North West business briefs: Sedulo; Positive Enterprise; Offcut; BBF; Liberty; CoolKit
Pop superstars Liberty X teamed up with Shola Ama and Gok Wan in Manchester last week to help the Sedulo Foundation raise £125,000 for young people in the North West.
The Sedulo Foundation Colour Ball, hosted by soap royalty Sally Lindsay and attended by stars such as Denise Welch, Seema Malhotra, boxing legend David Haye and Gok Wan, will fund youth organisations in the region as well as charitable projects aiming to increase the life chances of youngsters facing disadvantages.
The Sedulo Foundation is the charitable arm of Sedulo Group, one of the UK’s leading financial advisory companies. It has already helped more than 2,500 young people through projects to provide back to school essentials as well as working to end period poverty by providing sanitary products. The business also leads an annual Christmas Toy Appeal from its offices throughout the country, including Liverpool and Manchester.
Paul Cheetham-Karcz, founder of Sedulo and the Sedulo Foundation, said: “It was a true honour and privilege to be involved with such an inspirational initiative from the Sedulo Foundation.
“The vital funds raised this evening will go a long, long way to help and inspire young people in the Manchester and North West region. I am proud that some of the biggest names in entertainment, media and sport attended to raise vital funds.
“By helping disadvantaged children and young people in these regions, I believe we can motivate the talent of tomorrow to fulfil their potential and aim higher. I am proud of the work already achieved by the Sedulo Foundation and the Colour Ball will help us reach even more young people in the long term.”
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First crop of CCF entrepreneurs
A new initiative that helps young West Cumbrians launch businesses with a social purpose has produced its first crop of budding entrepreneurs.
Cumbria Community Foundation launched Positive Enterprise, in partnership with the Centre for Leadership Performance, to help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds make their business ideas a reality. Since January, seven youngsters – five male and two female, aged from 15 to 25 – have received intensive mentoring to get their businesses up and running. Their achievements will be recognised at a celebration event at Lakes College, Workington, on July 12.
Annalee Holliday, senior grants, programmes and communications officer at Cumbria Community Foundation, said: “It’s great to see these ideas come to fruition. For example, we have a business that is repurposing food waste while another has set up a theatre academy. At the event, they will each talk about what they’ve done, what they have created and the support they have received. It will be an inspiring evening.”
Positive Enterprise was launched in response to the success of a similar programme run by the Hunter Foundation in Scotland. Open to young people aged between 14 and 25, who live in the former districts of Allerdale and Copeland, it offers participants a £1,000 grant, mentoring from an experienced businessperson and performance and leadership development through the Centre for Leadership Performance in Cockermouth.
The youngsters meet as a group fortnightly to compare notes and swap ideas. Annalee added: “It’s not just a one-off grant. We wanted to offer support over a period of time. The aim is to challenge young people to think creatively and in more enterprising ways, to empower them to positively disrupt the status quo and to test out their enterprising ideas.”
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Annie Holt, centre. Pic credit: Luke Rados
Dynamic property company Bricks Group has launched Offcut, a student-powered digital media platform that will join its growing brand ecosystem alongside luxury student accommodation provider true student, leisure brand UTime Fitness and doza pizzeria.
Sponsored exclusively by true student, the platform aims to challenge stereotypes associated with young people and report on many of the unspoken issues affecting the Gen Z in modern Britain. The launch follows a study conducted by true student, which reveals that 39% of young people feel that mainstream media fails to accurately reflect and report on issues that matter most to their generation.
Pete Prickett, CEO and founder of Bricks Group, said: “Offcut was born out of many conversations we’ve had with true student guests, many of whom were super-excited by the prospect of an off-mainstream media channel as a mouthpiece for young people’s voices to be heard on under-explored issues. The team of young journalists are fresh, dynamic and full of ideas, and I’m really looking forward to watching Offcut grow as the latest addition to our brand ecosystem here at Bricks.”
Based at true Salford, but with an all-student nationwide team (aged 19-23), Offcut comprises reporters, presenters and videographers who bring both expertise from their studies together with their passion for journalism and a keen eye for future trends in news. With the slogan ‘Life Unfaked’, Offcut will challenge the status quo and provoke educational and progressive conversations on the issues that matter the most to Gen-Z. Raw, real and relevant issues will be brought to life by original social media content and relatable hosts who will ask provocative questions and tackle taboo subjects.
Annie Holt, a 21-year-old English and History student at the University of Liverpool, is one of the Offcut journalists. She said: “I wanted to be a part of a group of young people who aren’t scared to share their opinions on topics that aren’t really discussed in mainstream media. I think there is a lot of stigma surrounding the ideas and opinions that young people have, and I am really excited to be part of a group that is working on telling the truths of our generation.”
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Cake manufacturer, BBF, has forged a partnership as a Silver Patron of Blackburn & Darwen Youth Zone, a charity dedicated to supporting young people in the community. This will enable the charity to invest in the next generation, ensuring they are work-ready and providing benefits to young people across the community, including the vicinity surrounding BBF.
With the support of businesses like BBF, Blackburn & Darwen Youth Zone can continue delivering high quality youth work that significantly impacts the lives of young people in a positive manner. Jonathan Lill, BBF chief executive, said: “BBF is dedicated to making a positive impact in the areas where we operate, and we are thrilled to support the young people in our community through this exciting partnership.
“Through our donation, we aim to provide young individuals throughout the community with the support they need to thrive. By supporting Blackburn & Darwen Youth Zone, it will enable them to deliver high quality youth work and create a significant positive difference in the lives of young people. We are proud to be part of this important network.”
Emma Swan, Trustee of Blackburn & Darsen Youth Zone and partner at Forbes Solicitors, said: “The support of the business community is crucial in meeting the needs of the thousands of young individuals we serve in our community.
“Patrons like BBF play a vital role in our mission to invest in the next generation, providing them with essential skills, experiences, and opportunities that are instrumental to their success. We are grateful for their invaluable assistance and look forward to making a significant impact together.”
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Liberty electric van
Knowsley-based property services business Liberty has pledged to further reduce its carbon emissions with the roll-out of all-electric vans to its fleet.
The current commercial fleet is made up of 847 vans and Liberty plan to have 10% of the van fleet fully electric by 2024. Liberty’s vehicle fleet is its biggest contributor of CO2 emissions. In 2021-22, Liberty used 1.32m litres of diesel and petrol which equates to 3,282 tonnes of CO2.
Liberty is engaging directly with its fleet drivers to identify those who would be eligible for Liberty’s innovative home charging solution. Delivered in partnership with Hypervolt, this allows chargers to be installed at the drivers’ homes. Charge usage will be monitored remotely by Liberty and reimbursed directly to drivers for charging their work vehicles at home.
Sam Greenwood, head of fleet at Liberty, which offers whole-house property services nationally, said: “Our target to have 10% of the commercial fleet fully electric by 2024 is an ambitious task made more challenging by the lack of public infrastructure. By partnering with Hypervolt, we have been able to offer our drivers the chance to switch to electric vehicles without the worry about where to charge them. We’ve already begun the roll-out and are keen to keep the momentum going with more and more of our drivers taking on electric vehicles.”
Warren Yates, senior supervisor at Liberty, who was one of the first Liberty drivers to receive an all-electric van, said: “After driving the new electric van for a couple of weeks I’m really pleased with it. The driving range was a concern before I got it, but I’m regularly seeing over 190 miles from a full charge on the mix of town driving that I do daily as part of my work on the Wigan County Borough Council contract.”
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Burnley-based CoolKit, a specialist in temperature-controlled light commercial vehicles, is recruiting 20 new staff to add to its existing 100-strong workforce.
The new jobs will cover all areas of the production operation and include two assembly deputy supervisors, refrigeration unit installers/engineers/auto electrician, manufacturing operatives, van lining/box van fitters/assembly operatives, and an extra stores person.
CoolKit expects to convert more than 1,800 vans, build 400 insulated box vans and sell more than 500 ready-converted vans during the current year. Matthew Kershaw, head of operations, said: “We have enjoyed phenomenal growth in recent years and orders continue to be high from across the UK – which is why we need to expand our production team.
“We enjoy the shared vision of seeing our products in use on every high street, delivering the foods and medicines we all consume daily.”
CoolKit was founded in 2005 by Rupert Gatty, who is now chief executive.
