Elizabeth Fagan, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Boots, has been appointed Chair of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership.

She succeeds Peter Richardson OBE, who has been Chair of D2N2 since 2012.

D2N2 is the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) for Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. It works with businesses, local authorities, skills and training providers and community and voluntary sector organisations, to grow the Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire economy.

Under Peter’s watch, the D2N2 LEP has already exceeded its original target of creating 55,000 new jobs in ten years – from 2013 to 2023 – and is now working on a new Strategic Economic Plan and Local Industrial Strategy for the cities, towns and rural areas in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

Elizabeth said:-

“I am very pleased to be joining as the Chair of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership at this important time in its development. This area is home to world-class businesses and knowledge bases, has a hard-working talent pool, a vibrant cultural offering and is a beautiful place to live, work and visit.”

“I believe that the power of D2N2 lies in the intersection between public and private companies and I hope that some of my experience will help make a positive difference. I look forward to working with business and local partners to create and deliver a new strategy for high value economic growth that benefits all our communities.”

Paying tribute to the work of her predecessor, Elizabeth said:-

“I thank Peter for the work that he has done as Chair of the LEP. He has been at the heart of D2N2’s successes to date and I wish him every success in future roles.”

Since 2012, Peter has overseen:

• The creation of D2N2’s original Strategic Economic Plan, in which the target of creating 55,000 new jobs and the means to create them, were devised
• Extensive lobbying for the planned High Speed Rail Line (HS2) to come through the D2N2 area, resulting in an ‘East Midlands Hub’, at Toton, Nottinghamshire, and a maintenance depot at Staveley, Derbyshire
• Support for the growth of the Nottingham and Derby Enterprise Zone, from the opening of Medicity, part of the Boots Enterprise Zone site in November 2013, right through to the continued development of each of the Nottingham and Derby Enterprise Zone sites today
• The signing of the D2N2 Growth Deal with Government, which secured £174m in Local Growth Funding for projects in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire to improve infrastructure and create jobs and which has since been increased to £250m.
• Launch of the D2N2 Growth Hub – a free and impartial support and advice service for businesses across the D2N2 area, which has helped over 6,000 businesses to date.

Peter also led each of D2N2’s five previous annual conferences and AGMs. The D2N2 Annual Conference on July 24 will be his last with the LEP. The formal handover to Elizabeth will take place at the conference.

Peter said:-

“During my time as D2N2’s Chairman, I’ve seen a lot of change locally, regionally and nationally. The D2N2 area, the East Midlands and the UK as a whole are all very different places from when I first took the role.

“Elizabeth will face a completely different set of challenges from those I faced as I helped bring together and lead a team of people who are helping the D2N2 area be the best that it possibly can be, meeting adversity with solutions and ensuring that the region makes the most of every opportunity.

“I stick true to my belief that, now more than ever, the D2N2 area is the UK’s most inspirational postcode.

“I wish Elizabeth all the very best as she takes over the reins at D2N2. I am confident she is the right person for the job and has the best possible team to support her.”

The percentage of people out of work in the Chesterfield has fallen according to figures released this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Figures for those claiming job seekers in Chesterfield was down with 1,645 claimants recorded down from 1,675 the previous month.

The number of people in work in the East Midlands between March and May 2018 was higher than for the same period last year and two years ago, according to figures released this morning.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed there were 2,285,777 people in work in the region, 30,421 higher than for the same three months in 2017 and 19,977 more than in 2016.

Compared with the same period in 2016, there were 6,245 fewer people unemployed in the East Midlands between March and May 2018 at 100,287.

Unemployment, however, was 10,625 higher in the period this year than it was last year and 1,256 up compared with three months between December and February.

The ONS also reported that unemployment for the region, which was on a par with the national average at 4.2%, was 1,256 higher between March and May this year than was recorded for the December to February period.

Scott Knowles, Chief Executive at East Midlands Chamber, said:-

“For a long time, the East Midlands has enjoyed fairly robust employment, usually bettering national average figures when it comes to job creation and the percentage of people out of work.

“While it’s too early to suggest trends or talk about economic slumps, the gap between the region and the national picture has been closing in recent months.

“There can be little doubt that Brexit is playing its part in these figures. The clock is ticking and business has yet to receive any useful information from the UK Government or Brussels about what our trading relationship with the EU will be after March next year.

“The lack of guidance is leading to uncertainty, which is bound to manifest itself as we get closer to the deadline, so I think it’s quite reasonable to expect businesses to hold off on investment and recruitment.

“That said, 67% of the firms that completed our second Quarterly Economic Survey of 2018 said they wanted to recruit but many were struggling to find suitably skilled or qualified staff, which suggests there is still an underlying business confidence.

“What is important now is that our Government does not cause that confidence to wan and delivers a Brexit for business instead of constantly bickering about it.”

Other figures released by the ONS this morning show that the claimant count has fallen across the whole of Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire, down 1,015 to 35,545 in June 2018 compared with the previous month.

The Derbyshire Times Business Awards return to Chesterfield this November 15 for their 10th year. Nominations are now being taken for the awards, which aim to recognise and celebrate the very best in local business and commerce.

Entries can be submitted for any business within Chesterfield and the surrounding areas, across all sectors from both small and larger organisations. The awards span across a range of categories from Small Business of the Year to Customer Service Award, Retailer of the Year to the most sought after 2018 Business of the Year Award.

Phil Bramley, Editor of the Derbyshire Times, comments:

“Businesses are the lifeblood of our community, they provide the jobs we need so we can do the things we love – raising families, putting down roots and growing communities.

“The Derbyshire Times business awards are a chance to shine a glowing spotlight on the fantastic work local businesses do day in, day out – highlighting their innovation, their dedication, their talent.

“They are a way of honouring the cream of north Derbyshire’s commerce and industry, raising the profile of companies, celebrating achievement and recognising the sheer hard work that their staff put in to make them what they are today.

“We really want to make the awards a true celebration of the brilliant businesses in our community – so please make sure you get involved and put forward your achievements so they get the full recognition they deserve.”

Winners from last years awards include  Casa Hotel, and Paul Beeson from Shorts Chartered Accountants.

The high profile awards, sponsored by a range of Chesterfield business including Banner Jones Solicitors, The University of Derby, Shorts Chartered Accountants, BHP Chartered Accountants, Learning Unlimited and Mitchells Chartered Accountants, offer organisations a platform to celebrate their success whilst providing an opportunity raise their profile and enhance their reputation.

More information and entry forms can be found by clicking here. Final entries must be made by September 20. 

A company which has a branch at Markham Vale has been named as one of 1,000 Companies to Inspire Britain.

AW Repair Group, which repairs more than 220 vehicles a week for household name motor insurers, opened its fourth branch on Waterloo Court three years ago and this summer will open its eighth operation in Derby.

The business has now been named in a prestigious directory, compiled by the London Stock Exchange Group, listing the top 1,000 businesses considered to be the most inspiring, dynamic and fastest growing companies.

Andrew Walsh, proud Managing Director at AW Repair Group, said:-

“This has come as a complete surprise. We did not enter a competition or put ourselves forward. The company has been selected by some of the most highly respected financial establishments. It is an absolute honour to be recognised as an inspiring company.”

In the foreword to the glossy directory Prime Minister, The Rt Hon Theresa May, writes:-

“All businesses, especially smaller ones, are inspiring: taking the spark of an innovative idea and shaping it into a life –changing reality. New technology and new thinking brings better jobs for more people. The 1,000 innovative companies recognised in this report are at the forefront of doing just that.”

The CEO of London Stock Exchange Nikhil Rathi explained the 5th annual publication:-

“Our goal in producing the report is to highlight, to as wide an audience as possible, the importance of fast-growing businesses to the future of the UK economy. We believe these companies have enormous potential for innovation, growth and job creation.”

Established in 1998, AW Repair Group has since grown to become one of the country’s top 15 accident repair groups with eight centres covering the East Midlands and South Yorkshire.  The company, which employs more than 160 people, has its headquarters in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, and holds prestigious manufacturer approvals such as BMW, Audi, LandRover, Volkswagen and Mini.

The Markham Vale site contributes around £2m per annum to the group’s turnover.

Three Chesterfield Champion organisations were announced as finalists in the East Midlands Chamber Business Awards at the Chambers President’s Summer Reception last week.

Chesterfield Champion Chesterfield College was announced as a finalist in the Education and Business Partnership Award and The Accountancy Recruitment Group and Pinewood Properties were both announced as finalists in the Excellence in Customer Service category.

The Chamber’s awards are the only ones locally to offer winners a chance to compete in regional and national heats of the British Chambers of Commerce Awards.

Introducing the announcements, Chamber Chief Executive  and Destination Chesterfield board member, Scott Knowles said:-

“It always gives me great pleasure to celebrate business success. It’s something that we should be shouting about from the rooftops.

“To make sure we are ready to meet all the challenges and seize the opportunities ahead, organisations must stay sharp and focused. One way of doing that is by competing for business awards such as ours – the only regional awards judged by your peers and offering the possibility of taking your success on to the national stage of the British Chambers of Commerce Business Awards later in the year.

“Competing for business awards forces organisations to look closely at what they do, how they do it and how they can sharpen their focus by setting aside those parts of their daily activities that do not contribute to their longer-term aspirations or essential operations.”

Winners of specific awards and the overall Business of the Year award winner for each county will automatically go through to the regional heats of the British Chambers of Commerce awards and could go on to represent the region at the BCC national awards.