“Make it York” publish financial performance figures

“Make it York“, the wholly Council owned QUANGO responsible for economic development activities in the City, has finally published its financial performance figures for the period up to and including November.

The figures include income from the St Nicholas Fair and Illuminating York but the cost of staging the two events are not revealed.

While the figures suggest that the company is on course to make a small surplus during the current financial year, the covering notes include a warning that the recent floods may impact on the final out-turns.

The figures are being discussed at a meeting which is taking place tomorrow (Monday) at West Offices (5:30pm). The meeting is open to members of the public.

It is expected that managers from Make it York will update the stakeholder committee on the actions that they took to help businesses that were being flooded on the evening of 26th December.

Residents will also want to know why plans to provide children’s rides at the St Nicholas Fair were abandoned?

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York Central – consultation meeting dates

Have your say on York Central proposals
York central land ownership. Yellow -Network Rail, Purple - Railway Museum, Red - York Council taxpayers

York central land ownership. Yellow -Network Rail, Purple – Railway Museum, Red – York Council taxpayers

Residents and businesses are invited to have their say on the future of York’s largest brownfield site from this month.

Plans were unveiled last month by City of York Council, Network Rail and the National Railway Museum (NRM), to consult with residents and businesses on what has been labelled as the King’s Cross of the North.
Consultation will take place between Monday 18 January and Monday 15 February, via:

Drop-in sessions, at:

  • • West Offices: Station Rise, Thursday 21 January 10am – 4pm
  • • National Railway Museum: Saturday 30 January 10am – 4pm
  • • Holgate and Micklegate joint ward committee: Tuesday 19 January St Paul’s Church, Holgate Road, 6-8pm
  • • York Railway Station: Wednesday 3 February 4pm – 7pm
  • •  Public Exhibition: West Offices, Station Rise. Throughout the duration of the consultation period.

Online at: www.york.gov.uk/consultations

Printed copies of the consultation document and questionnaire are also available at West Offices, Hazel Court and all York Libraries and Explore Centres.

Over the past 12-months, the council has been working in collaboration with Network Rail, the NRM and the Homes and Communities Agency towards a high level masterplan of York Central – a 72 hectare site located in the heart of the city.

The city’s new vision could provide up to 120,000 sq m of high-quality office space, creating up to 7,000 new jobs, a new residential community for up to 2,500 new homes, with opportunities to expand and enhance the National Railway Museum, make improvements to the railway station and create a network of vibrant public squares, green spaces and routes linking to surrounding neighbourhoods.
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Stonegate’s iconic Mulberry Hall to close

Mulberry HallSad to hear reports that the iconic Mulberry Hall in Stonegate is set to close.

The business has been an important part of York’s traditional street scene for decades. It offered a unique mixture of high quality china, glassware and jewelry. In recent years it has also been a home for a household equipment section and had opened a popular coffee bar.

The owner of the shop – Michael Sinclair – is also the driving force behind the annual Christmas lights display in Stonegate and led the campaign to have a Business Improvement District established in the City Centre.

The business may have been the victim of increased internet shopping although pressure from the – higher margins/turnover – leisure sector may also have been a factor.

We will see when the future use of the building becomes clearer. A link to a relevant planning application – for change of use to a restaurant – submitted in October can be seen by clicking here

Some will also say that the last decision of the last Labour led Council, to double parking charges in the City centre, may also have been a factor.

We hope that the Mulberry Hall business will re-establish itself elsewhere – it already has a major internet presence – and that the Stonegate building will not remain empty for very long.

 

£365,000 for York Central’s development plans

click to enlarge

click to enlarge

City of York Council has been awarded £365,000 of Government funding to help develop plans for York Central, a Housing Zone and an Enterprise Zone which aims to help create to 7,000 new jobs, up to 120,000 sq m of office space and up to 2,500 new homes.

York Central was identified as a Housing Zone in April 2015 and the award of this capacity funding will add to the £355k earmarked by the council in December to progress the next development stage.

The council will use the grant to help fund the delivery team and undertake further technical assessments to ensure the project makes progress whilst a partnership is being shaped with Network Rail, the NRM and the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).

The HCA has also earmarked £9.4m of equity investment to the site (subject to final agreement of the partnership arrangements and the actual expenditure).

The partnership is also sourcing funding to invest in the infrastructure required to unlock the 72 hectare site which, as usual, was not flooded in the recent events.

Meanwhile, work continues between council, Network Rail, the NRM and the HCA to develop a planning framework.

The Enterprise Zone status means that half of business rates generated from the site, which would have gone back to government, will be retained in the area for 25 years following completion. Businesses moving to York Central will also get business rate relief for the first five years, providing an incentive for inward investment and business growth

Estimates suggest this could help to create up to 7,000 jobs in the city, and over £1.1 billion value for the region’s economy. The jobs created would be high-value office based jobs, helping to grow York’s economy by an estimated 20 per cent and would increase average wages in the city.

The Enterprise Zone status will also support the infrastructure for housing elements of the site, helping to create much-needed new homes on brownfield land and protect the greenbelt.
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Unemployment falls again in York

 

Got jobCity of York Council has welcomed figures that have shown the number of York residents claiming Jobseekers Allowance and Universal Credit (out of employment) has again fallen.

The statistics, released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), show there are now 1,025 claimants in York, a fall of 210 (17 per cent) from November 2014 and of 27 residents claiming jobseekers allowance and Universal Credit in the last month.

The figures also showed the number of young people claiming Jobseekers Allowance or Universal Credit has also fallen by 63.27 per cent in the last year.

The Jobseekers Allowance claimant count for York represents 0.5 per cent of the working population and contrasts to the regional average which stands at 2 per cent. The figures are also much lower than the national average which stands at 1.5 per cent.

Councillor Keith Aspden, Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Economic Development of City of York Council said:

“I am pleased that the long-term figures show a reduction in the number of claimants in the past 12 months. As an Executive we remain committed to working with partners across the city to support residents looking for work. With the recent positive news in relation to York’s economy with announcements such as the York Central proposals, the opening of the Hiscox offices and the announcement regarding the BID will hopefully see this positive trend continue and offer more opportunities for York residents.”

Leeds City Region LEP report claims £1.2 million invested in York

LEP report Dec 2015Today’s Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) report claims the LEP has helped York over the last four years to unlock £1.127m private sector investment, has created 22 jobs through £167,883 LEP grant investment and has provided support to around 50 SME’s.

The report also outlines that work by the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) as a whole has added an extra £1.4 billion to the Leeds City Region’s annual economic output and helped create an additional 3,200 jobs for local people.

4,300 businesses have benefitted from LEP finance and support, and this combined activity has unlocked around £491 million of private sector investment in the region. For every £1 of taxpayers’ money secured by the LEP, some £10 in economic output has been generated in line with the ambitions in the LEP’s overall Strategic Economic Plan.
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York’s apprentices celebrated at graduation event

Hundreds of York apprentices and apprentice employers were celebrated at last night’s graduation ceremony (Thursday 19 November) which took place at the Royal York Hotel.

The fifth York Apprenticeship Graduation, co-ordinated by York Apprenticeship Hub, saw over 100 apprentices recognised for completing their Apprenticeship.

Apprentices were joined at the high-profile ceremony by over 200 friends, family, employers and training providers. Other guests at the event included The National Apprenticeship Service, York and North Yorkshire Enterprise Partnership, The Guilds and the Civic Party.
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Rise in number of apprenticeships in York

 Breadmaker apprentice

City of York Council has welcomed figures showing a 30 percent increase in the number of people starting apprenticeships in the past year making it the UK’s sixth top-performing local authority.

Figures released by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills have shown that 1,690  York residents have started an apprenticeship in the last year (2014/15), 390 more than the last academic year.

The statistics also show York to be one of the highest performing local authorities for Apprenticeship growth amongst businesses with York ranking sixth out of 151 at full Local Authority level, meaning it is in the top four per cent of Local Authorities.

The figures also showed that around 20 percent of this growth in apprenticeships was generated by the council-led York Apprenticeship Hub which helps small businesses new to apprenticeships, supporting them through the process and helping them find the training provider and right person for the job.
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Finalists Announced for York Apprenticeship Awards

ApprenticeshipFinalists for the 2015 York Apprenticeship Awards have been announced ahead of the York Apprenticeship Graduation and Awards Ceremony next week.

This year saw more high quality applications than ever before, with nominations for many outstanding apprentices across the city.

The awards will be presented as part of the York Apprenticeship Graduation Ceremony at The Royal York Hotel from 7.30pm to 8.45pm on Thursday 19 November, when over 1,000 apprentices will be eligible to graduate.

This year, there are five categories: Apprentice of the Year aged 16-24 (SME), Apprentice of the Year aged 16-24 (Large Employer), Apprentice of the Year aged 25 or over, Small Employer of the Year and Large Employer of the Year.

The shortlisted nominees are:
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