Thriving – Darlington Borough Council chief executive Ian Williams wants the town to become a hub of financial and professional services .
VENTURE CAPITAL
Opportunity – Faverdale Industrial Estate , next to the A1 , is one of many areas of the town seeing growth and investment .
Boosted by recent investment , Darlington has ambitious plans to become the north ’ s ‘ Little London ’, says the borough council ' s chief executive Ian Williams
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At the crossroads of the North-East , Darlington is perfectly placed to help any business thrive .
We ’ ve got all the ingredients that make us the complete package for any business looking to invest or relocate , whether it ’ s our renowned transport links , our well-trained pool of people , quality business sites and premises and a strategic plan for growth covering key sectors .
Our location is one of our greatest strengths – lying between the A1 and the A19 , linked by the cross-Pennine A66 that leads to Teesport , as well as our proximity to Teesside International Airport , and the East Coast Main Line stopping in the heart of our town centre .
It ’ s this connectivity that has seen Darlington become a focus for logistics and distribution firms , including Amazon , Argos and Aldi regional hubs , and one of the key reasons we were chosen as the home for the government ’ s economic campus , which will welcome civil servants from across seven government departments .
Alongside a blossoming professional services sector , a strong life sciences quarter and specialised developments to help SMEs set up , develop and grow , Darlington has the facilities , infrastructure and workforce to help any business succeed .
In the last decade , targeted , strategic investment , led by Darlington Borough Council , has seen the development of a number of highquality business parks and facilities suitable for key sectors .
Central Park , just a few minutes ’ walk from the railway station , has been transformed from abandoned rail sidings into a thriving development that supports housing and further and higher education alongside our Business Central office , which offers incubator and growon space for knowledge-based SMEs , as well as our soon-to-be-completed £ 8m state-of-the-art office and lab-space facility , Innovation Central .
The cornerstone of Central Park is CPI , a world leader in the development and commercialisation of next-generation products and process in the biologics and healthcare sector .
The success of CPI has led to spin-off projects on Central Park , including the National Horizons Centre – a Teesside University-led facility housing cutting-edge technologies and facilities to help advance research in the biosciences and healthcare sector .
Further work planned this year will see the remaining sections of Central Park cleared and new access roads completed to open up development plots for potential office and lab space , with a view to creating new opportunities for companies looking to benefit from the expertise of the organisations already based there .
The government economic campus is undoubtedly a major boost for Darlington . More than 1,400 civil servants are expected to be based in central Darlington , across seven departments , housed in one central location .
Once again , our transport links and connectivity , as well as our ambition and drive as a town to boost our influence nationally , as well