Durham news
BUSINESS DURHAM
SECURES EXTRA £2.34M
FOR DIGITAL PROGRAMME
Digital Drive County Durham has
been awarded an additional £2.34m of
funding to continue supporting small and
medium enterprises across the county
until June 2023.
Initially, the programme was a £4m
initiative to help SMEs in County
Durham maximise their growth potential
and sustainability through digital
technology.
Since it was established in January
2018 more than 1,000 businesses have
registered on the programme and 182
grants have been paid out, totalling
almost £700,000.
Companies benefitting from Digital
Drive support and funding have included
everything from engineering companies
to architects, training providers to
accountants.
Durham College becomes
Institute of Technology
First building on Aykley Heads Business
Park secured with £6m government funding
The winning of £6m funding from
central government has guaranteed
the construction of the first building
on the proposed Aykley Heads Business Park
on the edge of Durham.
Durham County Council has secured
the money from the government’s Getting
Building Fund, which aims to deliver jobs,
skills and infrastructure across the country.
And the funding will cover half the cost of
a key building on the proposed business park
with the council contributing the other £6m.
The £12m will be used to build a state-ofthe-art,
three-storey building offering 3,500
sq m of office space and providing flexible
accommodation for either single or multiple
employers.
The office space building, with 60 car
parking spaces, is set to go up on ‘Plot C’,
which has been identified as Phase 1 of the
development for the new business park.
Once completed, the project will create up
to 300 jobs whilst acting as a catalyst for the
wider masterplan which aims to stimulate
over £150m of private sector investment.
In all, the ambitious new business part is
expected to create up to 4,000 jobs in the
region.
Aykley Heads, north of the city centre, is
already home to Atom Bank, Waterstons, the
North East England Chamber of Commerce,
Salvus House and many other businesses.
The entire business park is proposed to
provide up to 38,468sqm of floor space and
to be divided into an initial two phases and
six plots. Each plot includes office buildings
and car parking spaces.
DIGITAL ROAMING TO SUPPORT
SHOPS AND SERVICES
Infrastructure boost for Durham
with new bus station hub
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New College Durham has been
awarded its licence to operate as an
Institute of Technology.
Following its successful bid in
2019, the college will be one of only
12 Institutes of Technology across
the country, which will allow it to
give hundreds of students from
across the North-East a clear route
to technical employment.
The college in Framwellgate,
Durham, will work in partnership
with Nissan, Esh Group and
Newcastle University and will lead a
group of further education colleges
and a private training provider to
deliver quality higher-level technical
training in subjects such as digital,
advanced manufacturing and
engineering.
A Durham-based digital entrepreneur is
driving customers back to the high street
using the latest app technology.
Former jockey Andrew Bartlett has
developed the Roam app, which gives
users essential information about shops
and services based on their GPS location.
Using state-of-the-art algorithms and
data collection techniques, the app gives
the user the feeling of being a ‘local’
shopper with up-to-date offers, opening
times and the ability to order items to
collect in-store or delivery direct to a
home address.
His current focus is on Durham City
where he plans to include every business
in the city in the app.
Outdated Durham Bus Station is to be
replaced with a modern new transport hub
after plans were approved by the County
Council.
Under the plans the tired old bus station
on North Road will be demolished and
in its place a new transport hub will be
constructed.
The new bus station has been designed to
increase the overall space for passengers, as
well as provide improved facilities such as
increased toilet provision and seating in the
passenger circulation and waiting areas.
Work on the new station is set to begin
next spring, with the opening scheduled
for summer 2022 with the proposals having
earned widespread local support.