Sedgemoor District and Weston-Super-Mare – Opportunities and Challenges Phill Adams Economic Development Manager, SDC
Overview of District • Economy of £1.3bn (2009)
• Population of 115,000; • Strengths in agricultural; food and drink; tourism; and distribution sectors; •Focus upon New Nuclear and Low Carbon.
Current Developments •
£9bn investment by EDF Energy at Hinkley Point;
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WM Morrisons PLC / DHL - 780,000 sq ft Regional Distribution Centre in North East Bridgwater;
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National Grid Proposed Route – Undergrounding and upgrade to key power infrastructure;
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Bridgwater Gateway – 250,000 sq ft of new office development; 100,000 sq ft of hotel space at Junction 24;
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District’s Core Strategy and Revised Economic Masterplan adopted over last two weeks.
Hinkley Point – Overview • First Nuclear New Build in UK in 25 years • £9bn investment by EDF Energy, through to 2018-21; • 25,000 jobs over 8 year, with 5,000 at peak construction on site. 2,000 operational jobs for a further 60 years;
• £14m of contacts already placed, with 100 companies involved. • But, potential for significant local impacts, particularly on transport, skills and housing.
Hinkley Point – Update •
Site preparation approved on 28 July, with Section 106 agreement currently being concluded with partners
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Development Control Order application due to be submitted to the Infrastructure Planning Committee over next two weeks.
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12 month process, which will agree/decline permissions, as well as agree mitigation package.
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Local Impact Reports being prepared by districts setting areas of agreement and difference with EDF’s case.
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EDF Energy down to three potential Tier 1 civil contractors, with preferred bidder to be chosen after Christmas. As a result, Likely to be significant procurement activity in the new year.
WM Morrisons PLC / DHL •
750,000 sq ft Distribution Centre, due to employ 1,500 when operational;
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Construction of iconic building finished in last week of September; Handed over to Morrisons / DHL on the 7 October;
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Has recruited 500 staff to date, and already stocking 30 stores;
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Second site now under development, a packing plant for local produce.
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Part of a wider scale regeneration of North East Bridgwater involving 400 new homes and additional office / manufacturing space.
Why should local business be interested? • Shared labour, housing, and retail markets between the two districts. • Commuter flows across Northern boundary each day actually greater than those with Taunton, particularly from Cheddar area. • Shared coastline and tourism offer, with Burnham and Brean complementing Weston. • Shared challenges on both road and rail linkages
Issues for Sedgemoor • Activity in North Somerset, Bath and Bristol have real impact on Sedgemoor economy. • Within the Heart of the South West LEP area. However, large parts of the district’s economy split between North and South focus (supply chains, commuters). • Impacts from Hinkley are more limited as you move away from site, but still some shared opportunities and issues.
Questions?