Leading law firm Geldards has revealed its role on the plans to create a £3 million heritage vehicle centre at former Rolls Royce Site, acting as legal advisor to Derby City Council.

The project, which is expected to create 120 jobs, will see the former Light Alloy site, in Osmaston Road, transformed into a centre where owners of classic vehicles, including cars, motorbikes and lorries, can bring their pride and joys to be repaired and restored.

Geldards provided legal advice to Derby City Council regarding the funding of the project and on a wide range of complex legal issues for the benefit of the project, which enabled it to get the green light to go ahead.

Corporate Partner Jenny Chatten and Senior Associate Sarah Bailey led on the advice to Derby City Council, supported by Associate Sharon Lowe who advised on property matters.

Jenny Chatten comments: “Geldards are thrilled to have played an important role in helping this extremely exciting project get off the ground.  It’s going to be a great addition to the city of Derby attracting visitors and creating employment and skills training.  We have a long working relationship with Derby City Council and enjoyed  working together to breathe life into this scheme.”

Plans for the project were submitted and approved earlier this year, and the city council has also made another contribution to the scheme by lending the company, Great Northern Classics,  £1.25 million from its Derby Enterprise Growth Fund.

The retail sector’s crucial Golden Quarter period, which encompasses Christmas and Black Friday, has started poorly with disappointing sales growth in October, new figures by accountancy and business advisory firm BDO LLP reveal. According to BDO’s High Street Sales Tracker, total like-for-like (LFL) sales (combined in-store and online) grew by +3.5% in October, compared to a base of +19.9% in the equivalent month last year. However, with a strong first week of sales masking poor performance across the rest of the month, these results are a disappointing start to this vital time of year. Total non-store LFLs recorded the first positive results (+0.5%) since July, following negative results in August and September. With growth of just +5.9%, total in-store LFLs recorded the lowest results since stores reopened when the UK emerged from lockdown in 2021. October started strongly with total LFLs recording an increase of +11.48%, compared to +22.03% for the same week last year. These positive results were likely making up for the slowdown in sales resulting from the bank holiday funeral of Queen Elizabeth II the preceding week. However, following weeks showed much lower levels of growth, with weeks two and three recording total LFL growth of +5.63% and +4.16% respectively. In the fourth week LFL growth fell to +0.27% and in the final week of the month, total LFL sales went negative, falling to -1.84%.

Sector Results

The fashion sector was the strongest performing category throughout October, with total LFLs climbing by +6.7% from a base of +36.8%. This marks 20 consecutive months of positive total LFL sales figures for the fashion sector, but is the third straight month of slower growth. The homewares sector recorded total LFL sales growth of +3.5% in October, the first positive set of results since April 2022, following five consecutive months of negative results. However, these figures are compared to a low base of +0.7% in October 2021. October was also a disappointing month for the lifestyle sector, with total LFLs falling by -0.1%, from a base of +10.0% in the previous year. This is the first negative result for the category since February 2021, suggesting that the fall in consumer discretionary spend has spread to include the lifestyle sector, having already seen homewares record declines in recent months. Sophie Michael, Head of Retail and Wholesale at BDO LLP, said: “This is a disappointing start to the most important part of the retail calendar. After a summer of sluggish retail sales growth, retailers would have been hoping for performance to pick up once we reached the Golden Quarter. However, like-for-like sales are continuing to trend downwards, as consumer confidence remains at near record lows. “October may have started strongly but sales quickly tailed off, with negative results in the final week of the month. If we remove the first week of the month from these results which was making up for the held back spend of the extra bank holiday, retail sales grew by only +1.8%. Given the current level of inflation, this means that actual sales volumes have decreased significantly. “We are likely to see different actions being taken by retailers in the run up to Black Friday depending on their performance to date, stock levels and also challenges that they may be facing on working capital Across the sector it’s clear that retailers will have to think carefully on pricing to persuade shoppers to part with their cash, without further impacting their already low profit margins. As ever, some will look to make operational savings or reduce costs through the supply chain, but when faced with such strong economic headwinds, there is only so much the sector can do to preserve their business.”

Leading Derby-based project managers, construction cost consultants and building surveyors Armsons Barlow have celebrated a milestone 50 years in business. More than 100 staff, clients, associates and friends marked the occasion with an evening reception at the Derby Museum of Making. Armsons was established by Michael Armson in 1972 to offer specialist quantity surveying expertise to private and public sector clients across the region. Over the past five decades, the business has expanded its service offering considerably and now delivers a range of core services, including project management, construction cost management and building surveying, across a broad spectrum of sectors – including commercial, industrial, civil engineering, residential, healthcare, retail, sports and leisure, education and heritage. At the end of 2021, Armsons joined forces with chartered quantity surveyors and building surveyors Barlow & Associates to create Armsons Barlow and relocated from their long-standing home on Brick Row in Darley Abbey to Vernon Street in Derby. The new combined business provides an expanded, multi-disciplinary operation which encompasses all major building and surveying sectors. At the event, presentations were made to Michael Armson in recognition of his 50 years in business and to Stephen Fernie, who is celebrating 25 years with the firm. Commenting on the 50^th anniversary celebrations, Sally Walters, director of Armsons Barlow, said: “Over the past 50 years, we have seen many changes within the sector.  Due to the hard work of Michael and former directors, we have been able to develop the practice and become the firm we are today. “Joining forces with Barlow Associates at the end of 2021 was a great opportunity for both businesses to come together and share our expertise, resources and clients and continue to grow our team. “It was great to see so many of our staff, past and present, clients and associates in one place to celebrate this amazing milestone. Here’s to another 50!” Over the past 50 years, Armsons has been involved in many award-winning schemes, including transforming the historic Roundhouse on Pride Park into a £51m engineering, technology, and construction campus for Derby College. Other projects include Glasshouse College – Ruskin Mill Trust, housed in the former Royal Doulton factory in Stourbridge’s Glass Quarter and 400 Hall, a state-of-the-art flexible performance theatre for Repton Hall School.

Following today’s decision by the Bank of England to increase the base rate from 2.25% to 3%, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) National Chair Martin McTague said: “Whatever the macroeconomic justifications for this latest rise, the eighth in a row, its effects will be felt immediately on the ground by small businesses carrying many kinds of debts, as well as by hard-pressed consumers. “Consumer confidence in October was only slightly above its all-time low in September, which spells worrying news for countless small firms relying on consumer spending in the so-called ‘golden quarter’ running up to the festive season. “Our research found that firms in the hospitality sector had a confidence reading almost twice as negative as the overall score for all sectors in Q3, raising fears of a wave of closures if prospects do not improve this winter. “Prior to today’s base rate hike, small firms were already telling us that the availability of new credit worsened in the third quarter, and that finance was already getting more costly, adding to the financial pressures they face. “Inflation is still sky-high, especially for business inputs, where it is running at around twice the rate of that felt by consumers. “Today’s rise may be seen by markets as necessary and inevitable, but for small businesses struggling under a debt burden and seeing decreases in custom that will be cold comfort. “The Chancellor must not forget small businesses and self-employed people in the upcoming Budget. “While there are undoubtedly tough decisions ahead, a further drop in small business numbers, after 2020 and 2021 saw a combined loss of nearly half a million, will hamstring the UK’s economic recovery before it has a chance to get going. “Action on late payment at least would be a godsend for small firms, opening up flows of working capital to keep them able to trade. The long-running scandal of large corporates’ poor payment practices must end, and the sooner the better.”