North West business briefs: Challenge-trg; Everton FC; Ardent; Local Link; MBacc; Youth Fed
Wigan-based transport firm Challenge-trg Group has acquired Portman Logistics, from Bury St Edmunds, for an undisclosed sum.
It says this acquisition brings about an opportunity for it to invest in existing infrastructure, invest in colleagues to enable job security, and provide existing and new clients with an extensive service offering to suit their evolving needs.
Portman Logistics has more than 30 years of experience providing a wide portfolio of clients with container and haulage services, covering all major UK ports.
The acquisition will enable Challenge Logistics, the transport division of Challenge-trg Group, to further bolster its transport offering with multi-port container solutions and scale its service offering for general haulage services and logistics.
Tom Cropper, co-founder and Challenge-trg group CEO, said: “This is an exciting time for Challenge-trg Group and Portman Logistics. This acquisition brings together a range of resources and experience, extending our transport offering across the combined businesses and accelerating our plans to being a leading transport solutions provider.
“Our vision and values align, and through the combined passion for service and continual innovation and investment, we are committed to continuing the high level of service delivery across all contracts, whilst taking advantage of this opportunity to offer our clients an increased portfolio of solutions.”
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Everton FC has signed a shirt sleeve partnership agreement with innovative community-driven online streaming platform, KICK. Founded in October 2022, KICK says it is reinventing live streaming based on a creator-first model, with creators receiving a favourable 95-5 split of subscription revenue generated on their channel.
The KICK logo will debut on the shirt sleeves of Everton’s senior men’s team for the club’s pre-season friendly against Sporting CP this Saturday August 5). Everton Women and Everton Under-21s will also sport the KICK brand on their sleeves for the 2023/24 season. The club’s partnership with KICK will see the streaming platform become the official sleeve partner and the official streaming partner of Everton. KICK join the club’s global portfolio of partners, with its brand now featuring across Everton’s digital spaces, as well as at Goodison Park, Walton Hall Park and the Finch Farm training complex.
The agreement will see Everton step into KICK’s world of global streaming and esports by collaborating with some of the world’s most recognised content creators – on a platform that has 15 million registered accounts. KICK has more than 80 million site visits per month – with June 2023 seeing more than 82 million hours of streams viewed cumulatively.
Richard Kenyon, Everton’s chief commercial and communications officer, said: “Working with KICK provides us with some fantastic opportunities to reach and engage with new audiences over the course of the coming season and we already have some exciting plans for matchday experiences, starting this week with our fixture against Sporting CP.”
Akhil Sarin, director of acquisition for KICK, said: “Partnering with Everton is an exciting step forward for KICK. We are a young, ambitious brand and to join forces with a global football powerhouse will do wonders for us. We can’t wait for Everton fans and the football community to see what our platform has to offer and the incredible content that will be showcased there.”
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A growing surveying and consents management practice has been appointed onto a framework by National Grid for the first time in its history – as it supports the transition to net zero.
Ardent, which has offices in London, Birmingham, Warrington, Leeds, Glasgow and Dublin, has been appointed to the National Grid’s UK Land and Property (UKLP) framework for Land Rights and Land Referencing. The five-year framework – with an option for a further three years – will see Ardent support National Grid’s transition to connect more renewable energy to homes and businesses in England and Wales.
The company, which employs 125 staff and plans to double this by 2026, is the only new supplier to be added to the framework, with work starting in September. It will be providing expertise around land rights, land referencing and land assembly to bring projects to fruition.
Nick Dexter, senior director and head of utilities, said: “This is further evidence of Ardent’s growth and is part of our strategy to double in size over the next three years. As a business, we have made great strides in recent years and this is a further example of that work, we look forward to working with the team at National Grid in delivering the transition to net zero.”
Prem Gabbi, director of UK land and property at National Grid, said: “Working together with our supply chain, we are embedding a results-driven culture as we strive to continue delivering for our customers and achieving our ambitious targets around net zero and the clean energy transition. We look forward to building and strengthening our relationship with Ardent as we enable wider National Grid to keep the lights on and the energy flowing for millions of British households.”
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An additional bus will be added to the Local Link service provided by Transport for Greater Manchester courtesy of funding from the Manchester Airport Group (MAG).
Local Link allows residents living in areas across Greater Manchester under-served by public transport to book minibuses to get to their destination. The funding from MAG will add another minibus which can be booked by residents in the Wythenshawe, Heald Green and Timperley service areas. The new vehicle will provide additional capacity at times of peak demand for the service including very early mornings where there is currently high demand. The services will continue to operate on a 24/7 basis.
This will increase availability of trips to and from Manchester Airport, including the Runway Visitor Centre, with customers also able to use Local Link to travel to other businesses at the airport such as the World Freight Terminal. Local Link can also support local trips including journeys to Wythenshawe Hospital and Withington Hospital.
The extra funding will allow Local Link to extend to parts of Sale West, such as Broadheath and Woodhouse, which will now have a direct link to Manchester Airport on a 24/7 basis. Customers can also use these Local Link services to interchange onto other bus services as System One and Get Me There products are accepted.
The new vehicle will be available at the following times from July 31: 1.30am until 8.45am, Monday to Sunday; 12.45pm to 10.15pm, Monday to Fridays only. Nick Roberts, TfGM’s head of non-franchised and transition bus, said: “This funding allows us to extend and increase the capacity of this vital service, which will strengthen connections to a key employment site while also benefiting the surrounding local areas more widely.”
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Andy Burnham
Business leaders and education leaders have backed Greater Manchester’s initial proposals for technical education, including a Greater Manchester Baccalaureate (MBacc), which is proposed to launch a pilot programme by September 2024.
Back in May, the Mayor of Greater Manchester announced plans for the MBacc for technical education, which would sit alongside the existing English Baccalaureate (EBacc) for those wanting to pursue a university education. The MBacc aims to provide clear routes for young people to access work, skills and training in line with what the local economy of Greater Manchester needs from its future workforce.
Following the announcement, a consultation took place to find out what members of the public and key partners thought of the MBacc proposals. Nearly 90% of respondents said they agree with Greater Manchester’s ambition for integrating technical education, skills and work. This includes more than 50 organisations from a variety of industries including digital, education and creative.
An overwhelming number of respondents backed working with employers and key stakeholders to shape the technical pathway. Many participants stated that working with employers to shape the proposal would also help support buy in and build capacity for industry placements. One respondent wrote: “This is a vital region-focused innovation which will lead the way in addressing longstanding inequalities.”
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “Since we published our plans, we have received an overwhelmingly positive response from employers and education leaders to the MBacc and our vision for an integrated technical education system. We have been taken aback by the high levels of public support from parents and students who are pleased that technical education is finally being given the priority it deserves.”
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Penketh School students in Youth Fed session
Young people are being taught how to keep themselves safe online, to protect themselves from hackers and learn vital cyber skills with the help of a charity in Cheshire.
From fake news to bias, cyberbullying and sexting, to echo chambers and identifying hate speech, the dedicated sessions are designed to improve mental health and online experiences while also preparing the younger generation for a workplace that will be dominated by digital working practices.
The courses are part of an award-winning initiative run by Youth Fed at a dedicated digital learning centre at Sci-Tech Daresbury. A youth charity supporting young people aged between 10 and 29, Youth Fed works to help improve skills through services, training and within school based activities. Since it was established, 1,274 individuals have benefited from the sessions, with 11 schools taking part.
The courses are delivered to school pupils in Cheshire, Halton and Warrington. The free sessions cover cyber security and online safety, as well as mental health wellbeing support. In sessions that last from one hour to a half day or full day, both delivered in the specially designed digital lab, the courses are designed to help young people be safer online. They explore how people might behave online, with risks like emotional manipulation, polarising and scapegoating, and understanding the distinction between free speech and hate speech.
Youth Fed CEO, Chris Hindley, said: “While the average time spent daily on social media is 2.5 hours, in teens it rises to over seven hours. Social media is not just a place to meet friends but a digital gateway to the world. For many young people it is their first experience of a digital landscape and the online world. While it is a fun, creative and inspiring place most of the time, like the physical world it is important to know the risks and how to protect yourselves.”
