Hale Independent Issue 185

NOVEMBER 2025 4 ALTRINCHAM based agency RMS PR Marketing & Design has become the lat- est business in The North West to adopt an employee owner- ship model. Founded by Ruth Shearn in a back bed- room in 1991, the Market Street agency has become a pillar of the regional PR and marketing scene. It serves clients across a wide range of sectors and sizes, from own- er-managed businesses to challenger brands and global corporations. The move to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) has seen Ruth and her co-direc- tors, Victoria Richardson and Andrew Avery-Tor- rance, sell their shares to a trust operated on behalf of the employees. Ruth said: “The EOT means the team will have a greater say in the running of the business and will have a vested interest in continuing our success. It also allows me to gradually step back, although I actually seem to be working harder than ever at the moment! “This is a great opportunity for younger members of the team to be close to the flame of running a business. Future salaries and bonuses will be directly linked to agency profit so I anticipate the team taking a greater interest in agency strategy and new business but also simple things like turn- ing the heating off over the weekend! “For clients and pros- pects, it’s business as usual but with the added assurance that the team will be even more dedicated to pro- viding excellent service because they now have a personal interest in retaining and nurturing client relationships.” AN intrepid nurse has successfully scaled Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, in memory of her late mother. Donna took on the challenge to raise funds for Macclesfield Hospital’s Emergency Department (ED), where she works. The 52-year-old sis- ter and training facil- itator has worked in the department for 25 years. She said: “This was without question the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. “The days before sum- mit night had already left me exhausted and cold. And after eight days on the mountain, with little sleep and hours of walking every day, every part of me was sorely tested. “At 10pm on the final night we set off into the pitch-black on our final push for the summit. Near the top I was very much running on fumes and without my incred- ible guides there’s no chance I’d have made it. “At one point all I wanted to do was lie down in the cold and have a nap, which isn’t exactly a great survival strategy at 5,000m. “And at nearly every corner we saw someone heading down, or worse being taken down, and the rescue helicopters were practically running an Uber service up there. “After more than ten hours of solid climbing I finally staggered to Stella Point at 8.36am, which is one the three recognised summits on Kilimanjaro. “And of course, after ten hours of dragging myself uphill, I discov- ered the cruel punchline of mountaineering, what goes up must also come down, and four hours later I crawled back into base camp only to be told we had another seven hours to go to descend to 3,000m for the night. At that point, my legs were filing a formal complaint! “I’m so glad, and slightly shocked, that I’ve done it, but let me say clearly, never again. Once is enough!” Donna has led the ED’s education pro- gramme for the past nine years and her epic climb has so far raised £1,800, LIVE Facial Recog- nition technology was used for the first time by Greater Man- chester Police (GMP) during an operation in Sale. Two vans with the camera technology were posted in the town centre with officers on hand to talk to and engage with members of the public. No arrests were made and the vans returned to the town a few days later for a further deployment. Inspector Jon Mid- dleton, who oversaw the Sale operation, said: “We deploy the LFR vans in areas where there is a policing reason – for example shoplifting or neighbourhood crime. “It is important we are out and about speaking to people and engaging with the public, and that is exactly what we have been doing in Sale. “People have gener- ally been happy to see us and speak to us, and supportive of the way the technology is being used. “We will gradually build up the number and frequency of the deploy- ments, and in the coming weeks will be in Bolton, Wigan and Manchester city centre.” The Home Office has supplied GMP with two LFR vans for use in areas where an oper- ational need has been identified – not exclu- sively but areas with crime issues and large footfall, as well as music and sporting events. The cameras will focus on a specific area or crowd and detect faces compared to a pre-pre- pared watchlist with an alert issued immediately if there is a match. GMP has created a watchlist detailing per- sons of interests – with any potential match gen- erating an alert. As well as identifying MORE than 100 busi- nesspeople gather for breakfast to hear the latest updates on ambitious develop- ments taking place in Trafford. The free get-together, organised by Traf- ford Council’s inclusive economy and commu- nities’ team, took place in a packed conference room at Imperial War Museum North. Speakers including Professor David Russell, the chief executive of Therme, which is behind plans for The UK’s first city-based wellbeing resort in the borough. He talked about the forthcoming £450million 11-hectare Therme resort, due to complete construc- tion in 2028. Therme’s attractions will include water slides, wave pools, thermal pools bars and restaurants, oxy- gen tanks, snow rooms and saunas plus one-to- one nutrition, all within a series of interconnected glass pavilions. Prof Russell said: “We want to be part of the community; we don’t want to arrive in 2028 like a spaceship. “Nobody has ever built a 30-acre wellbeing resort in this country. What we are doing will have some challenges – it’s very different, it’s only one of three in Europe. “Therme is a piece of social infrastructure, more than a spa and water park. Manchester is a city of firsts so why not have the world’s larg- est wellbeing resort here?” Richard Roe talked about the Old Trafford Regeneration Mayoral Development Corporation and its potential to deliver significant change under the Wharfside Strate- gic Masterplan. The plan encompasses the new Manchester United stadium plus lei- sure opportunities, open spaces and community facilities for residents and visitors. Donna’s peak performance! High point: Donna on her Kilimanjaro adventure (Photo credit: East Cheshire NHS Trust) Agency’s employee ownership moves Faces in the crowd Police use recognition tech for the first time In action: One of the LFR vans in Sale (Photo credit: GMP) criminals, GMP has said the technology will help “safeguard vulnerable people, and protect peo- ple fromharm”, by freeing up officers to patrol their communities and respond to any emergencies. A spokesperson said: LFR cameras target an area, and the images are streamed to the live facial recognition technol- ogy. The images are com- pared against the images in the watchlist. When the technology finds a possible match, an alert is generated. “An officer then com- pares the camera image to the person they see and decides whether to speak to the person. “We will always explain why we have chosen to speak with someone and give them an informa- tional leaflet with con- tact details if they have further questions. Per- sons who are not included on a watchlist cannot be identified. “We will delete the images with alerts imme- diately after using them or within 24 hours. The images and biometric data of those who don’t cause an alert are auto- matically and immedi- ately deleted.” The technology has been used by the Metro- politan Police in Londo leading to more than 1,000 arrests. PEOPLE across Traf- ford are being urged to share their views on its most special and historic places. The list of ‘Local Her- itage Assets’, produced by Trafford Council and Greater Manchester Archaeological Advisory Service, contains a num- ber of interesting and quirky Trafford places of interest. They include the Quaker Meeting House and Burial Ground in Sale, where the family of George Bradshaw, who developed the first wide- ly-used railway timetable guide, is interred. Joule Memorial Wor- thington Park in Sale is also on the list, as is Raglan House, the home of John Brogden, who built the Manchester to Altrincham Railway. A public consultation on the list and the selec- tion criteria used will now run until December 1. People can give their views online. A drop-in session will also be held at Sale Waterside from 4pm to 9pm on Monday November 24. Alternatively, resi- dents can email com- ments to Local.List@ trafford.gov.uk or post them to Heritage and Urban Design Team, Planning and Develop- ment, Trafford Council, Trafford Town Hall, Talbot Road, Stretford, M32 0TH. A spokesperson for Trafford Council said: “We would like as many residents as possible to give their views on the list. “Let us know of any sites you think should be included. This is extremely important in order to recognise the significance of these local heritage assets for future residents and visi- tors to continue to enjoy.” Sharing a sense of history Getting a sense of wellbeing smashing the original target of £1,500, towards training resources and development opportuni- ties for her colleagues. But the challenge was also a very personal one for Donna. She said: “I took on Kilimanjaro in memory of my wonderful mum, as a tribute to her. “She would have been incredibly proud to see me take on something like this and I carried her memory with me every step of the way, especially in the hard- est moments. She was always my biggest sup- porter, and the climb was for her.”