Greenlight for new Enterprise Zone at Hillhouse will create thousands of new jobs

The Chancellor has announced that the government has approved a bid by the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) for an additional Enterprise Zone (EZ) site at the Hillhouse Business Park on the Wyre coast.

The LEP forecasts that the EZ could potentially double the number of local jobs to 3,500 within the next ten to twenty years.

Under the new proposals, the LEP and local partners plan to build on Hillhouse’s hi-tech chemical and polymer heritage, but will also target firms within the wider energy and advanced manufacturing sectors to complement Lancashire’s overarching Enterprise Zone strategy.

LEP Board member, Graham Cowley, said: “This decision is a significant boost to the local economy and Lancashire as a whole, helping to create thousands of new jobs and spur economic growth over the coming years.

“Hillhouse is a key part of the LEP’s ambitious and comprehensive multi-million pound strategic economic growth programme.

Rob Green, of Blackpool Fylde and Wyre Economic Development Company, said: “We have seen good growth at Hillhouse over the past five years and there are prospects for growth in energy generation and for a world-class cluster of polymer companies.”

Firms on the Hillhouse EZ site will benefit from a range of incentives and benefits including reduced business rates and improved collaboration between companies. Wyre Borough Council, Lancashire County Council, NPL Estates and the Blackpool and Fylde Coast Economic Development Company supported the Hillhouse EZ application.