Turley “plans ahead” with City of Derry~Londonderry North West office.

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Turley “plans ahead” with City of Derry~North West office and new appointments: Planning consultants Turley have announced plans to open a second regional office to serve the City of Derry and North West, and the creation of three new jobs in Northern Ireland.

Left to right: Michael Gordon, Brian Kelly, John Davison of Turley

Left to right: Michael Gordon, Brian Kelly, John Davison of Turley


The national planning and design consultancy currently has offices in 12 locations across the UK, including an office in Belfast led by Office Director, Michael Gordon.

The new City of Derry~North West office is to be led by fellow Director, Brian Kelly a native of Donegal and the lead planner on several major projects including the Titanic Quarter, Odyssey Millennium project and Altnagelvin Hospital’s Radiotherapy Unit. He said:

“As a resident of the North West, I am delighted Turley is investing in a new office. This demonstrates a further commitment to our clients operating in the North West cross border region. We are responding to their demand, and a recognised opportunity to use planning to catalyse investments and deliver projects.

“Our own investment builds on a track record of high profile projects in the region, including the Radiotherapy unit, regeneration of Fort George and Ebrington Barracks, several social and private housing schemes, retail and other major employment & leisure schemes, including the Three Rivers development in Strabane.

“We see this as a next step in our growth at a time when there is new focus on the border region and opportunities that may be created following a ‘city’ or regional deal. There is simply no comparable ‘place-making’ planning offer operating in both jurisdictions in the North West region, and we look forward to working with clients and planning authorities throughout the area.”

The office investment will be followed by the appointment of three new posts. Michael Gordon explained:

“In recent years we have seen investor confidence returning. Turley has responded by continuing to develop our business to better support development projects. We now combine town planning, urban design, sustainability, economics and engagement expertise to help shape attractive commercially-viable places.

“Our team has grown to 14, the largest professional planning service on the island of Ireland. Market confidence has continued to return and has spurred our growth as we continue to secure significant permissions across commercial, residential and employment developments. We are now seeking to recruit three new positions to continue this growth and service the ongoing client work; with a senior planner in the North West, an assistant planner in Belfast, and a senior engagement consultant.”

Director of Engagement, John Davison added: “We have adapted to a reformed planning system that now sees local councils taking responsibility for local policy, and councillors in control of decision making. Planning has become increasingly local and community focussed. The emphasis now is on being engaged with local communities, locally elected representatives and to deliver economic growth opportunities. Our new office and these three new posts are a strategic response to maintain our growth and to service our clients.”

The new City of Derry~North West office is located at 37 Clarendon Street, BT48 7ER.

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Major Derry~Londonderry construction project to create 750 jobs

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Major Derry~Londonderry construction project to create 750 jobs: A major construction project in Londonderry will see the creation of around 750 direct and indirect jobs over the next three years. Braidwater is the company behind the £60m investment, which will go toward building over 400 houses. Those houses will be built in the Birch Hill Belt Road and Skeoge areas of the city. They are set for completion in 2020. It forms part of a wider £300m investment plan in the north-west by Braidwater.

Joe McGinnis, Managing Director of Braidwater, said: “We plan to offer homes of distinction, designed to enhance lifestyles by creating places of respite and community. We are planning communities while responding to existing neighbourhoods and connecting these through crafted open spaces. “For every £1 spent in construction £2.84 will be generated in the local economy. This will support a strong local supply chain maintained and grown since the recession, alongside the trickle-down economic effect for services, suppliers etc generated through local spending when new homes are occupied.

“These projects and additional long term projects will deliver significant benefits to the local economy including developer led contributions to roads improvements, public transport, play parks, neighbourhood centres, landscape maintenance in conjunction with the Council, commercial and retail areas and schools.

“This will give the ability for the district to maintain a competitive and affordable housing market in the long term, providing communities and economic activity that will leave a lasting legacy.”

Laura Fox, the Head of Planning with Derry City and Strabane District Council says her team have been working in close partnership with a number of developers from both the social and private housing sectors, including Braidwater, on a wide range of development projects across the City and District.

“Collaborative working between the planning team and the developers is essential to successfully delivering sustainable communities throughout the Council area.

“Since the transfer of Planning powers from Central Government to the local Council two years ago, the Council has overseen the approval of approximately 3000 units, while in the past year alone, we have successfully delivered on 367 social housing units, the highest number in any Council in Northern Ireland.”

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125 civil service jobs announced for Derry~Londonderry

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A major contract for 125 jobs has been secured by the Department for Communities (DfC) with Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for Derry~Londonderry.

The £7 million contract will see the people employed locally delivering Universal Credit services to claimants in Britain. The posts will be based at the Lisahally Service Centre in Derry.

A spokesperson for the Department for Communities said: “This is good news for DfC and for Northern Ireland, bringing to 594 the number of new jobs secured by the Department over the past year to deliver DWP services. “This third major contract for DfC is testament to the continued confidence DWP has in our capacity to provide high quality services for customers in Great Britain.” While some of the posts will be filled in the first instance through internal redeployment, it is expected that a “large proportion” of the posts will be filled through external recruitment, the Department said. The contract is for an initial two year period worth just over £3.5 million per annum and is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2017. It follows previous DWP contracts announced in September and December 2016, worth a combined £20 million.

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Londonderry Manufacturers Invest in Growth and New Jobs

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A selection of manufacturing focussed business in Co. Londonderry come together to announce investment of over £6.2million and 51 new jobs. Pictured (centre) are Invest NI CEO Alastair Hamilton and Stephen Kelly, CEO Manufacturing NI with (L – R) Brian McErlain, McErlain’s Bakery, Ross Armstrong and Richard McMullan from Armstrong Medical.

A selection of manufacturing focussed business in Co. Londonderry come together to announce investment of over £6.2million and 51 new jobs. Pictured (centre) are Invest NI CEO Alastair Hamilton and Stephen Kelly, CEO Manufacturing NI with (L – R) Brian McErlain, McErlain’s Bakery, Ross Armstrong and Richard McMullan from Armstrong Medical.

Londonderry Manufacturers Invest in Growth and New Jobs: Manufacturing in Northern Ireland continues to grow as a selection of 30 businesses come together to announce investment of over £22 million and 282 new jobs.

The 30 firms, supported by Invest Northern Ireland, are from a broad range of disciplines: food to chemicals, pharmaceutical to transport equipment. Speaking at an event hosted by Invest NI to recognise the commitment to growth within the manufacturing industry, Invest NI’s Chief Executive Alastair Hamilton said: “Today’s event is an opportunity to highlight some of the investments manufacturing focused businesses are making. The local firms we have here today are from right across Northern Ireland.

“With £1.9 million of support from Invest NI they are making a combined investment of over £22million in our economy. As well as stimulating economic growth there are also new job opportunities, with 282 new jobs being created, which will generate over £6.3million annually in additional salaries for the local economy.”
McErlain’s Bakery, The SkunkWorks Surf company, Dynasty Group, Armstrong Medical Ltd and Gallagher & Mc Kinney Limited are among the manufacturing based firms in Co. Londonderry committed to growing their business, benefiting from combined Invest NI support of over £520,000.

Collectively these firms are investing over £6.2million in projects that will create 51 jobs. Once in place these new jobs will generate over £1.2million annually in additional salaries to the local economy.
“These investments show real commitment from businesses to invest in the future”, continued Alastair. “With investment in new equipment, skills and training, new jobs and export development, it is clear that there is real opportunity for growth in manufacturing.”

Welcoming the investments, Stephen Kelly Manufacturing NI Chief Executive said: “Manufacturing plays a huge role in the Northern Ireland economy generating annual sales approaching £20 billion, directly employing 80,000 people, supporting production and employment in a wider supply chain and creating jobs and strong communities in every constituency across Northern Ireland.

“SMEs make up 98% of all businesses here in Northern Ireland and are at the very heart of what we do in our manufacturing base. Week in, week out, companies like this continue to work very hard to keep moving forward, to build and grow our business economy and build communities.

“It is encouraging to see the progress and developments being made by firms across all disciplines. Invest NI is offering valuable support to enable these businesses to create highly skilled, well paid jobs and drive innovation and growth in export markets.” Northern Ireland manufacturing is rich in knowledge, skills and experience, founded on a strong heritage. A large number of manufacturing businesses account for 15 per cent of all local economic output and one in every nine local jobs.

Speaking about Invest NI’s commitment to helping these businesses, Alastair Hamilton continued: “Growing and strengthening Northern Ireland’s manufacturing business base is core to our strategy. We continue to focus on growing local businesses, increasing investment, and identifying new export opportunities.

“We are working closely with organisations like Manufacturing NI to support the promotion and growth of manufacturing. We have a global reputation in areas such as our Advanced Manufacturing, materials and engineering sectors. By working in partnership with businesses we can continue to support them to capitalise on new opportunities and realise their full potential.”

The investments are underway and over 100 of the new jobs are already in place. Manufacturing plays a huge part in the Northern Ireland economy with the latest HMRC 12 month rolling figures valuing manufacturing exports at just over £8bn.

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Global Equipment Spares Ltd Manufacturer Expansion to Create 61 New Jobs

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GES

Pictured (L – R) are Barry O’Neill, Sales Director of GES, John McClenaghan, Managing Director of GES, and Invest NI’s Executive Director of Business & Sector Development, Jeremy Fitch.

Londonderry based Global Equipment Spares Limited (GES) is more than doubling its workforce over the next three years as part of a strategy to grow its export sales six-fold.

With support from Invest Northern Ireland GES, which is located at Campsie Industrial Estate, is investing £1.9million to upgrade its facility, purchase new machinery and create 61 new jobs across a range of roles.
Announcing the investment, Invest NI’s Executive Director of Business & Sector Development, Jeremy Fitch said: “Invest NI’s offer of £396,000 is enabling GES to undertake growth development plans aimed at positioning the business so that it can manufacture and export more components, particularly into North America.

“The 61 new jobs being recruited over the next three years range from manufacturing roles to procurement and sales positions and will generate £1.3million annually in additional salaries.

“GES’ investment marks a significant step change for the small business as it seeks to scale up its production capabilities to meet the growing opportunities for its products outside Northern Ireland.”

GES manufactures products from high strength and wear resistant steels for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) of quarrying, mining, construction and agricultural equipment based in GB, the ROl, the EU and the US. Its customers include major materials handling businesses including Terex, Telestack, Sandvik and McCloskey International as well as global companies such as Kleemann Wirtgen, Astec Industries and Kuhn Farm Machinery.

John McClenaghan, Managing Director of GES, said: “This expansion is part of a strategy to grow sales and increase both our workforce and our product offering to meet identified opportunities within new and existing markets. We have set ourselves a challenging target for new export business and will be focused on leveraging our reputation in the industry to secure new customers.

“Invest NI’s support is allowing us to fully implement our growth plans and create valuable employment opportunities across a range of disciplines in the North West.”

Invest NI’s support is part funded by ERDF under the EU Investment for Growth and Jobs Programme 2014-2020.

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29 new jobs for Rural Business Investment Scheme

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Derry Strabane Rural Partenership

Derry Strabane Rural Partenership

Derry and Strabane Rural Partnership has awarded funding which will create 29 new jobs in the rural area through the roll out of its second call of the Rural Business Investment Scheme as part of the NI Rural Development Programme 2014-2020.

The Rural Business Investment Scheme was the first scheme to open in 2016/17 with grants of £323,000 awarded to nine businesses in September 2016, and the creation of 15.5 jobs. This second call for funding opened last October and grants of over £470,000 have now been awarded to eight projects, creating 29 new jobs in the rural community.

Among those businesses successful in securing funding were the the City of Derry Equestrian Centre at Ardmore £4,992; Ardstraw Quarries at Victoria Bridge £50,000 (2 jobs); Foyle Golf Centre at Culmore £90,000 (5.5 jobs); Greg Mitchell Motors at Victoria Bridge £90,000 (5.5 jobs); Oakfire Adventures in Derry £50,000 (2.5 jobs); Sayers Engineering, Castlederg £90,000 (4 jobs) and Tiny Tots Day Care in Sion Mills, £50,000 (8 jobs).

Acknowledging the investment and the creation of new jobs, the Chair of Derry and Strabane Rural Partnership Cllr Patricia Logue said this was a really good news story for the rural area.

“We are delighted to be in a position to award funding to these local rural businesses and to offer them a chance to improve their services and grow their client base. Availing of this funding has given them a competitive edge in what is a challenging economic climate and we are delighted to be in a position to support the growth of these rural businesses and the creation of new jobs” she said.

Deirdre Harte, Rural Development Manager with Derry City and Strabane District Council said the total funding awarded to date through the first two calls of the Rural Business Investment Scheme is now nearly £800,000 with 17 grants supporting the creation of 44.5 new jobs.

“This programme is crucial in giving rural businesses a helping hand to realise their potential and to avail of support and assistance to grow their business, extend their workforce and develop export potential. We are also delighted with the response to our third call under the Scheme following a series of workshops held across the district in April 2017”

The NI Rural Development Programme is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) and the European Union.

For further information on the Rural Development Programme in the Derry City and Strabane District Council area visit www.derrystrabane.com/rural.

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Holiday Inn Invests in Derry~Londonderry

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Holiday Inn Express, Derry, Strand Road

Holiday Inn Express, Derry

Holiday Inn Invests in Derry~Londonderry creating 47 jobs. The Duddy Group is investing £7million to build a new Holiday Inn Express Hotel in Londonderry creating 47 jobs.

The project is being supported by Invest Northern Ireland and the Department for Communities. Announcing the investment, Invest Northern Ireland’s Chief Executive Alastair Hamilton said:

“This new hotel will address a gap in provision of budget hotel accommodation in Londonderry by offering a three-star quality option for visitors.The hotel will have 116 bedrooms, a Marco Pierre New York Italian Restaurant, two meeting rooms and three retail units and will provide accommodation for up to 40,000 visitors a year bringing significant additional revenue to the city

The economic benefit also includes the creation of 47 jobs as well as employment generated during the construction phase and the ongoing benefit to the local supply chain through the purchasing of consumables for use in the hotel.

The addition of this internationally acknowledged brand will underline the city’s position as a quality destination and will contribute to achieving government’s targets to grow tourism revenues to £1 billion and visitor numbers to 4.5 million by 2020.

The new hotel will be located on the corner of Strand Road and Great James Street, not far from the Peace Bridge and close to other key tourist sites such as the Guildhall and the City Walls. Invest NI has offered £724,000 of support and the Department for Communities has offered £475,000 from its Urban Development Grant. The project has also secured £1million of mezzanine funding from Whiterock Capital through Invest NI’s Access to Finance strategy.

Pauline Campbell, Director at Department for Communities stated:

“The £475,000 investment from the Department will unlock significant private and public investment into this project. This new 116 bedroom 3 star hotel will give a much needed boost to the economy as well as regenerating a key site within Londonderry.

Commenting on the development, Brendan Duddy said: “This is an exciting development that will support the wider tourist and hospitality industry in Northern Ireland and provide a new base for visitors to explore the city and surrounding areas. “We wanted to grow tourism in the North West and create employment and business opportunities for service providers in the region. The support from Invest NI and the Department for Communities will enable us to progress our investment plans and we are aiming to have the hotel open for business by early 2018.”

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