Brains and beauty

Cumbria boasts the perfect package of brains and beauty. While the lure of The Lake District continues to put the county on top of tourist itineraries around the world, the opportunities that are arising for industry are just as attractive

West Lakes Renaissance is the urban regeneration company for Furness and West Cumbria – an area globally renowned for skills and expertise in the nuclear, maritime, engineering and manufacturing industries.
These assets are being used as the foundation on which to build a more prosperous future for local communities and businesses. Through two of the biggest and most ambitious regeneration projects taking place in the United Kingdom, West Lakes Renaissance is also creating exciting opportunities for developers.

West Lakes Renaissance is working alongside partners to transform West Cumbria into Britain’s Energy Coast - a centre of excellence in energy research and production. The Britain’s Energy Coast Masterplan is a £2bn package of projects that will use the decommissioning of Sellafield to strengthen the area’s world-leading nuclear status in nuclear, while at the same time diversify the local economy and improve facilities for local people.

Projects include a state-of-the-art training facilities for young scientists; a £100m acute hospital specialising in toxicology, radiation and epidemiology; £30m worth of road improvements; and more than £150m worth of improvements to housing, town centres, cultural, leisure and sporting facilities.

Not only will Britain’s Energy Coast create 16,000 new jobs and opportunities for business growth, but it will also have much wider implications. The Masterplan may act locally but its focus is of global significance. Not only will it make West Cumbria a great place to live, learn, work, relax and visit but it will also offer the UK Government with an important contribution towards meeting the twin challenge of energy security and climate change.

Commanding awe-inspiring views of Morecambe Bay, the shipping town of Barrow-in-Furness is also embarking on an exciting renaissance. New multi-million orders for submarines and air craft carriers; doubled with a recent revival in manufacturing as bought a buzz back to Barrow.

West Lakes Renaissance is playing its role by transforming 90 acres of redundant dockland into a thriving new community, boasting 650 new homes, multi-use business park, a leisure marina, watersports centre, shops, restaurants, a hotel and wetland nature reserve.

The Waterfront Barrow-in-Furness marks a bold new future for Cumbria’s second largest urban centre. It will provide local people with a better variety of housing; help meet the huge demand for business space and improve facilities for local people and visitors alike.

The £200m project is at the very heart of the town’s regeneration and aligns with substantial improvements to the town centre, in terms of both facilities and access, and with the significant support that is being given to help youngsters and the unemployed into work.

As with Britain’s Energy Coast, The Waterfront Barrow-in-Furness is a holistic approach to regeneration and is much more than just new buildings. Regeneration is about people and, with this in mind West Lakes Renaissance continues to strive to improve the lives for the proud communities it serves.

For more information on the work of West Lakes Renaissance visit our brand new website www.westlakesrenaissance.co.uk