In celebration of 100 years of Bollywood this year, Colmore Business District has partnered with Sampad to provide three free of charge outdoor Bollywood dance workshops on Wednesday 12th June in Snow Hill Station Square. This forms part of the Bollywood 100 celebratory programme Sampad is organising in the city for the month of June.

The workshops will be led by the dynamic Madrid based Bollywood dance choreographer, Sneha Mistri.  A huge success in Spain, Sneha will teach a fun, engaging, and highly entertaining dance routine. The workshops will also provide an opportunity to meet others from the business district. Come along and join in. To register a place, please contact Tahreen Kutub with your preferred session.

Date:
Wednesday 12th June

Location:
Snow Hill Station Square

Times: 
12pm – 12.30pm
1pm – 1.30pm
5pm – 5.30pm

Over 200 runners lined up at Birmingham’s Cannon Hill Park for a 10 kilometre run to raise funds for deserving causes in Birmingham and the West Midlands region.

The event was organised by the Ronnie Bowker Foundation, formed in memory of the late Ernst & Young regional managing partner Ronnie Bowker, whose daughter Nicola was one of the race competitors.

Mr Bowker, who passed away late in 2010, was a well known figure in Birmingham, not only because he was at the head of Ernst & Young’s Birmingham office for 15 years, but also because of his contribution to the community and the arts in Birmingham.

Ernst & Young partner Mark Minihane, who organised the race for the Foundation, said: “The day was a great success and we plan to make it an annual event in the West Midlands calendar”.

The race was won by Ian Dempsey while Joanne Finch from Nottingham Athletic Club was the first lady to cross the finishing line. Race prizes were sponsored by Aga Rangemaster.

The Ronnie Bowker Foundation Fund has already raised over £65,000 of its £100,000 target and it has made donations to such local causes as the Birmingham-based Tru Street dance group, a Digbeth-based group which runs community dance classes and Miss Macaroon, a social enterprise providing inner city employment opportunities.

A donation has also been made in support of the construction of the new Marie Curie hospice in Solihull. It is still not too late to mark the 10 kilometre run by making donations to the fund via www.justgiving.com/rbff.

Colmore plaza extends Concierge Service with installation of new gym

The Carlyle Group, owner of Birmingham’s Colmore Plaza development, is extending the building’s already outstanding range of occupier facilities with the installation of a new gym.

Colmore Plaza is one of the highest specification office buildings outside London and one of the only buildings in Birmingham to hold a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating for its highly efficient design. Building occupiers include Aecom & Davis Langdon, Aedas Architects, Amey, Grant Thornton LLP, Investec Wealth & Investment, Marsh, Orega and Robert Half.

The self-contained gym will feature the latest equipment, including rowing machines, cross-trainers and weight stations, exclusively for the use of Colmore Plaza occupiers.

The building’s existing changing rooms and shower facilities will also be revamped and expanded as part of the works in order to meet the expected increase in demand.

Mark Harris, Managing Director, Carlyle Group, said: “As more of us are spending a greater amount of time in office environments, it is essential that occupiers are offered a broad range of services that they may not otherwise have the opportunity to access. Through the installation of this gym, we will be able to extend access to a convenient and well provisioned facility to our occupiers, which can be used at any time of day.

“With this extension to our Concierge Services, we are ensuring that Colmore Plaza offers the kind of exemplary occupier experience that continues to set us apart as one of Birmingham’s preeminent commercial locations.”

The gym, which has been brought forward as a result of dialogue between the tenants and building management, is being delivered in partnership with health and fitness experts Newbody Fitness, which will provide group gym inductions and on-going personal training.

Jasper Beauclair, Director of Newbody Fitness, said: “With a growing workload and limited time away from their desks, employees benefit greatly from having health and wellbeing facilities such as this on site. We are exceedingly pleased to have an opportunity to offer a total gym solution from layout design and installation of the latest machines to fitness training and on-going maintenance”

The gym is just the latest in a broad range of services available to Colmore Plaza tenants, which includes a health and wellbeing clinic, car valet service, running club, shoe repair and polishing, dry cleaning services and access to sessions run by British Military Fitness. Tenants can also benefit from the recently launched Colmore Plaza Loyalty Card, which provides offers for a diverse range of city retailers.

For more information, please visit www.colmoreplaza.com.

Following the successful letting of the first phase of upgraded accommodation at Embassy House in Birmingham’s central business district, a further speculative refurbishment of 30,000 sq ft is underway with practical completion expected by June 2013.

On behalf of Co-Operative Insurance, AXA Real Estate will be releasing the additional Grade A space onto the market in the heart of Birmingham’s financial and professional quarter at its landmark, period fronted building on the corner of Church Street and Cornwall Street, which benefited from a £2million refurbishment at the beginning of 2012.

The initial investment returned a number of lettings during the year with circa 20,000 sq ft being let to the Marston Group, Kings Chambers and a new lease and internal relocation of Chartis Insurance.

Now with the Grade A stock in the city starting to reduce, it is believed the time is right to upgrade the remaining space available at Embassy House.

Vicki Burnett from Jones Lang LaSalle who act on behalf of AXA alongside DTZ, said: “A significant supply of space in the city was withdrawn for alternative uses last year, leaving the vast majority of remaining space of Grade B quality. Embassy House’s refurbishment in 2012 provided an attractive mix of flexible and contemporary, floorplates behind a period facade and has been enhanced further by the redevelopment of Church Street. This includes a new square, providing open paved areas and seating and a linkway from Colmore’s business district to the Jewellery Quarter.

“We are already in talks with potential occupiers interested in the new refurbished suites which will be available from June 2013 in sizes ranging from 3,500 to whole floors of 7,500 sq ft. We anticipate Axa’s swift move to fill the void in Birmingham’s city centre market will pay dividends for the landlord, not only because of the reducing supply of Grade A space but because Embassy House is an extremely attractive building adding value to businesses looking for a city centre presence.”

Embassy House dates back to 1899 when it was constructed by Birmingham based architects, Owen and Ward, who gained prominence more for their design of theatres than commercial buildings, but their style is clearly reflected in the building’s grand stately features.

With a wide selection of quality coffee shops, bars, restaurants and shops on the doorstep and only 5 minutes’ walk to the retail core, the building is ideally situated to service the thriving city worker community.

Jane Morcom has joined Centrick Property as business manager for its newest Birmingham branch.

She will head the estate agency and property management firm’s nine–strong residential sales and lettings team in the city. She will also act as liaison for the firm’s growing portfolio of commercial property clients, and assist with marketing activity across the group.

Jane was previously operations manager at CBRE Global Investors’ Minworth Trade Park.

The appointment comes as Centrick Property opens a new office in Colmore Row, Birmingham, serving the city centre, Edgbaston, Moseley and Harborne markets. This will supplement its three existing offices in Birmingham’s Commercial Street, Knowle High Street, Solihull and Baker Street, London.

The firm has invested £70,000 in the new premises, which opens on 9 May, and includes a client coffee lounge and bar.

James Ackrill, director at Centrick Property, said: “We have enjoyed rapid growth since we started business in 2005. Jane’s appointment, along with the opening of our Colmore Row branch, marks the next phase of our expansion.”

Centrick Property currently has more than 4,000 residential properties under management around the country, and 57 employees.

Photo caption:
Jane Morcom outside Centrick Property’s new office, with chairman James Ackrill.

The coveted title of Birmingham Young Professional of the Year 2013 has been awarded to Deutsche Bank’s graduate recruiter, Sean Sales.

Winner of the HR, Recruitment & Training category, Sean has been instrumental in recruiting a large volume of fresh graduate talent into Deutsche Bank’s Birmingham site. He is also responsible for mentoring the graduates and was recently elected Deutsche Bank Birmingham employee of the year.

The judges felt that Sean was the right person to represent both Birmingham Future and the city of Birmingham, “a clear winner amongst a tough field,” said Nicola Fleet-Milne, Chair of Birmingham Future, member of the judging panel and MD of FleetMilne Property.

“The judging panel were impressed by Sean’s fresh approach to attracting new talent into the city and ensuring that he practices what he preaches, getting involved in initiatives and leading his peers with confidence,” added Nicola.

Sean, aged 27, succeeds entrepreneur Atkar Islam as overall winner.

Other category winners included Jamie Partington, corporate solicitor at Higgs & Sons, in the legal category, while David Roberts, co-founder and chief operating officer at Droplet took the financial services title. For communications it was Gary Blowers, director of strategy at VIVA Aspire collecting the award, and taking the top spot for the entrepreneurs was Daniella Genas, CEO of Aspire4U. The winner of the Property & Construction category was Mark Leonard, Project Manager at Mace.

Each year BYPY recognises an Inspiring Leader, someone all young professionals can look up to and this year the title went to director and co-shareholder at Nexus Professional Network, Trevor Foster.

The Aspiring Talent category – aimed at 16-23 year olds – this year went to University of Birmingham student, Kashif Mehboob. The judges were thrilled to discover that the future of Birmingham is in safe hands. Nicola Fleet-Milne, said: “All three finalists were very impressive, but Kashif had that extra level of understanding about the challenges facing the city, and a very clear vision of how to deal with them. Kashif will be both an excellent ambassador for the city and a very welcome addition to the ranks of winners at Birmingham Future.”

Commenting on this year’s results, Ian Cooke, chairman of BYPY and member networks manager for ACCA UK, said: “2013 has been another great event, unearthing a brilliant set of talented young professionals in the city. It never ceases to amaze me what talent we have in Birmingham. The city is rich with young people determined to succeed and do well not only for themselves but for this great place that we live, work and play in.”

More than 830 guests attended the awards ceremony at the ICC, which were hosted by Sky News presenter, Sarah-Jane Mee and organised by young professionals’ networking group, Birmingham Future.

Ian Williams has joined GBR Phoenix Beard Residential as an associate director following a prolonged period of growth within this part of the business. Ian will work alongside head of residential Simon Stanley, David Cannon and Dean Clarke, specifically on the firm’s expanding residential management client base.

Prior to joining GBR Phoenix Beard Residential, Ian ran an independent retail and facilities management company, and supported GBR Phoenix Beard Residential on its Dickens Heath (Solihull) and Velocity Village (Sheffield) mandates. He is also former Estates Manager for Parkridge Developments at Dickens Heath, and previously held senior positions in the retail sector with American Golf and Bon Marché.

Ian is looking forward to the new challenge of joining GBR Phoenix Beard Residential:

“This is an exciting new opportunity for me, and having been on the other side of the fence at Dickens Heath, I fully appreciate the importance of good managing agents to residents. My relationship with the team at GBR Phoenix Beard Residential is a longstanding one, and as such my transition into the company has been straightforward – I have been able to hit the ground running.”

Simon Stanley heads up GBR Phoenix Beard Residential:

“With a background in both in-house and consultancy roles, Ian’s experience brings an excellent fit to our business and our clients will benefit immensely. When we launched GBR Phoenix Beard Residential in March 2012 we set ambitious growth objectives for developing our client base. We are well on track with achieving these goals and Ian’s commitment to client service is an enormous asset to the business.”

GBR Phoenix Beard Residential has built up a sizeable practice in residential property management in the Midlands, and is retained to manage high profile schemes such as Islington Gates, Queens College Chambers, Britannic Park, Holliday Wharf, Southside and Westgate. Operating under the GBR Phoenix Beard Residential brand, the company has already extended its offering to complementary services such as land agency, development consultancy, property investment and recovery services. The residential management team operates nationally with Dean Clarke heading up operations in the London office.

DTZ – a global leader in property services – has chosen Teenage Cancer Trust as its three year UK charity partner. The company aims to raise £150,000 to help young people across the UK fight cancer.

The partnership was officially launched on 9 April at DTZ’s Old Broad Street office in London with the staff challenge of raising £3,000 in before the end of the month. If they do, DTZ will match it. Staff embraced the challenge and are now signing up to other fundraising activities over the course of the partnership, including a ‘T’ themed fundraising day, taking part in a outdoor challenge in the Brecon Beacons and a special brain of Britain quiz.

DTZ decided to support Teenage Cancer Trust after a staff vote. From a selection of four shortlisted charities, more than 700 DTZ staff voted for their favourite charity with the clear winner being Teenage Cancer Trust. Recently Colin Wilson, Head of UK and Ireland, Paul Ellis, Head of Community Engagement and Amanda Westcott, Internal Communications and CR Manager visited Teenage Cancer Trust’s first specialist outpatient facility for young cancer patients at University College Hospital’s Cancer Centre in London. The tour enabled the team to see first hand the benefits of being treated alongside others their own age in their own environment.

Simon Davies, Chief Executive of Teenage Cancer Trust comments: “It’s fantastic news that Teenage Cancer Trust has been chosen by DTZ as their new corporate charity. We look forward to building a successful partnership which inspires colleagues and raises vital funds. As we rely on donations to fund our work, DTZ’s support is going to make a big difference to the lives of young people fighting cancer.”

Colin Wilson, Head of UK & Ireland for DTZ said: “Our people have tremendous energy for a challenge; they already run marathons, enter triathlons and bake splendid cakes. However, none of this comes close to the challenges facing young people with cancer. We are looking forward to a successful partnership with Teenage Cancer Trust and to doing all that we can to help and support this terrific organisation.”

Teenage Cancer Trust is the only UK charity dedicated to improving the quality of life and chances of survival for the six young people aged between 13 and 24 diagnosed with cancer every day. Traditionally treated alongside children or elderly patients at the end of their lives, young people can feel extremely isolated during cancer treatment, some never meeting another young person with cancer. The charity builds specialist units within NHS hospitals that bring young people together to be treated by teenage cancer experts in a place designed just for them.

For more information about Teenage Cancer Trust visit www.teeenagecancertrust.org

The Priory Rooms aim to provide a unique meeting and conference experience and one of the most inspiring ways they do that is by raising money for charity! As a not-for-profit organisation, The Priory Rooms historically donate a large proportion of their trading profits to The Central England Quakers’ to support their charity projects. Alongside this, The Priory Rooms Team often support and donate to other worthwhile causes. This month they have been raising money for the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (R.A.B.I) through celebrating Great British Beef Week.

The Priory Rooms Team support charities by offering discounts on their meeting and conference facilities, hosting fundraising events and promoting them on their website and Twitter page. This April, the Team has been raising money and awareness for the charity R.A.B.I. They coincided the fundraising with celebrating Great British Beef Week an annual celebration of the British Beef Industry. Great British Beef Week not only highlights the range of recipes and tastes of British beef, but also aims to encourage more consumers to buy Red Tractor produce. Many within the farming industry, including the Ladies in Beef, focus on the hospitality industry and supermarket retailers’ responsibility to offer their consumers Red Tractor.

This year Great British Beef Week took place from the 21st to 27th April and The Priory Rooms served their meeting and conference room users a variety of Red Tractor Beef meals. The menu included beef and horseradish, beef chilli con carne and beef stew with dumplings, showcasing the taste and quality of the product. Delegates were asked to kindly donate to R.A.B.I if they enjoyed the menu and wished to show their support to the charity. R.A.B.I. helps farming families in financial difficulty, with all of their work funded by public donations, fundraising events and support from businesses and community groups. The recent harsh winter affecting British farmers’ produce and life stock has highlighted the difficulties the community can face and the importance of financial support.

The creative menus were prepared by their long-standing caterers Just Good Food, who played a vital role in the events success. Just Good Food was delighted to help with the cause by creating exciting beef meals and savory bites with Red Tractor Beef. Delegates praised the variety and taste offered throughout the week

The Priory Rooms Team would like to thank all of their kind meeting and conference room users who donated to R.A.B.I. They hope that the fantastic feedback and support will inspire other companies to fundraise for charities. More fundraising events will be held at The Priory Rooms throughout the year.

For more information and pictures from the R.A.B.I. fundraising event visit www.theprioryrooms.co.uk
For the latest updates visit our Twitter Page @theprioryrooms

Friday 12th and Saturday 13th July
11am – 7pm
VICTORIA SQUARE

The fantastic CBD Food Festival is back for the third year. The festival showcases the superb food and drink offering in Birmingham’s commercial quarter, Colmore Business District.

Twenty six venues will be serving taster options of their signature menu items, priced from £1.50 to £5. The variety of cuisines on offer will include British delights as well as international options, a range of sweet and savoury treats as well as coffees, real ales, wines, champagne and cocktails.

The festival will include live cooking demonstrations from top chefs in the District, including Glynn Purnell and David Colcombe, and will have live music performances as part of the Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival. Visitors will also be entertained by spontaneous outdoor theatre and performances from CBD’s choir of local business people, Colmore Chorus.

For any queries, please contact Food Festival event manager, Tahreen Kutub on 0121 236 4686.

Part of CBD’s Branded & Promoted objective