Manchester cloud hosting specialist UKFast’s public sector department is on track to triple revenues in 2017, following significant investment in the firm’s public sector and government offering earlier this year.

Recent new business highlights for the leading British provider include a £250,000 deal with the Cabinet Office, a £500,000 deal with software development service CDS, a £266,000 deal with enterprise mobility management provider Nine23 and most recently a £375,000 deal with an undisclosed public sector organisation.

A £2.3m investment in UKFast’s government data centre space earlier this year ensures the firm meets the heightened regulatory needs of its government, financial services, international telecoms and utilities clients. The data centre upgrade was shortly followed by the acquisition of public sector cloud hosting firm Secure Information Assurance (S-IA).

UKFast CEO Lawrence Jones said: “Government and the public sector is a major growth area for UKFast. Our acquisition of S-IA was timely, and with it comes relationships with organisations including the MoD, Cabinet Office and other high-profile government departments.

 “We’re ensuring the government knows there is a better British cloud alternative, more aligned to the needs of the great people of this country. It’s not just better value for money either, government deserves clearer billing, they want to know where their data is and they value having people at the end of a telephone day and night on standby to serve them when they need it most. 

“They get all this for less, and at the same time, the money spent with us stays onshore, not lining the pockets of the two richest men in the world. Buying British is positive for our economy and it starts with government leading the way.”

Martin Knapp, head of public sector at UKFast, says that since S-IA joined forces with the hosting giant, his team has seen a marked increase in enquiries.

“We’re investing heavily in Restricted LAN Interconnectors (RLI) for defence, our Public Services Network (PSN) for central government and the Health and Social Care Network (HSCN) for health service capabilities. 

“That investment is reflected in a clear growth in the number and scale of the projects we’re being asked to deliver. The UK public sector is seeing us as an increasingly credible alternative to UKCloud and the US hyperscalers.

 “We’re also seeing a great deal of interest from private firms wanting to tap into our expertise and accreditations to help them sell into the public sector.”

Following several high-profile cyber-attacks affecting government and public sector this year, Jones’ technology group is seeing a significant rise in enquiries from the public sector for cybersecurity and ethical hacking services.

Jones added: “The addition of our cybersecurity arm Secarma adds an extra dimension, which is proving valuable for our public sector clients who are putting security higher up the agenda when considering outsourcing.   

“But the biggest reason we are doing so well is that we don’t have hidden costs. CIOs are becoming increasingly savvy to this now and don’t want to be caught out with surprise billing as their usage increases. Ours is a simple model that allows you to scale without the penalty. 

 “The future of all cloud is scaling with fixed costs. It’s a blend of the AWS model with our ‘no surprises’ approach.”

On 12th October 2017, Hallidays brought together investors and entrepreneurs at their third Stockport Business Angels event in conjunction with North West Business Angels.

At this ‘Dragons Den’ style event 5 new entrepreneurs and innovators pitched their products and services to an audience of success Stockport Business Angels to secure investment.

The businesses pitching included The Link App, founded by Lauren Riley who appeared in the BBC Apprentice programme in 2014.

As a qualified family solicitor Lauren created The Link App to improve communication between lawyers and their clients.

Lauren Riley said, “Fresh well-paced event from which we received an impressive amount of angel investment interest. I was particularly impressed with the volume of experienced technology investors attending.”

Bee Industrious, based in Manchester are market research and insight specialists. They were recently finalists at the Venturefest 2017.

Nick Richardson, Managing Director said: “Today’s event was really positive. Room full of great people with a real appetite for investment. You really sense that deals will be done which reinforces the credibility of our business model & potential.” With 13 investors attending, the pitches were lively and deals were already being discussed over the business lunch.

Steve Wall, NW Business Angles said: “Our last Stockport Business Angels Event was a great success, with 60% of the investment sought being achieved, equivalent almost £400K.

This is remarkable considering the national average for such an event is around 15%! We have high hopes that over the next few weeks our pitchers will receive offers that will enable them to drive their businesses forward and achieve their dreams.”

Phil Eagle, Hallidays Director emphasises the tax benefits for investors: “As well as being an exciting opportunity to support a young business to rapidly grow, there can also be significant tax benefits in being an investor if the investment qualifies for Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) or Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS).

This should only be a consideration if investors are happy with the merits of the investment opportunity”. If you would like to learn more about Stockport Business Angels and how Hallidays can help you grow your business and access funding please call: 0161 476 8276 or visit www.hallidays.co.uk

Altrincham-based nursery operator L&G Childcare, which currently has two established nurseries in the North West, has acquired Bungalow Day Nursery in Denton following £200,000 funding from Santander Business Banking. The long-term plan for the business is to add an additional two nurseries as the group capitalises on strong demand for high-quality childcare in Greater Manchester and across Cheshire.

The family owned business has operated nurseries for over 12 years. Currently run by Gary and Lisa Kirkwood and their daughter Natasha, the business employs over 30 members of staff and looks after over 120 children. They acquired Heathfield House Day Nursery in 2006 and Little Weavers Day Nursery in 2012 located in Warrington and Northwich respectively.

With the existing two nurseries now well established, the funding from Santander Business Banking was used to purchase Bungalow Day Nursery in July this year. The new site will enable them to offer a high standard of childcare for up to 50 more children in the Denton area. They are committed to promoting healthy eating, outdoor activities, quality education and family values. They have already completely refurbished the setting with major redecoration inside and installation of a beautiful astro turfed outside area which has become a real feature for the children.

 Gary Kirkwood, Owner, L&G Childcare said: “We are thrilled to be able to purchase our new site and expand our business. Opening our third nursery is a great milestone for us and we are pleased to be in a position to respond to the demand for high quality childcare in this part of Manchester. The support from Santander has been exceptional and really helped us expand and invest for growth.”

Luke Rowbotham, Relationship Director at Santander Business Banking said: “L&G Childcare is a family run business that really knows the local market. The growth and success of the business is a testament to the hard work of the Kirkwood family, and we are really looking forward to seeing the success of the third nursery and helping the business seize additional opportunities when they appear.”

Lagan Building Contractors are seeking suppliers to work with them on a number of construction projects across the North West of England, including the Outwood Wharf project in Salford. In partnership with Constructionline, the leading construction group will be hosting a supplier engagement day on 24^th October in order to discuss opportunities to work with them.

The event will give subcontractors the chance to meet face-to-face with key decision makers within Lagan Building Contractors in order discuss upcoming projects and aims to foster lasting and productive working relations. Lagan Building Contractors are looking for support in trades including: roofing and cladding, internal partitions and ceilings, painting, wall tiling, joinery, plastering, landscaping, groundworks and steelworks.

Jon Adams Managing Director at Lagan Building Contractors, said: “Lagan Building Contractors is a family owned business and we are fervent believers in investing in people and building strong long term working relations with our Customers and Supply Chain Partners. There is a wealth of upcoming projects in the pipeline with some lucrative opportunities for work in the North West. We hope to meet both Constructionline members and non-members at the event on the 24^th October and hope that it will prove a beneficial day for all attendees.”

The event will take place at the AJ Bell Stadium – home of Salford Red Devils and Sale Sharks – on 24^th October from 10am – 3pm. For details on how to attend, please click here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/lagan-building-contractors-supplier-engagement-day-salford-tickets-38798119219

The third quarter of 2017 has seen the North West’s listed companies add almost £1.9bn to their total values, according to business advisory firm Deloitte.

The latest North West Share Index reveals that the value of the region’s listed businesses has risen by four per cent in the last three months, with total market capitalisations jumping from £43.7bn to £45.6bn.

This impressive result is largely attributable to the strong performance of the region’s largest listed businesses, those ranked on the FTSE 350 index. In total, six of the 18 [KD(-M1] companies achieved double-digit growth, with cyber security firm NCC Group seeing a 32 per cent increase in its market capitalisation, which now stands at £598m. The firm has enjoyed a period of consistent growth over the last six months, with its value jumping 63 per cent since March 31^st.

Meanwhile, Pets at Home, the UK’s largest pet supplies retailer, saw its value jump 33 per cent to surpass the £1bn mark. This follows a buoyant summer period, which saw sales jump five per cent after the introduction of a new pricing strategy.

In contrast, the value of those listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) suffered a minor dip, falling by a total of £7m. Despite this, some of the North West’s smaller companies still achieved positive results. Revolution Bars, amidst strong rumours of a £100m takeover by pub group Stonegate, almost doubled its value from £53.5m to £106m.[KD(-M2]  However, the transaction’s collapse has seen the company’s share price fall 10 per cent in recent days.

The North West’s retail sector has performed exceptionally well in the last quarter, with the overall value of businesses in the sector jumping five per cent to almost £20bn. Although May 2017 saw sales figures hit the lowest growth since April 2013, sales values were up 5.6 per cent in August compared to the same period last year, according to the Office for National Statistics. This was followed by a strong month of trading in September, as reports indicated like-for-like store sales had grown by an annual 2.9 per cent.

Doug King, director at Deloitte [KD(-M3] in the North West, said: “The North West is represented by a number of outstanding global brands, many of which have performed well in the last quarter. With the likes of JD Sports and B&M headquartered in the region, the retail sector is an important part of the North West economy, as the values of these companies make up nearly half of the region’s funds on the public markets.

“As a result, it is unsurprising that the retail sector has performed so strongly in the third quarter of the year. Many retailers will have benefitted from the ‘back-to-school’ boost, and many consumers will have hit the high streets to make most of the summer sales.”

PARLIAMENTARY AND HEALTH SERVICE OMBUDSMAN (PHSO) RELOCATES 340 STAFF TO CITYGATE IN MANCHESTER CITY CENTRE

Manchester, 16th October 2017 – The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) is relocating 300-plus staff to more than 31,000 sq ft of prime Grade A office space over four floors of the Citygate building in Manchester in a major letting brokered by global real estate advisors Colliers International.

Acting on behalf of an institutional investor, the Manchester office of Colliers agreed a 15-year lease with PHSO for a total of 31,193 sq ft on floors one to four of the remodelled five-storey property on Mosley Street.

Citygate has recently been comprehensively remodelled to provide a total of 38,513 sq ft (3,578 sq metres) of open plan Grade A office space on five floors, with the ground floor let to Barclays.

Scott Shufflebottom, national offices agency at the Manchester office of Colliers International, commented: “Citygate provides high specification Grade A office space in a highly sought-after location. We are now marketing the last remaining top floor suite, totalling 8,073 sq ft with on-site secure basement parking.”

Mark Baldwin, associate director at the Manchester office of real estate advisors GVA advised PHSO and said: “We were delighted to be appointed to act for PHSO with a strong track record to deliver the right result, against a very tight timescale. It was a fantastic GVA team effort with a very satisfied high-profile client. Citygate has been transformed thanks to an outstanding refurbishment with its open plan design being ideally suited to the requirements of PHSO.”

Colliers and TSG Property Consultants are joint letting agents at Citygate.