Awards: Connect Gazelles, Futuresound, HSBC, Gordons
ENTREPRENEURS’ organisation Connect Gazelles has won the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce Business in the Community Award.
Following their win, Connect Gazelles will represent their region at the national finals on 26 November 2015 at The Brewery, London.
One national winner will be awarded the accolade of Business of the Year and walk away with a £10,000 cash prize
Nick Butler, chief executive of Connect Gazelles said: “We are thrilled to be the South Yorkshire regional winner of the Chamber of Commerce’s Business in the Community award and to go through to the national finals.
“The Connect Gazelles are unique, Nobody else has 67 of Yorkshire’s most successful entrepreneurs giving free time to help create jobs and wealth in Yorkshire.
“We intend to spread the concept nationwide-and are optimistic that we will win the national prize”
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LAW firm Gordons has been shortlisted in two categories of the British Legal Awards.
The firm has been listed in the Commercial Team of the Year for the employment team’s work on a retailer’s restructuring involving more than 400 staff at five sites.
Gordons have also been recognised in the Best Use of Technology category for their secure online portal The Legal Desk.
This follows success last month double success in the Law Society Excellence Awards, when Gordons’ partner Victoria Davey was named a finalist for Woman Lawyer of the Year and its groundbreaking apprenticeship programme was shortlisted for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion.
Paul Ayre, managing partner, Gordons, said: “We’re hugely pleased at this further double-recognition. The acknowledgement of our employment team’s qualities will surprise no-one familiar with them and highlights our ability to offer a fully integrated service, embracing a range of specialist services.
“The fact that The Legal Desk is also a finalist is gratifying, as it represents a significant investment and was developed virtually entirely in-house by our own IT experts and legal professionals. The portal demonstrates that we’re prepared to innovate and highlights the depth of talent in all areas of our business.”
The British Legal Awards will be decided by an independent judging panel, overseen by Alasdair Douglas, chairman of the City of London Law Society. Winners will be announced at an event at London’s Old Billingsgate Market on 25 November.
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LEEDS events and music company Futuresound Events, organisers of Live at Leeds, and their sister company, Slam Dunk, have been shortlisted in the final three at the Live UK Awards.
The firm has been listed in the Best Festival (capacity under 15,000) for Slam Dunk festival, Indie Promoter of the Year for Ben Ray at Slam Dunk, and Regional Promoter of the Year for Futuresound.
Live at Leeds and Slam Dunk Festival have both been shortlisted for UK Festival Award ‘Best Metropolitan Festival’
Colin Oliver, director at Slam Dunk & Futuresound Events said: “It’s fantastic that we are nominated for these nationally recognised awards. Over the last two years Live At Leeds was voted ‘Best Metropolitan Festival 2014′ at the UK Festival Awards and Slam Dunk Festival has been awarded the accolade ‘Best Festival’ 2 years in a row at the Kerrang! Awards, beating serious greenfield festival heavyweights Download and Reading and Leeds!
“These awards give recognition to the team for 9 years of hard work and help put Leeds and our independent companies on the map.”
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HSBC HAS promised £150,000 to the SME that successfully goes through their major pitch competition.
The Elevator Pitch is open to businesses with a turnover of up to £10m, and requires businesses to explain in a 90-second video how they would grow their business with the money.
HSBC is looking for “innovative and exciting” responses to the brief, and the winning firm will also receive 10 hours of business mentoring.
Chris Wormall, HSBC’s head of Business Banking in the North, said: “SMEs are the lifeblood of the UK economy, employing some 15 million people with a combined turnover of £1.6 trillion.
“The Elevator Pitch could help these businesses fast-forward their growth plans, giving the winner the opportunity to make investments that may have been projected two or three years down the line. This kind of funding and support could open a lot of doors.”
