Jobs boost for Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire » Local Government » 24dash.com

Nearly 2400 jobs were created or safeguarded in Staffordshire last year as the result of inward investment and expansion it was revealed today.

The announcement, which marks the launch of the InStaffs Annual Review, revealed that 49 companies moved into the area from March 07 to April 08, nine more than the expected target.

Of these, 34 firms received expert advice and project management assistance from the development agency, including help with finding the right premises, guidance on recruitment, effective media relations and vital information on securing financial support.

John de Kanter, Chief Executive of InStaffs, believes these figures highlight the resilience of the area and its continued appeal to investors both domestically and from overseas.

“The last twelve months have seen some major changes in the UK economy and the inward investment market has enjoyed a similar roller coaster ride from the buoyancy of Summer 07 to the impending spectre of the credit crunch biting hard.

“Throughout this period, we have seen sustained interest in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire and this, coupled with tireless promotion, has helped us meet all of our major targets for the last financial year.

He continued: “Over 2400 enquiries were received, nearly 8% above the anticipated rate. This gave us a solid platform to expand on and we also benefitted from an unrivalled number of speculative build schemes currently on the market across the area.”

There were some notable achievements in the last year, highlighted by Helical Governetz and its intentions for Project Keele, a 600,000 sq ft trio of high quality office developments that could eventually house major public sector departments.

“While most areas were reporting a downturn in enquiries, we have had a really eventful time and this is reflected in the number of companies expressing an interest in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire,” pointed out John.

“Empty building rates and the global downturn are going to bite in 08/09, but we feel we are in the best possible position to ride it out and emerge stronger than ever before.

The next year will be tough, but we are confident we have enough selling points coming to the ‘boil’ to whet the appetite of investors.”

The Annual Review is a 16-page reflection on the year that was, with a breakdown on achievements and special sections on speculative build developments and the entrepreneurial bug sweeping the area.

The latter profiles eight different ‘enterprise’ schemes currently being built and which, when complete, will create 1000 high value jobs.

“What has been really pleasing is the diversity of the companies choosing Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire as the base for their businesses.”

John concluded: “We’ve had big name manufacturers in Recticel and Holland and Barrett, large distribution facilities like Waterstones and the excellent news that Vodafone were not only staying, but actually expanding to create a sizeable number of jobs.”

InStaffs has recently re-launched their online property search facility (www.instaffs.co.uk) to include an interactive map, over 1100 properties and a new reporting system that makes comparing properties easier and quicker than ever before.