Derby’s regeneration magazine issue number two
P perspective ★
Derby’s hotel boom page 23 office projects in pipeline page 33 keeping Derby moving page 39 the heritage factor page 46
issue 02 two
contents 04 news All the latest
23
regeneration news from Derby
08 markets Facts and figures from Derby’s residential, commercial and retail sectors
10 projects
An update on the past, present and future projects that are shaping Derby’s city centre
0
10
23 hotels With boutique hotels opening in the city centre more people are set to discover Derby’s delights
28 rail One of the city’s major employers. Trains have played a large part in Derby’s history
33 office space A look
at the office developments that will change the city centre
39 transport A series of plans will improve transport in and around Derby
43 education Major
Quote of the issue: “Why isn’t the rest of Britain like Derby?” Jeremy Paxman
changes are under way to upgrade Derby’s educational facilities
46 cathedral quarteR The renaissance of the city’s historic quarter
50 contacts Who to contact about Derby’s regeneration
P perspective ★
33
Executive editor: Kirsty MacAulay kirsty@3foxinternational.com Features editor: Alex Aspinall alex@3foxinternational.com Art director: Terry Hawes terry@3foxinternational.com Advertisement sales: Paul Gussar paul@3foxinternational.com Office manager: Sue Mapara sue@3foxinternational.com Managing director: Toby Fox toby@3foxinternational.com Published by: Lower Ground Floor, 189 Lavender Hill, London SW11 5TB T: 020 7978 6840 Subscriptions and feedback: www.derbyperspective.com Printed by: Manson Images: Derby Cityscape, Marketing Derby, www.visitpeakdistrict.com, Graham Lucas Commons, Simon Bolton, Balfour Beatty Rail Technologies. Front cover images: Cathedral Quarter, Bombardier, Derby station redevelopment
© 3Fox International Limited 2009. All material is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission of 3Fox International Limited is strictly forbidden. The greatest care has been taken to ensure accuracy of information in this magazine at the time of going to press, but we accept no responsibility for omissions or errors. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of 3Fox International Limited or Derby Cityscape.
news
Update TRANSPORT
The latest news and what’s happening in Derby city centre’s £2 billion regeneration programme
CULTURE
New bus station
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A £10 million state-of-the-art bus station will replace Derby’s old 1930s facility, the first purposebuilt bus station in the country, on the banks of the River Derwent this autumn. The new station is part of the vast Riverlights development in the heart of the city centre that will include two hotels – the 100-bed Hampton, by the Hilton Group, and a 110-bed Holiday Inn – as well as a casino, cafes, bars and restaurants. “We are on course for the work to be completed in the timescales set out,” said Derby Riverlights director David Osborne. “I think we can say that, with recent market difficulties, it is a credit to everyone involved.”
Culture vulture
Currently under construction Derby’s new state-of-theart bus station, part of the Riverlights development, will open this October.
Derby’s new centre for art and film, QUAD, which opened in September 2008, has fast become an integral part of the city centre’s entertainment offer and even boasts local born actor John Hurt as patron. Located in the Market Place at the heart of the Cathedral Quarter over 100,000 people have already visited QUAD in the first six months since its opening. The striking building, winner of the new build category at the Brighter City of Derby awards in February, houses cinemas, a gallery,
workshop and café bar. During March and April FORMAT09 international photography festival took residency at QUAD and other venues throughout the city displaying the work of over a hundred photographers and filmmakers with exhibitions, talks, screenings and special events. The arts centre also took part in a Shakespeare-inspired series of events including film, live performances and community workshops that took place across the city.
‘Over 100,000 people visited QUAD in the first six months it was open’
Big is best Derby City Council has given planning permission for the creation of the biggest building within the city boundary. Goodman Group has received approval for a 111,000sq m warehouse – the jewel in the crown of Goodman’s 72-hectare, £175 million Derby Commercial Park. Goodman plans to build several units on the park but Unit L will be by far the largest, covering the same area as 16 football pitches, making it ideal for distribution companies. It is hoped the park will offer space for car showrooms and offices as well as industrial units. Although Goodman has yet to commit to a construction timetable it has confirmed the first phase will involve infrastructure improvements including a £20 million dual-carriageway link, which will start this spring. It is hoped the development could bring 3,000 new jobs to the city.
Inspiring work Derby City Partnership has put together a unique week of events, designed to showcase Derby at its best. Inspiring Derby will take place over the week of 22-28 June 2009, and will feature events to tempt everyone in the city. The activities are intended to demonstrate the strength of partnership working, and what has already been achieved as part of the city’s continued regeneration. Events, ranging from digital film training sessions, to coffee mornings, and community theatre shows will draw people into the city centre this summer.
£334m
DISTRIBUTION
new hospital on the former Derby City General Hospital site will open this year.
Derby County’s Pride Park Stadium hosted the women’s 2009 FA Cup final match on the May day bank holiday. Arsenal won 2-1 against Sunderland and 23,291 people attended the game.
PUBLIC REALM
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Public realm strategy Derby Cityscape’s plans for the public realm in the city have got off to a good start with the completion of Cathedral Green and the grand opening of its new swing bridge in early April this year. At the start of 2006 Derby Cityscape commissioned Urban Initiatives to prepare a public realm strategy for the city centre, to run alongside the masterplan. The aim is to enhance the identity of the city through the best possible public spaces, something which has undoubtedly been achieved at Cathedral Green, the £3.8 million first stage of the programme. The first phase saw the upgrade of the public realm at Cathedral Green and installation of a swing bridge linking new housing developments with the city centre.
Dean & Dyball’s Midlands Office led the team which included award winning bridge architects Whitby Bird and landscape designers RPS. Derby Cityscape chief executive John Cadwallader explained: “The bridge and improvements to the surrounding Cathedral Green area are important aspects of our public realm strategy and the plans to build more than 5,000 new homes in the city centre. This bridge will link major new housing schemes within the heart of the city centre and will become a gateway to the new public space between the cathedral and the Silk Mill – UNESCO World Heritage Trail.” Landscaping in the area around the bridge was completed this spring and the bridge was officially opened in April.
Update
Friar gate square Developer Lowbridge is leading plans for a new office development and public square in the Friar Gate area. The project will comprise
two office buildings creating over 9,000sq m of space on the site, which is currently derelict, between Friar Gate and Agard Street. Lowbridge’s scheme will
HOTELS
PROFILE
MIPIM comes to town
Boutique boost 0
Derby’s second boutique hotel has opened its doors. The Hallmark Hotel Derby, opposite the train station, has been refurbished by Hallmark Hotels offering four-star luxury throughout its 102-bedrooms, brasserie and function rooms.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Good eggs One of Derby’s major employers, Egg (owned by banking giant Citi Group), gave something back to the community through its Mission Possible project last September. Five charities and community groups benefited from the Ground Force challenge and Changing Rooms style makeovers. Five teams from Egg’s office on Pride Park in Derby undertook five challenges in five days. Paths were dug up and re-laid, gardens
also incorporate a pedestrian link to Friar Gate Railway Bridge. Subject to planning approval the developers intend to start construction in 2010.
and allotments weeded, reeds planted and trees coppiced as challenges were undertaken at Alvaston United Reform Church, Derwent Green Gym and St Chad’s Nature Reserve. Meanwhile a Changing Rooms style makeover was run at the Derby Ukrainian centre, with the main hall being given a lick of paint to freshen it up in keeping with the work being carried out to improve the entrance area.
Decision makers were treated to an exhibition of the major investment opportunities Derby has to offer at this year’s Derby Property and Investment Show, which took place at Pride Park in the city centre in May 2009. The event, which came hot on the heels of the famed international property show MIPIM, which is held annually in Cannes, and is a great opportunity for the city to showcase its future development strategies, and to prove why it is still a great place to invest even in the current economic climate. Sponsors Derby Cityscape and Marketing Derby were in attendance, along with an interesting mixture of professional service providers. John Forkin, director of Marketing Derby said: “We use the event as a follow-up for the people we meet at MIPIM in March. This event is also about maintaining contact with national and regional developers, so they stay informed about where we are at, what’s happening in the city, and why the city of Derby is still a good investment prospect.”
markets
Vital statistics The statistics behind Derby’s office, retail and leisure markets. David Gray reports
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Derby has not escaped the national economic downturn, but the city has strengths that make it more resilient than many other places. The local economy is underpinned by the continuing success of Rolls-Royce and Bombardier. According to Nick Hosking, director of property consultants Innes England, the reason Derby is holding up better than the rest of the East Midlands is because these two companies and their local suppliers have provided demand for employment plus office and industrial space.
Residential market The average house sale price in January was £106,860, down 16% on a year earlier, just above the average annual decrease of 15.1%. Much more positive, however, is the comparative affordability of residential property, almost certainly a factor behind Derby’s high rate of home ownership.
Derby’s masterplan anticipates 5,000 new homes in the city centre. The first phase of the £22 million scheme for 180 eco-friendly apartments in King Street is due to start this summer and plans for the new Castleward Urban Village are forging ahead.
Office market Derby’s office market held up well in 2008. Innes England’s Market Insite survey found that continued demand for and lack of supply of high-quality office accommodation meant Derby rents increased from £14-14.50 to £16-16.50 per sq ft over the past year. Planning consent has been granted for the £92 million, grade A office development in North Castleward. Norseman Investments expects work to start on the 400,000sq ft project early 2010.
Retail and leisure market
profile in the past two years, particularly with the arrival of Westfield. The centre had 25 million visitors in 2008 and, despite the recession, footfall in January 2009 was almost 12% up on the previous year. Experian reports Derby’s retail vacancy rate in March 2009 is lower than the national level of 9.5%. DTZ’s Retail Spotlight for end-2008 shows zone A premises in Derby costing just £155 per square foot, less than Leicester, Nottingham and Birmingham. Derby’s masterplan places a high priority on boosting the city’s leisure facilities. The Cathedral Quarter Hotel is complete as is Hallmark Hotel Derby and the new Jury’s Inn opens this summer. QUAD opened in 2008 and the £43 million restoration of Derby College’s Roundhouse will finish this autumn. The £3.8 million refurbishment of Cathedral Green is complete and the first phase of Station Boulevard is about to begin.
The city centre has strengthened its retail
‘The local economy is underpinned by the continuing success of Rolls-Royce and Bombardier’
Facts and figures
£ Average annual earnings 2008 City
Top five cities for employment growth
Derby Coventry Birmingham UK
Average annual wage £26,988 £26,388 £22,800 £23,244
Source: Centre for International Competitiveness 2008/9
Wakefield
Derby
Milton Keynes
Blackburn
Aberdeen
7.8%
7.5%
6.3%
5.4%
5.1%
Source: Centre for Cities 2009
What they say about Derby… “Why isn’t the rest of Britain like Derby?” Jeremy Paxman
“Derby offers a different vision of Britain’s future. RollsRoyce has transformed itself, blurring the line between making things and offering services, suggesting a British manufacturing renaissance” The Economist, January 2009
“The city has been an economic success story this decade, thanks to such big employers as Bombardier and Toyota” The Financial Times, February 2009 0
“Derby: Marvel of the Midlands” The independent, August 2008
“Derby has a diverse economy and is better placed than most to deal with recession as well as being a city which will take advantage of boom times” Handelsbanken, January 2009
Comparison of prime office space City Derby Nottingham Leeds Manchester Birmingham
Rental psf end-2008 £16.50 £18.75 £26.00 £30.00 £32.50
Sources: Innes England (Derby) and King Sturge (Nottingham, Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham), 2009
U
Train times from Derby London – 1hr 33mins Leeds – 1hr 20 mins Paris – 3hr 55 mins Birmingham – 40 mins Sheffield – 35 mins
House prices in Derby Detached
Derby City England and Wales
£204,725 £244,657
Semi-detached
£102,133 £145,867
Terraced
£71,325 £121,758
Flats/maisonettes
£69,034 £145,384
All properties
£106,860 £156,753
Source: Land Registry house price index, 2009
projects/development guide
10
An overview of the major development projects that are shaping Derby’s city centre – and its future
jurys inn Another new hotel for the city centre (p16).
CATHEDRAL green The first phase of a major public realm programme is now complete (p13).
riverlights The first phase of this major project, the new bus station, is set for completion this autumn (p16).
central square Work will start on Bolsterstone’s £30 million landmark office building towards the end of this year (p17).
No1 Cathedral green Wilson Bowden’s office project designed by Maber architects (p18).
QUAD Derby’s state-of-the-art cultural centre has been a roaring success (p15).
cathedral Quarter hotel The city’s first boutique hotel is the first in a series of hotels to set its sights on Derby (p13).
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NOR TH
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roundhouse Derby College’s newest campus is well underway and set for completion in September (p14).
castleward Plans are taking shape for Derby’s new urban village (p20).
westfield A major upgrade for Derby’s retail offer, footfall has increased since Westfield opened last year (p15).
city gate house Planning permission has been granted for Cedar House Investment’s office based scheme (p18).
onederby Derby’s biggest office scheme, 37,000sq m, now has planning permission (p18).
sadler square Blueprint’s mixed-use development will create 4,200sq m of office space (p16).
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projects/complete
Cathedral Quarter Hotel The changing face of the city has forced hoteliers to reconsider Derby as a location capable of supporting top quality developments. And the city’s first boutique hotel, situated at the heart of the reinvigorated Cathedral Quarter, provides an excellent case in point. Located in the refurbished grade II listed former police station, the 38-bed Cathedral Quarter Hotel brings a new level of sophistication to Derby along with a 150-seat fine dining restaurant, cocktail bar, chef’s table, spa and meeting rooms. The hotel has added considerably to the Cathedral Quarter, which itself is reclaiming its position as one of the most interesting and dynamic areas of the city centre.
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Cathedral Green New, and improved, public spaces may not grab headlines in the way that new buildings do but they can have a great impact on the everyday lives of local people. And there can be few better examples of this than Derby’s newly unveiled £4 million Cathedral Green redevelopment, which has introduced new seating, terracing and paving alongside a new bridge. The area now provides a fitting public realm between two of Derby’s prized assets – the UNESCO World Heritage Site at the Silk Mill and the cathedral itself. Forming a large part of the reinvigoration of the Cathedral Quarter, Cathedral Green now provides a high quality, vibrant public space linking the historic quarter with Stuart Street via a new swing bridge, which opened in April. A name for the bridge has yet to be decided the council are currently canvassing public opinion on the subject.
continued overleaf
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projects/complete
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Derby College Roundhouse Campus
Derby College’s newest campus will open in September 2009.
Derby College unveils its new Roundhouse campus this September 2009. The building forms a significant part of the college’s exciting £43 million regeneration scheme. The 18,000sq m campus, located at Pride Park, will provide the backdrop for 12,000 students studying a range of full and part-time courses, from engineering and construction to hair and beauty, and is set to provide students with a greater opportunity for success. David Croll, principal of Derby College, says: “The Roundhouse campus will be the flagship for the college providing students with a 21st century learning experience with all the latest facilities set in an inspiring environment.” In addition to providing the college with a new focal point, the redevelopment sees one of the city’s historic buildings being brought back into use. The creation
of the new campus has allowed buildings originally used for steam engine repairs to be given a new lease of life. Restoring the once derelict grade II listed buildings to their former glory was a slow but rewarding process for those involved. The restoration work was undertaken by construction and development company Bowmer and Kirkland, as part of a major programme of restoration mapped out by Maber Architects. Steven Chambers, area director of Bowmer and Kirkland, says: “Our work on the Roundhouse has taken the best part of a year and it has been a labour of love for many of our contractors as traditional skills and knowledge have been required to refurbish the building to its former glory. It has been the most fascinating project to work on and it is extremely rewarding to know that we are restoring the whole site for future generations to appreciate.”
QUAD Another development in the Cathedral Quarter is Derby’s new centre for art and film, QUAD. The iconic £11 million development, located on the edge of the Market Place, offers state-of-the-art facilities, including an art gallery, cinemas, a café bar and workshop space open to the community. February 2009 saw celebrations at QUAD, as Derbyshire-born veteran actor John Hurt was announced as the centre’s new patron. The BAFTA-winning actor’s involvement in the centre speaks volumes for the quality of its contribution to the arts in Derby. Hurt comments: “I was delighted when Keith Jeffrey asked me to be the patron of QUAD. It is thrilling to be involved in such an exciting venture in my old county town. I only wish that I had been able to avail myself of its facilities when I was young. QUAD has already proved itself to be a world class centre for artistic endeavour and I hope that my involvement, in some small way, will help to spread that message.”
Westfield Derby
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Since its opening in 2007, the £340 million Westfield Derby shopping centre has been responsible for transforming the city’s retail offer. Trading conditions are obviously difficult around the country at present, but Westfield Derby appears to be weathering the storm better than most, having reported an 11% increase in the number of shoppers coming through the doors in January 2009, compared with the same month last year. The centre is now one of the 10 most visited shopping centres in the UK according to Property Week.
continued overleaf
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projects/present
16
Riverlights
Sadler Square
Jurys Inn
This development by local company Derby Riverlights will transform the west bank of the river. The new bus station, the first phase of the project, is already well under way and taking shape. The station will open in October this year. The second phase will encompass two hotels, which are due for completion by June 2010. Alongside the hotels will be a casino, retail space, restaurants and cafes plus apartments and 13,500sq m of office space. Director of Derby Riverlights David Osbourne says: “Even in the current climate we’re extremely pleased with the way things are moving.”
After securing planning permission last year, the site of Blueprint’s Sadler Square development has been a hive of activity, with ongoing archaeological and demolition work being carried out. The mixed-use development, which has been designed to aid the continued regeneration of the Cathedral Quarter, was the brainchild of architects Ash Sakula providing 4,200sq m of office space and retail units. Blueprint is keen to see progress on the site, and has high hopes for the project despite current economic conditions, citing its excellent location as being a significant feather in its cap. Peter Connolly, development director at Blueprint, says: “Location is something that we take as a priority in regeneration. This is an absolutely spoton location at the end of Sadler Gate, at the end of the speciality area, close to creative businesses. It is ideal. Everything you could ever want in a city centre is within a three-minute walk.” After the archaeological work is complete, attention will switch to marketing and packaging the scheme. It is hoped that building work will begin on site by the end of the year.
Derby’s hotel revolution continues, with the arrival of another 213 bedrooms in the guise of Jurys Inn’s first Derbybased hotel, which was due to open as Perspective went to press. The development, on King Street, will create up to 80 jobs and will include a restaurant, bar and an Il Barista coffee shop, which it is hoped will bring vibrancy to the area immediately surrounding the hotel. Derby has been on the Jurys Inn radar for some time but the company waited for the right site to become available. But now the time has come, they are delighted to be moving into the city. Rachel Strange, general manager of Jurys Inn Derby, explains the background behind the move, and sheds some light on why hotels are starting to flock to Derby. “Derby is a vibrant, busy city with a fantastic heritage and an exciting future, so it’s a perfect fit for Jurys Inn. And as England’s most central city, with excellent road links, rail service and close proximity to East Midlands and Birmingham International Airport, Derby is obviously a great location to have a hotel. The £2 billion being invested in Derby as part of its regeneration programme is also bound to increase the number of businesses in the area.”
projects/future
Despite being home to high profile businesses, such as RollsRoyce and Bombardier, Derby has not been noted for its city centre office accommodation. But all that is set to change. In addition to the developments already delivered and onsite, there are several high profile office developments set to significantly enhance Derby’s business appeal.
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Central Square Bolsterstone’s £12.4 million Central Square development will deliver 4,700sq m of grade A office space in the heart of the city centre. The five-storey landmark office building will accommodate either a single occupier or several smaller businesses with office space ranging from 232sq m upwards. The u-shaped building will incorporate a central entrance and double height reception area. Bolsterstone believes the development will add much needed quality office accommodation to Derby’s city centre. “It is fair to say that there is a shortage of grade A office space in the city centre, and that
is why the applications have been coming forward,” says Steve Jones Central Square project manager. “Pride Park is nearing completion, and there are only a limited number of opportunities left there. It is an undoubted success, but there are benefits from working in the city centre. It is a different product entirely, and it is a more sustainable location.” Discussions are currently taking place with potential tenants, and work is expected to begin on-site towards the end of 2009, with completion anticipated by the close of 2010.
This £12.4 million project is just one of several office developments set to transform Derby’s city centre.
continued overleaf
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projects/future
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Above: OneDerby will create over 37,000sq m of muchneeded grade A office space.
OneDerby The city’s relevance as a major business destination received a boost with the announcement that planning permission has been given to Norseman Investments’ ambitious 37,000sq m office development. The green light from the council means the £92 million scheme will become the largest office development in the city, covering a three acre-site opposite Westfield, sitting between Siddals Road and Copeland Street. The development will include six office buildings, retail, leisure, underground car parking and a 104bed three-star hotel. Norseman’s development is the first phase of regeneration for the Castleward area, where there are big plans to create a new urban village. With floorplates of over 3,200sq m the office development will provide space suitable for a headquarters, something the city has been lacking. Russell Rigby, director of Rigby and Co says: “This will at long last give Derby a city centre scheme capable of accommodating a large-scale relocation.”
Number One Cathedral Green This £43 million mixed-use project will provide 8,825sq m of grade A office space. Designed by Maber architects and developed by Wilson Bowden the contemporary glass structure will feature retail space on the ground floor and four floors of office space.
City Gate House Planning permission has been granted for Cedar House Investment’s £14 million development of 5,300sq m of office space within a glass clad block. The four-storey building will incorporate retail space on the ground floor and it is hoped building work could start towards the end of this year.
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Target BREEAM excellent Opposite the new Westfield Shopping Centre Walking distance to the train and new bus station
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Contact: Steve Salloway 01332 298000
projects/future
CASTLEWARD
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Progress is being made on the regeneration of the strategically important Castleward area. The land between the train station and the city centre has long been the subject of speculation but, with the news that the contract to select a developer to take the site forward is going out to OJEU as this magazine went to press, meaningful progress is clearly being made. The city’s masterplan sees Castleward transformed into a desirable urban village, boasting tree-lined boulevards and in excess of 1,200 residential units, of mixed tenure. It is a long-term project set to dramatically improve a considerable area on the edge of the city centre, and forms a significant part of the city’s overall regeneration strategy. John Cadwallader, chief executive of Derby Cityscape, says: “We really want to make Castleward an area of significance, building on the quality of the housing that already exists down there in the form of the listed former railway workers cottages. For the people that live there, Castleward is very important. We want to give them the opportunity to move into larger accommodation, enabling them to continue living in the area they are currently, and have their families grow up there.” There is an emphasis on ensuring Castleward becomes a successful, sustainable neighbourhood but before that long-term vision becomes a reality a development partner must be selected. Getting this decision right will be among the most important stages of transforming Castleward, and Derby Cityscape has drafted in Knight Frank to advise on marketing and developer procurement. The net is being cast far and wide, with European law dictating that all contracts for public-owned development be advertised across Europe. This process is likely to take around 12 months, but it seems appropriate
given the magnitude of the project. Jon Pinkerton, partner at Knight Frank, says: “What is going to be important in selecting a developer is choosing someone that understands and signs up to the vision for Castleward that has been developed through the masterplan. There is a very clear vision of what they want to achieve, it is a very ambitious, long-term project, and they are looking for a partner. “It will be a partnership, which will redevelop the area on a phased, incremental basis over the next 10 or 15 years. We are
looking for a development partner who is willing to work in a long-term collaborative project. We need someone with the capacity to deliver the vision over the longterm.” Many developers and investors are shying away from residential developments due to the current state of the market, but this problem is not expected to have too large an impact on the redevelopment of Castleward, given its long-term focus. The economic cycle will have had plenty of time to right itself before anyone moves
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Castleward is to become a mixeduse, hub of activity in years to come, and progress is already being made away from the residential developments, with the news that planning permission has been secured by Norseman Investments for what will become Derby’s largest office-based development on the northern edge of Castleward.
into their new homes in Castleward, and no one is too worried about this issue, as John Cadwallader explains. “I am very optimistic about the success of the project because there are some signs that the housing market has stabilised, and that people are looking to buy with prices coming down,” he says. “It will take 12-18 months to get all the agreements signed and get the planning permission in place, so it will be the back end of 2010 when we’re likely to be onsite, and by then people are anticipating
that the market will have at least started moving in the right direction, and that there will be demand to make the take-up good. “The housing market doesn’t stop. It is just a question of having the right price and the right location. A city the size of Derby will always have a level of demand that will sustain a development in a prime location like this.” Pinkerton also believes that the longterm focus of the project should see it steer clear of the perils of the current climate, and is buoyant detailing the optimism he
feels for the future of Castleward. He says: “Castleward is in a great location, right on the edge of the city centre. It is an important route between the station and city centre, which currently is a pretty poor environment. I think the idea of urban living in Derby is very attractive, and the strong economy that Derby has creates a need for some modern urban living, which just does not exist at the moment. The long-term potential of the development is excellent.” ◆
hotels
23
Room at the inn Alex Aspinall finds out why business visitors to Derby are enjoying their stay in the city more than ever and how it is becoming a city break location continued overleaf
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hotels
24
M It is important to let conference organisers know Derby has a lot to offer. The priority is to keep the city’s business meetings in Derby
any UK cities have seen significant hotel investment in recent years and Derby is no exception; a fact many in the city are welcoming given that the number of good quality hotels a city is able to boast is often used as a barometer for how successful a location’s regeneration efforts have been. It stands to reason that the better quality hotel brands are attracted to the more successful cities; places capable of attracting decent tourist and business visitor numbers are likely to offer hotel companies higher profitability. Derby, and particularly its city centre, has not traditionally had an impressive hotel portfolio. But that is changing, and it is testament to how far the city has come over the past few years. In many ways there was always room for hotel-based developments in the city, as options were pretty limited previously. And this has definitely played its part in the growth of the sector, but Derby’s growing reputation as a centre for business has also played a vitally important role in attracting the better quality hotels. James Blick, managing director of the Finesse Collection, which owns the Cathedral Quarter Hotel says: “The increase in the number of hotels in Derby hinges on supply and demand. I started looking at Derby and the surrounding area probably about two or three years ago, and noticed that the demand for hotel accommodation was there
New hotels in Derby Cathedral Quarter Hotel The £5 million Cathedral Quarter Hotel became the city’s first four-star boutique hotel after opening its doors to guests in May 2008. Housed in the shell of the refurbished grade II listed former police station, its 38 rooms have brought a more refined offer to Derby’s hotel portfolio. Jurys Inn June 2009 will see the unveiling of Jurys Inn’s first Derby hotel. Situated a stone’s throw from the revived Cathedral Quarter, the £42 million 213-room hotel will offer a restaurant, a stylish bar and meeting rooms for business use. Hallmark HOTEL DERBy Lovingly restored beyond its former glory, Derby’s oldest hotel has benefited from an impressive £1 million refurbishment. The four-star, 102-bed hotel, built in 1841, is located opposite the city’s train station and proudly retains its Victorian styling. Hampton by hilton Due for completion June 2010 this will be part of the Riverlights development on the banks of the River Derwent. Holiday Inn Also part of the Riverlights development which will comprise casino, apartments, offices, restaurants, bars and retail space.
but that the supply only catered for about 60% of that demand. It was clear that there was a need for more hotels, and specifically at the luxury end of the market. “The number of companies, and commerce in general, in Derby has increased and these companies are serving a very diverse market. The changing skyline and the investment that has been coming into Derby are linked with hotel and accommodation space, and that’s why hotel groups are looking at the city.” Business accommodation is vital for a thriving economic centre and Derby needed a more varied hotel and accommodation offer to capitalise on that market – venues for conferences, for example. Now that the new hotels and venues are coming online, the emphasis is on ensuring Derby is on the radar of businesses and conference organisers: a recent £40,000 initiative printed a quarter of a million copies of a glossy 24-page guide to the city’s attractions. The guide was distributed at shops and visitor attractions in Derby and mailed to targeted areas throughout the country. Visit Peak District’s, chief executive David James is pleased with the city’s progress. “We have a lot better offer now, both for the capacity to offer bed nights and in terms of conference venues, and Marketing Derby and Derby Cityscape have done some great work in bringing these developments to the city,” he says. “You have to market the city as a destination venue for conferences. Nottingham
has traditionally had a stranglehold on this market. That is why it is now important to let conference organisers know that Derby has a lot to offer. “There are a lot of businesses in Derby, and we’d like to keep their meetings in Derbyshire. Even that has been a struggle in the past because of the capacity issues we have had. The number one priority is to keep the city’s business meetings in Derby and the second, harder, goal is attracting people from out of town to come into the city, and perhaps stay overnight.” Building hotels and venues attracts business visitors between Monday and Friday but those hotels need to be filled at weekends too. And Derby has one major advantage on its doorstep: the country’s oldest national park. Derby is a convenient base from which to explore the natural beauty of the Peak District, plus it is close to several other attractions including Donington Park, which will once again host an annual Formula One Grand Prix from July 2010. In addition to these assets outside the city, Derby has the fruits of its extensive regeneration programme with which to entice tourists. The reinvigoration of the historic Cathedral Quarter, which includes a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the arrival of the arts centre QUAD and the opening of the Westfield Derby shopping centre (which alone attracted 25 million visitors in 2008) have all added to the city’s attractions encouraging culture vultures and shoppers alike to visit Derby. This, along with the city’s
Previous page: Cathedral Quarter Hotel’s dramatic entrance. Opposite page top: Jurys Inn, bottom: Riverlights scheme, this page top: Cathedral Quarter Hotel and above: Hallmark Hotel Derby.
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The reasons to come to Derby for a leisure break are increasing. The city’s product is improving much-improved hotel portfolio, is welcomed by those charged with the responsibility of boosting tourism in Derby. “In the past it was widely recognised that the city did not have enough hotel beds,” says Stella Birks, visitor services development manager at Derby City Council. “Now there will be more people and more activity put into attracting people into the city, from both business tourism and from leisure tourism perspectives. “All the hotels have their own mechanisms to attract people into the city, and we will work with them. The increased number of hotels in Derby now means there are more people for us to liaise and work with to spread the right messages. Look at the developments that have already taken place: our retail offer has been significantly improved, our arts and culture offer has also been improved. The city’s product is improving. The reasons to come for a leisure break are increasing all the time and it is down to us to
ensure that these positive messages are getting out there and being heard.” It is testament to how far the city has come in recent years that such aspirations are achievable. There is a great deal of enthusiasm and a new level of optimism among people promoting Derby as a tourist destination. “There have been one or two key people moving things along in the city, with Marketing Derby being right at the centre,” says James at Visit Peak District. “There are people talking the city up for the first time, which is great. The council is open to being progressive, and there are great developments with the city’s regeneration. Without a doubt there is an improvement happening in Derby. Suddenly it is all clicking into place, despite the current climate. It has taken 20 years for the progress to kick in but Derby is now having its day.” ◆
Above: As well as the attractions of the city centre Derby also has stunning countryside on its doorstep.
rail
Right on track 28
For over 150 years, Derby firms have made railways across the UK and throughout the world safer and more efficient. Today, Derby’s rail technology cluster plays a vital role in the city’s wider regeneration. Paul Coleman reports
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ailways might seem like old technology, but even today the rail industry is a hotbed of invention and technological advance. The UK is among the world leaders in the field and the East Midlands accounts for about 25% of the UK’s rail industry, according to innovation manager transport Tony King at East Midlands Development Agency. He says that as many as 250 companies and 7,000 jobs across the East Midlands exist in the rail supply chain. “The rail cluster is incredibly important,” he observes. At the heart of this cluster is Derby, the UK’s preeminent ‘rail city’, a fact celebrated by a plaque at the old locomotive works that read: “Britain’s railways – Derby built”. An estimated 6,000 people are directly employed by Derby’s rail-related companies. The city’s firms include leaders in the growth markets of rolling stock (by far the biggest sector in the rail market, worth about $32 billion between 2003 and 2005, according to UK Trade and Investment) and infrastructure design and construction (another huge and fast-growing market, worth almost $19 billion between 2003-2005) as well as component manufacture, rail engineering consultancy, project management, rail vehicle leasing and train operating companies. The Derby and Derbyshire Rail Forum (DDRF), which claims to represent the world’s largest cluster of rail companies, includes among its 100-plus members big firms such as Bombardier (2,500 employees in Derby), Balfour Beatty Rail, Catalis, Federal-Mogul Ferodo and Halcrow. But well over 50% of the $174 billion worldwide rail industry is accessible to small to medium-sized firms; by supporting dozens of smaller, specialist companies, the sector is particularly beneficial to Derby’s economy. Of course no industry is immune to change and Derby’s focus on rail made it vulnerable to the sharp increase in competition following the privatisation of British Rail during the 1990s. In 1993, BREL (now Bombardier) sought local government assistance in lobbying for new train
This pic: Bombardier’s new Victoria Line underground trains and inset: manufacturing. Opposite page: XiTRACK Balfour Beatty’s track strengthening appliance.
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orders after receiving no orders for 1,064 days. But those years of hardship led to the formation of the DDRF and other initiatives which strengthened Derby’s rail sector and restored its world-beating status. The industry is responding with similar levels of energy to more recent knocks, notably the government decision to award a £7.5 billion order for new Intercity Express Programme trains to Japan. “Dismayed and astounded,” said DDRF chairman Colin Walton at the time. “We are struggling to understand the logic behind this decision at a time when the UK is experiencing the highest level of unemployment in a decade,” added DDRF vice-chairman Peter Roberts. Despite this setback Bombardier has recently won the contract for the construction of 120 carriages for Stansted Express and Derby’s rail cluster is well-placed to take advantage of upcoming rail projects such as Thameslink (which alone could require the manufacture of 1,200 vehicles), Crossrail, and possibly High Speed II. “I’m convinced that the worldbeating experience and expertise within the Forum will help us all overcome these difficulties,” affirms Walton. So why is Derby so integral to the rail industry? The
Below: Hollow sleepers are just one of the many safety products manufactured by Balfour Beatty in Derby.
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rail Left and below: Derby doesn’t just produce trains it is also involved in creating much of the safety equipment required by the rail sector.
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city’s rail roots run deep, back to when the three original rail companies – the North Midland, Midland Counties and the Birmingham and Derby – set up workshops just behind Derby station in 1840. After they merged to become the Midland Railway company in 1844, those workshops gradually expanded into the Locomotive Works, a complex of engine building and repair sheds known locally as The Loco. Derby’s influence spread via the ever-growing Midland Railway company. The Midland commissioned the famous St Pancras terminal in London, complete with Barlow’s famous train shed and Scott’s Gothic Midland Grand Hotel. As Victorians demanded increased train luxury, George Pullman’s celebrated sleeper cars were assembled at The Loco in 1873.
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nother train manufacturing site, the Derby Carriage and Wagon Works, was established off Litchurch Lane in 1873 (now the site of Bombardier’s high-tech train building plant). This expanding concentration of rail engineering investment and skill meant that by 1900 Derby employed 40,000 railway engineers. Rail generated many highly skilled jobs. Ten years after its formation, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway established its scientific research laboratory at Derby. And after rail nationalisation in 1947, Derby was the logical choice for British Rail Transport Commission’s workshops. The Loco came under the control of British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) in 1970 but gradual closure of the workshops followed in the 1990s. Demolition ensued. The end of The Loco meant the dawn of Pride Park, the new home of Derby County FC. The original roundhouse survives, the centrepiece of a £43 million restoration for a new campus for Derby College, a project sensitive to the structure’s rail heritage. And Litchurch Lane remains a rail landmark as Bombardier’s manufacturing site. Trains built in Derby run all over the country. Bombardier’s Electrostar electric multiple units (EMUs) transport commuters to and from London daily. Derbymade Voyagers and Super Voyager diesel electric multiple units (DEMUs) run on cross country services and on the West Coast Main Line. Meridian DEMUs run throughout the East Midlands. Turbostar DMUs remain in service with train operators across the country. Franchise changes also keep the Litchurch Lane paint-shop technicians busy, putting on new liveries for Turbostars and Meridians, for example, when Arriva secured the
Derby and Derbyshire Rail Forum represents the world’s largest cluster of rail companies
cross-country franchise from Virgin Trains in 2007. True, Litchurch Lane isn’t working as flat out as it was during the days when it was producing 19 train vehicles a week at the turn of the century. But despite spare capacity, Bombardier boasted five production lines running during 2008-09, covering both main line railway and underground orders. And the company is busy building 216 class 378 EMUs for London Overground and building and testing 47 eight-car trains for the underground Victoria Line. Last summer, Bombardier secured a massive order for 1,395 subsurface London Underground vehicles. Not forgetting also the 93 class 172 DMUs for London Overground, London Midland and Chiltern and the Gautrain EMUs destined for World Cup service in South Africa in 2010. With all these projects there’s a focus on innovation, on providing lighter trains that stress rails less and offer reduced CO2 emissions and improved fuel consumption. The DDRF itself focuses on challenging its members to optimise the environmental performance of their products and services and Derby’s standing as a centre for rail expertise remains second to none. It is home to Network Rail’s residential signalling training centre and also the site of the new £15 million East Midlands Integrated Control Centre that will control signalling and operations for the entire East Midlands network. Even Derby station itself is looking at improvements worth £32.5 million. With over 150 years of rail technology innovation and output, Derby can be confident of its reputation – and of the benefits that the rail sector brings to the city. If new train manufacturers locate in the UK, they cannot ignore Derby’s rail cluster as a source of reliable and innovative supply. Whatever the future brings, the ability of this army of excellent companies to develop and commercially exploit new rail technology means just one thing: the city of Derby and its wider regeneration effort will be a clear winner. ◆
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Space man Three years ago, Derby was on a final shortlist of two for securing the relocation of the Qualifications Curriculum Authority out of London. The QCA went to Coventry but being pipped at the post was a wake-up call for Derby, where a series of new offices are now coming on-stream. David Blackman reports 33
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erby has a very strong private-sector economic base, despite the current recession. Unlike most other Midlands cities, where the local authority or the health service is the most important employer, in Derby it is Rolls-Royce. Yet the city could hardly overlook the opportunities offered by the government’s civil service relocation programme. Sir Michael Lyons’ 2004 report suggested that over £2 billion could be saved by shifting 20,000 jobs out of London and the South East to less expensive parts of the country. As a result, when a nondepartmental public body or government department has less than three years left on a lease on London premises, it is obliged to examine whether it can quit the capital for another location with lower overheads. Unfortunately for Derby, in 2004 there was a lack of good quality office space into which it might attract a public agency or two. A report published in March 2009
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office space Right: Norseman’s scheme in North Castleward is set to become the largest office development in Derby. Right bottom: Sadler Square by developer Blueprint.
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There has been a lot of development in and around Derby, but what is needed now is a better commercial offer in the city
confirmed that the problem remains. The “Insite” report by property agent Innes England showed that the city’s rent increase from an average between £14 and £14.50 per square foot to £16.50 per square foot was partly driven by a lack of grade-A space. In particular, while the out-ofcentre Pride Park has seen runaway development over the past decade, the city centre itself has not seen a single major office scheme for 15 years, resulting in a shortage of new-build accommodation. Stephen Jones, of Central Square developer Bolsterstone, says: “Pride Park has been undoubtedly a success, but it serves a different market”. Peter Connolly, development director of Blueprint’s Sadler Square project, agrees: “There has been a lot of development in and around Derby, but what the city now needs is a better commercial offer in the city centre, partly because that will bring people into the city centre”.
O
ver the last year, Derby’s agencies have been working hard to get the city centre office product right. As part of the urban regeneration company Derby Cityscape’s city centre masterplan, a number of major office schemes have been granted planning permission (see box on opposite page). At inward investment agency Marketing Derby, director John Forkin says: “We are now moving the offices into the city centre, partly as a result of the masterplan. Over the past couple of years, a number of developers have come onboard with schemes so that we now have 60,380sq m of office space ready to go with planning permission.” These include Norseman Holdings’ 37,000sq m North Castleward development OneDerby, of which Forkin says: “The development is exactly the type of scheme which is easier to sell as a destination for government relocation out of London, with its close proximity to the refurbished rail station and the new bus station.” With full planning permission and section 106 agreements in place, the city centre office schemes all could be completed within 12-18 months, Forkin estimates. All of them are rated BREEAM excellent – the prerequisite these days for new government offices. “The direction of travel is towards less but better space,” says Forkin. But less space does not mean less variety. “We’ve got the office offer right now,” adds Russell
Office projects with planning permission Central Square Developer: Bolsterstone Value: £12.4 million Space: 50,000sq ft (4,700sq m) of offices and 74 apartments Build time: start developing end of 2009 Sadler Square Developer: Blueprint Value: £16 million Space: 45,000sq ft (4,200sq m) of office space and 17,000sq ft (1,600sq m) of retail/café bar plus 25 apartments Build time: due for completion end 2009 onederby Developer: Norseman Investments Value: £92 million Space: 400,000sq ft (37,000sq m) office development on a three acre (1.2 hectare) site Build time: due to be complete in 2011 Number One Cathedral Green Developer: Wilson Bowden Value: £43 million Space: 95,000sq ft (8,825sq m) office space City gate house Developer: Cedar House Value: £14 million Space: 57,000sq ft (5,300sq m) office space
Rigby, managing director of Derby office agent Rigby and Co, who points to schemes ranging from high-rise blocks to low-rise city centre campus-style developments. So the quality is right, the variety is right and, Rigby adds, Derby represents good value for money. “Some cities look a little expensive now,” he says, pointing to the contrast between rents in Nottingham (£20/sq ft) and Derby (£16-16.50/ sq ft). “There shouldn’t be such a disparity,” he observes. And, as Norseman Holdings managing director Duncan Ashby points out, the credit crunch and its aftermath could provide a boost for Derby by prompting organisations to cut costs and move to better-value offices. With all these factors in Derby’s favour, perhaps all that is required is some credibility. Derby City Council itself could provide that, by seeking to relocate all of its own departments into a single 8,500sq m building in the city centre - the launch pad for a wider public sector accommodation campus. “If that moves forward, it will be a massive injection of confidence into the office market. We would have a huge public sector complex that would be attractive to other public sector occupiers,” says Forkin. But would it? Perspective magazine asks Stuart Ladds, relocation programme manager at the Office for Government Commerce, which helps departments and agencies to implement relocations following the Lyons
review. “We are faced with a significant and challenging agenda to improve the quality of the government estate and sustainability of its office buildings,” he responds. “Developers in Derby understand that and 80% of the office schemes in the Marketing Derby brochure detailing the city’s forthcoming office schemes met our common standards. You can look at much bigger cities and not find one development that meets our criteria, so Derby is ahead of the game.” Bolsterstone’s Jones argues that, in general, city centre locations win over other destinations in wider sustainability terms too. “There is a demand from the government for us to be more sustainable and certain occupiers recognise that other facilities are available in the city centre, like leisure facilities, cafés, bars and retail.” But tempting hundreds of employees to relocate takes a lot more than a good office sector, as most occupiers recognise. Accessibility is clearly always a key factor and Derby is served by 35 trains to London St Pancras daily and the journey takes just an hour and a half. The city has good road connections too: the delights of Selfridges in Birmingham are just 40 minutes away. And these transport connections are being further improved. “There can’t be many cities that are getting a new ring road a new bus station and a completely refurbished railway station,” says Forkin.
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“The question is:
Why isn’t the rest of Britain like Derby?”
Jeremy Paxman 2009
CITY GATE HOUSE
CENTRAL SQUARE
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Such transport improvements will further enhance Derby’s accessibility to the workforce it can draw from: six million people live within an hour’s commuting distance of the city. For those employees who choose to move with their organisation, Derby offers value-for-money housing and cultural facilities that are enjoying a renaissance following the opening of the arts cinema complex QUAD. And the natural delights of the Peak District National Park are only 15 minutes from the city centre. Derby Cityscape chief executive John Cadwallader says: “Employees need to know that they are able to buy good affordable accommodation, that the schools in the region are of a high quality as are the educational standards. Derby scores very highly in those respects as it does on being an attractive, safe and accessible place to live, with
Empty office rates The furore over the introduction of full business rates on empty properties illustrates the law of unintended consequences. The measure, which was recommended by Kate Barker, the government’s planning adviser, in her landmark review, was to discourage companies from allowing properties to remain vacant. Since April last year, empty commercial property has been subject to the full business rate as opposed to the 50% formerly pay. But the uprating has coincided with the onset of the recession, which is causing vacancy rates to climb. And it is acting as a major deterrent to speculative development, according to Stephen Jones, director of Bolsterstone, “We are doing our best to make them (the government) aware of the significant impact that this is having on development in the city,” he says. “It’s a major impediment to development. If we build the development within three months, we will have the full rate to pay.” Local agent Russell Rigby says the effects of the full rate introduction are just starting to be felt in the city. “There are a number of people hanging onto stuff that are going to get their fingers burnt,”he says. Commercial agent Steve Salloway adds: “One of my main concerns is that rates should fundamentally be a tax on occupation not on the premises, but my main gripe is that it works against regeneration. It is, of course, a risk for developers to build speculatively in a quiet market – the risk being the possibility of having to suffer a period of void rental income while waiting for a tenant. However, it is one thing risking a period of no return on capital but then to add the burden of paying empty property rates as well, means that the developer is much less likely to take that risk.”
strong leisure and cultural facilities easily accessible.” At King Sturge’s Nottingham office, partner Matthew Smith adds: “The city has successfully attracted inward investment in recent years. The new Westfield shopping centre, hotels and cultural facilities all contribute to its attractiveness.” All that remains is to carry this message to organisations looking at possible relocation. As Rigby points out following the success of Marketing Derby’s well-attended recent evening reception at the House of Commons: “We are now getting in the faces of decision makers”. ◆
Below: With the wonders of the Peak District just outside the city centre Derby has the best of both worlds.
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0ROUD TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN $ERBY Spirita is a housing association with a local focus. We make a difference by supporting and developing communities through:
s providing homes and services for individuals, families and older people in need of support s providing homes to vulnerable people s building affordable and desirable homes for rent and home ownership s regenerating local neighbourhoods We are proud to be working in partnership with Derby City Council and local community organisations. We offer our partners and customers over 80 years of combined expert knowledge, skills and experience, working to “breathe life into communities�. Spirita was formed in 2007 through the merger of three well respected Midlands based housing associations: Metropolitan Housing Trust (Midlands), Rushcliffe Homes and The Walbrook Group. If you would like to know more about our work visit www.spirita.org.uk or call 0115 988 7100
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transport
Keep moving 39
All aspects of Derby’s transport system are currently under scrutiny. The train station is getting an overhaul to provide a more impressive welcome to visitors, the ring road is finally being completed, a new bus station is about to open and links to the rest of the city re-established. Julie Mackintosh finds out more
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erby’s enviable geographical position means it has excellent road, rail and air links. London can be reached in around an hour and a half by train and direct services run as far north as Edinburgh and south to Devon. East Midlands Airport is just a 15 minute drive away, as is the M1 motorway and, in recent years, efforts to improve the bus network have paid dividends. But despite these impressive characteristics, Derby’s transport infrastructure is in need of an overhaul; through the city’s ambitious £2 billion regeneration programme, that’s exactly what it is getting. There are ambitious plans to redesign the train station to ensure that it not only looks great but is as connected to the civic centre as
conveniently as possible. A huge improvement programme is set for the Castleward area, around Midland Road, which links the station and the city and is currently something of a no man’s land (more details on page 20). And a new £10 million bus station is under construction (more details on page 4), and the city’s road and traffic system will be remodelled. “Access to the country’s main transport routes is one of the reasons that major businesses have chosen to locate here for more than a century,” says John Forkin, managing director of Marketing Derby. “Derby is very central, with 80% of England’s population living within a two-hour drive.” continued overleaf
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transport This page and previous: Plans for the redevelopment of Derby station will create a more impressive and attractive space for visitors arriving in the city by train.
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But improvements are essential. Most psychologists agree that we form our first impression of a person or a place in less than 10 seconds – around seven to be exact. And, although perception can change over time, initial opinions often linger. It’s fair to say that any new visitors among the 12 million travellers who use, and three million who walk through, Derby’s Midland Road station each year are unlikely to be immediately impressed with their surroundings. Eurostar chief executive Richard Brown is chairman of the Derby Railway Station Partnership. “I think there is a widespread feeling across the city that in view of other successes and the growth of investment, that the station should be more impressive and attractive,” he says. “It is not all that easy at the moment to get off the train and find the right bus or get a taxi and we want that interaction between the station and the city to be improved.” During a recent consultation on plans for a new railway station for Derby, local people expressed their thoughts on the condition of the current facility. “Drab, dirty and disgusting” is how Breaston resident Marianne Head described it, while others felt that the train station did not reflect a positive image of the city or the exciting changes now under way.
Derby Cityscape, the urban regeneration company leading Derby’s regeneration, might describe the station in less bracing terms than Mrs Head. Following Network Rail’s £18.5 million investment in new platforms and facilities there are now plans for a £14.5 million overhaul to make the station an “appropriate gateway” and hopes the end result will be substantially different from the existing 1980s structure. First off, there will be a new modern building totally transforming the station frontage, concourse, ticket offices and retail space. There are also plans to renovate older buildings to create offices along the back of platform one. Artists’ impressions have been created and detailed designs are now being prepared.
Alongside, there will be a multi-storey car park and a transport interchange for buses and taxis. Derby Cityscape believes the taxi rank should be moved to the right of the station to make it quicker for drivers to get to and from the city centre, while a bus island will see buses arriving and departing every four minutes. The project is still subject to funding and planning approval but Arup has been appointed consultant on the station section while Aedas is architect for the design of the forecourt and car park. Funding bids are currently being reviewed by the East Midlands Development Agency (EMDA) and work could begin before the end of the year. But that’s not the only makeover the train station is
“Access to the country’s main transport routes is one of the reasons that major businesses have chosen to locate here for more than a century”
receiving. Network Rail is itself undertaking an £18 million programme, soon to be complete, to dismantle and rebuild platform canopies and install new lifts to improve accessibility. According to Network Rail route director Dyan Crowther: “This will transform Derby into a bright modern train station fit for the thousands of passengers who use it daily”. And services are improving too. Last December, operator East Midlands Trains unveiled substantial improvements including more and quicker services to and from London. Journey times have been slashed from a fastest average of one hour and 45 minutes to just 95 minutes. Extra morning services and a high-speed 17.30 train from St Pancras are just some of the features of the new timetable. East Midlands Trains director Richard Bodicoat says: “We know that providing fast, easy links to and from the capital is vital to the economy of Derby and the surrounding region. By looking at where most demand is we have been able to cut journey times whilst offering brand new local services and more choice for passengers.” Intra- as well as inter-city movement is set for improvement, as the Connecting Derby scheme powers towards completion in December 2010. With the final £27 million of funding secured from the Department of Transport just a few months ago, the main aim of the scheme is to simplify Derby’s traffic system. This started back in 1974 but the original construction project stalled when local government was reorganised. Despite being almost 40 years in the making, Connecting Derby is taking a decidedly 21st century approach. Don’t expect flyovers cleaving the city centre in two, or any kind of homage to the automobile. “Priorities have changed since the 1970s, not least because volumes of traffic were smaller then,” explains Sam Whitworth, Derby Council information manager. “Connecting Derby will give more transport choice to bus users, pedestrians and cyclists. Buses will have priority over cars and environmentally it is much more aware than before. The emphasis on road landscaping is an example.” There is widespread agreement that a shake up of Derby’s traffic infrastructure is urgently required. “It is absolutely crucial to the overall regeneration of the city,” says Whitworth. “It is important to provide easy access to the city centre and to link the main points of interest in a cohesive way. “When Connecting Derby is complete you’ll be able to get around the city much more easily,” she continues. “At the moment, if you don’t know Derby, it’s not difficult to get lost.” These sentiments are echoed by John Forkin: “Derby is famous for people getting lost in the one-way system and that’s been a massive bugbear over the past 30 years. It leaves a bad impression. If we can fix that problem it will make the city more attractive and help protect the future of Derby.” ◆
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education
43
Brain gain Pamela Buxton finds out how Derby’s education investment programme is strengthening relationships with industry
D
erby’s knowledge based economy relies on a highly educated workforce. Home to Rolls-Royce and Toyota, an impressive one eighth of the city’s workforce is employed in the hi-tech sector – that’s four times the national average. But to keep up its position, continued investment in education is essential, so that new and established firms have a top quality labour pool on which to draw. This is now under way, not just in schools, but in further
and higher education establishments such as Derby College and the University of Derby. And continuing education, for the workforce through on the job training and business consultancy, is also being enhanced. “Quality of education applies across the board,” says John Cadwallader, chief executive of the urban regeneration company Derby Cityscape. “One of the biggest ways of increasing employment is by retaining existing businesses in the city. In a competitive world, they need the highly-skilled workforce coming through all the time, which they can take in and develop.” This crucial investment in a well-educated workforce starts with schools. To deliver it, schools need improved environments that are attractive and pleasant for pupils and enable teachers to do their jobs better. That is the target of the Building Schools for the Future programme (BSF), a nationwide initiative to improve school buildings. In Derby, £180 million is being spent on improving 10 mainstream secondary schools, three special schools and the Pupil Referral Unit. A further
Above: Graduates are the key to maintaining the city’s quality labour pool.
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education
The BSF programme offers a once in a lifetime opportunity to improve the city’s schools and improve pupil attainment, by providing a more personalised form of learning
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£25 million of ICT investment has been secured. Consultation on the design of the refurbished and new school buildings is under way and the project is at the procurement phase, with designs yet to be finalised. Most schools are keen to move away from traditional, square-box classrooms to more flexible learning spaces, and to house these within more environmentally friendly structures. Another priority is social space – playgrounds and other areas in which students can gather – and improved facilities for sport and the performing arts, which can also be used by the rest of the community. Instead of computer rooms, ICT provision will be more portable and integrated. According to the Derby BSF team, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to improve the city’s schools and improve pupil attainment, by providing a more personalised form of learning – that is, environments which can adapt to students’ and teachers’ requirements. To undertake the redevelopment work, a private sector partner is expected to be appointed by October. This will be followed by the first phase of building work on sample schools – the refurbishment of Derby Moor school and a new school at Noel-Baker/St Martins – which are scheduled to be completed by September 2012. The rest will follow by 2014. Before then, further education students at Derby
College will have the chance to learn in state-of-the-art vocational facilities at the Roundhouse, which opens this autumn after a £43 million restoration and extension of the city’s famous grade II listed former steam engine repair works. For 20 years, new uses had been sought for the derelict historic building adjacent to Pride Park. Persistence eventually paid off and a suitable occupant was found – from September, it will offer 9,000sq m of learning and teaching space for courses in engineering, care, construction, hair and beauty, art and design, and catering and hospitality. As well as offering education facilities, it will play an important role in the regeneration of the area through the restoration of a high-profile historic building used in a mixture of ways to contribute to a lively city centre. The new Roundhouse campus follows Derby College’s £15 million Joseph Wright extension for sixth form students, which opened last year on Cathedral Road and where principal David Croll is well aware of his establishment’s contribution to Derby’s future. “As one of the leading colleges in the UK, we have an important role in helping the city to market itself to companies and organisations looking to relocate here,” he says. “They all need assurances that they can benefit from a pool of welltrained prospective employees and can access top-quality training for their existing workforce.”
Above: Plans for Derby College. Opposite page top: Refenestration of the University of Derby’s famous towers will cost £12.7 million. Opposite page bottom: The new Roundhouse campus is almost complete.
Higher education is also vital to the prosperity of the city. Derby is home to the University of Derby and has 14 universities within an hour’s drive. Since the University of Derby grew out of the old Derbyshire College of Higher Education in 1992, it has played a fundamental role in rejuvenating the city centre, especially its leisure industry, according to Derby Cityscape’s Cadwallader. Now the university has embarked on a big expansion programme, investing £75 million in new facilities in recent years and with plenty more new facilities in the pipeline. It recently opened a £21 million arts, design and technology facility for 3,000 students on Markeaton Street and has also embarked on a refenestration project for the landmark University Towers office accommodation at Kedleston Road, which is due for completion at the start of 2010. Other refurbishment projects include the £6 million transformation of its Britannia Mill site on Mackworth Road, due to finish in 2011, and the proposed £8 million refurbishment of Jackson’s Mill in Bridge Street, to create a Business and Enterprise Centre to further the university’s links with business. This is scheduled for completion next spring and will include facilities for the University of Derby’s new employer engagement arm – University of Derby Corporate, which launched last year and now works with 38 companies including Rolls-Royce, Toyota and Egg. This new commercial division provides bespoke, mainly
Derby is home to the University of Derby and has 14 universities within an hour’s drive
on the job training, often in change management, as well as business strategy consultancy and knowledge transfer partnerships. Such in-work training is essential, says Dawn Whitemore, head of University of Derby Corporate. “The biggest percentage of the future workforce is in work now rather than in education, so we have to up-skill our workforce to continue to supply the skills that employers need.” Training is a two way process that benefits the university as well as the employer, she adds: “It informs the university of what business needs so that our courses are developed in terms of what the market needs. It makes sure businesses have a voice.” Topping all these education development programmes is the £334 million PFI project to build the new Derby Royal Hospital. This includes the construction of a £12million satellite medical school for the University of Nottingham in Derby, which opened its existing facility six years ago. The four-storey building offers a four year fast track training programme for 90 students per year as part of a government initiative to train more doctors as well as 140 post graduate students and staff. Scheduled for completion this year, Derby Royal Hospital will combine two hospitals to create one of the UK’s largest teaching hospitals. The project includes investment in a new satellite medical school for the University of Nottingham in Derby, a facility which opened six years ago as a standalone building on what is now the Derby Royal Hospital site and offers a fouryear fast-track training programme for 90 students a year as part of a government initiative to train more doctors. This means more highly-skilled graduates entering the workforce each year, and seeking relatively highvalue jobs and incomes, ultimately to the city’s benefit. But only if they stay in Derby and convincing them to do that, as Cadwallader says, is part of the wider regeneration picture. Students and professionals alike want a mix of amenities, he observes: “From shopping at the new Westfield centre to culture at QUAD – educational facilities are providing a great stimulus but we have to work hard to ensure our city centres are attractive and sustainable”. ◆
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Ringing the changes As a city’s regeneration gathers pace, it’s easy to focus solely on new developments and the benefits they will bring. But this should not come at the expense of an appreciation of the city’s traditional attractions, says Alex Aspinall
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ast Derby residents would be shocked to hear that the area around the cathedral was ever in need of stimulation. It used to be the city’s hub, with much of Derby’s business taking place in what is now known as the Cathedral Quarter. But attention shifted, with retail and business developments opting for other areas in and around the city. Now this trend is being reversed, and plans are afoot to reposition the Cathedral Quarter back at the centre of the city’s appeal. Derby’s residents, and those charged with delivering the city’s future, are keen to see development emphasising what is different about Derby – and eager to prevent the arrival in Derby of the “clone street”, a high street dominated by brands and frontages familiar to any and every other town. The Cathedral Quarter boasts several striking attractions, including Bennett’s department store, The Guildhall in Market Place and, of course, the 16th century cathedral itself. These assets give the Cathedral Quarter a historic feel; the challenge is to blend these buildings with new developments, to create a medley rather than a pastiche, to give a 21st century centre to an historic city and to restore the Cathedral Quarter to its position at the heart of Derby. Does this sound overblown? Not according to Keith Jeffrey, director of QUAD. “The Cathedral Quarter is important because of its distinctive character,” he says. Left: The city’s cathedral dominates the historic Cathedral Quarter.
“This is based on a substantial cultural offer, independent retailers, heritage and the built environment. The Cathedral Quarter is the traditional heart of the city it is integral to the growth of the city as it provides an alternative to the mainstream retail experience. It is here that the true character of Derby reveals itself.” Not just true character, but also new ambitions: QUAD opened in the Cathedral Quarter in 2008, providing an art gallery, cinemas, café bar and workshop space. Designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley, the £12 million iconic building welcomed more than 100,000 visitors during its first six months. That is obviously a huge opportunity for other businesses and attractions in the quarter, as is the Cathedral Quarter Hotel which opened its doors to guests in 2008. The city’s first boutique hotel, it proved a great success in its first 12 months. James Blick, managing director of the Finesse Collection, which owns the Cathedral Quarter Hotel, is delighted to have played a role in revitalising the area, and is passionate about the area’s potential. “The Cathedral Quarter is absolutely key for Derby’s future,” says Blick. “Everybody wants modern, all singing, all dancing, facilities, which Derby has in the guise of Westfield. But, in contrast, there is also a huge market of people that want to explore the history, character and uniqueness of Derby, and that is what the Cathedral Quarter is all about.” Describing the area’s independent niche retailers, bars, restaurants and cosy English pubs, Blick adds: “There is an affiliation of retail outlets that fit into the area very well. This is why we positioned ourselves in the Cathedral Quarter.” “We are boutique, we are original, we are diverse; this is what the Cathedral Quarter is all about. It is a historic, beautiful part of the city, which needs to be encouraged to develop more. The Cathedral Quarter is unique.
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The Cathedral Quarter is absolutely key for Derby’s future
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Above and right: The Cathedral Quarter’s historic buildings, tree-lined streets and boutique shops are a huge draw for visitors and residents alike.
Historically significant features are being enhanced by an array of modern additions, creating an area of the city centre that is truly unique
“The trick now is making all of the inbound traffic aware of the Cathedral Quarter area. We have to work as one city, and working as one city we provide a very broad offer, both modern and historic in character. I am on many groups and boards with regard to the city itself, and we all agree that working as one, increasing people’s awareness of the city of Derby is the way forward.” Clearly missing from the area, though, is substantial grade A office space. Number One Cathedral Green aims to fill that gap and bring lunchtime shoppers and diners into the area. The mixed-use development brought forward by Wilson Bowden will create almost 9,000sq m of office space, together with vastly improved public realm.
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dding to that is Bennett’s department store, a Derby institution established in 1734. Such local department stores are a rare sight these days, with many forced out of business or snapped up by larger national operators. But Derby’s remains – and aims to take advantage of the developments taking place around it. “We are looking for the destination shopper to come here and shop with us,” says managing director Simon Ingham. “Quite simply, the more things in and going on in the Cathedral Quarter, the more people there are going to be. Now the Cathedral Quarter has its own identity, of a more boutique destination with a quality offering rather than being the place that used to be the business district, or the bit that used to be the focus of retail, more people will be attracted to the area.” Bypassed for many years, the Cathedral Quarter is once again becoming a destination. Historically significant features are being enhanced by an array of modern additions, creating an area of the city centre that is truly unique. There is plenty to shout about in the Cathedral Quarter. “I have never been this optimistic about a city or about an investment before,” says Blick at the Cathedral Quarter Hotel. “This is one of the best investments we have ever made. We have never looked back. Everything is pointing in the right direction for Derby to really accelerate itself, and put it on the map as both a business destination and as a cultural and leisure destination too.” ◆
Bidding for better The Cathedral Quarter has its own Business Improvement District (BID), created to “establish the Cathedral Quarter as a destination, which offers specialist quality retail, a diverse range of quality leisure and cultural activity and established respected professional services in an attractive historical setting”. More specifically the BID’s tasks are to increase awareness of the area’s facilities, improve access and security and extend visitors’ length of stay. Board member James Blick describes some of the improvements already made in the area: “We have introduced marshals, welcoming and guiding people in the area. We have enhanced the public realm as well, with simple things like the refurbishment of lampposts and litterbins, and we have also improved the area’s aesthetic, by putting planters outside some of the retail outlets. “Small touches make the big difference, and the board for the Cathedral Quarter BID want to enhance the area’s offer, and the awareness of that offer even further.” The BID’s funding largely comprises a levy on the 380 businesses within its area, amounting to 1.5% of rateable value. Total 2008 funding came to £185,000, of which £170,000 was in levy charges and £15,000 from partners and stakeholders. The BID’s success is evident in the 35 new businesses that have located in the Cathedral Quarter during its first year. And it has many plans for further improvements, including guided tours, mood lighting in selected streets and a loyalty card for people working in the Cathedral Quarter to encourage them to shop locally. “We are increasing awareness, and working in harmony with other bodies in the city, for the retailers and other businesses in the Cathedral Quarter,” says Blick. “We work closely with our levy payers for the BID to provide over and above what they would expect.”
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contacts For more information on Derby’s regeneration, contact Derby Cityscape: Nina Virdi, communications executive 01332 204 194 n.virdi@derbycityscape.co.uk Marketing Derby: John Forkin, director 01332 201 860 john.forkin@marketingderby.co.uk
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Spearheading regeneration Derby Cityscape Ltd, 3rd Floor, Peat House, 5 Stuart Street, Derby, DE1 2EQ Tel: +44 (0)1332 204194 Fax: +44 (0)1332 204195 Email: info@derbycityscape.co.uk www.derbycityscape.com