The famous Aycliffe Angels worked in the original factories built on Aycliffe Business Park in the early 1940s .
Aycliffe Business Park is now home to more than 500 organisations employing around 10,000 people .
a number of new developments in recent years have brought dozens more SMEs from the services and leisure sectors to the park , creating a vibrant , busy employment hub and a wide variety of industries .
Desolate wasteland and crumbling buildings beyond repair have made way for bright new office blocks , now home to dozens of growing small businesses .
In September 2015 , just over 70 years since the end of World War II , Hitachi Rail Europe ’ s 21st Century , £ 82m factory was officially opened by the then Prime Minister David Cameron at Merchant Park on Aycliffe Business Park , bringing train building back to the nearby ‘ Cradle of the Railways ’ in Shildon , and just a few hundred yards away from Heighington station , where George Stephenson ’ s Locomotion No . 1 was assembled before embarking on the first passenger steam train route from Darlington to Stockton , in 1825 .
Today , Aycliffe Business Park is the biggest single employment area in County Durham and one of the largest business parks in the UK .
Spread across 400 hectares , it is home to an estimated 500 companies and around 10,000 employees .
Some of the park ’ s biggest employers include high-profile businesses such as Gestamp , Hitachi , 3M , Ineos , Husqvarna and PWS . And the park just got bigger ! In recent months , the next phase of
Merchant Park – the £ 4.8m Station Place – was officially opened , bringing 50,000 sq ft of high spec industrial units for existing local firms to expand into .
Despite all the recent challenges of Brexit , the pandemic and energy crisis – amidst the ongoing challenges of recruitment and supply issues many businesses are facing – most tenants across Aycliffe Business Park continue to not just survive , but thrive .
It would appear the future of Aycliffe Business Park couldn ’ t be any more positive as we approach the park ’ s 82nd birthday .
The magazine for Aycliffe Business Park | 15