Member Article

Galliford Try begins work on £32m Northumberland County Council HQ

Work has now begun on the development of Northumberland County Council’s new £32m HQ, after a groundbreaking ceremony on the site this week.

Galliford Try plc, appointed by Arch, is bringing forward the redevelopment of Ashington town centre, a task providing 220 construction jobs over the next 24 months.

The scheme involves a smaller and more cost-effective Northumberland County Council headquarters, based on a ‘invest to save’ capital scheme which will save the authority £630k a year and almost £16m over the next 25 years – compared to staying at its current site.

Arch is leading on the delivery of the Ashington Investment Plan- a ten-year programme that will bring 2,000 high-quality jobs to the heart of Ashington, transforming the look and feel of the town centre.

Northumberland County Council Leader Grant Davey said: ‘This is a welcome next step in our market towns initiative to regenerate and improve Northumberland’s towns.

“We’re pleased to have started work on the scheme which is for the benefit of the town, the county and the wider region”.

Ian Lavery, MP for Wansbeck, said: “This is going to be a landmark development for Ashington and represents a serious long term and major commitment by creating a superb new town centre environment for local people, creating hundreds of jobs.”

He added: “I am excited to see the plans to revitalise Ashington continuing at pace”.