The Team
Tony Carr
Tony was the Managing Director of a well-known retail clothing company for 30 years and former Chairman of Blackpool Major Retail Consortium. A co-founder and Board member of The Blackpool Town Centre Forum Ltd and former Chairman of the Transportation and Environment working group. One of his notable achievements was as a leading player in the initiation of a joint partnership arrangement with the Police and the Blackpool Town Centre Forum resulting in the incorporation of Blackpool’s CCTV system.
His accomplishments also include: -
- Winner of The Evening Gazette /First Leisure Business Personality of the year and Small Business of the year.
- Winner of the Civic Trust Award for outstanding achievement.
- A lifetime achievement award from the Blackpool Town Centre Forum.
Tony co-founded and was a former non-executive director of Radio Wave - a leading independent radio station in the North-West.
A freelance Business Consultant for 3 years Tony has assisted numerous large and small companies. Tony was a qualified volunteer adviser for the Citizens Advice Bureau attained membership of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy as a qualified Counsellor in 2005.
His most recent achievement in 2007 was to become the 1st advisor in the North West region to hold the SFEDI Gold Standard status – Joint ILM/SFEDI accredited business support professionals - specifically in connection with Social Enterprise.
Tony is Finance Director and Company Secretary of Social Enterprise Solutions Community Interest Company.
Tony can be contacted by email tony@socialenterprisesolutions.co.uk
Clive Hirst
Stretching back over thirty years, Clive’s extensive management experience has encompassed many contexts, from large departments in secondary schools to Deputy Chief Officer and Projects Manager at the Council for Voluntary Service in Blackpool. Clive holds an Honours Degree, a Certificate of Advanced Study in Management and is a graduate of the Institute of Advanced Volunteer Management. His particular interest is staff motivation.
After running a successful micro business in publishing, Clive moved into enterprise development as Manager of the Blackpool Enterprise Project. This European funded project tackles deprivation by assisting micro businesses and social enterprises.
Clive has developed effective communication and negotiation skills through teaching both adults and children. As a union negotiator in a very large Local Authority, he deployed knowledge of employment law and legal procedures and represented members at Employment Tribunals.
Whilst working for Lancashire Care Trust, Age Concern and the Council for Voluntary Service he has formed a detailed understanding of community and voluntary issues in a variety of Fylde Coast communities.
Clive was the Manager of the Blackpool Enterprise Project and is now the Chairman of Social Enterprise Solutions Community Interest Company.
Clive can be contacted by email clive@socialenterprisesolutions.co.uk
Dennis Langley
Dennis is an experienced Project Manager in the fields of innovation, technology transfer and business support services. His background is in Manufacturing Engineering in small sub-contracting companies and large multinationals. He has been responsible for new product introduction in a career spanning aero-engine fuel systems, office photocopiers and central heating boilers. He has occupied an Industrial Liaison role in Higher Education and was also the General Manager of a publicly funded networking organisation.
He has designed, secured funding for and delivered a significant number of publicly funded business support projects to assist start-up and established businesses.
In 2002 he started the business planning and project management company, Project and Business Developments Ltd. (PABD) Dennis is an Associate Member of the Chartered Management Institute.
Dennis was the Project Partner of the Blackpool Enterprise Project and is a Director of Social Enterprise Solutions Community Interest Company.
Dennis can be contacted by email dennis@socialenterprisesolutions.co.uk
Linda McKenzie
Linda McKenzie comes from a Local Authority background, having worked in various departments for the past twenty two years. Linda is a qualified trainer and was a Training and Development officer which included training newly appointed managers in their new roles. Linda then transferred to Community Economic Development, working in some of the most deprived areas of the country, including Bradford, Northumberland, Easington, and Derby. Having worked in areas of regeneration, Linda worked at developing communities and businesses to become sustainable rather than grant dependent. She was a Funding Officer in Northumberland and managed to bring in more than £1 million to projects and organisations in the deprived coalfield villages.
Linda worked with whole communities as well as smaller groups, and used techniques such as ‘Future Search’ and ‘Planning for Real’ to engage local people and to give them a say in the regeneration of their communities. From this, sustainable plans were formulated and several Social Enterprises were developed such as a fresh fruit and vegetable co-op, a training and job support agency, and a community village hall that offered just about everything the community needed, all sustainable and still functioning to this day.
Linda finds that many of these techniques can be used to help businesses plan their marketing, sustainability and growth. She is committed to the development and growth of community enterprises as they primarily focus on communities in the most disadvantaged and deprived areas. Linda works on an individual basis with social enterprises, but is also keen to develop consortia of social enterprises to enable them to bid for larger contracts that they would be unable to access on their own.
Linda can be contact by e-mail linda@socialenterprisesolutions.co.uk
Jon Walton
Jon has worked for Jobcentre Plus for almost 20 years, and he has experienced a variety of roles during this time. Starting at the bottom through helping people claiming unemployment benefit in the Blackpool office, Jon's progression has seen him manage large teams of advisery staff, have responsibilities for Health & Safety, IT and Estates management, Contract Management, Transformation Management, and Finance Management.
Latterly Jon has been working with a wide variety of partners and providers from the public, private, voluntary, community and faith sectors to promote opportunities for Jobcentre Plus customers. Jon has developed an expertise around Child Poverty and Childcare Partnerships. Through integrated working with a myriad of organisations across Cumbria & Lancashire, Jon has been successful in ensuring that new monies have been brought to the area, and that products and services that are provided by organisations add value to the existing core offers of Jobcentre Plus and the LSC.
Jon can be contact by e-mail john@socialenterprisesolutions.co.uk