Blackpool will join Manchester Airport in becoming an enterprise zone in a move which could attract up to 140 new businesses and 3,000 high-tech jobs.
The Northern Powerhouse Minister, James Wharton announced today that the move would attract greater inward investment and help deliver hundreds of new jobs. It will also provide an opportunity to secure the long term future of Blackpool Airport.
“Blackpool is the latest town set to benefit from having these additional business freedoms, which is a real boost for the town’s ambitions to become a centre of excellence for the UK energy sector, as well as being the home of the world famous illuminations.” Said the minister adding
“On top of this, by closing the economic gap between the North and South and attracting new businesses to the Enterprise Zone, it could secure the future of Blackpool Airport for years to come.”
The Blackpool Enterprise Zone will become a centre of excellence for the energy sector, with plans for a new Energy HQ, a dedicated new training facility to be developed by Blackpool and Fylde College.
Backed by £6.2 million Growth Deal funding, it aims to provide job-ready students in engineering and advanced technology.
It is also home to Lightworks, the depot where Blackpool’s iconic illuminations are manufactured and stored. Most recently, Lightworks benefitted from £2 million coastal communities funding to provide the Lightpool projection and digital mapping on Blackpool Tower.
