Central Lancashire showcased at major property event

By Lancashire Business View

14 Feb 2017

More than 120 developers, investors and property professionals drawn from across the North West gathered together for an inward investment event focusing on the commercial opportunities and investment potential offered by Preston, South Ribble and the Central Lancashire region.

Entitled “We Are Lancashire – The Place For Growth”, the event was organised by the City Deal Partnership (which includes Lancashire County Council, Preston City Council, South Ribble Council and the Homes & Communities Agency) as well as Marketing Lancashire and the Lancashire LEP,  and was hosted at the Preston headquarters of accountants RSM.

Senior representatives of these organisations were joined at the event by private sector partners and prominent local business leaders who took part in a series of Q&A panels and discussions about what the City Deal programme means for Preston, South Ribble and the wider Lancashire economy.

The half-day conference covered a broad range of topics from the strengths of the local economy and what it is like doing business in the area, to the proactive planning and development support property companies and investors can benefit from when they invest in Central Lancashire.

At the heart of the discussions was the impact and opportunities offered by the £434m City Deal programme. The City Deal is a key initiative of the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership’s strategic plan to create 50,000 new jobs over the next 10 years across the county.

Key themes which emerged throughout the sessions included how all of the Lancashire local authorities, both county and district, involved in City Deal were working closely together to ensure private investment can flourish. This included their pragmatic, joined-up approach to the planning process, and the substantial public sector support on offer to help private sector schemes get started, and completed, with a minimum of barriers.

Another important debate centred around the need to create a diverse mix of housing, and have different types of tenure, throughout Central Lancashire. This was to ensure families, young people, the elderly, students and recent graduates could all get access to affordable and desirable accommodation which suited their needs.

Jim Carter, chairman of the City Deal and LEP board director said: “This event was a great example of how Lancashire is directly engaging with investors and taking our story to the marketplace. We know many of the developers and agents present won’t have heard such a level of detail about what’s happening in and around Central Lancashire, and this conference gave us a platform to showcase how through initiatives like the City Deal, Preston and South Ribble offers an unrivalled investment opportunity.

[caption id="attachment_86671" align="f-align-medium-left f-align-center" width="300"] Mike Horner, Muse Developments[/caption]

“The fact we had the LEP, local business leaders and senior representatives from both district and county councils all talking in positive terms about how Lancashire is pro-development, pro-growth and is united in its ambition to unlock more private sector investment to drive the economy is a testament to how far the county has come. This is also why central government is so supportive of our aspirations to be at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse.

“We now need to capitalise on the buzz created by this conference, and other events like it, and we will be following up with all the delegates to see how we can convert their interest and enthusiasm about Central Lancashire as an investment destination into potential deals.” Panellist Mike Horner, regional director of specialist urban property developers Muse Developments who are involved with the cinema element of the Harris Quarter project, said: “Events like this conference, where major private sector players were on the same page as council leaders and local authority chief executives, demonstrates how initiatives like the City Deal and Growth Deal have helped galvanise a new era of collaboration, commercially and politically, in the county and we are greatly looking forward to working with Lancashire partners to help drive its resurgence as a major regional economy.”

Latest news

1

Breck Homes appoints new managing director Phil Dolan, Breck

Breck Homes appoints new managing director

20 Oct 2025

2

Management buyout at Suresite Group Steve Holden

Management buyout at Suresite Group

17 Oct 2025

3

Meet the influencers who have generated £2m sales for one company Helen and Richard Chalu new

Meet the influencers who have generated £2m sales for one company

16 Oct 2025

4

WHN strengthens position in prestigious legal guide Daniel Long

WHN strengthens position in prestigious legal guide

16 Oct 2025

5

Warden appoints new commercial manager to strengthen project delivery and growth Peter Heskine

Warden appoints new commercial manager to strengthen project delivery and growth

16 Oct 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

Help to grow management course
Help to grow - barriers to growth.png.png
LBV Hub Seminars
26 Sep 2025 - 16 Dec 2025

Help to grow management course

Preston Campus , Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 15:00

Women scaling up Blackpool Fylde and Wyre
LBV Hub Seminars
22 Oct 2025 - 09 Jan 2026

Women scaling up Blackpool Fylde and Wyre

The Small Business Academy, Blackpool, FY4 5JX

09:30 - 15:30

HR Essentials for pubs, bars and licensed venues
EventBrite NORi - 22nd Oct Webinar.png.png
LBV Hub Webinar
22 Oct 2025 - 22 Oct 2025

HR Essentials for pubs, bars and licensed venues

Online - Teams, Leyland, PR253XH

13:30 - 15:00

RISE - Lancashire's unique leadership programme for women
thumbnail_Emma Weston Illustration WENDY BOWERS RISE Illustrstion.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
22 Oct 2025 - 18 Mar 2026

RISE - Lancashire's unique leadership programme for women

East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce, Clayton le Moors, BB5 5JR

09:30 - 15:30

North West Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-880456273-4862066883-1-original.20241022-105445.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Exhibitions
24 Oct 2025 - 24 Oct 2025

North West Business Expo 2025

Bolton Stadium Hotel, Bolton, BL6 6SF

09:00 - 15:00

Chamber Business Lunch – October
LBV Hub Networking
24 Oct 2025 - 24 Sep 2025

Chamber Business Lunch – October

Lancaster Golf Club, Lancaster, LA2 0AJ

11:00 - 13:30

Lancaster District Business Support Expo
Lancs-cham-logo.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
29 Oct 2025 - 29 Oct 2025

Lancaster District Business Support Expo

The Platform, Morecambe, LA4 4DB

10:00 - 15:00

Chamber Breakfast Networking – November
Lancs-cham-logo.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
06 Nov 2025 - 06 Nov 2025

Chamber Breakfast Networking – November

Porsche Centre South Lakes, Carnforth, LA6 1FW

08:30 - 10:30

Lancashire Police business update with The Police and Crime Commissioner
Lancs-cham-logo.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Roundtables
10 Nov 2025 - 10 Nov 2025

Lancashire Police business update with The Police and Crime Commissioner

Lancaster Castle, Lancaster, LA1 1YN

14:00 - 16:00

AI, Creativity, and what it means to be human
2.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Networking
11 Nov 2025 - 11 Nov 2025

AI, Creativity, and what it means to be human

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

18:00 - 20:00

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV124 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin