South Yorkshire is booming – inward investment conversations are at an all time high, major blue chip firms including Boeing and McLaren have invested into the area, the Universities and educational institutions have major expansion plans integrated into the communities and there is a massive buzz from the proposed infrastructure such as HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail which is set to open Sheffield up to even more opportunities.

Rotherham is central to the future vision for the region and ahead of the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Development Plans Conference we hear exclusively from Sharon Kemp, Chief Executive at Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, on their future vision, investment opportunities and potential development zones:

 

Sharon Kemp, Chief Executive, Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council:

 

Rotherham occupies not only a central location in the Sheffield City Region, but also at the national level. As a result of this, the borough benefits from excellent connectivity, with easy access to the M1, A1 and M18, as well as Doncaster Sheffield Airport. This location provided the foundations for the strong industrial and manufacturing heritage of the borough that is being built on today.

The borough is currently experiencing a significant period of economic growth fuelled by a number of high profile investments and developments, with over 1000 jobs created and £150m of investment alone over the last 2 year period. This has resulted in Rotherham being highlighted as the fastest growing economy in Yorkshire for the 4th quarter running (CEBR and Irwin Mitchell).

This success is also evident in the number of industry leading organisations located in the borough, including AESSEAL, Rolls Royce and most recently Mclaren, amongst many others.

Recent Investment / Developments

Opening last year, McLaren’s £50m facility located on the Advanced Manufacturing Park will create around 200 jobs and the firm estimates the development will generate £100m in the city region’s economy over the first 10 years.

The national Tram-Train pilot project, costing £75m, operating the first UK tram-train between Sheffield and Parkgate, commenced services in October 2018. This includes an additional stop at Rotherham Central providing access directly to Sheffield City Centre in under 30 minutes several times an hour.

Rotherham Council McLaren Automotive

Gulliver’s Rother Valley

The regeneration of the former Pit House West site to provide Gulliver’s Rother Valley started on site in late 2018. The £35m project will deliver a brand new family resort across the 250 acre site, potentially delivering the equivalent of 255 full time jobs and will include a theme park and associated hotel and other accommodation options. This development will be a major visitor destination across the entire City Region and at a wider national scale, bringing further investment and spend into the region.

Rotherham 2 tHEME pARK Leisure Attraction Gullivers Valley

New opportunities – Local Plan

The Council adopted its Sites & Policies document in June 2018. This identifies a substantial number of sites for development for both housing and employment to cover the borough’s needs up to 2028.

A total of 85 sites are allocated to deliver new homes and i’ll talk through some of these in more detail at the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Development Plans Conference. Along with existing planning permissions, and housing sites under construction, these sites will provide enough land for new homes to meet the Core Strategy target. This includes 100 ha of land at Bassingthorpe Farm and the new Waverley community.

These sites cover around 527ha of land that is now allocated for new housing on both greenfield sites and 150ha of brownfield land capable of delivering 14,000 new homes.

The document also makes provision for employment development, key to the Council’s growth agenda. In total 36 sites are allocated for employment use which provide 264ha of land. These employment sites allow for expansion and inward investment to potentially create around 21,000 new jobs over the plan period. This includes two sites identified as part of the Bassingthorpe Farm Strategic Allocation, a Special Policy Area at the former Maltby Colliery and land at Waverley including land remaining at the Advanced Manufacturing Park.

A number of the sites identified in the document are already being brought forward with planning applications received for both speculative and design and build developments. This shows the high levels of demand and demonstrates developer confidence in the current market.

The largest of the sites identified in the document is Bassingthorpe Farm, jointly owned by the Council and Fitzwilliam Wentworth Estate. The site will deliver 2400 new dwellings and also includes 11ha of employment land, a local health centre, primary school, and a local centre together with the green and social infrastructure necessary to create facilities to serve the new and existing communities.

The current timetable includes a development start date of 2021 and the Council working with the Estate, will be seeking a development partner or partners, for the site in 2019.

Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District (AMID)

Another key investment and development opportunity is presented by the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District, planned to build on the massive success of both the AMP and Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), which have contributed to a 53% growth in Advanced Manufacturing Business stock between 2011 and 2017.

AMID is the next phase – a bigger bolder programme of economic transformation. It is a real, deliverable example of a place based industrial strategy. AMID will create the conditions for advanced industries to thrive by bringing together economic, physical and networking assets to supercharge innovation in a mixed use urban environment

AMID will deliver an urban network that includes mixed use housing, office, retail to complement the advanced industry and research sites. It will deliver the amenities, quality of place and interaction that skilled workers and businesses require with:

  • Flexible, attractive working spaces.
  • A housing offer and ancillary facilities that appeals to the workforce and builds a sense of place.
  • High quality infrastructure
  • Social spaces that encourage interaction.
  • Business and innovation support including incubation, start-up and accelerator facilities.
  • High quality education, research and development.

Sheffield Business Park Expansion Rotherham Boeing Council Black Decker ITM Power SIG

Transforming the Town Centre

The Council identified the significant need for the reorienting and modernising of the Town Centre, adopting a Masterplan in September 2017 that identified a range of public and private led projects to transform the offer of the town centre away from traditional retail dominated, to a more mixed offer with a focus on leisure, entertainment and opportunities for more residential development.

A number of projects have already been delivered or are underway, including:

  • The new University Centre Rotherham, a degree level educational hub that opened in September 2018.
  • Significant investment in major public transport infrastructure, £8.5m on refurbishment of Rotherham Central completed in 2012, The Tram-Train initiative launched in October 2018 and Rotherham Interchange currently undergoing a £12m refurbishment, due to open in April 2019.

The key site identified in the Masterplan was Forge Island, identified as suitable for a leisure led mixed-use development. Muse Developments have been appointed as the Council’s development partner to bring the site forward for a £35m scheme, and a planning application is expected in spring 2019, anticipated uses for the site include:

  • 7-10 screen cinema
  • Associated food and beverage units
  • Approximately 100 bed hotel
  • 140 riverside apartments
  • high quality public realm
  • town centre car parking provision.

Further projects identified in the Masterplan include the redevelopment and modernisation of Rotherham’s highly popular and successful Markets complex, as well as the delivery of a range of residential sites in the town centre. The Council is leading on the delivery of these projects and will be seeking development partners in the near future.

 

Come and hear directly from Sharon and the future for Rotherham – and importantly how you can get involved – at the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Development Plans Conference.

Click here to register for the event.