Yorkshire & Humber – on the way back

After years of decline and despondency in many parts of the Yorkshire & Humber Region following the decline of the traditional industries, such as coal and steel, the region has rebounded back with a vengeance in the last 10 years or so

Major cities and towns are awash with tower cranes as new developments are delivered. Many can now see an exciting future with regenerated areas bringing new culture, leisure and service industry employment.

On the fringes of the major towns and cities, opportunities have been taken to create new employment zones in business parks. Whilst aesthetics and appearance may have been lacking on some projects it is clear that more imaginative and bold initiatives are being taken.

On the Rotherham - Sheffield border near to junction 33 of the M1 is the Advanced Manufacturing Park. A product of a joint venture between landowners UK Coal Mining Ltd and Yorkshire Forward.

Realising that the UK's manufacturing sector cannot effectively compete on volume and price with overseas, the AMP is bringing together a high tech cluster of businesses in the metals and advanced manufacturing sector.

The site has already attracted some major players in this area such as Castings Technology International and T.W.I. – the two companies at the leading edge of R & D in castings and welding research. The AMP also saw the establishment of the research joint venture between the University of Sheffield and Boeing.

The AMP is soon to be complemented by more commercial development as UK Coal implements its further permission for 650,000 sq ft of space approved recently by Rotherham MBC.

Across the rest of the South Yorkshire Region major investment continues to regenerate and improve areas.
In Sheffield, the home of Nabarro, major improvements already that have happened around the City's station, Millennium Galleries and Peace Gardens are being followed by Hammerson's £500m new Retail Quarter Scheme.In Rotherham new business parks such as Brookfields Park and the Callflex Business Park continue to attract new occupiers.

In Doncaster the confidence can be felt in a town that now boasts an international airport and new sports stadium. Many new business locations, whether for storage and distribution or mixed use, continue to enhance business and employment opportunities.

In Barnsley the core of the town is to be regenerated with the Barnsley Markets Project whilst on the edge of the town major new developments, such as, the Prologis's 525,000 sq ft distribution centre on the site of the former Houghton Main Colliery has recently been completed.

Many new challenges will continue to raise themselves - interest rates, world competition, climate change, housing costs - to name but a few.

But more than ever before the private enterprise culture coupled with effective partnership working with the public sector will in many areas be the best way to address many of these.

Yorkshire & Humber is certainly an area where the hard work and determination of both the public and private sectors to put the area again on the world stage for excellence and to revive former areas of decline is demonstrably paying off.