BQ North East Yearbook 2017

Your essential guide to investing in the North East

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

NORTH EAST

Your essential guide to investing in the Nor th East

EDITOR’S VIEW A CHANCE TO SHINE

READ ONLINE The BQ Yearbook 2017 is available to read online at bqlive.co.uk for when you are on the move BQ LIVE

@BQLIVE

Challenging is a word which has been used many times in a business context but never has it sounded more pertinent than in the current climate. The events of 2016 have created uncertainty – whether it be Brexit, the election of Donald Trump as US President or devolution deals – there has been much to exercise the mind and make forecasting more difficult than ever. However, life goes on and it is encouraging to see both the private and public sectors in our region talking positively about the area and promoting it as a great place to invest, somewhere for entrepreneurs to thrive and innovation to prosper in a flexible, agile and supportive business environment.

No one knows how Brexit will play out in 2017 once Article 50 is invoked but there is plenty of evidence to suggest this region is well placed to take advantage of any opportunities afforded. The Nissan investment is a massive boost, as is the ongoing success of our Ports and Newcastle International Airport, the fast-growing digital sector, developments in life sciences and our continuing positive balance of trade in exports.

The Tees Valley will have an elected mayor this year and a devolved administration can make real decisions at a local level. Early work has already been encouraging, mitigating the blow of the SSI steel closure in 2015.

Further North, it is fair to say there has been disappointment among business leaders at the failure of the seven local authorities to agree a devolution deal of their own. There may yet be a North of Tyne deal for Newcastle, Northumberland and North Tyneside but the fact there will be no mayoral elections has not thwarted ambitions.

As you will read in the following pages much work is being done by the North East LEP, Tees Valley Combined Authority and indeed all the local authorities in partnership with the private sector to attract investment from near and far.

Whatever the political argument, it is encouraging to see such a positive attitude when it comes to creating the conditions to make the whole region as attractive as possible, with the right infrastructure, support and skills to close the gap on the rest of the UK and build on its exporting excellence.

This publication looks at the importance of all sectors to our regional economy and looks ahead through the eyes of experts – in their own words – at the opportunities they foresee.

We also replay extracts of interviews with entrepreneurs featured in the BQ North East and Cumbria magazine this year to showcase the sort of people and businesses who benefit from operating in the North East and prove the entrepreneurial spirit BQ is so keen to highlight is very much alive.

From the Tweed to the Tees, the North East economy has made significant progress with record numbers of people in work and growth in key business sectors – but there is much more to do and we have so much more to offer. We need to shout loud and proud, with actions to follow, if we are to be heard and succeed with all the political noise which will continue to influence all that we do in 2017.

Paul Robertson, Editor

CONTENTS

22

07

in association with REGIONAL ECONOMY The power of the regions - and the benefits of working together for stronger local and national economies

19

INVEST IN...

A comprehensive breakdown of the regions that might be best suited for your next investment

41

INNOVATION The North East has a history of innovation - and it will play a huge role in our future

47

AUTOMOTIVE A deeper look into one of the great engines of our success

57

BUSINESS SUPPORT A fresh and innovative approach to education as one of the key links for any forward-thinking region

65

SERVICE SECTOR Understanding and tackling the huge changes affecting the sector

in association with

71

BUILT ENVIRONMENT Building foundations for the future

in association with

81

RETAIL A combination of independent businesses and national brands

in association with

89

SMALL BUSINESS Every small business in the North East plays a vital role in the regional economy

in association with

95

DIGITAL A sector affecting so many companies

INVEST IN DURHAM

72 SETTING HIGH S TANDARDS

58 THE MOST IMPOR TANT LESSONS

66 INNOVATION IS TOP PRIORIT Y

in association with

in association with

in association with

THE UK’S PREMIER RETAIL DESTINATIO N

in association with

Celebrating and inspir ing entrepreneurship.

103

WHO’S WHO Our essential guide to who is shaping the North East

123

RURAL Our beautiful rural surroundings are also highly productive business environments

133

MANUFACTURING AND OFFSHORE Opportunities and challenges ahead in association with for these powerful industries

139

FINANCIAL & BANKING A breakthrough bank which is changing the rules

145

LEGAL Choosing the right people to help you steer a new direction

153

TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT Training and skills lead to productivity

159

IT AND TELECOMS Connecting the region and helping it communicate with the world

167

TRANSPORT & INFRAS TRUCTURE Ports and roads, air and rail are each crucial elements as we set a route for success

96

173

EXPORTING Sending a powerful message aross the globe

THE POWER OF DIGITAL SKILLS

179

UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES A strong performance from the essential first link in the skills chain

189

GIVING BACK Giving something back to the region

193

TOURISM Creating the right first impression for visitors and investors

in association with

184 THE SCIENCE REVOLUTION

in association with

in association with

in association with

28 THE NORTH T YNESIDE W AY O F WORKING

in association with

in association with

174 EXPORTING IS A VITAL INGREDIENT

CONTACT S BUSINESS QUARTER Bryan Hoare Managing Director e: bryan@bqlive.co.uk @BQBryanH

EDITORIAL Paul Robertson Editor e: paul.robertson@bqlive.co.uk Peter Jackson Contributory editor

SALES Rachael Laschke Business Development Manager e: rachael@bqlive.co.uk @Rachael_BQ

DESIGN & PRODUCTION Steve Jessop Production Manager e: steve@bqlive.co.uk Sarah MacNeil Head of Design e: sarah@bqlive.co.uk Craig Hopson Designer e: craig@bqlive.co.uk

W

E

E

K

L Y

Sign up now for FREE at www.bqlive.co.uk/bq-weekly to receive your NEW weekly email update

DIGITAL Leanne Elliott Head of digital e: leanne@bqlive.co.uk Bryce Wilcock, Suzy Jackson Senior online business journalists e: press@bqlive.co.uk

PHOTOGRAPHY KG Photography e: info@kgphotography.co.uk Chris Auld e: chris@chrisauldphotography.com

IN PRINT Subscribe now at bqlive.co.uk/subscribe or by calling 0191 389 8468

Business Quarter is part of BE Group, the UK’s market leading business improvement specialists. www.be-group.co.uk Business Quarter, Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT. www.bqlive.co.uk. Business Quarter (BQ) is a leading national business brand recognised for celebrating and inspiring entrepreneurship. The multi-platform brand currently reaches entrepreneurs and senior business executives across Scotland, the North East and Cumbria, the North West, Yorkshire, the West Midlands and London and the South. BQ has established a UK wide regional approach to business engagement reaching a highly targeted audience of entrepreneurs and senior executives in high growth businesses both in-print, online and through branded events. All contents copyright © 2017 Business Quarter. All rights reserved. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy, no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies, howsoever caused. No liability can be accepted for illustrations, photographs, artwork or advertising materials while in transmission or with the publisher or their agents. All content marked ‘Profile’ and ‘Special Feature’ is paid for advertising. All information is correct at time of going to print, December 2016.

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

REGIONAL ECONOMY We are stronger together and sharing information, skills and experience can bring huge rewards

In association with

08

REGIONAL ECONOMY www.bqlive.co.uk

Stronger together With seven ports and two airports, North East England Chamber of Commerce chief executive James Ramsbotham argues the region is in a great position to exploit new markets post-Brexit The New Year offers us all an opportunity for unprecedented change in how we do business and tackle challenges. One of the first of these is how we react to the EU Referendum result.

I believe we need to take advantage of the new position we will be in next year and reframe our place in the global economy. We need to be ready to exploit new markets and seek out potential for growth.

Our region is so focused on exporting, it is imperative we do everything in our power to take advantage of these opportunities outside of the UK - especially as we have seven ports facing directly towards Europe.

It is crucial we have a strategic sense of direction to maximise our position post-referendum.

We need to work together like we have never worked together before. All of us in the business community must be joined at the hip – the FSB, EEF, CBI - working towards a common goal of economic growth for the North East economy. We also need the local authorities to do the same and work closely to gain as much devolved authority as possible. The Tees Valley devolution deal has already secured them £15m annually and there are discussions now about the priorities for that investment.

Obviously, the North of the region is in a different position and we will continue to campaign for devolution for that part of the North East as well. We were extremely disappointed and frustrated that a deal could not be reached to take advantage of having more devolved powers. It is essential we pursue these new approaches

to economic development if we are to change the historic pattern of under-performance here. North East England contains huge assets not just for our local economy, but for the whole of UK plc. In areas such as skills, transport, inward investment, business support, housing and culture, there is a need for a much more specific approach for our aspirations and challenges. We believe devolution is essential to release our full potential.

I also see the Northern Powerhouse as a key instrument in helping us to achieve our ambitions. It will enable us to punch above our weight and give us extra visibility.

As we enter 2017 we can reflect on not just the challenges we have overcome, but the tremendous achievements.

The principal ones are: firstly Heathrow’s expansion, which was something we have long campaigned for.

This connection is vital for our route into the rest of the world’s marketplace. It also will enable us to bring in more businesses and tourists to our region.

Second, Nissan decided to commit further investment in its Washington plant. The manufacture of two new models is a terrific compliment to all those managers, employees and suppliers who have made this plant so productive and successful.

Also, our cultural assets are first class in our region and the decision to award the Great Exhibition of the North to us is another perfect opportunity for us to shout. The rallying cry for 2017 is more certainty and, if we get the decisions and the support we need, the North East will rise to do its very best to succeed. We will grow stronger together. n

“Our region is so focused on exporting, it is imperative we do everything in our power to take advantage of these opportunities outside of the UK�

10

REGIONAL ECONOMY www.bqlive.co.uk

Growing despite uncertainty Bank of England Deputy Agent (North East) Andrew Hebden looks at the prospects for the region’s economy in 2017

REGIONAL ECONOMY

www.bqlive.co.uk

Each year when I pen this feature for the BQ Yearbook I like to look forward as well as back at the 12 months just gone. After all, one of the major functions of the Bank of England is to forecast what’s going to happen to the economy.

It’s a tough job at the best of times – and we’re the first to admit that we rarely get it absolutely right. However, with levels of uncertainty particularly high at the moment, that job’s arguably tougher than ever. The word ‘uncertainty’ crops up a lot in discussions I’ve been having with businesses across the North East. And evidence from a range of measures that the Bank looks at suggests uncertainty has been higher than normal since June’s referendum on the UK’s membership of the European Union. Despite that, the economy has continued to perform more strongly than many – including the Bank of England – had expected.

One area of strength which has been important in sustaining growth in consumer spending during 2016 has been the labour market: employment levels are high and wages have been growing faster than inflation.

The North East has been central to that story.

The latest data available at the time of writing show there are now more people in work in the North East than at any time in history – more than 1.2million. And the employment rate of 71.1% is almost at a record high.

Unemployment in the North East has fallen by 30,000 in just 12 months, compared with 145,000 across the UK as a whole. In other words, the North East contributed to a fifth of the total reduction in UK unemployment - completely out of proportion for the size of the region.

At the same time, the number of people in employment in the region increased by 48,000. That is equivalent to seven times the number of people directly employed by Nissan.

Growth in the economy since the summer has been supported by a package of measures introduced by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) in August. This included a small cut in interest rates which reduced mortgage repayments for many households and the cost of borrowing for companies.

However, businesses will typically only invest if they are confident about the outlook. And some tell us they remain

11

quite cautious. That weaker outlook for investment is a concern as we begin to look to the future. The MPC’s growth forecast for next year is stronger than that set out back in August, reflecting the economy’s robust recent performance. But the outlook for 2017 and 2018 is weaker, partly due to that weakening in investment intentions. The other key factor is the lower value of the pound which has fallen sharply since the summer and which will make imports more expensive. This is expected to push up prices, weighing on consumer spending growth.

Faced with a period of inflation above its 2% target, the Bank might be expected to increase interest rates. But that period will be temporary. And it is expected to happen alongside modest growth and rising unemployment.

The Bank therefore decided to leave its interest rate unchanged at 0.25% in November. But it has said that policy could respond in either direction, depending on how inflation and growth prospects develop.

As this story unfolds, the information we gather from our business contacts here in the North East is really important.

So I’m particularly pleased that in November and December we were able to host visits to the region from two of the committee’s most senior policymakers – Deputy Governor Ben Broadbent and Chief Economist Andy Haldane. I know Ben and Andy found the insights especially useful – not just from businesses but also a range of charities, community groups and social enterprises. As we look forward in uncertain times, what can we expect from the Bank of England? It is true that our policies alone can’t deliver prosperity. But we can lay the foundations for it by targeting sustainable low inflation.

This should smooth the process during a period of adjustment for the economy, stabilising growth and supporting jobs in the wake of much larger forces.

The outlook for 2017 may be an uncertain one. But I’m confident that the business community in the North East will demonstrate the drive, innovation and perseverance to give it every chance of prospering in the year ahead. n Andrew Hebden is the Bank of England’s Deputy Agent for the North East. @BoENorthEast

12

REGIONAL ECONOMY www.bqlive.co.uk

Open for business Northern Powerhouse Minister Andrew Percy explains how the concept can benefit the region and beyond Throughout history the North East has been a centre for commerce and industry. In the 14th century it was a thriving hub for the wool trade, in the 16th century it became the centre for coal, and by the 19th century its shipbuilding prowess ensured Britain had the largest fleet in the world. Now in the 21st Century, the North East is on the rise again with the development of the Northern Powerhouse, and is showing the world it is open for business. The North has over one million businesses, seven international airports and four of the world’s top universities. Our economy was worth £304 billion in 2014, similar to the whole of Belgium, while last year employment growth in the North East was the fastest in the UK. It is the people of the North who own this success, matched by Government support.

From the establishment of Transport for the North, to the agreement of four mayoral devolution deals (including Tees Valley), and from the creation of a £70m Northern Powerhouse Schools Strategy to investments in northern scientific strengths like the Cognitive Computing Centre at Daresbury and the Sir Henry Royce Institute in Manchester.

The Government has taken the steps to start making the Northern Powerhouse a reality. And yet we know there is even more untapped potential in the North. That’s why in his Autumn Statement the Chancellor set out his plans for long-term investment in the growth and productivity of the whole UK – which included a further £500million of local growth funding for new business projects in the North.

Our aim is simple – to fire up the Northern economy so it reaches its potential and we create a country that works for everyone. We will build on past progress to encourage a thriving private sector as well as train highly-skilled workers who can make the most of the opportunities on offer. First – we’ll transform transport by investing a record £13bn by 2020. The people of the North East will benefit from upgrade works to the A1, to complete the motorway corridor all the way from Newcastle to London.

Second – we’ll support skills across the region. Alongside

our reforms to create better schools, we’ll also work with local areas to improve teacher recruitment and graduate retention across the North. Third – we’ll invest in innovation. From next year, in addition to the Growth Deal funding, we’ll be investing a further £500 million through the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund and Neighbouring North East Fund. This investment will help small businesses with the best ideas get them off the ground, and we’ll continue creating 17 Northern Enterprise Zones backed by big investments. This will create worldclass facilities like those at the Newcastle Science Central – a future home to tech organisations. Finally – we’re going to target trade for the North. Investment from abroad shot up by a quarter last year, a rate twice the national average, and we’ll work to make sure that continues. We’ve already pitched a portfolio of 13 potential projects to investors worth £5 billion including generating hotels, residential and retail at Vaux in Sunderland.

As a Northerner, I know that sometimes we can talk ourselves down, but we shouldn’t – the North has some of the best people and businesses in the world. The Northern Powerhouse has been, and will continue to be, driven by local and combined authorities, LEPs, businesses and, from next year, new directly elected Mayors with new powers and direct accountability. Our country is leaving the EU and forging a new place in the world. It’s a new chapter in our history, there will be new freedoms and opportunities, and our embassies and Northern Powerhouse trade missions will make sure people in the North East benefit.

Visit the North East today and you’ll find a region bursting with ideas, passion, hard work and creativity. It’s why the Prime Minister recently announced Newcastle-Gateshead would host the Great Exhibition of the North after fending off stiff competition.

That success will be repeated as our plans for the Northern Powerhouse unlock the vast potential of the North East, and ensure its proud past is matched by an even brighter future. n

NORTH EAST ENGLAND WORKS Economic growth offering more and better jobs for all

Nissan, Sunderland

northeastlep.co.uk @northeastlep

14

REGIONAL ECONOMY

www.bqlive.co.uk

We’re going places Helen Golightly, chief operating officer of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership says prospects are much brighter for the region The North East economy has made significant and encouraging progress in recent years with record numbers of people in work and growth in key business sectors driving prosperity and new opportunities.

It’s certainly a far more vibrant and positive regional picture than when we unveiled the North East’s original Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) nearly three years ago.

The SEP clearly sets out how the North East Local Enterprise Partnership and the North East Combined Authority support economic growth and the advice we give to Government about the most important investments needed for our area.

It focuses on areas that will make our regional economy tick: innovation, business support, access to finance, skills, employment, economic infrastructure, transport and digital connectivity.

The economic data in the first SEP was based on a period as we emerged from recession – and as we head into 2017, the North East Local Enterprise Partnership and North East Combined Authority are preparing to unveil a refreshed SEP, based on new data and analysis.

The refreshed SEP will reflect the changing economic climate and provide a sharpended focus on those sectors which bring greatest value to our economy.

REGIONAL ECONOMY

www.bqlive.co.uk

The evidence underpinning it paints a far more positive picture of the North East economy moving forward.

It reveals the resilience and innovation of a region which is striving to contribute its full worth to the UK. More people are in work in the North East than ever before; the latest Office of National Statistics survey revealing 1.215m employed, that’s 51,000 more people in work than 12 months ago.

The rate of growth in the number of people in work in our region is growing faster than the English average and we are continuing to narrow the employment rate gap with the English average too.

The number of people out of work has fallen again, with nearly 30,000 fewer people unemployed now compared to one year ago.

We are also seeing a continuation in the rise of permanent jobs for both men and women which is encouraging.

It remains a concern however that the number of people, who are economically inactive, is rising.

The reasons for this are unclear but could be related to a fall in the number of people in self-employment in the North East over the past year, in contrast to the national trend, and unstable jobs.

This requires further investigation into what is a complex picture. Our concern at the North East Local Enterprise Partnership is to ensure that the quality of employment opportunities continues to improve.

Of the new jobs created in our region, the majority are in higher skilled, better paid roles. The North East remains on course to meet the overarching aim of the SEP – to create 100,000 more and better jobs in the decade up to 2024.

Inward investment is playing an important role in sparking this new jobs growth. The North East continues to attract investment from other parts of the UK and internationally.

Over the past two years, the region has secured 204 inward investments leading to the creation of nearly 9,500 new jobs.

More than 130 of these projects were from overseas, with three-quarters of these reinvestments in existing

15

companies. Thirty-eight investments were made by US firms, 16 by Japanese investors, nine by French and German companies respectively – and businesses from 21 other countries showed their confidence in the North East economy by committing to invest here.

Digital and creative, financial and professional business services, automotive and advanced manufacturing are the sectors leading this new raft of investment.

There are solid economic foundations to build upon in 2017 and our region received a major boost to its strategic economic growth plans when the Government, European Union and European Investment Bank signed off on the £145m North East Fund for business investment.

Over the next five years, this finance will be loaned to some of the region’s fastest growing and most ambitious companies.

It will help entrepreneurs plan with more certainty for growth, encourage more job creation and fuel the expansion of the sectors key to growing the North East economy.

The North East LEP and North East Combined Authority worked hard to ensure that every penny of this North East Fund is invested exclusively into North East businesses.

It is estimated that The North East Fund could provide financial support for 600 businesses; help create around 2,500 jobs in the next five years and a further 1,000 jobs throughout the life of the fund - and deliver a legacy fund of up to £80m over the next decade for further financial support to even more companies. n

“More people are in work in the North East than ever before; the latest Office of National Statistics survey revealing 1.215m employed, that’s 51,000 more people in work than 12 months ago”

16

PROFILE South Tyneside Council

South Tyneside - open for business Throughout the financial challenges of recent years, here at South Tyneside Council we’ve held our nerve.

Far from shying away from taking risks, we’ve stayed true to our vision for the future with ever bolder ambition.

Our twin formula of investment and innovation to deliver outcomes is paying dividends. We are creating the right conditions for businesses to flourish, giving the private sector the confidence to invest and providing local people with jobs and opportunities. As a local authority, we have taken on the leadership challenge and are driving transformational change in our communities. Our visionary approach – and the positive outcomes – has earned us a place on the shortlist for the LGC’s Council of the Year award.

By placing regeneration at the heart of everything we do, we are creating a long-term, sustainable future for South Tyneside.

Since embarking on our programme of regeneration in 2010, £604m of capital investment has been made, with a further £350m planned by 2020. We’re seeing genuine jobs growth too; our employment rate has improved by 7.7 per cent since 2010 and there are 30 per cent fewer JSA claimants.

Last year saw significant milestones reached in a number of key projects. The first phase of our award-winning £100m South Shields 365 regeneration scheme was completed on time and to the very highest design standards with the opening of ‘The Word’, the National Centre for the Written Word. This

cultural venue, which further enhances South Tyneside’s outstanding visitor offer, attracted almost 21,000 people in its first week. Within a month of opening, The Word won Living North’s prestigious Best Regeneration or Restoration Award and was described as an ‘iconic space’ which is ‘a real beacon for our region’. The national acclaim it has received reinforces the Borough’s reputation as a destination of culture. We’re delighted that BT and the Port of Tyne, with whom we already have a history of partnership working, are supporting the venue with sponsorship. Adding to the regeneration success we’ve already experienced with delivery of flagship projects at our Riverside and Foreshore, including the multi-award-winning £5m Littlehaven Promenade and Sea Wall and £16m Haven Point leisure centre, The Word will drive footfall into the town centre and act as a further catalyst for private sector investment.

Linking activities in these three distinct, but complementary, areas of the town is encouraging visitors to stay longer and creating greater expenditure in the local economy.

Investment in other parts of the Borough is also stimulating private sector confidence. In Hebburn the £13m state-of-the-art community facility Hebburn Central heralded a new chapter for the town, with retailer Aldi set to start construction on a new store in the town, bringing with it jobs in construction, retail and the supply chain.

We have secured an additional Enterprise Zone site at Holborn

PROFILE

South Tyneside Council

Riverside, which will create a high-quality employment site with the potential of up to 1,500 jobs and boost spending on local infrastructure. This development will allow us to expand our provision of Grade A office accommodation and industrial premises, allowing companies currently located in managed workspace to grow and encouraging inward investment in services supporting key growth sectors such as marine, energy and high value manufacturing.

Working with our partner Sunderland City Council, we are on track to deliver the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP), which is expected to attract more than £300m of private sector investment and create 5,200 jobs in the first phases. The park will not only create much needed highly skilled jobs in the automotive, offshore and other hi-tech sectors but will build on our strong manufacturing heritage. Our region is renowned for being at the forefront of manufacturing and the IAMP will capitalise on our unrivalled skills base and further cement our international reputation in this field. The Government has also approved several improvements to upgrade the A19 corridor, strengthening important transport links to the site and between Sunderland and South Tyneside.

We’ve continued to invest in housing and neighbourhoods, with the annual highest number of homes built during 201516 in a decade. Our Decent Homes programme has reached completion with over 18,000 properties being brought up to the

17

decent homes standard and beyond thanks to over £300m of investment. An additional £8.4m was invested in our Housing Plus schemes for older people, including state-of-the-art facilities and sensory rooms for people with dementia.

South Tyneside Housing Ventures Trust is making excellent progress towards its target of delivering 400 homes in five years.

The Trust has built 88 new properties, and has bought a further 50, plus 20 empty private sector homes to bring them back into use. We’ve established a Housing Development Company, to build and sell homes for profit. Alongside South Tyneside Homes and the Ventures Trust, the company will help us deliver new high quality homes to meet growing demand and create sustainable mixed tenure neighbourhoods.

By reinvigorating town centres, securing major infrastructure improvements, delivering affordable housing, supporting people to access skills and jobs, and building facilities which will make South Tyneside an outstanding place for investment, we’re well ahead of programme to deliver our 2030 Future Vision.

For more information visit www.southtyneside.gov.uk

REGIONAL ECONOMY - STATISTICS The North East has over 67,000 companies (source: NOMIS, North East Businesses 2016)

Fastest rate of company growth in the UK outside of London [10.78%, 2014-2015] (Source: fDi Intelligence based on Office for National Statistics: UK Business Counts)

The North East is home to over 1.2m workers (source: NOMIS, Working Age Population – North East, 2015)

The North East has one of the lowest attrition rates (labour turnover) in the UK (all sectors)

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

INVEST IN...

In a region so varied in the successful sectors it is home to, there is always one part of the North East that will be the perfect place in which to invest

20

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

NORTH EAST ENGLAND The Invest North East England team works to attract inward investment into the North East Combined Authority area on behalf of seven constituent local authorities, with a combined population of nearly two million.

The North East Combined Authority area stretches from County Durham in the South through the Tyne and Wear conurbation to Northumberland in the North. The North East has a tremendous amount to offer companies looking to set up or relocate to the area. Along with some exceptional home-grown companies such as Atom Bank, SMD and Sage plc, the area has attracted some truly transformational inward investments over the years with global giants such as Nissan, Hitachi Rail, Hewlett Packard, GE Oil and Gas, Komatsu, Ubisoft, MSD and Siemens, just some of the businesses locating significant operations and investing in the North East. In the last two and a half years, the North East has secured 242 inward investments from the UK and abroad, leading to more than 13,000 new jobs and safeguarding thousands more. So why are so many companies choosing to locate in North East England?

For more n io informat w. w visit w east rth i n v e s t n o .c o .u k england

RAPIDLY GROWING BUSINESS BASE With over 49,000 companies in the region, we have experienced one of the UK’s highest growth rates in company numbers between 2014 and 2015, second only to London, offering a fantastic market opportunity for investors. We are also the only region in the UK to experience a positive balance of trade (we export more goods than we import), demonstrating the strength of the fantastic manufacturing sector embedded in the region.

SKILLED AND DEDICATED WORKFORCE With a workforce of 1.2 million, the North East has a large and skilled labour market. Investors to the region also benefit from an exceptionally loyal labour force with some of the UK’s lowest labour turnover rates.

21

WORLD-CLASS EDUCATION AND TRAINING The region has four excellent universities with 80,000 students studying at Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria and Sunderland. We’re also home to a variety of national innovation centres which offer research and development and innovation expertise to companies in a variety of key sectors. These include: the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult; Digital Catapult; North East Satellite Applications Centre; National Centre for Ageing Innovation; the National Centre for Subsea and Offshore Engineering; and soon the National Institute for Smart Data.

COMPETITIVE COST BASE AND EXCEPTIONAL QUALITY OF LIFE Businesses coming into the North East benefit from lower wage and property costs compared to most other areas in the UK. The standard of education, training and apprenticeships are some of the best in the country which means that companies get more for their money.

In addition, ‘real wages’ are amongst the best in the UK (wages go further due to a lower cost base), and our world-renowned natural environment, heritage assets and vibrant cities and towns all help make the North East an area with an exceptional quality of life.

FANTASTIC CONNECTIVITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE The North East is blessed with superb connectivity which has recently led to Newcastle being named the best connected urban area in the UK (2016 UK Prosperity Index). Newcastle International Airport connects the region to over 80 worldwide destinations and carries over four million passengers a year. The region has three major deep sea ports, Blyth, Sunderland and Tyne, three major train stations with daily direct trains to London, Manchester and Scotland in under three hours and we have some of the least congested roads in the UK. The Invest North East England team is tasked with proactively marketing the North East’s key attributes to national and international investors and helping them to locate in the area. Key sectors targeted are: IT & digital, energy, life sciences, automotive & advanced manufacturing and financial, professional & business services. The team works closely with all seven local authorities in the area, and the following pages highlight what can be found in each of these.

For information on investment opportunities in the North East please visit: www.investnortheastengland.co.uk enquiries@investnortheastengland.co.uk +44 (0) 191 561 1121 or +44 (0) 7342 069 367

FACTS A skilled workforce of over 1.2m people

Over 49,000 companies located in the region

‘Real Wages’ are among the best in the country

Fastest rate of company growth in the UK outside of London (2014-2015)

Number 1 car producing region in the UK

One of the shortest daily commute times in the UK with an average commute distance of 7.8 miles

Tyne and Wear metro system is the largest of its kind in the UK outside of London

Has 4 world-class universities offering higher education to over 80,000 students

NORTH EAST ENGLAND WORKS.

22

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

Durham, a county with a rich heritage in industry and innovation, is somewhere that is fast becoming today’s beacon for business in the North thanks to a number of leading lights of the business world.

Several multi-nationals are located here including GSK, Caterpillar, NSK and Hitachi, which located its £82m European HQ for high speed rail at Newton Aycliffe.

The county also nurtures several home grown success stories such as Seaward Electronics, Kromek, Gestamp Tallent, Thomas Swan and Thorn Lighting, amongst others.

These companies employ significant numbers and have invested and reinvested in the county. Durham City is a key location for business services and has potential to grow. The purchase of Salvus House by Durham County Council to act as a business incubator will create up to 200 direct jobs with a further 500 indirect jobs. The council has also set out plans to create approximately 6,000 private sector jobs by redeveloping its county hall site and moving the council to a smaller HQ in the city centre. The most important business sectors are Automotive, Precision Engineering, Electronics,

Health, and Financial, Professional and Business Services.

But this list is not exhaustive and the county boasts a broad business base, with significant strengths in technology, engineering and manufacturing, which makes up 20% of the county’s economy (compared with 16% across the UK as a whole). Over the last four years, through Business Durham - the county’s economic development company working on behalf of Durham County Council - 3,400 businesses have relocated, set up or expanded their business in the county.

This equates to more than 6,300 jobs and over £187m for the economy. And 40 multinationals, unique and niche companies have invested and re-invested in the county over the last three years.

The A1(M) corridor provides a focus for a wide range of businesses. NETPark, near Sedgefield, is a science park for businesses involved in high value science, engineering and technology sectors. Aycliffe Business Park is one of the largest business parks in North East England and is the base for a range of industrial and logistics firms. Work has now started on the 52 acre Forrest Park site, expanding on the

DURHAM

23 “The countyNORTHUMBERLAND is a great place to live and work and has a proven track record in hosting world class cultural programmes, such as the UK’s largest light festival, DURHAM Lumiere, which returns for its fifth CUMBRIA edition in 2017” NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE

NORTH TYNESIDE

SOUTH TYNESIDE

GATESHEAD

SUNDERLAND

STOCKTON-ON-TEES

DARLINGTON

HARTLEPOOL

REDCAR AND CLEVELAND

MIDDLESBROUGH

FACTS

NORTH YORKSHIR E

Aycliffe Business Park development, with a further 3,200 jobs expected. There are also a number of opportunities on key sites along this corridor including the new mixeduse Durham Gate development near Spennymoor as well as other key sites adjacent to Bishop Auckland, Chesterle-Street, Consett and Stanley. The capacity of the A19 corridor is being developed. Seaham, Murton and Peterlee are key locations for new housing, retail and employment developments, which will build on existing strengths in manufacturing, engineering, business services sectors as well as opportunities for enterprises and tourism.

The county is a great place to live and work and has a proven track record in hosting world class cultural programmes, such as the UK’s largest light festival, Lumiere, which returns for its fifth edition in 2017 and the amazing Kynren; An Epic Tale of England, in Bishop Auckland Durham is a thriving place to live and visit.

The ‘This is Durham, Place of Light,’ brand, developed

by Visit County Durham, will help promote the county nationally and internationally as a place to invest, live, work and meet; shining the spotlight on the county as a place to be proud of; a beacon guiding businesses, residents and visitors alike to this vibrant place.

Quality of life is excellent with a low crime rate (County Durham was ranked 7th of 43 English Police Forces in 2012).

The county has great schools and the prospects for the future workforce is bright with the percentage of students achieving 5 or more A*-C grades, including the critical Maths and English, outstripping the rest of England with 63% achieving as against 59% in England.

Population – 519,695 people, a 5.3% (+26,017) increase in population between 2001 and 2015.

Employment – 226,400 people are in employment (residence based), with an employment rate of 67.5%; there are 25,000 manufacturing jobs (14.5%) Business – County Durham has 16,585 registered businesses which employ around 170,000 people (workplace based) Self-employment – 22,600 people described themselves as self-employed in June 2016, around 6.1% of working age adults.

For more informati on visit w w w .b u s i n e d u r h a m .c o .us s k

29% of County Durham’s residents are qualified to NVQ level 4 and above.

County Durham generated £7.852bn of GVA in 2014.

The largest employment centres are in the urban centre of Durham City but also in edge of town business/ industrial parks to the south of Newton Aycliffe (mostly manufacturing) and to the west of Peterlee.

24

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

GATESHEAD Extending nearly 13 miles along the south bank of the River Tyne, covering 55 square miles, Gateshead is home to an impressive mixture of modern urban vitality and rural charm.

With many achievements to boast about, from the introduction of the UK’s first industrial estate back in the 1930s, to modern day iconic structures and smart specialisation sectors, Gateshead continues to lead the way with its innovative and creative approach. Here are some of the things that make Gateshead so unique: Team Valley Trading Estate – Europe’s largest modern industrial estate, extending 700 acres at the centre of the Tyne and Wear conurbation. The park has direct access points to the A1(M), accommodating over 750 businesses specialising in high end manufacturing and advanced engineering; employing 20,000 people. Key businesses already operating here include: De la Rue, Parker Domnick Hunter, Rettig and Express Engineering.

NewcastleGateshead Urban Core – the cultural, retail, tourism and leisure hub, incorporating the recently regenerated Gateshead Centre.

Baltic Business Quarter – located on the south bank of the River Tyne, is a regionally significant office location with clusters of digital and creative businesses. The area is also home to the first European VR industry led Centre of Excellence, VTRGO Labs; specialising in emerging technologies working alongside leading brands such as Audi, Jaguar, Land Rover, PlayStation and the Facebookowned Oculus VR headset.

The site can accommodate a further 80,000 m² of Grade A office accommodation, to attract both regional and international investment meeting a variety of end user requirements. Specifically, businesses within the financial, professional and business services sector would benefit from being located alongside the increasing cluster of service sector businesses, such as Teleperformance and Worldpay.

Follingsby Park/South – providing 97,902 m² of primary accommodation for manufacturing, distribution and logistics’ services with access to both the A19 and A1(M), Follingsby is already home to a number of high-profile distribution and logistics occupiers such as DHL and FedEx.

A

NORTHUMBERLAND NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE

NORTH TYNESIDE SOUTH TYNESIDE

GATESHEAD

SUNDERLAND

DURHAM STOCKTON-ON-TEES

DARLINGTON

HARTLEPOOL

“The area’s business environment and infrastructure is ranked within the top 50 of all UK local authorities, which is why it has proven to be the location of choice for many international companies”

REDCAR AND CLEVELAND

MIDDLESBROUGH

FACTS

N O RTH YORKSHIR E

For more informati on visit w w w .g a t e s h g o v .u k / i n v e a d . est

In excess of 2 million passengers use the Gateshead Interchange, providing regional connections via bus and Metro; the busiest bus station in Tyne and Wear.

Baltic Business Quarter and Central Gateshead benefit from broadband speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second and is capable of delivering up to 40 gb/s to meet future demand.

Low cost, low carbon energy is available through the Council’s new district energy network.

South of Follingsby Park is Gateshead’s Enterprise Zone site, providing 50 acres of land to support the development of a further 90,000 m² of warehousing and distribution space; further cementing its position as the premier distribution park in the North East.

Gateshead is at the heart of the region and positioned to take advantage of easy access to all local, national and international markets; providing links to air, rail, car and ferry services. With a working age population of 1.4m within a 10 mile radius, businesses can benefit from a flexible, motivated and skilled workforce, with highly competitive employee costs.

The area’s business environment and infrastructure is ranked within the top 50 of all UK local authorities, which is why it has proven to be the location of choice for many international companies. Its diverse and growing business base, complemented by the supportive environment, provides the perfect setting from which to establish and realise businesses’ growth aspirations.

Gateshead College, which is currently ranked the number one college in the North East [for student success], provides specialist skills academies for industry such as automotive, engineering, manufacturing, logistics and construction.

The Northern Design Centre and National Centre for Emerging Technology provide cutting edge facilities to support Gateshead’s growing creative and innovative cluster.

26

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

NEWCASTLE Newcastle is the regional capital of North East England and one of the UK’s core cities. With a city centre airport, access to the East Coast high-speed train and positioned on two major roads, the city is well connected to the UK and beyond. Invest Newcastle, a service delivered by NewcastleGateshead Initiative on behalf of Newcastle to attract and secure new investment and jobs for the city, works in partnership with Newcastle City Council and the private sector to help businesses locate, expand and flourish in the city.

SECTOR STRENGTHS Newcastle is home to almost 7,000 registered businesses, with knowledge intensive sectors and tech driving consistent economic growth. One of only six designated UK Science Cities, Newcastle is home to cutting-edge facilities including the International Centre for Life and the £40m National Innovation Centre for Ageing. Newcastle Hospital’s NHS Trust has also topped the table for a fifth consecutive

For more on informati visit t w w w .i n v e s o m .c e newcastl

year, undertaking the UK’s largest number of clinical trials, recruiting almost 12,500 patients. The city is home to organisations such as QuantuMDx, who are making headway in developments improving healthcare on a national and international scale. At the heart of the fastest growing tech cluster outside of London, digital gaming is an industry which is really booming in the city.

Ubisoft, who already had their Studio based within the city, opened their EMEA Consumer Relationship Centre two years ago creating an additional 140 client-facing jobs. ZeroLight, who offer real-time VR solutions, have grown rapidly creating almost 100 jobs in a similar time frame and expanded into a prime location on Newcastle Quayside. With a number of international organisations headquartered in the city, Newcastle has become an economic hub for business and professional services. Organisations including Sage Group plc and Virgin Money have their headquarters in Newcastle whilst industry leaders including Deloitte, Sky and Convergys see the importance of having a strong presence in the city.

D

“A company full of Geordies is unbeatable.”

Richard Branson, CEO of Virgin SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE HUB Newcastle’s undeniable quality of life means it is able to claim one of the highest graduate and staff retention rates in the UK. The city is also home to two leading universities, Newcastle University and Northumbria University, with particular strengths in cloud computing, big data and scientific research. There are over 50,000 students studying in the city, a fifth of which are at post-graduate level.

Newcastle University has the UK’s leading computing science school in terms of research impact and their EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Cloud Computing for Big Data educates over 40 PhD students, the highest concentration in the UK. The city boasts four national innovation centres; National Institute for Smart Data Innovation, National Innovation Centre for Ageing, EPSRC National Centre for Energy Systems Integration and Tyne Subsea – the National Centre for Subsea and Offshore Engineering.

KEY DEVELOPMENTS From Grade A office space to quirky, creative and digital hubs, Newcastle has a wide range of office solutions to fit business needs. Complementing this are key strategic sites within the Accelerated Development Zone (ADZ).

The ADZ spans Newcastle and Gateshead with three key sites in Newcastle; East Pilgrim Street, Newcastle Science Central and Stephenson Quarter. On the edge of the city is Newcastle International Airport Business Park and the North Bank of the Tyne, both sites hold Enterprise Zone status presenting an attractive offering for investors.

FACTS Newcastle is home to four national innovation centres in ageing, smart data, energy and offshore engineering

There are over 50,000 students studying across the two city centre universities

Newcastle International Airport has direct routes to over 80 destinations, serving 4.6m passengers every year

Over 40 trains travel daily to London, reaching our capital in 2hr 45mins

There has been a £12.5m investment in Newcastle’s digital infrastructure giving us one of the fastest broadband speeds in the UK, as well as free city-centre wi-fi

Tech start-ups in Newcastle have increased by 50% in 5 years

Home to a FSTE 100 tech company – the only remaining technology stock in the FTSE 100 (Sage Group plc)

Almost 1.1m people of working age live within a 30 minute drive

28

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

For more on informati w. visit ww h t i n v e s t n o r .u k o t y n e s i d e .c

NORTH TYNESIDE There can be no doubt that North Tyneside punches above its weight when it comes to what it can offer investors and businesses. The borough boasts a range of key benefits including world class premises, competitive costs and a superb transport infrastructure. Its highly skilled workforce is one of its most important assets, with over one million people living within a 30-minute commute and close to two million people within a 60-minute commute.

For a relatively small borough, its business credentials are also particularly impressive; providing over 50 business sites including two of the UK’s largest and most successful office

“Cobalt Park, the largest and most successful office park in the UK, offers over two million square feet of office space. The park is now 90 per cent occupied and home to more than 14,000 employees”

DURHAM CUMBRIA

STOCKTON-ON-TEES

DARLINGTON

HARTLEPOOL

REDCAR AND CLEVELAND

MIDDLESBROUGH

NORTH YORKSHIR E

parks and two incentivised Enterprise Zone sites.

It is this unique mix which continues to attract businesses to North Tyneside, enabling the borough to continue to grow despite difficult national and global economic conditions.

The riverside industrial sites and Enterprise Zones at Swans, Royal Quays and Whitehill Point provide a superb location for firms linked to advanced engineering, marine, renewable and subsea sectors and act as a catalyst for inward investment.

The Swans site offers 13 hectares of prime space on the North Bank of the River Tyne, with made-to-measure industrial and office facilities, a deep port and easy access to the North Sea. The Swans Centre for Innovation has also been launched on the site providing new and flexible business accommodation for small and medium-sized firms in the energy, marine and offshore sectors.

In addition, 30 hectares of the Port of Tyne’s North Tyneside estate at Royal Quays and Whitehill Point provide further opportunities for the growing oil, gas and wind energy markets.

These sites benefit from simplified planning processes, plus business rate discounts until 2018 and enhanced capital allowances until 2020.

North Tyneside is also home to leading examples of innovative, people-friendly business parks including Quorum which offers one of the most attractive location packages in the country. Over 5,000 people work on the park which is occupied by a range of companies including Tesco Bank, Convergys, Balfour Beatty and Home Group.

Cobalt Park, the largest and most successful office park in the UK, offers over two million square feet of office space. The park is now 90% occupied and home to more than 14,000 employees. It is the location of choice for national and global organisations including Procter & Gamble, Accenture, Hewlett Packard and Santander.

The park’s developer, Highbridge, is also behind Indigo Park which is capable of accommodating 1.3 million sq ft of bespoke manufacturing and distribution space with the potential to generate more than 1,000 jobs.

Added to this, the borough provides a number of mixed use business sites including Balliol Business Park which boasts Greggs plc as one of its many tenants.

Tyne Tunnel Trading Estate has also attracted companies from a range of key sectors due to its strategic location adjacent to the A19 Tyne Tunnel approach. Current occupiers include Maersk, Aquatran, Soil Machine Dynamics (SMD), Kitwave and Advanced Industrial Solutions (AIS).

FACTS Over 50 business sites including the UK’s largest business park

Provides access to over one million people within a 30 minute commute

Home to two enterprise zone sites

Industrial property costs are a third of those in London

Average house prices are 45% lower than the UK average

Newcastle International Airport has direct routes to over 80 destinations, serving 4.6m passengers every year

Over 40 trains travel daily to London, reaching our capital in 2hr 45mins

30

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

NORTHUMBERLAND Northumberland is an outstanding business location, with great UK and international businesses that have chosen to make Northumberland their home. Boosted by its skilled, flexible and hard-working people, and the region’s worldclass research base. Northumberland offers a wide range of business premises and sites for investment and its excellent transport and communications links make it a fantastic place to live and work. Northumberland is home to key industries including healthcare, advanced engineering, oil and gas, renewables, manufacturing and food and drink. Investment continues to flow into Northumberland with Egger UK’s £110m investment in its chipboard processing plant in

Hexham which has created one of the most technologically advanced facilities in Europe and AkzoNobel’s state of the art £100m paint manufacturing facility in Ashington.

Key sectors include: ENERGY: OIL & GAS AND RENEWABLES Our engineering skills, proximity to North Sea energy resources, port infrastructure and easy road access have made Northumberland a natural home for the UK’s offshore energy industry. The Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult is located in Blyth, giving Northumberland a pivotal role in offshore renewables. Industry-leading companies include EDF Energy Renewables, PII Pipeline Solutions, Dunlop Oil and Gas, Techflow Flexibles, IHC Engineering Business and Vattenfall.

HEALTHCARE AND LIFE SCIENCES Northumberland is home to an impressive array of pharmaceutical businesses, and it has a growing presence in biotechnology. Leading companies include Aesica Pharmaceuticals, Piramal Healthcare and Merck Sharp and Dohme (MSD), amongst others.

SOUTH TYNESIDE

GATESHEAD

SUNDERLAND

DURHAM STOCKTON-ON-TEES

DARLINGTON

HARTLEPOOL

REDCAR AND CLEVELAND

MIDDLESBROUGH

N O RTH YORKSHIR E

ADVANCED MANUFACTURING The UK is a world leader in advanced engineering, and it is at the heart of the Northumberland economy.

Capabilities range from mechanical engineering, through advanced composite materials to pipeline technology, as well as unique niche products. Leading engineering and manufacturing firms based in Northumberland include Draeger, AAF, Tharsus group and Aavid Thermacore Europe.

STRATEGIC SITES Its strategic sites offer a tremendous choice of locations for businesses, including serviced sites, advanced industrial factories and offices. Offering urban sites or idyllic rural locations, it can accommodate everyone, from start-ups and microbusinesses to major multinational companies.

Northumberland provides an impressive portfolio of strategic sites with Enterprise Zone (EZ) status such as Energy Central sites at the Port of Blyth, Ashwood Business Park and Ramparts Business Park. EZ sites offer simplified planning regimes and tax benefits, enjoying the benefits of excellent road connections and access to Port facilities. They are suitable for a wide range of manufacturing and service sector uses.

ARCH COMMERCIAL PREMISES There are a number of modern business parks, business incubators and serviced enterprise centres in Northumberland. Arch Workspace provides high quality, professional business space in Northumberland and County Durham. It offers a range of workspace tenancy options, from virtual space to office space up to 300 sq m.

SUPPORT PROGRAMMES Businesses located or investing in Northumberland can benefit from a range of business support programmes including Business Northumberland, the delivery of the North East Rural Growth Network which includes access to a number of grants and incentives such as the Strategic Economic Infrastructure Fund and the Rural Business Growth Fund.

For more informati visit www on n o r t h u m b e .a r c h rland. .c o .u k

FACTS Seven strategic Enterprise Zone sites

World leading cluster of 530 companies operating in Energy

One globally recognised offshore energy site through the ORE Catapult facility in Blyth

Northumberland College are proud to be the ONLY training partner in the UK accredited to deliver the Internationally recognised BZEE standards for ‘Level 3 Wind Turbine Technician Studies’ which is also fully accredited with the Global Wind Organisation (GWO).

Newcastle International Airport has direct routes to over 80 destinations, serving 4.6m passengers every year

1,300 employees serving the advanced electronics sector

Established network of over 340 advanced manufacturing and automotive companies

32

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

SOUTH TYNESIDE “We support businesses of all sizes, in all sectors, but with particular focus on advanced manufacturing, engineering, digital and ICT together with business services.

Our employment rate is the highest it’s been in over 10 years

South Tyneside is an exciting and vibrant location in which to invest and grow a business. With a series of ambitious regeneration projects, its relentless focus on economic growth and regeneration is driving private sector confidence.

It has established a reputation for delivering transformational economic regeneration projects including South Shields Seafront, Harton Quay and three key Town Centres. 2016 marked completion of Phase One of its £100m South Shields 365 Town Centre investment programme, and the opening of a new state-of-the-art cultural venue The Word, The National Centre for the Written Word.

Inward investment is central to its aspirations for job creation and it has a strong track record for attracting investors. It is home to innovative start-ups seeking growth and established global organisations setting up a North East England base. It supports businesses of all sizes, in all sectors, but with particular focus on advanced manufacturing, engineering, digital and ICT together with business services. The employment rate is the highest it’s been in over 10 years.

It supports some of the best digital and ICT providers that the North East has to offer and its reputation is growing as a location which nurtures innovative companies supported

with award-winning business centres including One Trinity Green – accommodation tailored to the digital and creative sector.

High quality accommodation and a skilled workforce with a reputation for exceptional customer service make South Tyneside a very attractive location for high-profile business services organisations. The recent announcement of 70 new jobs at the BT centre in South Shields demonstrates continued confidence in the South Tyneside as a business location.

Holborn Riverside Enterprise Zone in South Shields will further extend support to the digital, ICT and business sector, with the provision of more than 18,000m2 of Grade A office accommodation. The development is set to create up to 1,500 additional jobs for the region.

Its location on the A19 economic corridor helps place us at the heart of the North East’s manufacturing hub supported by global transport connectivity from the thriving Port of Tyne. South Tyneside has excellent import and export infrastructure nationally and internationally, including the A1 and A19 road network and established exporting links to Europe.

It has well-advanced plans in place for a new International

FACTS South Tyneside is home to one of the most extensive port operations in the UK with deep river facilities at the Port of Tyne.

For more informati visit www on i n s o u t h t y n.i n v e s t eside. c o .u k Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) which will allow it, alongside partners Sunderland City Council, to build on its strengths in automotive manufacturing and unlock significant opportunities for enterprise and employment for the region.

The 100-hectare IAMP, designated a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, will bring a predicted £300 million plus in private sector investment and the creation of over 5,200 new jobs over the next decade.

Its ambition is to create a world-class strategic employment site that will reinforce the region’s growing profile as an attractive location for national and international business investment.

To further realise this ambition, both councils have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with local education providers to ensure the region’s future workforce is equipped with the skills necessary to make the IAMP and its wider supply chain a long term success.

Initiatives of this scale demonstrate the extent of its ambition to create investment and infrastructure that supports significant business growth and employment for South Tyneside and the region.

Highly skilled workforce and industry led skills programme to meet business needs.

Direct access to London Heathrow, Amsterdam Schipol and Dubai from Newcastle International Airport.

2hr 45mins to London from Newcastle Central Station (30min drive).

South Tyneside is a well connected borough working towards achieving 99% SuperFast broadband coverage by 2018.

Over 28,000 people are employed in the North East ICT sector, with over 50,000 students studying STEM subjects at its universities.

Businesses locating in South Tyneside will benefit from competitive property costs plus access to a skilled, productive workforce.

34

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

SUNDERLAND Big changes are ahead for Sunderland, its forward-thinking local authority and diverse business community are creating a place that is truly at the forefront of commercial innovation, particularly in key sectors including: automotive and advanced manufacturing; software; offshore renewable energy and subsea engineering; and financial and customer services.

Sunderland has an excellent record in attracting inward investment. Today the city is home to more than 87 overseas-owned companies, employing 26,700 people.

During the last ten years alone there have been more than 248 new projects in the city, creating 17,975 jobs and securing £2.3billion of capital investment.

Global companies like Berghaus, Nike, Nissan, Barclays and Liebherr call Sunderland home, and high value technology businesses like Saggezza and Epic Games are

among those that are growing at pace here – it is easy to see why investors are ready to take advantage of the vast opportunities that come with investing in a city on the up.

Regeneration is at the heart of the city’s vision - through strong partnerships more than £1.28billion of public and private sector investment over the next nine years, supporting economic growth, international investment, innovation and enterprise. Projects include Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor (SSTC) incorporating the New Wear Crossing, significant investment in Sunderland’s seafront and a new International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) in partnership with South Tyneside Council.

The city centre is at the heart of Sunderland’s evolution and will see major improvement work, with investors having the chance to stake their claim on a city that truly is on the verge of a major social and economic revival. It is one area of Sunderland already benefitting from the transport infrastructure changes underway.

SSTC is a dual carriageway link between the A19 and the Port of Sunderland which will maximise investments in St

Mary’s Boulevard and the New Wear Crossing will fully open up export routes and opportunities for development in Pallion, Deptford, Farringdon Row and other sites to the south of the River Wear. Work on Sunderland’s £100m new wear crossing is taking a huge step forward with the launch of the bridge deck across the River Wear. The bridge, between Castletown on the north bank of the River Wear and Pallion on the south, will help support key development sites and improve traffic flow across the city from the A19 through to the city centre and the Port of Sunderland, creating further opportunities for regeneration and investment. Owned by Sunderland City Council, the Port has seen waves of investment boost its capabilities and is ideally placed to take advantage of opportunities in offshore, renewable energy and subsea engineering markets. The Port positions the city well to exploit the region’s strengths in the sector and, with newly connected rail lines and excellent road connections, its capabilities are growing and developing at a rate of knots.

FACTS Home to more than 87 overseas-owned companies, employing 26,700 people.

The formation of an International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP), a joint venture between Sunderland and South Tyneside, will attract more than £300m of private sector investment and create more than 5,200 new manufacturing jobs on land to the north of Nissan. More details on this significant project can be found in the automotive supplement on page 54.

More than £1.28billion of public and private sector investment will target infrastructure and connectivity projects over the next nine years.

Sunderland really is strengthening its offer to ensure the city remains as attractive as possible for investors.

Work on Sunderland’s £100m New Wear Crossing is taking a huge step forward with the launch of the bridge deck across the River Wear.

£300m of private sector investment and creating more than 5,200 new jobs on land to the north of Nissan.

For more informati visit www on .m sunderlan akeit d .c o m

www.makeitsunderland.com

INVEST IN

www.bqlive.co.uk

37

TEES VALLEY UNITED Paul Booth, Chairman of the Tees Valley Local Enterprise Partnership and Tees Valley Combined Authority board member, on how the region is taking advantage of devolution In the past 12 months we have seen great changes for business in the Tees Valley. Amid all the uncertainties we face, there are critical steps forward which could have a really positive effect for business in 2017 and beyond.

The creation of the Tees Valley Combined Authority, to champion economic development across the five local authorities in our area, builds on the solid foundations of the Tees Valley Local Enterprise Partnership.

Through our Tees Valley Devolution Deal, we have received the first £15 million tranche of a total of £450 million of devolved funding. We are committed to investing this money to improve skills, infrastructure and business growth.

Devolution also means that more of the decisions about the Tees Valley’s economy can be made here in the Tees Valley, with business playing its part in setting priorities for investment. The coming year will see the election of a directly elected Tees Valley Mayor to chair the Combined Authority. Whatever the outcome of that election, we will ensure the strong partnership between business and local councils continues to thrive.

The prize is significant. Our Strategic Economic Plan lays the foundations for the creation of 25,000 jobs and the addition of £2.8 billion to our economy. Achieving this requires even stronger collaboration between the Combined Authority, the Local Enterprise Partnership and the private sector, to ensure the correct infrastructure and support are in place for business growth. It’s vital that we continue to welcome and support new investment into the Tees Valley, alongside the support we provide for existing businesses through the Tees Valley Business Compass initiative.

The BQ Yearbook shows the strength of the business community here in the North East, in which the Tees Valley is more than playing its part.

The multi-billion pound investment by Sirius Minerals in its

polyhalite project in the North Yorkshire Moors is a great example of how our area’s combination of skills, natural resources, and can-do attitude have brought an economic boost. It will create 1,000 jobs directly, including many on Teesside at the processing plant, and many more in the supply chain.

MGT Power’s £650 million Teesside Renewable Energy Plant is another great example of a major investment in the area, which shows the importance of private sector projects and sustainability in the future prosperity of the Tees Valley. Green energy projects such as this, which can create hundreds of jobs, are an important step in moving towards a circular economy, where waste and pollution are minimised and re-used, and wealth is kept in the area.

The importance of Life Sciences as a growth industry in the Tees Valley was boosted by the opening of the CPI National Biologics Manufacturing Centre in Darlington. This is a major industry for the UK as a whole, with pockets of excellence across the country; so the provision of laboratory space locally opens up our area to both export and research and development opportunities in a global growth industry.

Even where we have suffered from economic loss, such as the devastating closure of the Redcar Steelworks, the SSI Task Force has shown that by coming together in a spirit of partnership we can make a difference. One year after the closure, we can demonstrate good progress in finding new jobs for the former workers of SSI and its supply chains, successful new businesses, and young people found alternative opportunities for apprenticeships.

The Tees Valley is now seen as a place which can become a flagship of the North, a key element of the UK’s Industrial Strategy, and a place that can seize the opportunities of devolution. We can look forward to the future with confidence.

38

INVEST IN... www.bqlive.co.uk

TEES VALLEY Tees Valley is an area which exceeds expectations: ‘It is clear that the economic picture in the Tees Valley is altogether more positive than perceptions drawn from the media.’ Lord Heseltine Report (2016) With a £12.3 billion economy and world class expertise and critical mass in chemicals, energy, health innovation and advanced manufacturing, Tees Valley already makes a major contribution to the UK economy. Previous investment has ensured that Tees Valley is equipped for the future: HIGHLY PRODUCTIVE REGION Overall GVA is low but GVA¹ per employee in the production sector (£86,000 in 2014), is well above the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) average (£76,800) and other major LEP geographies such as Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham.

HIGHLY INNOVATIVE REGION The fourth highest proportion of businesses undertaking product or service innovation in the UK. EXPORT INTENSIVE REGION Part of the only continuous net exporting region of goods in the UK with additional opportunities to pursue.

REGION WITH GROWTH POTENTIAL TO BE UNLOCKED Third place in the UK for business expansion of existing companies and business start-up rates continue to outperform the UK average. However, there is a need to

develop more indigenous SMEs with high growth ambition and to attract more Foreign Direct Investment in priority sectors.

GEOGRAPHY Covering over 3,300 square miles and located on the North East coast, Tees Valley comprises five local authority areas including: Darlington, Stockton on Tees, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, and Redcar and Cleveland.

As a major town with a growing service industry, Stockton on Tees is home to Teesdale Business Park and a campus of Durham University. Middlesbrough is located close to Teesport and is the home of the University of Teesside.

Darlington, a market town, with its position on the East Coast mainline, provides the principal gateway rail station for Tees Valley as well as Durham Tees Valley airport.

Redcar and Cleveland, which contains the coastal town of Redcar, is historically associated with the steel and chemicals industry and has the third largest population.

Hartlepool is the home to Hartlepool Dock and has strong historic links to the maritime industry.

TEES VALLEY COMBINED AUTHORITY The Tees Valley Combined Authority was created in April 2016 and has new powers related to (Adult) Education, Housing and Regeneration and Transport. It also has the power to set up new delivery mechanisms (such as the Mayoral Development Corporation) and to utilise

For more informati o visit www n teesvalley .

-c a . g o v .u k

FACTS new funding sources (through the Single Pot) in order to maximise the opportunities identified in Lord Heseltine’s report on Tees Valley and the Northern Powerhouse ambitions. Tees Valley has long championed the case for low carbon approaches to production as a means of meeting carbon reduction targets and improving long term competitiveness. This approach has now been fully incorporated into UK policy on the circular economy as a means of mitigating wastage, local sourcing of materials and enhancing productivity.

ENTERPRISE ZONES There are a wide range of cost-effective sites and premises across Tees Valley, with 12 Enterprise Zones totalling 423 hectares and providing a range of financial incentives to companies choosing to locate in the region, as well as simplified planning and super-fast broadband. The list of enterprise zones includes: Business Rate Relief Enterprise Zones: • Queens Meadow Business Park, Hartlepool (13.6 hectares); • Teesside Advanced Manufacturing Park (TAMP), Middlesbrough (11 hectares); • Kirkleatham Business Park, Redcar & Cleveland (12.6 hectares); • Belasis Business Park, Stockton-On-Tees (8.5 hectares); • Oakesway Industrial Estate, Hartlepool (12.7 hectares); • Northshore, Stockton-on-Tees (5.1 hectares); • Central Park, Darlington (9.3 hectares); and • St Hilda’s, Middlesbrough (8.1 hectares).

Enhanced Capital Allowance Enterprise Zone Sites: • South Bank Wharf, Redcar & Cleveland (80.7 hectares); • Hartlepool Port Estates, Hartlepool (56.9 hectares); • New Energy & Technology Park, Stockton-On-Tees (41.3 hectares); and • Wilton International, Redcar & Cleveland (164 hectares).

A1(M), A19 and A66 offer easy access to all major cities and manufacturing centres

Durham Tees Valley Airport offers flights to Aberdeen and Amsterdam, as well as specialist freight and training facilities

Excellent rail network, with mainline passenger services to London and other major cities, as well as specialist freight operators servicing key industrial sites

Teesport handles around 450,000 TEU of container traffic a year and has unique deep sea and short sea capabilities

40

PROFILE Walton Robinson

How a 50-strong team is taking over the North East​​​ property market

L-R: James Angus, Laura Auckland, Lorraine Walls, Richard Ponton, Mark Walton As one of the fastest-growing and most highlyrated property businesses in the region, Walton Robinson is at the forefront of the North East’s sales, lettings and property investment market.

Founded in 2001 by managing director Mark Walton, the business covers the whole region from its Newcastle headquarters.

Its lettings division has become a regional leader, with an unrivalled market share in its home city in particular. Specialising in both professional lettings and student accommodation, Walton Robinson’s team – headed by agency manager Laura Auckland - works across the whole region.

Walton Robinson’s sales operation is growing continually to rival the names which have dominated the region’s property sector for decades. Led by Lorraine Walls, the rapidly-growing team handle both residential and investment sales across the North East. The business significantly strengthened its specialist new build sales offering through the appointment of James Angus as their Head of Land and New Homes. A wellrespected name in the North East property sector, he deals with house builders and developers concerning projects across the whole North of England.

The business is known across the region and wider UK for being a specialist in working with investors and developers on their property portfolios. Walton Robinson works with investors on a regional, national and international basis to develop their portfolios of both residential properties and student

accommodation within the North East. Director Richard Ponton is a respected specialist in this field.

The business continually invests in its operations to strengthen and grow, and it is a market leader in its use of technology. Walton Robinson now employs over 50 people and is committed to offering opportunities to apprentices – currently there are eight with the business. Technology and man power enables Walton Robinson to take on new clients and to exceed their expectations.

Walton Robinson is based in Newcastle’s iconic Bruce Building, a Grade II listed building which dates from 1896 and was once the headquarters of Newcastle Breweries. The property business itself oversaw the two-year, £5million renovation and refurbishment of the building, which saw the construction of a suite of offices and 57 luxury apartments. Walton Robinson now lets and manages all of the accommodation within the Bruce Building.

enquiries@waltonrobinson.com 0191 243 1000 Waltonrobinson.com

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

INNOVATION Every region has to keep reinventing itself to lead the latest technologies and industries

In association with

42

INNOVATION www.bqlive.co.uk

By Hans Möller, innovation director at the North East Local Enterprise Partnership Innovation sits at the very heart of our region’s road map to success. As a core part of the North East LEP’s Strategic Economic Plan, innovation is one of the ways we will strengthen the economy in the North East and make our contribution to the UK’s industrial strategy; helping to create more and better jobs. By focusing on key growth industries for our region - or ‘smart specialisation’ areas as we refer to them – and fostering an open innovation environment alongside - I believe we can boost our economy and the position of the region as a major innovation player in the Northern Powerhouse and in UK industry.

Passenger Vehicle Manufacturing; Subsea and Offshore Technology; Life Sciences and Healthcare; and Creative, Digital, Software and Technology Based Services are the four areas of industry that currently offer the greatest

How innovation will help unlock economic growth in the North East

INNOVATION

www.bqlive.co.uk

potential for North East economic growth, not just in terms of output but also in terms of inward investment. They are uniquely placed to expand into other innovation areas that will strengthen the sector as a whole.

Passenger vehicle manufacturing has gone from strength to strength this year. I was delighted with both the news that the North East automotive sector will continue to thrive following Nissan’s announcement that the new Qashqai and the new X-Trail SUV will be built at the Nissan Sunderland plant. The wider sector hit the headlines shortly after this announcement as the North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA) celebrated a major landmark by signing up its 200th company to the cluster.

The Life Sciences and Healthcare sector is another area in which there is huge potential for growth and expansion through innovation. The North East is already a major player in pharmaceutical manufacturing with companies like GlaxoSmithKline and MSD based in the region. The continued investment in the sector shows real confidence in the North East and that’s something we must galvanize.

By expanding operations to include research and development we can start to tap into emerging markets, like specialised medicines. Attracting investment will be essential if we want to grow these smart spec areas.

One of the best examples of innovation in action is the development at Newcastle Science Central. Soon it will be home to three National Centres for Excellence as well as a host of new innovation business. It’s helping position Newcastle and the North East as a hotbed of innovation, which is attracting investment and expertise.

Another project I’ve personally been delighted to be involved in is the new Innovation SuperNetwork. Launched

43

in partnership with Venturefest North East, Innovate UK and the innovation community across the region, the SuperNetwork will enable organisations in all sectors to connect, supporting business-to-business collaboration and creating links between business and research bodies, catapults and innovation hubs. It’s a unique resource for the North East and I’d encourage anyone not familiar with the SuperNetwork to please get in touch.

We’re already delivering some exciting projects and we’d love to partner with more businesses to create new networks across the region.

We’ve achieved a lot in 2016 but that hasn’t dampened our ambitions moving forward. We’re currently working with partners to explore the possibility of the North East becoming the national test bed for a new 5G network.

Our ambition is that the organisations that come to test their new products and services will choose to stay here, creating more and better jobs and cultivating a highly skilled workforce in the North East.

2017 will also see a number of new developments at NETPark in County Durham, which continues to go from strength to strength. The North East Technology Park has delivered significant inward investment because it is a world-class facility here in the North East. It’s a breeding ground for innovative companies with global ambitions.

As a region we are leading the way in many areas of innovation. The North East has one of the fastest growing digital economies outside London and our energy sector is home to global heavyweights including Siemens and GE Oil and Gas. Innovation is, and will continue to be, key to the economic success of the North East. n

“We’re already delivering some exciting projects and we’d love to partner with more businesses to create new networks across the region”

44

PROFILE Business Durham

PROFILE

Business Durham

45

Durham’s approach to innovation Salvus House

ALLAN MUSHEN

Any company which is developing new products, services or business models to meet customer needs is an innovator and Business Durham’s approach to innovation helps companies do just that, to launch successful new products into the marketplace.

Business Durham is the economic development company for County Durham, working on behalf of Durham County Council to deliver the environment for business and economic growth.

Innovation is central to what we do - innovative companies tend to survive longer and grow quicker. We recognise this and support innovative businesses by bringing together those who demand new ideas and new solutions with those who can provide them.

We are immensely proud to manage and develop a pioneering science and technology park located here in County Durham, the North East Technology Park (NETPark) in Sedgefield, with over 400 people working in dozens of science and technology companies, including global leaders, such as Kromek and PolyPhotonix. NETPark is an exceptional environment, dynamic and supportive, accelerating the growth of ambitious, innovative, high tech companies into global markets. It is a flexible business location, offering hi tech companies a range of options from virtual office, incubation and growth space, land development opportunities, offices, laboratories and clean room facilities, with a talented workforce and a readymade manufacturing supply chain on the doorstep.

It is also home to four national technology centres, all managed by CPI: Printable Electronics, Graphene Applications, Formulations, and Healthcare Photonics, which contain a wealth of equipment and expertise to help companies prototype and scale up products without the need for large capital investment.

These centres take the risk out of the product development process by working with SMEs and large companies to help them develop new concepts to market. And we are the only science park in the UK to have two Catapult centres: High Value Manufacturing (thanks to CPI) and Satellite Applications, which we manage directly.

But NETPark is just the tip of the innovation support network in Durham. Our recent acquisition of Salvus House in Aykley Heads means that we can have dedicated incubation space and support in Durham city. And we support companies wherever they are in County Durham: innovation needs global customers,

suppliers and partners. We can help companies find them, pointing them in the direction of profitable contracts and new customer opportunities. We help companies go after tangible opportunities to win new contracts or investment, which could be a supply chain opportunity, a bluechip seeking a solution, or an Innovate UK call.

We connect innovators with the right experts to get their products to market faster with research expertise and specialist equipment from five universities – Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside. Our in-depth knowledge of local supply chain capabilities in design, engineering, manufacturing and IT means that we “know a person who can” when it comes to bringing together the various components of an innovative product or service. And we have access to nearly 130,000 innovative companies around the world (via our membership of science and innovation networks such as the International Association of Science Parks).

So if you’re a science and technology company looking for a place which will accelerate your growth, come and talk to us.

Business Durham is supported by Durham County Council

Website: www.businessdurham.co.uk Email: enquiries@businessdurham.co.uk Telephone: 03000 261261

INNOVATION - STATISTICS

Home to seven Innovation Hubs:

The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI), based in Redcar and Sedgefield is the process industry focus for the network of national catapult centres, helping businesses to scale up and test manufacturing processes The National Renewable Energy Centre (Narec), based in Blyth, provides a unique integrated portfolio of open access testing and research facilities for renewable energy industries The North East Business Innovation Centre in Sunderland offers support and incubator services for businesses of all shapes, sizes and sectors The North East Technology Park in Sedgefield offers a physical and virtual technology resource to the whole of the North East

The Centre for Ageing and Vitality at Newcastle University, brings together cross-sectoral innovation for health and well-being The Automotive and Manufacturing Advanced Practice Institute at the University of Sunderland, provides facility based solutions for companies looking for innovation as a route to growth Software City in Sunderland and Digital City in Teesside are engines for growth in software, digital technology and media

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

AUTOMOTIVE From giants like Nissan to one of the UK’s most powerful supply chains, the North East is a driving force

In association with

48

AUTOMOTIVE www.bqlive.co.uk

Driv ing force

Paul Butler, chief executive of the North East Automotive Alliance outlines how the region is going from strength to strength on the back of Nissan’s success

The North East of England has become synonymous with automotive manufacturing. Nissan’s investment 30 years ago has been the backbone to this, and today the Sunderland plant is widely recognised as one of the most productive plants around the world.

Nissan’s decision to build the new generation of Qashqai and X-Trail SUV at the Sunderland plant is a huge boost of confidence for the North East automotive sector and the UK economy as a whole. It is testament to the excellence of the Nissan employees and its globally competitive supply chain that the plant has been able to secure this investment ahead of increased competition from within the Nissan-Renault Alliance.

Since its launch in 1986 the plant has grown from 470 employees producing 5,000 cars to employing 7,000 people producing 500,000 cars per annum, which accounts for nearly one third of all UK car production.

This has brought significant investment by its supply chain

AUTOMOTIVE

www.bqlive.co.uk

and today there are 25 tier 1 suppliers serving Nissan’s Sunderland plant.

However, the North East automotive sector is not just restricted to Nissan and its supply chain. The region is home to a significant off-highway sector which includes Komatsu, Caterpillar, GT Group and Miller Construction UK. Other key OEMs include Cummins, a global leader in the design and manufacture of diesel and alternative fuel engines, and the Explorer Group, manufacturers of the UK’s only fully-bonded touring caravans and motorhomes.

The pace of innovation in automotive is unprecedented, both in terms of on-vehicle and within the manufacturing facilities. The North East is also a hotbed for automotive innovation: Electric Vehicles - The North East is a leader in the electric vehicle industry. The all-electric Nissan Leaf is manufactured in the region and accounts for 26% of all Electric Vehicle production across Europe. This has had a knock-on effect

49

and now the region boasts a significant and growing reputation for investment into research and development and new and emerging automotive technologies.

Hybrid technologies are also strong in the off-highway sector as demonstrated by Komatsu UK, who recently unveiled their new hybrid HB365LC excavator.

Battery technology, control systems and EV charging networks – the region has secured funding since 2010 to support such developments. The future is all about developing the range of the vehicles so drivers can drive further and charge faster. Lighter cars, bigger batteries are coming and faster charging is under development.

Connected & Autonomous Vehicles - The North East is the only location in the UK where connected vehicles and infrastructure trials are taking place for intelligent traffic management.

These technologies will significantly change the way people interact with their vehicles. Autonomous

50

AUTOMOTIVE www.bqlive.co.uk

“ The region boasts a significant and growing reputation for investment into research and development and new and emerging automotive technologies”

driving, infotainment, preventative maintenance, modal integration, ride sharing, vehicle communications with smart infrastructure to improve routing and traffic flow and cyber security are just some of the areas that are expected to change. The anticipated expanded model choices and increased personalisation will bring with it challenges and opportunities for more localised content.

The UK, and the North East, is well placed to exploit these opportunities and grow the UK automotive sector. Key strategic developments such as the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP) will play a significant role in attracting new investment into the region; the highly

skilled, innovative and flexible workforce will be attractive to those investors; and great transport links to the rest of the UK and to Europe will ensure the North East is ready to embrace these opportunities.

Today there are over 240 companies operating within the automotive sector in the North East. Together they employ over 30,000 people and generate over £11billion of sales for the North East economy. It is perhaps the single most important element in the region’s private sector economy, and given the anticipated growth within the sector, which has the potential to create another 10,000 jobs in the next five to ten years, it looks as though it will remain so.

AUTOMOTIVE

www.bqlive.co.uk

51

“240 companies operating within the automotive sector employ over 30,000 people and generate over £11billion of sales for the North East economy.”

As a proactive industry-led cluster group, the North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA) was established to support the sustainable economic growth and competitiveness of the region’s automotive sector. The NEAA represents and works on behalf of the whole North East automotive sector, whether a company is making cars or components, working in commercial, off-highway or engine manufacture.

Although the NEAA was only established in March 2015 it is now the UK’s largest automotive cluster, and has been benchmarked for cluster management excellence by the European Secretariat for Cluster Analysis. NEAA has also

secured £675,000 of match funding from ERDF to deliver a £1.4m project to support SME growth and expansion across the sector.

NEAA member companies find benefit from leadership and co-ordination of activities, which have mutual benefit and the membership creates a collaborative network, which is a more compelling and attractive environment for investors.

The NEAA acts as a voice for industry and represent members on 19 regional and national industry boards, thus ensuring the region has a say in shaping the support of the North East automotive sector at a regional and national level. n

Driven to succeed The North East’s export performance is underpinned by the automotive sector says Mike Matthews MBE, Managing Director at Nifco UK Limited and it remains in rude health despite all the political upheaval and uncertainty

AUTOMOTIVE

www.bqlive.co.uk

The North East is not a region that tends to panic. We are not prone to being flustered, nor do we flap. We do not fold in the face of adversity and we certainly don’t flee a challenge. What we do is we make things…and, in the last few years, we’ve also become pretty good at selling those things, usually overseas – the North East leads the UK in Exports. That is especially true in the automotive sector, which underpins the North East’s incredible export performance. The only region with a positive balance of trade in the country, I might add.

Readers of this excellent publication don’t need me to tell them that 2016 was a year like no other. But what people might not know is that despite uncertainty surrounding increased regional devolution, the inevitable impact of Brexit, a fluctuating global marketplace in the wake of the most incredible American presidential outcome in history, and let’s not forget everything going a little quiet on the Northern Powerhouse, our automotive sector endures, and remains in rude health.

Provided with a considerable boost with the fantastic announcement that Nissan had secured both the new Qashqai and the X-Trail SUV, this news seemed to rubberstamp our credentials as one of the world’s elite hubs for automotive excellence and made the statement that we can continue to flourish in post-Brexit Britain.

Much focus had been placed on our sector since the outcome of the EU Referendum and it would be wrong to say that there was not some degree of uncertainty, as we waited to hear from the Government its plans to protect the industry.

So for Nissan to secure these two vehicles so quickly coming on the back of Brexit represented not only a huge win for those directly employed by the firm, but also for a great many businesses in its supply chain.

Car parts manufacturers like Nifco obviously welcome the regional backing from this global industrial giant, but the logistics businesses that support Nissan; the training companies that ensure it recruits the right people; the IT companies delivering back up support – all will have given a collective cheer when the news was announced.

But most importantly, it sent a message to the rest of the world – the North East is a great place to invest in automotive excellence.

We operate in a sector that has become part of the very

53

fabric of the region – our industry employs over 30,000 people. That multiplies to 141,000 if you consider the businesses dependent on the automotive sector across the whole of the UK. With more than 240 automotive companies in the North East, we are major employers, but we also have an eye on the future.

The vast majority of the large players in the region have taken strides to ensure they are future proofing their workforce by heeding warnings of potential skills shortages across engineering and manufacturing in the near future.

As such, Nifco works closely with our training partners, Middlesbrough College, to ensure we have a steady flow of the best young talent joining our award-winning apprenticeship programme. Nissan and its major suppliers like Unipres, Tallent and Calsonic Kansei do likewise.

These major automotive players have taken the lead, but more and more SMEs and smaller operators are recognising the worth of good apprentices and upskilling existing staff.

In short, we are improving. In our sector, price increases do not happen, so every year we must get better – be more effective, efficient and pass on cost reductions to customers. This has helped us become streamlined as an industry, eliminating huge amounts of wasted time, energy and resource.

Our skills, our knowledge, our innovation and our incredible work ethic are all reasons to invest in the North East. But we also have an enviable quality of life, little congestion, huge (and fairly cheap) resources in development land, water and access to international markets.

For years, we have been labelled a basket case by those outside our region, who haven’t recognised the vast untapped potential that lies within our borders. We are not a problem for those in central Government to solve, we are an unrealised asset, bursting with the exact skills and industrial expertise that will keep the UK at the forefront of developing world-class, highly desirable products, of the highest quality which will help UK PLC remain competitive.

Superior products, superior quality and superior productivity delivered by - and in - a superior region. n

54

PROFILE Sunderland Automtoive Hub

Sunderland - UK’s leading car industry hub Sunderland lies at the heart of Europe’s foremost car manufacturing region. As home to the UK’s largest car plant – Nissan – and its thriving supply chain, more than 30,000 people now work in the sector in the North East region, with one in every three cars manufactured in the UK built in Sunderland.

Since Nissan began production in the city just over 30 years ago it has not only driven a new business sector in the North East supported by a growing supply chain, but also revolutionised car manufacturing across Europe, contributing to the resurgence of the UK automotive manufacturing industry.

Nissan has invested £3.85 bn in the plant since 1986, and in the last six years there have been 46 separate investments in Sunderland by Nissan totalling £1.6bn. Its faith in Sunderland has been rewarded with repeated productivity records – the Sunderland plant remains the most productive in Europe.

In 1986 there were 430 employees at the Sunderland plant producing 5,000 cars a year, today three decades on and that figure has grown considerably to 7,000 staff producing more than 500,000 cars per year.

THRIVING SUPPLY CHAIN Automotive supply chain companies including Lear Corporation, Unipres, ZF TRW, Vantec Europe and Calsonic Kansei have all chosen to locate bases at Sunderland, and have thrived, extending their plants and creating many hundreds of new jobs over the last five years. The cumulative effect of this activity boosts the economy of the North East of England region and strengthens the leading position of Sunderland’s automotive sector internationally. Several of these companies now supply other UK and EU car plants with parts.

The reasons for the robust strength of the automotive sector in Sunderland are many and varied, but at the top are a highly skilled, willing and stable workforce and an excellent infrastructure.

QASHQAI AND X-TRAIL REPLACEMENTS In October 2016, the news that not only would the replacement model for the popular Qashqai be built in Sunderland, but also the X-Trail SUV, gave a terrific vote of confidence in the plant and the city. The announcement by Nissan’s CEO Carlos Ghosn secures production at the Sunderland plant going forward and

boosts the requirements of new supply contracts, which in turn increases the likelihood of more supplier companies being attracted to the area. The announcement came after months of concern following the outcome of the European Union referendum.

INTERNATIONAL ADVANCED MANUFACTURING PARK Sunderland offers a range of excellent development sites for automotive supply companies, all close to main trunk roads, the Port of Sunderland and Port of Tyne and with easy access to international airports. The International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP), a huge new ‘game changer’ of a scheme is set to bring more than 5,200 jobs and more than £300 million of private sector investment to the North East.

It is a 100-hectare site just north of Nissan, predicted to be fully occupied by 2027. The joint venture between Sunderland City Council and South Tyneside Council will offer a worldclass environment for high-tech industries and advanced manufacturing businesses.

Proposals for the huge new business park include a stateof-the-art centre of excellence for advanced manufacturing and 260,000 square metres of development space on the 100-hectare site. Councillor Paul Watson, Leader of Sunderland City Council, said: “The IAMP is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform not only the Sunderland and South Tyneside economies, but the economy of the North East region, bringing with it a wealth of possibilities for our communities.

“With the industries and investment the IAMP will attract, it will be a game-changer for our current and future workforce.”

ELECTRIC VEHICLES The North East now accounts for 26% of all electric vehicle production in Europe, with a growing reputation for research and development investment in new and emerging technologies. Smith Electric Vehicles, a global leader in allelectric commercial vehicles, Nissan, SEVCON and AVID Vehicles lead research and production in ultra-low carbon vehicle manufacture, alongside companies such as Caterpillar, Komatsu and Cummins.

Nissan has invested £420m into the manufacturing of its 100% electric Nissan LEAF at its Sunderland plant, along with the company’s first lithium-ion battery plant outside Japan.

The launch of the LEAF in 2013 came three years after Nissan

tures

West Pas

A19

Do

ll

hi

wn

Strother House Farm

ne

La

Elliscope Farm

Follingsb

y Lane

A19 Hylton Grove Farm

Ri

ve

rD

on

Hylton Bridge Farm Fo

llin

gs

by

TOWN END FARM

La

ne

North Moor Farm

HYLTON CASTLE ESTATE

oad

nR

gto

shin

Wa

North East Land Sea, and Air Museum

A19 Testos Junction

The Three Horse Shoes(Public House)

KEY

Proposed DCO Application Boundary IAMP ESTATE Area outside of the DCO Application Boundary identified within the Area Action Plan for future development

90

A12 West Moor Farm

NISSAN MOTOR MANUFACTURING

s

Automotive and Advanced Manufacturing Supporting Uses (including for example, shops) Small Scale Automotive and Advanced Manufacturing/ R&D/ Office

International Advanced Manufacturing Park Draft Masterplan

Hub (which may include Hotel/ Cafe/ Conference Facilities/ Gym/ Nursery)

A19

Parking

North East Land, Sea and Air Museum Potentially Retained Buildings

s Junction

confirmed that the Sunderland plant had won the race to build the revolutionary car for the European market. Together, the battery plant and LEAF production are supporting jobs for ane L ill nh thousands of people in the UK car industry. ow D

KEY

ROAD NETWORK Proposed DCO Application Boundary

Pedestrian and Cycle Routes IAMP ESTATE Area outside of the DCO Application Boundary identified within the Area Action Plan for future development Automotive and Advanced Manufacturing

Councillor Watson said: “We have the UK’s largest car factory and the strongest automotive component supply chain all A19 in the UK, within our city. Sunderland’s central location excellent infrastructure, UK and Europe leading connectivity all contribute to producing the tangible results we’re seeing now. The city’s long-term plan for targeted growth underpins its continued success in attracting automotive companies from countries worldwide.”

Elliscope Farm

Hylton Grove A19 Farm

Hylton Bridge Farm

Fo

lli

ng

sb

yL

an

e

ll

hi

wn

Do

Supporting Uses (including for example, shops) Small Scale Automotive and Advanced Manufacturing/ R&D/ Office Hub (which may include Hotel/ Cafe/ Conference Facilities/ Gym/ Nursery)

Green Buffer (exact location dependent on Highway England proposals)

ROAD NETWORK Roads

Accessible Open Space/ Park

Pedestrian and Cycle Routes

Area for Potential Ecological Mitigation

Proposed Entrance to Development Plot

River Don

ton

R

Proposed Entrance to Development Plot LANDSCAPE

Drainage Ponds

LANDSCAPE

ing

New Bridge over the A19

Potentially Retained Buildings

New Bridge over the A19

sh Wa

Testos Junction Improvements to be Delivered by Highways England

River Don

Testos Junction Improvements to be Delivered by Highways England

oad

Downhill Lane / A19 Junction Improvements to be Delivered by Highways England

North East Land, Sea and Air Museum

Downhill Lane / A19 Junction Improvements to be Delivered by Highways England

E: info@makeitsunderland.com T: +44(0)191 561 1194 W: makeitsunderland.com @MAKEitSund A19

Segregated Cycle Lane along Road

Parking

TOWN Segregated Cycle Lane along Road END FARM

e

n La

Roads

Drainage Ponds

HYLTON

Green Buffer CASTLE (exact location dependent on Highway England ESTATE proposals)

N

AUTOMOTIVE - STATISTICS

Over 237 companies in the supply chain for Nissan (Source: NEAA)

1 in 3 cars produced in the UK is produced at Nissan’s Sunderland Plant (Source: NMUK) More than 30,000 people directly employed in the automotive sector in the North East and 140,000 indirect (Source: NEAA) Nissan Sunderland plant has produced 8 million cars since 1986 (Source: NMUK)

80% of Nissan’s production lines are exported to over 130 markets (Source: NMUK)

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

BUSINESS SUPPORT

Growing firms and new investors can all benefit from fresh thinking from support organisations

In association with

Entrepreneurs by degree

BUSINESS SUPPORT

www.bqlive.co.uk

59

An entrepreneurial degree achieved without teacher, classroom or exams sounds questionable but Nina Jussila is helping that to come about in North East academia. Brian Nicholls looks into it Once you meet Nina Jussila it shouldn’t surprise you that aspiring entrepreneurs from Newcastle Business School have given Northumbria University the distinction of winning a national contest to find successful start-ups.

A learning support officer, Nina is also a key personality behind the launch of a new entrepreneurial business management degree course, which Northumbria to its credit has been the first of four UK universities to introduce.If the course proves as successful as early results suggest, we shall be justified in asking why UK universities haven’t tried it out long before, since it has been turning out successful entrepreneurs in Finland for around two decades now. Nina herself is a product, and today is an educational entrepreneur. Jyväskylä University, Finland’s second largest university – in terms of masters degrees conferred, and the birthplace of education in the Finnish language (from 1863) – has gained Jyväskylä (population 135,591) the soubriquet Athens of Finland, precisely for its contribution to education.

Jyväskylä, though the largest city of central Finland, is a much smaller host to academia than Oxford, Edinburgh, and certainly Newcastle, Sunderland or Teesside. Yet its innovative programme for entrepreneurs started easily enough. A lecturer there, wishing to try something different, displayed a poster. “Do you want to travel around the world and learn some marketing?” it asked.

The first team of students, on graduating, went on the road with the money they had made.

Newcastle Business School’s course has been developed with what’s called the Team Academy in the Jyväskylä Institute of Science and Technology. A 10-year check of the programme in Finland showed the percentage of Team Academy graduates there starting new businesses was five to 10 times higher than in traditional higher

education institutions. One out of every three of the Finnish graduates start a business straight after finishing their studies.

To anyone wavering about a university education the course towards an entrepreneurial business management degree sounds tempting: no teachers, no exams, no classrooms. But there’s always a day of reckoning, and for these students there are still assignments to be done, presentations to be made and reflections expressed – all fully connected with their chosen business.

From the start they’re doing business with real money, cultivating real customers. They’re pushed into the field to talk to people and make contracts. “Everything is real,” Nina points out. She heard about the course when considering her future and thought: “That’s something I’d definitely like to do. It’s made such a huge impact on me.

I was able to do things no-one would ever expect me to do,” she recalls.

After graduating at 23 and taking a gap year, she started her own company as an educational coach and working on other projects also.

“So many young people feel they don’t fit in the normal model of learning,” she observes. “I wondered how I could help others like that to succeed as well. Afterwards I didn’t want to stay in Finland. I thought Spain could be interesting but decided England’s business culture was closer to Finland’s, and it’s a nice place with the opportunity I was looking for.”

Newcastle and Bristol were the first cities to test the course. “I had the opportunity to come to Newcastle for a few months to help out, and here I am after just over two years involved in running the course,” says Nina, who is 26.

Northumbria’s course is going well, she feels, as the

60

BUSINESS SUPPORT www.bqlive.co.uk

“We don’t tell them ‘you must learn all this now’ because they won’t need it all now and may soon forget it. So it’s learning through need. Once you need that information you have to learn it” success in the competition seems to have borne out. “The first year is always hard for students,” she elaborates.

“They have no role models. But some people are passionate about a particular interest and think how to build a business out of it. Many come in with no idea at all. They simply feel that running their own business is how they want to do things.”

By the second of the three years’ study they understand the culture more and can see others who started their business. It’s all about learning by doing. Aspirants are not told what they should do. “When they first come in we lend them £10,” Nina explains. “They must make as much with that £10 as possible. They’re a bit shocked at first but that’s the whole ethos. That’s their seed fund. They bring in some money with the start of their business and invest that for the next project. It works.”

They obviously have to decide how to learn about marketing. They have to find books, find people who are already knowledgeable about marketing, and adapt as necessary to plan their project and improve their concept.

“It’s just-in-time learning,” Nina explains. “We don’t tell them ‘you must learn all this now’ because they won’t need it all now and may soon forget it. So it’s learning through need. Once you need that information you have to learn it.” Also the students are based in a business rather than a traditional environment of academia, so they can be surrounded by actual entrepreneurs. That’s why the Newcastle course is run at the Northern Design Centre at Gateshead, rather than in Northumbria University itself.

They don’t have a work placement because, as Nina puts it, their own company is their work placement.

Around 65 students – team entrepreneurs, they are called – are on the Northumbria course, making up six teams in total. Each team company has one coach – “our academic staff coach rather than teach,” Nina stresses. “I’m not academically inclined and don’t have my own team. But I’m part of every team, running everything other than the academic side.”

When Nina and her team colleagues graduated they closed the company they had been building. But four different companies, which had already been started during the course, continued. “On graduating, you can decide whether you want still to be with the company you have worked on. Our third year students here are now deciding whether to incorporate their businesses,” Nina says.

So what of her own entrepreneurial future? “I’d love to stay a few more years in England, then who knows?” she wonders. “I have a passion about considering how to change education. I’m doing my masters now and it could help me get credibility for a future company. People will listen to me more. But I don’t see myself as a lecturer.

Bouncing ideas off other people is what gives me energy.”

Meanwhile her existing endeavours draw appreciation. An associate says: “She’s a lovely, vibrant young woman – a huge support and font of knowledge for the students already firming up their business plans for the future.” n Full interview first appeared in BQ magazine in 2016

PROFILE

ICAEW

61

Export – Grasp opportunities to grow

Despite a £1 trillion export target and accompanying advertising campaign by Government, the number of businesses exporting has not changed in the last two years, according to research by ICAEW. Only 53% of businesses are exporting - no change from 2014 – and nearly all (96%) non-exporters have no plans to sell overseas in the next 12 months.

Here in the north east we are well versed in the good news message: this is the only region in the UK with a positive balance of trade. This is largely down to Nissan and the excellent performance of our major river ports, and this perhaps masks the contribution of many smaller businesses.

But there’s always room for more, and there’s plenty of support and advice available for those wishing to explore exporting.

From guidance on regulation and currency to advice on customs, help is there for those wishing to become first time exporters.

For nearly a third (30%) of exporters, over half their turnover comes from trading overseas, highlighting the importance of global markets, in which the USA and Europe remain the top export destinations. This is even more significant this year with weaker domestic demand, a sharp decline in sterling and a rise in input prices expected, indicating that export growth will overtake domestic sales in 2017.

Our ICAEW research revealed fewer exporters are planning to enter new markets in the next 12 months, down from 33% two years ago to 25% in 2016. What’s even more disappointing to note is that nearly all of those businesses currently not exporting (96%) have no plans to do so in 2017. Despite all the help that UKTI, now DIT (Department for International Trade),

make available this has not changed since 2014.

There is no difference between the plans of SME and large companies, with most citing that they have a sufficient market in the UK (41%) so do not need to expand their horizons.

Worryingly, both for us as a region and for the Government, only 1% of businesses plan to start exporting in the next 12 months while an additional 1% are considering it. Only 5% of SMEs have exported for the first time in the last two years.

In a post-Brexit world where business confidence is low and investment sluggish, is it time to incentivise exporting? I do worry for those companies who believe they have enough of a market in the UK, so are not doing business overseas with weakening domestic demand expected in 2017.

I know that our local DIT people do a lot of good work with SMEs in this region and that banks can proactively assist businesses, but perhaps the Government should look at funnelling some of their money into directly incentivising business into export.

One example could be introducing a voucher scheme for companies researching and developing in overseas markets.

www.businessadviceservice.com to find your nearest BAS participating chartered accountant.

ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales) is a professional membership organisation supporting over 146,000 chartered accountants around the world.

For information please visit www.icaew.com

Business support & funding available

62

PROFILE Tees Valley Business Compass

You could be eligible for funding for one of the new Tees Valley Business Support Schemes.

Enhanced business support for Don't delay, Tees Valley businesses act now!

The Tees Valley Combined Authority comprises the five Tees Valley local authorities (Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar & Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees) and the Tees Valley Local Enterprise Partnership. This new body was created April 2016 to drive economic growth and job creation in the area, elevating partnership working between the public and private sector to a new level to create an even more effective approach to building a stronger Tees Valley, and bringing with it new business investment, the creation of more jobs, improved transport links and local skills Devolution is about transferring powers from Westminster and Whitehall to Tees Valley so we make decisions for our local people not people 250 miles away sat behind a desk. The Tees Valley Devolution Deal provides for the transfer of specific powers and responsibilities on economic growth, including transport, skills and regeneration. The Deal also includes the establishment of a Tees Valley Investment Fund to drive economic growth in the Tees Valley. An additional £15m per year will be allocated by government.

For more information:

“I would recommend that growing companies explore the help and advice on offer and join the increasing number of businesses that have benefitted” the help and advice on offer and join the increasing number of businesses that have benefitted” How Tees Valley Business Compass Works - Whatever your business needs we can help you review your options and access the right support specific to you.

The service includes specialist business support, in-depth diagnosis to identify opportunities, access to grants via the Tees Valley Business Fund designed to help remove barriers to growth, implement change and become more innovative, more competitive and more profitable.

Visit: www.teesbusinesscompass.co.uk

Email: support@teesbusinesscompass.co.uk Ring: 0300 4563565

Tees Valley Business Compass is the local growth hub delivered

by BE Group on behalf of Tees Valley Combined Authority. It is an enhanced service and is the point of contact for Tees Valley businesses looking to grow their business, workforce or for support and guidance. It helps ambitious businesses realise their growth potential by offering access to a range of practical services, from local business information, assessing growth options through to unlocking finance and funding streams. The Tees Valley Business Compass is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy.

Part of the national network of Business Growth Hubs

Businesses can access Tees Valley Business Compass support in several ways: Call the National Support Helpline on 0300 456 3565 Email us at support@teesbusinesscompass.co.uk

David Budd, Chair of Tees Valley Combined Authority, said, “This is a perfect example of the public and private sector working together for the benefit of Tees Valley. Tees Valley Business Compass is integral to the support available to ambitious local businesses, which are key to growing the region’s economy. “I would recommend that growing companies explore

Register your interest by filling out the simple form on our website www.teesbusinesscompass.co.uk or use the online chat service Or find us on social media: Twitter - @Tees_Compass Facebook - www.facebook.com/TeesValleyBusinessCompass

Business support & funding available You could be eligible for funding for one of the new Tees Valley Business Support Schemes.

Don't delay, act now!

For more information: Visit: www.teesbusinesscompass.co.uk Email: support@teesbusinesscompass.co.uk Ring: 0300 4563565

Part of the national network of Business Growth Hubs

BUSINESS SUPPORT - STATISTICS The £142 million Finance for Business North East programme is a suite of seven investment funds designed to drive future economic growth in North-East England Supporting 850 businesses in the Tees Valley, Tyne and Wear Northumberland, and County Durham through loans and equity investments from £1,000 to £1.25m Let’s Grow North East supported 200 companies with £50m of Regional Growth Fund grants helping to create 7,000 jobs

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

SERVICE SECTOR Providing the right advice and support to help firms grow

In association with

66

SERVICE SECTOR www.bqlive.co.uk

BE the best

Alastair MacColl, chief executive of BE Group, looks ahead to 2017 by urging the region to make the most of its dynamism to meet its ambitions

“The way that businesses in the service sector work has changed enormously over the last decade, most significantly as a result of technology but also because of a quantum movement in the way we communicate�

SERVICE SECTOR

www.bqlive.co.uk

67

68

SERVICE SECTOR www.bqlive.co.uk

“In an enormously competitive global market that never stands still, the most successful businesses and entrepreneurs will be those that put investment and innovation at the top of their list of priorities”

It’s not about being the biggest but the best.

The way that businesses in the service sector work has changed enormously over the last decade, most significantly as a result of technology but also because of a quantum movement in the way we communicate.

The markets that we serve, regardless of sector, are more complex and demanding than ever before but they also offer greater opportunity.

Of course, following the vote to leave the EU we all face a period of unprecedented change and limited visibility.

We’ll all face the challenge of trying to understand what it means for our business, our suppliers, our customers and our employees. But, over the last 50 years the economy of the North East of England has been transformed by a series of profound structural movements. The defining lesson of that experience has been the remarkable resilience, adaptability and entrepreneurial flair of our business community.

So, whatever happens as a result of the recent referendum, I’m certain that the service sector businesses and job creators of the North East will respond with imagination, leadership and a willingness to look for new opportunities wherever they exist.

To make the most of those opportunities more and more service sector businesses are investing systematically in ‘being the best they can be’. Recognising the absolute need to stay several steps ahead of market expectations by

working closely with their customers, partners, sponsors and sometimes competitors to relentlessly improve everything they do.

At BE Group, investing in innovation is part of what we like to think makes us so special. We identify common goals, share knowledge and collaborate to make sure everything we do is market leading. That means working with our customers and partners to share resources, spread the cost of product development and make innovation part of the day job. Our pre-occupation isn’t to be the biggest in our markets but to be the very best at everything we do and produce the best results for every single one of our customers.

In an enormously competitive global market that never stands still, the most successful businesses and entrepreneurs will be those that put investment and innovation at the top of their list of priorities. The pages of this Yearbook are packed with businesses that have done exactly that, building exceptional brands, products and services.

Fortunately, we’re an ambitious and dynamic region that’s home to scores of world class service based businesses.

But we need to continue shouting about the fantastic achievements of those businesses. That’s why publications like the BQ Yearbook are so crucial. Reminding investors that we’re open for business and ready to turn any investment into results. n

Helping businesses succeed and grow. @B_Egroup www.be-group.co.uk 0191 389 8434

SERVICE SECTOR - STATISTICS Well-established FPBS cluster of 17,500 companies, including Santander, Convergys, KPMG, P&G and HP

More than 130,000 people employed in our FPBS sector

Over 30,000 people studying FPBS subjects at North East universities and colleges Key strengths in customer contact centres and legal, financial and insurance services with more than 145 contact centres employing 40,000 people

The number of FPBS companies grew in the North East by nearly 33% between 2011 and 2015 (source: Office for National Statistics)

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

BUILT ENVIRONMENT Constructing the right environment for success and growth

In association with

72

BUILT ENVIRONMENT www.bqlive.co.uk

When you’re a tradesman you care Dave Stone, who’s reached giddy heights of achievement without getting dizzy, tells Suzy Jackson how he wins work on the likes of Windsor Castle, St Paul’s Cathedral and Hexham Abbey Asking a steeplejack-turned-entrepreneur if he’s afraid of heights is akin to asking the winner of the Wimbledon Men’s final if he’s happy, I know. But morbidly fearful of heights myself – the mere thought of going more than two steps up a ladder turns me green – curiosity got the better of me when I met Dave Stone.

“People don’t often believe me, but I do have a story to tell,” Dave explains as we chat in his glass fronted office on the first floor of his Darlington building – and it’s immediately clear to me that he’s probably not short of a story or two on most subjects. Nor is he a wallflower.

He takes me back to leaving school in 1979, the son of hardworking middle class parents, needing to get himself a job. His mother sent him to Borough Road to knock on the doors of businesses there, and see what he could find.

At 16, without qualifications, he ended up at the office of Harrison Brothers Steeplejacks. Their owner, Barry Newton, looked at him sceptically and asked: “Do you know your national insurance number?” And he did. He trotted it out without a second thought. He was fit and healthy, strong, and capable of hard work, but he was savvy too, and Barry spotted it. “Come back tomorrow. We’ll find you something to do.”

That was the start of an 18 year career with Harrisons that saw him rise from apprentice steeplejack – a craftsman who can inspect and repair chimney stacks, church spires, high-rise buildings and other tall structures – through to foreman supervisor, working with teams of men around

the world. He got his brother Grahame a job there too; Grahame was involved on the industrial side, whereas Dave developed an interest in architecture and masonry, becoming what they termed a ‘Hollywood Steeplejack’.

It wasn’t until 1998 he started to wonder what might come next. Knowing there wasn’t room to advance where he was, and too ambitious to stick with his job, he handed in his notice, and used most of his available cash to buy himself a van and go it alone. In the gym sauna he frequented, he got chatting to Mike Challands, who ran a printing business in Darlington. Dave wanted some leaflets printed, promoting his services. He’d paid for pictures to be taken of him harnessed off the side of the Humber Bridge, and he wanted them displayed, on a leaflet.

Mike helped, and told him to pay for them when he got some work. In return, Dave used Mike and his company, MT Print, till the day Mike retired. You’ll see a pattern emerge here.

With his available money looking thin, Dave took to his van, driving around asking security guards at places like Wilton to write down the names of engineering managers, so he could send them his brochures. Work trickled in.

Though hugely experienced, Dave was used to working with people who managed the jobs, not the people who commissioned the work. He lacked the right contacts. So he set about learning. Pouring over paperwork, learning about procurement, creating policies, doing what he could to get work. Subcontracted to a business that went bust,

“I’ll tell you something, I’m sometimes a little bit ‘seat of your pants’!”

74

BUILT ENVIRONMENT www.bqlive.co.uk

he seized the opportunity and picked up their contract at Guys Hospital, and another contractor, and a second van… and things started to happen. Still working from the back bedroom of his own home (‘Steeplejack House’), on a second hand word processor, he started to worry that he’d upset neighbours keeping his vans on the street. So he found an office, easy-in, easy-out, and signed up.

Stone Technical Services was now a team, able to pick up new labourers as needed, getting on top of health and safety requirements, training and learning and extending their services. He then started getting helpers. He asked Eileen Callaghan to do wages and VAT. Today, they have ‘swanky accountants’, but Eileen still does wages, and their VAT. “That’s her livelihood, she’s been doing that for us for years, and she’s always looked after me. So I’ll look after her.”

There it is again - the sign of the family businessman shining through. Dave has a particular set of values and standards; he lives and works by them, and they’re nonnegotiable. I doubt anyone will ever have accused him of being workshy; any kind of shy, even. He’s thrown himself into every challenge and every opportunity thrown his way with vigour, passion and determination. When he saw how much work was coming from local councils in the early 2000s, he got himself on to all the contractor lists possible, learning, asking for advice and pushing his abilities as far as he could.

“I’ll tell you something, Suzy, and you might not know this, but… I’m sometimes a little bit ‘seat of your pants’!”

Dave admits he’s scared of failure; terrified, in fact. For a man of his character, that translates as refusal to fail if there’s any other option. “We lost a contract last year, on

BUILT ENVIRONMENT

www.bqlive.co.uk

75

“Young people all want to work in IT! They don’t realise there’s money to be made in trades like this” the Isle of Man, because they thought we were too risky. We weren’t big enough. So that’s our goal… we’re pushing on, and we’ll be big enough next time.” Dave recognises the change of mindset needed to achieve that kind of growth, bringing in a business development manager Richard Pavlou. They make a formidable double act. It’s been a constant battle for Dave to make people understand the word ‘Stone’ is, in fact, his name, not a limitation of the services Stone Technical Services Group provides. He won’t change that; now Dave’s name remains because the business exists in his shadow and is conducted by everyone as he would conduct it himself. The business in 2017 offers a combination of services, skills and experience, calling themselves ‘the building and structure experts.’ Currently a £3m business, it is to become £5m in two years, and £10m in five,

Dave asserts. He still gets his hands dirty and he likes delivering the final sign-off manuals to clients, shaking their hands and getting their opinion on the work. He can and does still get involved when need arises, or when he just wants to remind the team he’s still eminently capable, and not asking them to do anything he won’t do himself.

His team now totals 40-plus across multiple offices around the UK, and most have been with him many years. All nine of his foremen were employed much earlier in their careers and moulded ‘Stone standard’ into their current jobs.

Unsurprisingly, health and safety is paramount - “the thick end of the wedge,” he says. “I want to know my men are safe so I can sleep at night too.” Safety forms part of his service offering too; they have a team working on the Forth Road Bridge who

Great homes – Strong communities – Inspired people By putting people first, we believe we can build great homes and create strong, resilient communities, whilst also inspiring our people to make a difference.

www.gentoogroup.com

Gentoo Group Limited is a charitable community benefit society, registration number 7302

76

BUILT ENVIRONMENT www.bqlive.co.uk

are providing safety systems for the maintenance workers bringing the bridge back to its former glory.

That forms part of Stone Technical Services’ commitment to training, to upskilling, to ensuring their team is as good as possible. Dave has noticed the decline in young people looking for jobs in his trade. “They all want to work in IT! They don’t realise there’s money to be made in trades like this,” he points out. Stone Technical Services pays staff training costs 100% from day one. While I was there they offered a young man a job, impressed he’d saved enough to pay for his own training. But they’ll pick up the tab.

Each year Dave writes out the training cheque with pride; a few weeks before my visit, that cheque was written for £98,000. Driven, as you’d expect of a successful entrepreneur, but with traditional values at the heart of his business. Dave is not driven by profit. He’s interested in running a business giving value. “We don’t scrimp,” he states, matter-of-factly. “If there’s good reason for us to buy a more expensive piece of equipment that someone can tell me makes sense, we buy it.”

On pricing strategy, he’s not interested in being cheapest.

“If I can’t win business because of how I’m going to have it done, the quality of the workmanship, the experience, our references… if they still want cheap, I’m not the man for the job.”

As he regales me with tales of travels he has to look forward to, jobs they hope to get on their books, I have to ask Dave: “What if, all those years ago, when you’d started at Harrisons… what if you’d been scared of heights?” It feels the most obvious question but Dave does me the honour of not treating it that way.

But he does shrug. “Well, I’d have to not be scared of heights, wouldn’t I?” There it is. He doesn’t see barriers.

He worries about things afterwards, if at all. He describes, in the days before health and safety, being one man astride an industrial chimney stack, repainting the top, repositioning his own ladder as he climbs up and down and up again. My stomach turns, but he roars with laughter, and I’m not sure he’s ever really been scared of anything before. And I can’t lie; it’s an impressive trait.

Dave Stone. Definitely not just another brick in the wall. n Full interview first appeared in BQ magazine in 2016

Up aloft and looking down Outstanding projects tackled by Stone Technical Services include: HEXHAM ABBEY Installing safety systems to allow safe access to higher levels. STS’ team of heritage masons worked on this.

WINDSOR CASTLE The world’s oldest and largest inhabited castle, and the Queen’s official residence with a history spanning over 1,000 years. STS restored the timber flagpole, famous for flying the Royal Standard when Her Majesty is in residence and the Union Flag when she’s not at Windsor. Their team used specialist rope access to limit disturbance and remove need for scaffolds.

ROYAL COURTS OF JUSTICE On London’s Strand, this iconic building has been in the hands of STS since 2009. Lately, they’ve refurbished the clock tower and maintained the Thomas More Building. Access experts had to scale the 75m high building, using a ‘cantilevered boom rig’ and a 9m access cradle.

ST PAUL’S CATHEDRAL An officially appointed contractor, STS carries out structural and high level maintenance repairs, and has also installed a lightning conductor. They’ve inspected the golden cross and dome, 365ft from the ground. In 2016 they worked inside, on scaffold in the dome, to repair the Thornhill Paintings.

LUMLEY CASTLE STS’ restoration and conservation divisions have a longstanding work relationship here, the castle’s owners and its architects having carried out a range of projects including stonemasonry repairs, castiron railing restoration and a range of aesthetic preservation to the 600 year-old building.

AND DEVELOPMENT BUSINESS WORKING THE MULTI DISCIPLINED CONSTRUCTION ACROSS THE NORTH & SCOTLAND AND DEVELOPMENT BUSINESS WORKING THE MULTI DISCIPLINED CONSTRUCTION ACROSS THE NORTH & SCOTLAND AND DEVELOPMENT BUSINESS WORKING ACROSS THE NORTH & SCOTLAND

2016/17

2016/17

2016/17

BUILDING MY SKILLS BITC NATIONAL AWARD WINNING BUILDING MY SKILLS SCHEME FOR SCHOOLS BITC NATIONAL AWARD WINNING BUILDING MY SKILLS PARTNERSHIP 2015

PROUD SPONSORS

OF NEWCASTLE PROUD SPONSORS EAGLES & LEEDS OF NEWCASTLE PROUD SPONSORS FORCE BASKETBALL EAGLES & LEEDS OF NEWCASTLE TEAM

SCHEME FOR SCHOOLS BITC SCHOOLS NATIONAL AWARD WINNING ENGAGED 81 PARTNERSHIP 2015 BUSINESS PARTNERS SCHEME FOR SCHOOLS 135 SCHOOLS ENGAGED 81 56,000 LEARNER HOURS PARTNERSHIP 2015 135 BUSINESS PARTNERS 81 SCHOOLS ENGAGED 56,000 LEARNER HOURS 135 BUSINESS PARTNERS

FORCE BASKETBALL EAGLES & LEEDS TEAM FORCE BASKETBALL TEAM

108 108 108

1200 1200 WE HAVE EMPLOYEES 1200 WE HAVE ACROSS THE

56,000 LEARNER HOURS

EMPLOYED APPRENTICES

ACROSS THE GROUP

EMPLOYED APPRENTICES

ACROSS GROUP EMPLOYEDTHE APPRENTICES

EMPLOYEES WE HAVE NORTH & ACROSS THE EMPLOYEES

ACROSS THE GROUP

SCOTLAND

NORTHTHE & ACROSS

WE HAVE RECENTLY

BEEN AWARDED

SCOTLAND NORTH &

WE HAVE RECENTLY

THE ARMED FORCES SILVER BEEN THE AWARDED ARMED COVENANT FORCES SILVER THE ARMED COVENANT FORCES SILVER COVENANT

BEEN AWARDED WE HAVE RECENTLY

SCOTLAND ESH GROUP T/O

ESH GROUP2015 T/O £275M ESH GROUP2015 T/O £275M £275M 2015

FROM ESH CHARITABLE TRUST

3RD WE ARE THE THIRD 3RD LARGEST PRIVATE WE ARE THE THIRD 3RD COMPANY WITH

WHICH WE WORK IN THE (EST COMMUNITIES 2006) TO SUPPORT WHICH WE WORK THE COMMUNITIES IN WHICH WE WORK

COMPANY WITH LARGEST PRIVATE THE NORTH EAST HEADQUARTERS IN COMPANY WITH THE NORTH EAST HEADQUARTERS IN THE NORTH EAST

£1.5M FUNDING £1.5M PROVIDED £1.5M FUNDING PROVIDED (EST 2006) TO SUPPORT FROM ESH CHARITABLE TRUST

LARGEST PRIVATE WE ARE THE THIRD

IN THE COMMUNITIES FUNDING PROVIDED (EST 2006) TO SUPPORT

HEADQUARTERS IN

FROM ESH CHARITABLE TRUST

WWW.ESHGROUP.CO.UK

:

@ESH_GROUP

:

WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/ESHHOLDINGS

78

PROFILE Esh Group

2016 in construction: steady as she goes Having written this piece for a number of years now, I always start by reading the previous year’s thoughts. For the first time I was tempted to rework 2015 – saying much the same thing – with STEADY being the operative word. It may seem boring but it’s not a bad place to be, given the economic turmoil from 2008 -2012.

Housing sales have been strong, complementing our utilities work, driving our infrastructure business Lumsden & Carroll and our plant hire business Mechplant.

Meanwhile, affordable and social housing markets continued to be very slow with the reduction of grants for new build housing.

Even within the housing sector it’s a tale of two halves.

Our commercial build operations, which include public and private sector work via our Esh Build arm, are steady but we have seen it slow down since Brexit.

We’re seeing continued growth in our fencing and landscaping

business Deerness which operates across all sectors of construction. During 2016 we’ve just about completed our new facilities at our Bowburn headquarters, with a new Training Academy now up and running. The development has also doubled our office space.

We said more than two years ago we would take on 150 apprentices in a three year period, and we did. There are now 108 active apprentices in Esh Group and Summer 2017 will see another intake.

The new training facilities will raise the bar for Esh Group and we plan to add further initiatives to our award winning ‘Building My Skills ‘ programme – including the ever-growing provision of STEM kits, which are now in more than 60 primary schools.

Thinking back over the last 20 years the two major barriers to growth of our business have been skills and procurement.

PROFILE Esh Group

“During 2016 we’ve just about completed our new facilities at our Bowburn headquarters, with a new Training Academy now up and running” We’re addressing the skills issue at all levels from our work in schools and colleges, to providing apprenticeships, upskilling the existing workforce, graduates and growing our own future leaders. Investment in skills means we can secure the future.

Brexit has given us the opportunity to look at procurement from a fresh perspective. Without EU influence we have the chance to rewrite the process and create a level playing field for businesses of all sizes across the construction sector.

So, what about next year? It would take a brave man to predict what 2017 is going to look like. But here’s what we can wish for.

Continued growth in housing sales, encouraged by low interest rates and availability of money underpinning the market. This will create positive knock-on growth in infrastructure and related areas such as retail. Housing is so important to the whole economic picture.

We’d like to see the affordable and social housing markets benefit from the change in Government direction within the Autumn Statement, with grants resumed for new builds.

79

We hope Government policy on Brexit becomes clearer and EU funding for construction projects is replaced by UK funding.

In addition it would be good to see the Brexit effect on exchange rates calmed. In construction, materials – including fuel – are a big part of our costs and we need to avoid inflation.

The Government should set clear guidelines for migration so business can plan with certainty, and communities can feel confident of the future.

Work should be done to make procurement fit for purpose in the UK. We need to recognise the contributions all sizes of business can make and establish growth paths for businesses.

Some of these things will be difficult to achieve in one year, or maybe even two, but we must aim high.

Esh House, Bowburn North Industrial Estate Bowburn, Durham, DH6 5PF www.eshgroup.co.uk 0191 377 4570 enquiries@eshgroup.co.uk

BUILT ENVIRONMENT - STATISTICS Esh have 1,200 employees across the North East and Scotland

Housing Associations invest in communities, house five million people in England and built 50,000 homes last year Last year most property sales in the North East involved terraced properties which sold for on average £118,747.

Semi-detached properties sold for an average price of £147,182, while detached properties fetched £253,770 £1.5M funding provided from Esh charitable trust to support the communities in which we work

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

RETAIL From the smallest independents to the biggest names, the North East has strength in depth

In association with

THE UK’S PREMIER RETAIL DESTINATION

82

RETAIL www.bqlive.co.uk

High Streets fighting back Retail, like other sectors, has been deeply affected by the internet. We spoke to Newcastle University Business School’s Dr Eleftherios Alamanos about some of these changes Brexit, so far, does not seem to have affected the British devotion to shopping. But it is a changing environment and the pace of change seems to have accelerated over the past three years. Online shopping not only makes life easier for many people, it is particularly attractive for some. Dr Eleftherios Alamanos, of Newcastle University Business School, points out: “Obviously there are specific groups of people who struggle with instore shopping, maybe because they have mobility issues, and for them online shopping is really important for being able to complete day-to-day activities. The channels a person is going to use depends on the personal circumstances.’’

However, anyone who has struggled through the crowds of shoppers in Newcastle, Sunderland or Middlesbrough in the weeks before Christmas knows that the high street is far from dead. One reason for this, according to Dr

Alamanos, is the old adage: `People like doing business with people’. He says: “The personal interaction element is really important. Studies have shown that shopping in general is strongly linked with people’s individual wellbeing. People want interaction, so instore shopping is still very important and it’s still a big thing.

“If you consider the recent major development we’ve seen in Eldon Square in Newcastle where the restaurants and cafes are booming. The social element is important, so while online shopping is growing, instore operations are still very important too and people still go out to interact with retail staff.’’ He adds: “If you look at Fenwicks in Newcastle, for example, this business doesn’t operate online and yet they are probably the biggest player in Newcastle in terms of retailing.’’

That is not to deny the onward march of online. According

RETAIL

www.bqlive.co.uk

to the Office for National Statistics, average weekly spending online in March 2016 was £859.6m, an increase of 8.9% compared with March 2015 and the amount spent online accounted for 13.2% of all retail spending, excluding automotive fuel, compared with 12.1% in March 2015.

“Everyone knows that online shopping is constantly growing, the issue that all retailers have to deal with is how you avoid the conflict between the channels,’’ says Dr Alamanos.

A few years ago it looked as if this conflict was going to be irreconcilable and would cost the high street dear.

This followed the growing trend of `free riding’, whereby shoppers would browse instore, examine goods and try clothes on for size and then go home and order online at a better price.

“Initially the solution that the retailers came up with was to try to offer something different, to differentiate the offer instore and online,’’ says Dr Alamanos. “To some extent this worked, however, the issue with that was the inconsistent brand experience.’’

Another approach was the multi-channel solution whereby a particular retailer sells online and instore with the online operation being independent of the instore business.

“So, even within the same company you were competing with each other for the same customers,’’ he says.

“The retailers are now trying to address the issue with

83

the concept of an omni-channel strategy, bringing all the channels together in order to provide a consistent experience of a brand to the customer and cater for all their needs.’’

An early form of this was the development of click-andcollect, whereby goods are ordered online and collected instore, and it has become a powerful tool in the omnichannel armoury, as has `buy online and return instore’.

These have the advantage of getting customers into an outlet and creating opportunities to sell to them.

“In other countries major brands report that 40% of their customers who walked in to collect a particular order also bought something instore,’’ says Dr Alamanos.

Omni-channel now includes the use of technology enabling, for example, browsing online while instore to examine the inventory and gain more information on a product.

Apart from omni-channel, the traditional high street is fighting back. Black Friday seems to have taken the place of January Sales and to have captured the public attention.

“I think that Black Friday is growing and every year it’s bigger,’’ he says. “In the States Black Friday is really Friday morning but here in Newcastle, for example, you can see that it was not a Black Friday – it was a Black weekend.’’

And this, coupled with the introduction of free parking and late night shopping, seems to be injecting plenty of fresh life into the region’s retail sector. n

84

RETAIL www.bqlive.co.uk

Sitting pretty in Pink Alice Hall launched an e-commerce store to supplement her income but four years on it is a rapidly expanding business and she tells Paul Robertson how it will keep on growing

RETAIL

www.bqlive.co.uk

Alice Hall has a plan – not that she has needed one so far.

Since launching as an online fashion store to help pay the bills, Pink Boutique is now achieving gross sales of £12million in just four years, shipping out 2,000 garments from its Newcastle base every day.

And it has all been done without borrowing a penny or developing a strategy.

“For the first three years we have had no business plan in place because we were way too busy doing it,” said Alice.

“We are very lean and low risk – we only use our cash in the bank for stock and marketing. It is great but can be restrictive because it means we can’t do massive campaigns but that is something we can start to plan.

“Now we are mapping out a strategy for growth – we have recruited staff with a lot of experience and are ready to take the next step.”

It has been an impressive start for the 28-year-old who grew up in Gosforth and is passionate about developing her business and creating jobs in the North East – all from a venture to supplement her income.

“I bought one pack of dresses online from a wholesaler and got a friend of a friend to model it in a way I hadn’t seen done before to sell online – I thought there was a real lack of glamorous imagery,” she said.

“All of the models were very plain. I have grown up in Newcastle and that’s not what a night out in town is about.

It is fake tan, lashes and big heels so I decided to style it like that.“I put the dresses on eBay and the first pack sold so then I thought what now? I was sitting at the kitchen table with my mum and she said ‘reinvest’. It became our motto and has been a massive part of our growth.

“I didn’t take a wage for quite a long time, we picked and packed from the dining room table - it went from the living room, to the dining room table, to a loft room then the garage.”

The business now operates from a 30,000 square foot base on Newburn Industrial Estate, employing 57 people in buying, merchandising, creative, customer care, warehousing, fulfillment, IT, HR and finance.

Alice is joint managing director with her mother Julie. “I am creative director and mum is financial director,” she said. “It works really well as I look after marketing, buying, creative, sales and designs while Julie is in charge of fulfilment and customer care.”

It is a dynamic business launching up to 20 new styles every

85

day and already exporting to 59 countries. Manufacturing of bespoke designs takes place in the UK and China while some stock is bought in, “We have to be on trend,” she says. “The way we operate means for example if a celebrity wears something which is popular we can get it in and on the website quickly.”

Had she turned her education choices into a career Alice may well have taught or ended up interviewing someone just like her.

“I went to Dame Allan’s which was quite a competitive school then went on to do a degree in journalism at Sunderland University,” she said. “I had wanted to do an English degree but couldn’t see how it would translate to my career so I decided to do journalism and I learnt a lot of skills. “By the time I graduated it was around the time of the recession and really experienced journalists were struggling for work, never mind graduates. It wasn’t really going to happen. I could have been an office junior but having done three years it seemed crazy to go back to where I could have been before the degree.

“I decided to buy my first house so I got a job as a cover teacher at Whitley Bay High School. I really enjoyed teaching teenagers – they were hilarious, I laughed all day every day.

I covered everything from science to physics, to English to dance.

“I loved it but really struggled to pay my bills so got a job in a bar at night and spent the weekend doing make up and promotions work. However, I was really still struggling to pay the bills – hence the dresses.”

From the initial investment of £90 – £45 of her own money and the other half from mum – stock was bought and sold at such a rate it quickly outgrew the family home.

Pink Boutique moved to office premises in Blaydon but it soon became apparent they needed warehousing too hence the move to Newburn, where Hall has invested a six-figure sum in photographic studios to control the look of her range. She has also made 30 appointments in the last year, almost doubling her workforce with the focus on bringing in expertise to accelerate growth.

Caroline Smith joins as marketing director, having spent 14 years with outdoor brand Berghaus as global head of marketing. Former head of IT at both Benfield and Newcastle United, Gary Gray brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the firm. Other appointments include experienced buyers from Missguided and Harrods, an

86

RETAIL www.bqlive.co.uk

online training manager from John Lewis, and a buying and merchandising manager from Asda.

“I have learnt to delegate and the need to have lots of different personalities, those who are steady and stable but also real creative types who are a bit wacky as well as strong leadership which can make most things work,” she said.

“We have a great sense of community – people like working here. We have a lot of fun with penalty shoot outs in the warehouse, ice creams on hot days and my dogs (poodles Maisie and Scarlet) are among the most popular members of the team. Everyone takes turns to walk them or spend some chill time with them – it is really therapeutic apart from when you are in an important meeting and they bark!” Alice knows her market and has built up a loyal customer base through the website and social media. She has just launched an app, with encouraging early results before its official unveiling, but don’t expect Pink Boutique to move from the virtual to the physical high street.

“I am a massive high street fan, I love shopping, our customers do too but I don’t see how I could make it work,” she said. “Rent and rates are crazy, never mind the other costs and keeping staff occupied in the non-busy times. I am so glad the retailers are still there because I love the whole physical shopping experience but sadly I won’t be following.

When we were at Blaydon we ran a small outlet store but even that proved too expensive and we closed it at a loss.

Younger people have grown up online, they just want to click.”

Pink Boutique’s customers are 18-35 year old women who like to pay an average of £22 for a dress so they can regularly buy different outfits for the weekend. “We have customers who shop with us every week. Girls don’t like posting a picture of themselves wearing the same thing.”

It boasts 1.5m Twitter followers, building a community that is not just about pushing out product but is posting things which engage and entertain customers. Alice believes social media and the app will be the drivers for growth – keeping things fresh and making the shopping experience as simple as possible.

“In a world where we are so busy and someone wants a last-minute party dress to arrive tomorrow it is vital we innovate.

“Not many companies do customer service well online – it is notoriously hard to shop – pictures are often tiny and checking out is difficult. I have all of these pains and that

helps inform me.

“The app achieved 500 downloads in the first day and sale conversion rates were three times those of the website so it is very exciting. We can send notifications to customers for new stock or sales and they check out with the push of a button.”

For advice she can ask husband Andrew who she married in 2015 – he was Pink Boutique’s operations director but now works for another e-commerce company.

Her focus remains the business, even taking phone calls while on honeymoon.

“I don’t know when you start up and have such fast growth whether it is possible to achieve a work life balance,” says Alice. “I once heard a business expert talking about the fact you have to give up the first three years and I agree.

“It is a hard slog but it is so worth it – the balance will come later. I really enjoy business, speaking to entrepreneurs, going to events, even on holidays I can lie on a beach for an hour but then need to think business.

“Andrew is equally addicted, so we are happy, always chatting about business.”

She has had great support from her mum, three sisters and dad – Jonathan Blackie, well-known in these parts and often roped in to wrap the odd order during the early days of Pink Boutique. Alice also sought guidance and advice from local businesses, the Entrepreneurs’ Forum, through networking – inboxing potential mentors to tap into their knowledge.

“They can only say no but rarely do,” she says.

She is now providing support to a couple of digital marketing and e-commerce businesses – something which she says energises her – and is delighted to have won several awards including Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year at the PWC UK Private Business Awards, Women Into the Network Young Entrepreneur of the Year and the Entrepreneurs’ Forum Emerging Talent Award. But this Newcastle woman’s main focus remains developing her business in this region.

“We love the fact we have provided jobs in the North East – I am very passionate about Newcastle,” says Alice.

“I will always want to keep the majority of the business here but we may need to outsource some elements further afield depending on the type of talent we can attract – but in an ideal world we would love to keep everything here.” n Full interview first appeared in BQ magazine in 2016

PROFILE

Psyche

87

Psyche is a cut above the rest Since it’s inception in 2002, Psyche’s now-famous Tailoring department has well and truly become a local institution. First opening as a small boutique adjacent to Psyche’s menswear department, Tailoring went from strength to strength before moving into the 8,000 foot space on Psyche’s first floor, now home to an unparalleled selection of over 1,000 designer suits.

Headed by Mike and Angela, whose combined experience amounts to at least 70 years in the tailoring industry, Psyche’s Tailoring department is a godsend for suited professionals and those shopping for a special occasion. With a total of six members of staff on-hand to offer a personal shopping experience from start to finish, completely taking the pain out of what can be, for many men, a stressful experience.

Today Psyche Tailoring is world famous as a one-stop-shop for getting dressed to the nines for any occasion. Alongside a vast selection of designer suits from the likes of Paul Smith and Hugo Boss sits a unique range of shirts, ties, pocket squares and a huge selection of dress shoes housed in an incredibly classy section that resembles an old fashioned library.

Tailoring supervisor Angela takes pride in being able to offer a personal shopping experience for everyone from start to finish.

“we have everything here to put together a formal outfit from scratch, we can sell you an immaculately tailored suit off the rack and have further alterations made by our in-house tailor for the perfect fit. We can co-ordinate all the accessories for you and If you need a pair of shoes to match we can do that too!”

Alongside a number of prestigious contracts, the tailoring department supplies customised Paul Smith suits for the Middlesbrough Football Club as well as a bespoke madeto-measure service for those looking for something more personalised.

Regardless of age, size or budget, the Tailoring department has something for everyone. A plus size section in one corner houses suits and shirts for larger men and Psyche’s selection includes lines that start at £99 through to £700 to fit in with any budget.

THE UK’S PREMIER RETAIL DESTINATION

For more information visit www.psyche.co.uk or call +44 (0)1642 707286

RETAIL - STATISTICS The retail sector is the UK’s largest private sector employer with 2.9 million employees

66% of all retail employees work for the largest 75 retail companies The Intu Metrocentre in Gateshead is Europe’s biggest covered mall at 2,093,000sq ft, employing around 9,000 people with annual footfall of 21million customers spending £10 billion.

Teesside Park near Stockton has an annual footfall of 12 million with an average spend of £111, with an average visitor frequency of 41 visits per year Retail sales in the UK reached a total value of £321 billion last year

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

SMALL BUSINESS The backbone of the regional economy, many small firms choose to stay here and grow

In association with

90

SMALL BUSINESS www.bqlive.co.uk

Small continues to grow big Small businesses in the region have a big part to play in closing the productivity gap between London and the wider UK says Simon Hanson, North East Development manager at the Federation of Small Businesses There’s no doubting that 2016 has been a momentous year for smaller businesses in the North East. We’ve had some huge changes politically with some areas agreeing deals to take more power and others rejecting this chance, we voted to leave the European Union, changed our Government with an election (of sorts) of a new Prime Minister and have seen the election of a President in the United States that no one predicted (other than the candidate himself).

Alongside these political changes we’ve seen some issues that are having a huge impact on smaller businesses lose a bit of focus. Late payment is still a huge challenge for too many businesses in the region with payment times increasing. Finding skilled staff remains a constant barrier in meeting the ambitions that smaller businesses have.

We’ve also seen some big increases in overheads for smaller businesses as a result of increases to the National Living Wage and the introduction of the auto enrolment of pensions.

SO WHAT WILL SMALLER BUSINESSES FOCUS ON IN 2017?

The good news is that smaller businesses remain ambitious

“Smaller businesses will want certainty on the ease of doing business in, and cost of access to, the European single market”

SMALL BUSINESS

www.bqlive.co.uk

with many looking to expand their business both in the markets they trade in and increasing the numbers of staff.

Alongside this the North East has had the fastest growth in employment of any region in the UK and added an extra 11,000 businesses which have been created.

Across 2017 smaller businesses will continue to do what they do best, which is growing the North East economy and continuing to grow their business. In the last year smaller businesses across the North East contributed £26.5bn and employed 359,000 staff.

BREXIT For many they will want some certainty in 2017 after the tumultuous year we’ve just had. This will mean the Government outlining what the Brexit strategy is and how this will continue to help smaller businesses meet their ambitions. Within this they’ll want to see some certainty around the future of funding particularly on the future business support, innovation and capital spending that has been provided by the European Structural Investment Funds.

Alongside this, smaller businesses will want certainty on the ease of doing business in, and cost of access to, the European single market and as a consequence, the impact and opportunities in relation to non-EU markets. Given the huge skills, challenges many smaller businesses face they need some certainty on the ease and cost of access to labour and skills as well as wider mobility issues enabling business being undertaken in the EU. DEVOLUTION Over the coming year smaller businesses in Tees Valley will work with the Combined Authority to ensure that the devolution deal matches their ambitions. With more powers and responsibility in skills and transport backed up by a new investment fund, 2017 will set the momentum to achieve these ambitions. As this progresses hopefully we’ll see the Government devolving more powers and responsibilities to the region.

We’ll also see the first directly elected Mayor for the Tees Valley decided in May 2017. It’s vital that the Mayor

91

“For many they will want some certainty in 2017 after the tumultuous year we’ve just had. This will mean the Government outlining what the Brexit strategy is and how this will continue to help smaller businesses meet their ambitions”

understands the needs of smaller businesses and acts on their concerns.

In the North East the proposed North of Tyne devolution deal for Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland will probably continue to progress. We say probably given the hokey cokey nature of the way the other proposed deal finished. This should allow smaller businesses to take advantage of new powers and responsibilities that their Tees Valley counterparts will have.

For smaller businesses in County Durham the new Place of Light campaign will stimulate high value economic activity.

This will be achieved through the Smart County work which has been developed to introduce an innovative approach to stimulating high value economic activity in County Durham. It seeks to use ‘problems’ in the County as assets to develop innovative products and service development.

At the heart of this will be a more agile commissioning and procurement approach, which will help smaller businesses win contracts. Backed up by the £20m Finance Durham fund, this will help smaller businesses meet their ambitions.

The North East is the best region in the UK to start, grow and develop a business. As a region we will play a leading role in reducing the productivity gap between London and the wider UK. We have some world leading assets to deliver this whether in advanced manufacturing, automotive or in the digital and tech sector.

Let’s make 2017 the year that we deliver on this. n

92

PROFILE BIC

A unique proposition for thriving businesses More than a business park, the North East Business Centre (BIC) is a bustling community which offers the ultimate location for companies in the region to locate and grow. With centres in three locations across the North East region, the BIC offers customers a unique mix of business accommodation and tailored business support, which truly sets it apart.

A DESIRABLE PLACE TO DO BUSINESS The appeal of the BIC’s unique proposition speaks for itself.

Over 235 companies ranging from healthcare, technology, software, creative and outsourcing firms currently call one of the three sites, Sunderland, Business Central Darlington and the Hub Washington, their home.

Paul McEldon, chief executive of the North East BIC, said: “The BIC is the perfect environment for businesses of all stages of development. The breadth of space on offer means that businesses don’t start off here then move on once they’ve outgrown their premises, they become part of a unique eco-system which offers the flexibility to relocate on site and to tap into relevant support and expertise at each stage of their growth. As a not-for-profit organisation we’re committed to reinvesting in support and facilities to best meet the needs of the business community.”

As the resident business adviser, Louise Hardy is on-hand to ensure both start-up and established businesses get access to all of the help they need to fulfil their potential.

THE NORTH EAST BIC HAS HAD A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON THE NORTH EAST BUSINESS LANDSCAPE SINCE ITS LAUNCH IN 1994.

• 235 businesses across three sites • 3,000 businesses helped to start up • 7,500 jobs have been created • 700 businesses have been accommodated • £750 million collective turnover of business • 1,000 people working on-site

Paul McEldon, chief executive of the North East BIC

Louise explains: “Tenants from businesses of all sizes and sectors come to me for help with a range of issues; whether it’s raising finance, tendering, international trade, sales or marketing. Where possible we’ll provide the support ourselves within the BIC’s team of expert advisers and where there’s a gap we’ll provide introductions to other tenants on site who could help. If the support isn’t available on site we’ll signpost to our external support network. We’ll always find the best possible solution for the business to help them flourish and grow.”

For more information on the services available at the BIC contact Louise Hardy on 0191 516 6170

SMALL BUSINESS - STATISTICS 11,000 businesses created in the North East in 2016 – the fastest growth rate in the UK

Small businesses contributed ÂŁ26.5bn to the North East economy and employed 359,000 people

There are 679 businesses per 10,000 residents in the North East Since opening in 1994, the North East Business Innovation Centre has helped more than 3,000 business start-ups and supported the creation of more than 7,500 jobs

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

DIGITAL A crucial year ahead, with success affecting the future of so many firms as well as future investment

In association with

96

DIGITAL www.bqlive.co.uk

DIGITAL

www.bqlive.co.uk

97

Decisions which impact on us all Rob Earnshaw, director of Digital City, asks what Brexit and devolution mean to the North East’s digital sector The decision to leave the EU has already had a profound effect on the country’s economic landscape. Britain’s digital sector – proportionality the largest of any country in the G20 – obviously will not escape the impact of such a huge change. 58% of North East voters decided they wished to leave the EU and our region must now adjust to a post Brexit landscape even if none of us are entirely sure what this is going to look like.

So based upon what we do know, what does this mean to the North East’s Digital Sector? Digital as defined by the Office of National Statistics is any company that is supporting tech infrastructure (that is hardware, software, telecoms) and e-commerce / e-business (trading goods or services over computer networks such as the internet).

Therefore the impact of any change will more than likely touch the majority of our region’s businesses.

During a time of uncertainty the areas that will have an immediate impact on our North East’s digital economy will be around corporate location, talent, valuation and our ability to trade fairly online and a longer term impact around investment and business support.

TALENT AND SKILLS The North East has one of the fastest growing digital clusters yet currently has the lowest number of digital skilled workers in England. Along with the rest of the UK we are in a skills shortage crisis and we need to attract more overseas workers to meet our talent demands.

Although freedom of movement will apply for at least another two years the very fact of the Brexit vote and the weakened pound will mean a number of highly skilled workers will be more attracted to moving to other countries such as Germany.

DIGITAL SINGLE MARKET We all talk about access to the Single Market, however the ability to trade through the European Digital Single Market (DSM) is where our region can really benefit.

The DSM was set up to synchronise Europe’s online marketplace. The DSM allows for better access to businesses to sell their goods and services, creating the right conditions for networks to grow (including our protection around cyber security and regulation on

98

DIGITAL www.bqlive.co.uk

inflated roaming charges) and making it easier for us to share data.

It is estimated that between 2008-2015 the North East digital economy has turned over between £8-12 billion, the majority of this is through e-commerce purchases and mobile technology (apps). We are a region of exporters, missing out on the DSM benefits will be one of the most serious implications of Brexit for our regional businesses.

ATTRACTIVE VALUATIONS The North East’s digital sector is one of the fastest growing outside of London. While we still see a significant disparity in inward investment into our region, the number of digital scale-ups has increased. The quality of our digital companies alongside the decline in company valuations will make the North East Digital companies even more attractive targets for acquisition.

CORPORATE LOCATION Many international companies (outside the EU) base their European operations in the UK creating thousands of jobs.

Although the North East has fantastic infrastructure to support large digital corporates, clearly there are changes ahead for these operations, making countries such as Germany and Ireland arguably a more attractive place for operating centres. The North East will have to work twice as hard to ensure an attractive offer for corporates to be attracted to the region… or even stay.

INVESTMENT AND BUSINESS SUPPORT The longer term impact will be around the significant investment into the region’s digital sector through European money. The European Investment Fund was the largest investor in our region’s venture capital firms; if this funding disappears it could have a serious impact on the North East’s digital start-up and scale-up scene.

In addition, the growth of the region’s digital sector has been largely down to ecosystem and business support offered through programmes such as Digital City, Sunderland Software City and Digital Union – all largely funded through Europe.

SO WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF DEVOLUTION? Both the North East LEP and the Tees Valley Combined Authority recognise the growth of the digital cluster,

“What we can say about our region’s digital cluster is that it is innovative - our attitude has always been to capitalise on disruption”

improving digital infrastructure and digital adoption as key to our region’s economic success. The main areas of the devolution deal were around the control of regional investment, skills and business support. Whereas the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) opted to sign for control and leadership in those areas, the North East Combined Authority (NECA) decided against, which included a £30 million per year investment fund. So what does that mean for our region’s digital economy?

Although I am certain that NECA will be able to come out strong it is reasonable to say that at this moment in time

DIGITAL

www.bqlive.co.uk

the Tees Valley is in a much stronger position to be able to shape its own future when planning for Brexit and is a much more attractive place to run a digital business.

The threat to the North East’s digital sector around skills, business support and investment is real. With devolved powers the TVCA will have the authority to ring-fence and shape funding and support to maintain the region’s fastest growing sector.

The TVCA will be able to review and design the education system around digital skills and employment support. It will be able to continue to offer world class business support

99

for digital start and scale-ups, invest into economic growth of the sector and have the power to re-invest business rates the digital cluster pays back into supporting the cluster rather than go to central government.

What we can say about our region’s digital cluster is that it is innovative - our attitude has always been to capitalise on disruption. The fundamentals of the North East’s digital scene remains strong. Most of our digital businesses did not want Brexit and would have voted for devolved powers, but now it is here our attitude will be to just get on with it and make the most out of the situation. n

100 P R O F I L E Sunderland Software City

Adoption of technologies key to success In an increasingly competitive global marketplace, forward-thinking organisations from across public and private sectors are exploring the possibilities of digital technology to transform processes, overcome barriers to growth and increase productivity whilst reducing costs.

The potential for technology-enabled problem solving has been recognised as an initiative of national importance, with the UK Government placing heavy emphasis on innovation as foundations for UK competiveness.

This emphasis, plus the emergence of a number of bodies and initiatives dedicated to researching, educating and implementing digital-transformation within public sector organisations and private businesses of all sizes has gained momentum in the last two years, with the North East carving out a niche as a location for data-driven innovation and problem solving.

The region is home to a cluster of technology companies specialising in data visualisation, analysis and development that are increasingly supplying new systems and processes that are transforming public services, facilitating data sharing between organisations and providing insights that drive new commercial products and services.

Yet we need to ensure that the North East remains ahead of the curve in order to continue to be nationally and internationally competitive.

In order to do so, we need to look to and quickly capitalise on the newest developments in technology, and in 2017 that will be the further development of connectivity via 5G networks, data-driven opportunities such as personal data, privacy and Blockchain and the application and adoption of emerging technologies such as virtual and augmented reality and artificial intelligence.

With the North East second only to London for growth in the number of tech companies at the forefront of digital innovation, as well as organisations such as the Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley educating and facilitating cross-sector collaboration, the region is better placed than most to exploit the benefits of digital problem solving.

The Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley is working with public and private sector organisations of all sizes through the development of business challenges, open innovation initiatives and incubation activities to help identify problems,

work through barriers and increase productivity through datadriven solutions.

It is also working to help organisations explore emerging and intelligent technologies that have the potential to overcome internal challenges and identify new products and services.

By enabling the adoption and application of these new technologies through facilitating access to academic expertise and opening up supply chains to innovate SMEs, the region’s economy is bolstered and the competitiveness of the North East business community will become internationally recognised as a vanguard for a connected, sustainable and innovative ecosystem.

To find out more about the Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley’s services for businesses, technology SMEs and incubation services visit www.digitalcatapultcentre.org.uk/netv

The Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley accelerates innovation through collaboration, helping corporate organisations increase their productivity through data driven transformation and the exploration of emerging technologies whilst creating commercial opportunities for the region’s technology SMEs- supporting the competitiveness and growth of the North East’s software sector.

Immersive

Connected

Data-driven

Intelligent

Based in the heart of Sunderland, the Digital Catapult Centre North East & Tees Valley also offers cutting edge incubation space for start-ups or SMEs developing data-driven products and services in the emerging technology sector.

www.digitalcatapultcentre.org.uk/netv

DIGITAL - STATISTICS North East England is home to more than 1,500 software and technology companies The sector contributes £600m annually to the regional economy. By 2020, it is estimated the North East will be home to 2,200 software firms These businesses will employ 20,000 people and bring in £1.1bn to the local economy. These firms employ in excess of 15,000 people Creative industries in the North East employ an estimated 58,000 people Over 200 digital firms, supplying services to market leaders such as Google and Sony, have been created in recent years. Growth has been driven by Digital City, a major Tees Valley partnership initiative, and Teesside University’s digital expertise, putting it in the top 20 places in the world for studying animation

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

WHO’S WHO...

Your essential guide to the people who are changing the industrial landscape of our region

In association with

104 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Bill Abbott

Catherine Auld

MANAGING DIRECTOR

JOINT HEAD OF BUSINESS INVESTMENT TEAM, SUNDERLAND CITY COUNCIL

Water treatment and hygiene services

Local government 01429 860836 www.hydrochemgroup.co.uk 1 Graythorp Industrial Estate, Hartlepool, TS25 2DF

0191 561 1166 catherine.auld@sunderland.gov.uk www.makeitsunderland.com @MAKEitSund Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

Philip Aldridge

Martin Bain

SME GROWTH PROGRAMME MANAGER

CEO

Helping small North East businesses achieve great things

Football club

0191 516 4400 philip.aldridge@nepic.co.uk/smes www.nepic.co.uk @NEPIC_Ltd Loftus House, Colima Avenue, Sunderland, SR5 3BX

0371 911 1200 enquiries@safc.com www.safc.com Stadium of Light, Sunderland, SR5 1SU

Angela Anderson

Richard Baker

MANAGING DIRECTOR

HEAD OF STRATEGY AND POLICY

Recruitment and Training

Delivering more and better jobs for the North East

0191 428 6444 angelaanderson@zenithpeople.com www.zenithpeople.com @ZenithPeople

0191 338 7423 richard.baker@nelep.co.uk www.nelep.co.uk @northeastlep

10 Merchant Court, Monkton Business Park South, Hebburn, Tyne & Wear, NE31 2EX

1 St James Gate, Newcastle, NE1 4AD

James Angus

Louise Ball

HEAD OF LAND & NEW HOMES

OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

Property Consultancy

Training services

0774 004 6701 jamesangus@waltonrobinson.com www.waltonrobinson.com @WRNewcastle 101 Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RY

01287 731050 louise.ball@baltictraining.com www.baltictraining.com @lou_ball12 Baltic House, Hilton Road, Aycliffe Business Park, Newton Aycliffe, Co Durham, DL5 6EN

WHO’S WHO In association with

Dame Margaret Barbour

Jonathan Blair

CHAIRMAN

MANAGING PARTNER

Manufacturer and retailer of lifestyle clothing and footwear 0191 455 4444 info@barbour.com www.barbour.com @Barbour J Barbour & Sons Ltd, Simonside, South Shields, Tyne & Wear, NE34 9PD

Law firm +44 (0) 191 279 9000 info@bonddickinson.com www.bonddickinson.com @Bond_Dickinson St Ann’s Wharf, 112 Quayside, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 3DX

Jason Bell

Mike Baxter

Shawn Bone

TAILORING MANAGER

CORPORATE FINANCE DIRECTOR

Luxury fashion boutique

Cavu Corporate finance

01642 707290 www.psyche.co.uk @psychefashion

0191 255 7772 shawnbone@cavucf.com www.cavucf.com

175-187 Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough, TS14AG

City Quadrant, 11 Waterloo Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4DP

THE UK’S PREMIER RETAIL DESTINATION

Colin Bell

Louise Bradford

BUSINESS GROWTH DIRECTOR

DIRECTOR

Delivering more and better jobs for the North East

Marketing, public relations, social media and design

0191 338 7424 colin.bell@nelep.co.uk www.nelep.co.uk @northeastlep 1 St James Gate, Newcastle, NE1 4AD

0191 562 3134 louise@wearecreo.co.uk www.wearecreo.co.uk @twiddleytweet Sunderland Software Centre, Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

Richard Blackett

John Brady

DIRECTOR

DIRECTOR OF PROJECTS

Independent financial advisor 0191 300 9730 enquiry@blackett-walker.co.uk www.blackett-walker.co.uk @blackettwalker BW House, 2/3 Park Road, Gosforth Business Park, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE12 8DG

North East Process Industry Cluster 01642 442 560 john.brady@nepic.co.uk www.nepic.co.uk @NEPIC_Ltd The Wilton Centre, Wilton, Redcar, TS10 4RF

105

106 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Lyndsey Britton

Linda Conlon

CO-FOUNDER

CHIEF EXECUTIVE Public engagement in science and support of world class science in the region

Digital Co-working and Education 0191 308 2807 lyndsey.britton@campusnorth.co.uk www.campusnorth.co.uk @campusnorthuk Campus North, 5 Carliol Square Newcastle, NE1 6UF

0191 243 8200 linda@life.org.uk www.life.org.uk @lindalifeCEO International Centre for Life, Times Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4EP

Sean Bullick

John Craggs

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Business improvement district company

Housing Association

0191 235 7091 sean.bullick@newcastlene1ltd.com www.newcastlene1ltd.com @ne1BID

0191 525 6062 john.craggs@gentoogroup.com www.gentoogroup.com @johnrscraggs

Suite A8, Milburn House, Dean Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1LE

Emperor House, 2 Emperor Way, Doxford International Business Park, Sunderland, SR3 3XR

Kevin Byrne

Sarah Cridland

MANAGING DIRECTOR

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Civil engineering

Subsea umbilical systems

01429 233521 www.seymourcec.co.uk @SeymourCEC Seymour Civil Engineering, Seymour House, Harbour Walk, Hartlepool, TS24 0UX

0191 295 0303 SCridland@technip.com http://www.technip.com/ @TechnipGroup Nelson Road, Walker Riverside, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 3NL

Steve Cochrane

Professor Paul Croney

MANAGING DIRECTOR

VICE-CHANCELLOR AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE Higher education

Luxury fashion boutique 01642 707286 www.psyche.co.uk @psychefashion 175-187 Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough, TS14AG

THE UK’S PREMIER RETAIL DESTINATION

01642 342002 Paul.Croney@tees.ac.uk www.tees.ac.uk Teesside University, Middlesbrough, Tees Valley, TS1 3BX

WHO’S WHO In association with

Guy Currey

Samantha Doyle

DIRECTOR, INVEST NORTH EAST ENGLAND

AREA SALES MANAGER NUFC AND TYNE & WEAR MUSEUMS

Inward investment 0782 5430315 guy.currey@northeastca.gov.uk www.investnortheastengland.co.uk @InvestNEEngland

Conference and banqueting venues 0191 201 8525 samantha.doyle@sodexo.com www.nufc.co.uk www.twmuseums.co.uk

North East Combined Authority, c/o Sunderland City Council, Sunderland Software Cit y, Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

Sodexo Prestige, NUFC, St. James Park, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4ST

John Dickson

David Dunn

GROUP CHAIRMAN

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Construction

Business Support & Economic Development

0191 250 0315 enquiries@owenpugh.com www.owenpugh.com

0191 562 3351 david.dunn@sunderlandsoftwarecity.com www.sunderlandsoftwarecity.com @sunsoftcity

Dudley, Cramlington, Northumberland, NE23 7PR.

Sunderland Software Centre, Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

Joe Docherty

Aidan Dunstan

CEO OF NCG

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Education and training

Wealth Management

0191 200 4011 joe.docherty@ncgrp.co.uk www.ncgrp.co.uk @NCG_Official

0191 211 1006 aidan.dunstan@ubs.com www.ubs.com/northeast-uk @UBS

Rye Hill Campus, Scotswood Rd, Newcastle College, NE4 7SA

2 St James’ Gate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 7JH

Judith Doyle

Rob Earnshaw

PRINCIPAL AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE

DIRECTOR DIGITALCITY

Education and training

Business Support & Investment

0191 490 2200 judith.doyle@gateshead.ac.uk www.gateshead.ac.uk @gatesheadcoll Gateshead College, Baltic Campus, Quarryfield Road, Baltic Business Quarter, Gateshead, NE8 3BE

01642 384324 r.earnshaw@tees.ac.uk www.thedigitalcity.com @robearnshaw Phoenix Building, Borough Road, Middlesbrough, TS1 3BA

107

108 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Andrew Elliot

Bill Fullen

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Wealth Management

Housing

091 211 1013 andrew.elliot@ubs.com www.ubs.com/northeast-uk @UBS

0191 349 7777 bill.fullen@cdhg.co.uk www.countydurhamhousinggroup.co.uk @countydurhamhg

2 St James’ Gate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 7JH

County Durham Housing Group, Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT

Anne Elliott

Emma Gaudern

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Legal services

Private client solicitor and professional deputy/ trustee 0191 731 4612 emma.gaudern@emgsolicitors.com www.emgsolicitors.com @emgsolicitors

01325 341 500 aee@latimerhinks.co.uk www.latimerhinks.co.uk @latimerhinks 5-8 Priestgate, Darlington, DL1 1NL

Abbey House, Abbeywoods Business Park, Durham, DH1 5TH

Leanne English

Ben Gilhespy

MANAGING DIRECTOR

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, COUNTY DURHAM ENGINEERING AND MANUFACTURING NETWORK (CDEMN)

Communications support 0191 587 8165 leanne@lecconsultancy.co.uk www.lecconsultancy.co.uk @leanneLECC Novus Business Centre, Judson Road, North West Industrial Estate, Peterlee, Durham, SR8 2QJ

Manufacturing support organisation 07568 480693 ben.gilhespy@cdemn.org.uk cdemn.org.uk @CD_EMN S7, Tanfield Lea Business Centre, Stanley, County Durham, DH9 9DB

Barney Frith

Ian Gilthorpe

PARTNER AND HEAD OF PROPERTY TEAM

SENIOR PARTNER

Law firm/ professional services

Law firm/ professional services

0843 224 7914 barney.frith@squareonelaw.com www.squareonelaw.com @SquareOneLaw Anson House, The Fleming Business Centre, Burdon Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 3AE

0843 224 7901 ian.gilthorpe@squareonelaw.com www.squareonelaw.com @SquareOneLaw Anson House, The Fleming Business Centre, Burdon Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 3AE

WHO’S WHO In association with

Helen Golightly

Darren Hankey

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

PRINCIPAL

Delivering more and better jobs for the North East

Education and training

0191 338 7422 Helen.Golightly@nelep.co.uk www.nelep.co.uk @northeastlep

01429 295111 www.hartlepoolfe.ac.uk @HCFEprincipal

1 St James Gate, Newcastle, NE1 4AD

Stockton Street, Hartlepool, TS24 7NT

Dr Simon Goon

Phil Harburn

MANAGING DIRECTOR

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Business support, economic development and business space 03000 265 510 simon.goon@durham.gov.uk www.businessdurham.co.uk @_BusinessDurham

Print and design

Business Durham, Ground Floor, Millennium Place, Durham, DH1 1WA

01325 463 171 phil.harburn@mtprint.co.uk www.mtprint.co.uk @Mt_Print North Park House, Whesoe Road, Darlington, DL3 0YL

Alan Gowling

Lucy Mead

DIRECTOR - NORTH EAST

PARTNER

Business banking 07788 567 340 alan.gowling@rbs.co.uk www.natwest.com/ahead @alan_gowling Natwest, 1 Trinity Gardens, 2nd Floor, Broadchare, Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 2HF

Law Firm 0191 232 9547 Lucy.mead@davidgray.co.uk www.davidgray.co.uk @DavidGrayLLP Old County Court, 56 Westgate Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 5XU

Farooq Hakim

Andrew Haslam

CHAIR OF THE BT NORTH EAST REGIONAL BOARD

INSOLVENCY PARTNER

Communications

Accountants and business advisors

077101 05730 Farooq.hakim@bt.com www.btplc.com BT, pp 3.14 1 Harton Quay, South Shields, NE33 1JN

0191 285 0321 andrew.haslam@taitwalker.co.uk www.taitwalker.co.uk @TaitWalker Bulman House, Regent Centre, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 3LS

109

110 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Vivien Herrera-Lee

Peter Houlis CSyP MSyl

MANAGING DIRECTOR

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Serviced Apartments - the corporate alternative to hotel accommodation 0191 490 0789 vivlee@propertiesunique.com www.propertiesunique.com

Network video systems and physical security solutions 0191 296 2662 phoulis@2020cctv.com www.2020cctv.com

Gear House, Saltmeadows Road, Gateshead, NE8 3AH

2020 Vision Systems Ltd, 28 Northumberland Square, North Shields, Tyne and Wear, NE30 1PW

Colin Herron

Phil Hourigan

MANAGING DIRECTOR

DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE BANKING, NORTH EAST ENGLAND RBS (FUTURE WILLIAMS & GLYN)

Low carbon vehicles/ automotive 0191 426 4333 colin.herron@gateshead.ac.uk www.zerocarbonfutures.co.uk @ZCFutures Zero Carbon Futures, Future Technology Centre, Barmston Court, Nissan Way, Sunderland, SR5 3NY

Business and commercial relationship banking 07771 933 656 phil.hourigan@rbs.co.uk @RBSGroup 31 Grey Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 6ES

Dr. Stan Higgins

David Howell

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

North East Process Industry Cluster 01642 442 560 enquiries@nepic.co.uk www.nepic.co.uk @NEPIC_Ltd The Wilton Centre, Wilton, Redcar, TS10 4RF

Business space and consultancy services 0191 516 6200 david.howell@ne-bic.co.uk www.ne-bic.co.uk @DavidHowell20 Wearfield, Sunderland Enterprise Park East, SR5 2TA

Tony Hobbs

Tobyn Hughes

MANAGING DIRECTOR

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Training services

Public transport delivery

01325 731050 yourfuture@baltictraining.com www.baltictraining.com @baltictraining Baltic House, Hilton Road, Aycliffe Business Park, Newton Aycliffe, Co Durham, DL5 6EN

0191 20 20 747 customerservices@nexus.org.uk www.nexus.org.uk Nexus, Nexus House, 33 St James Boulevard, Newcastle, NE1 4AX

WHO’S WHO In association with

Matthew Hunt

Michael Jopling

PORT DIRECTOR, SUNDERLAND CITY COUNCIL

COMPANY SECRETARY / FINANCIAL DIRECTOR

Local government 07796 314812 Matthew.hunt@sunderland.gov.uk www.portofsunderland.org.uk @PortSunderland Barrack Street, Sunderland, SR1 2BU

IT, data centre and telecommunications partner 0191 442 83 00 mick.jopling@itps.co.uk itps.co.uk @ITPSltd IT Professional Services Limited.

Unit 2a & 2b Waterside Drive, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear, NE11 9HU

Tom Hurst

Steve Joyce

JOINT HEAD OF BUSINESS INVESTMENT TEAM, SUNDERLAND CITY COUNCIL

BUSINESS DIRECTOR NORTH

Local government 0191 561 1167 Thomas.hurst@sunderland.gov.uk www.makeitsunderland.com @MAKEitSund Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

Building services solutions 0191 258 6627 sjoyce@ses-ltd.co.uk www.ses-ltd.co.uk SES Engineering Services Ltd, Centre for Advanced Industry, Coble Dene, Royal Quays, North Shields, NE29 6DE

Craig Iley

Neil Kenley

MANAGING DIRECTOR BUSINESS BANKING

BUSINESS DIRECTOR

Banking 0770 100 2218 craig.iley@atombank.co.uk www.atombank.co.uk

Tees Valley Combined Authority

Northumbria House, Aykley Heads, Durham, DH1 5TS

Cavendish House, Teesdale Business Park, Stockton, TS17 6QY

Catherine Johns INNOVATION AND BUSINESS GROWTH DIRECTOR

Business Durham is the economic development company for County Durham, delivering the environment for business and economic growth.

03000 265504 catherine.johns@durham.gov.uk www.businessdurham.co.uk @_businessdurham Ground Floor, Millennium Place, Durham, DH1 1WA

01642 632022 info@teesvalley-ca.gov.uk www.teesvalley-ca.gov.uk

Allan King MANAGING DIRECTOR, ACCENTURE TECHNOLOGY AND DEPUTY LEAD AT ACCENTURE’S UK DELIVERY CENTRE

Strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations 0207 844 4000 allan.g.king@accenture.com www.accenture.com @AccentureTechUK 15A, Cobalt Business Park, Quick Silver Way, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE27 0QQ

111

112 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Professor Steven Kyffin

Tony Lewin

PRO VICE-CHANCELLOR (BUSINESS AND ENTERPRISE)

PRINCIPAL

Higher education 0191 227 3126 Steven.kyffin@northumbria.ac.uk www.northumbria.ac.uk @northumbriauni Sutherland Building, College Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST

Mark Larsen

MANAGING DIRECTOR AT ACCENTURE’S UK DELIVERY CENTRE

Strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations 0207 844 4000 mark.larsen@accenture.com www.accenture.com @AccentureTechUK 15A, Cobalt Business Park, Quick Silver Way, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE27 0QQ

Education and training 0191 200 4455 tony.lewin@ncl-coll.ac.uk www.newcastlecollege.co.uk @NCLCollege Rye Hill Campus, Scotswood Rd, Newcastle College, NE4 7SA

Zoe Lewis PRINCIPAL AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Education and training 01642 333552 za.lewis@mbro.ac.uk @mbrocollege Middlesbrough College Dock Street, Middlesbrough, TS2 1AD

Kelly Lee

Therese Liddle

MANAGING DIRECTOR

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Business Skills

Recruitment

07939 673766 kelly.lee@kftraining.co.uk www.kftraining.co.uk @KFTrainingLtd Whitehouse Point, Traynor Way, Whitehouse Business Park, Peterlee, County Durham, SR8 2RU

0191 232 1222 recruitment@nrgplc.com www.nrgplc.com @nrgplc Lloyds Court, 56 Grey Street, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 6AH

Samantha Lee

Irene Lucas CBE

MANAGING DIRECTOR

CHIEF EXECUTIVE, SUNDERLAND CITY COUNCIL

Public Relations

Local government

0845 226 9126 01429 874 555 www.publicityseekers.co.uk @publicityseeker Hub 2, The Innovation Centre, Queens Meadow Business Park, Hartlepool, TS25 5TG

0191 561 1112 Irene.lucas@sunderland.gov.uk www.makeitsunderland.com @MAKEitSund Civic Centre, Burdon Road, Sunderland, SR2 7DN

WHO’S WHO In association with

Bill Lynn

Jamie Martin

DIRECTOR

MANAGING PARTNER

Commercial property consultants

Law firm

0191 338 8294 blynn@lsh.co.uk www.lsh.co.uk @LSHtweets

0191 204 4341 jamie.martin@wardhadaway.com www.wardhadaway.com @wardhadaway

Lambert Smith Hampton, 41-51 Grey Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 6EE

Sandgate House, 102 Quayside, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 3DX

Alastair MacColl

Mike Matthews

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

MANAGING DIRECTOR NIFCO UK AND PRESIDENT OF NORTH EAST ENGLAND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Business information, events and commercial development programmes 0191 389 8515 alastair.maccoll@be-group.co.uk www.be-group.co.uk @B_EGroup Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, County Durham, SR7 7TT

Councillor Iain Malcolm

Plastic component manufacturer 01642 672299 matthewsm@nifcoeu.com www.nifcoeu.com @nifcouk @MatthewsMike1 Nifco House, Durham Lane, Stockton on Tees, TS16 0PS

Chris McDonald

LEADER OF SOUTH TYNESIDE COUNCIL

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Local authority

Open access technology centre

0191 4247301 cllr.iain.malcolm@southtyneside.gov.uk www.southtyneside.gov.uk

01642 382000 chris.mcdonald@mpiuk.com @MPI_UK

Town Hall and Civic Offices, Westoe Road, South Shields NE33 2RL

Eston Rd, Middlesbrough, TS6 6US

Brian Manning

Natasha McDonough

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Construction and property services

Marketing strategies, marketing campaigns and lead generation specialist

0191 377 4570 enquiries@esh.uk.com www.esh.uk.com @esh_group Esh Group, Esh House, Bowburn North Industrial Estate, Bowburn, Durham, DH6 5PF

0191 562 3120 natasha@mmc.agency http://mmc.agency @nmmarcoms Sunderland Software Centre, 1 Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

113

114 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Paul McEldon

Anthony Mills

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

DIRECTOR OF EMPLOYER ENGAGEMENT

Business space and consultancy services

Education, training and apprenticeships

0191 516 6200 paul.mceldon@ne-bic.co.uk www.ne-bic.co.uk @northeastbic

0191 518 8285 anthony.mills@eastdurham.ac.uk www.eastdurham.ac.uk @EastDurhamCol

Wearfield, Sunderland Enterprise Park East, SR5 2TA

East Durham College, Willerby Grove, Peterlee, SR8 2RN

Peter McIntyre

Hans Moller

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

INNOVATION DIRECTOR

Development Company

Delivering more and better jobs for the North East

01670 528400 peter.mcintyre@arch-group.co.uk www.archnorthumberland.co.uk

0191 338 7437 07825 734 898 hans.moller@nelep.co.uk www.nelep.co.uk @northeastlep

Wansbeck Workspace, Rotary Parkway, Ashington, Northumberland, NE63 8QZ

1 St James Gate, Newcastle, NE1 4AD

Kieran McLaughlin

Richard Moller

HEADMASTER

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR

Education

Wealth Management

0191 386 4783 hmsec@durhamschool.co.uk www.durhamschool.co.uk @dunelmia Patrick Melia CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Local government

0191 643 2001 patrick.melia@northtyneside.gov.uk www.northtyneside.gov.uk @melia_pat

Quadrant East, The Silverlink North, Cobalt Business Park, North Tyneside, NE27 0BY

0191 211 1394 richard.moller@ubs.com www.ubs.com/northeast-uk @UBS

Durham School, Durham City, DH1 4SZ

2 St James’ Gate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 7JH

Patrick Melia

Naomi Morrow

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

DIGITAL CATAPULT CENTRE NORTH EAST & TEES VALLEY PROJECT MANAGER

Local government 0191 643 2001 patrick.melia@northtyneside.gov.uk www.northtyneside.gov.uk @melia_pat Quadrant East, The Silverlink North, Cobalt Business Park, North Tyneside, NE27 0BY

Business transformation 0191 562 3351 naomi.morrow@sunderlandsoftwarecity.com www.digitalcatapultcentre.org.uk/netv @DigiCatNETV Sunderland Software Centre, Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

WHO’S WHO In association with

Heidi Mottram

James E F Pain BSc (Hons) MRICS

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

DIRECTOR

Water and wastewater treatment

Commercial agents and property consultants 0191 229 9517 / 07841 871 710 james.pain@frewpain.co.uk www.frewpain.co.uk

0191 301 6367 heidi.mottram@nwl.co.uk www.nwl.co.uk @NorthumbrianH2O Northumbrian Water, Boldon House, Wheatlands Way, Pity Me, Durham, DH1 5FA

Frew Pain & Partners, Collingwood Buildings, 38 Collingwood Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1JF

John Musham

Nigel J Perry MBE FREng

BUSINESS & IP CENTRE MANAGER

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Free intellectual property and business information services 0191 277 4100 bipcnewcastle@newcastle.gov.uk @bipcnewcastle

Product and process development

Business & IP Centre, City Library, Charles Avison Building, 33 New Bridge Street West, Newcastle-upon Tyne, NE1 8AX

01642 455 340 www.uk-cpi.com @ukcpi CPI Head Office, Wilton Centre, Wilton, Redcar, TS10 4RF

Iain Nixon

Richard Ponton

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR – COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY

INVESTMENT DIRECTOR

Education and training

Property Consultancy

0191 511 6000 iain.nixon@sunderlandcollege.ac.uk www.sunderlandcollege.ac.uk @sunderlandcol

0191 211 3965 richard@waltonrobinson.com www.waltonrobinson.com @WRNewcastle

Bede Campus, Durham Road, Sunderland, SR3 4AH

101 Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RY

Mike O’Brien

Amy Porter

CEO/ CO-FOUNDER

SKILLS MANAGER

Enterprise IT software & consulting

Sector skills development and consultancy

0191 276 5656 mike.obrien@opencastsoftware.com www.opencastsoftware.com @TeamOpencast Opencast Software Ltd, Hoults Yard, Walker Rd, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE6 2HL

0191 562 3349 amy.porter@sunderlandsoftwarecity.com www.sunderlandsoftwarecity.com @AmySoftwareCity Sunderland Software Centre, Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

115

116 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Keith Proudfoot REGIONAL DIRECTOR, NORTHERN AND SCOTLAND

Chartered accountancy membership organisation 0191 300 0531 keith.proudfoot@icaew.com www.icaew.com/northern @ICAEW_KMP PO Box 417, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 9AS

Steve Railton OFFICE MANAGING PARTNER

Audit, tax and consulting services 0191 255 7000 steve.railton@rsmuk.com www.rsmuk.com @RSMUK 1 St James’ Gate, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 4AD

Norma Redfearn ELECTED MAYOR OF NORTH TYNESIDE

Local government 0191 643 5314 norma.redfearn@northtyneside.gov.uk www.northtyneside.gov.uk Quadrant East, The Silverlink North, Cobalt Business Park, North Tyneside, NE27 0BY

Charles Reynard PARTNER

International law firm 0191 241 6096 07920 844550 charlesreynard@eversheds.com www.eversheds.com Central Square South, Orchard Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 3XX

Michelle Rainbow

Pat Ritchie

SKILLS FOR BUSINESS MANAGER

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Delivering more and better jobs for the North East

Local authority

0191 338 7439 07741 238 309 michelle.rainbow@nelep.co.uk www.nelep.co.uk @northeastlep

0191 211 5000 pat.ritchie@newcastle.gov.uk www.newcastle.gov.uk @NewcastleCC

1 St James Gate, Newcastle, NE1 4AD

Newcastle City Council, Civic Centre, Barras Bridge, Newcastle, NE1 8QH

Michaela Reaney

Simon Roberson

MANAGING DIRECTOR

REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR

National Skills, Training and Graduate Scheme Specialists 0191 607 0225 michaela.reaney@gradvert.com www.gradvert.com @Gradvert

Communications

Mailing Exchange, Hoults Yard, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2HL

0331 654 0955 simon.roberson@bt.com www.bt.com/btregions @SimonRoberson BT, pp 3.14 1 Harton Quay, South Shields, NE33 1JN

WHO’S WHO In association with

Kevin Robertson

Neil Schneider

PARTNER AND HEAD OF BOND DICKINSON’S NEWCASTLE OFFICE

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Law firm +44 (0) 191 279 9000 info@bonddickinson.com www.bonddickinson.com @Bond_Dickinson St Ann’s Wharf, 112 Quayside, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 3DX

Local government 01642 393939 neil.schneider@stockton.gov.uk www.stockton.gov.uk @stocktoncouncil Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council, Municipal Buildings, Church Road, Stockton-on-Tees, TS18 1LD

David Robinson

David Scordino

GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

DIRECTOR

UK ports business with logistics operations

Wealth Management

01642 877000 david.robinson@pdports.co.uk www.pdports.co.uk @PDports PD Ports, 17-27 Queen’s Square, Middlesbrough, TS2 1AH

0191 211 1011 david.scordino@ubs.com www.ubs.com/northeast-uk @UBS 2 St James’ Gate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 7JH

Joanne Rout

Julie Sharpe

INNOVATE TEES VALLEY PROGRAMME MANAGER

DIRECTOR

Accelerating growth from ideas

Digital Media, Design, Development, Creative Advertising, Sales & Marketing, Tech & IT jobs 07815 286057 julie@sharperecruitment.co.uk www.sharperecruitment.co.uk @sharperecruit

01642 442 575 joanne.rout@nepic.co.uk www.nepic.co.uk/smes @NEPIC_Ltd The Wilton Centre, Wilton, Redcar, TS10 4RF

15 Riverside Studios, Amethyst Road, Newcastle, NE4 7YL

Ralph Saelzer

Laura Sharpe

MANAGING DIRECTOR

MD

Manufacturer of maritime cranes 0191 514 3001 ralph.saelzer@liebherr.com www.liebherr.com Liebherr Sunderland Works Ltd, Ayres Quay, Deptford Terrace, Sunderland, SR4 6DD

Digital Media, Design, Development, Creative Advertising, Sales & Marketing, Tech & IT jobs 07510 419992 laura@sharperecruitment.co.uk www.sharperecruitment.co.uk @sharperecruit 15 Riverside Studios, Amethyst Road, Newcastle, NE4 7YL

117

118 W H O ’ S W H O In association with

Elizabeth Shaw

Amanda Skelton

INNOVATION MANAGER

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Business space and consultancy services

Local government

0191 516 6200 Elizabeth.shaw@ne-bic.co.uk www.ne-bic.co.uk @NEBICInnovation Wearfield, Sunderland Enterprise Park East, SR5 2TA

01642 444 003 amanda.skelton@redcar-cleveland.gov.uk www.redcar-cleveland.gov.uk Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council, Redcar & Cleveland House, Kirkleatham Street, Redcar, Yorkshire, TS10 1RT

Garry Sheriff

Phil Steele

MANAGING DIRECTOR

GENERAL MANAGER

IT, data centre and telecommunications partner 0191 442 83 00 garry.sheriff@itps.co.uk itps.co.uk @ITPSltd

intu Eldon Square shopping centre

IT Professional Services Limited.

Unit 2a & 2b Waterside Drive, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear, NE11 9HU

0191 261 1891 phil.steele@intu.co.uk www.intueldonsquare.co.uk @intueldonsquare intu Eldon Square Centre, Management Offices, Eldon Court, Percy Street, Newcastle, NE1 7JB

Iain Sim

Mark Stephenson

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

HEAD OF OFFICE - ENGLAND

Leading provider of social housing in Redcar and Cleveland

Public Affairs Consultancy

01642 771330 iain_sim@cchousing.org.uk @cchousingonline

0191 607 0222 mark.stephenson@invictapa.co.uk www.invictapa.co.uk @invictapa

14 Ennis Square, Dormanstown, Redcar, TS10 5JR

Milburn House, Dean Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1LE

Neil Simpson

Sarah Stewart OBE

RELATIONSHIP DIRECTOR RBS (FUTURE WILLIAMS & GLYN)

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Commercial relationship banking 07831 145130 neil.simpson@rbs.co.uk @RBSGroup 31 Grey Street, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 6ES

NewcastleGateshead Initiative Destination management and marketing agency 0191 440 5720 info@ngi.org.uk www.newcastlegateshead.com @SarahStewartNGI 9th Floor, Baltic Place East, South Shore Road, Gateshead, NE8 3AE

WHO’S WHO In association with

Donna Surtees

Ellen Thinnesen

CENTRE MANAGER

PRINCIPAL/ CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Business space and consultancy services

Education and training

0191 516 6200 donna.surtees@ne-bic.co.uk www.ne-bic.co.uk @northeastbic Wearfield, Sunderland Enterprise Park East, SR5 2TA

0191 511 6000 ellen.thinnesen@sunderlandcollege.ac.uk www.sunderlandcollege.ac.uk @sunderlandcol Bede Campus, Durham Road, Sunderland, SR3 4AH

Martin Swales

Ian Thompson

CHIEF EXECUTIVE, SOUTH TYNESIDE COUNCIL

CORPORATE DIRECTOR

Local authority 0191 4247010 martin.swales@southtyneside.gov.uk www.southtyneside.gov.uk Town Hall and Civic Offices, Westoe Road, South Shields NE33 2RL

Peter Taylor AREA MANAGER

Direct investment in growing businesses, providing equity investment and loan finance 01642 777 888 peter@ukse.co.uk www.uksteelenterprise.co.uk @UKSteelent

Regeneration and local services 03000 268 081 ian_thompson@durham.gov.uk www.durham.gov.uk Durham County Council, County Hall, Durham, DH1 5UL

Jane Thompson DIRECTOR OF APPRENTICESHIPS AND COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Education and training 0191 511 6000 jane.thompson@sunderlandcollege.ac.uk www.sunderlandcollege.ac.uk @sunderlandcol

The Innovation Centre, Vienna Court, Kirkleatham Business Park, Redcar, TS10 5SH

Bede Campus, Durham Road, Sunderland, SR3 4AH

Caroline Theobald CBE

Elspeth Thomson

Professional event chair and facilitator, NED and enterprise champion

MANAGING PARTNER

0191 406 9081 c.theobald@bridgeclubnorth.com www.bridgeclubnorth.com Bridge Club Ltd, Aydon Castle Farm, Corbridge, NE45 5PJ

Law Firm 0191 232 9547 Elspeth.thomson@davidgray.co.uk www.davidgray.co.uk @DavidGrayLLP Old County Court, 56 Westgate Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 5XU

119

120

WHO’S WHO In association with

Brian Thorpe

Fergus Trim

HEAD OF NORTH EAST

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Corporate banking

Commercial Property

07775 551330 brian.thorpe@barclays.com www.barclays.com @BarCorp_News

0191 287 1149 Fergus.trim@broadoak-am.uk www.broadoak-am.uk @fergustrim

Barclays House, 5 St Ann’s Street, Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 3DX

The Hub, Quorum Business Park, Benton Lane, Newcastle

Ian Tindle

Professor Jane Turner

MANAGING DIRECTOR

PRO VICE-CHANCELLOR (ENTERPRISE & BUSINESS ENGAGEMENT)

Training and Business Coaching 0330 124 2670 07702295290 ian.tindle@sora-group.co.uk www.sora-group.co.uk @soragroup 3 Merchant Court, Monkton Business Park South, Hebburn, Tyne And Wear, NE31 2EX

Higher education 01642 342012 Jane.Turner@tees.ac.uk www.tees.ac.uk Teesside University, Middlesbrough, Tees Valley, TS1 3BX

David Townsley

Catherine Walker

DIRECTOR

INWARD INVESTMENT DIRECTOR

North East Satellite Applications Centre of Excellence 0191 389 8513 Dave.Townsley@Sacatapultcoe.org.uk www.sacatapultcoe.org.uk @satelliteapps

Invest Newcastle is a service delivered by NewcastleGateshead Initiative on behalf of Newcastle, to attract and secure new investment and jobs for the city.

0191 440 5720 invest@ngi.org.uk www.investnewcastle.com @TynetoInvest

NETPark Incubator, Thomas Wright Way, NETPark, Sedgefield, County Durham, TS21 3FD

9th Floor, Baltic Place East, South Shore Road, Gateshead, NE8 3AE

Andy Trafford

James Walker

DIRECTOR

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Fire and security

General construction and design and build contracting

0191 523 7870 andy.trafford@macdonald-martin.co.uk www.macdonald-martin.co.uk @macdonaldmart1n 3a Wellmere Road, Leechmere Industrial Estate, Grangetown, Sunderland, SR2 9TE

0191 2733311 info@surgo.co.uk www.surgo.co.uk Albany Court, Monarch Road, Newcastle Business Park, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 7YB

WHO’S WHO In association with

Mark Walton

Pete Watson

MANAGING DIRECTOR

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Property Consultancy

IT services

0191 211 3966 mark@waltonrobinson.com www.waltonrobinson.com @WRNewcastle

0191 283 0191 pete.watson@atlascloud.co.uk www.atlascloud.co.uk @Pete_Atlascloud

101 Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RY

Atlas Cloud, 2 Collingwood Street, NE1 1JF

Jonathan Waters

Tracey Watson

MANAGING PARTNER

SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER

Legal

Tees Valley Business Compass

0191 232 8345 jonathan.waters@hay-kilner.co.uk www.hay-kilner.co.uk @haykilner

07966 222306 tracey.watson@teesbusinesscompass.co.uk www.teesbusinesscompass.co.uk @Tees_Compass

Merchant House, 30 Cloth Market, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1EE

C/O BE Group, Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT

Professor Andrew Wathey CBE

Tristan Watson

VICE-CHANCELLOR AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE

CEO

Higher education

Tech Startups and Investment

0191 227 4002 Andrew.wathey@northumbria.ac.uk www.northumbria.ac.uk @northumbriauni Sutherland Building, College Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST

0191 308 2807 tristan@ignite.io www.ignite.io @igniteaccel Campus North, 5 Carliol Square, Newcastle, NE1 6UF

Cllr Paul Watson

Billy Webber

LEADER, SUNDERLAND CITY COUNCIL

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

Local government

Business Support & Economic Development

0191 561 1322 cllr.paul.watson@sunderland.gov.uk www.makeitsunderland.com @MAKEitSund Civic Centre, Burdon Road, Sunderland, SR2 7DN

0191 562 3350 billy.webber@sunderlandsoftwarecity.com www.sunderlandsoftwarecity.com @BillyWebber1 Sunderland Software Centre, Tavistock Place, Sunderland, SR1 1PB

121

122

WHO’S WHO In association with

Paul Wellstead

Ian Wolfendale

DEVELOPER, SPECTRUM BUSINESS PARK

CLIENT ENGAGEMENT MANAGER

Office space development

Specialist R&D tax advisory firm

paulw@hillford.co.uk www.spectrumbusinesspark.co.uk @spectrumbizpark

07531 448053 ian.wolfendale@jumpstartuk.co.uk www.jumpstartuk.co.uk @JumpstartRandD

Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, County Durham, SR7 7TT

Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT

Carole White

Vanessa Wood

CHIEF EXECUTIVE

CENTRE MANAGER

Business support

Business space and consultancy services

0191 5166105 cwhite@tedco.org www.tedco.org @tedcoltd

01325 526 006 vanessa.wood@businesscentraldarlington.co.uk www.businesscentraldarlington.co.uk @DarlingtonSpace

North East Business and Innovation Centre (BIC), Wearfield, Enterprise Park East, Sunderland, SR5 2TA

Business Central, 2 Union Square, Central Park, Darlington, DL1 1GL

Joanne Whitfield

Geoff Woodcock

FUND MANAGER

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Commercial investor

Land and development

0191 269 6967 joanne.whitfield@fwcapital.co.uk www.fwcapital.co.uk/northeast

0191 377 4570 enquiries@esh.uk.com www.esh.uk.com @esh_group

FW Capital, Clavering House, Clavering Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 3NG

Esh Developments, Esh House, Bowburn North Industrial Estate, Bowburn, Durham, DH6 5PF

Lucy Winskell OBE

Laura Woods

PRO VICE-CHANCELLOR (EMPLOYABILITY AND PARTNERSHIPS)

DIRECTOR OF THE FORGE

Higher education 0191 243 7200 lucy.winskell@northumbria.ac.uk www.northumbria.ac.uk @northumbriauni Sutherland Building, College Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST

University support for business 01642 384408 L.Woods@tees.ac.uk www.tees.ac.uk/theforge The Forge Teesside University Middlesbrough Tees Valley, TS1 3BX

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

RURAL

The spread of breakthroughs in high-speed broadband means our beautiful rural surroundings can also provide a highly productive business environment that can keep pace with the newest industries

In association with

Superfast broadband transformed business life for Stuart Armstrong and also kept the peace at home

R U R A L 125 www.bqlive.co.uk

High speed boost for work rest and play For Stuart Armstrong, getting superfast broadband to his home has proved vital to his professional life.

He is a consultant for a US pharmaceutical company, responsible for capability training for the organisation, ensuring employees have the right competency models to work towards and have the right skills and training to be able to do their jobs in the various countries they operate in around the world. He works from his home, which is on an estate in a rural location at Low Coniscliffe near Darlington, and he spends about a week every month travelling internationally.

The areas he deals with – apart from Europe - are the US, Latin America, Japan and China and, most recently, he has been working on a training plan with a colleague in Indiana.

“To live in the UK puts us right in the middle from a time zone point of view, so we can remotely work with people in most affiliates at some point in the working day,’’ he says. “Probably 75% to 80% of my engagement with our internal customers is via Skype for Business or Lync, so most of my working week tends to be web conferences or presentations, online conference calls or sharing Power Point presentations. The benefit for me is that I can do that type of activity while living in the North East.’’

That benefit, however, was coming under threat because of his poor broadband connection.

“On a good day we had about 2Mbps,’’ he explains. “It was just about enough to be able to do a Skype call but, if we were sharing a Power Point slide, it would lag or it would buffer or it could sometimes be 20 or 30 seconds behind. You’re doing an online presentation and you think all your audience are looking at slide seven and they are actually looking at slide six and that doesn’t make it easy for you.’’

He also has a family and other family members -

particularly two children - who wanted to be online at the same time.

“I’ve got a 12-year old and he wants to be on Xbox Live or he wants to be on YouTube or he wants to be online for something for his homework, but, if I was working, I had to kick everybody else off because I had to try to get as much broadband width as I could. I might just be on the boundary of acceptable for a Skype call if I was the only person in the house, as soon as the kids came in at 3.30pm or 4pm it started to become a real challenge.

For a generation of children now, the internet is almost an expectation.’’ This could be an embarrassment when dealing with people overseas.

Armstrong recalls: “I would be apologetic in advance for the connection and try to make a bit of a joke of it, but you can only do that with people once or twice. Typically, I’d talk to somebody about bad broadband they would say: `It’s the same with us, we’re supposed to be getting 80Mbps and we’re only getting 50Mbps’. It was pretty surprising for them when I told them I was only getting 2Mbps. It makes us look like we’re a bit underdeveloped.’’

Eventually, he contacted BT to ensure his postcode was included in the roll out of high speed broadband, which happened two years ago and this – with speeds of up to 78Mbps - not only transformed his working life, it came in the nick of time.

“The way people use data now, file sizes are getting bigger and this would have put even more pressure on the old connection,’’ he says. “My effectiveness would have reduced and reduced. I was looking at all kinds of options – satellite connections, or connections through mobiles - to try to avoid having to move house.’’

It has also proved highly popular with the rest of the family.

He says: “Since we got the superfast, we can have a working life and a family life.’’ n

126 R U R A L www.bqlive.co.uk

Radio solution connects Coanwood Pioneering technology is bringing the fastest broadband speeds to the remotest communities Coanwood, a remote hamlet, has become the first community in Northumberland to benefit from a pioneering technology which brings superfast broadband to challenging areas.

All homes and businesses in the settlement on the banks of the South Tyne to the southwest of Haltwhistle now have access to broadband speeds of up to 80Mbps – using a five kilometre microwave radio link.

This wireless solution is part of BT’s range of technologies designed to expand the reach of fibre broadband. In the case of Coanwood, it was made possible by the iNorthumberland programme, a partnership between BT and Northumberland County Council.

Mike Reynolds, project manager at Openreach, BT’s local network business, is responsible for the physical roll-out of faster broadband across the county and is part of the iNorthumberland team.

R U R A L 127 www.bqlive.co.uk

He says: “Using microwave radio was the ideal solution for Coanwood. We were determined to find a way to make superfast fibre available to the village, however the cost of laying five kilometres of new duct and fibre was prohibitive and the necessary roadworks would have caused significant disruption.’’

There were still, however, considerable difficulties.

“We still had to overcome other technical challenges including the need for a specialist rock hammer drill to dig down deeper than usual as we needed to erect 11m high poles,’’ he adds.

Engineers also had to lay temporary ground matting for their specialist vehicle, used to erect the radio dishes, to overcome the effects of ground water saturation caused by Storm Desmond.

Councillor Dave Ledger, deputy leader of Northumberland County Council, says: “This innovation illustrates our commitment to pushing the boundaries of how far we can deploy high-speed broadband and ensuring that the economic and social benefits that modern digital communications will help deliver are accessible to everyone, no matter how remote or rural their location. By proving the value of this new technology, we hope that it will be used in other appropriate locations in the future.”

The microwave link uses ‘point-to-point’ technology which meant engineers had to install a football sized transmitter dish at the top of a specially built 11 metre high wooden pole close to the telephone exchange building so that it could ‘see’ the receiving antenna erected on another pole located five kilometres away in Coanwood. The broadband signal from the exchange is beamed across using a radio wave signal to link up the exchange with the receiving antenna which is then linked to a new green roadside fibre cabinet serving the village.

Reynolds adds: “The microwave link uses a dedicated radio spectrum so there is no possibility of the signal being lost or interfered with. For people using broadband in the village, it will be exactly the same as if they were

connected up using fibre optic cables in the ground. The increase in speed and subsequent benefits are exactly the same. Customers’ premises are connected up to the fibre cabinet in the usual way, so there is no need for any special equipment in the home. ” Simon Roberson, BT’s regional partnership director for the North East, says: “This is a great example of how the iNorthumberland programme is bringing superfast broadband to communities who otherwise would not be getting it.

“Northumberland’s large size, diverse geography and largely rural population present considerable challenges to rolling out high speed broadband but innovations like this will help to ensure we achieve our goal to increase fibre broadband coverage in the county to 95% of premises by 2017.”

The iNorthumberland broadband programme is being delivered by Northumberland County Council and BT. BT was awarded the iNorthumberland contract in April 2013 following a procurement exercise through the Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) framework. A second phase contract was signed in June which will see more than £4.1m invested in the programme area in addition to the £18.9m initially invested by Northumberland County Council, the BDUK fund, BT and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

The majority of premises in Northumberland will be getting access to some of the best broadband speeds in the UK via iNorthumberland and the commercial roll-out of fibre by BT’s local network business, Openreach. n

“This is a great example of how the iNorthumberland programme is bringing superfast broadband to communities who otherwise would not be getting it”

128 R U R A L www.bqlive.co.uk

Manesty Holiday Cottages is a business with a long pedigree, but that hasn’t stopped it from keeping pace with technology

Alan Leyland’s family have been in business in the Lake District since long before the internet – in fact since before the telephone.

The family was farming in the Lakes, at Grange-inBorrowdale, at the southern end of Derwentwater, about 150 years ago and his grandfather started taking paying guests in 1922.

His father and mother took the farmhouse Manesty back when their last tenant farmer retired in 1965 and started a

Lakeland retreat keeps up to speed

R U R A L 129 www.bqlive.co.uk

self-catering holiday business there in the days when it was still a rarity. After his father died, Alan’s mother carried on the business and Alan and his wife Cheryl took it over in 1983. Now the business Manesty Holiday Cottages is made up of the original farm along with surrounding buildings and comprises nine separate properties.

“Progressively we have developed the property and the farm buildings have been converted into holiday accommodation and many years ago my father added one static caravan and we’ve added extensions and we’ve added our latest extension which is a shepherd’s hut,’’ says Alan.

The family still own the surrounding land which is let to a local farmer for raising sheep and cattle.

In those pre-internet days the properties were advertised in the press and publications such as the Good Holiday Cottage Guide.

Then, in the late 1990s the enterprising owner of a café in Grange set up a website to advertise local businesses and Manesty Holiday Cottages featured on that.

“In those days what you did with your website was you publicised it on your paper advertising,’’ recalls Alan. “With a web address you could lead people to a whole lot more information and they could find out a lot more without having to ring you up.’’

Then one of their guests, who worked for Birmingham City Council IT department, offered to set up a website for Manesty. It was basic and could not feature the availability of the properties until the business acquired its own computer so they could do their own updates. Then, the Leylands’ second son William, who had IT expertise, further developed it so that it could send out booking confirmation letters.

Then, about 10 years ago, the website was made interactive with links to an availability page linked to booking software.

“It was a big step,’’ says Alan.

But they were still reliant on a 56k dial up internet connection, which Alan jokingly refers to as “the World Wide Wait’’.

Shortly after the updating of the website, however, they

moved to broadband, which, with speeds of about 1MB, was adequate for the website and for emails.

Technology, however, was moving on apace and, even though the properties were served by three separate telephone lines, each with an internet connection, the explosion in use of devices using the internet put considerable strain on the bandwidth.

“In those days, some people might have brought a laptop and in nine premises there might have been five gadgets. Now there could be five gadgets in one unit of accommodation, because everybody has got a smartphone,’’ says Alan.

“Now people bring their gadgets and want to start watching films and once you started to stream video the whole thing falls over. The old broadband might have supported one video stream but not six or seven. If somebody downstairs is watching something on a laptop and somebody upstairs is watching something different on a smartphone, that eats the bandwidth.

“They used to complain. `What is this wifi that you have?’

We did the best we could and it cost us a lot to have three separate broadband lines.’’

But, in the summer of 2016, high speed broadband was installed and now each property at Manesty Holiday Cottages gets 20 MB. “We don’t get any complaints any more,’’ says Alan.

There are two smart TVs in the properties with plans to increase this to six in 2017.

High speed broadband has also enabled another major improvement in the running of the business.

Alan explains: “We control all our central heating with it.

A system bought from a firm called Celsia Multizone has electric heaters with wireless thermostats which needs fast and reliable broadband.

“It’s absolutely brilliant and we can turn our heating on and off with a smartphone and monitor what it’s doing from anywhere in the world. That has revolutionised our heating, so we don’t have to go round to each cottage to see whether it has got warm or not. You can look at the temperature of each room. You couldn’t do it without the high speed broadband connection.’’ n

130 R U R A L www.bqlive.co.uk

Rural solutions - more wire, wireless and fibre

Communications are vital to a modern business and it has always been more difficult for the rural entrepreneur, but help is on the way as BT’s Simon Roberson explains

Simon Roberson, BT regional partnership director, knows all about the challenges facing rural businesses.

Although he has an office in South Shields, he does much of his work from his home in the countryside to the west of Morpeth.“I commute from my kitchen to my office and the technology means that I’m not cut off from anything that I need to do at work,’’ he tells me. “That’s not just the phone and emails but collaboration tools, so if I need to work together on a document with a colleague, or share a presentation I can do it and I’m often online with colleagues looking at maps.’’ The way in which such technology enables people to work from home in the countryside and the way it enables rural businesses to operate efficiently is now a major driver of the rural economy. Roberson argues that it helps put rural businesses on a level playing field with competitors based in towns or cities and that it presents new opportunities to entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs who happen to live in the country. This has proved to be a lifeline for many rural areas. “I think there are clear benefits for the community,’’ he says. “Instead of people disappearing at 7am or 8am and not returning until 7pm or 8pm at night, it means you can spend more time in the local community, spend money in the village shop, keep families in rural areas and keep schools going.’’

Broadband that is delivered down the old copper wires has lower speeds the further it has to travel over the wires.

These wires still form part of the network for the last part of the connections to homes and businesses but by using

fibre, which does not lose signal strength over distances, it has been possible to bring higher speeds closer to the end users. Fibre broadband also brings faster upload as well as download speeds which is important for a lot of businesses, and it gives a more reliable connection. BT wants to deliver minimum standard broadband speeds of 5-10Mbps to everyone in the UK and to expand the reach of fibre broadband in Britain beyond the government’s current target, which is for 95% of the UK by the end of 2017. The company has already invested £3bn and its fibre broadband network is now available to more than 26 million homes and businesses with 9 out of 10 premises, being able to access the network. North East as a region has already reached the 2017 target date for 95% coverage and it was one of the first regions to hit 90%. Clearly, rolling out broadband to rural areas brings its own challenges in taking the fibre out long distances to bring the speed benefits.

“The variety of problems that you encounter and the different technologies that you have to use to overcome those increases the complexity,’’ explains Roberson. “In one place we might be putting up a string of new poles along a rural road which might mean road closures or in another area we might be using existing duct, which has got copper cables in which has probably not been touched for 30 years, so we have issues with blockages and that kind of thing.

“We use a range of different technologies to solve individual local problems because everywhere is geographically different and also the infrastructure that we have got in and how far it is from existing fibre network

R U R A L 131 www.bqlive.co.uk

is different everywhere. So there’s a lot of planning and different engineering that go into providing solutions in rural areas, which, if you take them altogether, are relatively complex.’’

BT works with Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK), part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS), which provides central government funding for broadband rollout, matched by local authorities to invest alongside BT. “To reach any particular area, we would invest as much as we would if it was part of our standard commercial broadband rollout and then the public funding fills the gap, so it’s a three-way partnership,’’ says Roberson.

BT’s Community Fibre Partnership scheme is aimed at locations which are not covered by current plans for broadband rollout. “Clearly there are people who want to get superfast broadband and they are frustrated that they haven’t been covered by those plans yet and typically they are in some of the hardest to reach areas. When we do the BDUK plans we generally do the most economic areas because that gives a better return for the taxpayer’s investment,’’ he says.“The Community Fibre Partnership is something we started for these communities to work with us to try to find a local solution that works for them and there’s a range of things we can use to do that and it means that they end up with something typically faster than they would.’’

Typically the community has to make some contribution to the cost but often funds are available from projects such as wind farms or open cast mining. Sometimes the community can even do some of the civil engineering work such as putting in the duct across private land.

BT is in discussions with local authorities to explore opportunities for combining Community Fibre Partnership with the BDUK programme. Through the BT Grant scheme there is £2m available to award as grants to communities with slow internet if they can get a co-funded fibre solution to serve the local school, as well as the community. This enables communities not covered by fibre broadband rollout plans to apply for a match-funded grant of up to £20,000 toward the cost of new fibre infrastructure, if it

serves their local school. Technology doesn’t stand still, broadband is developing and faster speeds are becoming available. Superfast broadband is over 24Mbps and it can be delivered by various technologies, which could include fibre running to a cabinet and from there – if the distances are relatively short as in a small village – by copper to individual properties. In areas of more scattered properties it could be done by running fibre connections to individual properties.

BT wants to take the UK from superfast to ultrafast broadband and already has trials underway and more planned. The ambition is that new ultrafast services will reach 12 million homes and smaller businesses by the end of 2020 through a combination of fibre-to-the-premises and new G.fast technology with speeds of up to 1Gbps. A G.fast trial is underway in the North East in Gosforth where triallists are seeing speeds of around 300Mbps.

Mobile coverage is also a challenge for business in rural areas, particularly with increasing demand for mobile data.

BT recently acquired EE, the mobile network which pioneered the UK’s first superfast 4G mobile service, with coverage now reaching more than 95% of the UK population. EE’s 2G coverage reaching 99% of the population while 3G reaches 98% and there is a commitment to reach 95% of UK geography with 4G by 2020. BT/EE has also committed to being first with 5G in the UK to deliver ultra-high speeds and capacity.

“Combined with BT’s high-speed broadband plans, our 4G roll-out will ensure that the North East is one of the best served geographies in the UK,’’ says Roberson.

This will also provide another means for delivering superfast broadband to remote rural areas. “There are places now where you can’t get a decent fixed broadband speed but you can get 20Mbs plus on 4G if you’re within range of a mast,’’ he adds. “Some businesses will buy an aerial to pick up a 4G signal which then links into a wireless router. When we get into those final few per cent, we expect 4G to be part of the solution for getting better broadband speeds to the most difficult places to reach with fixed lines.’’ So, it seems that while rural businesses face communications challenges, there is an increasing range of solutions. n

132 R U R A L www.bqlive.co.uk

Broadband helped me go from tending flocks to exporting socks Shepherds Walks in Rothbury is now doing good global business, thanks to superfast broadband. Few stories could more dramatically illustrate the difference that high speed broadband can make to a rural business than that of Shepherds Walks of Rothbury in deepest Northumberland.

In the late 1990s Jon Monks was a hill shepherd in the county and, as a hobby, he started writing walking guides with the insight of a shepherd who lived and worked the hills. “I built my first website with Microsoft Publisher, uploaded it on a 56k modem and the world was waiting for me,’’ he recalls.

It truly was. In those years leading up to the dotcom boom the tale of a shepherd 1,000ft above sea level selling his walking guides over the internet captured the media’s attention and his business took off, to the extent that by 2004 Jon could give up shepherding.

He opened a shop, started doing guided walks and courses.

To help with cash flow during the winter he bought a business called Capricorn Mohair Socks and two and half years ago, made another acquisition in the shape of a business called GPS Training, which offers training courses throughout the UK, as well as online training and webinars.

With the cash generated from that, Shepherds Walks brought in-house a business it had operated in partnership, Shepherds Walks Holidays, offering guided and self-guided walking holidays. A few weeks ago, Shepherds Walks moved premises, no longer has a shopfront and is totally online.

“We really did struggle with the broadband connection,’’ says Monks. “It took ages to download and we moved to Rothbury because the funding came in to put superfast broadband in there.’’ This allowed the business to get rid of its servers and backup its data on the Cloud.

“Now we get 85Mbps and life is just so much easier,’’ he says. “Superfast broadband has been completely lifechanging for us as a business. We handle big files and a lot of mapping. When you’ve got people doing live seminars

which include videos, we can’t have a breakdown in connection.’’ Shepherds Walks now has an annual turnover of about £1m a year, five full-time employees, one part-time and six self-employed trainers/guides.

The company is now a major exporter of socks to Japan to a value of £50,000 to £60,000 every year. “Japan is our big growth market,’’ says Monks. “With the socks we are very busy in this country in the months coming up to Christmas and we start knitting for Japan in January and that keeps us busy until July. We have registered our trademark over in Japan.’’ The business also has big growth plans for Shepherds Walks Holidays, which has more than doubled turnover in a couple of years from £56,000 to £138,000 and it is aiming for £250,000 next year and it is investing heavily into its automated online booking system.

GPS Training is now the largest independent account for Garmin - the US multinational technology company which is the largest producer of outdoor GPS units - and it sells about £500,000 of GPS units a year. Monks is looking for an annual growth of 15% to 20% in this side of the business. He is clear that the growth of the business and his journey from shepherd to international entrepreneur would not have been possible without first class broadband connections. He says: “The office is here, we don’t see the public, we sit behind desks, telephones and computers and our business has been completely built up on the back of broadband. We can compete on a level playing field with a business based in London.“We can have a relationship with the big multinationals. I’ve got a meeting next week with Garmin and we are going to have exclusive rights on one of their new models. We work very closely with them. For a small business in rural Northumberland, that’s a unique thing.

“All our staff are local people and they don’t have to travel into Newcastle for jobs as they have had to do in the past.

They can work locally now, which is beneficial for the environment and for the community.’’ n

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

MANUFACTURING AND OFFSHORE Ready for a challenge after the Brexit vote - and ready to make the most of the opportunities

In association with

Manufacturers are up for the challenge

In light of recent national and global events, such as Brexit, there is no doubt that 2017 will see many opportunities and challenges for the manufacturing industry, argues the AMF’s Jack Hanwell

M A N U F A C T U R I N G A N D O F F S H O R E 135 www.bqlive.co.uk

“Smaller manufacturers are also invaluably contributing to the UK’s economy - and doing so with pride.”

The Advanced Manufacturing Forum (AMF) hosts monthly meetings with members and guest speakers to gain feedback and updates on the local industry and while 2016 saw a mixed-bag of fortunes for our members, these were mainly positive.

Two things stand out as being the prime reasons behind their financial results - the low oil price and the UK’s decision to leave the EU. Since the June Brexit result we have asked our members and guest presenters alike to give their take on how Brexit has directly affected them. Despite many people expecting the worst, there has been a lot of positive feedback. An almost immediate effect was the weakening of the pound against other major currencies which meant a windfall for those companies predominantly exporting. However, for those buying materials abroad the change in currency value has proved to be a double-edged sword. There is still much change to come, both before and after Article 50 is invoked but most of our members retain a business-asusual attitude.

The continued sub-$50 oil price has, despite creating hardship and even the odd casualty, seen some interesting stories of diversification; with some companies having foreseen changes early and put measures in place, while others reacted nimbly once the realisation of the longterm nature of the situation sank in. The nuclear and renewables sectors should benefit from the transference of technology, skills and experience of those organisations which honed their reputations in the sector.

AMF members such as Zytronic, Barbour and Liebherr, to name but three, are leaders in their respective fields and renowned across the globe. Much of their success is due to a culture of adapting to market conditions and investing

in the skills of their staff.

Smaller manufacturers, some of who, having been around for many years and some just starting out, are also invaluably contributing to the UK’s economy - and doing so with pride. There are many unsung heroes: SMH Products and VREO for instance, through an innovative approach and by identifying and exploiting gaps in the market, which is leading them to great success in their respective fields, to the benefit of all concerned.

If our experience in manufacturing has taught us anything it is that the North East community is innovative, resilient and even bullish when it comes to their businesses. From automotive to oil & gas, precision engineering, food production, manufacturers of clothing, battery packs, an array of electrical equipment, hearing aid batteries and much more, there is a genuine push for growth and this bodes well for the future.

Inward investment plays an important part in the development of the region and its manufacturing base and we are very supportive of the local authorities in this area. South Tyneside and Sunderland City Councils are working together for the development of the International Advanced Manufacturing Park planned for a site north of Nissan and close to the A19 and the A1. The development is promising to create up to 5,200 new jobs whilst also unlocking over £300m of private investment, giving an obvious boost to the region’s economy.

As a region punching above its weight on several fronts, not least in its exporting successes, manufacturing will continue to be a pillar in the economy of the North East.

The AMF will continue to play its part in shaping the future of the UK and supporting the continual growth of the manufacturing industry. n

136 P R O F I L E North Tyneside Council

Artist impression of the advanced manufacturing hub for companies specialising in the offshore industry

Wealth of opportunities in North Tyneside With a ready-made infrastructure, abundant natural resources and a comprehensive package of professional and service sector support, North Tyneside is an ideal location for offshore renewable, subsea, oil and gas and marine industries.

The River Tyne is home to a number of valuable industrial sites for river related activities with extensive river-front access and a deep water port. The area currently sustains a broad range of advanced manufacturing, research and development and general industrial uses, attracting a range of businesses including OGN, Fabricom Offshore Services, WD Close, Quick Hydraulics, Soil Machine Dynamics and Barrier Group.

New sites currently being developed include Swans - the former Swan Hunter shipyard in Wallsend which falls within the Enterprise Zone. Businesses locating to the site can benefit from a simplified planning scheme, plus five years business rate discount if they locate before March 2018.

This 13 hectares site is exceptionally well-positioned for the North Sea and within easy reach of key, offshore energy locations including Dogger Bank. It offers maximum flexibility with bespoke advanced manufacturing units designed and built to meet the needs of individual occupiers.

North Tyneside Council is firmly set on making this strategic riverside site a huge success, and has made significant progress

P R O F I L E 137 North Tyneside Council

“North Tyneside Council is firmly set on making this strategic riverside site a huge success, and has made significant progress in transforming it into an advanced manufacturing hub with quay facilities” Emergency offshore survival training at AIS

in transforming it into an advanced manufacturing hub with quay facilities.

Major works have included quay edge improvements and dredging to allow larger vessels to berth as well as installing new utility supplies to the whole site, building new access roads and upgrading existing ones.

Located on the main Swans site, the £1.9million Swans Centre for Innovation (CFI) was officially opened in July 2016, providing flexible accommodation for small and medium-sized firms in the renewable energy and marine sectors. Since its launch, the Centre has attracted a range of businesses including Bibby Offshore Ltd, M2Subsea Ltd and Jackson Hogg Recruitment.

The Swans and CFI projects are part financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), managed by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Further along the river, the Port of Tyne’s Royal Quays Enterprise Park comprises a large development area of up to 30 hectares with Enterprise Zone status.

Located less than 3km from open sea, the site offers a prime location with access to multiple riverside berths which accommodate both passenger and cargo vessels.

As part of the Port of Tyne estate, the Enterprise Park can benefit manufacturers or retailers immediately, as it is fully integrated into a mature logistics infrastructure. With container, RoRo, ferry, bulk cargo and road connectivity, the site offers a superb development opportunity.

In addition to river front sites, North Tyneside also offers a range of industrial parks in urban locations including Tyne Tunnel Trading Estate. This established commercial hub comprises industrial, distribution and office space, as well as two new developments providing bespoke Grade A industrial units.

Indigo Park is a new 33 hectare development site offering bespoke industrial, distribution and R&D buildings. The site is one of the largest in the North and offers units ranging in size from 40,000 sq ft to 1.5 million sq ft.

Complimenting the borough’s excellent infrastructure and property solutions, North Tyneside is also home to a cluster of training providers operating in the offshore industries.

Advanced Industrial Solutions (AIS) and Maersk Training provide world-class training in the renewable, maritime and subsea sectors. Since opening in the borough both companies have experienced significant growth and success, attracting trainees from across the globe.

For further information on opportunities and support available in North Tyneside, please contact Sean Collier on (0191) 643 6409 or visit www.investnorthtyneside.co.uk.

MANUFACTURING AND OFFSHORE STATISTICS The North East had a turnover of £3.4 billion in Energy Sector in 2013

4,070 manufacturing businesses in the North East (SOURCE: EEF)

62,000 employed in advanced manufacturing and engineering

70% of oil and gas platforms operating in the North Sea were built in the North East

5,000 energy companies in the North East specialising in oil and gas, wind energy and renewables

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

FINANCIAL & BANKING

It is time for a change - and the North East is home to one of the most innovative newcomers

F I N A N C I A L & B A N K I N G 141 www.bqlive.co.uk

Banking on a changing world The digital age is revolutionising finance and the North East is playing its part in driving these changes, explains Craig Iley, Atom bank’s managing director of business banking We are currently in the midst of a digital revolution, mankind’s third great revolution following those of agriculture and industry. It differs only in the pace of change which it is driving. In common with all revolutions this is bringing great upheaval and will affect every area of our lives. It won’t matter if we work in healthcare, manufacturing, retail or education. There will unfortunately be many job losses particularly in the service sector and banking will be particularly hard hit as it tries to adapt from a 17th century model to a 21st century world.

Probably 50% of all banking jobs will disappear in the next five years forcing us to re-evaluate our relationships with our finance providers. Sad of course, but there is also much cause for optimism. The majority of children starting school today will work in jobs which

142 F I N A N C I A L & B A N K I N G www.bqlive.co.uk

currently do not exist and these jobs will be highly skilled, high value added roles. What is more, they are learning these jobs now at home with the iPads, Xboxes and social media that they use casually every day. If you are a longsuffering parent like me, think hard before you stop them, they learn their lessons most effectively through play.

Our relationship with our finance providers will be much more secure, much fairer, more flexible than ever before and much cheaper for consumers. The new technology means that we are known in ways we have never been known before, we know more and share more than any (indeed all) prior generations and the trade in data is now more valuable than the trade in all manufactured goods worldwide. This creates multiple possibilities for our dealings with banks, including the development and use of biometric identity and security to make transactions both

easier and more secure. Who wants to remember their favourite colour when they were 16?

Service levels can be greatly enhanced. In a world where we are connected 24/7, who thinks it is reasonable for a business to have to wait up to six weeks for a lending decision or four weeks to open a bank account when the information needed to make these decisions is available at the push of a button?

Loans and other services can be provided at a much lower cost as the banks themselves are able to remove layers of costs from their businesses and share the benefits with both shareholders and customers. Shareholders are important as they provide the capital to invest in the systems of the future, but they also know it has to deliver real benefit to the customer otherwise it is wasted. Atom Bank could not have been built without the support of

F I N A N C I A L & B A N K I N G 143 www.bqlive.co.uk

North East SME owners who saw an opportunity to help create a better future.

A more connected world drives transparency and, in a highly regulated industry such as banking, this will allow many more service providers to enter the market and provide real choice for the consumer. What is more, they will know that they are being treated fairly because they will have enough information to work it out for themselves. They won’t need an ombudsman, a truly competitive market will do the job.

Atom bank is working on all of these developments with the aim of changing banking for good, both permanently and for the better. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the potential available to us and, what is more, we can do it anywhere, leading to the possibility of much more flexible working patterns, reduced travel and hassle

and a fairer distribution of wealth across both society and the geography of the UK, which, of course, resonates with us in the North East in particular and across the North generally. We know instinctively that banking is boring but it is important to us all, especially when it comes to making business decisions in the region. If we aspire to a Northern Powerhouse or any form of regional autonomy we need three things: infrastructure, public sector finance and private sector finance. We can’t have autonomy if we have to keep running to London where the purse strings are controlled. The digital revolution is levelling playing fields across society and giving us and our children the greatest opportunity we are likely to see in our lifetimes.

I see lots of businesses in the region helping to shape this brighter future and at Atom bank we are proud to be a part of that too. n

FINANCIAL & BANKING - STATISTICS The North East has particular strengths in banking, mortgage lending, accountancy and legal services. Newcastle is the leading financial and professional services centre in the region, accounting for over a quarter of regional employment in the sector With 12,300 employed in the sector, Newcastle sits at the centre of a wider financial and related professional services industry in the region, which employs a total of 45,200 people and generates 8% of regional gross value added Other cities in the North East with sizeable employment in financial and related professional services include Sunderland (6,500) and Stockton (3,900). (SOURCE THECITY UK)

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

LEGAL With so many decisions to make in a changing landscape, you need to choose the right firm to guide you

In association with

146 L E G A L www.bqlive.co.uk

Dealing and coping with political aftershocks Making predictions is a notoriously tricky business, even for experts in their fields – ask any political pollster about 2016. However, whilst 2016 may have been dominated by global shocks to the system – the vote in favour of Brexit and Donald Trump’s election as US President – it is a fairly safe bet that much of 2017, for the legal sector, will be about dealing with the effects of those shocks.

Brexit, of course, looms largest on the horizon with the Government set to invoke Article 50 by the end of March 2017 (legal challenge to the process notwithstanding).

Assuming this progresses as planned, it will start the twoyear countdown to the UK formally leaving the EU, with all this entails.

This is likely to produce a lot of queries for the legal sector as clients work out precisely what the new landscape will mean for their business, their organisation and for themselves as individuals.

In some ways, this process started as soon as the result

Colin Hewitt, partner and head of commercial at Ward Hadaway, looks at the legal implications of Brexit and inward investment prospects

L E G A L 147 www.bqlive.co.uk

148 L E G A L www.bqlive.co.uk

“Ward Hadaway has been working with a number of agencies to offer services to foreign investors, enabling them to get the best start to their North East ventures”

of the referendum came through and we at Ward Hadaway have been preparing briefings on what differences Brexit could bring as well as keeping clients up to date with developments. From necessity, these early horizon-scanning exercises have been fairly broad in scope since the Government has yet to reveal the precise manner of the UK’s exit from the EU, which will have a major effect on future trading, future workforces and the general economic outlook, particularly in a region like the North East which is a net exporter of goods and services.

As a result, our general stance to clients has been one of ‘watch, wait and review key agreements’. As 2017 progresses, we would expect the picture to become clearer and hence legal advisors will be able to give their clients more direction on how the changes could affect them and what action they need to take.

This is particularly important as many businesses in the region are diversifying into new geographic markets and in some cases away from underperforming sectors and we are supporting them in their efforts.

One area which is equally important but has received far less attention is what the countries we trade with think about Brexit.

This is one of the reasons why earlier this year we canvassed professional services advisors at companies around the world for their thoughts.

The results, garnered from our fellow members of international professional services association Geneva Group International both inside and outside the EU, varied widely from surprise and fears of a downturn in trade to those who thought the move could be a positive one for the UK and for their own country.

The exercise demonstrated how Brexit is engaging the minds of people many thousands of miles from the UK and underlined the fact that no-one has all the answers to the many questions which Brexit has brought about.

With the reality of Brexit hitting home in 2017, we would expect the pace of investment from overseas into the North East to increase.

The region has already had the welcome news of Nissan’s continued investment into its North East operations with the knock-on benefits to the supply chain.

Whilst we may not see investment on such scale repeated in 2017, the efforts of various agencies in the region including Invest North East England, Business Durham, Arch and Newcastle Gateshead Initiative are helping to boost serious interest in the region from overseas in a wide range of sectors including healthcare, technology, advanced manufacturing and energy.

The legal sector plays a crucial role in helping overseas companies establish operations in this country, whether that is via joint ventures, licensing agreements or the setting up of UK subsidiaries.

Ward Hadaway has been working with a number of agencies to offer these services to foreign investors, enabling them to get the best start to their North East ventures.

We have also been playing a role in international trade and inward investment. In the summer, I accompanied my colleague Elaine Chan on a trade visit to Xi’an in China where we held a series of face-to-face meetings with representatives from Chinese companies interested in doing business in the UK. There is a real appetite within China for further trade and partnerships with the UK, something likely to be bolstered by the Government’s renewed commitment to the Northern Powerhouse and its showcasing to China’s Vice Premier of potential investment opportunities across the region.

Perhaps as we look into 2017, the apocryphal Chinese phrase “may you live in interesting times” has rarely been more appropriate. n

OUR BUSINESS LEGAL ADVICE TEAM WILL ENSURE YOUR T&C’S, LEGAL STRUCTURE, CONTRACTS AND LEASE ARE JUST AS THEY SHOULD BE.

We offer a fixed-fee service, with appointments at our Newcastle or South Shields offices that fit in with your business. Get in touch by emailing our team at businessteam@davidgray.co.uk, call 0191 243 8147, visit www.davidgray.co.uk where you can chat live 24/7 or follow us on twitter @DavidGrayLLP

Choosing the right law firm for your business When we want a new appliance the Which?

Publications and online reviews seem a pretty good place to get independent advice. For holidays we have TripAdvisor and, even before choosing a take away, we can find out what last night’s diners thought! But what about the larger, life changing decisions such as choosing the right law firm for your business or personal matters?

We are lucky here in the North East to have a wide choice

of excellent law firms covering a variety of services, sectors and sizes - from small, niche firms to those who are part of a national or international chain, we have a buoyant industry employing over 12,500 people.

So how do you choose? The independent guides for the law sector are broadly seen as the Chambers & Partners rankings and The Legal 500, which are both a good and reliable source of independent, information available free online. Here at David

P R O F I L E 151 David Gray Solicitors

“During 2017 we celebrate 36 years of serving both business and private clients on their legal matters here in the North East. We are incredibly proud of our heritage and look forward to many more successful business relationships as the North East continues to adapt and evolve to economic factors”

Gray Solicitors LLP we have recently achieved top tier rankings by both publications.

In addition, client reviews of a particular firm or solicitor can be invaluable, especially if they resonate with your particular circumstances. Google, Yell and the firm’s own website are all good sources of reviews and testimonials. In general, people need to select a law firm when they need support and guidance, so it is important that credentials form part of your decision-making process.

Another excellent source of information is your friends, family and colleagues whose opinions are paramount. Word of mouth and recommendations are the key source of new business for us and account for 45% of our new enquiries. We also enjoy excellent relationships with other law firms in the region and have an excellent referral rate from our peers who cannot

advise a potential client due to conflict, complexity or capacity.

So, when choosing a law firm contact us for all your business needs.

Our services include: • Company Law (including formation and structure) • Commercial Property • Contracts (including T&Cs and Employment) • Debt Recovery • Licensing Advice • Commercial Litigation • Business Immigration (visas etc.)

Whether you are starting out, growing or scaling down our Business Team at David Gray Solicitors LLP are on hand at our City Centre or South Shields offices to advise you on the best route forward.

Paula Harris, Head of Business at David Gray states: “During 2017 we celebrate 36 years of serving both business and private clients on their legal matters here in the North East.

We are incredibly proud of our heritage and look forward to many more successful business relationships as the North East continues to adapt and evolve to economic factors.”

W: www.davidgray.co.uk Twitter: @DavidGrayLLP Tel: 0191 243 8147 Email: businessteam@davidgray.co.uk

LAW - STATISTICS The UK legal sector grew at the ‘phenomenal’ rate of 8% last year and is worth almost £26bn, according to research commissioned by the Law Society.

Analysis found that 8,000 new jobs are created and £379m is added to the economy for every 1% growth in the UK legal services sector Law has been taught at Newcastle upon Tyne since 1923, where it was taught at Armstrong College, part of the federal University of Durham

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT Behind every successful sector there is a powerful range of organisations training new workers and business leaders

In association with

A region’s wealth depends on productivity, which is driven by its skills base. North East LEP chair Andrew Hodgson explains the work being done to enhance training

T R A I N I N G A N D R E C R U I T M E N T 155 www.bqlive.co.uk

Licensed to skill Improving skills in the North East workforce is fundamental to our economic future, underpinning our aim of driving an uplift of 100,000 jobs in the region by 2024.

A highly skilled workforce attuned to the needs of specialist employers will provide the foundations for business growth, entrepreneurial activity and strengthen opportunities for our young people. Access to this readily available skilled workforce is a critical component in the strategic planning of businesses, such as inward investors looking to set up home in the North East or reinvest in existing companies here. For example, the decision by Hitachi Rail Europe to base its £80m train manufacturing facility at Newton Aycliffe was in part influenced by the availability of a highly skilled workforce on its doorstep.

The company is cementing its North East presence by investing in apprenticeships giving young people a fantastic start to their engineering careers and establishing its own in-house resource of skilled workers on which to base its future growth. North East England is building the coherent skills offer that addresses the demands of employers looking for increasingly specialised employees to operate in a globally competitive marketplace.

The North East LEP is committed to working with employers, schools, further and higher education institutions and businesses to provide the mix of world class academic, technical and professional education, apprenticeships and higher level apprenticeships in all of the growing areas of our economy.

This will ensure that those entering the labour market have the right skills to thrive, that skills supply underpins business growth and that talent is retained in our region.

We want every young person to be able to identify routes into work, supported through experience and exposure to the world of work and to be inspired to achieve.

We are also committed to reducing inactivity levels in our 50-plus workforce, through skills investment helping older workers to remain in work.

The changing structure of the economy requires futureproofing, giving young people and people in employment access to the training needed to learn new and transferable skills to adapt to industry demand.

It’s a bold and ambitious agenda, but one that we feel is achievable by 2024 given the solid foundations we already have in the North East. We have four world class universities producing fantastic graduates, and contrary to popular myth our graduate retention in the North East is good when set against comparable regions. Our universities understand the need to work with local employers to meet their demands and our colleges are all highly attuned to the skills needs of employers.

We have got the best college estate of any region – they are all Ofsted rated good or outstanding, which is phenomenal. At the other end of the education spectrum, the North East LEP is leading work to engage with schoolchildren to inspire aspiration and achievement.

We have a very strong programme focused on school careers opportunities through the Gatsby Foundation National Career Benchmarks Pilot.

The four-year scheme running in the North East LEP area tests eight benchmarks of good career guidance.

They identify any barriers to helping young people make more informed decisions about their future study and employment and ensure that young people are better equipped with the skills employers need.

Sixteen schools and colleges in the North East LEP area are taking part in the national pilot and the findings will be rolled out across the country at the end of the project.

The Gatsby programme complements our Enterprise Advisor initiative embedding business leaders into secondary schools on a voluntary basis to help teachers shape the delivery of careers education.

There’s been a lot of good skills work done in the past and some great activities, but never a structured programme like this based on achieving the career guidance benchmarks by bringing together entrepreneurs and school headteachers.

Companies such as Unipres, Accenture, Ford Aerospace and Barclays are helping drive the programme forward, delivering invaluable knowledge to schools.

The full benefits from this project will be felt in the North East economy in ten years time when these young people are actively out there and working in high value jobs. n

156 P R O F I L E Baltic Training

Post-Brexit impact on the digital economy The UK is set to unplug from the shared network of the EU, and many businesses are beginning to evaluate how their workforce may look if the worst-case scenario were to take place The skills gap in the IT sector is already a key priority for both the government and employers, as many companies already struggle to fill roles with the highly skilled workers necessary to keep Britain competitive on the international digital stage.

According to the Tech Nation report - produced by Tech City UK an authoritative analyser of the UK’s digital economy - 40% of employers have confirmed their greatest challenge to growth is attracting talent, with 20% of employers having to recruit from the EU. Post-Brexit, the prospect of losing workers and

broadening the skills gap even further, poses many questions of the UK, principally, how are employers going to find highly skilled workers to not only fill the gaps but create the competition necessary to raise the standards of the technology sector as a whole?

One thing that is clear from this event, is the need to futureproof the UK’s workforce against further changes in the technology sector. This is a process with a domestic focus, given the large cloud hanging over foreign workers at the moment, which then asks questions of the UK education system. An immediate

P R O F I L E 157 Baltic Training

solution to this growing problem can surely Louise Ball be found with apprenticeships. Employers have an opportunity to benefit from a lowcost, low-risk way to bring new talent into their business, and also a highly effective way of developing the skills of their future workforce, with the added benefit of government funding to cover the costs of training.

Last summer the government revealed their ambitious plans to increase the number of apprenticeships in our country to 3 million by 2020. Prior to this, the government commissioned an independent review of apprenticeship programmes in England in order to gain an understanding how this could be achieved. ‘The Richard Review’ took place in 2012 and was tasked with identifying how more employers could take on apprentices. The review identified a number of key areas where significant improvements were required in order to make apprenticeships more responsive and better aligned to the changing needs of employers. This, in turn, would increase the quality of apprenticeship programmes, making them much more valuable and beneficial to employers.

The aims were to: • Put employers in the driving seat • Increase the quality of apprenticeships • Simplify the system • Give employers purchasing power.

The solution = Trailblazer Standards which will be replacing the existing apprenticeship frameworks. These new standards are written definitions of the skills, knowledge and behaviours an apprentice must demonstrate within their job role. The new apprenticeship standards have been designed by the leading employers in the digital sector.

Apprenticeships not only offer employers the opportunity to mould their own highly skilled experts, but they provide an immediate employee that can work from day one. From the young person’s perspective, apprenticeships don’t require years of higher education before the rewards can be reaped in the workplace.

With the pace that the technology sector evolves, having an employee who is actively learning and up to date with advances as they develop, is one of the most efficient forms of education. It is

a widely held belief that the information that you learn at the start of a higher education course in computing is out of date by the time you find a job after graduating, meaning further time must be spent by employers bringing a fresh graduate up to speed. In contrast, after three years of employing an apprentice (the length of your average undergraduate degree) employers can be sure that they have an emerging expert in their field, who is experienced in the role, and whose development has been tailored to suit the company from the outset. The utilisation of apprentices not only closes the gap on the digital skills shortage, but it brings the UK up to speed with other countries at the digital cutting edge, such as Sweden and Germany, where apprenticeships are considered a reputable and competitive alternative to university.

Some of the questions regarding training time and resources, that have limited apprenticeships in the past, have now been successfully overcome by training providers such as Baltic Training Services, where their unique, flexible and innovative approach to delivering learning is what sets them apart from all other providers.

At Baltic Training Services, apprenticeships are delivered via a virtual classroom which enhances the learning experience.

The apprentice can attend and complete the course without leaving the office, reducing travel and accommodation costs and increasing their effectiveness as an employee. The case for IT apprentices playing an increasingly significant role in the future of the UK’s digital workforce could not be clearer.

To learn more about apprenticeship funding and planning for your future talent pipeline – contact us on 01325 731065, yourfuture@baltictraining.com

TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT - STATISTICS The proportion of the population in the North East qualified to level 4 has risen from 22% to 31% in the last 10 years, a faster growth rate than the UK overall For the North East region as a whole, the replacement demand as a result of jobs becoming vacant is projected to be 450,000 between 2012 and 2022 The growth in demand will be at higher qualification levels as modernisation of production removes a proportion of the lower skilled roles although there will be demand across the level of skills required

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

IT AND TELECOMS Keeping the region connected at the highest level and able to make its voice heard across the world

In association with

160 I T A N D T E L E C O M S www.bqlive.co.uk

Connectivity is crucial to the North East’s economic success and social wellbeing. Farooq Hakim, chair of BT’s North East Regional Board, looks at what is happening in the region

Making the right connections

I T A N D T E L E C O M S 161 www.bqlive.co.uk

The past few years have seen the UK race ahead to become the world’s leading digital economy with a greater proportion of economic activity driven by the internet than any other nation including ‘digital exemplars’ such as Sweden, Japan, the US, or South Korea. It is vital to the future of the UK’s socio-economic prosperity, that we not only maintain, but extend this success to every part of Britain, continuing to move forward together; more connected, capable and competitive.

As the UK’s leading communications services company, the work BT does is key to the North East’s continued economic and social prosperity. Across the North East region we continue to make more connections and create new possibilities, helping businesses to grow, communities to flourish and individuals to get more out of life.

Connectivity is at the heart of how people work and live their lives, and, as we continue to develop our services, we also look for ways of using these vital services to deliver wider societal benefits.

Across the North East more than one million premises can now get fibre broadband via Openreach, BT’s local network business. And UK-wide we are on track to help take fibre coverage to 95% and beyond. Rollout has been on budget and ahead of schedule. It has been a real success story for the UK. Openreach’s investment in its fibre broadband network, which is open to all providers on an equal basis, has been key to this progress, investing more than £1.4bn last year alone. And BT will continue to make further investment.

We have plans to go further, delivering faster broadband speeds and expanding the reach of fibre broadband beyond the Government’s 95% target. Supporting the UK to move from a superfast nation to an ultrafast one, we already have three trials taking place of G.fast, our ultrafast technology underway, including one in Gosforth.

And following on from the success of the trials the first ten pilot locations have recently been announced.

The acquisition of EE at the start of 2016 brought together the best UK mobile network with the largest broadband network. EE pioneered the UK’s first superfast 4G mobile service, with coverage today reaching more than 95% of the UK population. A commitment to reach 95% of UK

geography with 4G by 2020 will ensure ‘near-complete’ 4G coverage no matter where people live or travel. At the end of 2015, EE won the contract to deliver a brand new 4G voice and data network for Britain’s Emergency Services, giving 300,000 critical emergency workers access to 4G voice and data for the first time. The Emergency Services Network will transform these roles, giving them the same type of data and applications that have benefited consumers and private businesses. And BT/EE has committed to being first with 5G in the UK to deliver ultra-high speeds and capacity.

An independent study (Social Study 2016 – The Economic Impact of BT & EE in the North East) which looked at the direct economic contribution of BT and EE combined, shows that BT is a key player in the North East, making a very significant impact on the region’s economy. We support employment across every part of the region through our direct workforce which numbers over 8,500, and, indirectly, through our extensive supply chain, and with our procurement and expenditure within the local economy. For the period 2015/16 the total Gross Value Added (GVA) to the North East economy, combining the direct, indirect and induced impacts of our activities and spending, was estimated to be £1.16bn.

BT is committed to using the power of communications to make a better world and make a positive impact on the communities and environment in which we operate. We understand the importance of connectivity to economic growth and social wellbeing and recognise that this is critical to how we work, rest and play. We continue to invest in our people, networks and products. We are one of the largest investors in research and development in the UK and this has underpinned a history of innovation. Our strategy of innovation and investment has helped, and will continue to help, us lead and shape the digital future in the years to come. n

“BT is committed to using the power of communications to make a positive impact”

Connecting business to the real world

I T A N D T E L E C O M S 163 www.bqlive.co.uk

Broadband holds the key to the UK’s economic success, argues entrepreneur Dan Kitchen but he tells Andrew Lambert there is a price to be paid The boss of a successful and growing North East IT company says businesses need to view broadband as the fourth utility and be prepared to pay accordingly.

Dan Kitchen, managing director of Razorblue Group, believes the region’s entrepreneurs can use broadband to drive forward the economy in the same way the potential of coal and steel was harnessed by industrialists in the nineteenth century.

But he says the expectation that broadband should be virtually free is stifling that advance because Openreach – the BT company which provides the infrastructure for virtually all broadband services – is unable to invest properly to improve its services.

“Businesses are prepared to pay perhaps £200 per month for their electricity but not their broadband,” said Dan. “It all starts at home where you might pay £20 a month for 80Mb of internet. It sets an expectation: if I can get that in my house why should I pay ten times that for my business?”

The problem, he said, stems from a lack of competition for Openreach and the reduction of broadband costs which was enforced by the regulator Ofcom. “As a result BT, perhaps understandably has said: What’s in it for us?

Why should we make it any better unless someone else funds it?”

That, says Dan, explains – but not excuses – the concerns over the quality of Openreach’s service. In one instance Razorblue had to wait 18 months for fibre to be connected from one building to another.

It is also the reason behind the backlash against the regulator’s decision this summer to allow BT to maintain control of major investments such as upgrades to full fibreoptic networks. Dan - alongside providers of internet and telecommunications such as TalkTalk, Sky and Vodafone - had hoped BT’s virtual monopoly, through Openreach,

would be ended. He believes such a move would ultimately have improved broadband performance to the level of other countries, such as Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands.

“The rest of the world is starting to outperform us now, but again businesses and consumers there are paying a bit more for the service. We have some of the lowest broadband pricing in the world for a well-developed country. And, of course, there’s a lot more competition in the US and Europe.

“Over here you’ve got BT and you’ve got BT – in the US you’ve got five or six key providers, competing against each other. They’ve all got their own infrastructure. The only sort of near competitor you’ve got over here is Virgin and its coverage is nigh on nothing compared to the size of the country,” he says.

With Sky and Vodafone, Talk Talk is one of the driving forces behind a recently-launched campaign called Fix Britain’s Internet. Despite Ofcom’s decision not to overhaul Openreach’s role, Fix Britain’s Internet is calling on mass public support to bring about a break up of BT and Openreach.

For Dan, though – speaking from his new office in Wynyard Park – “it is, what it is.” After 10 years of building the company from scratch, he is used to the volatility of the sector in which Razorblue operates. The business has become expert in providing ways around the gaps exposed by Openreach’s apparent under-investment and the constant evolution of IT. “It’s what you have to do,” says Dan. “Unfortunately we do not live and work in an ideal world. We all know that IT is the first function to get the blame and the last to get credit."n Full interview first appeared in BQ magazine in 2016

164 P R O F I L E ITPS

Big data – Who controls yours?

The explosion in the big data society we inhabit has seen ITPS evolve into the common factor underpinning many of our region’s successful organisations. From our launch in 2000, we have deliberately taken an educational approach to winning new business, focusing on helping clients become better informed about what is possible, and then helping them to make the right choices.

The result is that the client remains in control of its ICT and its data, which is a key factor in building long term relationships based on trust and transparency.

Data security is a hot topic, with the anticipated Brexit looming, this leaves CIOs and IT managers nervously anticipating how this decision will transform the regulatory framework around data and how it can be collected, accessed managed and stored.

Garry Sheriff explains more: “Everyone seeks to make their business more efficient and data has become the lifeblood of the business world, but many people are wary about handing over the reins of data responsibility to a third party.

The good news is that you don’t have to understand the technology itself in order to make the right decisions, but you do need to work with people who are experts in the latest technology developments, understand the issues you face and can create an infrastructure that can remove the elements of the pain. Our reputation as data centre data guardian experts has seen us attract clients across a range of sectors that process

huge amounts of data, work within tight regulatory frameworks and rely on their IT partner to keep their business and its data safe.

The amount of data organisations collect grows by an average 50% a year and its use has transformed the way we live and work. We have been supporting our clients’ big data strategies for over a decade, and the launch of our ISO27001-certified £4m data centre and workspace recovery site – the largest in the North East – was welcomed by clients looking for a highly secure, resilient environment with high speed connections, dedicated project and build rooms, and over 300 workspace recovery seats.

Part of the attraction for many of the clients opting to move to our data centre is that it is UK owned and managed. Location is a growing issue for those concerned about data sovereignty and with the EU court scrapping the Safe Harbour agreement, the General Data Protection Regulations set to become law in 2018 and the EU referendum decision made, it is crucial that business owners take a considered look at how and where they collect, process and store their data, if they want to stay in control.”

For more information visit itps.co.uk

P R O F I L E 165

Would losing your data be the end of your world?

www.bqlive.co.uk

We have over a decade of experience in helping housing Our flexible data centre solutions give you the facilities, the network and associations revolutionise of public the know-how to to help you expandthe and delivery support your growth.and We are an social housing services. extension of your own organisation, helping you reduce both risk and cost > Strategic IT consultancy & implementation > Backup and storage > Data centre services > Cloud services > Connectivity

Contact us today to find out more:

> Unified communications

call 0191 or email

> Support services > Business continuity, workspace and disaster recovery

Ready to get more value from your IT spend?

442 8300

contact@itps.co.uk www.itps.co.uk For more information visit txrcc

IT AND TELECOMS - STATISTICS Across the North East more than one million premises can now get fibre broadband via Openreach, BT’s local network business EE pioneered the UK’s first superfast 4G mobile service, with coverage today reaching more than 95% of the UK population For the period 2015/16 BT’s total Gross Value Added (GVA) to the North East economy was estimated to be £1.16bn

BT supports employment across every part of the region through its direct workforce which numbers over 8,500

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

TRANSPORT & INFRASTRUCTURE The smooth movement of our goods, services and people is vital to maintain the region’s impeccable reputation

In association with

Investing in infrastructure PD Ports group chief executive David Robinson reviews some of the forthcoming major transport and infrastructure projects

T R A N S P O R T A N D I N F R A S T R U C T U R E 169 www.bqlive.co.uk

In Tees Valley we have a clear vision of what we need to deliver over the course of the next five to 15 years.

There are four key priorities which are two major rail projects and two major road projects.

One of the two rail projects is a major redevelopment and investment in Darlington station to create a Tees Valley gateway hub, called Darlington Growth Hub, whereby the station is transformed to accommodate not just the existing north/south services on the East Coast Mainline and is also HS2 ready, but will also significantly increase the east/west connectivity opportunities as well to enhance the Tees Valley network. It will also give more freight capacity through that particular part of the network.

The other project is the electrification and upgrade of the Northallerton to Middlesbrough/Teesport line to provide not just electrification for mainly passenger trains, but also gauge for freight.

This will be important to the port, to be able to handle container freight trains going west and south into our key markets as we develop our container platform.

It now also seems that Middlesbrough station could get a third line giving it more capacity for freight and getting it ready for East Coast Mainline trains to start calling in from 2021.

On the roads, another Tees crossing is planned, which will be an extension to the Norton to Wynyard widening scheme. This recognises how critical the A19 north/south corridor is.

The second road scheme is the upgrading of the A66 from the A1 west. There are a whole series of works planned from the A1 to the M6 as part of the Transport for the North agenda, but we are also now looking at the A66 upgrade and that will involve upgrading the A66, particularly around Darlington north side and south side with linkages all the way through to the main industrial hubs in Redcar, particularly the port area.

These four areas have been articulated to and accepted by Transport for the North and these are also key priorities in their agenda.

There is new legislation on quality partnerships for bus networks coming in over the next two or three years.

There are two franchises in Tees Valley – Arriva and

“We will move to an enhanced partnership arrangement, so the bus network will continue to be developed.”

Stagecoach. My expectation is that we probably will not move to a full blown quality partnership but we will move to an enhanced partnership arrangement, so the bus network will continue to be developed.

At Teesport we will upgrade our container intermodal and unitised platform over the course of the next five years or so as we move from 500,000 TEU [twenty foot equivalent until] a year to well over a million.

With the arrival of MGT and the development of Tees Renewable Energy Plant to be delivered over the next three to four years, we will see major flows of biomass coming into the port and we will need to invest to equip for that. That requires us to build the last phase of No 1 Quay which is going to happen next year. That will be about £50m investment, in addition to the £35m we have already committed.

The concept of the energy hub at Teesside is starting to take shape and we are expecting to bring LNG [liquefied natural gas] back onto the river over the course of the next two or three years to complement the gas strategy of government to provide new gas supplies into the northern part of the grid.

Rail is very important to widening our hinterland and we’ve done extremely well in developing our services to Scotland over the course of the last 12 to 18 months and we now expect to develop services out to the North West as well. In part this is about modal shift from road to rail but also ensuring we can get effective logistics and supply chains for our customer base across the North.

There are always events – both foreseen and unforeseen – whether that be elections or Brexit, but we have put a lot of energy into articulating what we want to do and to prove the economic case for these projects and we are now entering the phases of delivery. n Full interview first appeared in BQ magazine in 2016

170 T R A N S P O R T A N D I N F R A S T R U C T U R E www.bqlive.co.uk

Under construction Some important transport and infrastructure projects are planned or underway in the region Our region’s geography is dominated by the major rivers which flow from West to East, each of which has historically helped dictate the nature of our transport infrastructure.

That is why the North East is known for its bridges – so many of them icons and emblems of the region and of its towns and cities.

Now a new bridge is under construction.

A £117m crossing is being built over the River Wear in Sunderland, a 105m high structure, which is due for completion in the spring of 2018.

In years to come this bridge will doubtless be seen as another great North East landmark, but, at the moment, it is one of the largest construction projects in the region –

emblematic of some of the other transport infrastructure projects that are either underway or in the pipeline.

There is, for example, a proposal for the Testos roundabout, a few miles north of the new bridge. The project is to replace the existing roundabout junction between the A184 and the A19.

This will involve raising the A19 carriageway on an embankment and carrying it over the existing roundabout via two bridges.

Further up the A19 and on the north bank of the Tyne, the go-ahead has been given for improvements to the junction with the A1059 coast road junction by lowering the A19 beneath the existing roundabout in a cutting.

At an estimated cost of between £66m and £86m, it is

T R A N S P O R T A N D I N F R A S T R U C T U R E 171 www.bqlive.co.uk

expected that this will further reduce journey times already shortened by the opening of the second Tyne Tunnel.

Over on the A1, a northern bypass is planned for Morpeth, involving the construction of a 3.8km long single carriageway from Whorral Bank on the A197, to the north east of the town, then west to the A1.

In the air, Newcastle International Airport’s daily Emirates service to Dubai is seeing record numbers, with the 10-year-old route recording 22,745 passengers in August flying from Newcastle and its Dubai hub.

Laurie Berryman, Emirates vice president, UK, said: “Newcastle International Airport has become an important gateway for both business and leisure travellers in the North East, and plays an important part in the growth of the local economy.’’

The Emirates service carries the vast majority of exports flown out of Newcastle Airport, the value of which now stands at £310m a year up from less than £20m before the airline’s arrival in the region.

The airport, which has a new £14m departure lounge and a 1,600 space multi-million pound car park extension, has also embarked on a programme to replace its primary radar surveillance system.

The Port of Tyne is also continuing with its long term programme of infrastructure improvement. In 2015 the port invested £21.2 m in infrastructure development and, most recently it extended its main Riverside Quay at Tyne Dock with a £25m investment.

In 2016 the Port also contributed £13m to the project by LPL Power to build handling and storage facilities at the Port of Tyne for wood pellet and it completed a £1.8m investment in an extension at the Tyne Car Terminal to support Nissan.

In 2010 Port of Tyne acquired the former McNulty yard in South Tyneside and, since then, it has invested more than £2.5m in quay strengthening and in improving the site.

In the last 10 years the Port of Tyne has invested more than £130m in its facilities and, in a new partnership with Northern Ports, it seeks the support of the Government and other bodies in creating the best possible transport infrastructure for freight and logistics within the Northern Powerhouse economic region.

Much infrastructure work remains to be done in the region and it remains to be seen how much the Northern Powerhouse will deliver, but significant advances are being made by land, sea and air. n

“Newcastle International Airport plays an important part in the growth of the local economy.”

TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE - STATISTICS Port of Tyne covers 613 acres of land with 78,000 sq m of warehousing and 3,095m of potential berth space. It is the UK’s number one for car exports Teesport is the second largest container port in the north at over 780 acres, handling 36m tonnes and welcoming 4,600 vessels every year Port of Blyth attracted 500,000 vistors to the Tall Ships Regatta in 2016 boosting the local economy by £13.5m The A19 at Silverlink, North Tyneside is being reconstructed and re-routed at a cost of between £66m-£86m to help cut journey times and relieve congestion Newcastle International Airport has a turnover of £64m contributing GVA of £580m. Emirates carries £300m worth of exports pushing Newcastle towards the top 10 airports for international trade

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

EXPORTING

Firms who have found great success in the North East are showcasing their skills across the globe

174 E X P O R T I N G www.bqlive.co.uk

The North East region is one of the most successful in the UK with a consistent positive trade balance. In the latest ONS export statistics (Q2 2016) North East export values for nine of the region’s top 20 markets grew - with those top 20 markets representing some 85% of all annual exports from the region. One of our fastest growing markets is China, showing a 29% increase on the previous year’s trading. International markets offer access to new customers, revenue and ideas whilst allowing for business risks to be spread and the commercial lifespan of products and services to be increased. Finding new overseas customers can often mean that businesses can benefit from economies of scale.

Trading abroad can boost your business’s profile, credibility and ultimately its turnover and profit margins. There is a world of opportunity out there - whether you’re looking to trade with established partners, such as the EU and USA, or targeting high-growth markets like Brazil, China, India, Colombia and Vietnam.

Research shows time and again that exporting companies are more productive, innovative and resilient to economic downturns than non-exporters. Every company’s experience of exporting is different, but the good news is that whatever your size or sector the rewards from selling products and services overseas can be huge.

Department for International Trade can and does help both first time and experienced exporters through one-toone advice, workshops and seminars where established exporters share their knowledge and insight, and market visits. Local International Trade Advisers can help you produce an export strategy, help establish the best markets to target and offer advice on differences in cultural, language and business practices.

The launch of the GREAT.gov.uk trade hub for businesses gives practical advice on how to access millions of pounds worth of potential overseas business.

The site will act as a single digital destination for trade and investment, bringing together and connecting UK businesses – whether new, occasional or frequent exporters – international buyers and international investors. By registering, businesses will become part of a brand new searchable directory of UK exporters which government will use to match their products and services with worldwide demand. n

Power of Brits abroad David Coppock, Department for International Trade North East regional director, looks at the region’s opportunities for overseas sales

DEVELOPING TRADE OVERSEAS Forthcoming Northern Powerhouse market visits to Boston, South Korea, Copenhagen and Dusseldorf will give North East businesses the chance to speak to potential customers and distributors in person, and in the country they seek to export to.

Contact Department for International Trade North East on 0345 136 0169 to find out how we can help you develop trade overseas.

Let MT Print Let MT Print

Promote Promote Your Business Your Business

Established in 1911 we offer a wealth of knowledge and Established in 1911 we offer a wealth of knowledge and experience in print and adesign.

MT Print cover and Established in 1911 we offer wealth of experience in print and adesign.

MT Print cover and Established in North 1911 weEast, offer wealth of knowledge knowledge the UK and overseas. experience in print and design.

MT the North East, UK and overseas. experience in print and design.

MT Print Print cover cover WeNorth specialise in the following: the East, UK and overseas.

We specialise in the following: the North East, UK and overseas.

We in following: We specialise specialise in the the following: LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT DIGITAL PRINTING

LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT DIGITAL PRINTING GRAPHIC DESIGN LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT DIGITAL LITHOGRAPHIC PRINTDATA/PERSONALISATION DIGITAL PRINTING PRINTING GRAPHIC DESIGN VARIABLE VARIABLE DATA/PERSONALISATION MAIL FULFILMENT LARGE FORMAT GRAPHIC DESIGN VARIABLE DATA/PERSONALISATION GRAPHIC VARIABLE DATA/PERSONALISATION MAIL DESIGN FULFILMENT LARGE FORMAT PRINTING PRINTING PROMOTIONAL MARKETING MAIL FULFILMENT LARGE FORMAT MAIL FULFILMENT LARGE FORMAT PRINTING PRINTING PROMOTIONAL MARKETING PROMOTIONAL MARKETING PROMOTIONAL MARKETING

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US BY PHONE OR EMAIL. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US BY PHONE OR EMAIL. WE OFFER FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTES PLEASE FEEL FREE TO US BY OR LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT OFFER FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTES 171 PLEASE WE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT CONTACT US

BY PHONE PHONE OR EMAIL. EMAIL. LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT 171 AND GOOD ADVICE. GRAPHIC DESIGN WE OFFER FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTES rint.co.uk LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT AND GOOD ADVICE. WE OFFER FREE NO OBLIGATION GRAPHIC DESIGN 171 LITHOGRAPHIC PRINT QUOTES rint.co.uk 171 LARGE FORMAT PRINTING AND GOOD ADVICE. GRAPHIC DESIGN AND FORMAT GOOD ADVICE. LARGE PRINTING info@mtprint.co.uk North Park House rint.co.uk House GRAPHIC DESIGN rint.co.uk info@mtprint.co.uk North Park House House DIRECT MAIL FULFILMENT LARGE FORMAT PRINTING ad MAILWhessoe FULFILMENT 01325 463171 DIRECT Road LARGE FORMAT PRINTING info@mtprint.co.uk North Park House House ad 01325 463171 Whessoe Road DIGITAL PRINTING info@mtprint.co.uk North Park House House DIRECT MAIL FULFILMENT DL3 0YL DIGITAL PRINTING 01325 381490 Darlington DL3 0YL DIRECT MAILWhessoe FULFILMENT ad 01325 463171 Road DL3 0YL 01325 381490 Darlington DL3 PROMOTIONAL MARKETING ad 01325 463171 Whessoe Road 0YL DIGITAL PRINTING PROMOTIONAL MARKETING PRINTING DL3 0YL 01325 381490 DIGITAL Darlington DL3 0YL VARIABLE DATA DL3 0YL nt.co.uk 01325 381490 Darlington DL3 0YL PROMOTIONAL MARKETING VARIABLE DATA nt.co.uk www.mtprint.co.uk PROMOTIONAL MARKETING Fo llo w us www.mtprint.co.uk Fo llo w us VARIABLE DATA nt.co.uk VARIABLE DATA nt.co.uk www.mtprint.co.uk us

176 E X P O R T I N G www.bqlive.co.uk

Exporting post-Brexit Brian Dakers, international trade manager for North East England Chamber of Commerce, takes a peek into the not too distant future at the prospects for the region’s exporters The months following the outcome of the EU referendum have passed incredibly quickly. When the referendum took place to decide whether the UK would remain a member of the EU, David Cameron was Prime Minister, Roy Hodgson England football manager, and the world an ever shrinking place in which to do business. Now some months on, only one of those statements remains true.

While the business landscape is constantly referenced in the media, and claims and counter claims with regard to the outcome of the vote are exchanged like a baseline rally, the region has continued to make and produce goods and services wanted in all corners of the globe. Although the most recently released trade statistics for NE England plc were hardly a dramatic improvement on the periods preceding, a number of positives can be drawn. The increased breadth, for example, suggesting an underlying resilience, particularly in light of the devastating closure of the SSI steelworks on Teesside, which accounted for hundreds of millions of the region’s total goods exports.

When coupled with the pressures faced by the region’s oil and gas businesses, small percentage increases are certainly welcome.

Since the start of the calendar year, we at the Chamber have worked with nearly 100 businesses which are either new to exporting, or trading with a new market for the first time. While these may not attract headlines such as those attached to our largest sectors, they do underline one constant: our region is full of businesses and individuals with the ingenuity and determination to succeed anywhere.

While market access might be a rather murky topic at present, connectivity is an area where the region is able to see clearer skies. Newcastle International Airport’s recent announcements on new routes to Poland have

been warmly received by businesses trading across a range of sectors. Although the United Airlines decision to discontinue the direct flight to New York was a disappointment, hub connectivity provided by Dublin and Heathrow ensures businesses have great connectivity with the US, our largest trading partner. With the Emirates daily service experiencing consistently high demand for both seats and cargo hold space, it is surely a matter of time before capacity is added. Given the fact the route has just celebrated its ninth birthday, and has already upped the size of the aircraft once, this is a great indicator of our exporters’ appetite to get out there and seize the opportunities available, wherever they are.

One great example of this is Prima Cheese. A family business operating out of Seaham. The company looked at exporting its dairy products at the beginning of this decade. I was privileged to be involved from the beginning, as the company worked with the UKTI (now rebranded as Department of International Trade), and were then referred to the Chamber for support with market entry requirements, personnel development and export documentation. The company has since turned into one of the region’s best success stories, increasing headcount, and adding significant percentages to the turnover. It is no coincidence the company now works with more than 20 markets, and the vast majority are served by the Emirates route.

Successes such as those mentioned are of course attributable to a number of factors. While circumstances are far from perfect, I am privileged to work with businesses to whom challenges are there for besting, and the world there for the taking. I look forward to seeing how we capitalise further as a region in the months and years to come. n

E X PDOIRGTI TI NA GL 177 www.bqlive.co.uk

“The region has continued to make and produce goods and services wanted in all corners of the globe”

EXPORTING - STATISTICS £54.6m - Food and live animals

£5.4m - Beverages and tobacco

£18m - Crude materials

£11.5m - Mineral fuels

£3334m - Machinery and transport

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES The link between education and business has never been stronger as the right skills are put into place to build for the future

180 U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S www.bqlive.co.uk

Studying the impact of change Professor Ignazio Cabras, chair in entrepreneurship and regional economic development at Northumbria University’s Newcastle Business School, looks at the issues facing higher education in the region, post Brexit

182 U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S www.bqlive.co.uk

For the UK and for our region, the Brexit referendum was the most significant event of the year. The North East had the second highest leave vote of any English region, with only one constituency out of 12 voting to remain and with a leave vote of over 60% in five.

This meant a rejection of the, largely pro-remain views of ‘elites’ or ‘experts’ in the debate over the pros and cons of EU membership.

Among those experts, many in the region work in the higher education sector (HE), probably one of the most exposed to the risks associated with Brexit. Universities across the North East contribute significantly to the wider regional economy in a number of ways, providing skills and training to satisfy an increasingly more sophisticated demand coming from different economic sectors.

Their importance relies not only upon the variety and quality of taught programmes, but also on the level and value of research. According to Universities UK, the body which represents universities across the country, in 2015 universities in the North East received more than £29m in research grants and contracts from EU sources. There are currently 633 jobs in the region which depend on

EU research grants, including 364 directly employed in universities. While the new government pledged to match EU research funds for universities until at least 2020, there is uncertainty on what will happen afterwards. Potential projects and partnerships with other EU universities and institutions are under threat, with effects on reputation and the level of attractiveness of our universities.

This affects aspiring students too. The UK is one of the most attractive places to study abroad, mainly due to the language. Students who decided to study in the North East usually benefit from more favourable prices and living costs compared to other parts of the UK. The presence of two Russell Group universities in the region represents an important stimulus and incentive for the other universities and colleges to raise the quality and range of their offers.

This situation creates a very attractive environment which provides a good quality workforce for local employers.

Every year, North East universities attract a significant proportion of students from overseas, particularly from the EU. Inevitably, the process of exiting the EU will affect their choice with regard to where to study. For instance, students who will still choose the UK as their destination

U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S 183 www.bqlive.co.uk

will probably prefer to relocate in areas which offer more job opportunities and prospects, such as Greater London.

Looking outside the EU seems therefore necessary. China, India and other markets worldwide are already providing significant financial opportunities for universities in the UK with regard to aspiring students and teaching/research partnerships. However, the general attitude shown by recent governments in the matter of immigration policies, with declared objectives to progressively curb the numbers of working and student visas, raises some legitimate questions on the feasibility of this solution.

More worryingly, such policies appear to have already advantaged other countries such as the US, Canada or Australia for studying abroad.

Finally, further uncertainty for the HE sector is created over the future direction of devolution in England, as exemplified in the devolution deals signed with the North East Combined Authority and the Government’s commitment to the concept of the Northern Powerhouse.

North East council and business leaders are concerned that without EU funding several of the key features of the devolution deals would be hard to implement.

The HE sector is changing, and although North East

universities and colleges already play a major role in the region’s inward investment projects, more effort will be needed in order to maximise the benefits arising from partnerships with other institutions and industries inside and outside the region. In particular, reinforcing established synergies and creating new ones with regional industrial partners would probably help to minimise the financial losses associated with demise of funds from the EU, and might create new opportunities for regional growth.

Moreover, increasing the critical mass of individual pools of excellence already present in the region, and inserting these into a systemic framework would help spreading benefits and opportunities across the whole North East, with advantages for urban and rural areas.

The uncertainty generated by the Brexit referendum will remain for a few years to come, as both the process and timing of exiting the EU are still unclear. Enhancing and increasing partnerships with industry, and developing a systemic framework to foster excellence could minimise risks for HE institutions based in the North East.

Government and local authorities are significant actors in facilitating both strategies in the region. It is crucial for them to act effectively and quickly. n

184 U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S www.bqlive.co.uk

An appliance of science to change young lives Alison Shaw is working to bring about a revolution in science education in the North East, as she explains to Peter Jackson Alison Shaw meets me in the Crowne Plaza hotel in Newcastle’s Stephenson Quarter, where she promptly walks me to the door to point to something. It’s a nearby site that she’s eyeing as the potential home for North East Futures, a new University Technology College, UTC, of which she is the strategic director. Her job is to lead the planning for the college, which was originally scheduled to open in September 2017, but which has been delayed for a year to ensure a suitable site is found for a building which will cost at least £10m. She sees the Stephenson Quarter as an ideal location.

“The point of it being here, is that it’s a business quarter and it’ll be exciting for the students to come to learn in what is a really cool business quarter,’’ she says.

The UTC’s closeness to business will be fundamental to it. It is intended that it should not only prepare young people for fulfilling careers in IT and Health Care Sciences, but that it should give those sectors much needed, highly skilled workers.

“The alignment with the regional economy is really important to this UTC,’’ says Shaw. “These are two smart specialisation sectors which are part of the strategic economic plan and which more widely fit into the industrial strategy for the UK. These are strong sectors which deserve

to be funded to succeed and they will only be enabled to continue to grow if the pipeline of really skilled young people coming through is there.’’

She points to the favourable regional environment: the presence of Newcastle University’s Campus for Ageing and Vitality and its National Institute for Smart Data Innovation, NISDI; the Centre for Process Innovation; and the various Catapult centres.

“It has been really carefully planned to integrate into these kind of economic drivers in the region,’’ she says.

UTCs, which are government funded, teach 14 to 18-yearolds, with an emphasis on STEM subjects, and with the close involvement of local employers in both framing the curriculum content and in its delivery.

There are about 60 UTCs now around the UK, either open or about to open, including UTC South Durham, sponsored by Hitachi and Gestamp Tallent, which will focus on specialised manufacturing and engineering and which opened in September 2016. UTC students study the national curriculum, but also have a heavy emphasis on a technology - or technologies - specific to an individual UTC. Shaw is a teacher by profession and has spent 12 years as head in two schools, most recently at Seaton Burn College where she worked closely with businesses to expose

U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S 185 www.bqlive.co.uk

186 U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S www.bqlive.co.uk

students to entrepreneurship and design and to integrate an understanding of the workplace environment with the exam-driven curriculum.

She says: “I think a school for our time needs to do more of that in more of a sustained way, particularly in areas where models of work aren’t as visible for young people as they are in some other areas of the country or in particularly affluent areas of our region. It’s difficult for children to picture what it takes to find opportunity, grasp opportunity and be successful.

“In order to do that right across the region I think that it takes partnerships that go beyond school as well as within school and that’s what I think UTCs can do because of the way that they’re designed.’’

She adds: “In order to have the kind of impact, I think we need it designing in such a way that employers are involved from the start and are bound in to continue in a sustained manner, designing the curriculum, delivering the curriculum, exemplifying with great projects and applications why what the students are learning is relevant and how they can apply it.’’

She points out that while mainstream education does great things and that some of its one-off interventions are worthwhile, it cannot fully address the problem so that, for example, only 20% of students doing physics A-Level are girls and that hasn’t changed in 30 years, and still only 10% of the nation’s engineers are women.

“That suggests a new approach is needed,’’ she says.

“That’s why I think this offers a fantastic and really exciting opportunity.’’

The predicted number of students at the college, when it’s full, will be 600, drawn from a catchment area which includes, Tyneside, Northumberland and County Durham. There will be about 35 teachers with a team of support staff. The UTC’s main sponsors are Accenture, The Academic Health Science Network and University of Sunderland. It also has the support of partners which include, among others, the NHS Trusts and companies such as biotech company Glythera, Kromek, and Datatrial.

The working day for the students will run from 8.30am to 5pm and the curriculum will be based on a core of GCSEs in maths, statistics, computing, physics, chemistry, biology,

“A top – if not the top – performance indicator, is that no young person leaves the UTC without a very clear destination to go on to” English, and English literature.

“Then every young person will do courses which will help them with thinking skills, with entrepreneurship, with some sense of philosophy and design, which is critically important,’’ says Shaw. “In Key Stage 4 they will spend two full afternoons a week on projects which integrate their learning, so they’ll need design and creativity just as much as they’ll need STEM subjects to apply their learning in an integrated way to the projects and problems that our employers set them.’’

U N I V E R S I T I E S A N D C O L L E G E S 187 www.bqlive.co.uk

The students will meet the requirements of the national curriculum but the involvement of employers will be central to their education.

Shaw explains: “If they are covering a particular project in chemistry, for example, the likelihood is that they’ll do some of the experiments and apply some of the learning within a business setting or by the staff involving people from some of our partner companies to explain how those things play out in reality. It brings the curriculum to life in a different way.’’ The involvement of the employers will also include mentoring, internships, masterclasses and lectures.

In particular they will plan and deliver projects working in partnership with the teachers and, along with the teachers they will be an audience for the students’ work.

“There’s really strong evidence from across the world, particularly from the US, that that understanding from children, when performing for a real audience, on real work makes magic and they always, in my experience, come up with the goods,’’ she says.

The college building will contain a business innovation hub for young businesses supported by the employer businesses with mentoring and expertise.

“Part of what these tenant businesses pay us, instead of being rent, will be mentoring and showing young people what it feels like to have the energy to set up a business.’’

Shaw says she is comfortable with describing North East Futures as a school, but she adds: “It will feel anything but like it’s a school, partly because there will be business people coming in and out of the building all of the time. One of the reasons we are so determined to have it right in the centre of the city is that we would like it to be an environment where people from the world of work don’t just come to help our children, but that they come because it’s of benefit to them.

“It won’t feel like a school, it will feel like a really exciting business environment.’’

The students won’t be given homework but will be expected to work hard during the longer school day on assignments and collaboratively in groups. They won’t wear uniform but business clothes as appropriate to different environments.

Shaw says: “The children who will want to come to this school need to understand it’s going to be hard work and,

while not limiting them to IT careers or healthcare science careers at all, it will still bring work to life.’’

In addition to the core qualifications of GCSEs and A-Levels there will also be available specific, careeroriented vocational qualifications which are not necessarily identified in school league tables but which are identified by employers as being important in their sectors.

What will they go on to do?

“The first thing to say about that is that a top – if not the top – performance indicator, is that no young person leaves the UTC without a very clear destination to go on to,’’ she says firmly. “So the notion of Neet [Not in education, employment or training], which unfortunately the North East has a very high proportion of – we will have none.’’

She envisages that some of the students will follow a strongly academic route with a significant part of the sixth curriculum being A-Levels, enabling a “significant proportion’’ of the students to go on to university. She points out that UTCs elsewhere in the country are sending more students to university than the national average.

Typically the students will go on to do science and applied science degrees and perhaps degree level apprenticeships.

“It’s likely that significant proportions of them will go on into IT related, bio-tech related and natural sciences with a strong focus on vocational routes in the areas that they have experienced,’’ she says. “Others will go on to apprenticeships and we would expect them to be doing advanced and higher apprenticeships in large numbers.’’

The UTC is governed by a board of trustees. Its next objective is to secure a site for the new college and an announcement as expected by the end of summer 2016.

This will be followed by marketing and raising awareness of the college among potential students and their parents and Shaw believes the six-week period of statutory consultation will provide a perfect opportunity for this. Once a funding agreement is in place, building can begin, along with the recruitment of a principal, deputy principal and some administrative staff.

“I’m really excited by this and absolutely driven by a sense of what we can achieve,’ says Shaw. n Full interview first appeared in BQ magazine in 2016

UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES - STATISTICS The North East has over 100,000 university students per annum (Source: fDi Intelligence based on Higher Education Statistical Agency: Students in Higher Education Institutes 2013/14)

Nearly 50,000 STEM students (Source: Higher Education Statistical Agency: Students in Higher Education Institutes 2013/14)

Over 2,000 university undergraduate and postgraduate courses are offered by the region’s five universities

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

GIVING BACK So many firms are realising the importance of giving something back to the region that is helping them grow

190 G I V I N G B A C K www.bqlive.co.uk

Vital lifeline in an uncertain climate Social enterprise, the voluntary sector and community sector continue to play a critical role as political shockwaves take their toll, says Barbara Gubbins, chief executive of the County Durham and Darlington Community Foundation As we embark on 2017, it is interesting to reflect on the last year’s political shockwaves – firstly Brexit in the summer and more recently the election of Donald Trump.

Although there is a huge divide of water between the UK and the USA, it appears the determinant is similar - a vote for wanting to be heard.

From a North East voluntary and community perspective, the effect of Brexit has yet to be experienced. The sector is still recovering from the recession in 2008, the demise of the Northern Rock Foundation and the colossal public sector cuts. These three elements in particular have hugely impacted on charities and community groups in our area who have been fighting to keep their heads above water and meet the need, whilst at the same time ensure they meet ever-demanding governance and compliance controls.

Unfortunately, the devolution debate and uncertainty has not helped but it is hoped that the North East can retain cohesion to help strengthen its positioning in the future.

Despite this, the sector moves on, just ‘gets on with it’ and continues to plug critical gaps that can no longer be met by public bodies.

However, there is a growing awareness by the larger voluntary sector groups that they need to review their business model, develop more sustainable income streams and commercialise their services. The changes to welfare

G I V I N G B A C K 191 www.bqlive.co.uk

benefits, social prescribing and commissioning will increase the pressure for charities to potentially charge for provision or investigate the social enterprise model.

The smaller grassroots groups, who are almost entirely made up of dedicated volunteers, have been less affected as they have their regular supporters and fundraising techniques in place which are tried and tested. This includes uniformed associations, sports clubs and activitybased organisations. In County Durham they can tap into Area Action Partnership funding and small grants from the Community Foundation.

It could be concluded that the term ‘voluntary’ sector is no longer fit for purpose and may need to be addressed sooner rather than later, with the impetus to increase the number of professionals who volunteer and a requirement to understand how this vast conglomerate of bodies fits together.

As Brexit starts to draw nearer, planning for the loss of European funding will be essential. The North East has benefited significantly from this income stream but it may be an opportunity for organisations to do some blue sky thinking.

Compliance with European programmes is intense and the high level of reporting and defrayed payment schemes can be extremely difficult and onerous. Although charities and community groups need to continue to be robust in their governance and management processes, freeing up this element of time could be liberating for them and

their clients and enhance long-term outcomes. One thing is certain – change will continue and should be addressed and accepted.

From a community foundation perspective, we have seen changes in the nature and behaviour of those applying for funding. Although we are largely a small grant-maker, uptake from larger organisations has grown - no doubt putting a strain on their resources as they fish in everincreasing pools for core funding.

We have a responsibility to understand the priorities of the communities we serve, and how we best engage with them and our donors in order to make the most impact.

Despite the recession, the giving in our county and that of our sister community foundation serving Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, has significantly been boosted, which is very encouraging. But we must continue to tell the stories of what is being provided by our sector and where the gaps are in order to expand the band of philanthropists.

The North East has been incredibly fortunate that Jonathan and Jane Ruffer have settled in Bishop Auckland, with the vision to transform not only a town but a region.

This is inspiring and evidences thoughtful philanthropy. If this model of developing people through volunteering is observed and replicated, the sector will be strengthened and communities truly regenerated.

So although there is much to consider, the future is bright as long as positivity, foresight and courageous leadership are embraced as the UK enters a new era. n

“The sector moves on, just gets on with it and continues to plug critical gaps that can no longer be met by public bodies”

GIVING BACK - STATISTICS In the last financial year Tees Valley Community Foundation issued grants totaling £538,000 to 217 beneficiaries There are approximately 62,000 social enterprises in the UK with a combined turnover of at least £27 billion. Social enterprises account for 5% of all businesses with employees, and contribute £8.4 billion per year to the UK economy Tyne and Wear Community Foundation has built an endowment of over £65 million and has awarded more than £100 million in grants Between 1,000 and 2,000 social enterprises operate in the North East. These range from very large enterprises with turnovers of several million pounds to micro enterprises with no paid employees County Durham and Darlington Community Foundation has an endowment pot of £13m and has issued £30m of grants to 12,000 groups over 20 years

THE 2017 YEARBOOK

TOURISM One of our most successful sectors, setting the scene for investment and growth

194 T O U R I S M www.bqlive.co.uk

Creating a warm welcome Bernard Bloodworth is joint chair of the North East Hotels Association which, with 45 members, is the biggest in England. He looks at some of the challenges facing the hotel, hospitality and conferencing sector Hotels are an important part of the North East economy, with almost 5,000 bedrooms and generating almost £250m in sales. We buy more than £70m of products and services – many from local suppliers – and employ over 3,500 people and have supported an estimated additional 1,125 jobs in our supply chain and the wider economy.

We generate revenues from people staying in our hotels, and also stimulate wider spending of £400m by those same guests on eating out, visiting attractions, shopping and so on. The total contribution from NEHA hotels to the North East economy is £650m.

There are seismic shifts taking place within the hospitality industry driven by factors ranging from the sharing economy, industry consolidation, digitally-armed Millennials, to volatility in currency markets, online travel agency dominance and ageing demographics, and from international air routes to Brexit.

Once ahead of the curve, the hotel industry is now playing

technology catch-up. Guests are relaxed with advanced technology and frustrated at non-iterative room controls, slow broadband, patchy phone signals and unreliable key cards. Guests now bring their own entertainment. Streamed web content is delivered through smartphones and tablets.

Technology through automation, biometrics, smarter phones, facial image and eye recognition and holography will deliver a faster check in, better guest security, enhanced loyalty programme profiling and more on-demand services.

But the real advances will come through Google cardboard, artificial intelligence, Blockchain, drones, the Internet of Things, robots, virtual reality and 3D printing.

Hotel supply in the Newcastle Gateshead hospitality market has been seriously out of balance for the past eight years.

The increase in bedstock was unequalled in England. Other competitive destinations have been winning corporate and association business from the North East with enhanced conference and exhibition capacity. The traditional meetings

T O U R I S M 195 www.bqlive.co.uk

market underpinned by public sector events and regional marketing funding disappeared following the financial crisis and has not been replaced. The single biggest catalyst to driving hotel performance is a regional conference centre.

The £30m Gateshead conference centre was scrapped as financially unviable after ten years of planning, yet many believe that a city region is defined by its ability to host major conferences and events.

Events are hugely important to all destinations and the Rugby World Cup and Magic Weekends in the North East were outstanding. But adjacent regions such as Scotland and Yorkshire have been able to invest more heavily in bigger events such as the Ryder Cup, Commonwealth Games and Tour de France and to present a single destination image.

Attracting and developing talented people is our biggest single challenge. For years, the industry has spoken of the skills shortage—the mismatch between the skills people possess and the skills employers’ need. The industry say that people are increasingly entering the job market without the range of skills required for hospitality jobs, including literacy, numeracy, and basic information IT competency. Hospitality has the highest employee turnover level, the highest level of vacancies, the highest level of difficulty to fill vacancies and the highest level of retention difficulties of any sector.

Labour is also the largest single cost centre in any hotel, and the biggest barrier to greater productivity. Working closely with Newcastle College, our objective is to create flexible, hybrid talent that can multi-task, ensuring they are well prepared in a work environment where they are constantly stimulated and can excel. The degree to which those in related jobs can substitute each other will determine the increase in productivity and job satisfaction.

Over the past four years we have hosted the North East Hotels Excellence Awards seeking out the best people – those that have gone the extra mile in providing outstanding service and shown real future potential.

An enthusiastic 118 candidates were proposed for the excellence awards. Each submitted a written case and was videoed before being shortlisted and judged.

At an Oscar style event, the shortlisted finalists joined over four hundred guests to enjoy a spectacular celebration of our people and to sample an award-winning menu.

The calibre of contestants makes us optimistic for the future of the sector in the North East. n

The winners of the North East England Tourism Awards were announced in November 2016. They were: • Boutique Accommodation/Small Hotel of the Year Carraw Bed and Breakfast • Bed and Breakfast of the Year St Cuthbert’s House • Business Tourism Provider of the Year Rockliffe Hall Hotel, Golf & Spa • Dog Friendly Business of the Year South Causey Inn • Guided Tour of the Year Cullercoats Bike & Kayak • Holiday Park of the Year Northumbrian Water - Kielder Waterside • Hotel of the Year Rockliffe Hall Hotel, Golf & Spa • Inclusive Tourism Award Go North East • Large Visitor Attraction of the Year Beamish, The Living Museum of the North • Self-Catering Provider of the Year Mill Granary Cottages • Self-Catering Property of the Year Woodside Lodge • Small Visitor Attraction of the Year Bowlees Visitor Centre • Sustainable Tourism Award Battlesteads Hotel & Restaurant • Taste Award Battlesteads Hotel & Restaurant • Tourism Pub of the Year Battlesteads Hotel & Restaurant

196 P R O F I L E NGI

P R O F I L E 197 NGI

Building a cultural legacy to boost the regional economy Building a cultural legacy to boost the regional economy Tourism across the North East has seen steady and sustained growth in the last two decades, and much of this is as a result of a focus on cultural regeneration, capital investment and the commitment demonstrated across the public and private sectors to establish the area as a vibrant visitor destination.

March 2017 will mark 15 years since NewcastleGateshead’s bid to be European Capital of Culture was submitted. The rest, as they say, is history. We didn’t win, but that didn’t stop the public, private and creative sectors coming together to make NewcastleGateshead a cultural capital in its own right. In the same year, BALTIC, Biscuit Factory and the Workplace Gallery all opened their doors. Our culture10 programme, launched off the back of the bid, curated and created some of the most exciting festivals and events to take place - not just here in the North East, but the UK. Since 2003, the value of the visitor economy across North East England has grown by £900m and is now worth £3.9bn. In the last 10 years £400m has been invested in building tourism infrastructure, so today, our status as a leading cultural destination remains strong.

In October, it was announced that NewcastleGateshead had won a hotly contested competition to host the Great Exhibition of the North. With £5m of government funding towards a delivery pot of at least £10m, it will be the biggest event of its kind in the UK in 2018. These large-scale events have a far-reaching positive impact. Helping to boost the regional economy by raising the profile of the place, challenging outdated perceptions and providing a reason for high-spending tourists to visit.

Attracting major events is just one way that we fulfil our mission to grow the economy and encourage people to not just visit, but to live, learn, work and invest in NewcastleGateshead and the wider North East region. Our tourism campaigns continue to position the place as an exciting city-break destination; in the last year our Convention Bureau has confirmed meetings and events pumping over £1m worth of direct revenue into our regional venues; and our targeted Invest Newcastle work

positions us as a leading city to do business, helping companies locate and expand here; securing more than 850 jobs in the last year alone. An event like Great Exhibition of the North provides a platform to expand on all of these business aims. As well as attracting national and international visitors, the exhibition will seek to challenge negative perceptions of what the North is and build a sense of pride for those living here. As a showcase for the innovative sectors across the North, it will help to maximise economic potential by attracting inward investment from the UK and overseas, and support work to attract and retain the brightest and best talent, and will aim to encourage young people (women in particular) to pursue a career in STEM related industries. As we build towards delivering the biggest event of next year, 2017 is a great opportunity to take stock of how the destination has flourished as well as look ahead to the significant opportunities on offer in the next 12 months and beyond.

This year Hadrian’s Cavalry (hadrianscavalry.co.uk) and Freedom City 2017 (freedomcity2017.com), two major cultural programmes that we’re involved in promoting, will attract visitors and further support the growth of the visitor economy.

Hadrian’s Cavalry launches on 08 April, uncovering 2000 years of history and the stories of the Roman Cavalry stationed along Hadrian’s Wall. November marks 50 years since Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. received an honorary degree from Newcastle University, Freedom City 2017 will pay tribute to his passionate and moving acceptance speech delivered at Newcastle University on 13 November 1967. Both events celebrate our history and heritage, and build on our strengths in innovation that help create an exciting and vibrant future for the place.

Sarah Stewart OBE is chief executive of NewcastleGateshead Initiative, the destination management and marketing agency and lead delivery partner for Great Exhibition of the North.

For more information visit www.ngi.org.uk

TRAVEL - STATISTICS

Most visited free attractions

Durham Cathedral BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art Great North Museum: Hancock Discovery Museum Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens Laing Art Gallery National Glass Centre Locomotion The National Railway Museum at Shildon Woodhorn, Museum and Northumberland Archives South Shields Museum and Art Gallery

8 CELEBR ATI N G 3 5 Y E A R S O F BU SI N ESS 8

Durham School Confidence for Life

Independent Day & Boarding . Since 1414 Girls and Boys . Age 3-18

Confidence for Life

Every day is an open day Durham School is one of the country’s leading independent schools for boys and girls aged 3-18. We offer a first class education in a caring family environment.

Every day is an open da

To arrange a visit call 0191 386 4783 or email admissions@durhamschool.co.uk www.durhamschool.co.uk Durham School is one of the country’s leading independent scho