North West business briefs: LSH Auto; Mersey Maritime; Armstrong Watson; DAM Health; Be Ethical Training

Robert Smethurst, Robbie Savage and Martyn Webb with the ball carrier

The latest addition to Macclesfield FC’s luxury fleet of vehicles from LSH Auto is a tiny electric car for match ball carriers.

To mark the club’s one year anniversary, its official van and car supplier has given the club a licensed Mercedes AMG G63 12V kids’ electric car, enabling the club’s match ball carriers to travel onto the pitch in style.

Martyn Webb, managing director LSH Auto, said: “We were inspired by the remote controlled cars that delivered match balls onto the pitch before England’s home games at Wembley and Scotland’s home games at Hamden Park in the Euros. We thought it would be fun for the young boys and girls who carry the match ball out onto the pitch before Macclesfield FC’s home games to drive the club’s own tiny Mercedes-Benz.”

LSH Auto was first announced as the Official Van & Car Supplier to Macclesfield FC in December 2020, just two months into the club’s journey to rebuild and start again. Since then, the club has grown to include 29 football teams and an academy, with 75 staff, including 25 full time coaches as well as a gym, a bar and a 4G pitch. With its first team now topping the North West Counties League and regularly attracting an average attendance of 2,678, the club’s future is looking bright again.

Macclesfield FC’s director of football, Robbie Savage, said: “We were so pleased to welcome LSH Auto as one of our sponsors back in December and we’ve been putting our Mercedes-Benz Vito Tourer Vans to good use at all levels since then, from transporting the first team, to being used for some of our grassroots and community initiatives.”

Martyn Webb added: “Giving back to the communities that support us is one of our core principles. We’re delighted to have played a small part in the success of the club in its first year and we look forward to continuing to support Macclesfield FC on its journey.”

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Chris Shirling-Rooke

Industry body Mersey Maritime is sending a delegation to the COP26 global climate change conference in Glasgow later this month, and hosting one of the cornerstone events at the Maritime UK International Maritime Hub, to outline how Liverpool city region’s £4bn maritime sector is taking the lead on decarbonisation.

During the event Mersey Maritime chief executive Chris Shirling-Rooke will chair a discussion that will feature leading lights in the UK’s £46bn maritime industry. COP26 is the United Nations’ 26th annual conference on climate change running from October 31 to November 12. It will see world leaders, including Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US President Joe Biden, come together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The Mersey Maritime event will look at two aspects of the decarbonisation of the maritime sector – port services and supply chains. Speakers taking part will include: Nigel Quinn (CEO, Bibby Marine), Richard Burnett (CEO, Road Haulage Association), Ed Watt (maritime partner, Addleshaw Goddard), Kevin Hobbs (CEO, Caledonian Maritime Assets), Kevin Smith (founder and CTO, Maritime Digital Hub), Ruth Wood (head of commercial, Mersey Maritime), Jodie Battson (head of Partnerships, Western Union Business Solutions).

Companies in the Mersey Maritime sector are leading the way on slashing carbon emissions. Peel Ports has been successful in persuading shipping lines to bypass southern ports and call into the Mersey, significantly cutting road miles. And Bibby Marine is developing a new vessel that will use alternative fuels or technologies. And at the heart of the local sector’s zero carbon push is the £23m Maritime Knowledge Hub (MKH) which will be located in the Wirral Waters development close to the Mersey. It will provide a national base for marine engineering research and will look to become a world leader in the development of decarbonisation technology.

Chris Shirling-Rooke, said: “Liverpool City Region’s maritime industry is recognised as the most successful industry cluster in Europe. While people talk about tackling climate change, or members are already well down the road in embracing a low carbon future. COP26 is one of the most important meetings of world leaders for decades. It is absolutely critical the planet comes together to tackle the real threat posed by climate change. A new action plan is needed to accelerate the push to net zero carbon. Decarbonisation has been high on the agenda for Mersey Maritime, and Maritime UK, for a long time. We will be in Scotland to demonstrate how the drive, innovation, ingenuity and collegiate approach of the maritime industry can help spearhead a low carbon future.”

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Morag Miller

Cumbrian accountancy and business advisory firm Armstrong Watson has teamed up with the Medical Defence Union (MDU), the UK’s leading medical defence organisation, and its partner organisation the Dental Defence Union (DDU), to provide its members with access to tax, accountancy and business advisory services.

As part of this new partnership, both medical and dental members will receive access to a free, dedicated telephone advice line to discuss financial matters with Armstrong Watson advisers, and will also benefit from preferential fee rates. Armstrong Watson looks after a large portfolio of healthcare clients across primary and secondary care as well as within private settings. Its specialist healthcare team, led by accounting partner Morag Miller, provides guidance and advice on a wide range of business and financial services including annual accounts, tax returns, tax planning and compliance, corporate finance, business funding and accounting technology solutions.

Morag Miller said: “We are delighted to offer our expertise as an added benefit to MDU members. The sector has faced unprecedented challenges throughout the pandemic and we’ve done all we can to support our clients along the way. We’re happy to help in any way we can to ensure healthcare workers can focus on caring for their patients, whilst knowing their tax and accounting affairs are in order.

“Our dedicated healthcare team is highly experienced in providing accounting, tax and business advisory services to healthcare professionals. When we know and understand our client’s aspirations and goals, we provide robust and commercial financial advice to help them achieve these whilst also ensuring they are fully compliant with the appropriate regulatory bodies.”

Dr Hugh Stewart, the MDU’s professional services director, said: “We are delighted to partner with Armstrong Watson to offer our members this new service. Healthcare professionals work under enormous pressure and the MDU and DDU want to support them in as many ways as we can. It’s reassuring to know that our members now have access to an enhanced tax and accountancy service, provided by specialists in the healthcare field, on preferential terms.”

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Gerard Woodhouse and Liam Spence at the L6 Centre

A Liverpool company working throughout the world to test for coronavirus has launched a Christmas appeal for a city-based foodbank charity. DAM Health, which operates PCR testing clinics, has donated thousands of pounds worth of food, clothing and essential household items including cleaning products.

The donation came after DAM’s managing director, Kevin Dryhurst and the company’s director of partnerships, Liam Spence, and other staff members successfully completed the London Marathon raising more than £10,000 for the Everton-based L6 Centre and the Hope Foundation – an international charity working to support children affected by extreme poverty in India.

The medical company, which runs 45 UK clinics, expanded throughout Europe and Mexico this year and also provided 18,000 free tests for children over the summer. The business is now setting its sights on further international expansion and is looking to open a new testing lab in Manchester.

DAM Health’s director of partnerships, Liam Spence, said: “Running the marathon was tough going, but it was incredibly worthwhile to have raised over £10,000 for two hugely important charities. I couldn’t have done it without the support of the entire team at DAM Health who matched the total raised I received from sponsorship.”

Gerard Woodhouse, chief executive of the L6 Centre, said: “DAM Health’s generosity will help hundreds of children and families this Christmas. They have helped get our 2022 Christmas appeal off to a fantastic start and we could not be more grateful.”

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Caroline Swailes, left, and Heather de Groot, of Be Ethical

Chester-based Be Ethical Training has teamed up with global company, CSR-Accreditation to help businesses operate with responsibility at the forefront of their decision making. The partnership aims to help businesses map, measure and report on their responsible activities, integrating them into their business as usual and becoming clear on their social value and impact. When achieved, this can then help a business gain a competitive advantage.

Be Ethical Training trains organisations to create a programme of responsible activity, aligned with an ESG (environmental, social and governance) framework and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. CSR-Accreditation supports impact reporting and global recognition.

Together, this partnership is about enhancing future business opportunities and sustainability when it comes to sales, recruitment, funding and investment. The partnership will enhance one another’s offer and aims to improve the future stability of business, local communities, and the planet.

Co-founder and director of Be Ethical Training, Caroline Swailes, said: “Having worked with businesses that integrate and champion a culture of responsibility across their operations, we see first hand the importance of accountability and engagement in making CSR a success. This new partnership is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the value of responsible business and complement one another’s services to spread our message far and wide.”

Richard Collins, CEO of Buckingham-based CSR-Accreditation, believes the partnership is a step in the right direction to building a better world: “We believe that together we can make a really positive difference with regard to social responsibility. The training is the perfect way for businesses to develop a CSR solution that not only addresses ESG compliance but helps to build a better world to live and work in.”

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