BSP Consulting MD tackles walking challenge for MS research

The managing director of East Midlands civil and structural engineering company BSP Consulting is tackling a walking challenge to raise money for charity.

David Sumner will take part in the 10in10 – an annual walk which conquers ten peaks in ten hours in the Lake District and which raises money for the MS Society.

In December 2014, he raised more than £6,000 for the charity after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa, the highest free-standing mountain in the world.

Now he is embarking on a second challenge in support of the organisation, which undertakes research into Multiple Sclerosis – a condition that David’s wife Pat has been living with for more than 20 years.

“Multiple Sclerosis is a debilitating neurological disease with no cure, and I want to do what I can to raise money to help researchers discover new ways of treatment in the hope that one day a cure might be found,” said David.

The annual 10in10 challenge was designed and created by Yvonne Booth in 2011. It was her response to her husband Duncan’s diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis in 2010.

Supporters of the event raise money specifically for research into stem cell treatment in MS and how stem cells could be used to repair myelin – the protective layer that surrounds nerve fibres which is damaged by MS.

The 10in10 takes place on Saturday 25^th June 2016 and will cover a distance of more than 16 miles, starting and finishing near Keswick. The route takes in Causey Pike, Sail, Crag Hill, Wandope, Whiteless Pike, High Snockrigg, Robinson, Dale Head, High Spy, and Maiden Moor.

David is a founding director of BSP Consulting, which has offices in Nottingham, Derby, Leicester and Sheffield, and which provides civil, structural, traffic, transportation, geotechnical and environmental engineering services across the construction industry.

A graduate of the University of Nottingham, he is a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE).

David’s fundraising page is https://www.justgiving.com/David-Sumner1

Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Milestone celebration for Nottingham bakery Butt Foods

Left to right, Mazhar Butt, Abdul Jabbar Khan and David Williams

Specialist baker Butt Foods has marked 25 years in business with a celebration for staff, as well as the launch of a new brand.

The Nottingham-based business, which supplies a range of naan breads, flatbreads and sub rolls to the food service sector across the UK, has unveiled a new Baked Earth brand. It has also launched a new website which offers serving ideas for chefs and a special section for operators to subscribe to which will give insights into the latest bakery and food trends.

Butt Foods was founded by Mazhar Butt, who opened one of Nottingham’s first Asian restaurants in the 1970s. The idea for a bakery came after a customer failed to show up to collect a special order of naan breads and the young Mazhar found himself with more freshly-baked naan than he knew what to do with.

After wrapping them and putting them on the counter of his shop, they sold ‘like hot cakes’ and the next day customers were back for more after hearing just how good the naan were. 

More than 25 years later and having introduced authentic frozen naan to the foodservice market in 1991, Butt Foods is now one of the largest naan bread suppliers in Europe and also produces a range of other speciality breads from its modern bakery at The Midway on Lenton Industrial Estate. 

To mark the milestone, Mazhar Butt and his senior team hosted a party for staff at the Mogal-E-Azam restaurant in Nottingham, where Mazhar thanked the team and paid tribute to those who had helped him with investment in the early days of the business.

Managing director David Williams, who joined Butt Foods in January 1991, just after it launched, said: “It was a great evening and the chance to reflect on how Butt Foods has grown from small beginnings into one of the UK’s premier suppliers of flatbreads and other bakery products.

“The company owes much to the loyalty and skills of our team, and it was very fitting that Butt Foods’ 25^th birthday should be celebrated with a party for employees. We’re also delighted to unveil our latest brand of craft-baked flatbreads, Baked Earth, which are pretty special, and our new website which offers hints and tips on ways to use our breads, as well as an area for chefs to subscribe to for free and where they will receive key information about trends in the food service sector.”

The award-winning bakery remains family owned and prides itself on keeping abreast of trends and developing new products to satisfy consumer demand in a fast-paced industry, supplying hand-finished frozen sweet and savoury products.

Among the guests at the 25^th birthday celebrations was production manager Abdul Jabbar Khan – the longest serving employee after David Williams - who joined the business in 1992. Many other members of the team have been with the company for several years too, added David.

Each employee was given an engraved pen as a gift to mark the occasion.

For more information about Butt Foods, visit www.buttfoods.co.uk

Press release issued by Nottingham based PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk  

Haughton Honey crowdfunding bid creates a buzz

More than 100 investors have backed an £80,000 crowdfunding investment campaign from premium honey brand Haughton Honey to support the next stage in the company’s growth.

Due to the high number of inquiries and strong demand for information, the timescale for investment has been extended slightly until midnight on 27^th May to allow potential investors to get involved.

More than four weeks into the campaign, around £52,000 had been pledged for investment, said Haughton Honey founder Crispin Reeves.

“We’ve had a flood of inquiries from potential investors seeking more details and in order to process them and allow them time to consider the investment, we’ve extended the deadline for investment by two weeks,” he said.

“I’ve been delighted to see so much interest in investing in Haughton Honey and in helping us to expand and meet the growing demand for our pure, raw honey.”

Cheshire-based Haughton Honey hopes to recruit more bee farmers and move onto the next stage of growth by attracting investors via crowdfunding platform, Crowdcube, in return for shares in the business.

Since launching in 2014, the firm has steadily expanded and recently began supplying the fine food retailer Booths, as well as The Protein Works, a large sports nutrition brand owned by Alliance Boots, which has just launched a co-branded Cashew Nut Butter Luxe product containing Haughton Honey.

The honey market within the UK is worth £119.5m per annum, with healthy annual growth. UK sales of jams, spreads and honey grew 5.9% in the year up to October 2015, with growth in honey sales alone between 2014 and 2015 increasing by £9.8m year-on-year.

During 2015 Haughton Honey packed and sold over 8,000kg of English honey and anticipates requiring more than double that amount during 2016. The honey is sold online and via more than 70 regional sales outlets across the North West and Midlands, as well as through premium supermarket Booths, who started stocking Haughton Honey at the beginning of April 2016.

The company, based at Radmore Farm, Haughton, bottles raw honey which comes straight from the hive, is cold extracted and never pasteurised which means that it retains all of the natural enzymes and proteins that make English honey so special. It is also 100% natural and pure and features traces of dandelion, chestnut, blackberry, clover and other wildflowers.

Any investment in Haughton Honey through the Crowdcube project will attract Seed Enterprise Investment Schemes (SEIS) tax relief.

A series of rewards is on offer for those who invest in Haughton Honey, including discounts, honey, bee farming experiences, and hotel, restaurant and cookery school vouchers.

To find out more about the Crowdcube investment opportunity visit www.crowdcube.com

For more information about Haughton Honey visit www.haughtonhoney.com

Investments of this nature carry risks to your capital. The availability of any tax relief, including SEIS and EIS, depends on individual circumstances. You should seek independent tax advice.

Approved as a financial promotion by Crowdcube Capital Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (No. 620205). 

Press release issued by Nottingham based PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk 

Focus Consultants acquires a controlling interest in Midland Energy Services Ltd

Focus Partners meeting with the MES Team

Focus Consultants has acquired a controlling interest in Newark-based sustainable building consultancy Midland Energy Services Ltd (trading as MES Building Solutions).

The move will strengthen the sustainable development services already provided by Focus, and increase the number of professionals working on the team.

It follows an announcement last year by Nottingham-based Focus that the organisation planned to further develop the group’s structure as it built on more than 20 years of experience.

The existing MES management team will remain and MES will be run separately for the foreseeable future, said Focus Consultants partner Kevin Osbon.

“We see this as an exciting opportunity to work in partnership with MES to help both businesses grow,” said Kevin. “MES original founder and owner of the business Alex Hole will remain as CEO, and we are looking forward to pooling our resources to provide extended services to our clients in terms of the sustainable building services that we offer.

“Focus Consultants views the arrangement as a partnership, which will allow us to undertake joint initiatives to support our clients.”

Focus, which is based at Phoenix Business Park, Nottingham, and has branches in London, Leicester, and in Boston and Aubourn in Lincolnshire, offers a range of services in the fields of funding and regeneration, energy, project management and chartered surveying. Its sustainable development department provides services such as low carbon refurbishment support, Code for Sustainable Homes assessment, energy/sustainability statements for planning, low carbon funding advice and BREEAM assessments.

As well as a range of eco-sustainability services, the team at MES will bring ‘rights of light’ expertise to the group, providing a major new service for Focus to offer clients and a cross-selling opportunity that dovetails with the current offer, added Kevin Osbon.

The acquisition of MES, for an undisclosed sum, is expected to bring a combined turnover of more than £5 million for 2016/2017 for the Focus group, and with the addition of 12 skilled staff, will create a team of almost 60 across all offices.

MES is based in Beacon Hill Office Park, Newark, and specialises in environmental consultancy work.

CEO Alex Hole said: “MES will continue to operate as a separate company. However, our clients will be able to benefit from this association with Focus Consultants as we will also be able to offer even more of a ‘one-stop’ construction solution through our sister organisation.

“I will continue to lead the MES team and other personnel within MES stay the same. We are excited about the opportunities this brings and look forward to being able to continue to provide our clients with the high quality, honest and diligent service we are renowned for.”

The partners at Focus were advised on the deal by Duncan James of Shakespeare Martineau and Collin Franklin from Franklin Underwood.

For more information about Focus Consultants, visit www.focus-consultants.co.uk For more information about MES, visit www.mesbuildingsolutions.co.uk

Press release issued by Nottingham based PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk