britain – the smart meter rollout is predicted to reduce CO2 emissions by an estimated 34.4m tonnes – so by getting smart meters installed in your business you’re helping achieve this, making your business that bit more sustainable.

Your smart meter works as hard as you do Running an independent coffee shop, bar or restaurant is a round-the-clock job and supplying your energy readings is often not a top priority. Smart meters send your gas and electricity readings directly to your energy supplier, saving you time to focus on other jobs. Firms with 10 employees or less could be eligible and installations can be arranged at a convenient time to ensure minimal interruption to your business and your clients.

To find out more please visit Smart Meters for Small Businesses | Smart Energy GB https://bit.ly/3k8hRUz Contact your energy supplier or broker today and see if you are eligible.

Need help creating an innovative new product? Eligible businesses will:

PAPI provides: 40% capital grants (up to £20k) for equipment. Fully-funded innovation workshops with leading business consultants. Guidance and support at every step.

01904 32 8076 Funded by

papi.org.uk

Be an SME (small to medium enterprise) in York, North Yorkshire or Leeds City Region. Be looking to purchase equipment costing £20k or more. Create at least one new, innovative product or service, and one new job. PAPI_project In partnership with

PAPI - Product and Process Innovation Delivered by

West & North Yorkshire Business

26 ENVIRONMENT

Green growth

BioYorkshire offers innovation that can drive a greener, fairer and stronger economy

Devolution paves the way for a pioneering green revolution to kick-start the region’s post-Covid economy The proposed devolution plans for York and North Yorkshire provide a once in a lifetime opportunity for green, inclusive economic growth with BioYorkshire at the heart of the deal.

and its commitment to ‘levelling up’ the north of England. It will also contribute to York and North Yorkshire’s ambition to become the UK’s first carbon negative region and create new, high-skilled jobs.

BioYorkshire Director, Professor Ian Graham said: “Our research will offer innovative approaches to tackle industrial and societal challenges. We have an outstanding record of research to benefit society.”

Led by the University of York in partnership with Askham Bryan College and Fera Science Ltd, the 10 year programme will harness the biotechnology expertise of its scientists and researchers as the launchpad for green, inclusive economic growth across the region.

BioYorkshire plans include district hubs for enterprise development, bio-based research institutes with integrated demonstrator and scale-up facilities and programmes of training and skills co-developed with industry, all underpinned with bioeconomy networking and investment.

Helen Simspon OBE, Chair of the York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “BioYorkshire offers the region an opportunity to focus a devolution deal on innovation that can drive a greener, fairer and stronger economy.”

BioYorkshire’s vision is to work with partners to produce renewable resources from biomass and organic waste and convert them into food, biobased chemicals, materials, consumer products and green energy.

Professor Charlie Jeffery, ViceChancellor of the University of York, said: “The region’s plans around devolution place BioYorkshire at the heart of innovation in Yorkshire, which will not only benefit our communities and businesses as we recover from the pandemic, but facilitate inclusive economic growth for years to come.”

In addition, BioYorkshire will work with regional farmers and agricultural industries to drive innovation, while enabling more productive and sustainable crop production and land use. The project aligns with the Government’s Bioeconomy Strategy

BioYorkshire aims to support more than 800 bioeconomy start-ups and spin outs by 2030, reduce CO2 emissions by 2.8 million tonnes and generate £5bn for the north of England by 2030.

BioYorkshire requires Government funding but economic projections predict a massive return on this investment. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy estimates new products, services and exports associated with the bioeconomy could be worth an extra £220 billion a year to the UK by 2030.

West & North Yorkshire Business

ENVIRONMENT 27

Zero-emission ambition from Transdev Coun. Kim Groves, Chair, West Yorkshire Bus Alliance, joins Transdev CEO Alex Hornby at the launch of the new Team Pennine company

Teamwork drives success at Transdev Transdev CEO Alex Hornby says partnerships and people can build buses back better for Yorkshire. At Transdev, we know how to win new customers to switch to our buses. Take our flagship 36: Riding Refined service linking Harrogate with Leeds and Ripon – in 2019 just over two million people did just that, a 21 per cent increase in just two years. Huge investment in quality is part of our recipe for success. We relaunched the 36 in 2016 with a £3.3 million investment in 14 new low-emission, high quality buses with luxury features including quilted leather seats, free superfast Wi-Fi, at-seat USB power points and even a glazed panoramic roof to enjoy Yorkshire sky views! Our £1.4 million investment in five new British-built buses to our exclusive Sky Class premium specification for our Cityzap intercity express service linking Leeds and York – launched in the midst of the pandemic in

December 2020 – underlines our commitment to attract people to switch from their cars to buses people are proud to be seen on. We’re now revolutionising bus travel in the Kirklees and Calderdale districts of West Yorkshire, with the launch of Team Pennine – taking over Arriva’s former Yorkshire Tiger operation with a company-wide transformation on a route-by-route basis, starting with a newly-branded ‘Denby Darts’ route in our new stand-out pink livery. A zero-emission future is now in our sights, building on the success of our ground-breaking Harrogate Electrics buses and the fact that over 70 per cent of our fleet in Yorkshire – and all of our regular daily buses in Harrogate – now meet the UK’s toughest Euro VI low emission standards. We made Harrogate one of the UK’s first low emission bus towns – we now want to make it one of the first zero emission bus towns.

Enhanced partnerships hold the key to a bright future for the bus. Combining the best of our innovation and customer focus alongside highway and infrastructure projects to create highway space and improve punctuality makes sense. At the heart of our story are our amazing people. We’re growing fast and we want the best people to help us achieve success. Buses combine retail, logistics, HR, pricing, operations, public sector engagement and engineering in one of the nation’s most dynamic and fast-moving industries. Investing in our people and our products is what makes us different. With partners who share our zeroemission ambition, we’re ready to build buses back better for Yorkshire.

Amber Greenhalgh Commercial Director B&M Waste

B&M cut building and transport fleet energy, supported by its ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management Standard certification

B&M celebrates 10 years of carbon neutrality

West & North Yorkshire Business

ENVIRONMENT 29

Leading UK waste management solutions company, B&M Waste Services, is marking its 10th anniversary as a carbon neutral organisation and defines its ‘net zero carbon’ journey since it began in 2011. In the past two decades, the effects of climate change have accelerated, becoming a global threat that will impact everyone. It was ten years ago, and long before any legislation was introduced, that the family-owned and managed company anticipated and embraced the growing movement in the UK to make businesses more environmentally friendly. It embarked on a programme, working with Carbon Footprint Ltd, to assess the carbon footprint of its business, starting with measuring its existing carbon impact and creating a formal Carbon Management Plan to move the business towards carbon neutrality. The company clearly identified all the internal changes it needed to make to reduce its carbon emissions and committed to an annual process of measurement and management, culminating in its support of a raft of recognised international carbon offsetting projects in developing countries and tree planting in communities at home. In 2011, B&M Waste Services was awarded a carbon neutrality accreditation for the first time. It was the first waste management business to achieve this accolade and its confidential waste arm, B&M Secure Shredding followed in its footsteps, achieving carbon neutrality status in 2019. Both the Waste Services and Secure Shredding businesses achieved Carbon Neutral Plus status in 2020 – another first for the sector in the UK

and streaks ahead of the government’s own net zero carbon by 2050 pledge. This measuring, management and offsetting process has been successfully repeated year after year and in 2020, B&M offset more than 2932 tonnes of carbon as it continued to focus on cutting building and transport fleet energy, supported by its ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management Standard certification. In the latest Carbon Footprint Appraisal Report for the assessment period of 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021, B&M has decreased its total carbon footprint by -27.6 % between this period and the baseline year. This is due to reductions in lorry freight (23.8 %), site gas (11.4 %) and electricity (86.1 %). The reductions in lorry freight is a product of a downturn in waste production and site closures due to Covid-19. However, the reduction in site energy usage is clearly due to B&M’s transition to renewable energy at the Wirral site and phasing out the use of gas at the Manchester site. Prior to Covid-19, emissions from lorry freight had increased by 354.14 tonnes CO2e (16.13%) since the baseline year (201920 CFP appraisal report) arising from increased business growth. Moving forward, B&M is committed to further reducing its own emissions intensity and advocates its successful low carbon business model to its clients. Its ‘Simple Swaps Audit’ initiative continues to help companies it works with to not only recycle or

reuse their waste but to make simple swaps and purchasing changes to minimise waste output and reduce their carbon footprint. Amber Greenhalgh, B&M Director: “We see ourselves as innovators in our field and we continually strive to find new ways to reduce our carbon footprint, notably in our transport and electrification operations and improving our processing facilities. We have a keen interest in adopting new technology and we possess a strong desire to continue to educate our clients and to attain supply chain sustainability in the future.” Wendy Buckley, Carbon Footprint Ltd. Director and Co-founder: “B&M’s achievements and carbon neutrality are particularly notable as they have been achieved ahead of any legislation and way ahead of the government’s target of 2050. They are continuously reducing their own emissions intensity and have committed to further reductions this year. At the same time, they are highly motivated to educate their customers, helping them to minimise their impact on the environment.”

West & North Yorkshire Business

30 RAISING THE BAR - STORIES

Take time out for a chat

Tour De Ramsdens

Bus journeys are a springboard

TransPennine Express (TPE) has launched a brand-new initiative, ‘chatty benches’, in a push to end loneliness and increase conversations amongst customers, following more than a year of reduced interactions amongst the public due to the pandemic.

Our team of cyclists took on the 100 mile route across our 14 offices, starting at York at 6 am and finishing at the Ramsden Street office in Huddersfield at 7:30 pm, in aid of the Yorkshire Children’s Centre.

Harrogate’s leading bus operator, The Harrogate Bus Company, has stepped in to help local students with special educational needs to build independence as they travel.

With more than 9m people in the UK experiencing loneliness, TPE understands it may be the person sitting next to you who is quietly struggling. Consequently, the train company has launched the ‘chatty benches’, which will now be signposted at all of TPE’s managed stations** throughout the North. To mark the launch, colleagues, customers and representatives from the Campaign to End Loneliness took a seat at the world’s longest railway bench, at Scarborough train station, TPE’s very first ‘chatty bench’. In a recent study conducted by the Campaign to End Loneliness, 71% of adults in the North of England thought that loneliness would be a serious issue beyond Covid-19. Now, TPE is committed to raising awareness of loneliness and helping customers in the North and Scotland who currently suffer, or who have suffered from loneliness during the pandemic. Partnership Marketing Manager for TransPennine Express, Lisa Hewitt said: “We’re very excited to be launching the ‘chatty benches’ initiative at stations throughout the North. We know, now more than ever, getting together has never felt better. We want to raise awareness of the issue and encourage moments of interaction to support those who have experienced loneliness, helping them make new connections whilst also enabling them to reconnect with family and friends.”

Yorkshire Children’s Centre, which was set up by Brian Jackson over 40 years ago, is dedicated to improving the lives of residents in Kirklees, offering their support to children, young people, adults, families and the elderly. The charity has been fundamental in helping the local community throughout the pandemic, from offering befriending and victim support services to helping people get back to work. Sara Altman, Head of Income and Partnerships at the Yorkshire Children’s Centre commented: “We would like to say a huge thank you to the team and all of the cyclists at Ramsdens Solicitors who have taken on the #TourDeRamsdens 100 mile cycle challenge to support the work of YCC. As a registered charity, we rely on the business community to help us raise the £3m needed each year to provide our vital services for children, young people and adults across Kirklees. We are delighted that the team at Ramsdens have chosen to support YCC, and are all extremely grateful for their kindness and generosity.” So far the team have raised an amazing £1,075 (inc Gift Aid) for the charity, smashing their original target of £500. Jonathan Cornes, lead organiser of the charity event said: “I want to say thank you to all the staff across Ramsdens for their hospitality and encouragement for the Tour de Ramsdens and to everyone who has supported us and donated.”

The bus firm is providing free travel across Harrogate and Knaresborough for groups of students and their teachers from Springwater School in Starbeck, to help them to get around town and gain travel skills along the way. All young people attending the school have moderate to complex learning disabilities, and their teachers say the bus firm’s support is vital to help them rebuild social confidence as their learning community recovers from the impact of the pandemic. Springwater School Sixth Form teacher Kelly Tomlinson said: “We’re very grateful to The Harrogate Bus Company for supporting us. Our students will benefit from being able to visit venues and integrate with the local community, gaining independent travel training skills as they go. “Our Sixth Form classes especially benefit from travelling by bus, as students are accessing a curriculum that prepares them for adulthood. Being able to travel together to town to use community facilities, access local shops and so on will make all the difference to their progress.” The Harrogate Bus Company’s General Manager, Steve Ottley, said: “We’re delighted to be able to help Springwater School with group travel on our buses – it’s something we supported before the pandemic, and it’s more important now than ever that we do all we can to make travel safe and enjoyable for the students.”

West & North Yorkshire Business

RAISING THE BAR - OPPORTUNITIES 31

Make a wish come true

Looking for valuable treasure

Make a big splash

When You Wish Upon a Star has a simple mission, to grant the Wishes of children aged 4 – 16 living with a life threatening illness. Our Wishes have the power to transform the lives of the children and families we work with and since 1990 we have proudly granted over 18,500 across the UK.

The role of a treasurer is a very important one. Not only with thousands of pounds flowing through the Church’s funds, but the PCC is also an independent charity, and will need to conform to Charity Commission guidance.

SNAPS is a Leeds charity that delivers physiotherapy, swimming lessons, recreational activities, a football club and holistic family support for children with additional needs and their families. Our aim is to make the ‘impossible’, possible for children.

The treasurer does not need to be an accountant, but experience of bookkeeping and accountancy practices would be very helpful to the role.

A partnership with SNAPS will provide your business with a rewarding relationship that makes a huge difference to families in the local community. We will bring the work of SNAPS to life with photos, case studies and videos, impact reports, and where possible in-person visits, ensuring your team have a meaningful link to the families we support.

We are a small national charity which receives no Government funding and are reliant on donations from individuals and businesses in our communities. The COVID pandemic has meant that many of our Wishes have sadly, but necessarily, had to be put on hold. We currently have over 100 children on our Wish list and we are working hard to generate the funds to grant all these Wishes when it is safe to do so. By donating to When You Wish Upon a Star you would be helping dreams come true for our inspiring Wish children and making magical memories for the whole family. Please contact Alex Byers alex.byers@whenyouwish.org.uk or call 07918 850931 for information on our Wish granting work or to make a donation.

The current treasurer will work with you to handover the accounts and you will receive additional ongoing support and training with the diocese and the Association of Church Accountants and Treasurers (ACAT) as well as from the software service providers WYCAS and MMA. Do you know someone who might be suitable for this role? Please get in touch. To find out more, please contact Hannah Lievesley (Vicar)

A dedicated member of staff will work with you and tailor the partnership to what suits your business best. We will provide bespoke opportunities for team building, accessibility education and PR, along with chances to volunteer at fun-packed events such as our SNAPS Superhero Zoom.

Telephone 0113 2103497 or email hannah.lievesley@leeds.anglican.org

To find out more about partnering with SNAPS, please contact Eve Holdsworth on 07511 158304 or email eve@snapsyorkshire.org. Visit our website at www.snapsyorkshire.org

We pledge to offer free digital interactive mental health resources through the launch of our Lets Stop Shouting Awareness Day on November 6 2021.

We pledge to reduce the amount of paper used within the business by implementing digital and cloud based systems we aim to reduce our paper usage by over 50%.

Watoto Play

ESC Solutions

We pledge to educate the next generation of digital talent and support the growth of socially conscious enterprises in Yorkshire. We will help people develop their digital skills with 1-to-1 training, with a holistic approach to learning.

PLEDGES

Brand Ambition

View current opportunities and pledges at raising-the-bar.org.uk

The West and North Yorkshire Chamber encourages local businesses to support their wider community through its social impact initiative – Raising the Bar. This year the Raising the Bar initiative will focus on creating new engaging content and events, to assist you and your business to act responsibly in 2021. The Raising the Bar Pledge Campaign has been developed to encourage businesses to think about their social impact and the positive influence they have. It doesn’t matter how big or small your pledge is, and it doesn’t have to be a monetary contribution, it’s about businesses across the district pitching in to make a collective impact. Make your commitment to managing your social impact by making a Pledge at

www.raising-the-bar.org.uk/create-a-pledge

All Pledges published on the Raising the Bar website will be shared and promoted online to highlight the excellent work you and your business is doing, encouraging others to follow your lead.

West & North Yorkshire Business

MANUFACTURING 33

Over 30 Bradford manufacturers have signed up for this year’s Bradford Manufacturing Weeks initiative, despite the continued constraints of Covid-19. Bradford Manufacturing Weeks will run from the 4-15 October, bringing manufacturers and schools together through in-person and online tours, work experience and seminars. Bradford Manufacturing Weeks is delivered in partnership with Bradfordbased school and career specialists The Opportunity Centre with primary sponsorship from Barclays. Lee Collinson, Head of Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics for Barclays, said: “Barclays are delighted to be sponsoring Bradford Manufacturing Weeks in 2021. We are looking forward to working with the young people in the region to generate even more manufacturing opportunities, to engage, inspire and open their eyes to the realms of possibilities that they can follow for an exciting, successful career in manufacturing. Young people are the key to driving change and innovation in the sector to ensure that it remains globally competitive for our future generations.” Additional sponsors include E3 Recruitment, Naylor Wintersgill, LCF Law and Bradford Council. MAIN SPONSOR

Young people are the key to driving change and innovation in the sector to ensure that it remains globally competitive for our future generations SPONSORS

West & North Yorkshire Business

34 REPRESENTATION Changing of the guard on policy leadership groups

New steering group members

There’s been a changing of the guard on some of the policy groups of West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce.

The Leeds Property Forum has recruited three new members to join its steering group. The forum, which is one of the Chamber’s specialist sector policy groups, provides a Chamber voice on built environment matters with the aim of contributing positively and effectively to the future growth and development within the Leeds Metropolitan District and the wider region.

Recent elections for the three Leadership Groups – the Chamber’s key policy development bodies – has brought in new representation for Bradford, Leeds and York & North Yorkshire. Six new faces join the Bradford group, five are recruited to Leeds, while York & North Yorkshire gets an additional three.

Bradford Chamber Leadership Group Bradford’s new representatives are: Anthony Cope, Virgin Money; Wayne Cowley, Packetts Insurance; David Crossley, Midland Hotel; Nasar Hussain, ITC; Jag Panesar, Xpand Marketing; Scott Wilson, Christeyns.

Leeds Chamber Leadership Group In Leeds we have: Marc Davies, WYG; Ric Kelly, BCN; Rob Valentine, Bruntwood SciTech; Becky Hewitt, Leeds Building Society; and Yaseen Mohammed, representative of the Black Asian & Minority Ethnic Business Committee & Y Property.

York & North Yorkshire Chamber Leadership Group York & North Yorkshire welcomes Kerry Hope, Castle Recruitment; Steven Smith, HSBC; and Dr Tim Whittaker; Askham Bryan College.

New Presidents Nick Garthwaite, Chair of West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, said of the changes: “We have a comprehensive structure of business groups and committees that support and develop our policy and representation work, but it’s important that we keep building on that high-quality representation that we have. I’m sure that our new presidents will all be buoyed by the new blood that has joined the groups.” In July 2021, all three Chamber areas had new presidents elected. Vicky Wainwright (Naylor Wintersgill) succeeds Suzanne Watson; Mike Briffett (Clarion Housing) follows Amanda Beresford; and Laurence Beardmore (York Emporium) replaces Andrew Digwood. The Chamber’s Leadership Groups form a key part of the organisation’s lobbying and representation activities. As well as tracking economic trends and liaising with the Bank of England, the Chamber seeks business views on other policy areas affecting the economy, such as transport, property and construction, and education and skills. The organisation works with stakeholders to support policies that will help drive business growth and performance. Find our more at www.wnychamber.co.uk/representation/

Gurminder Sanghera, is Regional Director at architects practice AHR, upon taking up the position he said “I am really excited about working alongside other members of this group to provide leadership, expertise and share our knowledge to contribute positively and effectively to the future growth and sustainable development of Leeds, helping our region to stay ahead of the curve as we often do!” Leah Stuart is a Director at Civic Engineers and heads up their growing Leeds Studio. A transport and street design engineer, she has 20 years’ experience in urban regeneration and transport planning on projects across the UK. In her work, Leah welcomes collaborative input and enjoys working with other stakeholders: only by working together are places created that are fair and equitable, catering for the needs of all parts of society. In this spirit of collaboration, Leah is delighted to join the LPF Steering Group and excited to be engaging in conversation with businesses across Leeds. She has sat on the LPF Quality Places and Spaces Committee for several years and is vice-chair of the Environment Group so already knows many of the group and is looking forward to meeting new faces. Lisa Littlefair is Leeds City Director at Mott MacDonald and said, “I’m so pleased to have been appointed to the steering group. This is a great opportunity to help drive and support the great work the property forum does, unpicking the key issues we face today and finding ways forward, alongside a great group of people who each play an important role in the world of property and infrastructure. We have a big responsibility to support our industry to lead the way in the how we work for the good of the people, the towns and cities, and the planet we love. I’m delighted to be able to contribute to the Chamber’s input to that.” More information about the Leeds Property Forum can be found on the Chamber website www. wnychamber.co.uk/leeds-property-forum/

West & North Yorkshire Business

PROPERTY 35

Bradford Property Forum gets new Chair Jonathan O’Connor, a Director with chartered surveyor and property agent Walker Singleton, has taken over from Marianne McCallum. Jonathan will lead the Chamber’s property group for Bradford for the next two years, chairing meetings and acting as spokesperson on relevant matters. As well as being a networking group for Bradford’s property sector, the Forum also forms part of the Chamber’s lobbying and representation activities. The group gathers information and data and feeds into other relevant bodies such as the local authority and West Yorkshire Combined Authority. It has also lobbied on matters such as employment land shortages, the importance of Northern Powerhouse Rail for the city, and utilising the site of the Richard Dunn Centre as strategically important for future use. Jonathan said of his appointment: “I’ve been involved with Bradford Chamber’s Property Forum for several years now, and I’m looking forward to getting to grips with some of the more pressing matters facing the local business community. I’m also hoping to engage with my fellow Chairs in Leeds and

York & North Yorkshire on cross-boundary issues to ensure the Chamber’s property arm is representing in the best way at regional as well as local level. It’s obviously been a very difficult and often frustrating last 18 months, and Marianne has done a great job during that time – we are grateful to her for driving forward the work of the Forum.” Mike Cartwright, from the Chamber’s Policy & Representation Team, added: “The Chamber has a comprehensive structure of groups looking at various policy aspects likely to affect business in some way or other, and our property forums remain key to that set-up. For that reason, we’re grateful to those involved and therefore delighted that someone of the calibre of Jonathan, with his extensive and detailed knowledge of the local, regional and even national property sector, is able to take on this leadership role.” Find out more about the Chamber’s property forums and wider lobbying activities at www.wnychamber.co.uk/representation/

West & North Yorkshire Business

36 REPRESENTATION

York and North Yorkshire local government review colleagues in West Yorkshire and claim our seat at the table of devolved English regions. However, in order to get to this we are required to reorganise local government and do away with the current two tier county and district authority model which currently exists. I am thrilled to be taking over as president of the York & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce and representing this region’s business community as we look towards economic recovery. Covid has impacted our region in ways which would have been unimaginable when my predecessor Andrew Digwood took over the presidency in 2019 and I want to say what a remarkable job he has done in challenging times to ensure the business voice has been heard by regional and national policy makers. Looking forward I am confident we can build our way out of the pandemic, and with the vaccine roll out helping to increasing confidence, businesses can start to plan with more certainty. I am also looking forward to working with regional stakeholders to secure devolution for North Yorkshire. This matters hugely as it will provide greater control over our destiny, providing the tools to unleash our entrepreneurial spirit. May saw the election of West Yorkshire’s first ever metro mayor and as Tracy Brabin begins a new phase in her political career, my Leeds and Bradford colleagues look forward to working with her to ensure business views are shared and that devolution of new powers and funding make a real difference to the region’s economy. As president of the Chamber I will campaign for similar powers for our region, and with proposals being developed I am hopeful that we too will follow our

The inner workings of local authorities will likely not be a high priority for businesses, particularly given the hardships of the last 15 months, but successful reorganisation genuinely opens the gates to the much bigger prize of regional devolution, and with it, increased powers and funding from Whitehall. The ability to make regional decisions over the future of our economy, deliver 21st century infrastructure and drive inward investment, skills and innovation cannot be understated. This is a once in a generation opportunity which we must grab. The Government sought views on the future of North Yorkshire, with businesses and residents being asked to respond to two proposals presented. One proposal would see the abolition of the seven district authorities and the county council, to be replaced by a single unitary authority, whilst the second would also see the abolition of North Yorkshire County Council and its district authorities along with the City of York Council to be replaced by two completely new authorities split east and west, roughly along the route of the A1. Having studied both proposals I believe that the first of these two options would be best for the region. Our decision was based on a number of factors not the least of which is a smoother and less disruptive transition to this new structure compared to the breaking up and reordering of seven districts, one county council and the abolition of City of York Council.

A unitary North Yorkshire Council will bring economies of scale and streamline those services which are of greatest importance to our business community as we look to emerge from the Covid pandemic. A county wide economic strategy with a single local plan setting out future development opportunities, employment land allocations and housing numbers would bring confidence that in turn would drive private sector investment. The elimination of duplication of processes and services and the provision of a ‘single front door’ for businesses to access support would bring clarity and consistency across the county. The ability to deliver improved rural mobile connectivity under our own leadership could happen without resorting to Whitehall departments to decide whether our communities deserve what urban areas take for granted. Ambitions to be the UK’s first carbon-negative circular economy, as agreed by our regional civic and business leaders will be in our gift to deliver. In turn this will create new jobs, new industries and opportunities to lead the country to a more sustainable future. We also recognise the benefit in the city of York retaining its own independence. As one of the region’s largest urban and economic centres, it accounts for one-third of the region’s GVA, York has its own distinct challenges and opportunities and needs to be able to take a position within any future devolved authority structure which addresses those to best effect. This month, Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government is expected to make the decision on the future of local government in our region and we would urge him to back the Chamber’s position and pave the way for devolution.

West & North Yorkshire Business

TRANSPORT 37

Retaining intercity and commuter rail services Earlier in the summer, a number of rail operators providing services on the East Coast Mainline announced plans to consult on a reduction in service frequency and capacity along the line. In responding to these planned reductions, the Chamber was keen to highlight the vital commuter services being put at risk, potentially undermining the region’s economic recovery from Covid-19. A common goal in avoiding a repeat of the 2018 timetabling debacle, stemming from a lack of local leader engagement, was also recognised. After a period of internal discussion, DfT released the following statement: “We have agreed that the planned introduction of the May 2022 East Coast Main Line timetable change will not go ahead. It is vital that the views of passengers and local leaders are heard and reflected in the timetable. This decision ensures the lessons of May 2018 are learned, enabling the industry to conduct a full review of its readiness and resolve outstanding issues identified by the industry assurance group. The industry will also focus on delivering an improved, achievable new timetable, which fully considers the consultation responses by passengers and local stakeholders and delivers reliable services on the East Coast.” This policy revision is a good example of the benefits of stakeholder engagement and talking with the Chamber when such decisions are being drafted. With a number of key commuter services being saved, the inflow of workers can continue to drive the economic bounce back experienced across our towns and cities. Furthermore, commuters and investors alike will no doubt warmly welcome the retained services from Bradford to London. The present moment is a critical time in the region’s recovery, and we must ensure connectivity is expanded, not reduced, as we begin to emerge from the pandemic and move back to regular commuting and travelling.

Yorkshire Business West & North

The way you promote your news and offers through the West & North Yorkshire Chamber is changing, with the launch of our brand-new member website – Yorkshire-Business.com. Yorkshire-Business.com will be your new platform for promotion, enabling Chamber members to raise their profile, promote their services and connect with other businesses in the wider Chamber network. All members will have an online Yorkshire-Business.com account, where you can post press releases, share member-tomember offers, view the Yorkshire Business magazine, and access the Member Directory. Content can be uploaded, amended, and deleted at your convenience, making it easy to manage your messaging. As always, your content will be shared across the Chambers social channels, in our monthly newsletters and quarterly Yorkshire Business magazines. All of our members will receive an email shortly, with details of how to set up and access their new Yorkshire-Business.com account. We have also prepared a user-friendly guide, to help you navigate the new site.

User

Guide A guide to start using yorkshire-business.com

Yorkshire Business West & North

Welcome to Yorkshire-Business.com The website for West & North Yorkshire Chamber members.

Your platform for promotion

HOMEPAGE

1 News Articles Add your good news stories and press releases directly to the website. When published, these will also be shared across the Chamber’s social media channels.

2 Member Offers

NEWS ARTICLES

Post your offers for other Chamber members directly to our website. When published, these will be shared across the Chamber’s social media channels.

3 Member Directory The searchable company details of all members who have opted into the Member Directory. Only the Primary Contact can login to the Chamber Portal to edit company details

MEMBER OFFERS

4 Member Magazine The Chamber’s West & North Yorkshire Business magazine is produced quarterly and distributed to all members. Previous issues are available to read online.

5 Media Pack View the Media Guide and the Media Pack.

If you have any questions about Yorkshire-Business.com and would like to speak to a member of the team, please email marketing@wnychamber.co.uk

MEMBER DIRECTORY

MAGAZINE

5 West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce British Chambers of Commerce Accredited

MEDIA PACK

West & North Yorkshire Business

MEMBERSHIP 39

Welcome to Yorkshire-Business.com for Chamber members Member Member

News Offers Showcase your business success stories and publish your news on the Chamber member website

Promote your products and services to Chamber members with special offers and discounts

West & North Yorkshire Business

40 INTERNATIONAL

From Rillington to Rio Ellis Patents secures Brazilian power transmission project specification Cable cleats designed, developed and manufactured in North Yorkshire by Ellis Patents have been installed in a major power transmission project in Rio de Janeiro. The 2F+ flame retardant polymeric cleats were specified through Ellis’ Brazilian distributor, Poleoduto and were used to secure power cables to 30metre high transmission towers in the suburb of Itamarati. Kelly Brown, Ellis Patents head of sales, said: “Everybody’s world has shrunk significantly during the last 15-months of social distancing, lockdowns and working from home orders, but that hasn’t been the case for Ellis. Our global export programme has continued to thrive; with a number of major new specifications secured and orders fulfilled in various countries around the world.” “Our strategy of having local representation in every export market we operate in had played a huge role in our success prior to the pandemic and has really made a huge difference during it. Our network of local distributors has ensured our permanent presence in every market, meaning when it comes to specifying cable cleats our name is not only to the fore, but we are on hand to work directly with local specifiers and contractors.” Other recent international specifications include Ellis’ Emperor cable cleats being installed in the industrial headquarters of one of the world’s largest eucalyptus cellulose pulp producers – Uruguay-based Montes del Plata (MdP); and its Cable Guide clamps being used to guide and secure 4.5km of power cables being installed as part of an enormous infrastructure project in Vestland, Norway. The 2F+ cable clamps being used in Rio are manufactured as standard in black polypropylene or black flame retardant V0, Zero Halogen, Phosphorous Free Nylon (LSF), and are available in one and two-hole versions. They can be used in a wide variety of locations, both internally and externally, and are ideal for tough environments.

West & North Yorkshire Business

INTERNATIONAL 41

Trade commissioner outlined Middle East trade and investment opportunities Trade UK Middle East trade commissioner, Simon Penney, was keynote speaker at a major virtual Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) trade forum held on September 1 by Chamber International. Banker, Simon Penney, who became UK Middle East trade commissioner in May 2018 and consul general to Dubai in January 2021, said that GCC countries including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Kuwait, Omar and Qatar are overseas markets that, with the correct approach, can provide significant export growth for UK businesses. The event was held to coincide with government post-Brexit trade discussions with the GCC, a region likely to offer British companies significant increased trade and investment opportunities during the next decade as the UK aims to become an independent global trading nation. Simon Penney also reported on progress in the UK-GCC trade negotiations.

Forum Simon Penney was previously head of corporate and investment banking, First Gulf Bank and chief executive, Middle East and Africa, Royal Bank of Scotland and, among issues that were discussed, were technologies which support banking and financial services; the GCC region’s digital transformation, healthcare and infrastructure projects, including Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and the UAE’s District 2020. Among the other speakers were two Chamber International overseas partners, owner of AEI Saudi, Stuart De Sousa and chief executive of British Centres for Business (BCB), Dubai, Joe Hepworth. Others were managing director of strategy and transformation consultancy, Sullivan & Stanley, Chris Hafner, and chief executive of Emirates Hospitals Association, Norman McKenzie Richmond.

Chamber International director, Tim Bailey, says: “A trade agreement with the six oil-rich nations that make up the GCC will give UK businesses a significant edge on global trade. “The forum was a huge success. Simon Penney and the other speakers provided valuable insights for businesses planning to develop, or increase, trade and investment with GCC countries and hear how Chamber International and our Overseas Business Network (OBN) partners can help them achieve this.”

West & North Yorkshire Business

42 PROFILE Leeds Business School launches government-backed Help to Grow Management programme Leeds Beckett University is adding to its extensive portfolio of support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in Yorkshire by launching a new practical management training programme for local SME leaders this autumn. The new ‘Help to Grow’ Management scheme is backed by £220 million from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and aims to boost economic recovery from the impact of COVID-19 by helping SMEs. The programme supports the leadership skills needed to boost business performance and resilience to future crises, and achieve long-term growth. The 12-week programme is 90% funded by the Government – with only £750 per business to contribute. It has been designed to be completed by senior managers of SMEs, alongside full-time work. Olga Munroe, Help to Grow Programme Director, explained: “The course consists of a blend of online webinars by our academic experts and bespoke support through one-on-one business mentorship, peer to peer discussions, and sessions exploring case studies from relatable SMEs – including some of the many Yorkshire-based businesses that are part of our Leeds Beckett network. “We focus on practical problem-solving techniques and all businesses come away with an action plan to embed in their organisation from the word ‘go’.” Help to Grow builds on the success of the Government’s pilot scheme – the Small Business Leadership Programme (SBLP). More than 100 Yorkshire businesses have now completed the SBLP with Leeds Beckett. Peter Needham, Managing Director of Watermill Plumbing and Heating Ltd, based in Ripon, said: “The SBLP has already given me some quite significant insights, ideas and confirmations of strategies I'm taking with my business. I am finding it really valuable and think it will make a significant difference to what I might achieve. It is pragmatic, inspiring, relevant and to the point, and straight away applicable to my business plans.” Olga Munroe added: “Our delivery team consists of academic colleagues with strong practitioners’ skills - people who either owned or still own a business. Their experience means that they understand the challenges of SMEs and can effectively translate theory into practice.” Following the programme, businesses become part of the Leeds Beckett alumni community – allowing them continued access to Leeds Beckett’s wide range of SME support programmes and network of regional businesses: including guest lectures with industry experts, networking events, part-funded Management Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (mKTPS), Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) courses, and student and graduate recruitment and placements. The first programme begins this September, with further groups starting from October. To find out more, and register your interest, please email Help2Grow@leedsbeckett.ac.uk

HIGH SPECIFICATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS INCLUDING BREEAM ACCREDITATION Set your business up to thrive with our newly refurbished, contemporary serviced office space situated in the centrally located and historic area of Little Germany. • ‘Easy in, easy out’ monthly terms with no requirement for a long lease • Competitive rents from as little as £275 per month • Secure environment and reception services • Landlord’s services and membership of the Chamber included • Fibre broadband provided • Access to meeting rooms • Member services and support staff on site • DDA compliant, accessible building

“A huge advantage of

serviced office space is the access to meeting rooms for client meetings.” Sean Pearson Twenty Twenty Films

For enquiries and information on how we can help you get the right business premises contact Andrew Robertson, Property Director.

T 01274 667266 M 07827 318671 E andrew.robertson@wnychamber.co.uk

Chamber Hub, Devere House, Vicar Lane, Little Germany, Bradford BD1 5AH West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce British Chambers of Commerce Accredited

West & North Yorkshire Business

44 NEW MEMBERS

Welcome to our new Chamber members BRADFORD CHAMBER

LEEDS CHAMBER

YORK & NORTH YORKSHIRE CHAMBER

Alliance Valves Group Uk alliancevalves.co.uk

Cheney Payroll Services Ltd cheneypayrollservices.co.uk

Innovate Educate Ltd ieltd.co.uk

Atrium Financial Limited atriumfinancial.co.uk

Conflux Digital Ltd confluxdigital.net

Katie Sweep Limited katiesweep.co.uk

BiOxyplasma Ltd bioxyplasma.co.uk

Day One Trauma Support dayonetrauma.org

Nidhoggr Mead Co. LTD nidhoggrmead.co.uk

Earby Autos Ltd earbyautos.co.uk

Emmaus Leeds emmaus.org.uk/leeds

S.L. Procurement slprocurementsolutions.com

Empace Consulting Limited empace.co.uk

Fenchurch Law fenchurchlaw.co.uk

Simbodies simbodies.com

Future Transformation futuretransformation.org

GenNorth gennorth.co.uk

New College Bradford ncbradford.ac.uk

HBD hbd.co.uk

The Christmas Decorators North and East yorkshire thechristmasdecorators.co.uk

Stainless Band stainlessband.co.uk

One Design Architects Ltd onedesignarchs.com

the cellar trust thecellartrust.org

Portland Training portlandtraining.co.uk

The Harrogate Sulphur Soap Company Limited harrogate-sulphur-soap.com

Roses Professional Services rpbsltd.co.uk

Tracmil Limited tracmil.co.uk Tudor Rose Consultancy tudorroseservices.co.uk Westlander Ltd westlander.co.uk Xpand xpandmarketing.co.uk

The Coders Guild Ltd thecodersguild.org.uk

TMS Development tmsdi.com

West & North Yorkshire Business

CHAMBER CHARITIES 45

Chamber charities for 2021 Each new Chamber President has selected a charity to raise funds and awareness for during their first term of office

Bradford Chamber President Victoria Wainwright

Leeds Chamber President Mike Briffett

York & North Yorkshire Chamber President Lawrence Beardmore

Bradford Chamber

Leeds Chamber

York & North Yorkshire Chamber

Marie Curie

NSPCC

The Island

As the UK’s leading end of life charity, Marie Curie is here to support everyone in the UK through all aspects of dying, death and bereavement – and to fight for a society where everyone gets to have the best experience possible at the end of their lives.

The NSPCC is the leading children’s charity fighting to end child abuse in the UK and Channel Islands. Using voluntary donations, which make up around 90 per cent of our funding, we help children who’ve been abused to rebuild their lives, we protect children at risk, and we find the best ways of preventing child abuse from ever happening.

The Island is a well-established York based registered charity (1120420) supporting some our most disadvantaged, vulnerable and isolated children and young people aged 8 to 18 to realise their potential through positive mentoring relationships and activities. All children and young people have undiscovered potential and through mentoring we can create “islands of time and space” for them to see and believe in themselves.

Marie Curie Nurses, Hospices and Support Line help people – along with their family and friends – through their final years, months, days and hours of life – whether they have coronavirus, or any illness they’re likely to die from. We’ve been here day and night, seven days a week, throughout the pandemic, providing frontline care and supporting the NHS. Our services help people to stay out of hospital, relieving pressure on the system and providing vital, specialist care for people unlikely to make a recovery. Locally, the Marie Curie Hospice, Bradford, is a warm and welcoming place, where we have been providing expert care to people with a terminal illness, and their loved ones for 20 years now. .

So when a child needs a helping hand, we’ll be there. When parents are finding it tough, we’ll help. When laws need to change, or governments need to do more, we won’t give up until things improve. Our Childline service provides a safe, confidential place for children with no one else to turn to, whatever their worry, whenever they need help. Children can contact Childline 365 days a year. Our free NSPCC helpline provides adults with a place they can get advice and support, share their concerns about a child or get general information about child protection. Adults can contact the helpline 365 days a year.

The Island believes in care, responsibility, respect and compassion resulting in positive outcomes on children and young people’s attitudes, behaviour and skills. We support then to become more effective individuals who are then able to engage and contribute to their community. The Island is more determined than ever to continuing making a difference in supporting, guiding and positively influencing the lives of all children and young people in the city of York and beyond, regardless of their socioeconomic circumstances or life experiences. For more information please visit The Island website: www.theislandyork.org

Distilling the essence of business support Forged in Wakefield is a craft gin producer, which, as you might expect, is based in Wakefield! The company produce small batch organic and vegan-certified gin, they have A London Dry gin they call “The Original” a Navy Strength gin aptly named “Yorkshire Strength” and six flavoured gins ranging from Sherbet Lemon to Passionfruit. Set up by husband and wife team, Gary and Victoria Ford, Forged in Wakefield started trading in January 2019. The pair had dreamt of setting up the company for some years as they enjoyed producing home-made wines and beers. But to produce spirits they had to go through a complex process of securing licences and approval from HMRC, as well as pulling on savings and credit cards to fund the launch. Gary admits the early days were tough. “It took around six months to gain all the licences required to run a distillery. It was a massive learning curve and we nearly gave up at one point.” The business has plans to move into new premises later this year. Gary and Victoria both still work full-time; Gary as an I.T Architect and Victoria as a Nursing Sister at Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield. They currently sell online via their website and to farm shops, bars, restaurants and clubs. Gary and Victoria turned to AD:VENTURE to help with scaling up the business. Their current set-up

means they can only produce 90 or so bottles per batch. They have also been using ‘off-the-shelf’ bottles from a supplier in France and wanted to move manufacturing to Yorkshire and create a customised bottle. Gary says: “The still we are using has a capacity of just 100 litres and is a major bottleneck to future growth. We desperately need a larger still to cope with demand, but also one that would serve as a visual centerpiece to our planned distillery and allow us to produce vodka and rum.” The couple were given a business adviser by AD:VENTURE and they attended AD:VENTURE workshops on topics from business planning to procurement. They also successfully applied for a £25,000 growth grant through AD:VENTURE. The grant means Gary and Victoria can purchase a much larger still, which can produce 300 litres of gin per batch. It can also be used for the production of vodka and rum, part of their expansion plans. The advice they received about procurement has enabled them to source a bottle producer in Yorkshire, thus reducing their carbon footprint and helping the local economy. The customised bottle is currently being designed. They are due to move into the prestigious Tileyard North, the new creative business centre being built at the former Rutland Mills next to the Hepworth in Wakefield later this year,

where they plan to have a bar, run a gin school and offer tasting sessions. The increased activity means they plan to take on at least five staff by the end of 2021 to help increase output, while keeping the focus on the same B2B model of supplying farm shops, bars, restaurants, and clubs, and selling online. They are currently in negotiations to export to bars in Norway. “AD:VENTURE were a great help. They took the business plan from a rudimentary document to something that can support real business growth. They helped nurture us through the supply chain selection process,” says Gary. “They are happy to help in any way they can and are great at putting you in touch with other areas of local government that can help support growth.” “The advisors helped us to assess our supplier selection process with a critical eye, for example advising us to get quotes from three different suppliers before deciding who to procure from and weighting those suppliers with key selection criteria. They educated us. They opened doorways and our eyes to other ways of doing things. “There’s so much help available that our only regret is that there is only the two of us and we don’t have the time to take all the help that is out there,” says Gary.

West & North Yorkshire Business

SUPPORT 47

West & North Yorkshire Business

48 WEST & NORTH YORKSHIRE CHAMBER

Sandy Needham, Victoria Wainwright and Amanda Beresford at the Annual General Meeting

Laurence Beardmore, Marc Davies, Vincent Hodder and Chris Black

Vincent Hodder, Leeds Bradford Airport

West & North Yorkshire Business

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 49

Vincent Hodder, Amanda Beresford and Sandy Needham

Amanda Beresford

West & North Yorkshire Business

Leeds Chamber Annual Dinner 13 October 2021

Joanna Place Chief Operating Officer Bank of England

The highlight of the Leeds business calendar – the Leeds Chamber Annual Dinner celebrates the success of the business community in Leeds, this black-tie event is being held at Aspire in Leeds, and will be attended by VIPs, dignitaries, councillors, leaders and local businesses.

Following Joanna will be comedian Kerry Godliman who is best known for her appearances on BBC’s Mock the Week, Live at the Apollo, Jack Dee’s Referendum HelpDesk, Celebrity Pointless and Channel 4’s 8 Out Of 10 Cats, Comedy Gala in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital’.

Sponsors for this event include Schofield Sweeney, Social and Henry Boot Developments

We will end the evening with a Charity Prize Draw for the NSPCC and entertainment until 11pm.

This prestigious event will give you the opportunity to network with your business contacts and create and maintain those all-important business relationships, entertain your clients and reward your teams.

The NSPCC is the leading children’s charity fighting to end child abuse in the UK and Channel Islands. Using voluntary donations, which make up around 90 per cent of their funding, they help children who’ve been abused to rebuild their lives, they protect children at risk, and they find the best ways of preventing child abuse from ever happening.

Join us for a gala dinner followed by our keynote speaker – Joanna Place, Chief Operating Officer, Bank of England. Joanna was appointed Chief Operating Officer on 27 July 2017. Previous roles at the Bank include Executive Director of HR, Head of Customer Banking Division (playing a key role in the financial crisis), Head of Monetary and Financial Statistics Division; and Director of Regulatory Operations, Prudential Regulation Authority. Joanna also had a secondment to the Border Agency (2004-2007).

The NSPCC works tirelessly to stop child abuse and neglect. Through the collective power of their staff, volunteers, supporters and partners, and their 100 years of experience; they will move closer to achieving that goal. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online at wnychamber.co.uk/events If you would like to sponsor this event, please email michele.taylor@wnychamber.co.uk to discuss the opportunities available.

West & North Yorkshire Business

Bradford Chamber Annual Dinner 25 November 2021

Join us for this prestigious black-tie gala dinner at The Midland Hotel, Bradford - sponsors include Exa Networks, Metro Bank and Bradford Grammar School. This event is at the heart of the Bradford business calendar and will be attended by local business leaders, councillors and dignitaries. An opportunity not to be missed, this event will give you the opportunity to network with your business contacts and create new connections to generate those all-important business relationships, bring your clients along or reward your teams for their hard work and commitment. After a 3-course dinner we will be joined by our keynote speaker – Steph McGovern Award-winning journalist and broadcaster Steph McGovern is the presenter of the eponymous Steph’s Packed Lunch, Channel 4’s daily live lunchtime show. Steph is also one of the hosts of Have I Got News For You on BBC One and regularly appears on TV and radio panel shows. Prior to this, Steph worked in financial journalism for over 15 years and spent 8 years on BBC Breakfast, travelling all over the UK to cover economic news and broadcast live from over 500 businesses. Whether speaking to factory workers or FTSE 100 CEOs, Steph’s mission was to uncover

Steph McGovern Journalist and broadcaster

and explain the real economy. This is something she has continued in her Channel 4 show, with regular features such as her Small Business Market and Job Clinic. Before becoming a correspondent, Steph was the lead producer of financial news for the BBC, working with then Business Editor Robert Peston at the forefront of the award-winning coverage of the credit crunch and banking crisis. She soon began broadcasting herself, and Steph delivered the business news on 5Live, Radio 4 and on the Chris Evans show on Radio 2 before getting a fulltime role on BBC Breakfast. We will end the evening with a Charity Prize Draw for Marie Currie and entertainment until 11pm. As the UK’s leading end of life charity, Marie Curie is here to support everyone in the UK through all aspects of dying, death and bereavement – and to fight for a society where everyone gets to have the best experience possible at the end of their lives. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online at wnychamber.co.uk/events If you would like to sponsor this event, please email michele.taylor@wnychamber.co.uk to discuss the opportunities available.

West & North Yorkshire Business

52 SOCIAL

What you missed online The Chamber has seen great activity across all social media platforms in the past several months. The selected posts below are examples of some of the valuable information and discussions shared by the Chamber and our members on a daily basis. We would love to know your thoughts on this quarter’s magazine and your local Chamber. What would you like to know more about or see more of in the future? Did any articles stand out to you? Get involved with the regional business discussion on Twitter by tagging us @WNYChamber and mentioning #YorkshireBusiness.

Our profiles Twitter @WNYChamber

LinkedIn West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce

Facebook West and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce

West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce British Chambers of Commerce Accredited

West & North Yorkshire Business

54 EVENTS Learning Lunch – How to Write a Press Release 11th October 12pm – 2pm at Clockwise Leeds.

Women’s Networking Lunch This is a fantastic opportunity to build relationships and rapport with other business professionals during this networking lunch on 21 October at Bibi’s Restaurant, Leeds. Re-connect with your contacts and generate new ones at the pre-lunch networking, enjoy a 2- course lunch and share knowledge / challenges within the business women community and over coffee hear from our guest speaker Professor Udy Archibong PhD MBE, Pro-Vice Chancellor (Equality, Diversity & Inclusion), University of Bradford.

Making the news should not be something to fear. By utilising the right tactics, working with the press can be mutually beneficial, commercially rewarding and reputation enhancing. Effective media communication is simply a case of knowing what to say, how and when to say it and of course to make sure you’re providing professionally written, credible and newsworthy content! This learning lunch is designed to give you the top tips from former journalist, PR consultant and past president of Bradford Chamber, Suzanne Watson. As managing director of multi-award-winning Approach PR, and with a media career spanning 30 years, Suzanne has written both in the role of journalist and PR consultant, communicating key commercial messages in a newsworthy and engaging way.

Learning Lunch - How to Manage Mental Health in the Workplace 12th November 12pm – 2pm at Devere House, Bradford

Did you know that mental health is estimated to cost the UK economy £70bn-£100bn every year? Break that down per organisation and it’s a sizeable sum. Staff mental health, which includes workplace stress, anxiety and depression, is taking up an ever-increasing amount of time for those responsible for managing staff absence. Legally, there should be no distinction between physical and psychological illness, but mental illness is one of the most difficult issues employers must handle. Mishandling a mental health problem could trigger a constructive dismissal claim and may also lead to a claim for disability discrimination and personal injury.

York Executive Networking Lunch 4 October 2021 : The Grand Hotel, York Speaker: Helen Simpson – Chair Y&NY LEP Helen will share with us the work and priorities and the focus for the future of the York & North Yorkshire LEP followed by Q&A. Born and bred in Yorkshire, Helen is an experienced Chair and Board Member, with a track record in leading organisations whilst undergoing change, including enabling digital innovation, business growth and community development.

Online Networking 6th December 9:30am – 10:30am

As the majority of businesses are working more online it’s important that we network online too. Build relationships and rapport with other business professionals during this networking event. You will have the opportunity to deliver your elevator pitch, listen to what others have to offer, and discuss and share knowledge and challenges.

View all upcoming events at wnychamber.co.uk/events

Afordable health cover that puts my staf frst and works harder to keep them healthy... Works for me. westfeldhealth.com

Your membership of The British Chambers of Commerce gives you access to innovative, afordable health cover with an exclusive range of benefts. Together, we’ve developed the Chamber Primary Health Plan that will work harder to make your staf feel more valued and motivated, and encourage them to be more proactive about their health.

The plan helps policyholders to access essential healthcare, diagnosis and treatment, provides money back towards selected medical expenses, and can be combined with our hospital treatment insurance to provide truly continuous cover. As a leading provider of corporate health insurance, nobody works harder to keep your employees at their ft and healthy best than Westfeld Health.

To discover the full benefts of harder working health cover, contact us now.

08455 240 240 wnychamber.co.uk/healthcare-chamber-primaryhealth-plan

Hassle free home working Enabled by CityFibre The office feels like a distant memory for many, but it’s not quite the same when downloads take an age and video calls keep cutting out. Wouldn’t it be great if everything just... worked? That’s why we’re building a new Full Fibre network. It’s the best technology for the job and it gives you access to fast reliable internet services from a choice of broadband providers.

Find out more cityfibre.com/wny

West & North Yorkshire Business Q3 2021

Articles inside

EVENTS

EVENTS

PROFILE

INTERNATIONAL

TRANSPORT

REPRESENTATION

REPRESENTATION

SOCIAL IMPACT

EDUCATION

ENVIRONMENT

ENVIRONMENT

ENVIRONMENT

ENVIRONMENT

REGIONAL NEWS

ENVIRONMENT

ENVIRONMENT

ENVIRONMENT

MEMBERS’ NEWS

ENVIRONMENT