Alan Moody, the chairman of Moody Logistics and Storage, has been honoured with a lifetime achievement award by the Pall-Ex Group in recognition of his contribution to the freight industry.
The 77-year-old was the second generation of the Moody family to run the Cramlington business, now overseen by his daughter Caroline Moody, son Richard Moody, and son-in-law Gavin Cape, who are all directors. He is now retired but still holds the position of chairman of the firm, which last year marked its 75th anniversary. In 1999 Mr Moody steered the company to become one of the founding members of the Pall-Ex network, which has grown to become a leading provider of palletised freight distribution services across the UK and Europe.
He said: “I’m delighted to have been recognised with this lifetime achievement award by Pall-Ex. It truly is an honour. Back in 1999, palletised overnight deliveries were a relatively new concept, but I saw an opportunity to grow the business and take it in a new direction, and gladly for all concerned, that proved to be the case. I’m proud to say it has made this firm both more successful and competitive within the industry and has also helped revolutionise the logistics sector.”
Miller UK has dedicated its earthmoving equipment and resources to support the Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter, the company’s chosen charity for 2023. The company’s first donation to the charity has seen the Cramlington construction specialist use its muck shifting equipment to clear the charity’s recreational field and create a pool for the pigs based at the Longbenton facility. Two members of staff from the Miller team dedicated almost two days to carrying out site improvements, with help from a dump truck from Hubbway Plant Hire.
Anjuli Hakin, head of animal welfare, said: “The removal of the muck heap and digging of the piggy pool is a job that usually falls to our animal care team or corporate volunteers, it’s a heavy job and can take days to make the slightest dent in the muck heap. As such, we had been looking into options to speed up the process, however the cost implications were too high for the charity. When Miller offered to dedicate its staffing and resources to help, we were absolutely delighted as it really does make such a big difference. Our animals have already benefited from the improvements made and we would like to thank the company for their continued support over the next year as their chosen charity.”
Ricky Martin, field service engineer at Miller, said: “It was a pleasure to be able to contribute our services to the Dog and Cat Shelter utilising our resources that we had to hand alongside our expertise - and with the help of Hubbway - to be able to transform the field into a suitable environment for the animals.”
Property specialist Bradley Hall has raised and donated £300,000 for local charities since launching its first funraiser seven years ago. The firm has raised and donated to local charities, community action projects, and grassroot sports clubs while supporting over 30 different regional charities and sporting groups including Daft as a Brush, Marie Curie Newcastle’s Hospice, Heel & Toe Children’s Charity, NE Youth, Bright Red, Morpeth Rugby Club, ABF The Soldier’s Charity, Glendale Agricultural Society, as well as local food and toy banks across the region.
Bradley Hall hosted its first festive fundraiser in 2016 where the firm raised £2,400 for local charities. The most recent event, a 700-guest BH Festive Fundraiser Bingo Bonanza, held at The Fed, Gateshead, raised £75,000.
Neil Hart, Bradley Hall’s group CEO said: “I would like to thank everyone that has attended and donated at each of our events to help us raise and donate £300,000 so far to local charities. We’re looking forward to continuing our support of deserving local organisations, charities, and our communities across the North. Our vision is to work together with key organisations and people to make the North a consistently better place to live, work, and socialise- which is at the heart of our community efforts.
“As a company that was founded in the North East, we are very proud to be able to support the charities and their service users who need it most. Most of the charities and community organisation which we work with aren’t supported by Government and rely solely on donations and fundraising activity, so it’s very important for us to do all we can to ensure their services continue.”
Newcastle-based international law firm Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD) has been named ESG Firm of the Year at the inaugural The Legal 500 Northern Powerhouse Awards.
The win comes after the firm committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2030. It also procures renewable energy in five of its seven UK offices, with nearly 80% of the electricity used across the UK coming from renewable sources. In 2022, the firm unveiled its new eco-friendly Leeds office with updates to lighting and air conditioning and in Newcastle the firm relocated to new premises at The Spark, part of The Helix development, a BREEAM Excellent building.
The company was also recognised for its range of equality, diversity and inclusion networks, which led to its recen ranking of 56th in Stonewall’s Top 100 Employers list, and within governance, WBD launched the Work in Confidence anonymous communication system to support a safe and respectful working environment.
Charlotte von Sicard, responsible business manager at Womble Bond Dickinson, said: “We’re extremely proud to be recognised as a firm leading the way in ESG strategy. Womble Bond Dickinson is committed to creating better places to live, work and do business and we’re delighted to be presented with this award. This latest success is testament to our team and the work we are doing to build sustainable practices within WBD.”
Charity and cheese have joined forces to raise vital funds to fight poverty in County Durham. Prima Cheese in Seaham chose the Poverty Hurts Appeal as their Charity of the Year in 2022 resulting in £1,214.62 in vital funds to fight poverty in County Durham. A charity car wash, Easter egg competition and fancy dress days helped hit the total, while giving staff time to bond and have some fun.
The Poverty Hurts Appeal, now in its second year, was launched by County Durham Community Foundation to combat rising levels of child poverty and hardship created by the pandemic, cost-of-living crisis and ongoing economic difficulties in the region.
Nagma Ebanks Beni, CEO of Prima Cheese, said: ‘We were delighted to be able to present County Durham Community Foundation and the Poverty Hurts Appeal with a cheque for the money our team raised over the year. We are hearing fantastic stories of the difference the Poverty Hurts Appeal is making and feel thankful to have been able to support our local community.”
Michelle Cooper, CEO of County Durham Community Foundation, said: “We would really like to thank the team at Prima for their fundraising efforts this past year. When we met them back in December 2021 they had real care and concern for what is happening in the communities on their doorstep. I am delighted to say that this gift will be matched with £1 for every £2 raised, thanks to the generosity of our existing supporters. The money will help those in real need, many of whom have never had to ask for help before. We are hearing of more and more working families and individuals who simply cannot make ends meet, so the Appeal is creating support and lifelines to help get people through. For 28 years we have been funding small but vital charities at the heart of helping and the Appeal has been our biggest effort to date.”
Architectural practice Space Group is celebrating after being awarded coveted B Corp status in recognition of its social and environmental impact.
The Newcastle group, which incorporates Space Architects, Twinview, bimstore and BIM Technologies, scored a 92.6 B Impact Score, following an assessment process. It joins an elite group of architects to have achieved the standard. Only twelve other practices in the UK currently have B Corp status.
B Corp is a global movement designed to highlight organisations that reach the highest standards of ethical business.
Chief executive Rob Charlton said: “Space Group and our people have always cared deeply about the impact the built environment has on the people who live, visit, learn, work and play in the spaces we create. We design with people and the planet in mind, and always have the communities our buildings serve at the heart of our design philosophy.
“From our carbon reduction strategies - and the technologies we’ve developed to support the race to Net Zero - to our caring, accountable culture - B Corp status felt like a natural progression. It has allowed us to ‘officially’ measure and evidence our best practice around sustainability, environmental management and ethical design, which have always been part of the Space Group DNA. B Corp is rigorous and evidence-based - there is no easy way to get through the assessment process, and it holds great credibility. We’re very proud to have achieved B Corp status and I would like to say thank you in particular to our dedicated team who believe in our purpose and continually push the boundaries of what is possible.”
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