Silver screen dreams for business leaders

RAISING a glass . . . cinema manager Paul Dagg with sponsors Helan Graham and Stephanie Doherty

BUSINESS people looked around the Oldham's regenerated Old Town Hall during a networking event at the Odeon cinema.

The Professional Oldham group held its latest social gathering there with food and wine, presentations and a short film about the historic building's redevelopment.

The evening began in the Costa cafe with arrival drinks then a large group photograph was taken on the entrance staircase inside the site's new glass extension.

After receiving food, including Odeon hot dogs and nachos, guests were taken inside one of the old courtrooms that is now a small cinema but can also be used for events. Many of the old courtroom's fixtures have been retained including ornate furniture, balconies and ceilings.

The Professional Oldham night was sponsored by Lees-based Caremark Oldham, which provides care and companionship services to adults and children.

The business was established in 2011 by Stephanie Doherty and Helan Graham, who had previously worked together at Oldham Council and pooled their redundancy money to start their own business.

The business now has just under 50 employees, has won two Oldham Business Awards and has a number of accreditations for its services and for being a good employer. It also supports the Get Oldham Working campaign.

Mrs Doherty outlined Caremark's range of services and, thinking about memories of the old town hall, then spoke about Caremark's services for people with memory loss, dementia and Alzheimer's Disease.

Paul Dagg, the manager of the new Odeon, spoke about his excitement in the redevelopment and said the venue is ideal for business and social events.

A screen was lowered and guests watched a short documentary film made by Dan Dubowitz about the old town hall's history over the years. The film includes interviews with Oldham people recalling their memories and feelings about the site, which had seen good and bad times before its recent regeneration.

One interviewee was a woman who had served as a magistrate years ago.

She recalled having to get dressed in the ladies' toilets because there were no changing rooms for female magistrates at the time. She remembered times when, while dressing for a court session, she informally chatted with other women in the toilets who, a few minutes later, would reappear standing in the dock, to be formally accused of an offence.

Other interviewees spoke about what the building symbolised to them. Professional Oldham organisers include Pearson Solicitors and Financial Advisers, Dr Kershaw's Hospice, Limetree PR, Caremark and Oldham Business Edge magazine.

The night's compere was Robbie MacDonald, business editor of the Oldham Chronicle and the quarterly Business Edge magazine.

He said the free subscription magazine promotes the borough as a good place to work, invest. It was recently highly-commended at the 02 North West Media Awards in the Magazine of the Year category and has increased its print run of 3,000 copies, of which 1,400 go to individual business subscribers. Bulk copies go to business centres, libraries, colleges and training centres.

The latest edition includes a feature on the Odeon project and other forthcoming developments across the borough.

Guests at the Professional Oldham night included Simon Dawson and Julie Hughes, of Shaw-based manufacturer Dawson Precision Engineering. The firm has carried out significant investment in manufacturing facilities, premises and staff skills and appears in the latest Oldham Business Edge. To subscribe, email your name, role and business address to mariawhitehead@oldham-chronicle.co.uk.

n To register your interest in future Professional Oldham events, email professionaloldham@outlook.com.