News: Grimm & Co. opens a new chapter for Rotherham

San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C, London, Dublin, Rotherham - locations for innovative literacy projects that bring truly unique retail offerings to the High Street.

Rotherham's version is Grimm & Co, a Yorkshire charity, that has today launched an Apothecary to the Magical, selling wild schemes, evil plots, charms, curses and kitchenware, including "giant belly button cleaners" for removing pesky stray chickens and "suspension of disbelief."

In each case, the shop is a façade, and although they sell products, like any other, it is all part of creating a fantastical destination. Grimm & Co works around the region and aims to unlock imaginations, engage, enthuse and inspire children and young people in the literary arts. It has created a fantastical retail destination in Rotherham to inspire children to work without knowing they are working, and increase participation in literacy projects through a creative writing and mentoring centre.

Converting the former Town Gate pub on Doncaster Gate at the foot of the High Street, the centre above the shop is expecting that over 1,300 young people will be able to take part in writing classes in the first year of Grimm & Co through story making workshops, school writing programmes, after school clubs and holiday camps for 7-18 year olds.

Books, albums, films, comics and all things written will be created by young people themselves, expanding their minds while absorbing the message that writing is everywhere and it can be enjoyed by everyone.

Supporters include Arts Council England, Big Lottery – Reaching Communities, Clore Duffield Foundation and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. The project has been created with support from local businesses, including Side by Side who have gifted over £90,000 of their time to create the branding, design and keep it true to the background story. Techspray installed the twisted beanstalk slide that provides an exhilarating reward to children after a writing session; and Willmott Dixon installed the huge bookcase and secret door.

Deborah Bullivant, founder of Grimm & Co, said: "Rotherham has been through the mill in recent years in terms of perceptions, and the latest convictions for child abuse last week have made matters worse. What we aim to show is that there is much more to Rotherham, the real Rotherham that I know has amazing community spirit and some great talent. We are providing a place, which is dedicated to building aspirations, writing, creativity and inspiring the future of Yorkshire's next generation."

The idea for Grimm & Co was inspired by the Dave Eggers' 2008 TED Talk on people engaging with local schools, the work of 826 Valencia that he established in San Francisco (a Pirate Supply Store), and the Ministry of Stories in London (Hoxton St. Monster Supplies).

The story behind Grimm & Co (Graham Grimm was a Yorkshire businessman, born 1148, just before lunchtime, who spotted a gap in the market), was written by Jeremy Dyson, a non-acting member of the League of Gentleman and co-writer of the West End play, Ghost Stories.

Jeremy Dyson, writer and trustee of Grimm & Co, said: "When I was a kid growing up in Leeds, I hungered for anything that fuelled my imagination. You knew such places existed in London – but closer to home they were much rarer. Grimm and Co would have blown my young mind, and I know it can inspire and champion the creativity of every child who passes through its magical doors."

The new charity is also supported by writers and celebrities, who attended the opening of Grimm & Co, including Joanne Harris, Ian McMillan, and Paul Clayton. Sir Bob Geldof is also a patron and has written a short story, "Most of my life I've spent invisibly", as a way of demonstrating support to Grimm & Co and this will be available within the tin of "invisibility" on sale in store.

Grimm & Co website

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News: Key FARRRS route opens

The first part of the key Finningley And Rossington Regeneration Route Scheme (FARRRS) is set to open to traffic today - the £56m project is set to slash journey times from Sheffield city centre to Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield to 25 minutes.

With £18m from the Government's Regional Growth Fund and money from airport owners and significant land-holders, Peel, and developers such as Harworth Estates, it is estimated to result in £1 billion of further investment and 14,000 jobs by providing a new highway from the M18 at junction 3 to Bawtry Road close to the airport, with links into Rossington village and the iPort development.

One of the new developments includes the regeneration of the former Rossington Colliery which will be accessed by a link from West End Lane in Rossington to FARRRS. The finishing touches are being made to this section and it will open within a few weeks.

1,200 new homes are planned at Rotherham-based developers, Harworth Estates' Torne Park, the former Rossington Colliery site. Construction began last year on the brownfield regeneration scheme which is expected to take ten years to complete.

Ros Jones, Mayor of Doncaster, said: "We have been committed to opening the new airport link road as soon it's ready and I am delighted that road users will shortly be able to take advantage of the significant travel benefits it delivers.

"The new road is also a route to jobs and growth. The £400m iPort is progressing well, new homes are going up at the former Rossington Colliery site and with a host of new European flights announced by Doncaster Sheffield Airport it is already proving to be an economic success for Doncaster and the wider Sheffield City Region."

Tim Love, director at Harworth Estates, said last year: "Transport is a key issue because currently getting in and out of Rossington is a tortuous experience. FARRRS creates a whole new entrance to the village and will mean you can get to Doncaster town centre in about ten minutes. The regeneration of the site wouldn't be happening without FARRRS.

"I must admit, when I first walked on the tarmac of the new road I got a real buzz because I remember when it looked like a war zone."

The Doncaster Council led FARRRS project is also supported financially by the Growing Places Fund and the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership. The main contractor is Carillion and the designer is Mott MacDonald.

£9.1m is set to be made available to complete the important project with plans being finalised for a second phase that will see FARRRS extended from Bawtry Road to Hurst Lane where it will meet up with the existing airport access road.

The funding is set to come from the Sheffield city region investment fund for strategic infrastructure investment (SCRIF) - a framework of funding streams to deliver essential strategic infrastructure to increase economic growth and jobs in Sheffield city region.

Doncaster Council is leading the project and is set to put forward the remaining £1.455m of the estimated costs needed to complete the road.

Flights from Doncaster on eight new Flybe routes begin at the end of March.

Doncaster Council website

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News: Williams & Glyn name to return to Rotherham

Williams & Glyn, a bank brand that has been dormant for 30 years, will soon return to Rotherham's High Street.

The historic bank building on the High Street in the town centre is one of over 300 branches in the UK that The Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) must sell after a European Commission ruling following its 2008 government bail-out.

The process began in 2013 after a delayed deal collapsed that would have seen Spanish banking group, Santander, buy 316 RBS branches. A £600m pre-IPO investment was announced which paved the way for a initial public offering and the selling of shares as the brand is separated from RBS and operates as a standalone "challenger" bank - Williams & Glyn.

Whilst continuing preparations for an IPO, RBS has said that it plans to sell the business by the end of 2016 having received a number of informal offers.

Now, a planning application has been submitted for new signage at the Rotherham branch that signifies that it is ready to be transferred to the new William & Glyn operation.

Even when the name above the door and uniforms change, customers will still be RBS customers until Williams & Glyn is legally separated to become a standalone bank "by the end of 2016."

RBS submitted a banking licence application for Williams & Glyn at the end of 2015 and is working with the financial authorities towards obtaining the licence and separating the business from RBS.

Ross McEwan, CEO at RBS, said: "Separating out the Williams & Glyn business is a complex process, but we remain focused on meeting our State Aid obligation, achieving full divestment by the end of 2017, and reaching the best outcome for shareholders, customers, and staff."

RBS has 1,600 branches, down from 2,200 in 2010. It recently reported a £2bn annual loss for 2015.

The Rotherham branch has its history in the Sheffield & Rotherham Joint Stock Banking Co Ltd (1792-1907) which was a past constituent of RBS. The bank was established in 1792 by famous Rotherham steelmakers, the Walker brothers; along with Vincent Eyre, agent of the Duke of Norfolk (the principal landowner in the area); and William Stanley, a local businessman described as a "gentleman well-known and much respected at Rotherham."

Walkers, Eyre & Stanley was renamed Walkers & Stanley in 1829 and in 1836 the business was sold for £27,000 to a new joint-stock company, Sheffield & Rotherham Joint Stock Banking Co. The bank grew rapidly but the business was not without problems. Major accounting deficiencies were discovered during the 1840s and bad debts soared during the local commercial depression of the late 1870s.

In 1907, with a paid-up capital of £256,000, the bank was acquired by Williams Deacon's Bank Ltd of London and Manchester. This was later acquired by RBS and amalgamated with other acquired networks to form Williams & Glyn's Bank in 1970.

The Grade II listed building that stands at the foot of Rotherham's High Street today was built in 1892 possibly on the site of the "OLD BANK / FOUNDED 1792" as the sign above the doorway reads. The impressive building is notable for its polished granite columns.

RBS website

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News: Former Sarclad staff face criminal charges

Two former employees of Sarclad, a Rotherham-based specialist in technology based products for the metal industry, have been charged with bribery and corruption offences.

The firm is a world leader in providing technology-based products to assist metal producers reduce manufacturing costs and improve product quality. Over the last 30 years the company has grown and expanded around the world and now supplies quality equipment to all of the leading steel manufacturers and suppliers across 46 different countries.

Michael Sorby, former director and Adrian Leek, former sales manager, of Sarclad Limited, appeared before Westminster Magistrates' Court yesterday, both charged with one count of conspiracy to corrupt, contrary to section 1 Prevention of Corruption Act 1906 and one count of conspiracy to bribe under s.1 Bribery Act 2010.

The alleged offences are said to have taken place between June 1 2004 and June 13 2012 and concern financial inducements offered to secure contracts for Sarclad.

The next hearing in this case will take place at Southwark Crown Court on March 24 2016.

Sarclad relocated from Chesterfield to 13,597 sq ft of office space at the Evolution development on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham, opening the new facilities in July 2012. The move involved a £1.6m investment by the manufacturers.

In November 2015, the firm expanded into an adjoining unit taking an additional 14,000 sq ft of primarily production engineering space.

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) began its investigation in June 2013. The Financial Times reported last year that Sarclad could be the first company to enter into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the SFO. A DPA is a US-style agreement that allows a company to reach an agreement with a prosecutor to avoid a criminal conviction and is likely to result in a financial punishment. The Sarclad case is also thought to be one of the first involving allegations of bribery under the Bribery Act 2010, which came into force in 2011.

Sarclad website

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News: Pricecheck invests £1m in new site

Award-winning firm, Pricecheck Toiletries has used the move to new premises at Beighton Link Business Park in Rotherham, to celebrate its Queen's Award win that recognised excellence in international trade.

Pricecheck is a second generation family owned business, established in 1978 by the parents of Mark Lythe and Debbie Harrison who now run the company as joint managing directors. Pricecheck is a leading supplier of international branded consumer goods, working predominately in the health and beauty sector, dealing with discounted clearance stock. Pricecheck sell to a variety of outlets in its global network, including discount retailers, independent retailers, wholesalers, pharmacies, mail order companies and internet retailers.

As the UK's highest accolade for business success, it is custom for winning companies to be presented their award by one of Her Majesty The Queen's representatives whose planned attendance tied in perfectly with the families business expansion.

The Lord Lieutenant of South Yorkshire and The Lord Mayor of Sheffield were at the new site alongside members of the 83 strong staff force and representatives from agencies that made the move possible - Fernie Greaves, DLA Piper, Monaghans, SDE Group, Henderson Hall Rhodes and Lloyds Bank.

Mark Lythe, joint managing director at Pricecheck, said: "The move has been in the pipeline for just over a year now. Our Queen's Award win gave Pricecheck an incredible platform to build upon our export success and contributed greatly towards our 2015 figures seeing company turnover reach £40.5m. Now that we are no longer constrained by the size of our previous building, we expect to see an increase of 20% by the end of our first year in the new building."

In total, the cost of the company move has reached £1m with considerable funds spent on transforming the Beighton building from a manufacturing site into a distribution centre. A purpose built, narrow aisle racking system was put into place to achieve this along with new fork lift trucks and tailored staff training.

The new premises certainly has ample room for the businesses ambitious future growth plans. The warehouse is able to accommodate 40% more than previously achievable and offices have tripled in size.

Lucy Goddard, HR manager at Pricecheck, said: "We are delighted to have retained all of our 83 members of staff through the move and are immensely proud of everyone's efforts, working tirelessly to complete this relocation project in time for the planned opening. We predict staff numbers to further increase to 150 over the next five years and have every confidence this expansion will aid our company's aspirations."

Debbie Harrison, joint managing director at Pricecheck, added: "With the additional space we now have the luxury to expand all areas of the business. We intend to widen our product categories, increase stock levels and endeavour to trade in further unexplored prospective territories in addition to the 75 countries we currently export to. Our parents and company founders Doug and Moira Lythe built Mark and I a firm foundation in the discount market sector. We are keen to continue what they started and leave a lasting legacy in the future."

Pricecheck website

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News: Still no details on closure of BIS office

The Government has still not revealed how much it stands to save by closing a Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) office in Sheffield despite repeated calls to do so at a Parliamentary debate secured by Rother Valley MP, Sir Kevin Barron.

Plans were announced last month to close the office in the prime St Paul's Place location by 2018 as the department creates a combined central HQ and policy centre in London. The closure could result in job losses among the 247 staff in the office.

Members from across the Sheffield city region attended the debate and pressed Minister for Universities and Science, Joseph Johnson, on exact reasons why the decision to close the Sheffield office was made and described how it was at odds with the Northern Powerhouse idea of rebalancing the economy.

Kevin Barron said in the debate: "BIS sites such as the Sheffield site ought to be in the vanguard of helping the Government to rebalance the economy and supporting such rebalancing in the sectors that are most prevalent in their respective regions. It seems particularly strange that BIS, with its supposed ambition to create more geographically balanced growth, should take this decision, when other Departments, such as the Department for Education, plan to remain in Sheffield.

"This move is all about, I believe, accommodating large reductions in headcount and nothing to do with the Department's core function of boosting business."

The MP also discussed previous plans to move vast numbers of civil servants out of Whitehall and London and the shelved plans for a government office campus at Waverley in Rotherham.

Rotherham MP Sarah Champion added: "We have 247 staff now facing redundancy, having been informed that their jobs would be moving to London. The Government have described this as a transfer, yet they offer no guarantee that those affected will be allowed to transfer if they so wish, only that they "may be able to." For those facing such uncertain futures, that is small comfort.

"Moving the office responsible for the so called Northern Powerhouse down to London is bad enough; but giving dedicated civil servants false hope is something else entirely.

"This decision shows a complete lack of common-sense, along with everything else. The Government have still not released a detailed study. Indeed, as the permanent secretary suggested under questioning from Sheffield Central MP Paul Blomfield, such a report may not even exist."

A report which influenced the decision called "BIS2020" set out the vision for the department responsible for economic growth. Kevin Barron asked for the report to be made public, saying: "That report was created by public money and we have the right to see the business case for the change. And I will tell you who has the right to see it more than anyone else: the 247 people who have this cloud hanging over them. I urge the Government to publish the facts, so that we can properly review the decision."

When asked how much money is saved specifically by moving 247 policy jobs from Sheffield to London, the Government has so far said that "it is difficult to disaggregate a specific item in an overall programme change."

Joseph Johnson explained that: "The overall BIS 2020 programme is a holistic system change of working for the Department that will deliver savings of 30% to 40%, worth £350m, overall. It involves bringing down the number of locations from which we operate from about 80 to approximately seven centres of excellence, supported by a regional footprint for work at a local level."

As part of the initiative, the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) office in Manvers, Rotherham is under threat as Whitehall departments will be withdrawing their funding for the commission during the 2016-17 financial year.

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News: Devolution on the agenda in Rotherham

Rotherham Council is close to endorsing the proposed Sheffield city region (SCR) devolution deal with the Government that is set to bring with it some £900m of additional cash over the next thirty years to deliver major regeneration, infrastructure and business growth schemes.

Chancellor George Osborne was in Rotherham on the eve of the Conservative Party Conference in October to sign the deal with local council leaders that make up the Combined Authority (CA), and the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) - the private sector led approach to providing the strategic leadership required to set out local economic priorities.

It was only the second time in the country that such an agreement has been reached and for the SCR it is focused on economic themes such as skills, employment, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, housing, business growth and transport. In return, the Government will require a directly elected Mayor across South Yorkshire to hold accountability for the new powers. Elections could take place as soon as May 2017 and the Mayor will chair the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority, the members of which will serve as the Mayor's Cabinet.

The signing of the "in-principle" agreement signalled the start of the negotiations which included some public consultation and requires the deal to be signed off by all constituent councils.

The deal includes a new gain share deal within an envelope of £30m a year for 30 years – giving the SCR the power to use new funding to boost local growth and invest in local manufacturing and innovation.

Further resources are due to be put at the SCR's disposal as part of the "single pot" agreed under the devolution deal. Estimates for this additional share of national funding streams to be included within the single SCR pot have been in excess of a further £1 billion but this is still being quantified through discussions with Government departments.

A report to Rotherham Council's full council meeting next month outlines what the borough can expect to get out of the deal. This includes supporting the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District (AMID) idea which could lead to 3,500 jobs in the first five years of industrial-focused development sites.

On skills and employment the deal is expected to: support the creation of a University Campus within Rotherham town centre; prioritise the continued support for enterprising young people through Rotherham Youth Enterprise (RYE); provide a greater ability to directly fund and commission local solutions to tackle unemployment; increase the number of apprenticeships offered by Rotherham employers; give a greater say over adult skills funding.

On business support, Rotherham is to play a part in enhanced offerings stemming from the recently launched SCR Growth Hub. This includes a proposed Launch Pad project delivering a £3.9m programme of business support, backed by European funding. A project based on support to help existing businesses to grow and inward investment is also being developed with input from Rotherham Council.

A report to Sheffield Council's Overview & Scrutiny Management Committee last year highlighted "a number of challenges" with the proposals which Sheffield and SCR were keen pursue further with Government. Namely, the issue that only the voters of South Yorkshire council areas in SCR will be able to vote in the proposed Mayoral election; that the Government has set out that the mayor would essentially have veto over decisions at the Combined Authority; that more control should be handed over on issues regarding 16-18 vocational skills; and that housing remains a largely centralised policy area.

There is now provision to give greater flexibility to the five district councils within the Sheffield City Region to become full, constituent members of the CA and "it has expressly been confirmed that there is no in-built "mayoral veto" within the proposal. The relationship between the CA and the SCR Mayor is a matter that can be dealt with through a detailed refresh of the CA's constitution."

Steve Eling, policy & partnership officer at Rotherham Council put together the report recommending that the council delegates authority to the new chief executive, Sharon Kemp to consent to an enabling order that would mean that the new Mayoral Combined Authority would exist. The proposal means that central Government can develop the necessary legislation to put it on a statutory footing during 2016/17.

Eling explained: "The reason for this recommendation is that, although the order will be modest in scope, the legislation does specifically require each constituent council within the SCR to consent to the making of the order, and this must be done by May 2016.

"From a practical point of view, it would be difficult to arrange a further Council meeting to approve the order when the final text is issued. All SCR member authorities, as part of the local ratification process, are therefore being asked to agree to delegate authority to their chief executives to provide the required consent to the enabling order, in due course.

"The more significant matters of detail with regard to functions, governance, finance and electoral arrangements will be contained in later legislative orders which will also require formal consent. These must be approved by the end of June to meet the parliamentary timetable."

Rotherham Council website
Sheffield City Region LEP website

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News: Funding gives Horbury Group firm foundation for growth

Rotherham construction group, Horbury, is reporting a strong order book and has already secured £14.9m of orders for the 2016/17 financial year.

From its headquarters in the Moorgate area, the group combines a number of subsidiaries that specialise in areas including joinery, ceilings, dry lining, health and safety training, and recruitment.

Horbury has published its first financial results since securing £2.5m from the Business Growth Fund (BGF) and a £6m funding package from HSBC. The finance secured in 2014 was to support a move to tender for larger, and a greater quantity of, projects and significantly increase its workforce.

For the year to May 31 2015, the group reported a turnover of £50.9m, down from the £53.1m in the previous year. This meant that a pre-tax loss of £375,620 was posted for 2015, compared with a profit of £84,046 in 2014. Horbury said it was working in a market where "competition for resource is driving cost inflation."

The report stated: "Whilst Group turnover decreased by £2.2m or 4.1% between 2014 and 2015, this was a result of the board's deliberate strategy of targeting more lucrative contracts with higher gross profits, rather than buying work at lower margins. The successful outcome was an increase in gross profit percentage from 13.2% in 2014 to 14.1% in 2015, with the resulting gross profit being £0.2m higher in 2015 than in 2014."

The report also shows that the BGF - which was established in 2011 to help Britain's growing smaller and medium sized businesses and is backed by Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and Standard Chartered - invested again in Horbury with a further £1m in loan notes in June 2015 as well as committing to an additional £1m of funding over the next 12 months to help the group meet its growth aspirations.

Looking ahead, Horbury is reporting a strong order book and that sales are expected to be delivered at gross profit margins above those seen in 2015. It adds: "Orders worth £14.9m have already been secured for 2016/17, which coupled with the continuing improvement in both the economy and construction sector, lead the board to be confident about the group's financial performance going forward."

The Horbury Group, which formed in Sheffield in 1993 as Horbury Building Systems, has gone from strength-to-strength over recent years, increasing its turnover from £1.4m in its first year. Expanding nationwide, the company already has a workforce of 800 people.

Subsidiaries provide internal fit out services including partitioning, ceilings, joinery and flooring to major construction companies including Carillion, Balfour Beatty, Kier, and Shepherd Construction. They have worked on a range of high profile projects including the Manchester Civil Justice Centre and The Co-operative's headquarters in Manchester (pictured), the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham and the City Lofts development at St Paul's Place in Sheffield.

Horbury Group website

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News: Beatson Clark shows its craft

A standard embossed beer bottle from Rotherham glass packaging manufacturer, Beatson Clark has been chosen by Ridgeway Brewery of Oxfordshire to bottle its extensive range of craft beers.

The Greasborough Road firm, which has been making glass bottles and jars in Rotherham since 1751, specialises in providing glass packaging solutions for niche brands in the food, drink and pharmaceutical markets worldwide.

The company has been targeting the growing craft beer market and the rising number of smaller niche brewers who require bespoke or tailored packaging in smaller runs. Beatson Clark's new smaller 330ml amber bottle has the words "Craft Beer" embossed around the shoulder and is ideal for the new generation of ales which often have a higher alcohol content by volume.

Peter Scholey, co-owner of Ridgeway Brewery and its sister company Beer Counter, was formerly head brewer at the neighbouring Brakspear Brewery. He said: "While the UK ales market has long been mostly in 500ml bottles the 330ml market is growing. For some time there has been a variety of 500ml bottles available but the choice in 330ml has been very limited, so Beatson Clark's initiative to offer subtle changes to a standard range provides the opportunity to do something about that.

"We are a bottled beer only business selling absolutely nothing to pubs so we have to be good at bottled beer. We produce not only our own Ridgeway beers but also a number of bespoke lines, particularly lagers, for the restaurant and wholesale trade.

"Because of that the opportunity to use a generic "Craft Beer" branded bottle is ideal for what we do and matches the profile of both our beers and our customers."

Ridgeway hasn't been tempted to follow other breweries down the aluminium cans route. Peter added: "Right now craft canned beer is very trendy – bizarrely there is even an idea in some circles that a can is somehow better quality than glass packaging. That notion is complete rubbish!

"Canned beer is inevitably inferior because of the difficulties in eliminating oxygen from the package, and even more so when small-scale packaging is considered."

Music to the ears of Beatson Clark, whose embossed standard bottles are proving to be an effective and affordable option for small breweries.

Alison Hughes, business development manager at Beatson Clark, said: "Our new embossed standard 330ml beer bottle is ideal for small breweries who want to differentiate their product on the shelf, and if you’re looking for a unique embossed container our designers can produce a bespoke bottle tailored to the product.

"We can also customise our standard containers by having the brewery's name, logo or strapline embossed onto the bottle. This is more cost-effective than investing in a fully bespoke design and it allows for the bottle to be manufactured in smaller volumes."

The historic company, now part of the Newship Group, has recently put in place a long term, £12m investment programme in Rotherham.

Beatson Clark website

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News: Rotherham Interchange nearly beyond repair

A decision on the future of Rotherham's bus station will need to be made quickly after new tests discovered that the multi storey car park is "nearing the point of being beyond economic repair."

The interchange in Rotherham town centre also includes a retail development covering 55,000 sq ft, consisting of 18 units and 750 parking spaces. It is owned by commercial property developers, Norseman Holdings, with the interchange and car park leased to South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), the organisation that takes the lead to develop the region's transport network.

Opened in 1971, the car park has since developed widespread defects and the existing tight spaces and drab appearance mean that occupancy levels only average approximately one third of its 678 capacity.

Typical defects include extensive corrosion to imbedded steel reinforcement. As a consequence there has been spalling (breaking into fragments) in the columns, beams, up-stands, curbs and structural topping to the decks. Additionally a remedial waterproof deck had failed and steel tie-bars were corroding.

The car park requires £4m worth of repairs and plans have been approved for the detailed design of the renovation and re-cladding of the four-storey car park. However, the start date of the refurbishment was delayed following a decision to further investigate alternative development options on the site. The SYPTE, Rotherham Council and Norseman Holdings met in 2013 to discuss potential alternative development options for the site and Norseman committed to review the options of a leisure facility at the site and report back on options.

A cinema and new interchange scheme proposal was developed however the funding to deliver the scheme could not be sourced.

A proposal was also considered to totally reconfigure the layout of the bus station, from a drive through operation to a Drive in Reverse Out (DIRO) interchange.

A decision on whether to carry out the repairs or pursue a larger scale redevelopment has been delayed as the refreshed town centre masterplan takes shape.

At the end of last year, consultants at Arup undertook an inspection of the car park and identified a significant increase in the rate of deterioration of the structure.

A report to the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority Transport Committee states: "This is evidenced by the number of defective columns 1st floor increasing from 12 to 24 out of a total of 70.

"Furthermore, the waterproofing system on the roof deck has now failed and water is passing through the structure more readily which is further exacerbating the situation. Despite the increased rate of deterioration there were no immediate health and safety concerns raised, although it has been advised that the car park is nearing the point of being beyond economic repair."

Further discussions are taking place and a decision was expected this month.

The recently published draft capital strategy from Rotherham Council included an ambition to invest in "Improvements to the Transport Interchange, to address current condition and public safety issues. The aim is to create a new, brighter, safer environment and address some of the issues around CSE in and around the existing Interchange."

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News: Profits up at Harworth Group

Rotherham-based developer Harworth Group plc has delivered a good performance in the first nine months of trading as a standalone business, with increases in the value of its portfolio and in profits.

The group was created in the complex restructure of UK Coal and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. It wholly owns Harworth Estates – one of the UK's largest regeneration companies. Harworth Estates owns and manages 27,000 acres across 200 sites in the North of England and the Midlands. It specialises in transforming brownfield land into residential and commercial developments and low carbon energy projects, in addition to managing a substantial agricultural portfolio.

Coalfield Resources was until December 2012 the parent company of the UK's largest coal miner, UK Coal. In one of the most complex restructurings in UK corporate history, Coalfield Resources, which was previously known as UK Coal plc, split its operating businesses into two separate units - property and mining. A £150m deal took place in 2015 that saw Harworth Estates become completely owned by Coalfield Resources plc, which was subsequently renamed Harworth Group plc.

With a focus on property, the deal and listing on the LSE enabled debt to be refinanced and a new £65m, five year bank facility was secured. Since then, momentum gathered in 2015 and is expected to be maintained through 2016.

Over £20m of acquisitions were made in 2015, which have already increased in value. The focus is on a select number of brownfield sites with higher value enhancement potential and the group expects an acceleration of sales and investment in the portfolio, with further acquisitions expected from 2016 onwards.

For the year to the end of December, Harworth Group posted pre-tax profits of £77.6m - up from £3.5m in the previous year. The figure includes the £44.2m gain arising from the successful acquisition of the remaining 75.1% of Harworth Estates Property Group Limited.

On an underlying basis, operating profit increased to £2.1m from £0.8m in 2014. The group said that the gains in value from disposals and revaluation significantly exceeded expectations with total value gains from disposals of £40.4m, nearly double the £23.6m of the previous year. This resulted in an operating profit, before exceptional items, of £42.6m (2014: £24.4m).

The net assets at the year-end were valued at £297.7m, an increase of £47.4m on a like for like basis from the previous year.

Owen Michaelson, chief executive at Harworth, said: "Building on the success of the first half of the year, I am pleased to report that the first nine months of trading as a standalone business have delivered a good performance, resulting in strong growth in net asset value. Both the Capital Growth and Income Generation segments continued to build on the inherent value in the property portfolio reflecting the strength and experience of the in-house teams.

"The Group is positioned for further growth in net asset value, through the exploitation of portfolio opportunities by optimising land use and securing planning consents on key sites, and with a renewed focus on a smaller number of brownfield sites with greater enhancement potential. With the growth momentum already established in the business, we anticipate a larger number of sales, increased development spend and further acquisitions in 2016. We have entered the new year with confidence, which is demonstrated by the proposed initiation of our dividend policy."

The company, which is based on its flagship Waverley development (pictured) and has 50 staff, added that: "In response to improving sales prospects, capital investment at Logistics North and at the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham has been brought forward, ensuring that there is land available for immediate occupation on the next phases of these developments."

At Waverley, plans are being developed for a local centre and potential offices, a hotel, conference centre, gym, retail units and community facilities to compliment the growing AMP and housing developments. Plans for an additional 3.6 hectares (8.9 acres) of land for employment on the AMP have recently been approved and detailed plans have been submitted for the next 73,000 sq ft of space at the R-evolution development.

Harworth Estates website

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News: Big hitters talk up Northern Powerhouse

As James Wharton MP, the minister with responsibility for the Northern Powerhouse, meets with the chair of the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the commercial secretary to the Treasury, Lord Jim O'Neill, visits the city region to talk about the next steps for the Northern Powerhouse idea and devolution for city regions.

Leaders from the business community – including Sir Nigel Knowles, global co-chairman of DLA Piper and new chair of the Sheffield City Region LEP – joined forces yesterday with James Wharton to identify investment opportunities which could further boost the economy across the north.

Delegates were examining ways to attract investment into the region from overseas. The minister is keen to highlight the potential of the Northern Powerhouse, which if it were a country it would have the 10th largest economy in the whole of Europe.

Speaking after the event, James Wharton said: "The Northern Powerhouse is neither defined by nor controlled from Whitehall. It is a locally based project in which businesses and voters decide what is best for their communities, and how money is best spent.

"So far we have secured a host of devolution deals, and invested in transport, science and the arts across the region. Yet if the Northern Powerhouse were to grow at the same projected rate as the rest of the UK, it would add an extra £37 billion to our national economy by the end of the next decade.

"That is why we are bringing together local leaders to discuss further investment projects to realise our potential. The Northern Powerhouse has massive potential to drive the UK's economy, and its prospects make it a lucrative place to invest and live."

Lord Jim O,Neill, commercial secretary to the Treasury and alumnus of the University of Sheffield, is set to speak at the university tonight. The institution's vice-chancellor, Keith Burnett wrote in the New Statesman this week that plans for the Northern Powerhouse must transcend party politics. He discusses the investment in skills, and the research facilities in universities in the north that can match anything in the south.

He told the publication: "When the Chancellor signed one of his northern devolution deals it mattered that he did so where he did. On the Orgreave site [now the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham] where Arthur Scargill led his members from the National Union of Mineworkers as police clashed with them, Labour leaders signed a deal with a Conservative chancellor, having already seen that a transformation in the north's fortunes was possible.

"The Chancellor's host at the devolution event was Professor Keith Ridgway. In a little over a decade he has transformed this site of industrial decline into the foremost manufacturing innovation centre in the UK and, arguably, the world. Partnering with Boeing, BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and a hundred supply chain companies, what began as a collaborative centre of research into metals and machining is now a major manufacturing research park of the University of Sheffield.

"And, alongside it all, there is a top-quality apprentice training centre in which 600 young people are sponsored by companies to get the best manufacturing and engineering education in the world, their academic achievements fully integrated with company success. This is the part that we need to rebalance our society.

"So what happened when Osborne met Ridgway, when a chancellor met a working-class Mancunian who became a professor of engineering? It was a case of power meets purpose. The Treasury met a man whom the CEOs of great companies – from Korea to the US – and national labs have come to see as a one-man powerhouse, determined to create change.

"I have seen the power of people, the unparalleled effectiveness of someone who sees a problem and cares enough to drive through change. Someone bloody minded enough to believe that a slagheap can become an innovation district, and then make it happen.

"Politicians can argue about whether or not these are Labour or Tory values. I like to think they are as near to British values as we can get."

University of Sheffield website
Sheffield City Region LEP website

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News: Pricecheck make major move

Award-winning Sheffield firm, Pricecheck Toiletries, has made the move to new premises at Beighton Link Business Park in Rotherham, as it gets set to boost staff numbers to 150.


Founded in Sheffield in 1978, the firm supplies value retailers and pharmacies in Europe, Asia and Australasia. Its wide range of branded toiletries, fragrances and household goods includes Gillette, Clearasil and Airwick.

It won the Queen's Award for International Trade 2015 for continuous and cumulative overseas export earnings growth of 283% over six years, from £3m in 2009, to £12m in 2014.

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Moving to 100,000 sq ft premises at Brightside Lane in 2001, the company's success has translated into more jobs for the local area, with staff numbers increasing from 32 to 71.

Now the head office and storage and distribution facilities have relocated to a 113,000 sq ft state of the art building at Beighton Link, just over the border in Rotherham.

The building was previously Sandvik's European Centre of Excellence (SECoE), a £4m facility that opened in 2010 and brought together all the finish processing and supply management activities for the production of medical products from Sandvik's Sheffield facilities. The site was acquired by American contract medical design and manufacturing firm, Orchid, in 2012.

The DLA Piper team advised Pricecheck Toiletries on the creation and adoption of the lease.

Debbie Harrison, joint managing director of Pricecheck Toiletries, said: "We are delighted DLA Piper helped us secure new premises. Given the tight timescales and the logistical complexities in our move their assistance proved invaluable.

"The move will allow us to double our turnover from £40m to an anticipated £80m, and increase staff numbers to 150 over a five year period. Winning the Queen's Award in 2015 has also helped to enhance our reputation worldwide and will help us to achieve more ambitious growth plans."

Mark Keeling, legal director at DLA Piper, added: "This deal marks the next step for Mark and Debbie who have impressively grown Pricecheck over a six year period."

Staff worked last week and over the weekend to make sure Pricecheck were up and running in the new premises this week. It saw new signage and warehouse systems installed and over 700 pallets worth of stock unloaded in one day.

Pricecheck Toiletries website

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News: AMRC up to the test

Experts at the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing (AMRC) have undertaken what is thought to be the UK's first full airworthiness test for 30 years.

Based on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham and a partner in the HVM Catapult (the government's strategic initiative that aims to revitalise the manufacturing industry), the AMRC focuses on advanced machining and materials research for aerospace and other high-value manufacturing sectors.

It houses an Advanced Structural Testing Centre (ASTC) which provides state-of-the-art means, methods and skills to validate engineering materials, components, assemblies and full products.

Lincolnshire-based Game Composites utilised the centre when it needed fatigue testing for a new aerobatics aircraft. The company was founded with the aim of creating an easy handling two seater aircraft that would be recognised as the most fun to fly aircraft in the world.

Although the new GB1 has been designed and built in the UK, Game's initial plan involved shipping the aircraft to the Czech Republic for full airworthiness certification, until Phil Spiers, head of the ASTC became aware of the project.

"When I heard about the plans to design and build an aerobatics aircraft within 60 miles of the AMRC, I was determined that we should keep the whole production process, including testing, inside Britain," says Phil.

The ASTC believes this will be the first time in more than 30 years that a plane has been designed, built and tested in the UK.

"We hadn't done it before but we have the skills and experience in abundance to help this manufacturer get its planes into the sky as quickly as possible," adds Phil.

Engineers at the ASTC designed a bespoke test rig to apply forces up to ten times those exerted by gravity, simulating the forces the aircraft will have to cope with as it carries out high speed manoeuvres.

They made some of the parts of the rig, while other components were made elsewhere within the AMRC.

The ASTC called on the skills of welding specialists from the Nuclear AMRC next door and the abilities of the AMRC's own apprentices to construct a complete "whiffletree," which distributes test forces over the aircraft's fuselage and wings, causing them to twist and flex as they are designed to do in flight.

Mounting the plane on the whiffletree was a big challenge in itself. The fuselage, with wings fitted, had to be lifted four metres into the air and then flipped upside down.

The ASTC has also had to devise a way of heating the whole of the aircraft to 70°C while some of the tests were carried out. Calling on subsidiaries of Sheffield-based leading European supplier of specialist building products, SIG, a box was created around the aircraft's body which maintained the temperature, while remaining cool to the touch outside.

After 71 633 cycles of fatigue testing, the successful completion of airworthiness tests of the GB1 could open the way for the testing of light aircraft to return to the UK and further contracts.

AMRC website
Game Composites Facebook page

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News: Wider benefits of smart motorway from March

Final testing is to be carried out so that four lane running can begin on a key section of the M1 near Rotherham next month.

A ten mile stretch of the M1 between junctions 32 (south of Sheffield and Rotherham) and 35a (north of Sheffield and Rotherham) is set to benefit from a "smart motorway" project costing £106m. A similar scheme costing £205m is being carried out on the M1 between junction 28 (South Normanton) and 31 (Aston).

The projects include plans for converting the hard shoulder to an extra traffic lane in both directions and variable mandatory speed limits and they deliver benefits at a significantly lower cost than conventional motorway widening, and with less impact on the environment during construction.

Technology tests will take place for the new smart motorway which is due to go live between junction 28 and junction 31 next month.

Overhead electronic signs will help to prevent queuing and keep drivers informed about the journey ahead, and emergency refuge areas will be provided at intervals in case vehicles break down. Highways England estimates the upgrade will improve journeys for more than 95,000 drivers a day using this stretch.

Andy Kirk, senior project lead at Highways England, said: "We are opening this road to traffic with four lanes available while we test the technology at a reduced speed limit.

"The tests will allow us to gather reliable traffic data and calibrate the technology systems along this stretch.

"We hope drivers will notice a positive difference during the testing period as the extra lane will increase capacity, but the really big improvement will come once the smart motorway is fully open next month."

The testing will take place in stages along each stretch between junctions, and a 50mph speed restriction will be in place during testing for safety reasons. Once successful testing is complete, the speed restriction will be lifted and all four lanes will operate at 70mph.

Drivers will be able to take advantage of an extra fourth lane between junctions 28 and 29 on the northbound carriageway from Wednesday March 2 and in both directions from Thursday March 3.

Proposals were included to limit speeds to 60mph between 7am and 7pm seven days a week because of the potential effect of the new scheme on local air quality.

This option has not been accepted as the preferred option and instead experts have been rigorously investigating alternatives while work progresses on the scheme.

Contractors, Costain continue to work on the 32 - 35 stretch with construction scheduled to end "Winter 2016/17."

Highways England has set out proposals for a project for four lane running on a stretch of the motorway between Rotherham and Wakefield which would ultimately help create a smart motorway all the way to Leeds.

Highways England website

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News: Sheffield and Rotherham's growing tech hub

The Sheffield and Rotherham area has been identified as one of 27 digital tech clusters in the UK by Tech City UK, the Government-backed organisation that delivers programmes focused on accelerating the growth of digital businesses.

The organisation's latest Tech Nation report is the most comprehensive analysis of the UK's digital technology economy to date, showing how the sector is driving economic growth, employment and regional development.

Produced with innovation charity Nesta and supported by core data partner Growth Intel, the report reveals that digital tech industries in the UK are growing 32% faster than the rest of the economy. It analysed data from Government, job advertisements and official ONS data and shows the continued growth of digital tech clusters. These findings are focused upon the areas where digital technology businesses are having the greatest impact: economic growth, employment, productivity and the digital disruption of traditional industries.

Sheffield and Rotherham is used as one of the case studies. There are 14,313 digital tech jobs in Rotherham and Sheffield pumping £273m Gross Value Added (GVA) into the local economy. Last year, the average salary a tech professional could expect in region was £42,058 – much higher than the average local working salary of £26,141.

It highlighted that Sheffield and Rotherham's strengths are built on expertise in Data management & analytics and Telecommunications & networking, with recently established specialisms in Hardware, IoT and E-commerce. Other specialisms include app & software development and enterprise software & cloud computing.

The report highlighted the impact of the city region's two universities, the importance of modern manufacturing and the access to graduate talent, commercial property and business support. Weaknesses including the economic climate, access to finance and affordable property were also highlighted.

Edward Highfield, director of Creative Sheffield, the economic development arm of Sheffield City Council, said: "Sheffield has a strong tech and digital sector and this plays an important part in attracting and retaining talent within the city. We have some innovative support and accelerator growth programmes in Sheffield, which have contributed to the success of the sector in recent years; a trend that is set to continue with projects such as the Digital Campus underway."

The latest KPMG/Markit Tech Monitor UK Survey revealed that Rotherham has one of the fastest growing technology clusters in the UK. Rotherham had the third fastest increase in tech sector enterprises over the last year, up by an impressive 21%. It was the only local authority in Yorkshire and Humber to enter in to the UK's top 25.

Tech City UK website

Images: RiDO

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News: Healthcare merger an inspiration

The healthcare group created when Rotherham company, Inditherm completed the acquisition of Inspiration Healthcare Limited in a reverse takeover is reporting that pre-tax profits are ahead of forecasts.

Manvers-based Inditherm has developed products using low voltage carbon polymer technology to provide heat. Its systems are used for patients undergoing operations which carry risk of inadvertent hypothermia and in neonatal wards.

Inspiration was founded in Leicestershire in 2003 as a medical device distribution company focused on innovative products for critical care.

The £7.2m deal, which completed last year, was announced after AIM-listed Inditherm completed a review of strategic options with the objective of creating shareholder value. Directors identified the need to make the business part of a larger entity, thereby allowing the medical business to grow with fewer constraints.

In an update to the stock exchange, Inspiration Healthcare Group said that it expects to report revenue for the year ended January 31 in line with market forecasts and profit before tax ahead of forecasts due to improved trading margins and deferred R&D expenditure.

It added "Since completion of the reverse takeover in June 2015, management has focused on re-engineering the business from two entities into a single supplier of Critical Care and Operating Room products. Part of the re-engineering has involved integrating the sales teams and the routes to market in the UK. Overseas, distribution options have been reviewed to ensure the Group has effective channels for the Group's products worldwide."

For the half year to July 31 2015, adjusted figures showed that the consolidated Group was showing healthy growth in revenue of 17% and an underlying return on sales of 8%. Revenue for the six months was £5.6m compared to £4.5m in the same period in 2014.

The group is set to launch innovative new products focused on the neonatal space.

Inditherm website
Inspiration Healthcare website

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News: True taste of Thai lands in Rotherham town centre

The differentiated retail offer in Rotherham town centre now has an authentic Thai and Oriental flavour with the opening of a new independent food store.

Owned and managed by husband and wife team Stephen and Pasuta Gough, Ahan Dee Thai and Oriental Foods is the only specialist shop in the borough to offer south east Asian groceries and produce.

Part of a complex of mixed-used retail outlets focusing on listed buildings on the High Street, the new store has taken over the unit that was vacated when clothing store, Things That Boys Like moved into bigger premises nearby.

Opening at the end of 2015, Ahan Dee translates from Thai into English as "good food." It has always been the intention of the owner to establish a shop that provides good Thai and Oriental food at competitive and honest price, in keeping with her Buddhist beliefs.

The new retail store stocks everything from exotic fresh fruit and vegetables to ginger tea and even catfish.

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In line with the aim of other local retailers to offer something different and provide a personal service that can't be matched online, the team at Ahan Dee plan to use their wealth of knowledge and expertise to advise customers on the best ingredients needed to prepare authentic dishes.

Owner Pasuta said: "We are thrilled to be launching our new store in the award winning Rotherham town centre. This is a wonderful opportunity and we are delighted to be bringing a taste of the Orient to the High Street."

Martyn Benson, start-up business advisor at Rotherham Investment and Development Office (RiDO), who assisted Ahan Dee, said: "We were pleased to support Stephen and Pasuta as part of the RiDO "Ready for Business" start-up project and look forward to seeing the business grow."

Rotherham town centre was named as a Portas Pilot by the Government in 2012 and compiled a pot of £350,000 to support the Council and its town team partners in realising its vision to create a vibrant and thriving town centre with a different retail offer by fostering new, independent businesses. As well as supporting new independent retailers, funding was set aside to support existing town centre retailers to help them undertake significant business development projects.

In November, Rotherham was successful in the best town centre category in the Great British High Streets Awards, a Government-backed competition to find and celebrate the nation's best high streets, recognising the support for start-up businesses.

Cllr. Denise Lelliott, Advisory Cabinet Member for Housing and the Local Economy at Rotherham Council, added: "The Great British High Street judges specifically commented on our differentiated shopping offer so we are delighted to welcome a specialist business like Ahan Dee to the town centre and see our independent retailers go from strength to strength. We wish Ahan Dee every success in the future."

Ahan Dee Facebook page
RiDO website

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News: Reprieve for RiDO as Council outlines budget

RiDO, the award-winning regeneration arm of Rotherham Council is set to continue with its key role in supporting the growth of the borough's economy after the authority put forward central funding for the service.

RiDO offers free services to businesses including support for new-start enterprises, attracting inward investment, supporting growing companies finding premises, HR support, running successful business incubation centres, developing economic strategies and town centre management.

In discussing upcoming budgets, which includes proposed savings of £21m for this year, councillors warned that reduced external and grant funding had placed the RiDO team at risk, and highlighted the importance of the service in attracting inward investment and helping to realise the vision of the Growth Plan and the Council's own corporate plan.

With local authorities under intense pressure to make savings, a scrutiny review by borough councillors into how the Council can support the local economy outlined how it will be even more important for the Council to generate income via an increase in business rates and Council Tax.

A report on the latest budget proposals states: "There is significant growth potential in the Borough and the wider Sheffield City Region. Continuing to restore business confidence and making Rotherham a place for "doing business" will help attract much needed inward investment and will be integral to Rotherham's future economic ambition.

"Rotherham has ambitious targets in the Local Plan for new housing, with a need for 958 new homes a year. It also has a jobs target of 1,000 a year and 750 net new businesses over the next five years. This correlates to the growth ambitions set out in the Sheffield City Region (SCR) Strategic Economic Plan and more locally with the Council's Growth Plan.

"The Council also has a major role to play in helping drive this growth and enterprise, both as a facilitator and also in terms of a potential deliverer, as a major land and property owner."

The proposed budget includes £160,000 a year for the next three years which "represents replacement of lost grant funding with revenue budget to support the Rotherham Investment Development Office (RIDO) – a service critical for attracting inward investment into the borough if it is to grow and thrive."

The team is also set to bid into other funding sources including European funding and the recently launched Sheffield City Region Growth Hub.

One saving proposal includes merging the RiDO Economic Development and Business retail and investment teams, to create one team with joint management. Proposals to increase parking charges in the town centre are also included but plans to close the Visitor Centre have been shelved.

Cllr. Chris Read, Leader of Rotherham Council, said: "We've taken the tough decisions and are determined to meet our commitment to improve services, particularly those that keep our borough's children safe.

"We've listened to residents' feedback and are continuing to make back office savings, whilst protecting front line services as far as we can. We're playing our part in creating more jobs in the borough and maintaining the local environment in protecting continued investment into RiDO and the Council’s Streetpride services, something we know is important to residents.

“We've heard concerns about the proposals around the Visitor Centre and .. we're also continuing our long-term commitment to investing in the town centre with ongoing work on the masterplan and provision in principle of up to £17m for related developments."

Council tax in the borough is set to be increased by 3.95% with all proposals to be considered by Full Council at its budget-setting meeting on 2 March 2016.

RiDO website

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News: Economics to guide HS2

Sheffield Chamber is calling on businesses from the Sheffield city region to back its call for an independent economic review into the decision on the location of the proposed South Yorkshire HS2 station.

Construction on HS2, the high speed North to South rail link, will begin during this Parliament and has been given a funding envelope of £55.7 billion in 2015 prices. It should reach Birmingham in 2026 and Manchester and Leeds by 2033.

Following the recent spending review, the Government pushed back a decision on the route through the Sheffield city region to autumn 2016. A location at Meadowhall was chosen in 2013 and is still the Government's preferred choice.

A summit hosted by Sheffield Chamber yesterday heard how it important it was to get the location right for the "once in a generation investment" and that it should be done quickly.

Richard Wright, told the audience of more than 200 guests at Sheffield City Hall: "HS2 will, without doubt, have enormous implications for the future economy of the region. We've got to get behind the right decision, because, while we're bickering, the final decision will be made later this year. We can't afford to end up with the wrong location.

"We know there are sensitivities and differing views around the region but must not lose sight of our ambition to be a significant contributor to the Northern Powerhouse and the need to attract inward investment – and the station location will affect that."

He added that it will be down to businesses in the city region to come together to show Government the strength of feeling, stating that it "shouldn't be about one set of stakeholders arguing with others."

The Chamber is set to write to to Chancellor George Osborne and Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin to call for an independent economic review into the decision on station location.

Jillian Thomas, president of Sheffield Chamber, added: "This has got to be down to economics, not down to politics. It's to make sure that we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to be in the situation of getting this right so we can create the future for our children and create an opportunity for us in our retirement.

"We cannot put politics in the way. This has got to have joined up thinking in connection with HS3 and the Northern Powerhouse. The decision, as far as the Chamber is concerned, is purely on the basis of economics for the region."

Similarly, the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has so far declined to commit to backing a specific site for a South Yorkshire station and instead has reiterated its stance that the location should be based on achieving the greatest economic benefit.

Rothbiz reported first in December that Sheffield Council is using recently commissioned reports to show that a city centre location for a proposed South Yorkshire HS2 station would maximise the economic growth in the North. Council officials believe that reports indicate that a city centre location at Victoria would deliver 6,500 more jobs, 1,000+ new homes, and £2bn - £5bn more GVA.

Since the initial decision was made, plans for HS3 - a TransNorth high speed rail link connecting the North's great cities - have been developed. Backers of a city centre HS2 station state that it is illogical for HS2 to go to an out of town parkway station at Meadowhall whilst TransNorth goes to the city centre.

For Rotherham, the latest reports show that a station at Victoria would add a further five minutes to journeys to connect to HS2 from Rotherham. Rotherham town centre is just six minutes by rail from the interchange at Meadowhall and a number of transport connections exist, or are currently under construction (heavy rail, tram train, BRT). A potential rail link to Rotherham via a "New Victoria" station adjacent to the HS2 station has been discussed.

With a proposed station at Meadowhall, analysis from KPMG in 2013 showed that Rotherham could increase its annual economic output by between £131.7m and £272.12m due to the investment in HS2 and the re-design of the existing railway infrastructure. The figures represent an increase of between 2.3% and 4.8% of Rotherham's GDP - the eleventh highest percentage increase of all 235 UK areas in the analysis.

In 2014, Sir David Higgins, chairman of HS2 Ltd, reiterated his view that Sheffield Meadowhall is the right answer for the South Yorkshire hub on the proposed HS2 line but admitted that the final decision is "finely balanced."

On the issue of South Yorkshire, the Transport Secretary said at the end of 2015: "Sheffield Meadowhall was the Government's preferred station location in the Phase Two route consultation. The evidence continues to suggest that this is likely to be the best way of serving the wider South Yorkshire region and we are working with the National Infrastructure Commission and Transport for the North on the possible interfaces with Northern Powerhouse rail. However, we acknowledge there are arguments in favour of a city centre location and continue to examine relevant analysis.

"We continue to make good progress on our plans for the rest of HS2 Phase Two serving Manchester, East Midlands, South Yorkshire and Leeds and will make a decision on the route in autumn 2016."

HS2 Ltd website

Images: Sheffield Chamber

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News: WEC Group acquires £7m Rotherham factory for MTL

WEC Group Ltd, one of the largest engineering and fabrication companies in the UK has acquired a 300,000 sq ft factory and 30 acres of land as a way of strengthening operations at its Rotherham-based site, MTL Advanced.

A project manufacturing specialist in the metal sector, MTL processes around 25,000 tonnes of material annually and is capable of handling all sizes and types of work from carbon steel to aluminium. It supplies leading names in sectors such as defence, construction, offshore and renewable energy, recycling and rail.

The £7m acquisition of the Brinsworth facility, which has been occupied by MTL since 2011, is part of an ambitious programme of investment throughout the Group aimed at increasing manufacturing space and giving room for further growth.

The site houses state of the art equipment and dedicated teams of engineers working on projects for clients such as BAE Systems, Rheinmetall, and General Dynamics.

Last year, the Lancashire-based WEC Group, which comprises 14 companies specialising in welding and fabrication, brought the company out of administration, saving 135 jobs. Since then, the total investment of the group has topped £11m.

Steve Hartley, managing director at WEC Group, said: "The acquisition of the facility is a considerable addition to the Group's assets portfolio which will give us a long term competitive advantage. It also gives us much needed room for future expansion."

Originally built in 1990 as a former distribution depot and lorry park for Excel Logistics, the sizeable property was converted for industrial use in 2010 when MTL relocated from 112,000 sq ft of manufacturing space in Darnall, Sheffield. It is in fact larger than WEC's seven other manufacturing facilities grouped together and has raised the WEC Group's overall manufacturing floorspace to over 500,000 sq ft.

Richard Clithero, associate commercial property solicitor at Forbes Solicitors, added: "This site is a substantial facility and the acquisition represents a real commitment to the area by WEC Group. With this purchase following on from the acquisition of the MTL business, it is great to see WEC Group going from strength to strength."

In addition to the recent property acquisition, a further £1m was invested late 2015 in new equipment at the site to increase capacity and widen the range of services the Group can offer. This includes a state-of-the-art six metre bed laser cutting machine as well as an in-house wet painting line.

The company has created 55 new jobs since coming out of administration and has invested in a new in-house training school to mirror WEC's award winning Welding & Engineering Training Academy, creating six new apprenticeship positions in the process.

Wayne Wild, commercial director at the WEC Group, said: "We have really hit the ground running, and as a result we have seen some very positive and encouraging results. MTL is continuing to move forward in the right direction and we have got some very large contracts in the pipeline. The acquisition of the Grange Lane facility will give us a better control of our cost base and will pave the way for future success."

Karl Stewart, sales director at MTL is excited for the future and the opportunities that now exist for the Rotherham firm. He said: "The partnership with WEC Group is already proving to be very strong and has enhanced our capabilities, which is a major advantage to all our customers.

"The additional capacity that the deal has brought is proving to be another big positive."

MTL Advanced website

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News: Metalysis secures £20m as it heads for IPO

Neil Woodford, one of the most respected fund managers in the UK, has invested £10m in Metalysis, the Rotherham-based innovator that is commercialising a low-cost way to manufacture titanium and other specialist powder metals.

Metalysis holds the worldwide exploitation rights to the FCC Cambridge process which sees specialist powder metals created in a simple, cost effective process with significant environmental benefits.

The Manvers company employs around 50 staff and is in the process of commercialising the technology to produce titanium, tantalum, and related high value alloys. These are used increasingly by major worldwide industries such as aerospace, marine, medical, chemical, automotive and electronics.

As part of the latest round, Australian minerals firm, Iluka Resources Limited, has agreed to invest an additional £6m in Metalysis Limited with an undertaking to commit a further £4m before July 15 2016. Iluka, which is involved in mineral sands exploration, project development, operations and marketing, invested £12m in 2014 and will up its stake to over 28% and have the right to appoint two directors to the board.

Last year, Metalysis said that it was an important time for the company's commercialisation and development, which will see a significant expansion of its production capacity in the UK, in addition to exporting its technology internationally through licensing agreements and joint ventures.

The investor and grant backed Cambridge University spin out has developed the electrochemical reduction process to transform metal oxides, such as ores, directly into metal powders in a single step.

Metalysis' strategic focus is titanium, which can be used in a variety of new applications to satisfy the growing demand for low cost, light weight, high strength and corrosion resistant metals. High grade and uniform, the lower-cost powders suit a wide variety of 3D printing needs across a variety of high-tech, industrial and manufacturing sectors. For example, further to the 3D printing of aerospace and automotive components, Metalysis has recently completed a programme with TWI, a UK leader in materials technology innovation which has a base on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham, which demonstrated the feasibility of its bespoke powders for 3D printing orthopaedic hip implants.

The company, which is also working on major development projects with GKN and VW, has set out a plan for an initial public offering (IPO) to float on the stock exchange.

David Robb, managing director of Iluka Resources, said: "The prospect of commercial volumes of titanium metal powder, direct from rutile and synthetic rutile, at a materially lower cost than current technologies, could drive a dramatic expansion in global demand for titanium metal and titanium alloys. The application of titanium powder in 3D printing also presents potentially significant opportunities in a rapidly expanding market. Such developments would be positive for high grade titanium dioxide feedstock demand.

"Iluka is encouraged by the progress made by Metalysis towards commercialisation of its solid state metal powder technology. Iluka also fully supports the increased focus on titanium as the core element of Metalysis' strategic plan, with a goal to accelerate commercialisation and licensing of its technology."

Dion Vaughan, CEO of Metalysis, added: "Metalysis' development and expansion over recent years has been remarkable, as we have attracted strong market interest and developed great commercial relationships. This latest investment underpins our commitment to deliver against the enormous potential of our disruptive powder metals technology. In Iluka and Woodford Patient Capital Trust, we have outstanding strategic partners and we welcome their support alongside longstanding backers such as Environmental Technologies Fund in realising the commercial potential of our technology."

Neil Woodford announced he was leaving Invesco Perpetual in October 2013 to set up his own fund management business. Investors followed, based on his track record of success, and the CF Woodford Equity Income Fund is now worth over £1 billion. As well as the likes of AstraZeneca, BT and British American Tobacco, the fund also holds shares in Xeros, the Rotherham-based firm that is commercialising a patented system using a unique method of special polymer beads rather than the usual large amounts of fresh water to clean clothes.

Woodford's Patient Capital Trust, which also holds a stake in Xeros, focuses on long-term capital growth, buying stakes in businesses with outstanding intellectual property and helping them fulfil their growth potential through the deployment of long-term patient capital.

Metalysis website

Images: Metalysis

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News: UKSE continue to support Rotherham entrepreneurs

UK Steel Enterprise (UKSE) has announced the launch of their new Kickstart Fund, an initiative launched in partnership with Rotherham Council to support people looking to establish a business or to become self-employed by offering grants of up to £1,000.

A subsidiary of Tata Steel, UK Steel Enterprise supports the economic regeneration of communities affected by changes in the steel industry and has helped over 6,000 organisations to date. In Rotherham it has previously offered loans and investment to growing companies such as Macalloy, Assured Fire & Security and Approved Food, as well as setting aside funding to support young entrepreneurs through its Kickstart Fund.

An initial £40,000 has been set aside for this year's fund which is supported by the council's Rotherham Investment and Development Office (RiDO) and Youth Enterprise arm (RYE). It has been introduced in a bid to support people looking to establish a business or become self-employed by helping with initial costs - especially for those with limited funds.

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Grants, worth up to £1,000, alongside guidance and advice provided by advisers from RiDO and RYE, will be made available to the budding entrepreneurs.

Jessica Long, the founder of a Rotherham based dance academy J L Dance, received support from UK Steel Enterprise and Rotherham Youth Enterprise when she launched her start-up business. She used the funds to pay for an awareness raising campaign and went on to win the title of Rotherham Young Entrepreneur of the Year for 2015.

Jessica, owner of the J L Dance Academy (pictured, centre), said: "I always knew that I wanted to run my own business, and I was confident that I could make the dance academy a success with the right advice and support behind me.

"Receiving the money and advice in 2014 meant I was able to really raise awareness of the business in the early days and I saw an immediate return on investment. Now I conduct dozens of classes every week and employ three assistants to help me."

UK Steel Enterprise has pledged £1.55m of extra funding for job creation in the wake of the most recent redundancy announcements by Tata Steel in South Yorkshire. The new Kickstart Fund is open to anybody starting a business in Rotherham, including those affected by restructuring at Tata Steel.

Keith Williams, regional manager for UK Steel Enterprise, said: “Small businesses are the life blood of the economy, but starting a business is a big challenge. This funding, as well as the support and advice provided alongside it, will help those budding entrepreneurs who need an extra boost to get the ball rolling.

"In time we hope that some of these companies will develop and expand – eventually generating further job opportunities across the region.

"We are committed to supporting the local business community, and would like to hear from any business looking for finance in order to facilitate growth - whether in need £500, £50,000 or £500,000."

Cllr. Chris Read, leader of Rotherham Council, added: "This initiative is a welcome boost to people in Rotherham who want to start up their own business but need that extra bit of support.

"I hope that many people – including those affected by recent events at Tata Steel – will now be given the incentive to consider setting up on their own."

UKSE website
RiDO website
RYE website

Images: UKSE

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