August 2024

The Holiday Inn Blackpool officially opened its doors to its first guests 100 days ago and has since welcomed over 14,000 guests from around the world. The popular hotel has also sold over 8,000 rooms, 5,000 meals at Marco’s New York Italian Restaurant and provided 12,000 breakfasts to its guests.

Blackpool Council has selected a preferred contractor to build a new £65m state of the art education campus in the town centre.

Morgan Sindall Construction has been chosen as the main contractor on a pre-contract services agreement for the Multiversity, which will bring up to 3,000 students and staff into Blackpool town centre.

The Multiversity would allow Blackpool and the Fylde College to relocate from out-of-town facilities into a world class campus off Cookson Street in Blackpool. Land for the development is currently being assembled with the site offering a perfect location situated next to tram, train and bus services, making it accessible to students across the Fylde Coast and beyond.

The Multiversity would be leased to the College, offering more than 70 individual courses and enhancing its existing higher education provision which is directly linked to local employment needs. The Multiversity would also support a wide range of qualifications, from further education, through to higher education and adult learning.

The proposed development would include two phases, starting with an education campus on the corner of Cookson Street and George Street, followed by future development across the southern end of the site by Milbourne Street and Grosvenor Street.

The plans would deliver up to 32,600 sqm of education space and commercial space across several phases, starting with the new Multiversity building.

Outline approval for the scheme was granted in April 2024, with a reserved matters application to follow this summer.

The main campus building would be designed to be carbon-neutral in operation, with the surrounding area on also George Street landscaped and pedestrianised to make it a safer environment for students and local people. The Multiversity has been designed by established architects Hawkins\Brown and aims to complement the rest of the Talbot Gateway regeneration.

Cllr Mark Smith, Cabinet Member for Levelling Up at Blackpool Council, said: “This is another important step forward in what is a really exciting development for Blackpool’s future.

“The Multiversity campus will transform the area around the train station, adding thousands of students to the area which will bring a vibrancy but also an economic boost to surrounding businesses.

“For a development of this size, we needed a large construction company with a track record in delivering quality education campuses. As we have done with other major developments, we will also be ensuring a real commitment to social value, such as hiring local companies where possible, supporting local labour, and encouraging training and apprenticeship opportunities for Blackpool locals.”

“This development is an exciting chapter in Blackpool’s future, but I appreciate that to make it happen, we are buying some people’s homes in Cookson Street, and that can be a difficult process. While over half the buildings have already been sold, I want to reassure everybody still living there that support is available if you are struggling to find somewhere new to live. If you still need support, please contact us and we will try to help you.”

Blackpool Council has been negotiating to buy properties in the Multiversity area for over two years and has already bought over 60 per cent of the buildings needed for the Multiversity. While a Compulsory Purchase Order was served in April and will be heard at a public inquiry later this year, the Council continues to negotiate with property owners, and is offering a range of support to residents who have to move because of the development.

Steven Gregory, Morgan Sindall Construction’s North West Area Director, said: “We’re excited to be appointed to the Multiversity Campus project with Blackpool Council and the Blackpool and The Fylde College, which promises to deliver highly valuable benefits for the local community. Once complete, the campus will boost access to advanced skills for Blackpool’s resident and support the town centre’s wider regeneration.

“The Morgan Sindall team is committed to maximising the social and economic value generated during the development. This will be achieved in a number of ways, such as utilising local contractors and creating a Knowledge Quad to provide training and learning opportunities, such as hosting the Blackpool Community Skills Academy employability programme. We’ve also already partnered with Blackpool and The Fylde College to provide ongoing education support to help students become ‘work ready’.”

Alun Francis OBE, Principal and Chief Executive at Blackpool and the Fylde College, added: “The appointment of Morgan Sindall, who have an outstanding reputation within the education construction sector, is a critical milestone in the delivery of the Multiversity for the students and residents of Blackpool and the Fylde coast.

“The Multiversity will genuinely transform the opportunities for local people providing access to higher level skills, supporting local businesses in securing talent, and contributing to a vibrant town centre.”

The Multiversity makes up phase four of Blackpool Council’s £350m regeneration of the Talbot Gateway area around Blackpool North train station, which in total is bringing over 8,000 professional workers and students into the area.

A new 4 star 144-bedroom Holiday Inn hotel and Marco Pierre White New York Italian restaurant opened in May, while a tram-train interchange linking to Blackpool Promenade opened in June.

A civil service hub will bring over 3,000 government workers into a new 215,000 sqft office on King Street early next year, while full planning permission is also being sought for a new £45 million, 52,950 sq ft office off Talbot Road which would be home to over 1,000 employees. Plans for a new multi-storey car park off Church Street are expected to be submitted later this summer.

The Council will work with Morgan Sindall ahead of the construction to confirm elements of the design and construction process. Should the pre-construction works be agreeable to all, Morgan Sindall will be chosen to build the new campus. The agreement follows a two-step tendering process, where two submissions were provided from the Pagabo Framework.

The land for the new Multiversity is currently being acquired by Blackpool Council, with the support of a £9m Government grant while the construction was also awarded £40m from UK Government in 2023.

For more details on regeneration plans in Blackpool, visit www.blackpool.gov.uk/betterblackpool

A new home for the UK Government in Blackpool town centre is on track to welcome over 3,000 civil servants early next year.

The £100m, 215,000 sq ft Civil Service Hub at King St near Blackpool North train station, has reached its highest point, making it the tallest office building in Blackpool.

The seven-storey building is being delivered by Blackpool Council, alongside nationwide placemaker, Muse, and main contractor VINCI Construction.

The new office building is the third phase in Blackpool’s £350m redevelopment of the Talbot Gateway around the train station, which in total will bring over 8,000 professional workers and students into the town centre.

Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “Redeveloping the area around Blackpool North train station is a major part of our plans to make Blackpool better, creating jobs and opportunities for local people.

“If you look around town, you can already start to see new private businesses using the opportunity of extra workers on their doorstep and investing in new or improved premises and creating jobs for local people, which is fantastic.

“Anybody who has visited the town centre in the last eighteen months has seen the Civil Service Hub becoming a new landmark on the Blackpool skyline, but we are also making sure that it impacts local people positively. Working with Muse and Vinci, we have made sure that local Blackpool and Lancashire businesses have won contracts where possible, while we are committed to helping young people in Blackpool to find work and training on site.”

The regeneration of Talbot Gateway has already delivered the 125,000 sq ft Number One Bickerstaffe Square council office, a Sainsbury’s supermarket, and a refurbished 650-space multi-storey car park, alongside extensive public spaces for the community to enjoy.

A new 4 star 144-bedroom Holiday Inn hotel and Marco Pierre White New York Italian restaurant opened in May, while a tram-train interchange linking to Blackpool Promenade opened in June. Outline plans have also been approved for a multiversity campus for Blackpool and the Fylde College, bringing up to 3,000 students and staff into the area.

Elsewhere, full planning permission is being sought by Muse and Blackpool Council for a new £45 million, 52,950 sq ft office off Talbot Road which would be home to over 1,000 employees, while plans for a new multi-storey car park are expected to be submitted later this summer.

Alan McBride, Technical Director at Muse, says: “The long-standing partnership between Muse and Blackpool Council continues to help build a brighter Blackpool through regeneration that’s fit for the future, and with the Civil Service Hub topping out, it’s rewarding to see another milestone ticked off as part of our programme to transform the town.

“This highly sustainable building will help to provide a significant boost to the town centre’s economy, and by incorporating design features that are a nod to Blackpool’s rich cultural heritage, we’re helping to forge a new chapter for the town while remembering the culture and history that have contributed to Blackpool’s iconic status.”

The building has been designed to BREEAM ‘Excellent’ standards which means it incorporates best practice in sustainable building design, construction, and operation.

With carbon assessments conducted at the project’s outset to aid the reduction of the building’s total carbon footprint, features supporting the Civil Service Hub’s sustainability credentials include:

• Terracotta façade panels – an acknowledgement of the town’s architectural heritage – that are highly sustainable and help reduce the building’s embodied carbon
• Consumption-led mechanical and electrical services that will create energy savings whilst improving the building’s indoor environment for occupiers
• Air source heat pumps to provide low-carbon heating and cooling

All these design features will provide a wellbeing boost for occupiers and contribute to increased productivity.

Designed by London-based Make Architects, the building will also feature a large reception lobby and a high-quality fit-out including open plan working areas, meeting rooms, quiet zones, and other flexible workplace settings, with high levels of natural daylight and generous, airy ceiling heights throughout.

Furthermore, with ground floor facilities that encourage active travel – including cycle storage, showers and changing facilities – the Civil Service Hub aims to promote sustainable transport for visitors and residents. It is within walking distance to the new tram interchange and Blackpool’s North train station too, is on the local bus network, and will be connected via cycle and pedestrian routes.

This will help to bring new people into the town centre, increasing footfall, and boosting trade for local businesses.

Gary Hughes, Regional Director for VINCI Building, commented: “We’re proud to be working with Muse and Blackpool Council in delivering this key project, which will undoubtedly create one of the most modern public workspaces in the UK, while setting a new benchmark in sustainable construction.

“From the outset, we have sought to create new employment opportunities for local people. By engaging with local organisations, we have been able to create an on-site skills academy which provides real-life training and education opportunities for those people furthest from the employment market and seeking work within construction. This remains extremely successful in upskilling future talent towards an industry which continues to cry out for skilled personnel.”

For more information about plans to make Blackpool better, visit www.blackpool.gov.uk/betterblackpool  and to enquire about moving your business into the Talbot Gateway visit www.talbotgateway.com