The Sentinel

Ownership of industrial estate changes hands in £6.7m deal

Recycling app puts IT firm in awards frame

- By LAURA WATSON Business Editor

AHUGE industrial estate in Stoke-on-trent is under new ownership following a £6.7 million acquisitio­n. Hanley-based Sandyford Properties has sold Newfield Industrial Estate, in Tunstall, to Network Space as part of a hattrick of recent acquisitio­ns by the commercial property developer.

The 125,000 sq ft estate – which has be in Sandyford’s property portfolio for 21 years – is occupied by 20 businesses, including Air Liquide, Grenville Engineerin­g, Little Athletes

funding and it will be paid directly to them once all mediation sessions are concluded.

The £500 voucher is a one-off contributi­on, so can only be claimed once per family (not per party).

If one party is eligible for legal aid, the £500 will be paid in addition to any legal aid entitlemen­t, not instead of it. The voucher may not cover the entire cost of mediation, but your mediator will tell you their rate and how many sessions it is likely to cover. and live music venue Eleven.

James Lewis, of Sandyford Properties, said: “The sale of Newfield Industrial Estate has allowed us to redeploy those funds into other acquisitio­ns and to invest in the growth of our existing sites.

“We have had a series of new longterm leases agreed in recent years and the site has grown and improved significan­tly.

“Some areas have been refurbishe­d and there is ongoing works to the site, so it’s a great opportunit­y for the new owners to support further growth to its tenants.”

The acquisitio­n comes just weeks after Network Space sold off its 126,000 sq ft Tunstall Arrow South

Family mediation is a process where a trained independen­t mediator helps you work through disagreeme­nts and find solutions that work for both of you.

Any agreement that you reach can be made legally binding.

Mediation lets you stay in control and can be less stressful and quicker than going to court.

However, if you fail to reach agreement, you can still go to court to seek resolution.

Family mediation can also help developmen­t to 4th Industrial, a new venture backed by TPG Real Estate Partners.

Richard Ainscough, group CEO of Network Space, said: “It is fair to say we have been a bit busy – with Newfield Industrial Estate completing the hat-trick, we have acquired nearly 800,000 sq ft of urban logistics and industrial space in the cities of Manchester, Liverpool and Stoke-on-trent.

“The demand in the industrial sector is well-documented.

“We are delighted to have secured these new opportunit­ies which will provide a variety of routes to value through asset-management, refurbishm­ent and redevelopm­ent,

when circumstan­ces change requiring you to make new arrangemen­ts, for example, altering child arrangemen­ts as children grow up.

It is estimated that at least 2,000 families across the country could benefit from the Family Mediation Voucher Scheme.

The scheme is great news for families whose circumstan­ces lend themselves to resolution without the need to go to court.

However, the funds won’t last long all of which we have the expertise for internally.”

Martin Mellor, investment director at Network Space, added: “We are delighted with this investment acquisitio­n. Newfield has been acquired as a value-add opportunit­y with an asset management strategy already in place, which will be delivered by NSM, the group’s management company.”

Sandyford Properties – which also owns Newstead Industrial Estate, Joiners Square Industrial Estate and Queen Parade Business Centre in Newcastle – was advised by B8 Real Estate and Aaron & Partners LLP over the deal, whilst Network Space was advised by DTRE and FDR Law.

so my advice is to act quickly if you wish to benefit.

For tailored legal advice about the best way forward to resolve your family matter, book a one-hour appointmen­t with one of our family solicitors, by phoning 01782 205000 or emailing enquiry@beswicks.com.

You’ll receive straightfo­rward advice on the next steps to take and, if you are eligible for the Family Mediation Voucher Scheme, will be referred to an authorised Family Mediator Council profession­al.

nIT solutions provider Stone Group has been shortliste­d for an award for its revolution­ary recycling app. Since the launch of its Stone 360 app in October, the Stafford company has successful­ly helped to recycle more than 100,000 items of ageing, broken or redundant IT hardware. The aim of the app is to help organisati­ons effectivel­y manage the entire lifecycle of their IT assets in just a few easy clicks, enabling them to arrange collection of their unwanted hardware at their convenienc­e.

All items, including monitors, laptops, desktops, printers and servers, are then taken to Stone’s ITAD facility in Staffordsh­ire where they are securely wiped of all data, then either refurbishe­d and given a second life or recycled.

Now the firm’s commitment to combatting the UK’S growing e-waste problem has been recognised with a shortlisti­ng in the sustainabi­lity category at the Global Think Awards.

The winners of the award – which recognises efforts to contribute to a more sustainabl­e society – will be announced on April 12. Tim Westbrook, director at Stone Group said: “This award shortlisti­ng is testament to our efforts as a business to facilitate positive change.

“As IT resellers it is our responsibi­lity to minimise the negative impact e-waste has on the environmen­t. The UK is one of the world’s worst offenders, with figures from the Global E-waste Monitor in 2019 showing that 23.9kg of unwanted technology was generated by each person. “We all need to take greater responsibi­lity for the items we no longer use and choose a sustainabl­e route for their disposal. “We’re 100 per cent committed to ensuring that zero waste that comes to our facility ends up in landfill and if we’re not able to refurbish a device, we recycle as much as we can of it.”

 ??  ?? An aerial view of Newfield Industrial Estate in Tunstall.
An aerial view of Newfield Industrial Estate in Tunstall.

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