The Wellglade Group (WG), is a transport group operating bus and tram services in the English
Midlands
The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...
.
History
Wellglade was formed in 1986 when Brian King and Ian Morgan purchased Trent Buses from the
National Bus Company in a
management buyout
A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or individual. Management-, and/or leveraged buyout became noted phenomena of 1 ...
. In 1989 the business of
was purchased.
[History]
Trentbarton[Wellglade]
Tramlink Nottingham
In 1998 Wellglade purchased the
Kinchbus
Kinchbus is a bus operator in Loughborough, England. Since 1998 it has been a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
Kinchbus was founded in 1987 by former Leicester City Football Club director Gilbert Kinch trading as GK Kinch and base ...
business in
Loughborough
Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second larg ...
. In January 2010
TM Travel
TM Travel is a bus operator based in Halfway, Sheffield, operating bus services in South Yorkshire and Derbyshire. Founded in 1995 as a family-owned operation with one bus, by March 2008 it had expanded to become the largest independent operator ...
of
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
was purchased. In January 2012 Wellglade took over the bus operations of
.
In December 2011 Tramlink Nottingham took over the running of the
Nottingham Express Transit
Nottingham Express Transit (NET) is a tram system in Nottingham, England. The system opened to the public on 9 March 2004 and a second phase, that more than doubled the size of the total system, opened on 25 August 2015, having been initially ...
tram network. In April 2012
Centrebus
Centrebus is a bus company based in Leicester operating services in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland.
Centrebus have a 51% shareholding in High Peak Buses and since December 2019 through c ...
Bowers Coaches
Bowers Coaches was a bus company based in Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, England. The company operated bus and coach services in Cheshire East, Derbyshire and Greater Manchester from 1952 until 2012. In its later years, it was a subsidiary of ...
operation and services operated from the Dove Holes depot of Wellglade's
Trent Barton
Trentbarton operates both local and regional bus services in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire, England. It is a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
In October 1913, Trent Motor Traction Company was found ...
were combined to form
High Peak Buses
High Peak Buses Limited is a bus company based in Dove Holes, Derbyshire, formed in 2012. It operates a mixture of local and long-distance commercial and subsidised public bus services in and around the Borough of High Peak, after which it is n ...
.
During September 2022, it was announced that current managing director Jeff Counsell will retire in February 2023 and will be succeeded by Tom Morgan who is the current commercial director for
Wellglade Group
The Wellglade Group (WG), is a transport group operating bus and tram services in the English Midlands.
History
Wellglade was formed in 1986 when Brian King and Ian Morgan purchased Trent Buses from the National Bus Company (UK), Nationa ...
.
Active Subsidiaries and Interests
Trent Barton
Trent Barton
Trentbarton operates both local and regional bus services in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire, England. It is a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
In October 1913, Trent Motor Traction Company was found ...
operates services from
Bakewell
Bakewell is a market town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, known also for its local Bakewell pudding. It lies on the River Wye, about 13 miles (21 km) south-west of Sheffield. In the 2011 census, ...
in the north to
Coalville
Coalville is an industrial town in the district of North West Leicestershire, Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England, with a population at the 2011 census of 34,575. It lies on the A511 trunk road between Leicester and Burton upon Tr ...
in the south as well as
Ashbourne,
Burton upon Trent
Burton upon Trent, also known as Burton-on-Trent or simply Burton, is a market town in the borough of East Staffordshire in the county of Staffordshire, England, close to the border with Derbyshire. In United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011, it had a ...
,
Chesterfield
Chesterfield may refer to:
Places Canada
* Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan
* Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom
* Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England
** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...
,
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
,
Ilkeston
Ilkeston is a town in the Borough of Erewash, Derbyshire, England, on the River Erewash, from which the borough takes its name, with a population at the 2011 census of 38,640. Its major industries, coal mining, iron working and lace making/texti ...
,
Mansfield
Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...
, and
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...
. It was formed when the Trent Buses and
operations were merged.
[
]
First Leicester
Through their Trent Barton
Trentbarton operates both local and regional bus services in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire, England. It is a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
In October 1913, Trent Motor Traction Company was found ...
operations, Wellglade Group acquired a 6% shareholding of in 1993, First Bus UK are the majority shareholder in the operations.
Kinchbus
Kinchbus
Kinchbus is a bus operator in Loughborough, England. Since 1998 it has been a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
Kinchbus was founded in 1987 by former Leicester City Football Club director Gilbert Kinch trading as GK Kinch and base ...
is a bus operator based in Loughborough
Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second larg ...
. It was originally an independent company established by Gilbert and Janet Kinch.
Kinchbus operate some local services around Loughborough along with their Kinchbus2 route between Barrow-upon-Soar
Barrow upon Soar is a large village in northern Leicestershire, in the Soar Valley between Leicester and Loughborough, with a population at the 2011 census of 5,856.
Geography
Barrow lies on the east bank of the River Soar, where the riv ...
and Loughborough, Skylink from Leicester to Derby via Loughborough and East Midlands Airport
East Midlands Airport is an international airport in the East Midlands of England, close to Castle Donington in northwestern Leicestershire, between Loughborough (), Derby () and Nottingham (); Leicester is () to the south and Lincoln () nort ...
.
Kinchbus use the slogan 'Loughborough's Finest' which is advertised across their fleet of buses. Following the collapse of Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...
based Premiere Travel
Premiere Travel was a bus company in Nottinghamshire.
History
Premiere Travel commenced trading in 2003 with a pair of ex Nottingham City Transport Leyland Nationals working school contracts. The company expanded in to the coach hire, day exc ...
on 24 January 2013, Kinchbus reinstated their service 9 between Loughborough and Nottingham which was the first route to have the new refreshed version of the current livery and logo which have been in place since 2007.
Notts and Derby
Notts + Derby
Notts may refer to:
* Nottinghamshire
* Notts County FC
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth ti ...
operates a small number of local bus services, school buses and contract and private hire work in Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
and Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
. They operate a fleet of vehicles, most of which previously operated with Trentbarton
Trentbarton operates both local and regional bus services in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire, England. It is a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
In October 1913, Trent Motor Traction Company was found ...
and .
TM Travel
TM Travel is a bus operator based in Halfway, Sheffield
Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
, operating bus services in South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham.
In N ...
and Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
. It was founded in 1995 as a family-owned operation with one bus. School bus services and National Express
National Express Group is a British multinational public transport company headquartered in Birmingham, England. It operates bus, coach, train and tram services in the United Kingdom, Ireland (National Express operates Eurolines in conjunction ...
services were later introduced. The company moved into scheduled bus service operation in 1999, winning a contract from Derbyshire County Council
Derbyshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Derbyshire, England. It has 64 councillors representing 61 divisions, with three divisions having two members each. They are Glossop and Charlesworth, ...
. A local route in Bolsover
Bolsover is a market town and the administrative centre of the Bolsover (borough), Bolsover District, Derbyshire, England. It is from London, from Sheffield, from Nottingham and from Derby, Derbyshire, Derby. It is the main town in the Bols ...
was launched a year later. In 2004 TM Travel took over a route between Sheffield
Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
and Chesterfield previously run by Thompson Travel. A number of South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive
The South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive is the passenger transport executive for South Yorkshire in England. It is supervised by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, which consists of representatives from the metropolitan b ...
contracts were won over the following few years and the fleet increased in size to over 100 vehicles, prompting a move from Chesterfield to Halfway. As of March 2008, TM Travel was the largest independent coach and bus operator in Derbyshire, employing 120 staff, with all operations (including maintaining the fleet of vehicles) handled in-house. As of September 2017, the TM fleet consists of 66 buses. The company was acquired by WG in January 2010.
Nottingham Express Transit
In March 2011 the Tramlink Nottingham consortium which Wellglade holds a 12.5% shareholding in, was awarded the Nottingham Express Transit 2 contract by Nottingham City Council
Nottingham City Council is the local authority for the unitary authority of Nottingham in Nottinghamshire, England. It consists of 55 councillors, representing a total of 20 wards, elected every four years. The council is led by David Mellen, of ...
. In December 2011 Tramlink Nottingham took over the running of the tram network.
High Peak Buses
In April 2012 Centrebus
Centrebus is a bus company based in Leicester operating services in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland.
Centrebus have a 51% shareholding in High Peak Buses and since December 2019 through c ...
and Trent Barton entered a 50/50 joint venture. This saw Centrebus owned Bowers Coaches
Bowers Coaches was a bus company based in Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, England. The company operated bus and coach services in Cheshire East, Derbyshire and Greater Manchester from 1952 until 2012. In its later years, it was a subsidiary of ...
and Trent Barton's Buxton
Buxton is a spa town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level. area services combined to form High Peak Buses
High Peak Buses Limited is a bus company based in Dove Holes, Derbyshire, formed in 2012. It operates a mixture of local and long-distance commercial and subsidised public bus services in and around the Borough of High Peak, after which it is n ...
based at the latter's Dove Holes
Dove Holes is a village in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, England. It has a population of about 1,200 (2001), shown in the 2011 Census as being included in the population of Chapel-en-le-Frith. It straddles the A6 road approximately thre ...
depot.
Kleanline
Wellglade also owns cleaning service provider Kleanline.[
]
Inactive Subsidiaries and Interests
Midland General
The Midland General Omnibus Company was incorporated in 1920 as a company in the Balfour Beatty
Balfour Beatty plc () is an international infrastructure group based in the United Kingdom with capabilities in construction services, support services and infrastructure investments. A constituent of the FTSE 250 Index, Balfour Beatty works ac ...
group with a depot at Langley Mill
Langley Mill is a large village in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England.
History
Originally named ''Long Lea'', the village of Langley Mill was a major employer throughout the mid 1900s with many companies including The Flour Mi ...
. In 1972 the company's operations were merged with those of Trent and the Midland General fleetname ceased to be used.
The name was resurrected when Bargain Bus routes BB2 to Cotgrave
Cotgrave is a town and civil parish in the borough of Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire, England, some 5 miles (8 km) south-east of central Nottingham. It perches on the South Nottinghamshire Wolds about 131 feet (40 metres) above sea level. ...
and BB4 to Long Eaton
Long Eaton is a town in the Erewash district of Derbyshire, England, just north of the River Trent, about south-west of Nottingham and some 8½ miles (13.7 km) south-east of Derby. The town population was 37,760 at the 2011 census. It has ...
were started in Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...
in competition with Premiere Travel
Premiere Travel was a bus company in Nottinghamshire.
History
Premiere Travel commenced trading in 2003 with a pair of ex Nottingham City Transport Leyland Nationals working school contracts. The company expanded in to the coach hire, day exc ...
's services. These were withdrawn after Premiere Travel decided to withdraw their services.
The Black Cat and Ilkeston Flyer services acquired from Felix in January 2012 were to be operated by Midland General. In practice buses of the Notts + Derby
Notts may refer to:
* Nottinghamshire
* Notts County FC
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth ti ...
fleet operated both services and the Midland General name has disappeared from the timetables.
Felix Bus Services
In January 2012 Wellglade purchased some assets from .Wellglade to buy Felix bus services
busandcoach.com 30 November 2011 Felix already shared two routes with Trent Barton
Trentbarton operates both local and regional bus services in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire, England. It is a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
History
In October 1913, Trent Motor Traction Company was found ...
, these being Black Cat and Ilkeston Flyer. Despite the appearance of the Midland General name in timetables, the former Felix journeys were operated by Notts + Derby
Notts may refer to:
* Nottinghamshire
* Notts County FC
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth ti ...
.
References
External links
Wellglade page on Tramlink Nottingham website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wellglade Group, The
Bus operators in Derbyshire
Bus operators in Greater Manchester
Bus operators in Leicestershire
Bus operators in Nottinghamshire
Bus operators in South Yorkshire
Companies based in Derbyshire
Tram transport in Nottinghamshire
Transport in Derby