Ambitious plans for County Durham business park could create 3,200 jobs and boost economy by £495m

A new retail park could create more than 3,000 jobs and boost the economy by millions of pounds.

Forrest Park Newton Aycliffe Ltd has lodged plans to deliver a £140m business park that will have more than 1.75 million sq ft of accommodation.

The firm, supported by property developer Richardson Barberry, has applied to Durham County Council for outline planning consent for the expansion of Aycliffe Business Park in the 116-acre Forrest Park site located on junction 59 of the A1.

The proposals include a range of business, industrial and distribution units that vary in size from 30,000 sq ft to 50,000 sq ft; a trade park consisting of 11 units from 5,000 sq ft to 10,000 sq ft; a road side food outlet; a pub and restaurant and there is potential for a rail freight interchange.

If given the go-ahead, it is expected to create 3,200 jobs and could boost the local economy by £495m over the next 10 to 15 years.

Jonathan Robinson, Barberry Developments director, said: "It has been a pleasure working alongside Forrest Park Newton Aycliffe and we are excited at the prospect of delivering one of the North East’s premier business parks and it’s great that we have reached the stage where the proposals are now with the planners for them to consider.

"Working alongside Durham County Council, the Forrest family and the Local Enterprise Partnership, our vision is to create a business park that provides a wide range of high quality accommodation to attract major investment and jobs to the region."

Aycliffe Business Park is home to around 500 companies and around 10,000 employees.

The preparatory groundworks, site infrastructure including new substation, service connections and highways improvements known as the Forrest Park enabling works began in 2016 and have now been completed.

The development has secured £13m funding from the Local Enterprise Partnership, which plays a key role in deciding the economic priorities in the area.

Mr Robinson added: "The LEP funding clearly illustrates a valuable commitment to fast-tracking the new infrastructure improvements, including a new 24MW primary substation, connecting services, and a new highways access that will enable us to bring forward the development pipeline and investment necessary to attract occupiers and new jobs to the North East."

Councillor Carl Marshall, Durham County Council's cabinet member for economic regeneration, said it was a major milestone towards delivering thousands of jobs to the Newton Aycliffe area.

He added: "This is a joint venture between the council and the Forrest family, and is just one of a number of sites the council is bringing forward to help deliver long-term economic growth and prosperity for the people of County Durham."

Ben Holmes, director on behalf of Richardson, said it will be the fourth major project in the region, having already delivered two phases at Freemans Reach in Durham and the Milburngate project.

He added: "Richardson and Barberry have a successful and longstanding relationship that spans over 35 years, having completed numerous developments together.

"We are very much looking forward to working together again to deliver 1.75 million sq ft of employment space.”

A planning decision on the application is expected in April.