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NORTH SOMERSET COUNCIL

CORPORATE PEER CHALLENGE

TOUR OF NORTH SOMERSET

27th June 2016

A great place to live where

people, businesses and

communities flourish.

Modern, efficient services and

a strong voice for North

Somerset.

Driving Growth in North Somerset

Peer Review Tour 27th June 2016 – Background Notes

Map references (Area):

1. Locking Road car park (A)

7. Lidl RDC (A) 13. Police HQ (C) 19. South Bristol Link Road

2. Station Environs (A) 8. Junction 21 (A) 14. Pure Offices (C)

20. Clifton Suspension Bridge (F)

3. Avoncrest (A) 9. Marine Lake (B) 15. Viper Subsea (C) 21. Bristol Airport (H)

4. Hutton Moor (A) 10. Clevedon Hall (B) 16. Marina development (C) 22. Thatchers (I)

5. Weston Business Quarter (A)

11. Clevedon Pier (B) 17. Royal Portbury Docks (D)

23. Banwell (I)

6. Weston Gateway (A) 12. Kenn Road Business Park (B)

18. Pill (E)

24. The Hive (J)

Weston Town Centre Regeneration

1. Locking Road car park

2. Station Environs

3. Avoncrest

4. Hutton Moor

Weston-super-Mare is the largest town in North Somerset with a population of around 84,500. The town

is set to grow further through a mixture of residential and commercial development during the

forthcoming years. Situated close to Junction 21 of the M5 motorway, Weston provides a convenient

business location with good access to the South West of England. Bristol Airport is within 25 minutes’

drive and there are regular train services to Bristol and London Paddington, and to the north.

North Somerset Council has been working closely with the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) to bring

forward several sites as part of the Weston Town Centre Regeneration Programme. As a designated

Housing Zone, Weston is a priority for HCA funding and recent acquisitions represent over £20m of HCA

investment in the town centre. Key sites for development include the final phase of Dolphin Square,

Sunnyside Road, Locking Road car park and the Avoncrest site of the old tip.

Walliscote Place comprises a series of sites around the area surrounded by the Town Hall, Magistrates

Court and Police Station and the Centre Buildings at the western end of Station Road. The development

opportunity proposes a fundamental repositioning of the area as a new arrival space and destination in

the town centre by building on the area’s heritage assets, improving the quality of public realm, and by

capitalising on the availability of publicly owned land to bring forward a series of high quality new

developments.

The Station Gateway is envisioned as a the main town centre arrival area, a mixed use, contemporary,

leafy and urban quarter that signifies Weston’s ambition, creates strong and clear links to the town centre

and makes a significant contribution to the Southside Grove regeneration area. The area offers a number

of development sites, linked together by a series of strategic infrastructure projects.

The Avoncrest site was awarded housing zone status by DCLG in January 2015 to help unlock the sites

potential and increase housing supply from brownfield sites within North Somerset. Providing new good

quality housing in the town centre is key to achieving the ambition of the programme to create a vibrant

and diverse town centre with a thriving economy.

Junction 21 Enterprise Area

5. Weston Business Quarter

6. Weston Gateway

7. Lidl RDC

8. Junction 21

2013 saw North Somerset Council establish several Local Development Orders, this created ‘certainty’ for

private sector investment in order to empower significant employment development. J21 EA is one of five

Enterprise Areas and one Enterprise Zone in the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership area.

J21 EA will see investment leading to the creation of 9-10,000 jobs by 2030. It forms the employment

element of the Weston Villages development (the creation of two new settlements of some 9,000 homes

to the east of Weston-super-Mare town).

Weston Business Quarter (WBQ) is formed from the 89 Acre (36 Hectare) commercial element of the

Heywood Village development. It is a partnership development between Persimmon Homes, Express Parks

(KMW Properties Ltd), North Somerset Council and St Modwen. Arguably this site is at the heart of J21EA,

it has become the home to North Somerset Enterprise Agency (Hive building); the South West Food

Innovation Centre (Foodworks); North Somerset Enterprise and Technology College (NSETC) and a host

of knowledge-intensive technology, media, telecoms and manufacturing businesses.

Food and Drink is the largest sub-sector within the UK manufacturing sector – also the largest in the South

West. North Somerset Council has been working with key industry partners to develop the South West’s

first Food and Drink Innovation Centre. Named ‘FoodWorks-SW’, the centre will be built within a newly

designated Food Enterprise Zone (FEZ). The project will drive forward growth and create a focus for the

Enterprise Area and will, over time, help to develop a significant cluster of food and drink businesses on 7

hectares of land in the Weston Business Quarter.

The centre will create over 140 jobs and GVA of £25m per annum. It will address current market failure of

an undersupply of food-grade facilities across the region and a skills mismatch. It will include:

o Purpose built food-grade incubator units, ranging from 100 sq.m – 150 sq.m (affordable and flexible to

meet business needs);

o Product development facilities to enable businesses to scale up production, introduce new lines, carry

out pilot runs, re-formulate recipes and Innovate;

o Specialist lab facilities to enable end to end product testing;

o Practical hands-on-support from on-site specialists and technicians to enable food businesses to

succeed within highly complex supply-chains and challenging regulations; and

o Collaboration between regional and local partners to support business development needs and to help

address a current mismatch in skills.

Weston Business Quarter:

Weston Gateway Business Park has been carefully planned and designed to meet the needs of a range of

commercial organisations. Each plot is fully-serviced and includes the necessary infrastructure to ensure

efficient timeframes for completion. The site is capable of employment development up to 118,400 sq. ft.,

(Office: 73,195 sq. ft. and light Industrial B1/B2: 45,209 sq. ft.) across a range of tenures. Within easy

walking distance of Worle Parkway railway station and the park and ride scheme – with dedicated

footpath links. Current occupiers include Knightstone Housing Association’s Headquarters, Avon and

Somerset Constabulary, Weston Area Rapid Response Centre and Greene King ‘Super Mare’ public house

Weston Gateway Business Park:

Clevedon

9. Marine Lake

10. Clevedon Hall

11. Clevedon Pier

12. Kenn Road Business Park

The town has around 21,000 inhabitants. Around 73% of 16-74 year olds are economically active in

Clevedon which is slightly higher than North Somerset (71%) and nationally (70%). Clevedon is 5 minutes

off Junction 20 of the M5, just 13 miles south of Bristol and 10 miles north of Weston-Super-Mare, and is

home to a range of high tech manufacturing businesses.

Clevedon Hall is a Grade II listed mansion with 17 acres (6.9 ha) of land. The Hall has four key areas of

focus - Celebration market; Corporate Events; Own events (supporting business in North Somerset); and a

quality food offer. Clevedon Hall hosted the North Somerset Business Ambassadors meeting in May.

Kenn Road Business Park is situated close to Junction 20 of the M5 motorway and within two miles of

Yatton railway station, which provides regular links to Bristol Temple Meads. This site is home to a number

of modern developments offering a mixture of self-contained offices and industrial/warehouse

accommodation.

High tech companies in Clevedon include Edwards Vacuum, a leading developer and manufacturer of

sophisticated vacuum products; Ipeco Composites and SKF Bearings, both suppliers to the aerospace

industries; Brittania Windows and Paneltech with highly automated production facilities; and Espiner

Medical, a leading supplier of medical instruments and Palm Equipment International. There are many

smaller manufacturers which, combined with the above, constitute a significant cluster.

Clevedon Pier (the country’s only Grade I listed pier) has just undergone a £2.3m transformation with the

addition of a new Visitor Centre. Marine Lake has also seen a significant £850,000 renovation and facelift

this year. The seafront attracts visitors and local residents to the promenade and to engage in

recreational pursuits. The forthcoming England Coastal Path in 2017/18 will further increase footfall.

Clevedon has an eclectic and attractive mix of independent shops and businesses, most notably in Hill

Road, and the oldest working cinema in the country, the Grade II listed Curzon Community Cinema. It has

a lively music and arts community and hosts popular events such as the Marine Lake Enthusiasts’ Festival

and local Theatre Orchard’s Theatre Shop. There are cruises from the Pier during the summer months to

the Somerset, Devon coast and Welsh coasts. Nearby attractions include 2 National Trust Houses and

Gardens and a Zoo Farm, with lions, tigers, elephants and 12 indoor and outdoor play areas.

Clevedon Town Council, in conjunction with North Somerset Council, successfully bid for funding to set up

a Coastal Community Team. The funding gives an initial £10,000 to set up a community team to develop a

town-wide economic plan for the next 5 – 10 years. The plan aims to enhance the quality of Clevedon’s

seafront for residents and visitors and in so doing benefit the economy of the whole town. The primary

recommendation to ensure delivery of many of the proposed projects is the establishment of a Business

Improvement District (BID).

The town is a popular location for filming. Most notably it has doubled as the fictional Dorset town of

Broadchurch in the award winning ITV drama now filming its third and final series. Clevedon Pier was the

setting for One Direction’s Brit Awards-winning music video “You and I”, and the soon to be released film,

“Mum’s List”, starring Rafe Spall and Emilia Fox.

Portishead

13. Police HQ

14. Pure Offices

15. Viper Subsea

16. Marina development

Portishead has a population of approximately 23,700 and is located close to Junction 19 of the M5

motorway, within 10 miles of Bristol city centre.

Situated on the Bristol Channel coast, its former docks are now the centre of a new marina development.

The former deep-water dock, used to supply coal and goods to the power stations, has been fully

redeveloped into a modern marina with 250 pontoon berths. This comprises of modern houses and

apartments, cafes, shops, and the Parish Wharf Leisure Centre.

Portishead also provides a suitable business location offering links to the Midlands, London and the South

West due to its close proximity to the M5 and M4. It is also a very short distance from Royal Portbury Dock

(below). North Somerset Council is working with the other West of England councils on proposals for an

ambitious programme of rail improvements for delivery over the next 10 years, including plans to re-open

the Portishead rail line and re-introduce passenger train services.

Avon and Somerset Constabulary HQ: Officially opened in 1995, the 47 acre site cost £31 million and is

currently home to over 1,000 operational and police staff. There are a number of facilities on site including

Portishead Down Training School, a renowned regional centre of excellence for police training. The site

hosts various operational departments and administrative functions. These range from Criminal

Investigations and the Road Policing Unit, to Purchasing and Supply.

The town has seen a number of recent office developments including Portishead Office Park, Gordano

Gate and Portis Fields. Kestrel Court is one of Pure Offices largest business centres and offers superb

facilities for SMEs.

Viper Subsea is a ‘subsea engineering’ company that provides consultancy services and innovative

products to the subsea oil and gas sector. Its customers range from the international and independent oil

companies to other ‘first tier’ suppliers to those oil companies. The company recently won a Queen’s

Award for Enterprise in Innovation for its ground-breaking V-LIFE Electrical Insulation Resistance

Improvement System. The company has seen year-on-year growth, investing heavily in research and

development, resulting in a number of patented products.

17. Royal Portbury Docks

18. Pill

19. South Bristol Link Road

20. Clifton Suspension Bridge

21. Bristol airport

The Bristol Port Company is a diverse business with a wide variety of roles from Warehouse Operatives to

IT Network Engineers, from Port Operatives to Accountants. It is home to 575 direct employees with

10,000 jobs dependent on port based businesses.

Key facts:

o UK's most centrally located deep sea port

o £475 million invested since privatisation

o 2,600 acre estate

o Unrivalled motorway and rail connectivity

o 67% of the UK population - 43 million people - within 250km

Each year the port handles:

o 25% of all UK aviation fuel imports

o 6 million tonnes of dry bulk goods

o 25% of all animal feed imports

o 600,000 motor vehicles

o 10% of UK coal imports for electricity generation

With a population of 3,500, Pill is situated on the southern bank of the Avon and adjacent to the village of

Easton-in-Gordano. The economy tends to reflect the North Somerset average with generally low rates of

unemployment, high rates of economic activity and a skilled workforce.

Clifton Suspension Bridge: Designed by Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1864.

A Grade I listed bridge which joins Bristol and North Somerset, owned and operated by Clifton Suspension

Bridge Trust. It is entirely funded by tolls with 11,000 – 12,000 vehicles crossing each day. The Clifton

Suspension Bridge Visitor Centre was winner of the 2015 LABC (Local Authority Business Control) ‘Best

Small Commercial Building’.

South Bristol Link Road: South Bristol Link comprises sections of new and realigned highway with a total

length of 4.5 kilometres from the A370 Long Ashton bypass within North Somerset to the A38 and

onwards to the Cater Road roundabout within South Bristol. Realigned sections are at Highridge Green,

King Georges Road and Whitchurch Lane.

The scheme is part of the transport strategy for improving the transport network and is an integral part of

the MetroBus Programme. Ashton Vale to Temple Meads and North Fringe to Hengrove make up the

other two critical elements. The scheme objectives are to facilitate regeneration and growth in South

Bristol, reduce congestion in South Bristol and adjacent areas of North Somerset, and to improve

accessibility from South Bristol to the City Centre and to strategic transport links, including the trunk road

network and Bristol Airport. The Airport Flyer service will benefit from improvements in access to Bristol

Temple Meads via the bus spur contained within the scheme.

The scheme improves journey times and network resilience by reducing congestion in the surrounding

networks and by providing an alternative strategic link between the A38 and A370. The local business

community has made it clear that reduced congestion will help boost confidence and attract investment

to the area.

o The scheme will unlock 2,500 new jobs in south Bristol (conservative estimate)

o Each £1 spent on SBL will result in £5.89 of benefits

o The total Gross Value Added by SBL will equal £199 million by 2030

A370 roundabout looking south:

Bridge under the main line looking east:

A38 roundabout looking south:

Highridge Common looking east:

Bristol airport: The airport was fully privatised in 2001 – base established by Go (later easyJet) in the same

year. Development to 10mppa was approved in 2011 and Teachers’ became sole owner in 2014.

Some key facts:

o 9th largest airport in the UK (England’s 3rd largest outside London)

o 3,000+ employees working for 50+ businesses

o 4,200 direct and indirect jobs

o £388m GVA generated by airport

o Visitors using airport spend £347m in local economy

o More than 7 million people within 2 hour drive time

o Most ‘noise efficient regional airport in UK

o 14% of passengers use public transport to and from airport

22. Thatchers

23. Banwell

24. The Hive

Thatchers:

o Premium cider producers

o Family run business – nearly 100 years old

o 160 staff across UK (including sales people in Scotland). Set to double with further expansion plans

o £65m annual turnover increasing by £5m annually

o £7m invested in new facilities over the last 3 years

o Increasing export markets currently America, New Zealand and Australia

o Significant site development – new facilities and move to robotics and computerised manufacturing

o The Thatcher’s Railway Inn was winner of the LABC 2016 award ‘Best Small Commercial Building’.

Banwell is a village and civil parish on the River Banwell in the North Somerset district of Somerset,

England. Its population was 2,919 according to the 2011 census. The village is located between the M5

motorway and the A38, and is used by traffic travelling from the motorway to Bristol Airport. This traffic,

together with other users of the A371 and A368, often causes the narrow streets of Banwell to become

congested.

The Hive: Within J21 EA Weston Business Quarter, the Hive provides a combination of managed workspace and on site business advice (through North Somerset Enterprise Agency (NSEA)) – a unique set-up in the area.

Key points:

o Easy in easy out terms for businesses o 76% occupancy after 2 years, a year ahead of schedule o Currently 30 business + more virtual tenants o Agreed ‘Soft Landing’ facility available for inward investment o Wide range of occupiers including: High Tech, financial, business support, recruitment o Current base of Foodworks SW – the SW Food Innovation Centre (see above) o Planning approval for Phase 2, currently applying for funding.

The NSEA is a not-for-private profit organisation with social objectives and has been operational for 25 years providing business start-up and support across North Somerset (currently delivered through an SLA with North Somerset Council).

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