Region’s manufacturers recruiting after ‘marked pick-up’ and new start-ups on the rise
East of England manufacturers have seen a marked pick up in activity in the first quarter of this year with recruitment and investment now at ‘reasonably strong’ levels, reflecting a more optimistic picture for the second quarter. The Make UK/BDO Q1 manufacturing outlook survey showed that although output fell in the region, orders increased in line with other regions driven mainly by domestic orders. Looking towards the next quarter all the survey indicators have turned positive with recruitment intentions especially strong. Charlotte Horobin, Midlands director at Make UK, said: “Manufacturers in the East of England have seen a rebound at the start of the year as conditions have improved in their major markets and, business confidence has improved. However, one swallow doesn’t make a summer and it is far too early to say the worst has passed given the significant challenges the economy faces. However, the Budget should help boost investment in the short to medium term although ideally, full expensing should be made permanent to better reflect the investment cycle for manufacturers.” Make UK is forecasting growth of 0.8 per cent in 2024.
Meanwhile, East Anglia has become a ‘hotbed of activity for entrepreneurs’, with one of the highest levels of business start-ups of any UK region, according to the Eastern branch of R3. Its figures show that there were 7,494 new businesses set up in East Anglia in February, up 7.5 per cent on the month last year and the highest outside Greater London (23,679). R3 Eastern chair Alistair Bacon, founding principal at AMB Law in the region, said: “It is encouraging to see such a strong entrepreneurial start to 2023, despite the hugely challenging trading conditions we are currently experiencing. These start-ups should be able to create jobs for the region as well as new business opportunities for their suppliers, customers and clients. They will also help to balance out the high level of corporate insolvencies we have seen across the UK in recent months.”
Route for Oxford Cambridge rail link to be confirmed in May
The route for the Bedford-Cambridge section of East West Rail – the new rail line linking Oxford and Cambridge – will be confirmed in May, the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said in last week’s Budget. The government will also ‘provide capacity funding’ to support local authorities to develop plans for strategic economic growth around the new stations. The hope is that the new line will support growth in life sciences and other high-productivity sectors across the region. Regeneration spending of £4.3 million in East Suffolk – involving work to revive Lowestoft seafront – was also confirmed in the Budget. Richard Watson, head of tax for KPMG in the East of England, said: “The Chancellor made reference to several local projects which could have huge impact on the local economy, such as continued support for East West Rail and signalled that the £4.3 million committed for regeneration in East Suffolk will commence delivery later in the year. Poor regional connectivity is a drag on the effectiveness of our cities to operate as regional hubs. Speeding up journey times and improving reliability through strategic public transport investments, should be a priority.”
Photo: A CGI image of Winslow station on the Oxford and Bletchley/Milton Keynes leg of East West Rail
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Programme launched to boost region’s creative industries
A new investment programme worth £1.275 million has been launched to boost growth in the creative industries across the East. The Create Growth Programme is looking to capitalise on the region’s specialisms in keys sector, with a focus on its core clusters: tv, film, and content production, plus IT, software, gaming and design. Organisations are being urged to sign-up to an ‘investment readiness programme’ involving expert advice, support and one-to-one mentoring to help them gain investors and boost growth. Employment in creative industries in the East grew by 22 per cent over 2015-20 (an extra 8115 jobs), three times the national average. Chris Starkie, chief executive of New Anglia LEP, said: “Creative industries are really thriving in our region and this programme will support their ambitions for growth and help create the high value jobs we need to retain and attract the top talent.” The programme is funded by the DCMS and the local programme is led by New Anglia LEP.
Photo(l-r): Laura Hood, Anglia Capital Group, Emma Wakeling, University of Suffolk, Peter Brady, Orbital Media, Kate de Vries, Norfolk County Council.
Law firm moves to new offices in Ipswich’s business district
Ashtons Legal is moving its Ipswich base to a new office in the town’s business district and close to the football club. All of the firm’s 100 staff based in Ipswich – out of 400 which it employs across the East of England – will move to Portman House from its present offices on the Waterfront in June. Portman House was built in 1921, as a warehouse for a cigarette maker, Churchmans. It had previously been converted for office use and is being adapted by Ashtons to create a modern open working environment with high quality staff and client meeting spaces and onsite client parking. James Tarling, CEO of Ashtons, said: “We are excited to be making a long term commitment to the town and region with our move to this prominent building. Portman House will provide a better working environment for our staff, designed for the more flexible and collaborative way that we now work, as well as providing excellent facilities for our clients.”
Norfolk Showground Events Centre to be extended to create more versatile venue
A £750,000 extension and refurbishment of the Norfolk Events Centre at the Norfolk Showground is to go ahead to create a more flexible venue after a £100,000 grant from the Garfield Weston Foundation completed a fundraising for the project.Previously known as the Norfolk Arena, the building is the largest open indoor space in Norfolk and home to well-known events, including the Adnams Food & Drink Experience at the Royal Norfolk Show. New Anglia LEP has also made a grant of £25,000 to the project which will extend the main exhibition hall with space for break-out rooms, kitchens, bars, toilets, and equipment storage.The venue will be able to host 600 dinner layouts and a smaller 300-seater venue. Fearn Ainsworth, commercial development manager, Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association, said: “The completion of this project will transform the Norfolk Events Centre making it a much more usable and versatile venue. Not only will the NEC be able to host large events at scale, but it will also provide a much more attractive venue for smaller events that it currently cannot host.” Tendering is underway and the hope is that work will be completed by this October.
Photo: Fearn Ainsworth and Mike Parker, site delivery manager from the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association.
Agents paint positive picture of key property sectors
The heads of Savills’ offices in the region painted a positive picture of prospects for key property sectors when the publicly-listed agency unveiled financial results last week. Mark Little, head of office at Savills Norwich, said: “In spite of challenging market conditions, the Norwich office has had a strong 12 months.…The residential and new homes teams continue to see robust levels of activity, while colleagues in our rural and development divisions have completed some noteworthy deals. We have several new launches in the pipeline for 2023.”
In Cambridge, Tom Fraser said: “Our residential and new homes departments meanwhile continue to see high levels of activity across the city and wider county. Businesses remain attracted to Cambridge and the acceleration of the life sciences sector in particular bodes well for future success.”
Meanwhile in Ipswich, Tom Orford, said: “The last 12 months have been extremely busy. Our teams in residential, new homes, rural and commercial have completed on some significant deals…”. Savills reported an 18 per cent fall in underlying group pre-tax profits to £164.6 million on revenues up 7 per cent at £2.3bn.
Firm named top Norfolk property deal-maker
Norfolk-based property services firm Arnolds Keys has been named the county’s top commercial property deal-maker in 2022 by Estates Gazette for the second year running. The firm acted on 62 freehold and leasehold transactions. Arnolds Keys managing partner Guy Gowing said:“2022 was a busy year for commercial property deals, particularly in the industrial and warehousing sector, as the county’s economy bounced back from the Covid pandemic. Increased commercial property deal activity invariably means more economic activity and the creation of more jobs – which can only be good news for Norfolk.” Arnolds Keys recently brokered the sale of the 3.39 hectare Sapphire Business Park to KSI Technologies in a £4.8 million deal.
National customer care accolade for Ipswich-based software firm
Ipswich-based company secretarial software specialist Inform Direct has been awarded a national accolade, the Platinum Trusted Service Award by Feefo, a ratings, reviews and customer analytics platform – for the fourth time.The award is an independent seal of excellence, given in recognition of exceptional service and on the basis of real reviews by verified customers, most of whom gave Inform Direct the highest available rating. Henry Catchpole, CEO Inform Direct, said: “We are delighted to receive this further award from Feefo, as an endorsement of our commitment to deliver exceptional experiences for our customers. We believe firmly that offering an award-winning company secretarial software product to make life easier for business owners and their accountants is only half the story. It’s essential that it is supported by a highly knowledgeable and friendly team who are there to help our customers.”
Photo: The Inform Direct team with customer service accolades from recent years.
Cambridge charity hands over energy efficient new homes to local residents
A Cambridge charity is marking the completion of a £5 million building project to create 15 new energy-efficient almshouses for local residents. Following an 18-month building programme, Girton Town Charity took ownership of Dovehouse Court, where all homes have been built to Passivhaus standards to maximise energy efficiency. The development also includes a new office for the charity. The project was funded by Girton Town Charity (GTC) and a £675,000 grant from the Combined Authority, and delivered by Barnes Construction, Northmores and Mole Architects. Ann Bonnett, chair of GTC, said: “This is a major milestone for us and we are delighted to have now taken ownership of Dovehouse Court and after many years, seen our plans to futureproof housing in our village come to fruition. I’d like to thank all the contractors who worked on the site for doing such a splendid job over the last 18 months as well as my fellow trustees.”
Photo (l-r): Jamie Saunders, Northmores; Matthew Ramplin, Barnes Construction; Ann Bonnett, GTC; Robin Hiley, GTC and Ian Bramwell, Mole Architects.
