H ARTLEP O OL N E WS
Grand Central unveils
new customer lounge
MAJOR ULTRAFAST BROADBAND
UPGRADE ANNOUNCED
B
roadband minister Matt Warman
visited Hartlepool to announce
that thousands more homes and
businesses in the Tees Valley area are set
to benefit from faster and more reliable
broadband.
An investment of £3.5m – including £1.2m
of public funding from the Tees Valley
Combined Authority, led by mayor Ben
Houchen, the government and a £2.3m
contribution from Openreach, the UK’s
digital network business – has been made
through the Digital Durham broadband
programme.
More than 3,000 homes and businesses
across Tees Valley will benefit from full-fibre,
gigabit-capable broadband by the end of
June next year as a result of the investment.
The £38m Digital Durham programme,
led by Durham County Council and
Openreach, is a partnership between ten of
the 12 authorities in the North-East, and the
Pools pen new health deal
Hartlepool United Football Club has
announced Nuffield Health Tees Hospital
in Stockton is the club’s official healthcare
partner.
The new alliance between National
League Pools and the UK’s largest
healthcare charity will give players access
to a range of specialist consultants and
healthcare services at Nuffield Health Tees
Hospital, including post-injury scans and
x-rays, treatment plans and surgery where
necessary.
A not-for-profit healthcare organisation,
Nuffield Health runs a network of award-
winning hospitals, fitness and wellbeing
clubs together with a host of other
healthcare and diagnostic services across
the country.
government.
To date the programme has connected
more than 110,000 premises across the
Digital Durham programme area, including
thousands across the Tees Valley.
The rollout has already begun and several
premises in Stockton have been upgraded.
Many more homes and businesses in
the boroughs of Darlington, Hartlepool,
Stockton, Middlesbrough, and Redcar and
Cleveland are also set to benefit.
Mr Warman said: “The government is
committed to levelling up the whole of the
UK with world-class broadband so that
everyone can make the best use of new
technologies.”
Digital Durham is also carrying out
a procurement exercise to potentially
contract for better connectivity across other
authorities in the partnership meaning that
many more businesses and residences could
be set for better connectivity.
Housing development
brings local jobs
A new building project has been hailed
a huge success – with 95 per cent of
properties sold two years ahead of
schedule. St Teresa’s Close, Hartlepool,
developed by Port Homes, features 20
homes.
Founded in 2017 by brothers
Christopher and Daniel Port, Port Homes
believes a key factor of its popularity has
been the company’s “Hartlepool first”
ethos of using as much local labour as
possible.
Port Homes has recently started work
on its next development, with plans
to build 55 new homes in the town, all
available on Help to Buy schemes.
Train operator Grand Central
has installed new waiting room
facilities for passengers at
Hartlepool station as part of
a £2.6m station investment
programme across its network.
The investment is one of a raft
of schemes underway at stations
along Grand Central’s North-East
and West Riding routes, which
are due to be completed in early
2020.
The programme is part of
the train operator’s ongoing
commitment to enhance
customers’ experience on board,
online and at stations.
Passengers can now enjoy the
waiting room when arriving at
Hartlepool station or setting off
on their journey.
TRAINING GROUP
STEPS IN TO
SAVE JOBS
A potential loss of jobs and skills
provision has been stopped after
Learning Curve Group (LCG)
saved a branch of Total Training.
LCG has worked with Midlands-
based Total Training to save the
Hartlepool arm of their training
business, which saw 11 staff keep
their jobs.
The group took on the lease
of the Hartlepool office, ensuring
it was business as usual for
employers, learners and staff.
The move extended LCG’s
reach in the North-East to four
centres – including Hartlepool,
Middlesbrough and Sunderland –
covering the beauty, construction
and health and social care
sectors.
The voice of business in the Tees region | 107