KIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSThe business NEWSpaper for Kir k lees6, December, 2011

INSIDE

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● Full story - Page 8

● Full story - Page 8

Themosttrustednewsbrandin thebusiness

BOB LYNCH

Fu l l i n te r v i ew - Page 3Backing for smal l f i rms

Co lumn - Page 4

An EXAMINER publication

PoliticalbriefingTWo local politicianswill debate businessissues affecting localfirms at a briefingorganised byHuddersfield law firmBaxter Caulfield.Colne Valley MP JasonMcCartney andYorkshire MEP TimothyKirkhope will meetbusinessrepresentatives onFriday at the BriarCourt Hotel,Birchencliffe.

BrandidentitySTUDENTS at KirkleesCollege got the chanceto show off theircreative skills in achallenge to come upwith ideas to re-brandits businessdepartment ready forthe move to a newcampus in 2012.

J ILL HAGUEFTSE 100+15.67

5567.96

Revamped Business Link is ready to helpTHE revamped Business Link haslaunched new services to help Kirkleescompanies grow.

Business Link, which now operatesonline, has set up start-up service MyNew Business and the Growth andImprovement Service at www.busi-nesslink.gov.uk/newservices.

My New Business helps people inthe early stages of starting a business.

It provides a wealth of information,including more than 100 videos and100 e-learning tutorials and tools; aswell as further guidance for getting abusiness up and running, from writingbusiness plans to securing funding.

For established firms, the Growthand Improvement Service providespractical guidance to help people getmore out of their business – such as

generating more sales, increasingprofits, and saving time and money.

The support, tools and short know-ledge bites help established businessesdeal with challenges and maximiseopportunit ies, from practical ,day-to-day tasks to more strategicguidance on business developmentand expansion.

Business Link has also enhanced its

Events and Business Support findersto help people find networking andbusiness events throughout Yorkshireand public-funded sources of help.

This could be anything from finan-cial support, to advice on investing innew equipment or machinery, or tak-ing new products or services to mar-k e t . G o t o w w w . b u s i n e s slink.gov.uk/newservices

Bathrooms firm istapping into talentHUDDERSFIELD Town chairmanDean Hoyle is well-known for hisentrepreneurial skills.

Now he is taking the plunge into theworld of bathrooms thanks to theclub’s partner bathrooms4all and thetown’s university.

Dean will join Town legend AndyBooth, commercial manager TracyNelson, bathrooms4all chairmanCraig Waddington and bathrooms4allproduct designer Lee Reed in judgingthe work of product design studentsfrom the university, who will bedesigning a new piece of bathroomfurniture suitable for the UK marketover an eight-week period.

If the winning selection suitablyimpresses the judging panel, a proto-type will be produced by the designteam at bathrooms4all – and it couldeven go on sale in their stores nation-wide.

Tracy said: “We are thrilled that thefootball club could facilitate this newpartnership between our partner bath-rooms4all and the University of Hud-dersfield, I believe the deal should

massively benefit both parties.”She said: “Bathrooms4all can tap

into the undoubted talent that exists inthe university’s design students andcould get a new product to sell in theirstores, whereas the students will getthe chance to work on a live projectthat could result in a real-life endproduct.

“Bathrooms4all have been anincredibly proactive partner in ouryear together and this is yet anotherbrilliant idea that we can’t wait to getstarted.”

Lee said: “We’re looking forward tojudging the final designs of the stu-dents and we’d also like to thank ChrisHoward of the university for giving usthe opportunity to work with his stu-dents.

“We hope the final chosen designwill be something that we can proudlyadd to our portfolio.”

Chris, course leader at the uni-versity, added: “The product designcourse at Huddersfield is intended toprepare our students for real-worldsituations.

“We do this by undertaking 'live'projects with companies and exposingthe students to the pressures thatpresenting their work to the designersand executives of those companiesbrings.

“We are delighted to be working

with bathrooms4all and HuddersfieldTown and we look forward to someexcellent student proposals which canimpress them. Lee Reed, from bath-rooms4all, is himself one of my formerstudents and he knows the advantagesof this type of collaboration.”

■ TAKING THE PLUNGE: Town ambassador Andy Booth (left) meertsstudents who are taking part complete a design project for bathrooms4all

Seating plans take shape

www.chadwicklawrence.co.ukHuddersfield | Wakefield | Halifax | Leeds

Solicitors for business inYorkshire

KIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWS national Page 2

SHARE PRICESLocal shares

FTSE closed at

5567.96Up 15.67

Carclo 312 +53/4Marshalls 89 -3/4National Grid 605 -21/2Weir Gp £203/8 -3/8

TOURIST RATES

Tourists going abroad can expectthe following rates for sterling:Australia...................... 1.45 dollarsBangladesh................. 113.59 takaBrazil.............................. 2.50 realsCanada....................... 1.51 dollarsChina ............................. 8.89 yuanCzech Republic ...... 26.89 korunasDenmark....................... 8.23 kroneEuro................................ 1.11 euroHong Kong................ 11.53 dollarsHungary ................... 315.10 forintsIndia.......................... 70.74 rupeesJapan........................... 116.04 yenMexico ....................... 18.79 pesosNew Zealand .............. 1.87 dollarsNorway ......................... 8.60 kronePakistan.................. 131.58 rupeesPhilippines ................. 57.94 pesosSouth Africa.................. 11.70 randSouth Korea.............. 1536.00 wonSri Lanka ................ 168.01 rupeesSweden....................... 10.04 kronaSwitzerland.................. 1.37 francsTaiwan ...................... 41.21 dollarsTurkey....................... 2.70 new liraUSA ............................ 1.49 dollars

NORTH AMERICANAmerican Express £31.26 +0.52Gannett 852.77 +93.69Hess Corp £39.34 +1.32Microsoft 1639.90 +32.50Motors Liquidation 47.80Wal-Mart Stores £37.17 +0.15

AEROSPACE & DEFENCEAvon Rbbr 301 -3BAE Systems 2753/4 +27/8Rolls-Royce 714 -61/2

AIMBrady Plc 761/2 +1Dawson Intl 11/4Man Brnze 331/4

AUTOMOBILES & PARTSG K N 1943/4 +1

BANKSBarclays 1915/8 +1HSBC 518 +71/4Lloyds Banking Gp 27 +15/8Ryl Scotland 223/4 +11/8Stan Chart 14541/2 +2

BEVERAGESDiageo 13541/2 -1/2SABMiller £223/8

CHEMICALSCroda 1850 +6Elementis 98 147 -1Johnsn Mat 1918 +16

CONSTRUCTION & MATERIALSBalfour Beatty 2583/4 +73/8Costain 2071/2 +13/4

ELECTRICITY

Drax Gp 5431/2 +9Intl Power 3341/4 +21/4SSE 1277 +3

ELECTRONIC & ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENTLaird 1471/4 +3/8

EQUITY INVESTMENT INSTRUMENTSAlliance Trust 3463/4 +1/8

FIXED LINE TELECOM SERVICESBT Grp 1885/8 +31/8Cable & WirelessComm

377/8 -3/8

Cable & WirelessWwide

171/8 +1/4

Colt Group 943/4 +17/8KCOM 74 +1Talktalk Telecom 1351/4 +13/4

FOOD & DRUG RETAILERSMorrison W 3173/4 +11/8Sainsbury 2983/8 -3/4Tesco 4063/4 +13/4

FOOD PRODUCERSAB Food 1117 +1Tate Lyle 6611/2 -21/2Unilever £211/8 +1/8

GAS, WATER & MULTIUTILITIESCentrica 2931/8 -31/4National Grid 605 -21/2Pennon Grp 695 +4Severn 1498United Utils 6151/2 +21/2

GENERAL FINANCIAL3i Group 1903/4 +1/2ICAP 3683/8 -5/8London StockExch 854 +3Man Group 1463/8 +4

Provident Financial 991 -6Schroders 1409 +26Schroders NV 1146 +4

GENERAL INDUSTRIALSCooksn Grp 5111/2 +211/8REXAM 3485/8 +31/4Smiths Grp 957 +4

GENERAL RETAILERSAshley L 191/4 -1/2Carphone Whse 329 -51/2Dixons Retail 117/8 +3/8Home Retail 1007/8 +21/2Inchcape 329 +3/4Kingfisher 2627/8 -5/8M & S 329 -11/8Mothercare 164 +33/4Next £265/8 -5/8WH Smith 517 +3

HEALTH CARE EQUIPMENT & SERVICESSmith Nph 5931/2 -21/2

HOUSEHOLD GOODSAga Rangemaster 69 -13/4Barrat Dev 991/4 -2Persimmon 4913/8 -185/8Reckitt Benckiser £321/4 +1/8Taylor Wimpey 381/8 -13/8

INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERINGCharter 932 -3I M I 7941/2 +16

INDUSTRIAL METALSFerrexpo 3077/8 +133/8

INDUSTRIAL TRANSPORTATIONBBA Aviation 1831/8 +65/8

LIFE INSURANCE

Aviva 3265/8 +53/4Lgl & Gen 1087/8 +7/8Old Mutual 1193/4 +13/4Prudential 649Resolution 2571/2 +43/8Standard Life 2085/8 +11/8

MEDIABSkyB 7581/2 -6D Mail Tst 4007/8 +27/8ITV 651/4 +1/8Johnston Press 43/4Pearson 1139 -4Reed Elsevier 5251/2 +11/2STV Group 871/8Trinity Mirror 501/2 +13/4Utd Business 4973/4 +1/8UTV 100 -4WPP 6711/2 -2Yell Group 6

MININGAnglo American £25 +1/4Antofagasta 1203 +4BHP Billiton £201/8 +1/8Eurasian NaturalRes

6871/2 +13

Fresnillo 1757 +4Kazakhmys 9681/2 +121/2Lonmin 1076 +13Rio Tinto £337/8 +3/8VEDANTARESOURCES

1111 +25

Xstrata 10321/2 -31/2MOBILE TELECOM SERVICES

Inmarsat 432 -61/4Vodafone Group 173 +1

NONLIFE INSURANCEAdmiral Grp 9271/2 +16

RSA Insurance Gp 1083/4 -1/8OIL & GAS PRODUCERS

BG 1366 +2BP 4661/4 +11/2Cairn Energy 278 +4Royal Dutch Shell A £221/2 +1/8Royal Dutch Shell B £231/4 +1/4Total £331/4 +1/8Tullow Oil 1392 -11

OIL EQUIPMENT & SERVICESAMEC 9531/2 +101/2Petrofac 1479 +23Wood Gp(J) 674 +111/2

PERSONAL GOODSBurberry Gp 1272 -44PHARMACEUTICALS & BIOTECHNOLOGY

Astrazeneca £291/8 -1/8GlaxoSmithK XD 22

Shire £211/8 -1/8

REAL ESTATEBrit Land 4953/4 -73/4Captl Shop Cent 320 -43/8DTZ Hldgs 7Hamrsn 3851/4 -51/8Land Secs 677 -6SEGRO 218 -71/4

SOFTWARE ETC SERVICESInvensys 2091/8 +3/8Logica 787/8 +2Misys 2551/8 +61/8Sage Group 2873/8 -31/4

SUPPORT SERVICESBerendsen 4251/2 +21/8Bunzl 8281/2 -11/2Capita 636 +41/2De La Rue 884 +21/2Electrocomp 209 +23/4Experian 844 +41/2G4S 2555/8 -1Hays 705/8 -1/2Homeserve 2805/8 +105/8Menzies J 5121/2 +21/2Rentokil 66 +7/8Smiths News 821/4 -1/4Wolseley 1903 -21

IT HARDWAREARM Hldgs 5891/2 -11Psion 511/4 -21/2Spirent Comms 124 +17/8

TOBACCOBr Am Tob £293/8 -1/4Imperial Tobacco £23 +1/8

LEISURE & HOTELS

Bwin.Party Digital 1431/2 +31/8Carnival £225/8 +1/8Compass Grp 586 -31/2easyJet 3861/4 +53/8Enterprise Inns 403/4 +41/4FirstGroup 3163/4 -51/4Go-Ahead Gp 1227 +4Greene King 4693/8 +11/2Intercontl Htls 1116 -5Intl Cons AirlinesGp

1577/8 +43/8

Ladbrokes 1311/2Mitchells & Butlers 2355/8 +51/8Natl Express 2153/4 +31/8Rank Org 1481/4 +21/2Stagecoach Group 2433/4 -41/4TUI Travel 1663/8 -31/4Whitbread 1642

INDEXFTSE 100 5567.96 +15.67

INDEXFTSE 250 10368.26 +60.94

BRITAIN’S biggest holiday firm TUITravel outperformed rival Thomas Cook– but warned that winter bookings in theUK had slowed in the face of weakconsumer sentiment.

The Thomson Holidays and FirstC h o i c e ow n e r re p o r t e d a 1 2 %year-on-year drop in winter 2011/12bookings as at November 27, comparedto an 11% decline at its last update onSeptember 11, as capacity – hit by tur-moil in Egypt and Tunisia – was reducedby 9%.

But the recent weak trade followed arecord full-year performance as highermargin holidays helped drive a 15%increase in underlying operating profitsin the UK to £147m and an 18% rise ingroup profits to £471m in the year toSeptember 30.

TUI said sales of differentiatedproducts – concept holidays unique to

TUI brands – such as water park Splash-World, Holiday Village resorts andchild-free Couples holidays, grew by 14%in the UK during the 12 months.

The robust performance comes shortlyafter Thomas Cook spooked holiday-makers and investors when it turned to itsbanks for extra support in the wake ofdeteriorating sales.

Shares in TUI were more than 2%higher following the full-year results.

TUI said people were leaving it later tobook, reflecting the continuing issues inNorth Africa and the consumer spendingsqueeze.

TUI said capacity in the UK hadreduced as it moved aircraft within thegroup to serve higher demand in itsmarkets in Canada and Scandinavia.

The group, which serves about 30mcustomers and operates in 180 countries,said average selling prices are up by 5%,

reflecting cost inflation of about 4% butalso the higher proportion of differenti-ated products, which are up by 12% incurrent trading.

Peter Long, TUI chief executive, said:“We are very pleased with our robustperformance in 2011 and have deliveredanother year of profit growth, against abackdrop of unrest in key North Africandestinations and weak consumer senti-ment in some source markets.”

TUI said it was early in the bookingcycle for summer 2012 as most of itsmarkets launch their main edition bro-chures in December. So far it has sold19% of the season’s programme, withbookings 11% lower than the year before,partly reflecting the reduction in capacity.Average selling prices are up by 9%.

The final dividend is up 2.6% to 8p ashare giving a total of 11.3p for theyear.

Slowdown followsrecord year for TUI

■ COLD PRINT: TUI sayswinter bookings are weaker

Start-upsincreaseNEW business start-upsare expected tooutnumber companyfailures by more thanfour to one this year.

A survey by businessintelligence expertsCreditsafe said companyinsolvencies were likelyto rise by 4% during2011 – but start-ups arepredicted to rise by 18%with 471,466 new firmsthis year compared with400,570 in 2010.

Yorkshire is expectedto see 28,802 newbusinesses up andrunning this year, puttingthe region ahead ofScotland (26,253), theEast Midlands (19,870),the North East (11,711),Wales (8,868) andNorthern Ireland (5,350).

Across the UK, the firstthree quarters of 2011saw a net 386,000increase in registeredlimited companies. Thewhole of the year isexpected to see about455,000 new businessesadded to the UK marketafter insolvencies aretaken into account.

London is the centre ofbusiness start-ups withalmost 160,000 newbusinesses expected tobe set up by the end ofthe year while the SouthEast is the second mostpopular location forfledgling businesses.

David Knowles,business developmentdirector at Creditsafe,said: “This year has beendifficult, but theentrepreneurial spirit ofthe British public isalive-and-kicking.

“Overall, growth in theUK business populationhas actually acceleratedin 2011.”

A LEADING recruitment firm warnedthe eurozone crisis and economicuncertainty were draining confid-ence across most of its markets.

Michael Page International, whichemploys about 1,400 people in theUK, said tough conditions meant itwould miss City forecasts for annualprofits, causing its shares to fall byabout 10%.

The slowdown has also hit thecompany’s faster-growing AsiaPacific market, while a freeze onpublic sector hirings following theGovernment’s package of spendingcuts has caused UK profits to stall.

The company said: “Since Octo-ber, markets have continued to

weaken as the eurozone crisis andthe lowering of growth forecastsworldwide have reduced client andcandidate confidence levels.

“This increased uncertainty andlower confidence is affecting mostareas of our business and, as aresult, our gross profit growth ratesfor the last two months have slowedfurther.”

Michael Page reported profitsgrowth of 16% for October andNovember against a 26.5% riseacross the third quarter of its finan-cial year. Pre-tax profits will be mar-ginally below the bottom end ofanalysts’ current range of forecastsfor between £86.5m and £114.2m.

Eurozone crisis hits staffing firmA MEMBER of Network Rail’s gov-erning body has voiced “severedoubts” that the rail firm’s perform-ance will justify any bonuses for itsbosses this year.

The issue is set to be raised at ameeting on Thursday of NR’s 95public members amid a pledge byDeputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg tobalance austerity in the public sectorwith a crackdown on “abhorrent” topcorporate pay.

New NR chief executive Sir DavidHiggins stopped bonuses for 2010while the system was investigated, buta new scheme is being planned whichcritics say would allow executives to

be paid 60% on top of their salaries.Lord Berkeley, a public member of

NR, said in a letter that executivesshould renounce any bonuses thisyear.

He dismissed the argument largebonuses should be paid to attractgood managers pointing out that NRis effectively a public monopoly whichcan never go bust.

He voiced severe doubts that NR’sperformance justified bonuses for thisyear. Commenting on public percep-tion, he added that the High PayCommission had published a reportwarning that large pay deals were“corrosive” to the economy.

Anger over NR bonuses

KIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWS profile Page 3

Bob Lynch

TransformOfficeInteriors

HENRYK ZIENTEK

Role: OwnerAge: 55Family: Married toSara with sons Adam,28, and Fraser, 21Holidays: Skiathos,Greece, for the cultureand characterCar: Saab 95First job: MotormechanicBest thing aboutjob: Having a visionand turning that intoreality for the cus-tomerWorst thing aboutjob: It doesn’t leavemuch spare time!Business tip: Planyour work and workyour plan. Prioritiseand re-prioritise

Work: Office fur-niture and equipmentSite: OakesPhone: 01484462227Email: sales@transformoffice.comWeb: www.transformoffice.com

Meetthechairman!

ARE you sitting comfortably?If not, Bob Lynch is just theperson to help.

With more than 30 years’experience in the officefurniture and equipmentsector, there’s not much Bobdoesn’t know about thesubject.

Now the Wirral-bornbusinessman, who hasenjoyed signal successrunning his own consultancy,is taking his business to anew level by opening ashowroom at Oakes Mill,New Hey Road, Oakes, tobring a wider range ofproducts to a wider audience.

“I set up Transform OfficeInteriors about 15 years ago,but I have always operatedon a consultancy basis, goingout to see the client and dealwith their enquiries where itreally mattered,” he says.

For a few years, Bob, 55,ran the business fromMilnrow, but recently decidedto come back toHuddersfield, saying:“Experience tells me thatpeople buy from local peopleand being based inLancashire wasn’t working forme.

“I intend to focus mainly onWest Yorkshire – and inparticular Huddersfield. NowI have a site close to the M62alongside one of the busiestroads into town.”

While Bob’s talent ishelping to transform otherpeople’s offices, during thepast few months he has hadto set about upgrading andrevamping his own 1,000sq ftpremises to provideshowrooms, an office,storage space and a deliveryarea.

Transform Office Interiorsoccupies the former pumproom that served the originalmill in its hey-day. Workincluded removing structuralsteelwork and pipes as wellas an old pulley system. Awindow to the front of the millhas been knocked through toprovide a doorway to theground floor showroom fromNew Hey Road and there areplans for a first floorshowroom.

One feature that has tostay is a water tank at thefront of the building whichserves the mill’s sprinklersystem.

Bob envisages theshowrooms displaying thefirm’s key products, includingchairs, desks, officepartitions and floor coverings,suspended ceilings, lightingand cable trunking.

The company has alsoundergone a rebrand withnew signs, brochures andbusiness cards as well as arevamped website – with theaim of appealing to membersof the public as well ascommercial clients.

“More and more people areworking from home at leastsome of the time,” says Bob.“But the ergonomics ofseating remain the same,whether you are talking aboutone chair for a home office orhundreds of chairs forhundreds of staff.”

Bob says the key tosuccess is giving theindividual customer the sameattention as a majorcorporate client.

“We pride ourselves on ourproducts and service,” he

says. “If something is notright, I don’t sleep at night. Igo out of my way to put itright. Our customers are notbuying from us every week,but next year or the yearafter we want to know theyare confident about comingback to us. They won’t comeback if you don’t put the littlethings right – a new castoron a chair or a new key forthe office cupboard.”

Bob acknowledges thatequipping the office with newchairs and desks may not behigh on the list of prioritiesfor hard-pressed firms, butsays: “I am taking a positiveview. There are companieswith money and while thereis a reluctance to spend it,firms are looking to expandand that means they willhave to invest.

“They may be keen tomove to larger premises, butfor various reasons have tostay at the same address. Ifthey are taking on more staff,they will need to re-configurethe office and that’s wherewe can help. We will handlethe project from planning toinstallation.

“A little bit of investment in

your staff is a greatmotivator. Health and safetyis a key issue. If I was anemployee, I would find it veryrewarding if my employerinvested in me as anindividual and gave me anergonomic chair to sit on thatmeant – for the eight, nine or10 hours I spend at workevery day – I was working ina comfortable and pleasantenvironment.”

Bob was born and broughtup in The Wirral and is adie-hard Liverpool fan. Hisfirst job after leaving schoolwas as a motor mechanic. “Icertainly didn’t envisagebeing involved in officefurniture,” he says.

Later, Bob got the chanceto work in sales. He movedto Huddersfield in the 1970sto join the sales team at softdrinks firm Ben Shaws’Willow Lane site.

“After a few years, I wasapproached by a neighbourand friend who asked if Iwould consider working inthe office furniture sector.

“I worked for a company inLeeds. Initially, I took aninterested in officeequipment – wordprocessors, typewriters andthe like. I have a logical andmethodical mind and itappealed to me.

“There was an opencommission system so themore I sold the more Iearned. The market wasquite buoyant during thoseearly years and I quicklygained some momentum.

Like many successfulsalesmen before, him,self-employment was theambition.

“It was always a goal tohave my own business,” hesays. “It’s not a ‘control’ thing– it’s about getting a sense ofsatisfaction. I had seen theshortcomings of othercompanies and I knew Icould offer better solutionsand service if I was in

control.”Bob’s methodical mind has

been more than useful injuggling all the issues thatarise running a businesswhile trying to set up the newpremises. He’s a greatbeliever in lists and makingsure you tackle the importanttasks first.

“Prioritise andre-prioritise,” he says. “I willmake lists in the morning andget my red pen and decidewhich one is top priority and Iwill go at that until it is donebefore moving on to the nextthing on the list.”

Sales are top priority, heinsists. “I have neverwatched the clock – which isa godsend in itself – and Iam only happy when we areperforming well and withsatisfied customers.

“It is harder to run my own

business than I thought itwould be – and the economicclimate has impacted on it,but it has brought newchallenges and given me theopportunity to widen theproduct portfolio.”

Another way to escape thestrains of business is a roundof golf. Bob plays at Elland,but strictly for relaxation.“People say there’s a lot ofbusiness done on the golfcourse, but I’m not so sure,”he says. “I’ve played on andoff for a number of years andmore regularly in the lastcouple of years. It’s aboutexercise and fresh air andreducing stress levels. Youcan’t think about work whenyou’re thinking about how tohit the ball better!”

■ POSITIVE: Bob Lynch, ofTransform Office Interiors,based at Oakes Mill, Oakes

On the board with

01484 538 351theboard@revellward.co.ukTwitter@RevellWard

www.revellward.co.uk

Lesley SuttonTax Director

Autumn Statement2011

The Chancellor delivered his Autumnstatement last Wednesday, this gave an ideaof the tax changes we may expect next year.Key tax saving opportunities include:

50% income tax relief for anyone who has upto £100,000 to invest in a new business startup under a new Seed Enterprise Investment

Scheme;100% capital allowances for businesses in

certain Enterprise Zones; andreduction in the rate of corporation tax from26% to 25% but no further reductions

announced.Revell Ward Tip:

Our website www.revellward.co.uk will givefurther details on these and any other taxsavings opportunities as they become

available.

KIRKLEES BUSINESSlocal Page 4

BANKER’SBLOGJill Hague

Jill Hague is HSBC area commercial director for Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield

Rising to brandnew challengeSTUDENTS atKirklees Collegegot the chance toshow off theircreative skills –while getting aninsight into theworld of business.They werechallenged to come up with ideasfor branding the college’s businessdepartment in readiness for theopening of the new college campusnext September – with theirsuggestions being fed directly backto the senior management team andcollege principal.Lydia Butterworth (pictured),business tutor at Kirklees Collegesaid: “Students are our number onefocus at Kirklees College and assuch, the business team hasworked hard to organise thisfantastic event. It’s really exciting,because the results are going tohave an actual impact ondecision-making and therefore thefuture of Kirklees College.”The students, who are takingbusiness courses at the college’sHuddersfield and Dewsburycentres, combined work on thebranding project with a visit to theGalpharm Stadium, home of thecollege’s official education andtraining partner, Huddersfield Town,to hear speakers from organisationsincluding Delicious Desserts andthe Yorkshire Air Ambulance.The day was rounded off with prizfor the group of students with thewinning ideas as judged by localbusiness people and college tutor

Banking groupexpands teamBANKING group Santander UK isexpanding its Yorkshire corporatebanking operations after a year ofstrong growth across the region.The bank increased businesslending by 71% in 2010, lending£353m to regional businesses – andhas matched this in the first threequarters of 2011.Regional director Neil Williams isrecruiting several relationshipdirectors and is looking to expandinto Bradford, Doncaster andWakefield. It already has corporatebusiness centres in Leeds, Hull andSheffield.Santander Corporate Banking alsoplans to recruit additional creditexperts to the Yorkshire team. Creditpartners work alongside therelationship directors, attendingcustomer meetings and helping todeliver appropriate lending facilitiesto customers and prospects.Mr Williams said: “I’m delighted withthe progress being made inYorkshire. Across the region, we’valready lent more to SMEs in thefirst three quarters, than we didduring the whole of last year. 2010was an excellent year too and ourperformance this year confirms thawe have gathered real momentum inthe region.”

They’re in fashionA MAJOR boutique brand has fashioned a newthree-year contract with an employment lawspecialist in Kirklees.

Moda In Pelle has re-signed a three yearcontract for employment law services withCleckheaton-based Howarths Employment Law.

Howarths, which was formed in 2003 by Andyand Helen Howarth, will continue to work closelywith Moda In Pelle – providing services includingadvice on all employment law issues, drafting andimplementing company policies in line withever-changing legislation, tribunal representationand conducting ILM-accredited managementtraining.

Howarths business development director TraceyHopkins said: “We are delighted that Moda In Pellehas re-signed with us for a further three years.

“Retaining such a prestigious client in timeswhen competition is fierce is a great boost for ourteam. We have developed our relationship withModa in Pelle throughout the past few years andlook forward to supporting the company goingforward.”

■ BOOST: Tracey Hopkins(left), of HowarthsEmployment Law, with KellyFlynn, of Moda In Pelle

A shot in thearm for firms

LAST month, HSBC announcedthat it was participating in the

Government’s Regional GrowthFund.

We will receive £25m from the fund,which will be used to support small andmedium-sized businesses in Englandthat are recruiting new employees topurchase assets such as machinery andvehicles.

The total fund of £1.4bn operatesacross England and is available nowuntil 2013. The objective is for it tosupport projects and programmes thatlever private sector investment creatingeconomic growth and sustainableemployment.

It aims particularly to help those areasand communities currently dependenton the public sector to make the trans-ition to sustainable private sector-ledgrowth and prosperity.

The bank is creating an “AssistedAsset Purchase Scheme” that will enablequalifying businesses to receive addi-tional funds of up to £500,000 to puttowards the acquisition of assets, whichwould not be funded under normalcommercial terms.

In order to qualify for RGF funds, aborrower must be able to demonstratethat they will create additional employ-ment, have a turnover of up to £25m andthat the asset purchase would not goahead without RGF support.

The Assisted Asset Purchase Schemewill provide a grant of up to £25,000 foreach additional full time positions cre-ated by the acquisition of a new asset.

HSBC is committed to supportingstrong viable businesses and our ownAssisted Asset Purchase Scheme high-lights this. The scheme will provide crit-ical support for businesses that arelooking to grow and recruit, enablingthem to purchase the assets they need toachieve their goals.

Business Minister Mark Prisk said atthe launch: “HSBC's Assisted Asset Pur-chase Scheme will help SMEs that wantto invest and create jobs – but thatcannot currently access commercialfunding.

“They will deliver a shot in the arm tolocal communities and help small busi-nesses drive local growth. All of theRGF funding will be provided as grantsto small businesses with the bankemploying their regional network toadminister the scheme for free.”

The cost of administering the bank’sallocated funds will be covered byHSBC.

The £25m of government investmentis coming from round one of theRegional Growth Fund. Any interestearned on this investment will be usedfor further grants or returned to thegovernment.

As part of this initiative, the UKTI inconjunction with sponsors HSBC andPrice Waterhouse Coopers are hosting aseries of regional events. They aredesigned to bring together intermediar-ies, advisers and businesses helping themexpand and share advice on exportingfor growth. The first event in our areawill be held on the February 6.

Your first-hand experience of being in business could benefitsomeone who is about to set-up on their own.All we need is one hour every fortnight. It’s not a lot butyou could make a huge difference to someone else’s life.MYMentor is a network of people from all backgroundssupporting jobseekers in Kirklees who want to beself-employed.

www.mycci.co.ukConnecting & Supporting Business

KIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWS local Page 5

Neil Wilson is an employment lawyer at Chadwick Lawrence Solicitors

EMPLOYER’SBRIEFNeil Wilson

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Take note oflegal changesTHE Government has

announced proposals to“shake up” employment laws inthe UK and a consultation exer-cise will now be launched seek-ing the views of employees andbusinesses.

The announcement follows therecent decision to increase the unfairdismissal qualifying period from oneto two years, which is likely to takeeffect on April 1, 2012.

The new proposals include a rapidresolution scheme which shouldallow job disputes to be settled morequickly. This should hopefullyensure that more simple employmentlaw claims are settled within threemonths; reducing the burden on theTribunals and the costs to busi-nesses.

Furthermore, it is expected that itwill be compulsory in the future tolodge all Employment Tribunalclaims through ACAS first – ACASis a conciliatory body whose role is totry and settle claims before theyreach the Employment Tribunal. Ifthe claims have to go to ACAS first,there is more chance that concili-ation will work and compromisescan be reached.

Perhaps the most controversialaspect of the proposals is to intro-duce the concept of “protected con-versations”. This is expected to meanthat employers will be able to holdfrank discussions with employeesabout poor performance withoutfearing that they can be used asevidence in Employment Tribunals.

This effectively extends the “withoutprejudice” rule which has, in recenttimes, only been held to apply toformal meetings. The protected con-versations are likely not to applywhere discriminatory acts areinvolved so employees will still beable to rely on such conversations ifany element amounts to discriminat-ory conduct.

With regard to consultation overredundancies, there are currentlytime limits which apply whereemployers are considering terminat-ing the contracts of over 20 employ-ees. The government is looking atreducing minimum periods forredundancy consultation to 60, 45 oreven 30 days.

In addition to the above, otherproposals which are expected includeintroducing financial penalties foremployers who breach employmentrights, with discretion being given toemployment judges to issue suchpenalties.

Also, there will be a review of theEmployment Tribunal rules and pro-cedure which may have the effect ofintroducing a costs regime for sub-mitting claims and proceeding to ahearing.

Finally, employment judges maysit alone in future cases on unfair

dismissal matters whereas currentlythere are two ”wing members”.

Business Secretary Vince Cable hasexplained that the proposals will helpfirms to expand without makingexisting staff feel insecure and it isestimated that the Government willsave £10m, with employers benefitingby up to £40m.

There is, of course, opposition tothe plans and the GMB union hascommented that the changes “willmake it harder for hundreds of thou-sands of workers to bring cases ofvictimisation, unfairness and bully-ing at work”.

The Shadow Business Secretaryhas also voiced concern abut “water-ing down people’s rights” and statedthat the Government should be morefocused on getting people into workconsidering the current level ofu n e m p l oy-ment.

Consulta-tion is likelyto open soonand furthera n n o u n c e-ments will bemade as thep r o p o s a l stake shape.

THE search is on for Britain’sbest university and graduatebusinesses.Thousands of young peopleare being given the chance tocompete for regional andnational recognition in theLloyds TSB Enterprise Awards– with the winner set to win£50,000 to invest in theirbusiness and comprehensivebusiness mentoring.There are an estimated 55,000student businesses in Britain –operating in sectors as diverseas design, IT, catering andmedia.Lloyds Banking Group hasjoined forces with the NationalConsortium of University

Entrepreneurs, a charity set upto encourage entrepreneurialactivity in universities.The competition is open toentrepreneurs currentlystudying at universities acrossEngland, Scotland and Walesor those who graduated withinthe past five years and havebeen trading for more than ayear.Entrants will be considered fortwo titles – Best Start up andBest Enterprise – with regionalheats starting next February.Two winners from each heatwill compete for the twoawards in March.Go to www.lloydstsb.com/enterpriseawards

Real festive flavourA COFFEE shop in Huddersfield is celebratingChristmas – and its first year of trading – with itsown exclusive coffee.

Time Circa 2010 launched Christmas FestivalCoffee, just in time for the Festival of Light inHuddersfield town centre and a year to the daysince it opened its doors at Hammond’s Yard,off King Street.

Co-director Andrew Dunne said: “We thoughta Christmas coffee would be a good idea andwe also wanted to mark the Festival of Light.

“We have come up with a traditional espressoblend using beans from East Africa, India andSouth America.

“It is a luxury coffee blended exclusively forus by our supplier which will make a richlyindulgent espresso, cappuccino, latte oramericana.”

Time Circa 2010, based in one of the towncentre’s oldest buildings, opened last Decemberand has quickly established a reputation as acoffee shop and a venue for the arts – havinghosted a Shakespeare play, musical concerts,poetry readings and art exhibitions.

■ CUP WINNER: Andrew Dunneand his bespoke coffee brand

Who will be the nextBusiness of the Month?If you are proud of what your business has achieved;why not tell us about your success storyand you could be a winner of ourprestigious award.

For further details please contact:Ian Greenwood, Eaton Smith Solicitors,14 High Street, Huddersfield HD1 2HA

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property Page 6KIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSKIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSKIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSKIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSKIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSKIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWSCall for bosses torecruit young staffA BUILDING firm which has worked onprojects in Huddersfield is urging othersto employ more young people.Southdale, which partnered KirkleesCouncil on the re-development ofhousing at Brackenhall, said businesseshad a “moral and commercial obligation”to take on apprentices and young peoplein their local communities.Trudie McCormick, of Halifax-basedSouthdale, said: “It is vital that newblood is brought into our country’sindustries, because otherwise we willreach a point where there are huge skillsshortages.”Southdale has a 15-year history ofemploying young people and anycompany wishing to supply or be asub-contractor to our business, mustsign an agreement to take on at least oneapprentice.The firm works in the social andresidential housing and public sector.

Bid to end blightof empty stores

■ VACANT EXPRESSION: A new project to tackle empty shops anddeclining sales on the high street has been launched

New offices for TowryWEALTH adviser Towry isswitching the site of its WestYorkshire office.

The company is moving tothe £10m Toronto Squaredevelopment in Leeds. Towryis taking 11,000sq ft on thefifth floor on a 10-year lease.Towry was previously basedat St Paul’s Street in the city.

It is the largest singleletting at Toronto Square so

far and takes the total spacelet since the beginning of theyear to almost 30,000 sq ft.

Sarah Johnson, propertyand facilities manager atTowry said: “The office movebrings the team right into thecentre of the Leeds businessdistrict.

“The new premises willprovide a high qualityenvironment for both our

clients and professionalcontacts and demonstratesour commitment to growingour business in Leeds.”

Toronto Square is a90,000sq ft development,completed in 2009.

It boasts environmentalfeatures including air sourceheat pumps for heating andcooling, areas of green roofsand a recycling hub.

A NEW project headed by a Hud-dersfield-born woman aims tohelp high street shops win backcustomers.

The project, Town Centre Reju-venation, is being spearheaded byKate Hardcastle, co-partner atHolywell Green-based businesstransformation specialist Insightwith Passion.

It comes as many town and citycentre retailers face declining salesin the face of rising costs, a declinein shopper numbers and toughercompetition from supermarketsand online offerings.

Kate said the blight of emptystores in many town centres – with14.3% of shop units new vacantacross the UK – was estimated tocost the country almost £900m inlost business rates and lost shop-workers’ wages.

The new project, which followsa pilot scheme run in Hudders-field, will target eight towns andcities across Yorkshire. In eachcase, local retailers and small busi-nesses will get free advice from theIwP team on ways to transformtheir businesses and win back cus-tomers.

Kate, who delivers presenta-tions and seminars on this issueacross the world, said emptyshops affected everyone in thecountry.

She said: “When we began tolook at this issue, it was one thatwe wanted to make people con-sider from their own point ofview.

“Empty shops don’t just blightan area, they hit us in the pocket.It’s time to say ‘enough is enough’.We can’t wait for report afterreport. Towns and cities across thecountry need less head-shaking

and more action.”Said Kate: ““It’s not true to say

consumers just want to shoponline. We crave human interac-tion in our shopping experienceand we have worked with clients inDubai, Australia and the UK toshow that if you change how youinteract with customers you cansee real results in your turnover.”

Bradford is one of eight townsin Yorkshire where the project willbe rolled out in 2012 – where afifth of shops in the city centrehave closed in the downturn.

Others targeted next yearinclude Batley and Birstall, Com-mercial Street in Leeds, Wake-f i e l d , D o n c a s t e r , H u l l ,Rotherham and Bingley. Busi-nesses taking part will be given a“toolkit” that they can take backto their own stores.

“The project is based on ourconcept of Retail Theatre,” saidKate.

“It’s about making businessesstand out, understanding what theconsumer wants, how you canappeal to them and also showthem how you’re meeting theirneeds.

“It’s not about small businessesspending loads of money and get-ting in expensive consultants. It’sabout delivering a better serviceand better products.”

One of the key issues Kate willbe encouraging the businesses toaddress is that of customer service,which she believes is one of thereal issues driving customers awayfrom the high street.

She said: “Who wants to gosomewhere where staff are rude,don’t answer your questions prop-erly, can’t tell you about theproduct they’re selling? Customer

service is the central thing I wantto bring back to the high street. Itdoesn’t cost a penny and it’s easilydone.”

Town Centre Rejuvenation

seminars will take place on Febru-ary 6 in Bingley, February 13 inBradford, February 20 in Batleyand Birstall and February 27 atCommercial Street, Leeds.

Society scoops awardsYORKSHIRE BuildingSociety swept the board atthe Mortgage FinanceGazette Awards.

The society, which has itsorigins in Huddersfield, wasnamed best national buildingsociety as well as winning

the categories for best overalllender, best online lender andbest intermediary lender.

The Bradford-basedsociety was also highlycommended in thecategories for excellence intreating customers fairly and

innovator of the year – thelatter for its tracker-to-fixedrate mortgage.

Group direct productmanager Chris Smith said:“We are absolutely delightedto have been recognised atthese awards.”

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Helping to save timeMAJOR investment in ITsystems is helping kitchenfitters save time.

Dewsbury-based RixonwayKitchens, one of the leadingmanufacturers working inaffordable and social housing,is saving Apollo buildingcontractors 12 working days oftime a year with its Call OffManager system.

Call Off Manager is a newaddition to Rixonway’s X-netsystem, a secure online portalfor both clients andcontractors to access a rangeof business information,allowing clients andcontractors greater controlover their orders.

Apollo has found that it canoffer a greater service to itsclients by using Rixonway’sCall Off Manager system.

Apollo senior buyer DannyWorrell said: “Through thisimproved software, our clientsare given a much more flexibletime-frame with orders,particularly when they need toalter a design after the kitchenhas been ordered.

“They are also able to orderkitchens with a shorter noticeperiod and take advantage ofquicker delivery times.

“The benefits of saving timefor Apollo as a business havebeen huge. For the buyingdepartment alone, we havesaved 12 working days’ worthof time in the first year ofusing the Call Off Managersystem.

“We are also able to monitor

and stop order duplications,further impacting on time andcost savings.”

Clients of RixonwayKitchens can now log in toCall Off Manager and viewpriced kitchen designs,removing the delay in waitingfor a quotation prior to placingan order.

Once the order is placed,clients can then track theirunique production anddelivery schedule online,greatly reducing time andadministration costs.

David Anderson, RixonwayKitchens sales and marketing

director, said: “The systemwas designed by RixonwayKitchens to reduce theamount of administration timefor its customers whenmanaging the delivery of theirorders.

“Contractors are able to calloff their kitchens online 24hours a day, seven days aweek.”

Rixonway has investedsignificantly in machinery andthe expansion of itsmanufacturing facility. The firmdelivers more than 12,000units a week from its plant atDewsbury.

■ WINING RECIPE: Rixonway sales and marketing directorDavid Anderson

Small builders‘squeezed out’KIRKLEES builders could still face beingsqueezed out of the Green Deal market, it isclaimed.

The Federation of Master Builders said thegovernment should ensure that small buildingcompanies have an equal opportunity to offerGreen Deal finance to their customers.

Brian Berry, director of external affairs atthe federation, said: “The Green Deal offersan enormous opportunity to transform thenation’s building stock to make it greener andmore energy efficient as well as help generatethousands of new jobs in the buildingindustry.

“It’s great news that the government haslistened to us and recognises that SME build-ers are in direct contact with householdersand are therefore well-placed to advise house-holders on specific works that might be appro-priate under the Green Deals.

“However, that potential is at risk if smallbuilding firms can only offer Green Dealfinance by tying themselves to major compan-ies.

“The danger is that the large energy andutility companies will hoover up the GreenDeal market and squeeze out local builderswhich is very bad news both for the buildingindustry and local economies.”

Mr Berry said: “The government needs to

ensure that accredited Green Deal buildershave equal access to Green Deal finance sothat they can offer these new finance packagesto their customers.

“It is the local builder who is best placed toadvise customers on retrofit work when theyare carrying out other home improvementworks and these ‘trigger points’ for GreenDeal work will be lost if local builders can’taccess the Green Deal finance.”

He said: “The Government needs to create aGreen Deal finance delivery vehicle that localaccredited builders can access and offer tocustomers wanting to undertake Green Dealwork.

“With rising energy prices, the market forretrofit work is certainly there and is worth atleast £3.5bn every year – but consumers willneed to be convinced that the Green Dealmakes financial sense to them.

“It’s pleasing therefore to see the proposedcash back incentive in the consultation, but areduced rate of VAT for Green Deal approvedmeasures is needed in addition to boostdemand and create much-needed jobs in thebuilding industry.

“Local building companies first need to begiven the opportunity to do the work other-wise the Green Deal will be a lost opportun-ity.”

TO LETGarage/Workshop UnitCrowtrees Service Centre, Mill RoydStreet, Brighouse, HD6 1HA1 749.89m2 (8,072 sq ft)1 Edge of town centre location1 Inspection pit and 2 paint boothsRent: On Application

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TO LETWell AppointedOffice PremisesThe Stable Block, Buckden Mount,8 Thornhill Road, Huddersfield, HD3 3AU1 111.04m2 (1,195 sq ft)1Ample on site car parking1 Ease of access to Huddersfield Town Centre and

junction 24 (M62)Rent: On Application

KIRKLEES BUSINESS NEWS Movers and shakers Page 8

Building supplyfirm gets shirtyA BUILDING products group– which supplied materials tobuild the Galpharm Stadium –is hoping to share in successwith Huddersfield Giants.

The Myers Group is one ofthe club’s new official kit spon-sors, with its logo featuring onthe back of the players’ shirts.

Giants star Lee Gilmour wasat Myers Build & DIY at Cros-land Hill to mark the tie-up andpromote a prize draw to win asigned shirt.

The draw will take place onTuesday, December 20, atMyers Build & DIY.

Spokeswoman TheresaFlacks said: “The MyersGroup is a traditional fam-ily-run business in its fourthgeneration, supplying the localcommunity of Huddersfieldwith everything for building,renovating & DIY through itsnetwork of companies.”

The group’s businessesinclude Naylor Myers BuildingSupplies, Boards Timber Mer-chants, Johnsons Wellfield Nat-ural Stone Supplies and HSHSkip Hire.

Also part of the Group is

Readymix Huddersfield whichcelebrated its 50th anniversaryin July 2009.

Readymix Huddersfield,close to the Galpharm Sta-dium, includes subsidiary com-panies Mini Mix, Conveyormix& Mobile Concrete PumpHire.

Said Theresa: “Together,these companies supplied thevast amount of concreterequired to build the thenMcAlpine Stadium, the homeof Huddersfield Giants.

“We are very proud to havethe Myers Group logo dis-played on the new HuddersfieldGiants shirts.

“We do our very best to sup-port the local communitywherever possible, so to beassociated with our local teamis a great privilege. We wishHuddersfield Giants all thevery best in the forthcomingseason.”

Huddersfield Giants man-aging director Richard Thewlissaid: “It is wonderful for us tohave the Myers logo on ourshirts and we look forward to along and mutually beneficial

partnership. We look forwardto helping them further theirbrand through our community

work in the schools, amateurclubs and charitable organisa-tions that we are linked with.”

Appointments all adding up

A CHARTERED accountancy firm withoffices in Cleckheaton is defying theeconomic downturn and expanding withthe appointment of five new recruits.

Clough and Company, which also hasoffices in Keighley, has appointed ChrisNewby, of Gomersal, and Jack Link, ofShipley, as trainee accountants.

Both have completed their A-levels andwill begin studying towards the Associationof Accounting Technicians qualification.

Trainee accountants Lucy Gittins, ofBramley, and Sohaib Sheikh, from Allerton,both join from previous employers.

Lucy is studying for her final year of AAT,whilst Sohaib continues to work towardshis Associate Chartered Accountancyqualification.

All four will spend the next three yearsshadowing experienced team membersacross the firm’s numerous departments.

Clough & Company has also appointed

an audit senior as a direct result ofincreased business in its thriving auditdepartment.

Craig Blackburn, of Cleckheaton, spentfive years at Auker Rhodes LLP and willnow work in a team of 14, auditingaccounts for businesses in the property,retail and manufacturing industries.

Steven Gash, practice chairman ofClough & Company, said: “These fiveappointments reflect our commitment torecruit and train the most talentedprofessionals in order to provide the verybest accountancy services to our valuedclients.

“At a time when many professionalservices firms are making cuts or mergingwe have built up a respected business thathires, trains and keeps its talented staff toprovide our clients with unrivalledcontinuity.”

■ NEW STARTERS: Joining Clough and Company are (from left) Chris Newby, CraigBlackburn, Jack Link, Sohaib Sheikh and Lucy Gittins

■ SIGN HERE: Lee Gilmour, pictured with (from left) SharonCook, Mick Clough and Jane Webb, adds his signature to theGiants shirt featuring the Myers Group logo

Child’s play forYorkshire MafiaYOUNGSTERS from a Kirklees primary schoolpitched their business ideas to the head ofnetworking group The Yorkshire Mafia in a Dragons’Den-style challenge.

An educational enterprise programme that teacheschildren as young as nine about running a businessinvited pupils from St Joseph’s Catholic PrimarySchool in Dewsbury to take part.

The Schools Teaching Enterprise Programme wasrecently launched to introduce primary schoolchildren to the basics of business and help developtheir self-belief to succeed as an entrepreneur at anearly age.

A class of Year 5 pupils from St Joseph’s pitchedtheir business ideas to a panel of entrepreneurswhich included Geoff Shepherd, founder of businessmembership group The Yorkshire Mafia; GarethBoot, owner of the PIC Group; and school headMaureen Fletcher.

The Dragons’ Den style event was the culminationof a two-day enterprise programme delivered bySTEPteam, which saw the nine to 10-year-oldslearning the basics of business and putting togetherplans for a business of their own.

The winning plan was ‘Reuse Recycle’, a businessselling eco-stationery made from recycled products,which the school intends to help the students roll outand run.

Said Geoff: “In 20 year’s time it will not be today’sbusiness leaders that shape our financial future anddictate the prosperity of our national economy. Theywon’t be the ones creating employment opportunities,generating wealth and driving UK PLC forward – itwill be our children.”

Kathryn Rushfirth, managing director of STEPteamand co-founder of the programme adds: “The aim ofthe programme is to introduce children to thebusiness world at a young age and help sow theseed of desire to become an entrepreneur.

“It’s also a fantastic opportunity for businesses toget involved with their local schools.”

Businesses interested in sponsoring a school totake part in the programme should emailsponsor@stepteam.org

■ DRAGON TAMERS: The winning team at StJoseph's Catholic Primary School with the judges

MPs jointhe debateTWO localpoliticians willbe discussinghot topics forbusinesses ata briefingorganised by aHuddersfieldlaw firm.

BaxterCaulfield,based at Station Street, will hostthe session with Colne Valley MPJason McCartney and YorkshireMEP Timothy Kirkhope on Fridayat the Briar Court Hotel,Birchencliffe. The event getsunder way at 10am.

The MPs will give their thoughtson the local economy and thebusiness environment and takequestions from those attending.

Stephen Newman (pictured),senior partner at Baxter Caulfield,said: “In these challenging times itwill be fascinating to hear theviews of the politicians.

“Businesses can gain an insightinto the advice and assistancethat can be accessed fromCentral Government and theEuropean Union.”

Places are available on a firstcome first served basis.

Email caroline.walker@recognitionpr.co.uk to reserve aplace.

Chris Horswood

ColliersInternationalPROPERTY specialist Colliers Internationalhas appointed Chris Horswood to its valuationteam covering Yorkshire and the north east.

Mr Horswood, who gained an MSc in realestate management from NorthumbriaUniversity, worked at Jones Lang Lasalle forfour years. He joins Colliers as a seniorsurveyor and brings the numbers in the teambased in Leeds to six.

The appointment follows a series of newclient acquisitions including Aviva andHuddersfield-based Britannia Rescue’s ownerLV=.