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Planning granted for Cheadle Hulme School sixth form centre

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07/12/2018

Planning granted for Cheadle Hulme School sixth form centre

A landmark £1.2million project will see a brand new sixth form centre built for a Cheadle independent school.

The development will mark the first time in Cheadle Hulme School’s 163 year history that sixth formers will have their own dedicated building. It is due to open in September 2019.

With works commencing in January 2019, the eight-month scheme will involve a complete transformation of an existing property on the school’s 83 acres of grounds.

Designed by Pozzoni Architecture, the ground floor will consist of two main spaces: a café and a sizeable common room. Upstairs there will be a large independent learning area, two separate spaces for small group working, a silent study room and a meeting room. A covered outdoor seating area will provide an additional social space for the warmer months. The entire building will be fully accessible for wheelchair users.

Upper and lower sixth formers will share the building’s various spaces, encouraging mixing across the two year groups and helping to create cohesion.

Nick Axon, head of sixth form at Cheadle Hulme School, said: “Sixth form is all about preparing our students for university and the world of work. Our new building will provide them with the space they need to develop their independent working skills, as well as facilitating collaborative and project work.

“We believe our new dedicated centre will significantly add to the school’s 16-18 experience, which is of course one of the most formative times in a young person’s life.

“Our sixth form students follow a dynamic pathways curriculum, which incorporates external speakers, academic extension, careers guidance and work experience placements and we are now able to provide the facilities that match the high standard of our academic and pastoral provision.”

Catherine Mulley, director at Pozzoni and head of the practice’s education team, said: “We’re delighted to have secured planning permission for this project that will be such an important asset for Cheadle Hulme School’s sixth formers of the future. Giving the students their own dedicated space with multiple study and social areas will help to foster a feeling of independence and give them the freedom to study in environments that best suit their needs. We’re looking forward to work starting on site and seeing the project come to life.”

Landmark Manchester hotel and restaurant prepares to open its doors

Blog

Sam Whitear

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07/12/2018

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Landmark Manchester hotel and restaurant prepares to open its doors

Hotel Indigo® Manchester – Victoria Station is preparing to open its doors following the practical completion of the project and hand-over of the site to the hotel group IHG.

Positioned at the gateway of the Northern Quarter, one of Manchester’s most vibrant areas and a stone’s throw from Victoria Station, Hotel Indigo® Manchester – Victoria Station is a 187-room boutique hotel, offering guests luxurious city centre accommodation.

Designed by local architects, 3D Reid, the building aligns the historic architecture of the Grade II listed City Buildings with a stunning 14 story rotunda tower, the combination of old and new serves as a breath-taking gateway between the main shopping district and the developing NOMA district.

The completion of the project marks a major milestone for the developer BH Group. James Houlston, Managing Director of BH Group said: “We are delighted with the outcome of this project, 3D Reid has created a truly iconic building which, with its pivotal location at the gateway to the NOMA project, will become a recognised landmark for the city centre.”

James continued: “The contractor, Bowmer & Kirkland has done a great job. We took on a complex project with a number of challenges and they have demonstrated their expertise and professionalism with the delivery of a fabulous building, hats off to them!”

The £30m project has taken two years to complete and at its peak had 160 people working on it. A key ambition for the scheme was to restore the beautiful, historic City Buildings which have been carefully renovated and brought back to life through the development. In addition to this investment the project has created more than 80 jobs in the running of the hotel and restaurant.

Neil Brook, Regional Director North West, of Bowmer & Kirkland said: “This project has been a complex one for us, but we are delighted to reach practical completion and are really looking forward to visiting the hotel when it opens.”

In addition to the hotel, Mamucium Restaurant and Bar, which will be situated on the ground floor of the hotel, is being hailed as Manchester’s latest must-visit dining destination. The fashionable and modern 120-seat restaurant and bar, is set to serve up an array of mouth-watering dishes, skilfully prepared by double AA Rosette winning chef Andrew Green (formerly Executive Chef at The Lowry Hotel).

Andrew Green, Executive Chef said: “Mamucium is going to create a truly unique Manchester experience for our customers. Now that we have visibility of the restaurant and bar we are bowled over, it far exceeds our initial vision and it is going to provide a vibrant must-visit dining experience for the city.”

Suprafilt make key board appointments to bolster growth

Appointments

Sam Whitear

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07/12/2018

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Suprafilt make key board appointments to bolster growth

Waste water treatment solutions specialist Suprafilt has made two key boardroom appointments as it gears up for further growth. Experienced non executive chairman Dave Roberts has been appointed to help it gear up for further significant growth, while Hannah Nolan takes on the role of Operations Director.

The Suprafilt board say the appointments form part of their vision to build a management structure capable of delivering and managing further growth and one that will ensure the firm takes full advantage of market opportunities in this very dynamic sector.

Suprafilt Managing Director Graeme Fielden says the appointments represent a key stage in the development of the business. He says: “These two appointments will help us gear up for expansion in the months ahead. David is a highly experienced chairman with a number of significant successes under his belt working with high growth organisations to help them focus on maintaining profitable growth.

“Hannah’s promotion to the board is a deserved reward for her professionalism, dedication and unflagging enthusiasm. She has built up a deep understanding of the business and the industry and will play a crucial role in ensuring we can take advantage of future opportunities.”

Suprafilt is primarily involved in the design, manufacture and installation of aeration systems for the waste water treatment sector. It includes United Utilities and Severn Trent Water as clients. The business has won a series of major projects across the UK over the last 12 months thanks to an innovative approach to the sector.

Roberts says: “Graeme and fellow director Jonathan Lord and the team have created a really successful business and, with new avenues opening up, Suprafilt has significant growth potential and that’s really exciting. My role as non-executive Chairman will be to help the team take the right steps.”

Nolan, who joined the Lancashire-based business in 2002, was appointed Operations Manager in 2006. She says: “Suprafilt is a successful growing business and with a great future. I am really looking forward to this new challenge. Recent contract wins all point to a very bright future. We are ambitious and confident we can win more large scale projects.””

School Lettings Solutions hits 200-school milestone

Education

Sam Whitear

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06/12/2018

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School Lettings Solutions hits 200-school milestone

Manchester-headquartered School Letting Solutions (SLS) has brought on board its 200th school, passing an important milestone for the company and underlining the strength of its business model.

Founded in 2012 by Scott Warrington and Paul Andrews, SLS provides a full letting solution for schools, academies and colleges to maximise the use of their facilities to the local community during evenings, weekends and school holidays. The business now has a turnover of more than £10 million and employs 850 people across the UK.

Its 200th school was Bishop Challoner Catholic Federation of Schools in Tower Hamlets, London, which boasts extensive sports, drama and conference facilities.

SLS has seen consistently strong demand as schools throughout the country deal with a series of challenges including funding and staffing pressures. Its support in generating additional revenue has never been more critical and was underlined by the Chancellor’s meagre provision for “little extras” in the recent Autumn Budget.

Schools working with SLS hire their facilities for a diverse range of activities, from weddings and birthday parties, through to cheerleading classes, language schools and Jedi training programmes, along with the more conventional football, rugby and dance classes.

Scott Warrington, Director and co-founder of SLS, said: “The support we provide has never been more valuable – lack of funding continues to put strain on schools, so the hire of facilities provides many with a valuable additional revenue stream. However, although we know for a lot of schools, while the additional money is important, the priority is building links with their local community. The schools we work with are passionate not just about pupil attainment, but about aspiration – participation in team sports and other leisure activities encourage that so making school space available is important to them.”

He continued: “The business has continued to grow quickly, now employing more than 850 people throughout the UK – that’s really illustrative of the need for what we do and the knowledge and professionalism of our team.”

UK property firm announce a string of contracts in Bolton worth six figures

Property

Sam Whitear

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06/12/2018

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UK property firm announce a string of contracts in Bolton worth six figures

Bolton-based commercial property investors, Millfield Estates, are celebrating another hugely successful business quarter for its UK property portfolio, with a string of new lets and lease renewals in Bolton worth over £150,000.

The company confirmed a one-year renewal at Boundary Industrial Estate for Kings People’s Church, a short-term arrangement enabling the Church to maintain a base for its congregation while its new, larger home is redeveloped nearby. The deal underlines Millfield Estates ability to react quickly and flexibly to accommodate its tenants needs.

On the same Estate a contract renewal with Curly Whirleez has also been secured, with a five-year extension that guarantees a long-term home for the popular children’s play centre until April 2023.

Just down the road, Riverside on Waters Meeting Road has welcomed new tenants, Pool Technical Services, a leading supplier of pumps, filters and chemicals for swimming pools, with a five-year lease. Further highlighting Riverside’s status as a flourishing facility with excellent transport links, existing tenants Bespoke Design Glazing Limited have relocated their business, signing a five-year lease for a unit to double the size of their operation.

These latest deals at Riverside and Boundary Industrial Estates will secure Millfield Estates a rent roll of 150,000.

Commenting on the news, Paul Dobson, property director for Millfield Estates, said: “This past quarter has been a busy one for the company and the team have worked hard to ensure that we meet the business needs for both existing and potential clients. We believe this is key to building long term relationships and the recent transactions in Bolton are testament to this. For us, the most rewarding thing is seeing talented businesses grow and flourish within the spaces we provide.”

University of Manchester technology to aid development of anti-fibrotic drugs

Blog

Sam Whitear

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06/12/2018

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University of Manchester technology to aid development of anti-fibrotic drugs

Professor Karl Kadler and his team have developed technology which has the ability to monitor, quantitate and observe new collagen synthesis, on the background of existing collagen and under normal genetic control.

Currently, there are no drugs on the market that regulate collagen.

Professor Kadler comments: “Research into finding a treatment of fibrosis can benefit the most. There are no current therapies for fibroproliferative disease, which can affect any organ system leading to death and is a complicating factor in 45% of all deaths including cancer.

“Collagen is very strong and forms bone, cartilage, skin, and tendons,” continues Professor Kadler.

“Collagen fibrils, which account for 30% of the mass of vertebrates and are the mechanical framework for all fibrous and hard tissues, as well as organs such as skin, gut and muscle – are also the end-point of fibrosis (e.g. of heart, lung, liver, skin and kidney) in which functional tissue is replaced by collagen that shouldn’t be there.”

He added, “As a simple analogy, think of collagen as the walls in a building; they are essential for holding up the roof and giving the building its shape and strength but additional walls cutting across rooms and corridors makes the building unusable. Too much collagen in lungs, heart and liver stops these organs from working”.

“We want to understand how and where collagen fibrils are assembled with the aim of controlling this process in the treatment of fibrotic disease.”

The solution appears simple, let’s find a way of stopping our bodies making too much collagen, but it isn’t that easy. Professor Kadler suggests, “Understanding how collagen is produced, processed and regulated by cells is key to the development of new treatment strategies, however it is currently impossible to quantitatively image the process. The hurdle to overcome is to visualise new collagen (the fibrotic, bad collagen) on top of the existing (good) collagen. Our approach allows us to visualise the new collagen in the presence of existing collagen in the presence of candidate anti-fibrotic drugs.

Explaining the technology, he said: “We have used the latest genome editing technology to integrate a photo switchable marker in the collagen protein. This does not disrupt the endogenous wild type regulation of collagen, but the photo switchable nature of this marker allows us to differentiate newly deposited collagen from previously deposited collagen.

“This is achieved by simply exposing the cells to a specific wavelength of light. This platform allows the quantitative study of collagen production in health and disease as well as the evaluation of modulators of collagen production with potential anti-fibrotic use.”

Professor Kadler said the technology “is the first tool to measure new collagen synthesis in the fight against fibrosis.”

US fitness brand comes to Greater Manchester

Property

Sam Whitear

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06/12/2018

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Major US lifestyle brand, Orangetheory Fitness, is bringing its unique fitness offering to the North West.

The brand’s iconic £1m studio is set to open in Altrincham, Greater Manchester, after a deal was secured in collaboration with independent retail real estate consultancy, Harper Dennis Hobbs.

With over 1,000 successful studios across the world including the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, Altrincham is set to follow their success after a record-breaking pre-sales launch event ahead of its planned opening in December 2018.

Harper Dennis Hobbs worked with CEO, Alistair Firth, to secure the deal on the 5,500 square foot space. Opening in the town centre’s Stamford Quarter, franchisee, Wellcomm Health & Fitness has its sights set on the Midlands & Northern England, starting with Altrincham as the first of 40 Orangetheory Fitness studios to open across the region over the next nine years.

Orangetheory is a unique workout that focuses on the heart rate of those training. Members can see their real-time performance via screens within the studio, measured by heart-rate monitors. The varied range of high intensity interval training is designed to ensure every member spends between 12 to 20 minutes at 84-91%% of their maximum heart rate, otherwise known as the ‘orange zone’. Reaching this point will encourage the body to continue to burn calories for up to 36 hours after exercise has been completed, making it ideal for busy lifestyles.

James Ebel, CEO at Harper Dennis Hobbs, said: “The North West has been identified as a hub for busy professionals wanting to remove themselves from the lucrative market and financial burden that comes with living in London, so it only seems natural for a fast paced, boutique-feel fitness studio to follow suit and make the move, too.

“With the ever-increasing popularity of gym culture in the UK, this opening of the first Orangetheory studio in the North of England will be the start of an ever-growing trend as each cluster is launched throughout 2019 and beyond.”

“We’re delighted to partner with HDH who have understood our needs and presented a range of exciting property options.” says Alistair Firth, CEO of franchisee, Wellcomm Health and Fitness, “We look forward to working with them as we develop our portfolio of studios, which will no doubt build on the success of Altrincham.”

Arrow Cars invests £300k in Manchester Airport fleet

Blog

Sam Whitear

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05/12/2018

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Arrow Cars invests £300k in Manchester Airport fleet

Arrow Cars, the official private hire partner of Manchester Airports, has added two 35-seater executive coaches to its fleet to offer an increased service to its Manchester operation.

This brand-new offering follows on from the successful addition of nine 16-seater executive coaches earlier this year.

These coaches will be used for exclusive airline contracts, flight delay diversions, group travel across the greater Manchester area, corporate accounts and marks a £300,000 investment into the fleet, with plans to expand the coach service further throughout 2019.

Driven by a team of uniformed drivers, the new coaches feature reclining and sliding leather seats, USB charging points, power sockets, a TV entertainment system and extended luggage capacity.

Arrow Cars, who have been working exclusively with a number of other airports for over ten years, provide customers with the opportunity to pre-book journeys online, via both the Arrow Cars and Manchester Airport official websites, along with managing terminal front-based bookings for walk-up journeys on site, plus a downloadable app is available on any smart device.

David Richmond, Arrow Cars Chairman, said: “This investment marks another milestone for us with Manchester Airport. We will be adding to the fleet throughout 2019 to increase the service offered to millions of passengers flying in and out of the major hub.”

Kings Chambers team represents Chambers in Dubai

Blog

Sam Whitear

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05/12/2018

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Kings Chambers team represents Chambers in Dubai

A team of arbitration experts from barristers set Kings Chambers has travelled to Dubai for Dubai Arbitration Week, taking part in a global arbitration conference and hosting a joint event with the University of Dubai.

David Casement QC, Sam Karim QC, Andrew Singer QC and Michael Stephens from Kings Chambers hosted a panel of international lawyers and arbitrators at the University, focusing on the practical issues in international arbitration and the challenges and opportunities for improvement in global arbitration processes.

As part of Dubai Arbitration Week, the team also attended the Global Arbitration Review Conference at the DIFC Conference Centre, where arbitration specialist Sam Karim QC was a guest speaker.

The Global Arbitration Review Live Conference featured a programme of events discussions and debates and was attended by international arbitration experts including counsel, arbitrators and institutions.

Sam Karim QC discussed the interface of artificial intelligence, technological applications and international arbitration and how it will impact on the future of arbitration at the Conference. He said:

“Our presence at the conference is testament to our continued commitment to this region and our work as leading practitioners in international arbitration. We’re continuing to build on our established links with the region. We are privileged to work closely with The University of Dubai and have held a joint event; evidence of our connection with international legal and academic communities.”

David Casement QC, added: “The arbitration team at Kings Chambers is developing rapidly both domestically and internationally and to be invited to speak at a such a prestigious Conference is a real coup for the team. Our attendance both at GAR Live and the University reinforces the expertise we offer to our clients.”

Work starts on £2.4m Pet Wellbeing Centre for PDSA

Blog

Sam Whitear

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05/12/2018

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Work starts on £2.4m Pet Wellbeing Centre for PDSA

Work has started on a new £2.4m Pet Wellbeing Centre in Manchester for leading veterinary charity PDSA.

Salford-based MC Construction is the main contractor for the scheme, which is scheduled for completion next summer.

The PDSA Manchester Pet Wellbeing Centre, The Montague-Panton Animal Hospital is being built at the junction of Pottery Lane and Redgate Lane in Gorton.

It will replace the PDSA’s current premises in Old Trafford, which the charity says is at breaking point.

The new complex will have two operating theatres, a specialist dental theatre, digital x-ray facilities and modern consulting rooms.

It will also feature a bigger, brighter waiting area with separate sections for cats and dogs, reducing the stress a visit to the vet can cause. There will be improved kennel facilities to allow pets to recover quicker from surgery and treatment in a better environment.

PDSA veterinary staff David Brookfield and Zoe Walton made the first dig to kick-start the project.

Veterinary nurse Zoe said: “We are all excited to see work start on our new Wellbeing Centre. PDSA provides a vital service for Manchester pet owners struggling to provide vet care for their pets.

“I’m delighted that work has started at the new site and I’m hoping this will inspire local animal lovers to help us raise the remaining funds we need. I can’t wait to see the doors open to the new hospital next year.”

PDSA unveiled plans for the scheme in March with the launch of a public appeal to raise £2.4m to build and equip it.

With the support of animal lovers, charity supporters, businesses and a significant donation from the Montague-Panton Animal Welfare Trust, building work has now begun. However, the charity still needs to raise funds and is continuing with its public appeal.

PDSA treats nearly 12,000 pets each year at its Old Trafford site, from emergency surgery to routine vaccinations and dental treatment.

David Lowe, managing director of MC Construction, said: “We are excited to begin work on this development and are delighted to be partnering with the PDSA team to deliver a high-quality facility for the Manchester pet community.

“Having two office dogs at MC Construction, we have a special place in our hearts for this project.”

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