Julie Hesmondhalgh stars as #AmazingAccrington business leaders meet

Business leaders from across Hyndburn met in the beautiful surroundings of St James’ Church in Accrington on Thursday 21st September, for the latest #AmazingAccrington business leaders meeting.

Those attending got the chance to hear from legendary Accringtonian Julie Hesmondhalgh, who spoke about an exciting new project which she is working on in Hyndburn, to engage young people with the arts.

Julie was joined by other guest speakers including Ivor Lefton, managing director of Taskers of Accrington, and Kelly Groves, chief operating officer at Sundown Solutions.

They followed an introduction from chair of #AmazingAccrington, Murray Dawson, managing director of Scott Dawson Advertising and owner of Peter Scott Printers, who updated fellow business leaders about upcoming #AmazingAccrington events, as well as talking about the history of the church.

The meeting also included a light lunch, networking and a tour of the heritage of the Church, which was founded on its current site in 1546.

Murray Dawson, chair of #AmazingAccrington, said: “It has been a real honour to host our latest business leaders meeting in the historic St James’ Church where historic captains of industry have always sat. What a fantastic setting for local business leaders to get together and discuss ways in which we can work together to improve the borough and the exciting plans we have over the next few months.

“The church is due to have a £1.3m redevelopment.”

Ivor Lefton, managing director of Taskers of Accrington, commented: “At today’s #AmazingAccrington business leaders meeting, I got the chance to talk about our 127 year history in the borough, as well as how we are giving back to the community as a business, including our recent sponsorship of the 3G pitch at the Accrington Stanley Community Trust.”

Kelly Groves, chief operating officer at Sundown Solutions, said: “Today I have spoken about Sundown’s recent certification as Microsoft Expert MSps, and how businesses can implement a digital transformation through funding from Microsoft, which will help to accelerate efficiency in our area."

Julie Hesmondhalgh, added: “What an incredible and inspiring day we have had at the #AmazingAccrington business leaders meeting, here at the beautiful St James’ Church.

"I have had a great time speaking to #AmazingAccrington business leaders about an exciting new project in Hyndburn, which will engage young people with the arts and their future career paths. Stay tuned for more on that!"

You can keep up-to-date with the latest news from #AmazingAccrington here.