Liverpool Duck Trail Live Painting at Mann Island

A multi-talented team of Liverpool artists have been selected to transform Giant Duck sculptures into exciting and engaging works of art based around events that Liverpool was the 1st to achieve.

The Giant Ducks are painted live, in public view, at Mann Island, since Monday, 27 April and will be able to be seen until to Friday, 8 May 2015. Painting taking place between 9am to 5pm on weekdays.

The Liverpool Duck Trail project, commissioned by AquaDucked, aims to showcase the vibrant creativity of artists in Liverpool as well as to raise money and awareness for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Each of the giant ducks are themed on an event in history that Liverpool was the first to achieve with artists submitting designs to a judging panel. The winning submissions include Gemma Seddon's:- 'Space Duck' design based on Toxteth born Jeremiah Horrocks as one of the founding Fathers of British Astronomy.

Local artist Shelley Jane's fun and creative:- 'Canal Duck' based around the theme of the Leed to Liverpool canal. And in celebration of the world's greatest steeplechase; The Grand National Simon Connell's equestrian themed Aintree Duck will be painted to this theme.

The army of giant ducks are set to invade the City on Liverpool's arts and cultural event:- 'Light Night Friday' on the 15 May 2015, and will be nesting at specific locations across Liverpool City Centre, including the Commercial District, Liverpool ONE and Bold Street.

The ducks will be on show for public display around Liverpool until the 9 June 2015, after which they will be entered into a celebrity gala night auction to raise money for Macmillan taking place on the 24 July 2015.

The Liverpool Duck Trail follows the success of previous trails such as Go Superlambananas (2008) and Go Penguins (2010).

For more information go to:- aquaducked.co.uk.

MyCSP opens Training Academy

MyCSP, the public sector pension administrator, has celebrated its 3rd year of business with the opening of its dedicated Training Academy in Liverpool.

On Monday, 27 April 2015, The Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson OBE, officially opened MyCSP's new Training Academy.  Established on 1 May 2012, MyCSP was the 1st joint venture mutual to spin out of central Government. It has since grown from strength to strength, aided by the talent of its employee partners. MyCSP's operational headquarters are based in Liverpool which has seen its headcount quadruple in 3 years and the introduction of an apprenticeship programme which was recently expanded.

Nicky Hurst, MyCSP's CEO explained:- "We chose Liverpool as we recognised the huge talent pool available across the region and because we felt a passion in the people that fits with our mutual ownership. We want our employees to make a genuine difference to our business and to our customers; and in return we offer real job satisfaction, career progression and a genuine say in how we do things. To increase and train our workforce in such a short period has been no easy task. Training people with no experience of the complex world of pensions is challenging so we developed our own training programme. As a growing and ambitious local business we have invested in a dedicated Training Academy so we can continue to offer great career progression and fantastic rewards for smart people who work hard."

Liverpool Mayor, Joe Anderson OBE added:- "It's been a pleasure to open MyCSP's Training Academy as a sign of their commitment and support to Liverpool. Creating hundreds of jobs in the City, MyCSP represents another local success story, finding the best people and talents to support their growing business in a dynamic and vibrant City."

"Tenancy deposits in Liverpool the cheapest in the country" says The Deposit Protection Service

TENANCY deposits in Liverpool over the last year were 40% cheaper than the average for England and Wales, statistics released by The Deposit Protection Service (The DPS) have shown.  By law landlords must submit deposits from tenants to an authorised tenancy deposit protection scheme, and those submitted to The DPS for properties with Liverpool postcodes between April 2014 and March 2015 averaged £484.84 - £335.88 cheaper the national average (£820.72) and the lowest amount figure for the whole country. Liverpool's figure was £1,242.29 less on average than tenancy deposits within the most expensive area, London (£1,727.13). Julian Foster, Managing Director of The DPS, said:- "Tenancy deposits give landlords the security they need while their property is being rented out.  Tenants are also provided with peace of mind when The DPS protects the money during their tenancy, as it provides free, impartial adjudication if there is a dispute at the end of the tenancy. Both landlords and tenants need a deposit protection service that is fast, efficient, clear and communicative, and The DPS has been entrusted with over 3.2 million deposits since we launched in 2007." The DPS is the only scheme to offer a choice between schemes that are custodial; where it holds the money for the duration of tenancies; and insured; where landlords retain deposits, but pay a fee to protect them. Its custodial scheme is open to all letting agents, landlords and organisations, and there are no membership fees or qualifying criteria. The DPS repays all deposits within 2 business days, on receipt of a jointly authenticated repayment instruction.