Regional legal heavyweight Osborne Clarke (OC) has announced a merger with its Spanish and Italian Alliance partners, Osborne Clarke Spain and Studio Legale Associato (SLA) over the next few months. Managing partner Simon Beswick described the move as the next step in giving clients access to international legal services in a user-friendly, sector-focused...
Bristol-based factoring group Ultimate Finance today reported strong growth in difficult markets for the half-year to December 31 with turnover up 25% to £5.3m on the first half of 2010. Ultimate underwent a boardroom shake-up towards the end of last year following the surprise departure of Richard Pepler, the company's chief...
Bristol-based Alec French Architects is drawing up detailed plans for the first phase of new homes, shops, cafes and public spaces at Wapping Wharf, the last significant regeneration site on Bristol's Harbourside. Developer Umberslade plans to create 180 apartments, including 31 affordable homes, together with up to 865 sq...
Bristol’s M Shed has attracted more than half a million visitors in the 10 months since it opened – including five Art Fund judges who were in Bristol yesterday to see for themselves why the museum should be short-listed for the £100,000 Museum of Year award. “To be a contender amongst the UK’s best museums...
Gifts donated by Bristolians have been sold online to bidders in Europe, the US, Russia, Australia and New Zealand. Successes so far include a Justin Alexander princess wedding dress and a set of Freddie Mercury collector’s plates recently selling for more than £900. St Peter’s Hospice eBay manager Ben...
Shares in Bristol-based Imperial Tobacco Group rose 46p or 1.8% to £25.66 after it issued an upbeat first half trading update saying that its financial position and operating performance are in line with the board's expectations. It said: "Following a first quarter impacted by various external factors, we delivered...
The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) is putting up £5m to buy two properties adjacent to Temple Meads Station for the proposed Enterprise Zone creative industries hub and improved transport links in the heart of the city. Some £3.8m will go to Bristol City Council to enable it to buy Brunel’s...
Property consultancy Colliers has been bought in a pre-packaged administration deal by Canadian majority shareholder FirstService Corporation – previously a 29.4% stakeholder. London-based Colliers, which has an office in Bristol, initially confirmed that it was in talks with FirstService, a huge property services company, in January. FirstService, which already owns 90% of...
Commercial property consultant GVA, which has an office in Bristol, has welcomed the Government’s decision to water down planning reforms that threatened unrestrained building across swathes of the English countryside. The National Planning Policy Framework replaces 1200 pages of planning statements with a slim 49-page document. It still includes...
On Sunday March 25 a team from SACO, the serviced apartment specialist, abseiled down its flagship Bristol Broad Quay property to raise money for Cancer Research UK. Staff from various SACO offices came together in Bristol to congregate on the roof of SACO’s flagship 72-apartment property at Bristol Broad...
French oil giant Total will have to pay more than its initial suggestion of around £72m if it wants to buy Wessex Exploration, the Bristol-based hydrocarbon prospecting company which has a 1.25% working interest in the Zaedyus discovery – potentially a multi-billion pound oilfield off the coast of South America. Wessex, which floated...
From Bristol247 Bristol hotels had little to cheer this Christmas at what was the end of a “concerning” year, according to a new survey. During December, occupancy levels in Bristol hotels dipped 0.7% from 59.5% in 2010 to 59.1% in December 2011, while room rates experienced a drop of...
A new contract win boosted shares today in Hydro International, the Clevedon company which has developed a range of technologies to control urban run off, treat stormwater, combined sewage overflows and municipal wastewater. The company, which reported pre-tax profits up from £2.4m to £2.5m earlier this month, has won a £1m contract...
