The 2,550 acre Blythburgh Estate, which stretches along the Suffolk Heritage Coastland from Blythburgh to Walberswick is located in a popular and important coastal setting. It has a rich heritage including part of the Walberswick Nature Reserve, a designated nature reserve that includes one of the largest reedbeds in Britain and is part of the larger Suffolk Coast National Nature Reserve. The whole estate sits within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and much of the nature reserve is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), a designation for the finest sites for wildlife and natural features in England. The landA little over 1,034 acres of land is farmed on an arable rotation growing a variety of cereal and root crops with some land currently used for outdoor pigs. Most of it is farmed in hand with some crops grown under specialist annual cropping licences including seed potatoes and maize. There is currently no irrigation but with the benefit of water, the soil is suited to growing high value vegetable and salad crops. An application has been submitted for a large irrigation water abstraction licence and is presently being considered by the Environment Agency. There are around 75 acres of upland grass which is mainly permanent pasture for grazing and some 427 acres of heathland is largely grazed under an arrangement with Natural England. The marsh grassland includes 193 acres, part of which can be grazed.  The main areas of reed marshes next to the southern boundary of the estate form part of the largest continuous stand of reedbed in England and Wales. This site is acknowledged by the international Ramsar Convention, which is the intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. The total acreage of reedbed and salt marshland on the estate is around 482 acres. Across the estate is a variety of woodland ranging from areas planted for timber, amenity and sporting, through to the ungrazed heathland areas with varying tree densities. The main stocking is broad leaf with some evergreens. In all the woodland includes 299 acres. A separate block of over 546 acres, currently farmed on an arable rotation, together with a range of farm buildings with grain storage, is available under separate farming arrangement. Residential There is a portfolio of residential properties occupied on a variety of tenancies, which generate an annual rental income of around £30,240. SportingThe estate has a long history of extensive pheasant and partridge shooting which continues to be run on a commercial basis with the sporting rights are currently let to a third party until early 2022. The extensive network of tracks and free draining soils ensures there is good vehicular access to all of the drives. HistoryBetween the 16th and 18th centuries the marshland areas of the reserve were drained providing grazing land and during the Second World War, those around Walberswick were flooded to act as invasion defences. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s the marshes reverted to reedbeds creating a variety of habitats for wildlife including Marsh Harrier, Bearded Tit, Water Rail and Bittern which are now preserved in the reserve. A derelict Grade II listed windmill built in the late 18th century stands on the marshes and provides an important landscape feature as one of only two remaining drainage mills on the east Suffolk marshes. Near to a pair of cottages on the estate is the site where it is understood that Joe Kennedy Jr, eldest brother to US President John F Kennedy, died during World War II when his aeroplane exploded, when he was working on the secret mission, Project Anvil. Peter Start, Director of Savills in Ipswich, “The Blythburgh Estate is a rare proposition for a buyer offering a large farmable acreage combined with a significant nature reserve, a residential portfolio and some excellent sporting. Its diversity and popular location and not inconsiderable non-agricultural income in the region of £280,000 pa is likely to attract a range of buyers.” The Blythburgh Estate is now for sale through Savills at a guide price of £18 million for the whole. Source link

19 August 2016 | Herpreet Kaur Grewal Apex Lifts has won a three-year contract with City Hall, including all servicing, maintenance and repairs.   The City Hall contract includes servicing and maintenance on seven traction lifts – six passenger lifts and one goods lift. Work has already begun on the iconic building in the heart of London.  Warren Jenchner, managing director at Apex Lifts, said: “As [this is] the headquarters for the Greater London Authority, housing the chamber for the London Assembly and offices of the Mayor of London, it is our priority to ensure that there is minimal disruption while we carry out services so that the daily running of the building is not compromised.”   Apex has also won contracts with Apple’s flagship store, Greenwich foot tunnel, One Canada Square and most recently Lloyd’s of London. Source link

ECA poll finds 8 in 10 businesses see turnover steady or increase in Q2 2016 Source link

Activity in the construction sector expanded unexpectedly in September, for the first time since May, providing further evidence that the UK economy has bounced back from the initial shock of the Brexit vote. The survey of purchasing managers in the construction industry rose from 49.2 in August to 52.3 in September. Any result above 50 indicates expansion. The latest figure is substantially better than City analysts had been expecting: on average they had forecast that it would drop back to 49.0. The PMI results are in line with other indicators for the sector. “June and July were sharp falls in sentiment due to high uncertainty leading up to and then following the referendum vote,” said Noble Francis of the Construction Products Association. “But the indications are from industry that activity picked up in both August and September.” With the service sector having grown robustly in July and recent indicators of manufacturing output also positive, there is increasing evidence that growth in the third quarter could exceed the Bank of England’s forecast of 0.2 per cent. Tim Moore of IHS Markit, which carries out the survey, said: “Resilient housing market conditions and a renewed upturn in civil engineering activity helped to drive an overall improvement in construction output volumes [in September] for the first time since the EU referendum.” Sterling appreciated modestly against the dollar when the new figures were released before resuming its downward path. The currency reached a fresh 31-year trough this week. Investors continue to be concerned that Britain could be heading for “hard Brexit”, following Theresa May’s speech at the Conservative party conference on Sunday. There are growing signs that chancellor Philip Hammond, who is the strongest advocate in cabinet for retaining the fullest possible British access to EU markets, will hold less sway than his recent predecessors. The improvement in the construction PMI was driven by an increase in housing activity. In contrast, commercial construction continued to decline in September, as businesses remain cautious of committing to major expenditure. Overall the sector “remains on a much weaker trajectory than seen at the start of 2016”, said Mr Moore. The depreciation of sterling since the end of June, which has helped exporters in the manufacturing sector, has increased the cost of inputs for the construction sector, making projects more expensive. This has added to existing supply-side pressures on the industry. A shortage of skilled labour means wages in the sector have grown more rapidly than elsewhere in the economy. “The three-month average of regular annual weekly earnings growth in the construction sector stood at 5.7 per cent in July 2016 — nearly three times the rate seen for the economy as a whole,” said Ruth Gregory of Capital Economics. The construction sector makes up only 6 per cent of the UK economy. But maintenance and development of infrastructure have knock-on benefits for other parts of the economy, meaning the performance of the construction sector has wider implications for future economic growth. The FT’s one-stop overview of key UK economic data and trends There was some good news for the sector in the chancellor’s statement on Monday, which announced additional public funding for housebuilding and signalled that more money could be allocated to infrastructure investment in the Autumn Statement. Declining public infrastructure and housing expenditure has been a drag on the sector during the past year. However, “long lead times for construction projects mean these funds will take time to boost activity”, warned Samuel Tombs of Pantheon Macroeconomics. The Office for National Statistics will publish its first estimate of construction output in August next week. However, these figures are no longer considered reliable enough to be designated official national statistics. Initial estimates of construction output have been revised up substantially in recent years. On Wednesday, Markit/CIPS will publish the results of their survey of purchasing managers in the service sector last month. As the services sector makes up four-fifths of the UK economy, this will provide more information about how the economy performed in September. Sample the FT’s top stories for a week You select the topic, we deliver the news. Source link