Harrison Clark

Regional law firm Harrison Clark Rickerbys, which has its headquarters in Worcester, has completed its merger with 176-year-old firm Hewitsons.

Managing partner Rod Thomas said: “We are pleased both that the merger has been completed successfully and that it has been received positively by the staff and clients of both firms.”

Colin Jones, former managing partner of Hewitsons, said: “We all recognise the strengths each party brings to this merger and we’re looking forward to developing those further across a wider network.”

The move brings the two firms together into a firm of approximately 780 people with a £65 million turnover.

Harrison Clark Rickerbys (trading as HCR Hewitsons in Cambridge, Milton Keynes and Northampton) has offices in Birmingham, Cambridge, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Hereford, London, Milton Keynes, Northampton, Hereford, Thames Valley, Worcester and the Wye Valley.

Chippenham based Vectura agrees £958 million takeover

Vectura Group PLC has agreed a £958 million takeover by Carlyle Group, a global private equity firm with $260 billion of assets under management.

Vectura, which employs around

450 people, provides innovative inhaled drug delivery products to bring medicines to patients. It is one of the few companies globally with the device, formulation and development capabilities to deliver a broad range of complex inhaled therapies.

Developer St. Modwen to sell to US-based Blackstone for £1.2 billion

St. Modwen, the Solihull-based property investment and development business, has agreed its sale to the USA-based global investment company Blackstone for around £1.2 billion.

In February the company said it intended to focus on housebuilding and logistics after reporting a loss for 2020 of nearly £121 million, following its profit of close to £50 million in 2019.

Danuta Gray, chair of St Modwen, said: “Over the last four years, St. Modwen has successfully reshaped its business to focus on logistics and housebuilding. Following careful consideration, we believe this offer is in the best interests of St. Modwen