Doncaster Business Property Forum Meeting Tuesday 5th, at the New College for High Speed Rail
Doncaster Business Property Forum Meeting Tuesday 5th, at the New College for High Speed Rail
N & S group attended the property forum meeting in Doncaster yesterday, which was in our opinion one of the most exciting ones we’ve attended yet!
We felt the theme was very much about transformation and how businesses and councils are able to facilitate change for the better.
UK Workspace displayed insights into their amazing and innovative transformation of buildings, factories to creches and industrial shells to offices.
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council talked about their Asset Disposal Programme, which effectively means the selling of council assets to raise money for purchasing new and modern commercial property, homes and space, which will spark a natural production of new jobs. In turn this will raise money through council tax, and business rates generated from the tenants of these new properties.
This cycle is intended to transform the portfolio of publicly owned space and keep it fresh and fit for purpose. Doncaster Planning Council Update by Roy Sykes gave an encouraging insight into how the council are implementing a study for their town planning which will review all existing programmes in the light of all future developments and take advice from a range of experts and consultants as to where these might be better aligned or altered to make maximum economic impact.
Transformational Changes
Tim Wood NPR Rail Director for Transport North highlighted the transformational changes expected in the North, focussing on the connectivity and how this will positively impact the area. He talked about the fact that railway use has grown by 185% since 1995 and is expected to rise.
According to a transformational growth scenario created by an independent economic review by Northern Powerhouse, 850,000 new jobs will be created by 2050, putting 100 billion pounds back into the economy. Wow!
The very creation of this complex and exciting new venture alone will make the UK a world leader for high speed rail skills. Such pioneering engineering will attract investment and result in employment and as Doncaster is at the heart of the project, this will mean a significant increase in local jobs.
Trains will all eventually become high speed. There is no road back for progression. We can only move forward in the knowledge that HS2 is the first of many high-speed trains. We must therefore recognise the evolution has started and embrace it, take advantage and effectively ride on its economic coat tails.
High Speed Connections are Here to Stay
Whether you are for HS2 or not, it cannot be denied that high speed connections are here to stay and networks like this one will be implemented between all our towns and cities around Yorkshire and throughout the UK.
Our Director Pete Newman, who attended the forum meeting was particularly excited by the plans and said he feels this is “a great opportunity for Doncaster people who want to be a part of something new.”
As a facilities management company offering grounds, site, building, winter maintenance and commercial cleaning, we will certainly hope to get involved wherever we can with any of these new projects that arise in the wake of HS2.