The Tees Valley Combined Authority’s Cabinet today gave the green light to progress business cases for two major projects that could transform the road network in Tees Valley.
The Combined Authority agreed on the approach for outline business cases for plans that include a new Tees Crossing and a new Northern Link Road in Darlington.
In the coming weeks, these proposals will be presented to the Department for Transport, with a bid for up to £4million from the Government backing the Combined Authority’s £1million investment to help take them to the next stage.
Ben Houchen, Tees Valley Mayor, said: “These all-important improvements will help to clear traffic blackspots that, for too long, have blighted our roadways.
“The upgrades will work for the residents, providing smoother journeys across the region. Not only that, but with increased access to Enterprise Zones and improved infrastructure to support Teesport, they will also underpin everything I am trying to do as Mayor in opening up the area for inward investment, growth and global recognition.”
A new Tees Crossing will cut down on congestion and slow journey times on the A19. It will provide additional capacity for up to 72,000 vehicles per day, and allow continued traffic flow should an incident happen on the A19 or A66.
The Combined Authority’s preferred route for a new crossing is the Viaduct Option, which would provide a new route for local traffic to cross the river, freeing up capacity on the current A19 Tees Flyover.
Cllr Bill Dixon, Leader of Darlington Borough Council and Tees Valley Cabinet Member for Transport said: “Our roads would be made safer, more efficient and stronger under these plans. Improving journey times, better access to jobs and a consideration for pedestrians, cyclists and other road users alike.”
Progress on a key regeneration initiative will be considered by Middlesbrough Council next week.
Ambitious plans for 21st Century office accommodation at the heart of the town will create jobs, boost the economy and drive further external investment.
The development is proposed for the eastern edge of Centre Square – one of the largest public open spaces of its kind in the country and a symbol of Middlesbrough’s resurgence in recent years.
The mix of Grade A office accommodation and leisure use including bars and restaurants will rub shoulders with the square’s internationally renowned art gallery and new Holiday Inn Express.
Middlesbrough Council has worked closely with developers Ashall Projects to create a flagship scheme that will attract high end employers to around 210,000 sq ft of modern office space in a prime location.
Negotiations are currently ongoing with potential occupiers, with the overall development ultimately accommodating up to 1,500 employees and generating an estimated £1 million in business rates per year.
The offices will be delivered in phases, with full planning permission in place for the first stage, and outline permission secured for the second.
Councillor Charlie Rooney, Middlesbrough Council’s Executive Member for City Centre Strategy, said: “These proposals are fully in line with our city centre masterplan, both in addressing our lack of premium office accommodation and driving Middlesbrough forward as the business and leisure heart of the Tees Valley.
“We know the demand is there, and this development will create the highest quality office destination between Leeds and Newcastle.
“This location has a key role to play in fulfilling Centre Square’s potential as a destination with the capacity to attract investment and jobs, and drive forward future development and regeneration.”
• An update on the proposals for Centre Square will be considered at a meeting of Middlesbrough Council’s Executive on Tuesday, December 19.
The government has set out its Industrial Strategy for the UK, reaffirming Tees Valley’s vital role at the heart of the UK’s plans for industrial growth.
The strategy highlights measures that will enhance the role of Tees Valley to make a step change in the local economy, ensuring that businesses and residents thrive and reach their full potential.
The Industrial Strategy sets out five pillars. The Tees Valley is already playing a vital role in the following areas;
- Ideas / innovation – Tees Valley is at the forefront of developing new approaches to Carbon Capture and storage, leading a grouping of multi-national companies known as the Teesside Collective and are specifically recognised within the strategy.
- People – The Combined Authority is currently consulting on a skills strategy to ensure the areas skills needs are aligned to the requirements of local business.
- Infrastructure – A number of bold proposals have been put forward to transform the local transport network and the Combined Authority have just received over £59 million to develop them.
- Places – The South Tees Development Corporation is highlighted in the strategy as a flagship initiative for local leadership of industrial regeneration, demonstrating the importance of the powers devolved to local mayors. Last week it received £123m to kick start the locally led development corporation and start to remediate the land ready for investment.
- Business – An extended commitment to the Growth Hubs is confirmed. Growth hubs join up national and local business support so it is easy for companies to find help and access it. Known locally as the Tees Valley Business Compass Service it is playing an important role in the area.
Welcoming the white paper, Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “I am proud that Tees Valley will once again be able to play a leading role and provide such an important contribution. We are very proud of our rich industrial heritage but we can also be very proud of our industrial future with our competitive private-sector led economy.
“Last week government made a massive commitment to our local Industrial Strategy with a £123million boost to help get things moving. This is a huge vote of confidence in our area and it is very encouraging to see the government’s strong commitment to devolution. The tide is turning and power is beginning to shift from Whitehall.”
The long term strategy sets out a vision for the UK to be the world’s most innovative nation by 2030.
Middlesbrough Mayor Dave Budd has welcomed Teesside University’s major £300m proposals as central to the town’s wider investment and regeneration plans.
Earlier this year Mayor Budd unveiled Middlesbrough Council’s Investment Prospectus which outlined plans to attract more than £700m of private investment into Middlesbrough.
The Council itself is investing £72m to kick start the ambitions for Middlesbrough to cement its place as the city centre of the Tees Valley region in order to compete with other northern city regions.
Mr Budd said: “The first thing I want to say is that you don’t need to be a student to see and feel the benefit of what Teesside University is doing for Middlesbrough.
“Investments on this scale help everyone. They bring with them more interest in Middlesbrough, more people to Middlesbrough, more jobs for Middlesbrough and more opportunities to Middlesbrough.
“In our Investment Prospectus the University Quarter was highlighted as one of seven areas we wanted to focus on. Since those plans were announced just six months ago we have seen exciting progress and news in each of those seven categories.
“There is a real sense of optimism at the moment, both in Middlesbrough and about Middlesbrough – barely a day goes by without news of new investments in our city centre, such as bars, restaurants or retail.
“It is wonderful that our partners at Teesside University share our ambitions, to quote Vice Chancellor Paul Croney ‘to make Middlesbrough an exciting and appealing destination’ for them to ‘students from across the world’ and to us for everyone from across the world. Middlesbrough’s ambitions should be as high as this.”
In the other areas of Middlesbrough Council’s Invesment Prospectus…
Middlehaven
Work has started on the dock road bridge which will unlock land for further developments, the snow centre has been given planning permission, Sainsbury’s have announced potential tenants for the completed superstore and Teesside institution The Gazette has moved to Hudson Quay.
Centre Square
Planning permission has been given to the first two of five Grade A office blocks to the east of Centre Square which are expected to bring 1,500 new jobs to Middlesbrough, with outline planning permission approved for the remaining three. Plans are also being drawn up to allow Centre Square to host more major events.
Business and Enterprise
Middlesbrough’s City Centre is seeing new businesses, including popular new bars, restaurants and retail, open all the time. Among them are Bistrot Pierre due to open in the coming weeks, Flannels, due to open before the end of the year, Swarovski have announced they are coming to Middlesbrough. The area surrounding Baker and Bedford Street is getting more and more quirky eateries and Centre North East is to be renamed The Pinnacle with a sky bar, Turtle Bay, micropub, boutique bowling alley and other attractions.
Railway Station and Historic Quarter
Work is now well underway on a £2.7m Network Rail project to renovate and restore the Railway Station, including its car park and the units beneath it, while new trains will be put on the lines and direct services to London will arrive by 2020. For the wider area including the Historic Quarter, a masterplan was unveiled earlier this year by Middlesbrough Council and Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald to create a destination with a wide offer of facilities and amenities.
Housing
Middlesbrough is currently embarked on the most ambitious house-building programme in its history, with more than 1,500 new homes completed over the last two years and 7,000 due by 2029.
Most recently, proposals for 299 houses, with everything from two and three bed terraced and detached homes to four and five bed detached properties, have been given the green light to be built on the land off Low Lane at Stainsby Hall Farm.
Teesside Media and Innovation Village
The longest term project in the Investment Project, TMIV would be based on the west of the city centre and would be an iconic regional destination for media, digital, creativity, learning and leisure. Although no physical proposals are yet on the table, Middlesbrough Mayor Dave Budd has confirmed there will remain a bus station in the heart of Middlesbrough to allay resident fears.
The sixth Tees Valley Skills Event is set to be held at Teesside University in September and it promises to be bigger than ever with a greater number of employers due to present a wealth of opportunities for young people seeking employment in the region.
The Tees Valley Skills Event will take place at the Olympia Building at Teesside University on Thursday 21st September. As usual the event will exhibit hands on interactive activities from a range of employers, universities, colleges, learning providers and will be open to all 14-18 year olds across the area.
Hosted by Tees Valley Combined Authority, in partnership with North Yorkshire Business and Education Partnership (NYBEP), Teesside University and Tees Valley Learning Provider Network, it is one of the largest events of its kind in the area.
Employers and learning providers are invited to exhibit at the event to meet their potential future workforce and demonstrate the skills and qualifications needed to build a career in a number of different sectors.
Last year, more than 2,000 young people attended to speak to more than 70 different employers or learning providers about their career options.
Ben Houchen, Tees Valley Mayor, said: “This event has always proved to be hugely popular for both employers and young people seeking to start and develop their careers within the region. The skills event helps to support the development of the area’s future workforce by highlighting the different routes to employment, education, training, apprenticeships and job vacancies at all levels.
“It’s also a great opportunity to showcase key local industries, businesses and further education establishments to students and demonstrate to them that the Tees Valley is a place where they can build a career and prosper.”
Gary Crawley, Student Recruitment and Outreach Manager, Teesside University, said: “The Skills Event presents an extremely useful chance for young people in the region to speak directly to employers, and for employers to discuss available opportunities in their industry. Not only a careers fair, the event will also be an opportunity to showcase real jobs.”
Jo Thompson, of Tees Valley Learning Provider Network, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for young people in the area to develop an understanding of the many career paths they have here in the Tees Valley.
“It is also a great chance for employers to interact with Tees Valley’s future workforce and help ensure the younger generation wants to stay in the region”.
Businesses can hear first-hand from renowned and respected TV architect George Clarke about how they can benefit from his ground-breaking new building initiative launched in partnership with Teesside University.
A special event is being held next Tuesday (May 23) where employers can hear about the Ministry of Building Innovation (MOBI), a suite of multi-disciplinary courses at all levels to attract new and innovative ideas and people into the building industry.
MOBI was officially launched earlier this month and is aimed at kickstarting a fundamental change to the home building industry, attracting new generations into the profession.
Tuesday’s event will be of particular interest to anyone connected to the building industry, including developers, interior designers, urban planners, architects, estate agents and house-builders, as well as teachers and educators.
George said: “Up until now there were no courses which were dedicated to advanced thinking about homes.
“We want lots of people with lots of knowledge from different fields to come together under the MOBI roof at Teesside University to push advanced thinking about what ‘home’ means.”
Teesside University has developed a suite of courses in Advanced Home Construction starting with a Higher National Certificate and Diploma, an undergraduate degree programme, BSc (Hons) Advanced Home Construction (top up) and a postgraduate degree course – MSc Advanced Home Futures.
The courses take a new look at the building industry and offer a broad-based practical approach which aims to attract learners from different disciplines, not just traditional architecture and enable students to explore a variety of specialisms, allowing them to challenge the status quo.
Students will engage with industry and explore the concept of home, different aspects of living spaces, digital solutions to create innovative approaches to address the issues of the built environment.
Laura Woods, Director of The Forge, Teesside University’s business hub, said: “Since MOBI was launched earlier this month it has well and truly captured the public imagination.
“It’s an exciting, ground-breaking venture, and we’re looking forward to working with employers to help them get the most from it.”
The MOBI employers event takes place on Tuesday, 23 May, from 5.30pm to 7.00pm in The Curve at Teesside University. Anyone who would like to attend the free event can register here – www.mobi-tu.eventbrite.co.uk/.
The first freight train of material for the construction of a new polyhalite mine in North Yorkshire has arrived in Teesside.
The train, which was carrying some of the aggregates needed for the project arrived at logistics expert, AV Dawson’s Teesside freight terminal, where it was unloaded for onward delivery by road to the site.
The ambitious £2.4bn Sirius Minerals project includes the construction of the recently named Woodsmith Mine near Whitby and a 23-mile tunnel to transport the mined ore to processing and harbour facilities on Teesside.
Sirius Minerals, the company behind the project, has almost completed highways works to improve access to the mine, with construction at the site set to start imminently ready for the mine’s planned opening in 2021. The project will create over 1,000 jobs once it’s operational and around 2,000 construction jobs.
AV Dawson is providing its logistics expertise and local knowledge to support Sirius Minerals and several contractors involved in the construction of the facility, which at full production is forecast to produce 20m tonnes of polyhalite per year – generating £2.5bn in exports and contributing £2.3bn to UK GDP.
Neil McShane, AV Dawson rail manager said: “Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of aggregates are needed for a project of this size. With these volumes we’re keen to promote rail wherever we can for the increased efficiencies and environmental benefits it can provide.
“We’ve been in discussion with the various teams involved in this project for a while now. It’s really exciting to see this first train bringing aggregates into our rail terminal in preparation for the start of construction when this incredible project for the region actually becomes a reality.
“We’re on hand to support the project in a number of ways, including rail and road haulage, importing material through our quayside and also providing a stockpiling facility to allow Sirius to better manage supply of aggregate by road to the site.”
Bold and ambitious plans to drive forward Middlesbrough’s economic resurgence were formally launched on Monday, March 13.
The strategy – spearheaded by Elected Mayor Dave Budd and Middlesbrough Council Chief Executive Tony Parkinson – will see the town transformed through investments totalling almost £700 million.
Over the next four years the Council is committed to an injection of £74 million into a series of exciting developments as part of the town’s far-reaching Investment Prospectus.
This confidence in Middlesbrough’s growing stature as the city heart of the Tees Valley will act as a catalyst for the creation of 5,000 new jobs in the town, in tandem with more than £600 million of inward investment from the private sector and other parts of the public sector.
Plans to shape the town’s future as the economic, cultural and leisure heart of the region were first unveiled at the end of 2016, and March 2017 saw the strategy formally launched to key stakeholders, business leaders and opinion formers.
At an event at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium, Mr Parkinson and Mayor Budd were joined by guest speakers including Boro Chairman Steve Gibson, Paul Swinney of leading think tank the Centre for Cities, and developer Mark Ashall.
The event also saw the official launch of the new Invest Middlesbrough website which acts as a ‘one-stop shop’ for entrepreneurs, businesses and employers looking to play a role in the town’s growth.
Speaking ahead of the official launch, Chief Executive Tony Parkinson said: “Over the last few years this Council has helped facilitate a transformational regeneration programme that has delivered a purpose-built Sports Village, a world-class university campus, the restoration of Acklam Hall, Teesside Advanced Manufacturing Park, numerous town centre developments, and one of the most ambitious house building programmes in its history.
“But our ambitions are not limited to what has already been achieved – the focus of the Investment Prospectus is firmly on the next phase of regeneration, enterprise and job creation.
“We have a proven track record as a forward-thinking, strategic facilitator for the area, and that is already giving major investors the confidence that they will find the support they need to thrive and grow their businesses in the economic heart of a vibrant Tees Valley city environment.
“Middlesbrough is well and truly open for business, and we and our partners are looking the future with considerable confidence and optimism.”
Developments featured in the Investment Prospectus include a £30 million snow centre at Middlehaven, a 450-bed student village linked to Teesside University, a brand new Media and Innovation Village, and Grade A town centre office space.
New regeneration will transform more than 57 hectares of land, with the development of an estimated 1.7 million sq ft of new business accommodation.
Mayor Budd said: “Middlesbrough has embarked on an important new era which will draw on its rich heritage and drive it forward as a beacon of 21st Century ambition and prosperity.
“This Investment Prospectus clearly lays out the priorities which will enable us to become a major destination for visitors and investors alike.
“Over the coming months and years, we will attract cutting edge enterprise, accelerate forward-thinking regeneration, and deliver the services a modern city demands.
“Above all these are realistic and deliverable transformations – many of them already well in train – and they will underpin Middlesbrough’s long-term future as the vibrant heart of the Tees Valley City Region.”
Middlesbrough is open for business – and looking forward to the future with ever-growing confidence and ambition.
The Mayor’s 2025 Vision puts Middlesbrough firmly at the heart of the Tees Valley City Region, and competing with cities across the UK and further afield.
With 100 miles separating Leeds to the south and Newcastle to the north, Middlesbrough is ideally placed at the midpoint to further develop its status as a major economic centre.
The town’s capacity to grow and prosper depends on its ability to continue to attract the new businesses, entrepreneurs and investment that will drive job creation and long-term prosperity.
The Council plays a critical role in facilitating and financially supporting delivery through developing investment models and working with the Tees Valley Combined Authority to stimulate investment.
The town is ripe for investment and development, with highly competitive land prices compared with other cities reflecting Middlesbrough’s early steps on a journey that will establish its reputation as a regional powerhouse.
With the full backing of the Council, major private sector-led investments are already bringing about a change in the town’s ambition and aspiration, with the economic growth across the borough clear for all to see.
Over the last few years Middlesbrough Council has enabled a transformational regeneration programme characterised by contemporary architecture, pioneering entrepreneurial spirit and forward thinking investment to take place.
This Investment Prospectus reflects on a number of recent successes, more than £74 million of direct Council investment, and lays out the ambitions and priorities that will take Middlesbrough on to the next phase in its journey.
The Council’s vision, which builds on the work already under way, is underpinned by a commitment to creating sustained economic growth, high quality jobs and thriving communities.
Critical to this is the ambition to inspire, upskill and connect Middlesbrough’s people to the new opportunities created.
This is a hugely exciting time for a town on the verge of great things, and we look forward to forging the new partnerships that help turn dreams into reality.
Middlesbrough Council is investing £74 million over the next four years to facilitate the delivery of each of the major initiatives contained within this prospectus, and will continue to use its land and assets to create economic growth, good quality jobs and prosperity for the people of Middlesbrough.
