‘Workers are keen to come to Yorkshire’

Channel 4 and Arco say staff are eager to relocate to region, conference is told

A SURGE in interest in workers relocating to Yorkshire has been emphasised by firms taking part in the annual Welcome to Yorkshire conference.

As the tourism body has realigned its focus from promoting tourism to marketing Yorkshire as a place to live, work and study as well as visit, industry leaders from across the region were quick to back the cause.

Thomas Martin, chairman of Hull-based safety products supplier Arco, said his firm turned down the chance to open a logistics base in the Midlands, despite being advised to do so, in favour of a new distribution centre in their home city.

The company employs 1,700 across the country, most based in East Yorkshire, and moved out of its headquarters – its home for 60 years – due to a road development scheme to the Fruit Market area of Hull earlier this year.

Mr Martin said that despite the business hiring specialist staff from across the world, he rarely had to convince them to move to the East Riding.

“We do look outside of Yorkshire for those extra skills – Scotland, the South, overseas. Whenever those people ask if I can sell Yorkshire to them, I give them the chance to speak to 10 to 15 of my staff who have made the move, and I tell them to ask the golden question: ‘Would you ever move back?’ Never once have I had to sell the East Riding because my staff do it for me.”

He said Arco experienced ‘infinite demand but finite supply’ of its products during the pandemic, forcing the company to adapt quickly.

But he added: “We hired 10 jets to fly in from China, we got our new shed ready in just six weeks. It completely changed the rules, and it required a fleetness of foot – bravery, innovation. People here get things done.”

Another speaker, Channel Four’s managing director of nations and regions Sinead Rocks, says there has been great interest in relocating to Yorkshire among the broadcaster’s staff in the past year.

Ms Rocks, who joined Channel Four from the BBC in 2019, said employees were ‘reassessing’ their work-life balance since the pandemic began and are now more open transferring their roles to the broadcaster’s Leeds office, which opened last year.

“Leeds was no big sell to the workforce and the ex-London staff have really thrown themselves into it,” she said.

“Since Covid, we’ve had more staff asking if they can move up here – they are reassessing what they want and Yorkshire comes out of that really well.

“Everything felt right about opening the office in Leeds. We worked closely with Screen Yorkshire and other organisations who really took the time to understand what we want to achieve. We really want to grow the production sector outside London and the stars just aligned.

“Screen Yorkshire have been brilliant in showcasing the area, and there are the skills, facilities and infrastructure up here – the perfect ingredients.”

Former Sky Bet chief executive Richard Flint spoke about how he expects companies to become more ‘tolerant’ of a culture of flexible working, thus widening the region’s talent pool.

Mr Flint said his former employer, which has 2,000 staff based in Leeds and Harrogate, plans to move to a hybrid model that combines home and office working in future.

“It really opens up the number of places where people can live if they are only travelling into work one or two days a week.”

The conference included the launch of Welcome to Yorkshire’s 2022 campaign, A Taste of Yorkshire, backed by Michelin-starred chef James Mackenzie, who told the conference how the vast array of quality local produce has enabled his gastropub The Pipe and Glass, at South Dalton, near Beverley, to retain its coveted star – one of seven awarded in Yorkshire – for the past 12 years.

“We’ve got great producers round here. Chefs’ menus in London are full of Yorkshire game and rhubarb,” he said.

Since Covid, we’ve had more staff asking if they can move up here. Channel Four’s managing director of nations and regions Sinead Rocks.