12:20pm Wednesday 17th March 2010
By Owen McAteer
A FAMILY-RUN bailiffs business will become one of the sector’s largest operators in the North, creating 40 jobs after merging with a national company.
National Enforcement Services (NES), based in Darlington, will move to larger premises and take on 40 staff in the next two years after being bought by the Londonbased JBW Group Ltd.
All of NES’s 14 staff will move over to the JBW group with the North-East firms founder Andy Coates joining the board of the new company, which will base its northern operations in Darlington.
NES, which specialises in the enforcement of Council Tax and commercial rent recovery, launched the UK’s first bailiff franchises in Derby, Preston and Durham, which will now operate within the JBW Group.
JBW Group was founded in 2004 by young entrepreneur Jamie Waller and now employs more than 100 people nationwide, with more than 50 clients in the South of England including Transport for London and the Child Support Agency.
Mr Coates who, working alongside his wife Sue, has more than 20 years experience in the bailiff industry, said: “Joining the JBW Group is an exciting time for us as it gives us the opportunity to further strengthen our bailiff operations and expand our services under the banner of a fantastically forward-thinking firm.
“I have watched the growth and success of the JBW Group over the past six years and have always been very impressed with its ethical approach to both enforcement and business as a whole.”
Mr Coates, who last year received the Frank Martin award from the Association of British Investigators for his service in the sector, added: “Being part of the JBW Group will assist us in becoming one of the largest providers of bailiff services in the North of England, we are very excited.”
The acquisition of NES comes as JBW, which has previously worked primarily in the South of England, is expanding its Northern operations.
Mr Waller, said: “The acquisition of NES will allow us to strengthen our operations in the North following several contract wins, including a contract with Leeds City Council, to provide an enforcement solution for the recovery of Penalty Charge Notices.
“Both Andy, Sue and the rest of the team have an exceptional reputation for delivering first-class services and will be a welcome accompaniment to our fantastic staff team.
“To enable us to provide the service levels that we do in the South, we needed to find the right team, and that team is NES. We are pleased to be basing our northern operation in Darlington and have plans for expansion in the coming months. All-in-all it is an extremely positive time for all those involved.”
The JBW Group has been listed as one of the Sunday Times Top 100 Companies to Work For in 2010.
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