“Tim is a chartered surveyor and has a healthy interest in lots of things, a newly discovered unhealthy interest in the gym, gardening (must be his age) and Chelsea football club (not so new). He spends all his spare time with his wife and baby daughter and if you have met them you will know why!”
December 23rd, 2011 - Lingfield Point is delighted to announce it’s new bus service.We’re over the moon to welcome the bus 1/1b to Lingfield Point. Starting on 3 January, this regular half hour service will call at three stops around the 107 acre business park and will be able to serve the 1800 customers working at Lingfield Point.
Part funded by Department of Transport, this joint initiative between Darlington Borough Council and Arriva means Lingfield Point is one of the most accessible business parks in the North East thanks to the additional buses that also pass the main entrance to our park. This now gives Lingfield Point an unrivalled service every 10 MINUTES into Darlington.
The service also offers great value to customers living on the outskirts of Darlington as the extended bus route calls at Cockerton, Heighington, Bishop Auckland, Crook and Tow Law.
More information on this fantastic new service can be found by clicking on the “about section” within the Lingfield Point website and then clicking “public transport” where you can download background information and a timetable.
A weekly out of town ticket only costs £25.50 and if we all switched just one journey in 25 from car to bus, there would be one billion fewer car journeys made on our roads every year!
So what are you waiting for … Hop on a bus!
Posted in General, Lingfield Point, Marchday, Tim Stephen Tagged commercial property, community, Customer service, Darlington, News, Regeneration, sustainability, Value for money +December 16th, 2011 - A great plug for our new bus service!Arriva bus drivers and employees from Student Finance England and NAAFI at Lingfield Point helped launch the new bus link, service 1/1b by introducing a new hybrid vehicle to a 3ft wide electrical plug.
We’re over the moon to welcome the new hybrid buses soon to be trialled on the extended bus service 1/1b with its new terminus of Lingfield Point. Stopping at three locations around Lingfield Point, this new service will take you into town every 30 minutes. This, in addition to the regular service running past Lingfield Point, means our neighbourhood is one of the best served, most accessible business parks in the region.
Local bus company Arriva North East will be trialling a new hybrid vehicle on the newly extended 1,1b service from this January. The current route runs from Tow Law, Crook and Bishop Auckland to Darlington Town Centre and from 2 January will be extended to Lingfield Point via Darlington College/University, funded by the Department for Transport through the Local Sustainable Transport Fund.
The bus being trialled on the route is a state-of-the-art vehicle which is powered using an electric engine. If the trial proves a success the company will take delivery of 7 new hybrid vehicles in the summer of 2012.
The investment comes following a partnership between Arriva North East and ourselves working with Team Local Motion to champion even more environmentally-friendly means of transport being available to the people of Darlington.
Nigel Featham, Managing Director for Arriva North East, said: “The extension of the service will ensure that we continue to improve our customers’ journey experience, and the testing of the hybrid vehicle is another real benefit for the area. We know that value for money and reliability are very important to our customers, however more and more we are hearing that the environment is another key consideration.”
Councillor David Lyonette, Darlington Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport said ” The Department of Transport funding will benefit people locally and regionally by providing improved access to education as the route now extends past Darlington College and the University, and to jobs at Lingfield Point too, which will assist future economic development. I’m delighted Team Local Motion has been able to secure this development.”
John Orchard, Director of Marchday commented “We think it’s great news that this service is being extended to include our community. It is important that our site is well-served by buses, with over 1,800 staff based at Lingfield Point, and a great deal of them living in and around Darlington, it will certainly make the choice to travel to work by bus far easier.
For Lingfield Point to be served by hybrid buses is very appropriate as it fits perfectly with our ethos of sustainability – and the vision of our masterplan – setting out to make Lingfield Point one of the most environmentally-friendly developments in the UK “
So don’t forget your new year’s resolution … hop on our new bus service …. you’d be surprised how easy it really is!
Posted in General, Lingfield Point, Marchday, Tim Stephen Tagged commercial property, community, Customer service, Darlington, environment, lingfield life, News, Regeneration, sustainability, Value for money +April 12th, 2011 - Organic veg at New Lodge – yes please!After a long winter of preparation New Lodge recently launched the latest initiative for the “Green Team”. The allotment has arrived!
Paul Buckley the Estates Manager comment; “Behind Garden Cottage we have been building an allotment. We have built 3 raised beds which are ready to go…and we’d like to offer them to our customers who may have an interest in growing food crops. All we have asked in return is a share of the fruits of their labour!
Andy our gardener will be on hand to assist and advise. It goes without saying access to the plot s are 24 hours per day 7 days per week. Over the next few weeks we’ll be looking to install a water tap, a small shed and add in some tools and seating to help are gardeners on their way. We may even add in some chickens further down the line!”
Since then we have been bowled over by the demand, so much so that all 3 beds have now been allocated, but despair not, more are being built and prepared as we speak and hopefully they will be ready by the end of next week.
The first three beds have been allocated as follows…
Andy (the gardener)
The SeeWhy Team
The Trinity Team
As the next beds become available they will be allocated as follows…
The Garden Cottage Team
The Fastlane Team
The Touch Team
Once they are up and running we will be looking for any ideas on how we can help, advice and support our gardeners and build on what we have in order to maximise all the opportunities and benefits that allotment gardening offers. Any assitance or guidance needed then Andy our gardener will be on hand!
Posted in General, Marchday, New Lodge, Tim Stephen Tagged allotments, business community, green team, new lodge +April 4th, 2011 - Marchday’s ‘OnePlaceUK’ featured in this week’s Estates Gazette!Marchday’s ‘OnePlaceUK’ is featured in today’s EG as part of the Public Sector focus, ‘Changed Partners’ article. The piece, by EG’s Noella Pia Kivlehan illustrates some of the benefits of the OnePlace shared services model to public sector organisations;
We hope you will be reading more about OnePlaceUK and how we’re working with businesses to save them money. Watch this space!
Posted in General, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged Art, comprehensivespendingreview, costsaving, customerservice, Darlington, dx2, publicsectorcuts, sharedservices, sustainability, thecuts, valueformoney +March 28th, 2011 - Marchday go Mad in Malmo!
John and Tim have just returned from an inspirational trip to Malmo in Sweden where they visited some remarkable housing schemes. John explains;
The trip was arranged by David Birkbeck of Design for Homes. We are about to team up with a development partner at Lingfield Point, Darlington and start building the first new homes there. We wanted to see the very best examples of new housing in Europe before the design for phase 1 was finalised.
David showed us some fantastic low energy schemes using district heating systems, solar thermal and PV but we were most interested in the layouts of these new communities. I was inspired by the mixed scale of these developments with small single storey homes alongside apartment buildings. The designers had created intimate spaces between buildings, often incorporating water and reed beds where children can play safely. People take priority over the car in Sweden and the shared surfaces really work.
We’ll be making sure the ideas and lessons learned from the trip are brought back to Lingfield Point to make the new homes there some of the most remarkable in the UK.
March 23rd, 2011 - Budget makes Green Investment Bank perfect for the North East!Marchday really welcome George Osborne’s commitment to the Green Investment Bank, with an additional £2BN funding outlined in the Budget. There’s now even more reason for the North East to make a robust argument for it to be headquartered in the region. The North East is not only a hot bed of green technology, innovation and manufacturing, but has the most to gain from this level of investment.
A recent trip to Malmo in Sweden has demonstrated to us that the skills and facilities in the North East are perfectly placed to capitalise on the growth of the green technology industry. In Sweden they are using their ship building facilities to build wind turbines. This is a fantastic opportunity for the North East to do the same. Skills and facilities abound; all that’s missing is the money that the Green Investment Bank will bring.
Posted in General, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged Art, budget, comprehensivespendingreview, dx2, greeninvestmentbank, oneplaceuk, publicart, sharedservices, valueformoney +March 14th, 2011 - Marchday launch ‘OnePlaceUK’!
We’re really excited to announce the launch of ‘One Place UK’, a new partnership between Marchday, Glasgow based work place gurus 3FOLD and process specialists Catalyst Consult to deliver a complete cost saving package for public sector organisations.
“We find that councils are often housed in outdated buildings which don’t allow the people to work efficiently. Once you start with a clean sheet and look afresh at service delivery with proper use of the latest technology and ‘agile’ working patterns the efficiencies are quite staggering. Such widespread changes require bold thinking from the start – it won’t work if you just tinker around the edges. You need to follow through into each area of the business and see it through to its logical conclusion – and that can be scary stuff.”
Marchday bring a wealth of innovative property asset management skills to the partnership with their proven track record of adding value to challenging property stock. Marchday’s Lingfield Point, Darlington is already home to a cluster of public sector organisations including Student Loans Company, NHS, Darlington Borough Council and NAAFI. It has become a true ‘shared services’ centre providing these organisations with critical support without the crippling cost. Lingfield Point is also home to Xentrall, a joint venture between Darlington and Stockton Borough Councils providing IT services to both. John Orchard explains;
“Many of our public sector customers have the same needs. We can often provide shared facilities to satisfy these without burdening an individual organisation with the cost. This results in people needing less space and less duplication of meeting rooms, break out space etc. We developed a whole suite of bespoke services in line with our customers’ specialist needs.”
So how has the idea been received in public sector circles? Such wide ranging reforms are always going to be met with scepticism despite proven successes. John continues;
“It sounds too good to be true which can be a problem. We are in a unique position to help Councils make huge savings. If they team up with other similar organizations the saving go through the roof. The fact is that most councils don’t know what to do with their existing properties. We work with them to get best value out of their portfolio and get their running costs down. Instead of having a knee-jerk reaction we want people to understand how this works, to think seriously about it and to consider the benefits. In addition to huge savings the result will be a happier, more efficient workforce, an improved service for the customer and an organisation model which is sustainable for the next 20 years.”
We are currently in discussion with other organisations.
Posted in General, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged Art, comprehensivespendingreview, costsaving, dx2, Regeneration, restructuring, sharedservices, sustainability, valueformoney +February 25th, 2011 - The Best of Darlington delivers once again!The sixth annual best of Darlington awards were held at Darlington College last Friday night. This fantastic event had a lot to live up to after last years’ world Champion Cyclist, Steve Davis, who won the converted Citizen of the Year for 2010 and so it did!
Gordon Pybus and Antonia Puccio picked up the top awards of citizen and young citizen of the year respectively, along with 13 other category winners.
John Orchard commented; ” As the founder and long-standing chairman of Darlington Association on Disability, Mr Pybus is a very worthy winner of the top prize at this years awards. He also won the adult contribution to the community category”.
He went on to say; “I had a tear in my eye when I heard the story of the young citizen of the year, Antonia Puccio, who bravery and the will to win against all odds is surely an inspiration to us all”.
The business contribution award went to Mech-Tool and the contribution to the environment to pupils at Corporation Road Primary School. Rockliffe Hall the stunning country house hotel and spa, won the “Putting Darlington on the Map award”, and photographer Tracy Kidd won the “Oh My Darlington” photographic competition, sponsored once again by Marchday.
February 24th, 2011 - Green Investment Bank – Latest News!We’re glad to hear that the Government is to push ahead with its much anticipated Green Investment Bank (GIB) under the leadership of Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.
Even so it could be two years before it is up and running – causing a delay in the financing of the vital renewable energy sector – which seems shortsighted in these straitened times.
Marchday are right behind the ethos of the GIB and the role it could play in creating a low carbon economy for the UK but why the hold up? Surely we need it now.
We believe the case for basing the GIB in the North East (and at Lingfield Point in particular) is very compelling for several reasons – not least to balance out the loss of public sector jobs in the region.
The North East is already home to groundbreaking manufacture of low carbon technologies and close links to the GIB would be invaluable. We would also like to see the GIB put its (green) money where its mouth is and base itself in the type of award winning recycled buildings we have at Lingfield Point.
The GIB will need to hit the ground running. At Lingfield Point we have developed the perfect environment for public sector organisations and have established a successful cluster including Student Loans Company, NHS, NAAFI and Capita. We have developed critical support services which have allowed these organisations to thrive. At Lingfield Point we can provide a low cost, low carbon home for the GIB and we can provide it fast! We’ll keep shouting about it; let’s hope Mr Clegg is listening.
Posted in General, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged Green Investment Bank, jobsforthenortheast +February 22nd, 2011 - “The Self Exhibition” comes to the Muse Gallery at New LodgeAlistair Morrison, the New Lodge ‘Artist in Residence’ has announced the date for his latest exhibition “The Self Exhibition”. Alistair has been is working closely with the Brigidine School, Windsor, asking the girls to create an exhibition of self-portraits.
These will be printed and framed by Alistair to be shown at a special exhibition titled ‘Self’ as a fundraising exercise for the school. All the portraits will be mounted on easels and displayed in the meeting rooms, conference room, fireplace mantlepieces and other suitable areas on both the ground and first floor of the Neo Gothic office building.
The launch of this exciting and innovative exhibition will be held at New Lodge on the 22nd March from 6.30pm – 8.30pm with a guest list of about 200 people.
February 15th, 2011 - Marchday shortlisted for National Arts Award!
Lingfield Lamb 2
Marchday in partnership with Vista Projects have been short listed for the Bruntwood & Arup Environmental Partnership Award for Arts & Business for their public art project ‘Futurescope’ commissioned for their flagship development Lingfield Point in Darlington. The winner will be announced at a ceremony at Manchester Town Hall on the 23rd March 2011.
Eight, massive, circular images are being shown over two years. The images are developed through a collaboration between artist Christian Barnes of Vista Projects and Landscape Architect John Kennedy. The images are developing a story about the potential of the ‘soft estate’ at Lingfield Point to become a productive landscape and also draw on the industrial heritage of the site. The project is the most ambitious piece of creative propaganda about environmental issues in the North of England. It is driven by the idea that the challenges we face in relation to climate change and energy descent will be tackled first in our cultural environment.
HUM!
John Orchard, director of Marchday said:
“Working with Vista and Christian has been an educational process for Marchday. Their thinking has been inspirational and has truly shaped our outlook regarding development and regeneration projects. Their work has helped set Marchday apart from many mainstream property companies and has become part of our identity.
The future sustainable mixed community development here will be a national flagship scheme. The scheme needed to announce the future vision for the site with references to its industrial heritage, organic food production and renewable energy.”
Christian Barnes of Vista Projects said:
“Futurescope is an important project for us and we are pleased to be short listed alongside other great initiatives throughout the country. It’s been a very challenging project. But John Kennedy and I have really enjoyed working with Marchday, they have been patient, the work has been rewarding and they have been great backers willing to take risks.
We take inspiration from our daily life in rural Cumbria in spite of the challenges presented to creative people who live here and the work reflects that.”
http://www.vistaprojects.co.uk/
http://futurescopedarlington.blogspot.com/
www.lingfieldpoint.co.uk
Posted in General, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Philosophies, Tim Stephen Tagged Art, dx2, publicart, sustainability, valueformoney +February 14th, 2011 - Marchday Laps it up!
Marchday fell in love with cycling a long time ago now and since then the passion has not waned one little bit. In fact Priyen has just about had enough of the cycling talk on the train going to and from Darlington.
The real surprise is that this new found passion has maintained a place even in the cold dark winter months…. introducing @thelingfieldlap.
Every tuesday night at 17:45 the peleton sets off to complete as many laps of the Lingfield Point measured mile as they can before it gets too cold or they get too hungry! These winter miles will be invaluable when the clocks go forward and we are able to ride out the the beautiful dales. They also make the inevitable curry taste so much better!
If you are a cyclist of whatever level and are keen to get fit for the summer come along to the Home Office at Lingfield Point and join us. Updates are sent out on twitter (@thelingfieldlap) prior to each session.
So, come on – you know you want too!
Posted in General, Graham Smith, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged cyclingmad, thelingfieldlap, tuesdaynightcyclingdarlington +February 12th, 2011 - 100 Property Club goes intercontinentalThe 100 Property Club got the year off to a great start with the first Club lunch, held at the Intercontinental Hotel on Park Lane in London.
The Cookbook Cafe www.cookbookcafe.co.uk and it’s Head Chef, Paul Bates, served up a beautiful 6 course tasting menu, together with wines chosen to complement each course. Particular highlights included the scallop and crab pojarski and the warm almond tart. The staff and decor added to the overall excellent dining experience.
In fact, the only time that the friendly atmosphere of the cafe was disturbed was when a committee member collected fines from members who were not sporting Club attire!
Mike Peskin (100 Property Club Chairman) commented;
“this is just the start to the year that we need – a fantastically well attended lunch, in great surroundings“.
David Bowen, who organised the lunch, added;
“I have received excellent feedback from many of the members in attendance who enjoyed it so much they have requested we go back again next year. This has certainly set the standard for future events.
We hope to keep things fresh with a mixture of technical tours, social lunches and sporting occasions over the next 12 months. I would also like to remind members that I look forward to seeing them at the next event, which is on 11th April 2011, at a location outside London which will be confirmed shortly.“
February 10th, 2011 - It’s all about the Jeans! Donna Ida is here.
Marchday has announced their latest letting at Swan Lane Guildford. The unit at 21 Swan Lane has been occupied by jeans specialist Donna Ida hot on the heals of Jo Jo Mamon Bebe, further adding to the fashion retail offer on Swan Lane.
Tim Stephen commented; “this is a great letting for us, changing the nature of the retail pitch, the introduction of high street fashion has added a new dimension to the busiest lane in Guildford”.
Donna Ida is dedicated to Women’s designer jeans, ladies denim and designer clothing. Donna Ida is the brainchild of self-confessed demin devotee and lifelong jeans addict Donna Ida Thornton.
Donna’s first boutique was open in Chelsea in 2006 followed by the birth of the website www.donnaida.com in 2008.
Like Marchday, Donna Ida is focused on giving the best customer service experience possible. The team of friendly staff offer up to date advice on all the current trends and a “ demin clinic” where the stated mission is to “find you the perfect jeans – flattering, cute and stylish”.
With only one unit left Marchday are looking for a “Jewel in the Crown”!
Posted in General, Swan Lane, Tim Stephen Tagged denimclinic, donnaida, guildford, jeans, marchday, swanlane, swanlanefashion +January 5th, 2011 - New Homes at Lingfield Point!We are often asked when the first new homes at Lingfield Point will be built. Well, we’re delighted to tell you that we are very close to choosing our residential development partner and that new homes will be started at Lingfield Point within a year.
We’ve spoken to many potential partners and despite the general gloom hanging over the residential market have found them all keen to build.
It is essential that we find a partner who’s thinking was aligned with our own in terms of design and commitment to the sustainable mixed community.
We’re close to doing that and will be unveiling our new partner shortly. Watch this space!
Posted in General, Graham Smith, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged Art, community, ecohomes, newhomes, Regeneration, sustainability +December 20th, 2010 - Wishing you a very festive Yule!Marchday wish you a fun filled Christmas! Have a great break and we all look forward to seeing you next year!
Posted in General, Graham Smith, Jenny Carr, John Orchard, Priyen Gudka, Sue Richmond, Tim Stephen Tagged marchdaychristmasfun, Merrychristmas +December 14th, 2010 - Marchday’s Magnificent 7 – No.2!John recently spent a day talking to the team at Marchday’s Lingfield Point, Darlington about what customer service really means to them.
In these days of austerity and cost cutting it’s easy to think of excellent customer service as an ‘add-on’. At Marchday it’s central to our thinking – along with value for money – and shapes our decisions. Click on the link below to meet the team and hear what they have to say.
Posted in General, John Orchard, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged customerservice, dx2, spendingreview, sustainability, valueformoney +November 22nd, 2010 - “All I want for Christmas” comes to Lingfield Point!The latest community initiative at Lingfield Point opens to its customers on Tuesday 23rd November 2010 from 5pm. Come and join the fun at the “All I want for Christmas” Craft Fair!
Sara Williams, Lingfield Point’s marketing manager said; ” Everyone involved is just putting the finishing touches the Christmas craft fair with over 80 specialist craft and gift providers coming together tomorrow night to give customers and public alike, a head start this Christmas.
She continued; “Exhibitors include: arm and shoe candy (bags and shoes!), baby treats; festive food; cards; gifts – for all – including pets; games galore; jewellery; party pieces; teddies and all things cuddly; books; make up from Avon; Virgin Vie and Estee Lauder; scrumptious sweets and a bit of tempting chocolate; even bits for some girlie gardening”
There is a Christmas café, merry music and plenty of ideas and inspiration for this year’s celebrations – whatever your budget. It’s only a £1 to get in and all proceeds are going to the Darlington Lord Mayor’s charity.
The event is being held in Meadow – Lingfield Point the UK’s most flexible office floor plate on Tuesday 23rd November 2010 from 5 pm.
Sara and the team look forward to seeing you there!
Posted in General, Lingfield Point, Tim Stephen Tagged christmas fair, Darlington, flexible office space, Lingfield Point, meadow, retailer, Value for money 2November 16th, 2010 - Marchday’s ‘Now that’s what I call customer service!’ awards nomination No.5So what is at the essence of customer service? Tim Stephen of Marchday tells the story of how a restaurant managed to take him on a roller coaster of service….. but what will his conclusion be?
The story starts over the phone; ” I was particularly excited about the new White Brasserie (www.whitebrasserie.com) on the High Street in Teddington, as it was a new Raymond Blanc concept distilling all the best things in his other restaurants into a simple modern dinning experience. When I booked the front of house staff were very efficient and happy to help as a consequence my expectation of the style of service was crystallised and heightened”
He went on to say; ” and when I arrived I was not disappointed at all, the friendly chatty member of bar staff, the decor and ambience were all excellent. However, two small issues arose that started eroding my experience, one of which, ironically, was not related directly to me as a customer. Strangely the interaction between the management team and the staff was not very comfortable . There were a couple of comments that made me feel uncomfortable for the staff, this was further re-enforced when the manager that showed us to our table pointed towards the coat racks rather than taking our coats”
This highlights a key customer service danger for all companies aspiring to deliver the highest levels of service, it is very easy to set out your standards however if they are not reached at each and every stage of the service, there is a chance of being hung by the very same standards. Although the (first) incident with the staff member was not an direct customer service issue, it effects the customers in a negative way.
He continued; “this is when all is forgiven! The waitress (Laura) was fantastic and the food was first class. The service was at the right P.A.C.E!-Positive,Attentive,Courteous and Eloquent, the perfect mixture. Even though it was getting late, desert and coffee were not pushed on us. We left the restaurant very happy”
So the overall experience for Tim ended up as a positive one. The people on the ground were able to deliver on their side of the bargain and ultimately that is what it is all about. The White Brasserie by luck or design was able turn a potential disappointment to a success from the bottom upwards!
October 27th, 2010 - Lingfield Point – up to the challenge!Marchday analyses the effect of last weeks spending review on the commercial property industry and its own business.
In his June budget, the Chancellor, George Osborne identified £32 billion of spending cuts in 2011-12 rising to £81 billion by 2014 -15. Last week Mr Osborne detailed the spending review and now most government departments will see their budgets shrink by an average of 19% over four years.
In terms of property, the public sector is the country’s largest landowner holding a portfolio worth approximately £350 billion (OGC, 2009). The cost of running the estate is £3.47billion a year (OGC, 2009). The public sector is also the country’s largest tenant (customer). It occupies around 115 million sq ft of offices of which circa 7% are in the North East.
The really tough part is that recently the government has put a hold on new government leases until 2015 unless they demonstrate that the deal is 25% cheaper than the market rate!
Priyen Gudka commented: ” We are in for a tough couple of years as the spending cuts hit the north east particularly hard. Our portfolio has a mix of public and private sector companies. All our spaces provide excellent value for money especially at Lingfield Point. We hope that we can continue to help all our customers through this difficult time. The key is communication, making sure we are up to date with our customers successes and difficulties will allow us to be as helpful as possible”
Demand for space from the public sector is expected to be flat over the medium term at least, despite the fact that the government could save funds in long term if it leases properties under current low rents and good incentive packages; but can they afford it? There is some possibility of take-up through consolidation though there is pressure to limit capital expenditure at the moment.
Tim Stephen from Marchday said: ” it’s going to be tough for sure, but I am cautiously optimistic about some of the noises coming out of central government. If they are serious about saving money then consolidation is a perfect way of doing so. At Lingfield Point we have some exceptional buildings offering unbeatable value for money that will provide significant savings for the tax payer.
The private sector in general in the next couple of months has to come up with creative solutions for unlocking value and improving the management of the public sector’s property portfolio. This could be achieved by creating efficiencies, implementing operational changes, whilst also improving environmental sustainability of governments assets.”
October 27th, 2010 - Swan Lane goes Bebe mad!Marchday are delighted to announce that JoJo Maman Bebe have signed a lease at Swan Lane, Guildford.
JoJo was launched by Laura Tenison as a tiny specialist maternity wear and baby clothing company in 1993, offering real customer service and excellent value for money. Since then the company has grown organically and now has over 300 employees in over 30 stores across the UK.
Louise Jones of JoJo Maman Bebe said: ” we are really excited about the new JoJo store at this new location in Guildford, it is a really great town. Swan Lane is an amazing location combining a great footfall with the feeling of a niche shopping street, which is perfect for our business. We will be opening on the 20th November and looking forward to welcoming customers old and new into our exciting new shop”
Tim Stephen of Marchday commented: ” this is a great letting for us as we have added to the mix of shops on Swan Lane. JoJo are just the sort of dynamic young operator that we have been looking for, we will do everything we can to help them succeed and we wish them all the best”
JoJo also has a thriving online mail order business to support its high street presence. Checkout www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk for more details and opening offers.
Posted in General, Swan Lane, Tim Stephen Tagged baby clothes, guildford, jo jo, jojo maman bebe, retailer, swan lane +October 25th, 2010 - Rory Bremner adds star quality to 100 Property Club Christmas DinnerThe 100 property club have have pulled the proverbial ”rabbit out of the hat” and landed Rory Bremner as the guest speaker at their 95th dinner to be held on the 9th December at London’s Dorchester Hotel.
Tim Stephen, Marchday’s club member and a 100 club committee member commented; ” The 100 Property Club is a collection of property professionals who network at many different events throughtout the year culminating in the christmas dinner. It is at this dinner, that the club aims to raise as much money as possible through an auction, raffle and big cash draw. This helps fund the purchase of a minibus through an organisation such as the Lady Taveners. These minibuses are then allocated to schools around the country where they are most needed.”
Mike Peskin, the clubs chairman said; “It is great news for the both the club and the Lady Taveners to secure Rory Bremner as guest speaker for the dinner, it will not only ensure that a good time is had by all but hopefully the dinner will sell out and we will make enough money for one or even two minibuses for 2011″
Limited tickets are still avaible for the dinner on the 9 December from 7PM. Anyone wanting to a night to remember please contact the committees dinner guru Sally Fish on sally.fish@pih-ltd.co.uk, 01932 825860 or click Christmas Dinner 2010 for the downloadable forms.
Tickets are priced at £100 + VAT per person, which includes a three course dinner and great entertainment!
Posted in Tim Stephen Tagged 100 property club, Dorchester Hotel, lady taveners, minibus, rory bremner +October 16th, 2010 - The Velo boys!Joint Marchday and Real Service come away from inaugural velodrome event with their heads held high!
A team of four riders attended the first property industry velodrome challenge at Herne Hill velodrome in south London on friday.
The event was in aid of The International Childcare Trust, a charity that partner with local grassroots NGOs in Africa and Asia that protect children’s rights. For more information visit www.internationalchildcaretrust.org
The team managed a respectable 13 points from the four events with a sprint final appearance and points scored in the pursuit event. There were also strong performances in the time-trial and the scratch race.
Howard Morgan commented ” We have gained valuable experience this year and will come back stronger and fitter for next years event. The whole day has been brilliantly organised and the guys from British Cycling were great”
John Orchard said, when asked about the velodrome ” This is an amazing facility that is tucked away in the Dulwich Estate and it’s under threat, we need to get behind the campaign to save the velodrome by signing up at www.savethevelodrome.com”
For more information on the velodrome and all the details on the various sessions at all levels go to www.hernehillvelodrome.com
October 13th, 2010 - Marchday agrees new deal in GuildfordMarchday has recently agreed a new deal with Simon Pure, Guildford’s best bespoke jeweller.
The UK jewellery award winning company have opted to renew their lease at 5 Swan Lane, the busy cut through between Guildford’s High Street and North Street.
Graham Smith of Marchday commented; “We are delighted that a national award winning company has chosen to stay in Swan Lane, it is testament to Swan Lane’s retailing environment and prominent position within the town. Hopefully this will be further proven in the coming weeks and months… watch this space!”
You can find more information about Simon Pure on their website www.simonpure.co.uk – and here is a taster of what they have to offer!
October 6th, 2010 - Flying visits!The latest additions to the Lingfield Point customer service team swooped into action recently!
Missy a 10 month old Harris Hawk and Ringo a 6 year old Harris Hawk have been patrolling the skys above Lingfield in an effort to control the migrating seagull population. These majestic birds of prey are deployed all around the site to encourage the seagulls to move on.
If you see them about find the falconer and get the chance to see them up close.
Missy, Ringo we salute you!
May 5th, 2010 - Marchday “Now that’s what I call customer service” Nomination No.2Tim tells us about his latest customer service triumph;
Is it really that easy for starbucks? Great example of customer service this morning from a global brand – Starbucks;
Quite simple really Kate had an undercooked muffin and took it back expecting a straight swap. I think it is fair to say that nearly everyone would be happy with that. However, the polite member of staff took it step further by not only explaining the reason for the issue and removing the rest of the muffins that had come from the same packet, from the display, but furnished Kate with a voucher entitling her to a free beverage the next time she goes into a Starbucks.
Importantly the staff member made a record of the issue and each voucher has a number. Although I didn’t ask (perhaps I should have) I assume that all these results are analysed and used to improve the Starbucks experience.
Most companies big or small would have stopped at just replacing the item… Starbuck took it a little further.
May 4th, 2010 - New Lodge autumn photo winners anouncedThe inaugural New Lodge photographic competition entitled ”autumn at New Lodge” is now complete. The judges deliberated long into the night before awarding the top three places. To see the full competition and the judge’s comments please visit www.newlodge.co.uk/art and open each picture.
The winning picture has been mounted and exhibited in the conference room on an easel, and receives a print to take away. Those placed 2nd and 3rd receive a framed print to take away as a memento.
However it doesn’t stop there, the winter/spring season is now upon us and the New Lodge art page on the website is set up ready for new entries, the more the merrier.
The first season has set the bar high as acknowledged by judges and New Lodge staff alike. Enjoy looking through the pictures and reading the judges comments, the closing date for winter/spring is middle of June.
April 29th, 2010 - Some more pics for the softies!Maria Lily Stephen 24/04/10
Boo!
SSSSHHH
April 29th, 2010 - Marchday “Now that’s what I call customer service” Nomination No.1Following the recent launch of Marchday “now that’s what I call customer service” awards, Tim starts us off.
THIS IS WHAT I CALL CUSTOMER SERVICE!
One good, one bad;
Good – put simply “WEBCHAT”, I was on hold to a customer service helpline to my friends at Barclays trying to get the information about an insurance policy, provided as part of my current account, to fix a leaking pipe that had caused the heating to stop working in the middle of winter.
I pause at this moment as I still can’t get my head around “on hold” and “customer service”.
Then out of the blue a box pops up and asks me if he could help, just like instant messenger. After a short time collecting myself off the floor I had a fantastic experience where all my questions were answered, PDF’s sent and phone numbers issued. Brilliant!
So a tick in the box for use of technology Mr Barclay’s, just need to be able to get the leak fixed next time and not employ the worst and most uncommunicative sub contractor ever. Thanks alot Eaglewarm.
Bad - What is it about having to present your loyalty card at the time of purchase. £500 worth of paving stones at Homebase, “Oh dear I seem to have forgotten my homebase card”.. “Sorry sir transaction has gone through so there is nothing I can do” he might as well have said “computer says no!” aaaaarrrrrggghhhhh
April 29th, 2010 - Marchday’s latest arrival – I’ll never stop saying….. Maria! 
“Of course it is going to be a boy, I am telling you; it is causing me alot more pain and I am a totally different shape!” Were the words coming from Kate’s mouth two hours after the start of labour… I responded “but if it is a boy we may never use the name Maria, we would have to go for another one!” …. “What, you must be joking” retorted Kate.
“Anyway I think that it is a girl! So we don’t have to worry about it” and so it came to pass.
Maria Lily Stephen was born at 00:17 on the 24 April and weighed in a healthy 7lb 7. The birth was amazing (from where I was standing) and Kate and Maria are both sleeping alot! The staff at the hospital were amazing and I can’t believe how lucky I am to have three beautiful girls. ”When can baby play in the bath with me? Please daddy, I won’t splash her” …
”I am sure you won’t, but she is a bit too little at the moment”….
”But all I want to do is play?”
”We have all the time in the world to do that my number 1 girl!”
January 12th, 2010 - The New Lodge OakArt in all its manifestations is important to Marchday and none more so than the NEW LODGE OAK TREE. This original “Windsor Oak” was estimated to be at least 400 years old by Bill Cathcart, a Windsor Forest ranger. You can imagine the shock and sadness when a particularly strong gust of wind caused the tree to split down the middle. It turns out that water had been collecting in the heart of the tree for a long long time and it was rotting from the inside out.
The decision about what to do next was made slightly easier by the fact that the tree surgeon deemed the larger branches to be unsafe and they had to be removed. Marchday was left with a 15ft tree stump stripped of its beauty. Although the trees scale and grandeur could never be recreated the history and essence of the tree remained. The challenge was to bring the the tree back to life! ……. Inspiration struck ”how about getting a tree sculpture to look at it?”
Graham Jones, a Birmingham based artist arrived on site in October of 2008 and finished the piece in April 2009. Marchday is exceptionally proud of the tree and hope that it’s essence been recreated … see below and let us know if you think it has worked!
Special thanks to Graham Jones. If you like his work please visit www.gmjwoodcarving.co.uk
January 12th, 2010 - Paul’s new arrivalCongratulations to Paul, who has become a grandad for the first time. Baby Lucas is doing very nicely thank you very much!
January 11th, 2010 - Snow Snow everywhere!So it looks like everyone has been suffering with the snow over the last couple of weeks, but it wasn’t always the case at Lingfield Point and New Lodge. A huge thank you to all our dedicated team members who have fought against the elements to allow our customers to continue business as normal. Here is what they have been up against!
… and here are some facts about the snow!
1. Enough snow fell in Britain on January 2 for everyone in the country to make a quarter of a million snowballs each, according to Carol Vorderman.
2. The average snowflake has a top speed of 1.7 metres per second.
3. Snowflakes are always hexagonal but the majority are not perfectly symmetrical – uneven temperatures, dirt and other factors usually cause them to be lopsided.
4. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest snowflake on record measured 38cm wide and 20cm thick. It was observed in Montana, USA in 1887 and described by witnesses as “larger than a milk pan”.
5. It is a myth that Eskimos have 100 different words for ‘snow’.
6. Chionophobia is a fear of snow
7. The world’s largest snowman was actually a snowwoman. Residents of Bethel, Maine built the 122 ft giant in 2008, giving her 30 ft spruce trees for arms and skis for eyelashes.
8. Around 12 per cent of the Earth’s land surface is covered in permanent snow and ice.
9. The heaviest snowfall in the UK was in 1695. It snowed every day in London for 5 weeks – and the Thames froze over. The snow didn’t fully clear till mid-April.
Brrrrrr.
January 11th, 2010 - New Lodge’s best sideAnyone who has been to New Lodge will know that all of its sides are great to look at, and it’s that beauty that is the driving force behind the building’s latest initiative. With the aid of the New Lodge Camera the building’s customers have been challenged to produce the perfect image of New Lodge according to the season.
The panel of judges will be headed by Alistair Morrison, the building’s Artist in residence and the camera behind all of New Lodge’s current artworks. The winning entry will be displayed in the reception and subsequently around the building; the winner will also receive a framed copy of their image.
Check the website out for the Autumn entries the quaility is amazing! http://www.newlodge.co.uk/art/
Stay on the look out for the winners!
November 19th, 2009 - Mo’vember Week 2
Surely there's a law against it?
As you can see the Marchday Mo’s are taking shape nicely. John has experimented with the ‘Gangs of New York’ look, Tim has gone for the ‘Lusty Gamekeeper’ and Priyen the ‘Something for the weekend Sir?’
Thank you to all those who have supported us in this bid to raise money for the Prostate Cancer Charity, your generosity is much appreciated.
You can add your support or simply follow developments in the boys’ facial topiary by logging on to their Mo’vember pages. You’ll find John’s page at http://uk.movember.com/mospace/209489/ Tim’s at http://uk.movember.com/mospace/302650/ and Priyen’s at http://uk.movember.com/mospace/370180/
November 9th, 2009 - Green Team at New LodgeNew Lodge launches a “Recycle More” campaign
Paul Buckley New Lodge Estate Manager
This week saw the launch of the New Lodge recycle more initiative and to kick-start it we have introduced a vermi-composter. This is a form of composting which uses worms to breakdown organic waste in a container called a wormery. Our wormery is in the shape of a bee-hive and is located in the café courtyard. The worms will take care of themselves as long as we feed them. We aim to put all the buildings organic waste through this and other wormeries and use the compost produced to help new growth on site and to feed the current gardens.
This is just the first of many ideas to make our business community and building more sustainable. The “Green Team” has been set up to research and implement the best and most sustainable practices for New Lodge, and is made of a mixture of New Lodge staff and our customers. All ideas are most gratefully received; if you want to get involved with the green team you can email paul.buckley@newlodge.co.uk or tim.stephen@marchday.com
Keep your eyes peeled for further initiatives.
November 9th, 2009 - Where have you been…..So having been the one who pushed for the blog based website my colleagues would be forgiven for thinking that I had been on holiday since the launch – oops. You see the thing is….. every-time I sit at the computer my creative writing deserts me and besides, as some of you experienced Marchday website users will know, I am just rubbish at the grammar and spelling thing. Anyway I am determined to throw caution to the wind and start blogging whatever the weather …… so hold onto your hats and ignore the typos!…….
