As Warrington is named the third best town or city in the North West for business and growth, Martin O’Rourke, Commercial Director at Birchwood Park, the largest single-owned business park in the North West, examines what makes Warrington stand out from the rest.
The Rise of the North
It’s clear to see that business is booming the North West, and in particular, Warrington, despite Brexit uncertainty. Following analysis earlier this year by the Cheshire and Warrington local enterprise partnership, it was revealed that the region’s economy is a huge 40% above the North West average, and 21% above the national average*, contributing a massive £30.9bn to the UK economy. Without doubt, Warrington and its hive of businesses, which Birchwood Park is proud to support, plays a hugely integral part in this success.
Thriving Enterprises
Warrington is uniquely placed within the thriving Cheshire Science Corridor, which has been awarded official Enterprise Zone status, and at Birchwood Park we believe this makes for an exciting time within the region in terms of growth possibilities. Home to nationally and internationally significant research facilities and businesses, we have the ability to attract around 500 businesses to the Warrington area, with the potential to create 20,000 jobs as a result – and we’re already championing this at Birchwood Park. With more than 30% of the businesses on Birchwood Park being linked to the science, engineering and nuclear sectors, we’re widely acknowledged as the UK’s hub for the nuclear services sector with companies including: Wood, Arcadis, NNL, Nuvia, and Rolls-Royce calling us home, and have invested a further £12.5m into further office and warehouse space – which the region is crying out for.
A Unique Offering
Businesses based in the area benefit from a very unique offering in terms of location and connectivity. Birchwood Park is certainly a shining example. The importance of accessibility and great local transport links, particularly for medium to large firms and those with operating warehouse distribution, has never been greater – businesses are needing to answer the demand for products and services in an ever-widening radius, and so greater connectivity is key to booming business. Business parks need to set themselves apart in this area, and that’s why at Birchwood Park we’re proud to boast the very best in transport links for our occupiers, being just two miles from the M6/M62 interchange, 18 minutes via train from Manchester city centre, 25 minutes from Manchester airport, and 35 minutes via train to Liverpool city centre.
Focus on Innovation
In order for businesses to not only survive, but thrive, in today’s climate, innovation must be front of mind. At Birchwood Park we recognise the need to ensure our facilities are of the very best standard for our occupiers’ benefit, including modern and innovative communal areas and a greater emphasis on workplace wellbeing. The recent investment of £850k into our central catering and meeting facilities through the creation of the EngineRooms at Birchwood Park, is our most exciting renovation to date, and was designed as a space for meeting, eating and working communally. We recognise that ‘out-of-town’ businesses still want the atmosphere and variety of city-centre locations, and that’s why we’re committed to ensuring that Birchwood Park remains at the forefront of innovation – disrupting expectations when it comes to becoming the best out-of-town, all day eat and meet co-working destination, and continuing to support our occupiers by creating the best workplace environment to help attract the next generation of business talent.
We know that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to the workplace and, while we’re proud of the park’s growth over the last 20 years, we’re ready to up our game throughout 2019 and beyond as part of the ongoing investment and success of the Warrington area.
