REPRESENTATION

Changing of the guard on policy leadership groups

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

New steering group members

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. 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/