Long awaited plans to make Armada Way a better place are moving up a gear with the appointment of contractors Morgan Sindall to carry out the pre-construction design.
The dated and piecemeal landscaping will be going and in its place will be a new urban park over kilometre long, lined on either side by an avenue of trees.
The aim is to create a more impressive route from North Cross roundabout through the city centre and a clear visual link to the sea, which was the original ambition of Armada Way. It is part of an ongoing programme designed to address years of under-investment in city centre streets and spaces.
Work is restarting this week on the Old Town Street New George Street improvement scheme.
Contractors Morgan Sindall are moving onto site for the next phase of the work to get underway.
This is the second phase of a three part project and involves further enabling works ahead of the main landscaping phase. There will also be more work beneath the surface of the street, including deep drainage and connections for the rainwater and drainage systems as part of the rain garden and sustainable urban drainage system.
The contractors will also be putting up hard hoardings around the site to hide the construction work and make the location look better.
And some big, bold designs with a nod to Plymouth’s past and future will be popping up around the site and elsewhere.
The bold design is the brainchild of local design agency 51 Studio who were commissioned by the Council to come up with something to add colour, creativity and a talking point to the city centre while a host of projects to make the city look and feel better get underway.
Advertise your business for free and encourage others throughout the PL Postcodes in Devon and Cornwall to use your services! Simply register to be a part of the Plymouth Supplier Directory (PSD) today.
If your business is registered in a PL Postcode, all it takes is 5 minutes to upload your company logo, services and details.:
It is free of charge to register and by signing up you will:
- Be part of the database of local businesses for you to sell to and buy from
- Have a public profile page where you can advertise your skills, services and expertise to buyers
- Be able to identify other local suppliers in your industry to make connections, form support networks and explore partnerships opportunities
- Find out the latest local Procurement news
- Support PL Postcode businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic
- Generate social, economic and environmental benefits throughout your PL communities
A local yacht chandlery based in Plymouth’s Mayflower Marina has started offering free refills of Ecowork Marine’s sustainable yacht wash during August and September to Plymouth’s boat owners in a bid to raise awareness of better sustainable practices amongst Plymouth’s boat owners in Britain’s ‘Ocean City’
The Chandlery is part of PR Systems Marine Electronics, a local marine electronics company run by Matt and Alison Owen offering electronic and electrical installations for yachts. PR Systems has a well earned reputation for high quality work that takes them all over the UK and even world. They opened The Chandlery in 2021 during the pandemic when they were able to take on the lease of the shop unit next door.
Passionate about sustainability and the environment, Alison and Matt Owen have put environmental considerations at the forefront of their chandlery and where possible try to only stock for environmentally friendly solutions, including setting up an Ecoworks Marine refill wash station for customers to reuse old bottles rather than buying new bottles from the shelf. The company says that by just refilling from their yacht wash 10 litre refill station, they can save up to 2,000 plastic bottles over some competitors' yacht wash products.
Plymouth-based solar panel experts Eco-Plug Ltd are Title Sponsor of this year's Plymouth Seafood and Harbour Festival, which is taking place on the 17 and 18 September on the Barbican and Sutton Harbour.
Eco-Plug will have some fun activities to take part in, as well as being on-hand to offer free help, advice and support on how to be more sustainable, cost efficient and eco-friendly at home - which has never been more important - as we go through this difficult time with rising energy prices. The entire team at Eco-Plug are feeling proud to be title sponsors for Plymouth's Seafood and Harbour Festival 2022, and are looking forward to seeing everybody there!
The free Seafood and Harbour Festival is a vibrant celebration of the incredible, sustainably caught fresh fish and seafood on offer in Britain’s Ocean City, home of the UK’s first National Marine Park. Cooking demonstrations, street food, stalls, refreshments, crafting, entertainment and children’s activities which include a marine conservation message, will all be on offer over the two days. Visitors can experience oceans of fun and feasts at Plymouth Seafood and Harbour Festival!
During Bristol Technology Festival (Oct 10-14) Tech South West will be running 5 days of interactive events, and they are on the lookout for tech leaders from Plymouth and across the peninsula to get involved.
Each day will have a different theme, including scaleups and startups, breaking into overseas markets, funding and finance and a live standup pitch event on the Friday. There will also be a South West showcase to kick off the week, providing an opportunity for organisations from across the region to showcase their innovations and expertise.
If you are interested in running a 45 minute workshop, speaking, joining panel discussions, or simply telling your story and showcasing your brand, get in touch with joe.bevan@techsouthwest.co.uk or dan.pritchard@techsouthwest.co.uk to learn more.
Are you looking for early stage equity funding for your business? Silicon Gorge Investor Showcase is now open for applications.
The Investor Showcase allows Tech, Cyber and Creative start-ups/scaleups looking for between £100k-£3m in equity investment the chance to pitch to a room of investors from throughout the UK at an event in Bristol on 10 November.
It's a competitive process with a couple of pitching competitions in October to select the top 12, and each of these will also benefit from a number of Investor readiness workshops and PR to help them in their raise! Applications are open until 16 September.
The Heart of the South West LEP have announced that they have awarded funding for two new programmes providing digital skills and digital business support in the Heart of the South West region.
The Digital Skills Programme will be delivered through Devon County Council, and the Digital Skills Utilisation Programme will be delivered through Devon County Council and the Heart of the South West Growth Hub. Both programmes are due to run until March 2025 across Somerset, Devon, Plymouth and Torbay.
The Digital Skills Programme has three strands:
- Working with secondary school pupils to increase the overall number taking GCSE Computer Science and the proportion of female pupils opting to take GCSE Computer Science.
- Providing specific digital training for the key sectors of advanced engineering, clean growth, healthcare, tourism and agriculture.
- Working with the leaders of micro-businesses and SMEs to support the take-up and use of digital within their business. 150 SMEs are expected to benefit from this through a mix of workshops and one-to-one support provided to 12-14 business leaders every 3 months.
The Digital Skills Programme will build on a previous pilot that encouraged better engagement between schools and key business sectors across the Heart of the South West area and will involve the Heart of the South West’s Career Hub.
The Skills Launchpad Plymouth team are celebrating after being recognised as finalists for the Innovation Award in the Plymouth Live Business Awards 2022. The category celebrates new ideas, processes, products, services, technologies and applications that have had an impact on an organisation's success over the past 12 months.
Emma Hewitt, Skills Lead said: “We are delighted that Skills Launchpad Plymouth has received this recognition and is a finalist for the Innovation Award in the prestigious Plymouth Live Business Awards 2022.
"This recognition is timely to celebrate the introduction and successful impact of ‘Skills Launchpad Plymouth’ – our transformational, holistic one-stop-shop skills service, recognised nationally as leading innovation and best in practice through its city-wide, inclusive approach.
"We are proud that through working in successful partnerships with Department for Work and Pensions and joining the dots for the first time across the public, private and voluntary sectors. We can evidence demonstrable impact in connecting local people with skills, training, education, careers and jobs during the first 12 months of physical Skills Launchpad Plymouth delivery.”
For further information on the latest events, visit Invest Plymouth's event page
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IGNITE Business Programme
IGNITE Festival of Creativity | Arts University Plymouth, PL4 8AT | 5 to 15 September
Make your business dreams a reality through the IGNITE Business Programme, part of the IGNITE Festival of Creativity. Over 8 afternoon workshops led by expert business consultant, Mark Cotton, you'll learn key skills to kickstart your business ideas.
Plymouth Business Network
Plymouth Business Network | Future Inn Plymouth, PL6 5ZD | 6 & 20 September
Do you run a business in the Plymouth area? Are you looking to increase your sales? At Plymouth Business Network, you will meet and connect with like-minded business people who can help you grow your business through referrals.
Meet the Digital & Social Media Expert
Oceansgate/Meet the Expert | Endeavour House, PL1 4RW | 7 September
In this workshop, Scott Grenney from Eddystone Media and One Plymouth, will cover the many ways a business can gain an online presence, together with a look at the tools and tips you can use to help increase your business reach online.
Spotlight on Devon Hospitality and Leisure
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships business information sessions
University of Plymouth | Online | 21 September, 23 November
The University of Plymouth's Innovation Funding Team together with Enterprise Solutions are hosting a series of free, business-information sessions.
These online events will show how different businesses can benefit from a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project and explore other services for business that are available from the University.
Electric Vehicles for Businesses
Plymouth City Council | Online | 27 September
For many organisations, transport makes up a large share of their emissions. One way to help reduce this is through transitioning to electric vehicles. However, for many, this comes with a number of concerns.
The Energy Saving Trust will be joining us to address these concerns and provide some tips on transitioning to electric, including converting you fleet. We will also have Plymouth based businesses sharing their experience of using electric vehicles to reduce their environmental impact.
Meet the Business Success and Leadership Expert
Oceansgate/Meet the Expert | Endeavour House, PL1 4RW | 5 October
In this workshop, Claire Oatway, a leadership coach-consultant and founder of Neon Juno will cover ‘The Battle for Talent Gets Personal’, a three-hour leadership and strategy boot camp that will bring new insights to even the most seasoned business owner.
Meet the Low Carbon and Sustainability Expert
Oceansgate/Meet the Expert | Endeavour House, PL1 4RW | 12 October
In this workshop, Martin Slocombe, Director, Commercial Energy advisor, 361 Energy CIC will explore ‘Understanding what Carbon and the Environment means to your business’, and will offer practical advice on how to survive today’s energy crisis volatility, environmental legislation change, and competitive pressures and how being ‘sustainable’ is no longer enough.
Innovate UK Launches Zero Emission Road Freight Trucks Demonstration Competitions
Forming part of the Zero Emission Road Freight (ZERFT) Demonstration programme, Innovate UK is offering funding to support the Government’s commitment to end sales of all new, non-zero emission HGVs by 2040 and enable continued cross border freight. The focus is on the largest heavy goods vehicles (HGVs).
The programme will invest up to £140 million in innovation projects across the three separate strands:
The deadline for applications is 12 October 2022.
Women In Innovation Awards 2022/23
Up to 50 winning women entrepreneurs will embark on a 12-month journey and benefit from a bespoke business boosting support package. This includes a cash injection of £50,000 each, tailored business coaching, mentoring and a wide range of networking and training opportunities designed to help grow their innovation further.
The application round is open until 19 October 2022.
Capify Launches £40m Fund for Businesses Struggling through Economic Challenges
The Capify £40m SME Fund has been launched to support established companies struggling with increasingly challenging economic conditions.
The fund has been specially created in response to growing concerns about access to finance from traditional lending sources and the impact that has on the ability of SMEs to deal with the effects of inflation.
From an overall budget of £40 million, business owners are able to apply for between £5,000 and £500,000. Loans can be used for any business purpose, for example purchasing new stock, refurbishing business premises, buying a new piece of equipment, or to help with cash flow.
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