Business in Bruton is set for a boost with work beginning on a new £2.7m Enterprise Centre at Combe Hill.
The Bruton site will be Somerset’s eighth Enterprise Centre and is expected to open this Winter.
The centre will be home to 10 new offices, two meeting rooms and seven 50 square metre industrial units. The site will also have car parking (including electric), a bike lock-up, and a small kitchen in the office building.
Somerset’s Enterprise Centres have been specially designed to accommodate rural businesses by offering flexible tenancies, superfast broadband, competitive rents as well as access to business support and networking.
They provide easy in and easy out terms to make it as straightforward and low risk as possible for businesses to access and aim to encourage suitable businesses to take their next step.
The centre is being built by Willmott Dixon construction with Grainge Architects and the County Councils Property and Economy teams. It’s also jointly funded by the County Council, the European Regional Development Fund (£615,382) and the Getting Building Fund (£816,000).
Councillor David Hall, Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Planning and Community Infrastructure, said: “Somerset County Council is determined not only to support businesses through the coronavirus pandemic but to continue planning for the future by investing in projects such as this which offer opportunities for growth for years to come.
“I’m delighted that work on the Bruton Enterprise Centre is now underway, thanks to the funding we’ve been able to provide and that which we have helped to ‘lever in’ from elsewhere.”
Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government, Luke Hall MP said: “We recognise the unique challenges which rural businesses have faced during the pandemic. That’s why we’re backing Bruton Enterprise Centre with a Getting Building Fund investment of over £800,000. The specialist offering will help Somerset’s rural businesses to grow and thrive, bringing jobs and investment to the local community.”
The new centre will join the existing enterprise centre portfolio of sites in Dulverton (Barle); Frome (Keyford); Wheddon Cross (Market); Highbridge; Minehead; Wells; Wiveliscombe and Williton.
Further information on all centres can be found on the Somerset Enterprise Centres website.
