People on the Move: Cumbria LEP; Liverpool Biennial; Revolution Four; Edgeplan; Genr8; Roland Dransfield

Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has appointed three leading local businesswomen to its board.

Emma Porter and Sarah Swindley join the LEP as private sector board members, while Prof Patricia Livsey, the chief executive of Eden Valley Hospice and Jigsaw Children’s Hospice, joins as the first representative from the voluntary and community sector.

With a background in psychology and an MBA from Insead, one of the world’s leading business schools, Emma has worked in the construction industry for 11 years and has recently returned to Story Contracting in the role of construction director after a successful spell working in advisory services at Arup.

The focus on her work in Cumbria is within the firm’s construction division, delivering a forecasted £30m turnover in 2019/20. She will also continue to be closely involved in socio-economic aspects, stakeholder engagement and business development.

Sarah is currently the CEO of the Lake District Foundation, a new charity established in 2017.

Sarah Swindley

Prior to this she was the CEO of Cumbria and Lancashire Women’s Centres, which provided one-stop shop health and social care services to women with a range of needs including mental health, social exclusion and complex vulnerabilities.

Sarah is also a leadership consultant for the Cascading Leadership Programme which provides leadership support to third sector leaders.

Patricia’s appointment has been made in line with the LEP’s voluntary and community sector nomination, an open recruitment exercise conducted by the third sector network.

She brings a wide range of experience to the role, including extensive experience within the health sector. Her work includes national roles within the Nursing and Midwifery Council and Department of Health.

Patricia has also worked at a senior level within the higher education sector for more than 27 years. That has included operating at board level for a number of third sector organisations within the university sphere.

Prof Patricia Livsey

She said: “I’m delighted to be given the opportunity to represent the third sector within the CLEP. The role provides an opportunity to utilise the experience I have gained to date and work as part of the LEP board to further develop and enhance services within Cumbria.”

Emma Porter said: “My reason for joining the LEP is a strong desire to make a difference. I’m passionate about enabling Cumbria to achieve its potential and I strongly believe that the county needs to work in an open, collaborative and ambitious way to raise aspirations and realise our potential together.”

Sarah Swindley says: “I’m so pleased to have been appointed to the body that has a vital role in securing the economic future of Cumbria.

“As a county we are already leaders in some sectors, but there is much more that we can unlock.

“I have a particular interest in social enterprise, civil society and the opportunities to further develop world class careers for young people.”

Cumbria LEP chair, Lord Inglewood, said: “The LEP has been looking to recruit excellent female leaders from Cumbria’s business community to strengthen representation on our board, and in Emma, Patricia and Sarah, we have settled on three outstanding candidates.”

Board appointments are for a three-year term, with the option for re-appointment for a further three-year period.

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The Trustees of Liverpool Biennial have announced that Fatoş Üstek has been appointed as the new director of Liverpool Biennial. She will take up her position in May.

Fatoş Üstek, curator and art writer, is regarded as one of the rising stars in the international art scene.

Having been associate curator for the 10th Gwangju Biennale in South Korea in 2014, she went on to curate the internationally-acclaimed fig-2, 50 projects in 50 weeks, in London the following year and then Art Night 2017 in East London.

She is an external member of the acquisitions committee for the Arts Council Collection (2018-2020).

Fatoş Üstek

Most recently she curated Do Ho Suh’s largest commission in the UK for Art Night and Sculpture in the City. She is currently director and chief curator of the David Roberts Art Foundation.

She said: “I am thrilled to take up the role as director of Liverpool Biennial.

“Through 10 editions, Liverpool Biennial has gained a reputation for being one of the most important contemporary art events accessible to the large national and international public.

“I look forward to inviting everyone to join me and the Liverpool Biennial team in the city of Liverpool in 2020 for the 11th Biennial.”

Kathleen Soriano, chair of the board of trustees of Liverpool Biennial, said: “Üstek’s rich experience across different art forms and her international connections will enable us to build confidently on the achievements of our two previous directors, Lewis Biggs and Sally Tallant.

“We are excited at the prospect of working with Üstek and are confident that she will lead with energy and artistic integrity on the delivery of future, ambitious biennials in Liverpool for our local, national and global audiences.”

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Wirral creative design firm Revolution Four is expanding after appointing a full-time social media manager.

Nick Blair joins the Heswall firm from Liverpool restaurant chain Mowgli.

He will now be responsible for spearheading Revolution Four’s social media division which manages more than 40 online accounts.

Led by directors Nik Ellis and Justine McLaughlin, the firm is entering its fourth year of operation after launching as Whitfield Business Support in 2015.

It has grown to a team of 14 servicing close to 300 accounts, including clients in Australia, Hong Kong and Lisbon.

From left: Justine McLaughlin, Nick Blair, Nik Ellis

“We are thrilled to welcome Nick into our close-knit team,” said Justine.

“He will bring energy and expertise to our digital and social marketing department. This was an important appointment in line with our expansion plans for 2019 and Nick is a great fit in terms of personality and skill-set for our business model.”

She added: The rise of digital media has fundamentally changed the way we communicate.

“In turn it has also demanded more sophisticated communication strategies. It’s no longer a case of shouting louder than competitors. It requires a more nuanced approach, selecting the right platforms to reach your target audience, while crucially delivering the right message about your products and services.”

Revolution Four rebranded last July. The new name and direction relates to ‘Industry 4.0’ otherwise known as the ‘fourth industrial revolution’. It also refers to the firm’s four core areas of interest – creativity, design, technology and media.

Nik said: “As Revolution Four has evolved we have found a niche in the market with small to medium-sized businesses.

“These businesses find our services particularly attractive as they can remove the expense of employing full-time marketing professionals.”

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Planning consultants Edgeplan have recently appointed Andrew Lainton as an associate in their Manchester office.

Andrew joins after a varied career spanning over 20 years working in the private sector, as well as contracts with local planning authorities in the Midlands and the South-East.

He brings additional skills in urban design and masterplanning to complement the company’s work on planning applications for residential and commercial development across the country.

Andrew will be working on projects including the implementation of a seven-storey scheme for 38 apartments recently approved in Ancoats, and retail schemes in Grimsby, Chester and Stafford.

Andrew Lainton

Director, Steve Edgeller, said “It’s great to have Andrew join our Manchester office, bringing his extensive knowledge and experience.

“We’re currently working on projects from the South coast to the Scottish border, and planning applications are getting more complex as time goes on.

“Local authorities are continually under-resourced so we need to put in more effort to promote schemes and explain the benefits.

“Having another associate in Manchester allows us to strengthen our service for existing clients, and widen the scope of projects we can take-on. It’ll also allow us to grow the team further and take on additional junior staff later in the year.”

Established in 2012, Edgeplan is an independent planning consultancy with offices in Manchester and London.

The company provides advice and planning services, principally to the development industry, including landowners, developers, occupiers and investors throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

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Manchester-based developer and regeneration specialist Genr8 has made two new senior appointments following a period of sustained growth.

Lauren Gavaghan joins the company from Peel Land & Property, where as leasing executive she was responsible for leisure provision across three key projects – Salford Quays, Gloucester Quays and Glasgow Harbour.

Previously, Lauren worked in the JLL retail & leisure agency team in Manchester with a variety of clients.

Joel Chandler began his career with Lambert Smith Hampton in Sheffield before moving to Manchester to work with the Canal and Rivers Trust on its UK portfolio of regeneration and development projects.

Joel Chandler and Lauren Gavaghan

Most recently Joel was land buyer at McCarthy & Stone, focusing on the Greater Manchester region.

Mike Smith, partner at Genr8, said: “We’ve had a great few years working on some landmark projects, including the regeneration of Rochdale Riverside and the development of Smithfield in Stoke-on-Trent.

“It’s an incredibly exciting time to join the company, with a number of fantastic pipeline opportunities, and we have no doubt that Lauren and Joel will make a significant contribution to the continued growth of the business.”

Genr8 Developments was founded in 2008 by partners John Early, Mike Smith and Richard Ingham.

It has delivered more than £100m of development in the past five years and currently has projects with a construction value of £80m on site.

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Roland Dransfield, the Manchester-based communications agency, has appointed Alison Owen as account director.

Alison brings more than 20 years’ public relations experience to the business from diverse sectors including professional services, business technology, insurance, engineering, manufacturing, food processing and recruitment.

She joins from recruitment software-as-a-service company Volcanic, where she was head of marketing.

Prior to that Alison worked at international agency BDB, where she headed up the public relations function to lead global client campaigns, at Staniforth, part of the TBWA group.

Lisa Morton, founder and managing director of Roland Dransfield, said Alison will predominantly work on the B2B team while also heading up inbound marketing and lead generation for both clients and Roland Dransfield.

Alison Owen

“As we continue our growth phase, having recently launched The Roland Dransfield Way – 15 principles that we live by to create and nurture purposeful relationships in business – we recognise the need to bring in new talent that aligns with our vision and cultural values.

“Alison very much fits with where we are headed as an agency.”

Roland Dransfield, based at Bonded Warehouse, now boasts a headcount of 15.

Its current B2B clients include Tackle4MCR, St Modwen, Equilibrium and Workspace Design & Build, while the company’s consumer offer represents Crowne Plaza Manchester Oxford Road, 20 Stories, Barry’s Bootcamp and China White.

Alison said: “I’m delighted to join the Roland Dransfield team and am looking forward to exciting times ahead as the company continues from strength to strength.”