Eric Martyn

Jennifer john joins the choir with no name liverpool for its annual “big gig”   

The Choir With No Name (CWNN) and special guests return to the Everyman on Friday 24th May 2024 (7:30pm)

CWNN Liverpool, a choir involving people impacted by homelessness, will be joined by singer/songwriter Jennifer John for its annual ‘Big Gig’ on Friday 24th May.

Boasting an esteemed career as an a multi-award winning performer, music manager, choir director and businesswoman, Jennifer’s performance on the night will be a return to her roots, with self-accompanied piano and voice originals.

The eagerly anticipated annual show will also see the CWNN raising the roof once again with its renowned uplifting and unifying performance of rock and pop classics. As well as being joined by Jennifer the performance will also feature Rek 41, a free and inclusive Birkenhead-based community choir that supports people recovering from addiction and mental health issues.

The eagerly anticipated annual show will see the CWNN raising the roof once again with its renowned uplifting and unifying performance of rock and pop classics.

CWNN Liverpool Choir Manager, Ema Quinn, said: “Every year our big gig just gets better and better. Jennifer has been a part of so many amazing collaborations, from her choir, Sense of Sound opening for Nile Rodgers and Chic on his UK Arena tour to being choir conductor for Welcome to Eurotopia, which opened the last year’s Eurovision cultural celebrations at the iconic Liverpool Waterfront. Jennifer has been a long-term friend of our choir and we’ve even worked on some of her choir collaborations over the years, so we’re thrilled to actually finally be singing with her and enjoying her performance of her own work!

LISTING INFORMATION

 Event: The Choir with No Name Liverpool “Big Gig” with Jennifer John and Rek 41 community choir

Date: Friday 24th May 2024 ♦Time: 7:30pm

Venue: Liverpool Everyman Theatre

Tickets: £8 – £15

Booking Link: https://www.everymanplayhouse.com/whats-on/the-choir-with-no-name-the-big-gig-2024

Photographs : Headline picture by Brian Roberts ♦ Jennifer John picture by Sane Seven

Liverpool-based training provider, the learning foundry, named finalists in national training awards 

Training provider based in Liverpool City Centre has been chosen as a finalist in the British Training Awards 2024 in the ‘Professional Services Initiative of the Year’ category. 

The Learning Foundry is a full-service training provider, offering courses for anyone 16 plus in the Liverpool City Region and beyond. Their nomination in the British Training Awards recognises their housing sector training offer that is designed ‘by the sector, for the sector’  to ensure staff in the industry provide the best service possible for people in our communities.

As part of The Regenda Group, The Learning Foundry understands the challenges in housing, and how important it is to support the learning and development of professionals in the sector.

The Learning Foundry is shortlisted amongst organisations including the BT Group, Starbucks Coffee Company and NatWest, as well as public sector heroes, tech superstars, global titans and everything in between.

The British Training Awards 2024 set out to discover and celebrate the organisations and individuals that are truly passionate about how learning and development plays a part in building a thriving workforce. This year, over 300 entries were received from organisations across the UK.

Head of Commercial at The Learning Foundry, Steve Blackburn, says: “To be named as a finalist in the British Training Awards is a testament to the strength of The Learning Foundry’s offer to the housing sector and all of the hard work our team do to support professionalising and development the UK workforce. We’re so proud to support colleagues in the sector up and down the country to ensure that people in our communities are living in safe homes.”

Nate Harwood, Founder of New Possible and British Training Awards judge said: “With the number of entries soaring by 90% this year, judging was both an immense privilege and a real challenge. Congratulations to all the Finalists whose passion, dedication and talent is helping to showcase the best of British L&D.”

Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on the 19th June 2024. 

Email: thelearning foundry.co.uk

Flatdot marketing returns strong six months in working with established and high growth businesses

A Liverpool-based digital marketing agency has reported a strong six months after further consolidation of well-established clients and the addition of several more to its flourishing roster.

Flatdot Marketing, based at Baltic Creative Campus, began inspiring technically geared companies to maximise their marketing message after directors Andy Flatman and Jack Dotchin struck up a business relationship at a former agency. The dynamic duo now lists an impressive portfolio of brands, both regional and national.

Co-founder Jack maintained that their vision has always been to help clients better understand how to engage and sell to their target market. He said: “We match our skillset combined with the technical know-how of clients to help them exceed their sales goals.”

Flatdot’s current portfolio includes the likes of RS Clare & Co, one of their longest-standing clients, who has recently completed the acquisition of another company (Igralub) with Flatdot now also helping to strengthen their brand expertise.

Another Flatdot Marketing client, TMT ID, is a specialist mobile numbering and device intelligence company, with Flatdot Marketing having assisted them with technical SEO elements.

“These are often overlooked when a large, global business is rebranding. The effective delivery of this SEO work has meant a successful transition from their old website to the new one where they can continue to grow their online coverage,” added Jack.

TMT ID’s Fergal Parkinson remarked: “Working with Flatdot Marketing for the last 4 years has been insightful and enjoyable and they have really helped us communicate our products and solutions to our market. Over this time, we have developed a new brand, website and a wealth of content which has been amplified through SEO and paid ads. Without them we would have far less clarity on the types of content to create that generate the best rankings in Google and leads for the business.

Bringing big agency and multi-sector expertise to clients has now helped Flatdot Marketing firmly establish its place as a leading Northwest player in the market.

Jack concluded: “Andy and I have many decades of combined experience in the industry. We’ve worked on literally hundreds of successful corporate, leading-edge SME and dynamic startup campaigns, and our long-term strategy for growth is now reaping rewards.”

Usp creative wins silver at european transform awards 2024

Liverpool-based USP Creative, a leading creative agency, has been awarded the Silver Award for “Best Brand Development Project to Reflect a Change of Mission, Values or Positioning (Corporate)” at the prestigious European Transform Awards 2024.

 

The award recognises USP Creative’s outstanding work with Curtins Consulting, a prominent engineering consultancy, on their recent rebranding project.

The awards ceremony, held at The Brewery in central London, celebrated excellence in rebranding, repositioning, and brand development across Europe. The event brought together the continent’s top agencies and creative teams to honour their achievements in designing and implementing successful brand strategies.

Curtins Consulting’s rebranding came after its transformation into an employee-owned trust. USP Creative worked closely with Curtins to develop a new brand identity that would reflect this significant organisational change. The new logo—a “C” comprised of interconnected smaller “C”s—symbolises the collaborative and inclusive ownership structure. The brand’s overarching theme of “building a better future” showcases Curtins’ commitment to innovation and teamwork.

One of the 40 internationally acclaimed judges praised the project, saying, “A huge amount of thought went into the problem and the strategy, and the result is a testament to the creative collaboration between USP Creative and Curtins Consulting.”

Jan Peters, Managing Director of USP Creative, expressed her delight at the award, stating, “It was an honour to be nominated alongside some of the world’s biggest brand agencies. Winning silver for our rebrand with Curtins is an amazing achievement, especially as we were one of only a few agencies nominated from the North West.”

For more information about USP Creative and their award-winning work, please visit:

 uspcreative.com.

 

Liverpool bid company at the heart of our city

Having recently been located at St Paul’s Square, Liverpool BID Company’s RED HEART installation can now be viewed at the Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, and in July it will be moved across to the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. During August it will be at upcoming events to celebrate Castle Street (4th August) and Bold Street (11th August) and from September you will be able to view it at Exchange Flags, at the rear of Liverpool Town Hall.

RED HEART was commissioned by Liverpool BID Company in 2023 to create the perfect selfie heart trail spot for visitors to the city during Eurovision. The heart, with The Beatles iconic lyrics ‘All you need is love’, began on Castle Street last year and during 2024 has been seen at a variety of locations across the city.

BLUE HEART: Was commissioned by Liverpool BID Company and Peel Waters to stay in a permanent location at Princes Dock. It is the second in the Heart trail with the ‘Love is all you need’ lyrics continuing. The heart perfectly captures the Liver Building in shot.

Images courtesy Liverpool BID Company

 

Wellness in the city expo feedback exceeds expectations

The second annual Wellness In The City event, held this year at Hilton Hotel Liverpool, has been inundated with plaudits following a highly successful day packed with exhibitors and masterclasses.

Founder Clare Ellis, alongside business and life partner George Egginton, maintain that they now have the impetus to drive the one day showcase to the next level.

“We’ve already received deposits for next April’s event in Liverpool, such is the confidence brands have placed in us following this year’s event. Whilst our inaugural event was firmly aimed at practitioners and company’s offering wellbeing products and services, this year was different.

“We were approached by a number of household corporate names drawn from professional services ranks who saw 2024 as an opportunity to profile their investment in workplace wellbeing provision.

“In addition, we attracted the multiple award-winning Morecrofts Solicitors as lead sponsor, which was a real coup for us. We were also supported by LAWMED, The Medical Hub, international nutrition brand Zinzino, the MOVE Community, Health at Work part of Medicash Healthcare Group and the Ubiquity Collective.”

Dozens of masterclasses and exhibitors filled many rooms of the four star hotel, with a steady flow of guests all day from the 10am start until finishing at 4pm.

At lunchtime, the Ubiquity Collective held their Ritual networking event for businesses in partnership with Wellness In The City.

Rachel Coogan from Chasing The Stigma said: “It was a great day finding out about the amazing organisations across the city,”, whilst Magdalena Cholewa, managing director of leading UK compliance company SQR Group, commented on the outstanding nature of the event. “Clare and the team have outdone themselves!”

One masterclass speaker, Joel Jelen from sniffsighyawn.com, enthused: “The room was full to overflowing with people interested in breathwork and how to better manage their daily stresses. It was great to see such a response.

Suzanne Wootton from Health at Work, part of Medicash Healthcare Group, summed up the day perfectly. “It was a great event. It was also lovely to see friends, meet connections in person and meet many new people from the local and wider wellness space.  Thank you to Clare and all the wellness team.”

Alison Lobb, managing partner at Morecrofts Solicitors, the event sponsors, said, “At Morecrofts we were delighted to support this event as sponsors this year.  Having taken part in the panel discussion last year, and gained an insight into the type of issues discussed and the calibre of those both presenting and attending, it was a no-brainer to get on board. The wellbeing of our staff is of paramount importance to us, as we believe it should be to any business, and it was really interesting to hear from so many other experts, as well as to share our own knowledge and expertise, on the day.  A massive well done to Clare Ellis and all involved in Wellness in the City for highlighting these issues and creating this showcase of wellbeing issues for our city. The movement can only go from strength to strength”.

www.wellnessinthecity.co.uk

Headline pic: Morecroft Solicitors Millie Greenop preparing for the day’s event

Reduce stress load, sleep and concentrate easier with breathwork

Breathing educator Joel Jelen gives breathwork masterclass at recent Liverpool Wellness Expo”

“As healthy human beings we take many things for granted. Breathing and breathwork being one of the least obvious (until we hit respiratory problems).” These are the words of Joel Jelen, a breathwork expert based in Liverpool who runs workplace wellbeing company Sniff Sigh Yawn.

“We typically breathe around 24,000 times a day too but it is how we breathe that is just as significant as the number.” Joel runs breathwork events in Liverpool in many guises for corporate businesses, SME’s, community organisations, schools/colleges as well as private clients.

“I know from many years in breathwork that physicians will tell you that the majority of us now breathe dysfunctionally, albeit hidden. This eventually catches up with us. It will end up affecting your exercise performance, mood and focus at work, your sleep, and the ability to handle stress alongside our digestive system. Fortunately, there are more family doctors and HR’s aware of the issue but without the expertise to advise on specific breathwork protocols.

Jelen continued: “For example, lifting weights on the inhale spikes people’s blood pressure and raises their heart rate to unnecessary levels. It’s why people can suffer vertigo and other ill-effects. Breathwork should be covered in, for example, every basic PT qualification. A recent Sniff Sigh Yawn client, a power lifter, went through all of that suffering before needing breathwork to perform again at international competition level. Also, when performing holistic exercise like yoga and Pilates, resist the habit of tensing up,” says Jelen. “Especially the core because you’re likely to be doing that anyway at work and in everyday life without realising. “Lying down and performing a Yoga Nidra move allowing the tummy to rise up on the inhale is a good way to practise breathwork.

“Similarly, running and breathing from the wrong locations, that is mouth and chest, just adds to the stressful breathing habits people bring from their place of work. Breathwork involving breathing slow into the base of the lungs and the lower abdominal muscles is where it’s at. That’s where the term ‘deep breath’ comes from. It should never be a big breath. Humming when you run works for many because it represents an extended exhale.”

Aside from his Liverpool Wellness Expo presentation on April 19th, Jelen has delivered talks throughout our city on the virtues of breathwork to an impressive list of clients. These include hundred of lawyers at Hill Dickinson, Everton In The Community, the Knowledge Quarter, Daisy UK Inclusive, Novotel Paddington Village and Wirral Met College amongst many others.

He explained how breathwork plays a key role in our lives whether socially or at work.

“There will be a reason why publications like Harvard Business Review are talking about the subject right now. Breathwork used by, for example, US Navy Seals and the military generally around the world share similarities. They are all geared to driving more oxygen, CO2 and nitric oxide into the cells. Subject to the type of technique employed, these can either relax or serve as an energy driver for the beneficiary.”

Jelen senses that sleep issues will be one of the biggest sources of demand from breathwork specialists like Sniff Sigh Yawn in 2024.

“Having helped many teams with sleep clinics and receiving all the positive feedback, the gap in sleep advice is typically breathwork-based. More people need awareness of the huge influence on our sleep based on how we breathe during the day. Operating on a heightened sense of anticipation all day and then expecting to enjoy eight hours of restorative sleep is unreasonable. Science tells us this.

“Sleeping is an event and needs to be seen as such. Breathwork involving breathing light fifteen minutes before sleep and entering bed half an hour before sleeping is recommended.”

“Also be aware of your breathing through the day,” adds Jelen. “Hidden breathing dysfunction at work often creates our stress and causes us to make bad decisions, further exacerbating our stress. Gain an awareness of breathwork. We only need to breathe around six to eight breaths per minute. The average adult does twelve to eighteen per minute.”

 

Urban cycling hub aiming to get people on their bikes launches in liverpool

A brand new ‘bike hub’ operated by a Merseyside-based non-profit has opened on Liverpool’s waterfront, offering affordable bicycles for hire and purchase, as well as a host of free and low-cost cycling-based activities and skills workshops.

HYPE Urban Bikes city centre hub, located on Sefton Street, was officially opened by Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor, Steve Rotheram on Tuesday 2nd April. It aims to make cycling accessible to all and get people living in and visiting the region on their bikes to explore the area, improve their health and wellbeing, and promote green, active travel.

HYPE Urban Bikes provides free and low-cost activities, including road and cycle safety sessions, group rides and balance bike sessions, and a host of courses and workshops covering topics such as cycle mechanics, recycling sustainability and leadership. The hub also sells repair services and accessories and new, recycled and refurbished bikes for sale, with a wide variety available at affordable prices. There are daily bike hire options for families seeking fun days out, such as traffic-free rides along the waterfront to Otterspool Promenade, and there are also longer-term three, six and 12-month hire schemes for as little as £1 per day for more regular riders or those who cycle their commute. Bikes on offer include mountain bikes, hybrids and step throughs, as well children’s sizes.

As a not-for-profit organisation, all monies generated by the bike hub will be invested back into the community, funding events, initiatives and the establishment of future hubs in other boroughs in the city region.

The city centre bike hub has been developed by HYPE Urban Bikes in partnership with Vermont Construction, whose offices neighbour the new bike hub.

 

HYPE Urban Bikes was originally launched in 2017 in Birkenhead, where its first hub is still located, with the aim of making cycling cheaper, safer, more accessible, and an easy choice for as many people as possible. The scheme expanded during the pandemic when HYPE recycled, refurbished and distributed more than 5,500 bikes into the local community, including NHS and key workers, asylum seekers, local young people and commuters unable to afford the cost of a new bike.

Recognising the appetite for cycling and exploring the barriers to access, Founder and CEO of Hype Urban Bikes Matthew Houghton and his team have since been focused on bringing a central hub to Liverpool, to enable more people to get on their bikes and enjoy the benefits. As well as supplying thousands of people with refurbished bicycles, HYPE Urban Bikes has also trained 27 young people as bike mechanics, engaged more than 800 children aged 3-7 years in balance bikes programmes in schools and raised £25,000 through bike sales and repairs, funding other programmes and initiatives, including the new Liverpool bike hub.

Mark Connor from Vermont Property Group said: “We are delighted to support Matt and HYPE Urban Bikes and we will be looking to see how we can support and assist the roll out across the city. In doing so, we will also see the initiative provide skills and employment opportunities for local young people, which is fantastic for us as a business based in L8.”

Simon O’Brien, Liverpool City Region Cycling & Walking Commissioner, said: “When I visited HYPE’s Bike Hub on the Wirral I was blown away by the energy and passion that Matt and the team have for encouraging everyone to get out and enjoy time on their bikes, so it’s great news that they are now opening a new hub in the heart of Liverpool. The location with its easy access to the riverfront and the city centre is a most welcome addition to the cycling community of the region. Well done HYPE!”

The Liverpool site will also serve as a drop-off point for donations of old or unused bikes from the public or partnership schemes, and its upstairs meeting room will host training and courses for unemployed young people and ex-offenders, as well as being available to hire by community groups and corporates.

For more information, bike hire prices and details of services and course, please visit: https://hypeurbanbikes.co.uk/

HYPE Urban Bikes Liverpool: 5 Sefton Street, Liverpool L8 5TH
HYPE Urban Bikes Wirral: Located in Environmental Innovation Centre, Campbeltown Road, Birkenhead CH41 9HP
Photographs by James Chapman

Nicholson group reveal unique commercial space in beecham’s building suited to licensed & leisure end user

MICROPUB IDEAL END USER IN FAMOUS FORMER BEECHAM’S HOME…

Following the near completion of Nicholson Group’s meticulous residential conversion of Beecham’s Building in St. Helen’s, CEO Paul Nicholson has revealed a commercial unit has become available to let within what’s been described as “an architecturally stunning space.”

Earmarked for a licensed & leisure operator as end user, Paul Nicholson said: “This is a rare opportunity to be part of an extraordinary new chapter in a building shrouded in history. We believe it’s ideally suited to a micropub or similar but regardless, we’d encourage operators working within the licensed & leisure or broader hospitality space to enquire further.”

The iconic Grade II Listed Beecham’s Building is all set to welcome its first tenants after a spectacular transformation by the pioneering developer.

Located on Westfield Street, St Helens, the building is the former headquarters of the Beecham pharmaceutical giant, once a major St Helens employer. The building dates back to the 1880s and was the first factory in the world built specifically to produce medicine. CEO of Nicholson Group, Paul Nicholson has worked closely with St Helens Council, Heritage and Rotary St Helens with a collaborative focus firmly on heritage.

Paul Nicholson added: “This magnificent  listed building has now been rejuvenated by the Group’s highly skilled and dedicated team after lying dormant enabling the Beecham’s Building to become a place in which to live and work.”

Further details are available from https://www.nicholsonresidences.com/commercial and via the Nicholson Group team on office@team-nico.com

April 19th sees ‘wellness in the city’ return bigger and better

THE LATEST ANNUAL ‘WELLNESS IN THE CITY’ EVENT AIMS TO SPREAD WELLBEING TRENDS IN LIVERPOOL HEALTH DRIVE

Following on from the success of the inaugural Wellness In The City event in January 2023, the critically acclaimed health showcase returns this April and it is bigger and better.

Founder Clare Ellis, and her business and life partner George Eggington, believe the event’s return will influence more people to discover a sustainable wellbeing outlook rather than just a quick fix for summer.

Clare maintains that the event is also an opportunity for the ever-increasing number of companies and organisations that are either looking to showcase their investment in wellbeing or looking to introduce wellness programmes but are looking for advice, to meet up with others and exchange views and ideas.

“So much has happened in the wellness arena in the past 12 months, with a huge surge nationally amongst brands now viewing workplace wellness as a priority. Liverpool is behind the curve on this and so we’re looking to help more firms and organisations understand the value of incorporating wellbeing programmes as standard in their business strategy.”

This year’s Wellness In The City is still very much aiming to educate and raise awareness of all the options available to the general public in the Merseyside wellness arena and Clare continued: “This event will also appeal to the public so they can be better informed about accessible options for creating and maintaining increased wellbeing in future.”

Wellness In The City, which takes place between 10am and 4pm on Friday April 19th at the Hilton Hotel in Liverpool, is well placed to make a difference, having spent the last 12 months hosting wellness showcases across the city.

This has included more recently its co-hosting of a new pilot wellbeing networking event with the Ubiquity Collective called RITUAL, which has been focused to date on Digital Health and Emotional Wellbeing at Work, with more events planned throughout 2024.

Clare added: “It’s been important for us to maintain momentum of our brand since 2023’s launch and we’ve done this by working with providers across the industry and those with a high intent to invest in wellness, enabling us to further develop this year’s show.

Wellness In The City has already signed up the likes of Morecrofts Solicitors, Steps Together, Zinzino, Law Med, Gleaming Gloss, Jackie Cain Therapies, Vibe Nutrition, Erin Health Hub, Find Your inner Bloom, Inner Solutions Life Coaching, and The Happiness Club.

For tickets, to book an exhibition space and all masterclasses please visit: https://wellnessinthecity.co.uk/