Aycliffe Today Business Aycliffe Today Business Issue 38 | Page 5

The magazine for Aycliffe Business Park | 5
/NEWS
Andy Palmer, Durham County Council’s
head of transformation and chair of the joint
venture company behind the Forrest Park
development, updated guests at a meeting
of the Aycliffe Business Park Community.
BUSINESS
BRIEFS
ROMAN SCOOPS AWARD
Mixed-use retail and trade park to form
part of early Forrest Park development
A
small mixed-use retail
development and a trade park
will form the first phase of a
major new development on
Aycliffe Business Park, it has been
revealed.
The owners of the Forrest Park site – a
55-hectare development which is hoped will
create 3,200 new jobs – were due to submit
their application to Durham County Council
(DCC) at the end of January.
During a meeting of the Aycliffe Business
Park Community (ABPC), held at Hitachi
Rail Europe’s rail assembling facility, local
businesses were updated on the application.
In October last year, major infrastructure
work was completed by DCC, when a new
junction providing better access to the A1(M)
and A167, and a 23-mega volt amp sub-
station were completed.
Thanks to £13m in Local Enterprise
Partnership funding, the infrastructure work
was crucial to the viability of the Forrest Park
development, while the power sub-station
will also provide much-needed additional
power to existing employers already located
on the business park.
Andy Palmer, the council’s head of
transformation and chair of the joint
venture company behind the Forrest Park
development, told guests at a meeting of
ABPC that the planning application has now
been finalised and is due to be submitted.
It’s hoped the application will be approved
by the spring – and the first phase of Forrest
Park could start as early as this year.
Mr Palmer said: “At the front end of the
site, close to where the existing service
station is, we’re looking at a mixed-use
development with hot food outlets.
“Further down we’re looking at a trade
park, and then we’ll have 11 larger plots
which will be developed on a stage-by-stage
process.
“Pending a positive outcome of the
planning application, the first phase of the
work could start within three-to-six months.”
Aycliffe Business Park is already home to
around 500 companies and around 10,000
employees.
It is estimated Forrest Park could see the
creation of 3,200 jobs across 1.75 million
square feet of development floor space and
deliver a Gross Value Added (GVA) boost of
£495m over the next 10-15 years.
Mr Palmer added: “The Forrest Park
development will see Aycliffe Business Park
become the largest of its kind in the North of
England.”
The Forrest Park development, which is
a joint-venture between the landowners,
the Forrest family, and Durham County
Council, will see the creation of three types
of development units – business, general
industrial and storage or distribution.
In April last year, it was revealed a pub and
restaurant would form part of the master
plan.
DCC leader Cllr Simon Henig said: “The
Forrest Park investment will firmly shine a
light on Durham, demonstrating what a great
place we are for business, and I am delighted
to see it progressing towards becoming the
next great success story for our county.”
New leisure club and spa at Redworth
A
new leisure club and spa has opened
at Redworth Hall Hotel following
a £2m investment, marking the
completion of the first phase of a massive
refurbishment and development programme
at this local landmark hotel.
The Retreat Leisure Club & Spa facilities
have been totally reconfigured and
transformed to create a dedicated spa with
six luxurious treatment rooms, a tranquillity
room and spa reception with a unique foliage
backdrop, as well as a stunning new L’Oréal
hair and nail salon.
To facilitate the creation of the new spa,
the existing gym was relocated to the
first floor and is now an expansive, fully
air-conditioned space featuring an array of
Technogym equipment and an Omnium
multi-exercise rig.
There is also a new purpose-built exercise
studio featuring a state-of-the-art ‘Fitness on
Demand’ virtual class system.
Redworth Hall was acquired by the
Newcastle-based Cairn Hotel Group two
years ago in a £75m group deal involving five
hotels.
The group, which now operates over
33 hotels and 28 bars across the UK from
Aberdeen to Brighton, invested £100,000 in
upgrading Redworth’s Great Hall in 2017.
Shower designer and manufacturer
Roman won the prestigious consumer
safety award for compliance in
bathroom products at the renowned
National Home Improvement Council
Awards black tie ceremony.
Roman won the award for innovation
and initiatives to promote consumer
safety through compliance in
bathroom products and installation.
SMART PORT TECHNOLOGY
A new project that aims to pilot smart
digital initiatives to boost trade and
foster economic growth in North East
ports has been launched.
Digital and industry experts,
academia, regional authorities as well
as the Port of Berwick, Port of Blyth,
Port of Sunderland, Teesport and Port
of Tyne will seek to develop distinct
satellite-based solutions and digital
programmes as part of the Smart Port
North East Testbed.
It is the first initiative of the
Situational Awareness Information
National Technology Service (SAINTS)
that was recently launched by the
North East Satellite Applications
Centre of Excellence and a group of
innovative companies to use data
from satellites and Earth-based
sensors to solve major problems
facing businesses, governments and
communities.
SUPPORT FOR PRODUCERS
A network to support County Durham
food and drink producers has been
launched.
Durham Food and Drink Network is
the fifth key strand of the Durham
Business Opportunities Programme
(DBOP), which is part of Business
Durham.
The network will enable small
producers and County Durham SMEs
who are keen to get their products to
market, to tap into a minimum of 12
hours of business support.
It is being jointly delivered by the
county’s three enterprise agencies,
East Durham Business Service, CDC
Enterprise Agency and the South
Durham Enterprise Agency.