Flood defences in Warrington have been brought to life thanks to a group of budding Picassos from Cardinal Newman Catholic High School in Westy.

Year 7 pupils, aged between 11 and 12, were challenged by the Environment Agency to put their brush skills to the test and design images of wildlife to decorate walls that make up part of a new flood alleviation scheme.

The designs will face the pavement and be visible to passers-by along Mersey Walk in Westy.

They form part of a £34 million flood risk management scheme throughout Warrington which aims to reduce the risk of flooding to both people and property. The new flood walls are a major aspect of the defences and will cover a total of 7.2km by the time the scheme is completed in autumn 2017.

To spruce up the solid concrete of the walls, pupils took inspiration from some of the local species that live along the River Mersey including fish, amphibians and mammals such as mallards.

The regal kingfisher has also been a key feature with the colourful bird taking pride of place in an earlier phase of the scheme along Knutsford Road.

Speaking about the colourful artwork, Chris Stone of the Environment Agency said:

These lovely features will bring a little of the Mersey wildlife to the new defences, which will provide much greater protection from the risk of flooding to about 2,000 homes and businesses in the Warrington area.

It’s our priority to do everything we can to protect people from flooding. We are spending more than £2.5 billion to build flood schemes around the country, which will better protect 300,000 homes by 2021.

The River Mersey Warrington Flood Risk Management Scheme, which is now in its final phase, will enhance flood defence infrastructure, blend in with the local natural and built environment and most importantly, provide best protection to people and property in the town of Warrington. We are grateful to all the pupils from Cardinal Newman Catholic High School who got involved. Their fantastic artwork has really helped us add another point of interest to this very important project.

Mr Quinton’s sentence, suspended for two years, relates to his involvement with Limited Risk Limited and Defensa International LLC.

He was also disqualified from being a director for 10 years and ordered to pay costs of £13,818.47.

Mr Quinton’s conviction follows a criminal investigation and prosecution by the Criminal Enforcement Team of the Insolvency Service.

Whilst subject to a disqualification undertaking dated 7 October 2009, Michael Graham Quinton acted in the management of both Limited Risk Limited and Defensa International LLC, contrary to section 13 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986.

The Security Industry Authority (SIA) investigated Quinton and the Criminal Enforcement Team, was itself already investigating Quinton. As a result of information shared between the SIA and the Insolvency Service Criminal Enforcement Team, a number of investigative leads were pursued.

Mr Quinton, aged 46, was the CEO of Defensa International LLC, a company which was incorporated in the United States, but carried on its business and had an office in the UK.

He was also the controlling mind of Limited Risk Limited, but in an attempt to avoid the consequences of his disqualification undertaking he used the names of others as directors of the company.

Case lawyer Ian Hatcher from the Insolvency Service said :

This case shows that the Criminal Enforcement Team of Insolvency Service will take action against those individuals who act as directors or are involved in the management of companies when they are not permitted to do so.

Here, a disqualified director attempted to circumvent his ban by incorporating a company abroad and by using the names of others as directors of his British company.

The Criminal Enforcement Team of Insolvency Service was alive to this, and took firm action.

Kevin Young, SIA Partnerships and Investigations Manager, said:

Our investigation of Quinton’s business practices relating to the supply of security staff to the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Scotland, and other major sporting events, revealed a pattern of behaviour.

Our investigators at the SIA actively seek to work with partners and the conviction of Michael Quinton shows the value of joint working and sharing of information between the Insolvency Service and Hampshire Police.

Notes to editors

Limited Risk Limited (Company number 08586528), was incorporated on 26 June 2013.

Defensa International LLC was incorporated on 7 January 2011.

Michael Graham Quinton’s date of birth is 11 July, 1971. He is of Epsom, Surrey.

A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:

• act as a director of a company
• take part, directly or indirectly, in the promotion, formation or management of a company or limited liability partnership
• be a receiver of a company’s property

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings. Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.

The Insolvency Service, an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), administers the insolvency regime, and aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community, including dealing with the disqualification of directors in corporate failures. Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

Further information about the work of the Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team is available at available.

BEIS’ mission is to build a dynamic and competitive UK economy that works for all, in particular by creating the conditions for business success and promoting an open global economy. The Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team contributes to this aim by taking action to deter fraud and to regulate the market. They investigate and prosecute a range of offences, primarily relating to personal or company insolvencies.

The Security Industry Authority is the organisation responsible for regulating the private security industry in the United Kingdom, reporting to the Home Secretary under the terms of the Private Security Industry Act 2001. The SIA’s main duties are: the compulsory licensing of individuals undertaking designated activities; and managing the voluntary Approved Contractor Scheme. Further information about the SIA is available.

Media enquiries for this press release – 020 7674 6910 or 020 7596 6187

You can also follow the Insolvency Service on: * Twitter * LinkedIn * YouTube

SIA Media enquiries only please contact: Nandi Mkushi, Security Industry Authority: 0207 025 4363, email: nandi.mkushi@sia.gsi.gov.uk.

Timothy Richard Edmunds has been disqualified from acting as a director for five years and Annette Edmunds has been disqualified for four years.

On 17 July 2017, the Secretary of State for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy accepted disqualification undertakings from Timothy Richard Edmunds and Annette Edmunds, with effect from 7 August 2017.

Mr and Mrs Edmunds were directors of ESP Strategies Ltd, which went into liquidation on 25 November 2015.

The investigation found that ESP Strategies Ltd had entered in to a tax avoidance scheme involving the issue of shares totalling £240,000 to directors which were only partly paid for.

Mr and Mrs Edmunds agreed to a number of transactions ending with the surrender of the shares, which resulted in £230,400 of uncalled share capital becoming unavailable. The transactions took place at a time when the directors knew that the company had an outstanding debt to HMRC, the sole creditor in the liquidation, with a claim of £133,245.

Commenting on the disqualification, Sue MacLeod, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

If your business engages in transactions in the run up to liquidation which are detrimental to any of its creditors, the Insolvency Service may investigate you, leading to your removal from the business environment.

Notes to editors

ESP Strategies Limited (Company number 05497483), was incorporated on 3 July 2005. Its registered office and trading address was at 718 Gower Road, Upper Killay, Swansea SA2 7HQ.

Timothy Richard Edmunds’ date of birth is 20 May 1965. Annette Edmunds’ date of birth is 13 January 1965. Both directors are of Swansea.

A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:

• act as a director of a company
• take part, directly or indirectly, in the promotion, formation or management of a company or limited liability partnership
• be a receiver of a company’s property

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings. Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.

The Insolvency Service, an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), administers the insolvency regime, and aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community, including dealing with the disqualification of directors in corporate failures. Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

BEIS’ mission is to build a dynamic and competitive UK economy that works for all, in particular by creating the conditions for business success and promoting an open global economy. The Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team contributes to this aim by taking action to deter fraud and to regulate the market. They investigate and prosecute a range of offences, primarily relating to personal or company insolvencies. The agency also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

Media enquiries for this press release – 020 7674 6910 or 020 7596 6187

You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:

The Veterinary Products Committee and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate will hold their annual open meeting on Friday 29 September 2017.

Mr Robert Voss has been appointed Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of the County of Hertfordshire.