Specialist developer Charterpoint and LNT Care Developments have submitted plans for a 66-bedroom care home at Westcombe Park, the garden suburb near Maldon in Essex. The joint application to Maldon District Council is for a purpose-built, three-storey care home, including associated access, parking and landscaping. It features accommodation with en-suite facilities, residents’ lounges and dining areas, a café for residents and visitors to enjoy, a reception area, staff facilities, and 25 car parking spaces, including six electric car charging spaces, as well as ambulance and taxi drop-off points. A secure cycle store will also be provided. The care home has been designed to provide general residential care and residential dementia care. It includes a range of sustainability features such as glazed areas to maximise access to natural light and minimise energy requirements for lighting and heating in communal areas, low energy luminaires and occupancy sensors to reduce energy use, high levels of insulation, and a ground source heat pump system and solar photovoltaic panels to provide heating and power to the building which would generate more than 70% of the facility’s energy requirements from renewable sources, with a reduction in carbon emissions. Between 50-60 jobs are expected to be created, with up to a maximum of 24 members of staff on site at any one time due to shift patterns. The care home is part of a wider proposal for a neighbourhood centre being delivered by Charterpoint Group consisting of later living apartments, health centre, convenience store and other retail units, and a day nursery at Westcombe Park which already have outline planning permission and will be subject to detailed planning applications in due course. Giles Nursey, MD of Charterpoint, said: “The proposed care home has been sympathetically designed to provide modern, high quality and sustainable care facilities and to fit in with future development at Westcombe Park. It features a pleasant landscaped setting and has good access to public transport, amenities and local services. In due course, it will benefit from new neighbourhood centre amenities as part of the wider Westcombe Park masterplan." “Alongside LNT Care Developments, Charterpoint is very pleased to have submitted a detailed planning application for a care home on this site, which will be an asset to the local community.” The proposed care home is part of the mixed-use development of Westcombe Park, a sustainable urban extension to the north of Heybridge set over 418 acres. Countryside, now part of the Vistry Group, is the master developer of the project, which includes more than 1, 000 homes, with 30% affordable, new community facilities, a proposed new primary school and nursery, new parks, play areas, sports pitches and allotments, plus a new relief road, footpaths and cycleways. Martin Leach, Managing Director, Vistry Major Projects, said: ‘Providing the facilities and infrastructure that residents need to build sustainable and long-lasting communities plays a critical role in our masterplanning approach and this proposed new care home will be a valuable addition to Westcombe Park. We look forward to seeing the continued evolution of this vibrant new community.” Next to the historic town of Maldon, Westcombe Park is an outstanding new community of stylish new homes set in a glorious location. Charterpoint, which is based at Edwalton near Nottingham, specialises in developing mixed-use and sustainable housing schemes, first-class senior living accommodation, and primary care premises. For more information about Charterpoint, visit here .

The University Centre at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group is celebrating another strong set of National Student Survey results, with the Group placing higher than the national average in a range of areas. Final year students who completed the survey praised the University Centre for its quality of teaching, learning opportunities, academic support and assessments. Over 91% of students were satisfied with the teaching on their course, with nearly 95% of students stating that their course challenges them to achieve their best work – both figures being significantly higher than the sector average. More than 90% of students were satisfied with the learning opportunities available to them throughout their course, enabling them to explore ideas and concepts and further build on their skills to prepare them for their futures. The same number of students also found that their course was intellectually stimulating and over 87% said that teaching staff made their subject engaging. The survey also explores student voice, with 80% of students claiming they feel that their opinions are valued by staff across the University Centre – 4% over the national average. Sam Wright, Principal and Chief Executive Officer at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group, said: “I’m delighted that so many students completed this year’s National Student Survey and to see the University Centre scoring so highly across the board. Our staff work incredibly hard to deliver an exceptional experience for our students, ensuring that they are fully supported and develop the skills needed to prepare them for their futures." I would like to wish our final year students the best of luck as they embark on their next steps, with many of them starting career or progressing onto higher levels of academia.” Overall, 84% of the University Centre’s students responded to the survey, against the national average of 72%. This year’s survey received a record participation with almost 346,000 final year students across the UK providing feedback – the highest in almost 20 years. As one of the largest surveys of its kind globally, NSS collects student opinions on a range of topics, including teaching quality, assessments and mental wellbeing services. Validated by some of the region's most well-established universities, the University Centre at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group provides a variety of degree-level programmes, including Foundation Degrees, Full Degrees, Higher National Certificates/Diplomas, Top-Up Degrees and Teacher Training. It covers a wide range of subject areas including Animal Management, Art & Design, Business, Construction, Childhood Studies, Digital Technologies, Education, Engineering, Health & Wellbeing, Music, Performing Arts, Public Services, Social Science, Sport and more.

The transformation of one of Ashbourne’s most prominent buildings by a Derby firm of chartered surveyors has set the scene for a resurgence of the town’s fortunes. Invise, of Sadler Bridge Studios, Derby, was commissioned earlier this year by Henfox Ltd to project manage an ongoing series of major refurbishments in the historic market town. The most recently completed project was to oversee the creation of a new delicatessen business in a neglected landmark building on the corner of Victoria Square and St John Road. The deli, which opened on July 31, has been named ‘Howell and Marsden’ as a nod to two notable local entrepreneurs John Howell and Thomas Marsden, whose grocery and wine merchant business traded nearby in Ashbourne for many years from as early as the 1860s. Around £250k has been spent refurbishing the near-dilapidated, 1880 building that houses the aptly named new deli, taking particular consideration for it being in a conservation area. Working alongside principal contractor Whitehead Commercial Interiors, of Sheffield, and interior designer Rachel McLane, Invise faced the challenges of replacing rotten timber and windows, plaster repairs, cast iron gutters and redecoration of the entire interior and exterior. The careful removal of a large chimney breast running through the centre of the building has opened up the interior ground floor retail space, first floor deli kitchen and second floor offices and stores. Nathan Lovett, associate director of Invise, which also acted as principal designer on the project, said: “Dealing with heritage projects like this always requires a lot of careful thought, particularly in terms of maintaining consistency with the conservation area and ensuring all works meet Building Control requirements." “But there is invariably also an element of improvisation, as you never quite know what horrors may be uncovered in the process. It’s a part of my job that I really love." “Fortunately, we are totally delighted with the final results at Howell and Marsden deli. The transformation is beautiful, both inside and out. I am sure this renewed addition to Ashbourne town centre will be hugely popular with locals and tourists alike.” Despite its original age, the Howell and Marsden building is now fit to last for many generations to come, having been completely rewired, with the addition of fire alarm, emergency lighting, CCTV and intruder alarms, as well as a new central heating system. As part of its project management role in the revitalisation of Ashbourne, Invise is involved in refurbishment of, or bringing back into use, of five historic buildings in and around the town. These include the relocation of the Machine Inn to the former NatWest building on the junction of Church Street and Dig Street, and refurbishment of The Horns pub, in Victoria Square. Other projects include the full refurbishment of a former menswear shop in St John Street, to become a new retail unit plus holiday lets.

A recycling service offered by a Derbyshire IT service provider to help combat the world’s growing e-waste problem has prevented over a tonne of tech from going to landfill. True MSP launched its e-waste green scheme three years ago in an effort to help clients dispose of their old tech responsibly. The scheme has proven so successful that the total weight of items collected has this month passed the one tonne mark. The United Nations Global E-waste Monitor 2024 report recently revealed that record amounts of electronic waste (e-waste) are being produced around the world. A staggering 62 million tonnes of e-waste was produced in 2022, up 82% from 2010, and growing to an estimated 82 million tonnes by 2030. True MSP’s e-waste scheme enables businesses to donate their old tech, including laptops, monitors, cables and keyboards, to be recycled responsibly. The equipment is either put back on the market, harvested for parts or recycled, so nothing goes to waste. Neil Shaw, director at the Castle Donington-based firm, said: “Sustainability is hugely important to us. We wanted to do our bit for the environment by making sure the businesses we work with have access to a safe, reliable way to wave goodbye to their old IT equipment. It’s the right thing to do ethically, environmentally and even legally in some cases.” According to Business Waste, up to 95% of companies still send their electronic waste to landfill rather than make arrangements for it to be collected, reused, or recycled. Once True MSP has collected enough donations, the equipment is collected by Cheshire-based Green IT Disposal, a company that specialises in the disposal and recycling of old IT equipment. Neil said: “Green IT Disposal’s zero landfill policy really appealed to us. Working in the technology industry means we are very much aware of how frequently technology is thrown away and replaced – in the home and by businesses." “Last year, we hit the 100-client milestone, with many more coming on board this year, so we knew we had the potential to make a big difference with each donation.” E-waste is one of the most rapidly growing waste problems in the world. The number of tonnes of tech we are disposing of every year is equivalent to throwing out more than 1,000 laptops every single second. True MSP offers its green scheme solution to all of its clients, collecting donations of old tech and storing it at its offices while awaiting collection. Each collection of old tech usually consists of between 50 and 100 individual items. Neil said: “Customer service is our priority, so we ensure they don’t need to hold onto their old equipment unnecessarily. Once we’ve gathered enough items, we have them collected for recycling purposes." “With our most recent collection, we’ve saved around 100 items from landfill. This figure is increasing all the time.” True MSP provides round-the-clock IT support to clients, including cyber security, data back-up, cloud computing and software support. It is one of the few managed service providers around the globe that can offer Microsoft’s triple cloud of business software packages. Trusted by over 100 businesses to secure, support and supply its tech, True MSPs aim to save businesses time and money while delivering the best customer experience possible. Discover more at True MSP visit here.

The 2024 Wimbledon Championships saw record-breaking sponsorship and prize money, reflecting the event’s growing financial clout. Barclays’ significant $118.65 million deal highlighted the tournament’s evolving commercial landscape, while British Broadcasting Corp’s (BBC) media coverage underscored shifting viewer dynamics. Despite lower viewership due to competition with the UEFA final, Wimbledon’s commitment to equal prize money continues to set a benchmark in sports, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. GlobalData’s latest report “Post Event Analysis – Wimbledon 2024” reveals that a total of 17 brands sponsored the 2024 edition of the Wimbledon Championships. It had an estimated annual media value of $127.24 million. The total prize money reached $63.6 million (£50 million) for the first time. Olivia Snooks, Associate Sport Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Barclays partnership (2023-2027) with Wimbledon has a far superior annual value compared to any of the other tournament sponsors. The partnership is significant, given Barclays replaced HSBC, which had sponsored the tournament for 15 years before last year. Additionally, Slazenger, the official supplier of tennis balls since 1952, provided 54,250 balls for this year’s event.” The largest media deal in terms of value is BBC’s broadcast deal. The deal is worth an estimated total of $298.97 million. The men’s singles final between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic had 7.6 million viewers on BBC, with streams at 3.3 million, compared to the 2023 men’s final where TV viewers peaked at 11.3 million and streams were at 4.1 million. The women’s singles final between Barbara Barbora Krejčíková and Jasmine Paolini had 4.1 million viewers on BBC. Snooks continues: “This year’s Men’s Wimbledon final clashed with the UEFA European Championships Men’s Final; Both taking place on 14 July. As England was playing in the final of the European Championships, with coverage for the football overlapping with the Men’s tennis final coverage, it is highly likely that the UK’s tennis coverage on both BBC and ITV was impacted as peak viewership was down, as well as streams.” During the last decade of the Wimbledon Championships, the total prize money for the tournament has doubled, from $31.8 million (£25 million) in 2014 to $63.6 million (£50 million) in 2024. The winners Carlos Alcaraz and Barbora Krejčíková took home a record $3.4 million (£2.7 million). The ladies’ and gentleman’s double prize money fund has increased by 11.9% on 2023, while the Qualifying Competition prize money allocation increased by 14.9%. Snooks concludes: “Wimbledon made the decision to award equal prize money to men and women in 2007. The progress which the sport has made in terms of closing the gender-pay gap is amongst the best within the world of sport. Other sports are starting to fully suit. Wimbledon has made huge strides in the last decade, and the prize money is only going to keep increasing year-on-year, for both the men and women.”

A West Country business launched by an entrepreneur working from his dining table has celebrated its 20th anniversary and now turns over £10m a year and employs 70 staff around the globe. Computer Network Defence (CND) held a celebratory day to mark its two decades in business and brought workers from the UK and US together to enjoy the event. Headquartered in Corsham near Bath, the cyber security company was founded by Andy Cuff and wife Amanda. It now works across all areas of cyber-security, develops its own products, recruits in the sector and provides intelligence to all the world’s major governments. Andy, originally from near Preston, Lancs, said: “When I left the RAF after 23 years I secured a contract for cyber security and formed a company in order to take it on. Amanda and I began CND literally on our dining table with servers in the garage." Cyber security wasn’t much known about then in the wider business world, so we were pioneering. “Since then, the business has kept on growing and everything has been organic; we’ve had no external investment. We work in the public and private sectors and have clients from SMEs to government, space to maritime and charities to banks." “Celebrating our 20th anniversary was a big occasion and we held a great garden party at the Digital Mansion in Corsham where we have one of our offices. It was an opportunity to thank our staff who have been incredibly loyal over the years. We flew in staff from our Isle of Man and US offices." “We really focus on the work-life balance for our staff, and we are now looking ahead to our next 20 years, new offices and opportunities. Our staff are constantly working on new products and services and CND will continue to innovate and stay ahead of the curve in cyber security.”

Seven organisations are receiving more than £270,000 to help deliver local services in Charnwood Seven organisations are receiving over £270,000 to help deliver local services in Charnwood communities. The borough council has once again awarded strategic partner grants to organisations which are helping and supporting residents. The organisations being supported include the Citizens’ Advice Bureau and Living Without Abuse, a charity which supports victims of domestic violence. Councillor Liz Blackshaw, the Council’s lead member for communities and neighbourhoods, said: “Each year, we support several organisations which deliver important services to people who need them. This has been particularly important during the cost-of-living crisis." “Our strategic partners will help thousands of people across Charnwood and support them on issues including debt, domestic violence and more. I am pleased the Council can support people in this way and I would like to thank the partners for everything they are doing.” The council provides funding for a range of strategic partners which deliver services aligned to the Council’s objectives. By providing funding to strategic partners, the Council can leverage their expertise, resources, and community connections to maximize the impact of the funding and ensure that it is used efficiently and effectively to benefit the local community. It also helps to co-ordinate services to meet community needs. Details of the organisations supported by grants are listed below. The Citizens’ Advice Bureau is receiving around £86,000 to supports its work to offer free confidential and impartial advice to Charnwood residents on their rights and responsibilities in law. www.charnwoodcab.org.uk Equality Action promotes equality, diversity and inclusion and offers support and advice on a range of issues including benefits, debt and family matters. The Loughborough-based charity is receiving around £20,000. www.equalityaction.org.uk Living Without Abuse runs an outreach and group support service across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, helping anyone who has experienced domestic or sexual violence. It has a long history of providing one-to-one support in Charnwood. It is receiving around £17,000. https://lwa.org.uk/ Fearon Community Association operates Fearon Hall in Loughborough which is open seven days a week and used by the community for a variety of purposes including meetings and events. The venue also brings people together. It is receiving nearly £30,000. https://fearonhall.org.uk Gorse Covert Community Association is receiving around £20,000 to support the community centre it operates. The centre is used by the community for a variety of purposes, including as a youth club. https://gorsecovertcommunitycentre.co.uk/ John Storer Charnwood is receiving around £84,000 to support its work operating John Storer House in Loughborough, a large vibrant community centre supported by over 200 volunteers. Several groups use the centre and the café is also popular. John Storer also and two pop-up shops in Mountsorrel and Shelthorpe. Your Store social supermarket is also located at John Storer House. https://johnstorercharnwood.org.uk/ Shepshed Volunteer Centre provides services for vulnerable members of the community in Shepshed and the surrounding Charnwood area. The centre, which is part of John Storer Charnwood, operates a social car scheme, gardening scheme, supports isolated people and runs a craft and chat group. It is receiving around £9,500.

Leeds-based brand and communications agency, Ponderosa has appointed Gina Deen as Director of Social and Influencers. Gina has worked with some of the world’s leading FMCG, fashion, entertainment and tech brands, including Gucci Beauty, Rimmel London, PUMA UK and Panasonic. With vast experience gained at agencies, including WongDoody, SMARTS and MSL, Gina has a track record of developing and delivering impactful social and influencer campaigns for leading brands. With plans to bolster and develop Ponderosa’s social and influencer services to meet client needs, Gina will be responsible for the commercial, strategy and activation rollout and will oversee the integration of the social and influencer team into the wider agency. Gina will be supporting the team on the creative strategy and implementation for clients, including Hisense, PhD, Science in Sport, Leeds Bradford Airport and KCOM. Gina Deen, Director of Social and Influencers at Ponderosa said, “I’ve built my career around translating impactful insight into first-class social creative, so naturally I was drawn to Ponderosa, an agency driven by the same ethos." “My experience in helping brands to co-create with dynamic talent will help develop the agency’s offering, and I look forward to getting under the skin of our exciting client portfolio.” Speaking on behalf of Gina’s appointment, CEO at Ponderosa, Richard Midgley said, “We are constantly evolving our services, using insights to understand what clients need to stay relevant and create impact." “We are delighted to welcome Gina to our growing team – she has a wealth of experience which complements and supports our growing social and influencer services.” Outside of her role at Ponderosa, Gina is the MarComms Director and youngest Board member at Ok Mentor - a social enterprise helping young female creatives in 52+ countries to succeed, by providing free crash mentorship. Ponderosa is part of Audience Collective, which was formed in 2020 and now comprises of seven specialist marketing agencies.

A £20,000 grant by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons has enabled the rollout of a life-changing coaching programme. The young 18-to-30 year old residents at YMCA centres in Basingstoke and Southampton are benefitting from the skills of the talented Performance Coach Steve Jones. Steve said: “Many of the residents have had difficult and very troubled pasts. Because of traumatic childhood experiences often repeated night after night, they struggle with all sorts of emotions, self-doubt and anxiety." “Negative preconceptions of any kind of future have become built in. These young people have no confidence and feel worthless. The programme gives them the motivation and the tools to go out and make a difference with their lives.” The coaching programme devised by Steve is called ‘FIT for work’. It starts with ‘Focus’ and helping the attendees understand themselves. I is for 'Inspiration’, what are the blocks in their lives and how do they start thinking differently? And T is for ‘Transformation’, raising their horizons and creating an action plan. The initial programme funded by the Freemasons and delivered by Steve has almost been completed in Basingstoke and Southampton. With members of the YMCA staff taking part in the coaching sessions, both centres are confident there will a very valuable in-house legacy to deliver an on-going rolling programme of the coaching sessions. Sarah King, Fundraising Manager at the YMCA said: “We are most grateful for the support and financial investment by the local Freemasons enabling Steve Jones to deliver his specially devised coaching sessions. What a success." “I’m so pleased, they are now able to say, ‘I could go out and get a job’ and ‘I could get a place of my own’. These are the opportunities our young residents rightly deserve.” John Pearson the Charity Lead for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons said: “The programme is going to give many more of the residents at these YMCA centres a future. We are delighted to play a part by funding this valuable work by Coach Steve.” One of the FIT for Work workshops with the YMCA Basingstoke centre team members and delegates, at head of table l to r Coach Steve Jones, Adam Barrett, Head of Youth Support and Programming at the Centre, and John Pearson. In the foreground right of table Sarah King, YMCA Fundraising Manager.

Charnwood Borough Council fitted the two communication boards in the parks play area in February this year and they have proven popular with children and parents alike. The boards were created by Leicestershire SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) and contain letters, words, numbers and symbols specific to Queen’s Park, with the aim to assist children and young adults in their communication. Councillor Anne Gray, the council’s lead member for waste, open spaces and leisure facilities said: “There are many children who struggle to communicate and express their thoughts and feelings, and these communication boards are a fantastic addition to the play area at Queen’s Park." “The boards have helped make the play area a more inclusive space, and we hope that they have made it easier for autistic, neurodivergent and learning-disabled children to have a little more fun this summer.” “Thank you to Leicestershire SEND Hub for designing the boards. I am certain that they will be a source of fun and learning for children visiting Queen’s Park from around the borough for years to come.” The Leicestershire SEND Hub charity provides support for SEND families and works with local authorities, government, schools, the NHS, and parents/carers to collaborate and develop policies that improve the lives of disabled children in Leicestershire.

“I had this skill, so I wanted to put it to good use…” says Councillor Dr Julie Bradshaw MBE as she talks about her amazing swimming career. It’s at this time of year that Councillor Bradshaw, the current Mayor of Charnwood, - finds herself reflecting on a couple of her most remarkable achievements. Forty-five years ago – on 19 August 1979 – Councillor Bradshaw successfully swam across the English Channel to France at the tender age of 15. It took her 10 hours and nine minutes. Some 23 years later– on 5 August 2002 – Councillor Bradshaw achieved the feat once again but this time swimming butterfly rather than front crawl. Her finishing time of 14hrs 18mins set a world record for the fastest swim across the Channel using that stroke, and it still stands to this day. Councillor Bradshaw combined completing these impressive feats of endurance with fundraising and was awarded an MBE in the 2006 Queen’s New Year’s Honours list for “Services to Swimming and Charity”. Her fundraising efforts have continued and in her role as Mayor this year, she is helping chosen charities Dogs Trust Loughborough and Living Without Abuse. Councillor Bradshaw is planning several fundraising events drawing upon both her sporting past and career as a business and mindset life coach – a “unique swimming event”, a dog walk, a dinner and mayoral swim talk, and offering organisations the chance to book her for a motivational talk, with the proceeds going to her chosen charities. “The great thing is that everything I’ve done in terms of swimming, I’ve raised money for charity,” she said. “I’ve got this skill, so I wanted to put it to good use. I always say it’s not just about the swimming achievement, it’s about who I become in that process and also about using my skills to raise money for charity.” So, going right back to the beginning, how did this all come about? “I’d always been into lots of different sports at school and excelled at swimming, especially in the colder water, and I started doing a bit of training outdoors,” Blackpool-born Councillor Bradshaw recalled. “I kind of got into it that way. My parents did quite a lot of caravanning in the Lake District, and I swam across Lake Windermere when I was 12 years old. “That first swim, I did breaststroke as I was absolutely petrified about putting my head under the water! But then the next year I went back and did it front crawl and won it. Then, obviously, the ultimate was the Channel, so I just said ‘right, I want to swim the Channel’ – and the rest is history, really." “We’d gone down to Dover a couple of times, because we were supposed to get off in July and the weather was cold, wet and windy, so we went back down again and then in August there was a 50-50 chance of conditions being good enough." “We decided to take the opportunity and the weather did turn halfway across, but I made it across and that was the aim of the game. I recall walking down hundreds of steps at Shakespeare Beach and then getting greased up. I had butterflies in my stomach, but I was just glad to be getting going after all the waiting." “I was kind of in my own world, if that makes sense. I was nervous, obviously, but I always trained well, so I had that self-belief. When you swim outside, you are beholden to the conditions – it’s not like being in a swimming pool. The first two hours, for me, were the worst, but once I got into my rhythm, I was OK." “When I had finished, I can recall being greeted by some Frenchmen as I walked to shore in the dark. It felt amazing and a sense of relief to some extent that I'd finished it in 10hrs 9mins. I felt over the moon, then after some time ashore, was taken back in the dinghy to the main vessel to return to England.” There were 23 years between Councillor Bradshaw’s first crossing and her next one – after overcoming an initial setback. She explained: “A few years back, I spent some time in Canada. I was coaching swimming at the time, and they had an open-air pool. I always had in the back of my head that I wanted to do some distance fly, so I went down to the open-air pool and just started racking up the lengths." “This would have been 1991, so I came back to the UK and built my fly repertoire up." “I went and swam Windermere, which is 10.5 miles, and in the mid-90s, I did Ullswater (7.25 miles) and Coniston (5.25 miles) and then I turned my attention to the Channel. I’d always done freestyle but after I came back (from Canada) I was known for fly. The ultimate was to do the Channel again, so that’s what I did.” Unfortunately, her first attempt had to be aborted as a result of an arm injury sustained while swimming 18 hours of butterfly in horrendous weather conditions on her Two-Way Windermere (21 miles) swim a few weeks earlier. “One thing I didn’t take into account was that I couldn’t recover as quickly as I could when I was a 16-year-old,” said Councillor Bradshaw, who still swims every day. It was the first time I hadn’t achieved the swim I’d set out to achieve and at the same time it was a huge learning experience for me, because I knew what I needed to do next time." “I knew I could do it, and the time was possible. It had only ever been done by one person – a Canadian lady – back in 1989 – and she took about 23 and a half hours." “I knew I could break the record if my arm didn’t give way again, and I swam it in 14 hours 18 minutes. I finished it, I raised a lot of money for charity, and in the process, I become the first British person to do it, and broke the world record by just over nine hours." “I finished in the dark and I just remember getting onto the beach and I wanted to get some pebbles to bring back. I remember sitting on the beach thinking ‘wow, thank goodness that’s done!’ “I was really quite pleased. There wasn’t much to see but it was just nice sitting on the beach. I was glad to finish. Doing fly all the way, I was tired, but I was feeling fit and if I’d had to swim a bit more I could have done. Luckily, I could get a lift back on the boat!” The record still stands to this day. Two men – one French and one American - have crossed the Channel swimming butterfly, but not as quickly. “It’s great to have the record but if it goes in the future, it goes,” said Councillor Bradshaw. “We’ll have to wait and see.” Councillor Bradshaw is enjoying being the borough’s first citizen and often talks to people about her swimming career.

Expanding patient transport specialist EMED Group has launched a new service in Leicestershire to improve access to healthcare for the community. Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland will benefit from new patient transport service in the region, offering increased healthcare accessibility. The service aims to provide a reliable and efficient travel solution for those needing non-emergency medical care, such as outpatient appointments, discharges, and renal dialysis. The new service, which began last month, is a collaborative effort between EMED Group and the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board (ICB). Property consultancy Vail Williams was tasked by EMED Group to locate and acquire three industrial premises sites with yards big enough to accommodate ambulances. The service now operates out of three Leicestershire base locations secured by Vail Williams on business parks in Pinfold Road, Thurmaston, Kernan Drive, Loughborough and Wistow Road, Kibworth. In supporting EMED establish the new hubs, Vail Williams’ advice has included comprehensive occupier advisory advice, encompassing agency, building consultancy, planning and business rates. Geoff Fallon, Regional Managing Partner for Vail Williams in Surrey, said: “As part of our work we are searching for and negotiating terms for all the lettings, undertaking pre-acquisition surveys and producing schedules of condition to protect them at lease end." “We also give strategic ancillary planning advice as well as offering business rates support and ensure their occupancy costs are monitored. Communication and good working relationship has been key to the success of our work with EMED Group, and we will continue to support them as they grow into 2025.” Darren Henderson, Head of Procurement and Contracts at EMED Group, said: “Vail Willians has been instrumental in enabling EMED Group access the correct properties to deliver our health and social care services." “Their advice has been a lifesaver for our organisation, providing us with efficient and cost-effective solutions for all our leasing needs. They have a deep understanding of the commercial property sector, EMED Groups needs and have helped us navigate through complex lease agreements with ease.” Vail Williams’ full-service property advice includes commercial agency, investment and development advice, building consultancy, property valuation, planning, lease advisory, property asset management, business rates and occupier consultancy.