News | Page 21

Liverpool City Council’s planning committee has given develop Fortis Developments planning permission to redevelop Merebank Tower on Greenbank Drive, in the Sefton Park Conservation Area, into one-, two- and three-bedroom luxury apartments, a news report in the local media has revealed. The development was commissioned by Fortis on behalf of the Homes and Communities Agency and designed by Falconer Chester Hall.

Manchester-headquartered restaurant chain Pesto is aiming to create 400 new jobs over the next 12 months as part of its expansion plans, a news report in the local media has revealed. As the company reveals, the new jobs will be required as Pesto plans to open ten more restaurants by late 2014.

Construction work has begun on a new development comprising 14 new homes, located on the site of the former Caldervale Mill in Barrowford, a news report in the local media has revealed. The properties are being developed by Harbur Construction on behalf of Rainbow Homes, while Hurd Rolland Partnership was in charge of designing the three-bedroom, four-storey homes.

Work has started on a major government-backed project that will see the Pendleton area of Salford undergo a series of major improvement works, a news report in the media has revealed.

The MBDA has managed to secure an important contract for manufacturing a new naval air defence system, thus supporting a large number of jobs across its own sites but also across the supply chain, a news report in the local media has revealed. The Sea Ceptor is a new missile designed and built by the company and is set to be fitted to the Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigates and, in future, the Type 26 Global Combat Ship.

Construction group John Turner has managed to secure a very lucrative contract worth £7.5m for a residential care redevelopment scheme in Bury. According to a news report on the matter, work on the ‘Heathlands Village’ project in Bury will start next month, the initial stage of the project involving a complete remodelling of the internal existing communal areas and new landscaping of the external space.

Following recent contract wins with FTSE 100 businesses, Wirral-based Riverview Law is set to employ up to 100 extra members of legal staff, a new media report informs us. The Merseyside legal services business hopes that 25 of the new staff will already be employed by the end of 2013, most of the new roles, including those of lawyers, business law executives and client managers among others, being based in its Bromborough offices.

Curtain and accessories supplier and retailer Montgomery Tomlinson has ceased trading and called in administrators from KPMG, as a result of very poor results and increased market competition, a news report in the media has revealed. Unfortunately, as part of this move, 384 staff across its 123 department store and retail concessions were made redundant with a further 146 job losses at its factory and warehouse facility in Bretton.

The site of a former school in Liverpool is the subject of an application put forward by residential developer Redrow, who aims to build 90 four- and 32 five-bedroom houses on the 14-acre site. As a media report revealed, the council-owned plot hosted the Enterprise South Liverpool Academy in the former New Heys School building until March this year, but is now vacant, as the Academy relocated to a different building.

Budget retailer TJ Morris, who owns the Home Bargains chain, plans to expand its Gillmoss HQ and also create up to 150 new jobs in the process. According to a media report, the company put forward plans to build a 284,000 sq ft development next to its HQ on Axis Business Park. The new warehouse and distribution space hub would also feature offices and staff facilities, and would be linked to the existing site via an overhead bridge.

Southport-based United Automation has announced plans to extend its activity and create more jobs in the process, following a boom in sales. According to a media news report, the £1.2m-turnover company, which moved to a purpose-built factory on Southport Business Park in 1999 and designs/manufactures a wide range of power control products for businesses including heating, ventilating and air conditioning, catering equipment and frost protection, has recorded sustained sales following the smoking ban.

Frozen logistics specialist Yearsley has officially unveiled the first two phases of a three-part expansion at the company’s northern distribution centre in the form of a 100,000 sq ft coldstore. According to a news report on the matter, the unit adds 28,000 pallet spaces to the 40,000 existing capacity, moving closer to the final target, namely a total of 450,000 sq ft and 80,000 pallet spaces at the Heywood site.