Congratulations go to Richard Irvin’s Inverness apprentice Fraser Imrie on his win at the BESA Scotland Training Awards 2017. Not only did Fraser scoop the Service and Maintenance Apprentice of the Year award he won the prestigious Scottish Apprentice of the Year Award!

The awards were held at The Scottish Parliament on June 1st and are sponsored by Colin Beattie MSP highlight the success and commitment of apprentices from across Scotland acknowledging their hard work and achievements.
Willie MacLean, CEO attended the awards alongside Mark Buchan Business Unit Director and Claire Gray HR Advisor, to cheer on Fraser and celebrate apprentice excellence in the Building Engineering Services sector.

Willie MacLean said: ‘Fraser had already won apprentice of the year awards for the past two years from his study centre, Glasgow Kelvin College, and everyone at Richard Irvin was hoping that he would continue the winning streak by lifting the BESA Service and Maintenance award. Winning the Scottish Apprentice of the Year award was the icing on the cake!

‘We are all extremely proud of Fraser and his achievements so far, his work ethic and positive attitude are without a doubt the reasons for his success.

‘Congratulations Fraser, a richly deserved win!’

Fraser works out of the company’s Inverness office and is in the third year of a four-year apprenticeship.

Richard Irvin is currently recruiting six new apprentices to join the team with two based in Aberdeen, one in Glasgow and one in Inverness. For further information on the programme or other vacancies Richard Irvin has to offer take a look at the website www.richard-irvin.com/careers

Mearns & Company are absolutely delighted to announce that they have been shortlisted for the Money Marketing Best Corporate Adviser award 2017.

They are the only firm in Scotland to make the shortlist for this award.

This accreditation reflects the high standards Mearns & Company continue to hold at the core of their business, and the quality of service that they provide to their clients.

Commenting on the news, Malcolm Steel, Director, said “To be recognised as the principal Scottish firm, and be in the running for this UK-wide award, is an independent verification of our professionalism and expert knowledge within the corporate advisory sector. Everyone at Mearns & Company is delighted to be recognised in this way, and we also send best wishes to our fellow finalists.”

If you need any advice on your company’s auto-enrolment needs, employee benefit packages including private medical insurance or require any personal financial advice please contact info@mearnscompany.com

The results will be announced on Thursday 22nd of June at an awards ceremony in London.

Brodies was recognised as Scotland Law Firm of the Year for a record-breaking sixth time at the Who’s Who Legal Awards in London last night (15 May).

Brodies lawyers are listed more times in WWL’s editions than any other Scottish firm, and were selected 20 times across 14 practice area publications in total.

The winners were announced at a black tie awards ceremony at Plaisterer’s Hall in London, where the leading lawyers and firms from 35 practice areas and over 50 countries were recognised.

The winners are selected on a range of factors, including feedback received from clients and peers in the research process, past performance in the research and the overall aggregate number of weighted votes cast in their favour.

Rupert Wilson, editor of Who’s Who Legal, said: “Brodies continues to lead our Scottish research, and no other local firm can match the quality of counsel it can offer or the depth of its expertise. The clients and fellow practitioners we spoke to were united in their praise, and we are delighted to once more recognise Brodies as our Scotland Firm of the Year.”

Who’s Who Legal lists only the leading lawyers in each field, based exclusively on the findings of an independent six-month research process that encompasses feedback from private practitioners, clients and other experts in the sector. It is impossible to buy entry into the publication, only the lawyers who score most highly according to our independent international research criteria are listed.

The books are distributed free of charge to thousands of corporate counsel and private practice lawyers from around the world, and the information is also available on www.WhosWhoLegal.com and is updated daily.

Who’s Who Legal is strategic research partner of the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of International Law. In 2012, Law Business Research – the parent company of Who’s Who Legal – was recognised for the second time by The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the area of international trade. These awards are the most prestigious a British company can receive.

Commenting on the award, Bill Drummond, Managing Partner of Brodies, said: “We are very pleased that Who’s Who Legal continues to recognise our firm’s progress and our sustained investment in delivering high quality legal services that are relevant to our clients in Scotland, the UK and internationally. We are grateful to our clients for continuing to put their faith in us and to Who’s Who Legal and our peers in the legal profession for recognising Brodies as the stand-out law firm in Scotland for the sixth year running.”

Local business OmniSafe Limited has been awarded accreditation from Safecontractor for its commitment to achieving excellence in health and safety.

Safecontractor is a leading third party accreditation scheme which recognises very high standards in health and safety management amongst UK contractors.

OmniSafe Limited is principally involved in the Health and Safety sector, specialising in Electrical Safety, Inspection Testing and Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) Services.  OmniSafe’s most recent clients have included major players such as The Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, The Trump Turnberry Resort, Morrison Bowmore Distillers and Church of Scotland.

The company’s application for Safecontractor accreditation was driven by the need for a uniform standard across the business.

Emma Burnett, OmniSafe’s Business Development Manager, quoted ‘We pride ourself on our abillity to continually maintain the highest level of health and safety standards.  This is one of the fundamental reasons that our customers appoint OmniSafe as their trusted safety testing contractor”

“Over the years, we have seen a significant increase in the number of reports of health and safety failures and incidents.  Here at OmniSafe, we value the safety of all our cleints, their staff and their customers.  Our thorough and detailed testing by our highly qualified electricians, along with our Safecontractor safety accreditation, gives our customers that extra peace of mind that they are fully complying with current health and safety legislation.”

Safecontractor accreditation will enhance the company’s ability to attract new contracts and its commitment to safety will be viewed positively by its insurers when the company liability policy is up for renewal.

Safecontractor is applicable to most sectors although it is particularly relevant to food manufacture, property, facilities management, retail and leisure sectors, all of which are big users of contracted services.

John Kinge, technical director of Safecontractor said, “Major organisations simply cannot afford to run the risk of employing contractors who are not able to prove that they have sound health and safety policies in place.”

“More companies need to understand the importance of adopting good risk management in the way that OmniSafe has done. The firm’s high standard has set an example which hopefully will be followed by other companies within the sector.

Safecontractor plays a vital role in supporting our clients in meeting their compliance needs, whilst working with their contractors as they progress through the accreditation process.”

Under the Safecontractor scheme, businesses undergo a vetting process which examines health and safety procedures and their track record for safe practice. Those companies meeting the high standard are included on a database, which is accessible to registered users only via a website.

Client-organisations who sign up to the scheme can access the database, enabling them to vet potential contractors before they even set foot on site. These clients agree that, as users of the scheme, they will engage only those who have received accreditation.

Over 210 major, nation-wide businesses, from several key sectors, have signed up to use the scheme when selecting contractors for services such as building, cleaning, maintenance, refurbishment or electrical and mechanical work.

The Mattioli Woods Employee Benefits team have received an early Christmas present from the 2015 Corporate Adviser awards judging panel after being shortlisted for two awards – Healthcare Adviser of the year and Pension Adviser of the year.

To view the full article please click the link below: http://www.mattioli-woods.com/latest-news/2014/mattioli-woods-shortlisted-for-corporate-adviser-awards-2015.php#.VJAihiusWOC

Last Thursday (6th November) the team at Professional Photographer magazine, as well as the sponsors, judges, contributors, winners and runners up, had a wonderful time celebrating at the PPOTY 2014 Awards (Professional Photographer of the Year). The celebratory evening, held to showcase the very best of photography in the industry, was held at the beautiful venue of Manor by the Lake, Cheltenham.

I had the honour to be shortlisted in 3 categories this year. They were: Wedding, In studio and Portfolio of 3. And I was chosen as WINNER of the PORTFOLIO OF 3 category with series titled FOREVER.

With nearly 5500 entries from more than 40 countries, I consider this as a great achievement.

Images in my winning series were shot in May 2014 in Slovakia, The country I was born in. I was asked by my grandparents to take a few photographs of them, so my family would have something to remember them by. Unfortunately they reached the age (mid 80’s) where they feel, they might not be with us for much longer, mainly due to poor health.

On the day of the photo shoot, I was given 4-5 minutes to take their portraits. It was late afternoon, the light was sparse. My grandparents sat down on their couch, started interacting with each other and I started shooting. I didn’t want to stop, because they were so affectionate, loving and real. It was a beautiful moment. I will never forget it. After we finished, the rest of my family joined us and we took some 4 generation images.

The reason I chose to submit these particular photos to the competition is the impact they have on people in my circle and their reactions and comments. Every time I look at these images, I feel warm inside and a little teary to be honest. It is great to see that even after 60 years of marriage you can be IN LOVE.

Being shortlisted in 3 categories, and of course winning in one of them is a great honour. I started taking photographs about two and a half years ago, when my husband infected me with his passion for photography. He has been my teacher and mentor ever since, all I know is thanks to him. Winning this title is a tribute to his patience and teaching skills.

To view more images from the Awards night, please click the link below:

http://blog.aboph.com/2014/11/ppoty-2014-awards/

 

Edinburgh-based family business, Mercat Tours, has been awarded 91% by VisitScotland in their recent quality assurance visit. Graded with only 12 other tourism attractions in Scotland achieving over 90% in their assessment, the national tourism board acknowledged the exceptional visitor experience delivered by the people of Mercat.

Awarded 5 stars for the 8th year running and the only walking tour company with the accolade, the detailed grading has been a target for the business to better year on year. Inspired and learning from industry excellence such as The Royal Yacht Brittania with their 97% grading, Mercat has strived to invest and improve their tour experience for visitors and staff alike.

“We are absolutely thrilled to receive this award, especially as VisitScotland’s Quality Assurance scheme is now a benchmark for quality assessment internationally. Constant review of what we do by listening to visitor’s feedback and scrutiny for awards such as this help us to develop and improve. It means a great deal to have the hard work of our staff and our business ethos recognised and rewarded.” Frances Mann, Head of Product and Training.

The record grading is the latest, valued award for Mercat following a successful year which has seen the company’s commitment to quality acknowledged with a National Scottish Thistle Award, Scottish Business in the Community SME of the Year and GTBS GOLD re-awarded for sustainable practise.

Mercat aim to celebrate their 30th year with further growth in 2015, including new language products, themed tours and partner collaboration focusing on high quality storytelling experiences.