Johnson said: “MADE Festival was an inspiration to entrepreneurs and established businesses across the UK. There was such an uplifting buzz with people swapping stories, ideas, networking, discussing deals and creating opportunities.

“Sheffield has clearly come a long way over the last decade and I fully support its confidence in pitching itself as a hub of entrepreneurialism and innovation.

“We therefore identified Sheffield as a fantastic opportunity for Patisserie Valerie and I am looking forward to seeing the store thrive in the city.”

Luke is one of Britain’s most successful entrepreneurs. He is Chairman of Giraffe restaurants and Risk Capital Partners, and the former Chairman of Channel 4 Television. Luke writes a weekly column for the Financial Times and wrote for the Sunday Telegraph for eight years. He was Chairman of PizzaExpress during the 1990s and has also owned companies in recruitment, dentistry and retailing.

Brendan Moffett, Director of Marketing Sheffield – the organisation behind the festival, commented: “This news proves that today’s visitor really is tomorrow’s inward investor.

“The most valuable way of promoting the city is to encourage people to come here and experience it for themselves which is the underlying aim of the city’s marketing strategy. MADE brought government ministers, global business leaders, TV Dragons and some of the UK’s most enthusiastic entrepreneurial minds to Sheffield. I am delighted to see the festival really starting to pay dividends and would like to thank Off the Shelf who secured Luke to come and take part.”

A £6 million investment at Sheffield will make it possible to bake Oreo and BelVita biscuits in the UK for the first time, alongside Trebor, Maynards and Bassetts candy. This new investment in biscuits, coupled with ongoing investment in candy, will increase output and productivity at the Sheffield plant and result in a net increase of approximately 20 manufacturing jobs.

Ian Dearn, Head of Manufacturing for Kraft in Sheffield, said: “It is great that Kraft Foods recognises the strength of the UK as a manufacturing centre. We are proud to have been selected to bring the manufacture of BelVita and world-famous Oreo cookies to the UK for the first time. We are also excited about the opportunity to create new partnerships with local farmers to supply the wheat for these iconic products.”

Kraft is also investing in the local workforce, having recruited apprentices at the Sheffield plant for the first time in over 25 years.

Kraft’s Sheffield factory, home to favourites like Jelly Babies and Liquorice Allsorts, is the largest sugar confectionery plant in Europe.

The announcement by Kraft builds on the £22M already invested by the Group in the Sheffield facility.

The talented team visited 10 Downing Street yesterday (Wednesday 16 November 2011) after scooping a national prize for their creative invention Safe Trip, which uses Government crime statistics, GPS location and Google maps to plot the safest route through an unknown town or city.

The competition was hosted by Silicon Valley Comes to the UK (SVC2UK), a not-for-profit organisation whose aim is to improve the environment for entrepreneurship.

Technical geniuses Steve Briscoe from Sheffield Hallam University and University of Sheffield students Luke Stringer, Sam Oakley and Mark Dessain joined seven other teams at one of the most famous addresses in the world to receive their prestigious award from Prime Minister David Cameron.

The masterminds created their app at the Silicon Valley Comes to Sheffield Appathon which took place at Sheffield Hallam University in October. The event, which was supported by the Creative and Digital Industries (CDI) team from Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) working with Sheffield Hallam University and the University of Sheffield, gave budding entrepreneurs the opportunity to work with designers, developers and marketeers to design and build a unique app for the commercial market in just two days.

Team leader Steve Briscoe, 19, from Sheffield Hallam University said: “I was so shocked that we won the award and were given the once in a lifetime opportunity to visit 10 Downing Street and actually meet the Prime Minister. David Cameron certainly helped to inspire us to achieve careers in the IT industry.”

The group has also been given the opportunity to pitch their idea to investors at the Silicon Valley comes to Tech City event taking place in London on Saturday ( 19 November 2011) and one team member has the chance to travel to the Silicon Valley and South by South West Festival (SXSW) next year.

Sam Oakley, 21, from the University of Sheffield said: “Technology entrepreneurship is a really hot area to be in and this competition is a fantastic opportunity to get connections with the right people.”

Chris Bates, senior lecturer in computing at Sheffield Hallam, said: “Everything we do at Sheffield Hallam is focused on building real world skills – from the teaching to the placements. The SVC2UK competition gave our students the chance to apply their innovative thinking and learning to a leading-edge, real world product. The winning team have produced an application that, although a prototype, is a saleable product with a real use.”

The appathon experience is a prime example of how collaboration within the Sheffield City Region between the private sector and the universities helps undergraduate students gain real hands on experience in developing a commercial product.  Mentors from the local business community and partners Microsoft, the GIST Foundation and the Technology Strategy Board offered their time and support to the students during the two-day Appathon.

Lee Strafford from the LEP Board said: “I passionately believe that by collaborating in a meaningful way, universities and business will release the talent of our student population to make a real change in the Sheffield City Region economy.”

Ian Ibbotson, secretary of the GIST Foundation said: “What I find most striking and encouraging about the Sheffield SVC2UK event is the value that can be created when local stakeholders are made to collaborate. By working together we’ve created a rich environment for the students to succeed.”

“The combination of the physical space and support, provided by the university; first class mentoring and encouragement, provided by local business and creative community; the hard work of the SVC2UK team, and most of all the students created an event that I can’t imagine any one organisation could have achieved alone.”

http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/business/rolls_royce_jobs_plan_gets_boost_1_3871486

Objective Creative is now located in the heart of the city in the Circle on Rockingham Lane.
The agency is already working with clients as diverse as manufacturing companies in South Yorkshire, leisure providers in Spain and technical specialists in North America.

The objective team offer a full range of services including creative design, artwork, marketing strategy and digital.

Dan Broadbent, Managing Director of Objective Creative, said “People come to us with targets, from increasing sales to influencing opinion, and our strategists suggest the most effective way of delivering exceptional results.

“From branding to websites, advertising to mailers, we provide services to businesses and organisations worldwide. “

He added “We guarantee companies and organisations, big and small; they will always be looked after by a team of specialists who truly understand their business

“We are passionate about providing outstanding service to our local and international clients. Pop into the Circle, in the centre of our city, for a coffee and an informal chat about how we can work together”

Objective Creative are currently developing multilanguage websites for accommodation and leisure providers Club Vista Serena.

The complex based in Gran Canaria with North American ownership, is a truly international affair.

Carl Richardson, Creative Director of Objective Creative, said “Our creative and digital teams have risen to the challenge of developing websites for major European markets including Spain, Germany and UK.

“We are supporting the growth of international businesses from our home here in Sheffield.”

Objective Creative have recently launched their new website, www.objectivecreative.com, showcasing the services they provide for public and private sector organisations.

For more information email hello@objectivecreative.com , call 0114 253 6756, or visit them at The Circle, Rockingham Lane, Sheffield.

Gripple is one of only 25 companies in the UK to represent the country in the European
Business Awards.
The Sheffield-based, world leading, multiawarding manufacturer of unique wire joining devices was selected from more than 1,000 UK applicants. From entries throughout Europe, the winner in each of the programme’s ten categories will be announced in November after being judged by a prestigious panel of experts, involving some of Europe’s key political figures.

Sheffield has seen a broad selection of conferences come to the city over the past few months, with many more yet to follow, spanning sectors as diverse as healthcare, technology, hospitality, literature, politics and more. This news comes following the announcement that the National Union of Students conference will be taking place at Sheffield City Hall in 2012 and 2013, bringing an estimated £3 million to the city.

May 2011 saw the CAMRA AGM take place in the Sheffield. The conference had a record number of delegates in attendance and was estimated to have benefited the city’s economy by £50,000. The Association of Surgeons in Training Conference also took place in May with a record attendance.

The Business Librarians Annual Conference took place in July 2011, as did the Semiconductors Conference [the annual conference on all aspects of semiconductor research] which featured speakers from across the world and came with an estimated economic benefit of £72,000.

Still to come this September is the Project Sunshine Shine International Conference 2011 welcoming 100 delegates to the city; the Training New Trainers [TNT] and Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers [MINT] Forum which welcomes 200 delegates with an economic benefit to the city of £146,700; the Green Party Conference at 500 delegates and Sheffield’s own MADE The Entrepreneur Festival.

Gemma Bradshaw, Business Tourism Manager at the Sheffield Convention Bureau (part of Marketing Sheffield), said: “This is just a small taster of the vast number of conferences which have taken place this season or are still to come.

“The diverse conferences that Sheffield wins bring thousands of people into the city each year. These delegates help to fill our hotel rooms; keep our bars, restaurants, shops and leisure facilities busy; boost the city’s profile by giving international opinion leaders a taster of modern Sheffield; and, above all, has a significant impact on our economy. Confirmed events either come from bidding for strategic conferences or attending important events such as International CONFEX, where we interact with thousands of event organisers all comparing different cities and venue options.”

“This bumper conference season is testament to the hard work, dedication and competitive offer provided by the great venues in the Sheffield City Region including SIV, Doncaster Racecourse, Hospitality Sheffield and Magna to name just a few, and the city’s two universities. As a result, it’s great to see Sheffield being considered as a top UK conference destination among conference and event organisers from across the world.

“And, of course, if delegates are impressed by Sheffield, then they are likely to return as leisure visitors with their family and friends.”

The bumper conference season comes following the successful Liberal Democrats conference which took place at Sheffield City Hall in March earlier this year.

Dominic Stokes, General Manager – SIV Events, commented: “The continuing success of Sheffield in the business events market is quite simply down to the team work and the diversity of product that we can offer any event organiser. The quality and quantity of the events that are now coming through to our venues is down to sheer persistence over the past few years by all the major players to ensure we are at the forefront of any organisers mind. Other cities and destinations are quite rightly looking over their shoulder at what we have started to, and will continue to, achieve even in these challenging times”

Many of the conferences which take place in Sheffield originate from Sheffield’s highly successful Conference Ambassador Programme, which has secured conferences and events in the city worth over £3 million to the economy since the initiative was established 3 years ago. The innovative scheme, which is jointly funded by Sheffield City Council and Welcome to Yorkshire, aims to help support and grow business tourism within the city by recruiting leading business professionals and academics who can help identify and attract more conferences and events.

The 2011 summer season will close with a bang in October when the Sterling RIBA Awards take place at Magna which will be screened live on Channel 4.

Cllr Helen Mirfin-Boukouris, Cabinet Member for Business, Jobs and Growth, added: “This diverse 2011 conference calendar it great news for the economic development and profile of Sheffield.

“Many of the conferences also fit perfectly with the city’s sectors of strategic growth including advanced manufacturing and engineering, creative industries and healthcare technology. Underlining Sheffield’s strength in these sectors and attracting the industry’s key players will help to secure opportunities and contacts for future growth and investment.”

The Sheffield Convention Bureau and SIV will be attending the Confec Green Meet the Agency Forum and the Square Meal Venues and Events Exhibition in London in September 2011 to ensure that Sheffield continues to attract significant events and conferences in the future.

Led by Vineyard Manager Kieron Atkinson, the tours will give a history and insight in to the running of Derbyshire’s oldest and most famous vineyard, once the most northerly vineyard in the world.

“Renishaw Hall vineyard has been producing grapes to make quality English wine for almost 40 years, which is an incredible age for an English vineyard and one so relatively north in the country” said Kieron Atkinson, who took over the management of the vineyard this summer.

“I look forward to welcoming people to our informative tours which are open to anyone – from people with a little interest in growing grapes to wine enthusiasts. The spirit and history of Renishaw and the passion of the late Sir Reresby Sitwell who planted the vineyard back in the 1970s really add to its unique atmosphere.”
The wine tours take place at 2.30pm on Sunday 4 and Sunday 18 September. The tours will last approximately one and a half hours and include touring the vineyard, examining the vines and sampling some of the famous Renishaw wine through a tutored wine tasting.

Group tours of Renishaw vineyard are also available for parties of ten people or more throughout the summer until mid October.

Booking for the September tours is advisable; £6 per person with tasting or £12.50 per person including a free bottle of Renishaw wine.

Visitors to Renishaw Hall and Gardens can also purchase Renishaw white and sparkling wine from the shop on the estate which is open from Wednesdays to Sundays from 10.30 to 4.30.

To book a tour or for more information, please call: 01246 432 310 or email: enquiries@renishaw-hall.co.uk

The Garden Productions, an independent production company founded last year by the team who made the BAFTA award-winning series One Born Every Minute and more recently, 24 Hours in A&E, is making an exciting new series for Channel 4 about love.

This intelligent and sensitive series will reflect relationships throughout a lifetime – from the first kiss to the final farewell and everything else in between. Across the generations, we will explore what it really means to be in love.

We are now looking to hear from couples in the Sheffield area who are planning to move in together for the first time over the next few months.

Perhaps you are looking to buy or rent a place together, or maybe one partner is moving into the other’s current home. It might be that you’re used to living alone and this will be a big change; or perhaps you can’t wait to get away from parents or flatmates and live with a partner for the first time. Whether you’ve known each other for years or just a few months, we’d like to hear about what moving in together means to you.

If you would like to share your views on love and living together, please get in touch. To find out more and for an informal chat, please call 0203 465 9060 and ask for Anna, or email anna.dangoor@thegardenproductions.tv .

Rest assured that contacting us does not oblige you to take part in a documentary series and your details will remain confidential.