The Buttress-designed Innovation Centre will be located on part of the Central Car Park in the town centre and will, primarily, be aimed at digital technology and advanced manufacturing businesses. The vision is to establish Workington Innovation Centre as a distinctive focal point for the incubation and growth of entrepreneurial businesses and will also address the lack of modern office accommodation in Workington.
The vision is to establish Workington Innovation Centre as a distinctive focal point for the incubation and growth of entrepreneurial businesses and will also address the lack of modern office accommodation in Workington.
The four-storey building will be clad in attractive metal panels with windows to provide plenty of natural light, but without losing energy efficiency using too much glass. Solar panels on the roof will help meet the building’s electricity needs and air-source heat pumps will also be installed. The area around it will be landscaped to improve biodiversity and tie the site to its surroundings.
The inside space will be flexible and easily reconfigured to meet the changing needs of tenants and will include conference and meeting room space, and catering facilities for the facility’s users and special events, alongside informal meeting areas. Tenants will be encouraged to use sustainable transport so the building will also have secure cycle storage and shower facilities. The area also includes green space with landscaping for people to sit, enjoy and relax.
Martin Kirkpatrick, Buttress commented:
"This marks an important step in delivering what will be a focal building for West Cumbria’s business community supplying high-quality office space in Workington. We’re delighted to see this project evolve from the original Workington Towns Deal through to planning submission. We’ve worked hard on the plans ensuring that the space will be flexible with sustainable features such as solar roof panels and air source heat pumps. The space will be a great resource with the adaptability to provide conference, meeting rooms and co-working spaces attracting more business opportunities in the area. The flexibility of the space will enable new and existing businesses to grow in future years."
Leader of Cumberland Council, Cllr Mark Fryer, said:
“This is a positive scheme for West Cumbria’s business community. There is no supply of Grade A office space in Workington, which limits the town’s ability to attract and retain high-quality firms, and there is a poor supply of small units for early-stage companies or in-movers looking for amounts of modest space. There is also a limited supply of co-working space.
“The aim of this initiative is to resolve this, as well as re-energising Workington town centre by attracting increased footfall and expenditure. It is exciting to see these projects taking the next steps towards completion and I look forward to seeing the outcome of the planning applications.”
John Coughlan is the Chief Executive Officer of Workington-based TSP Engineering and Chairman of the Workington Town Deal Board added:
“Anything that will deliver benefits to the business community in Cumbria is good news and I am very pleased to see the Innovation Centre scheme reach this planning milestone.
“I want to see more manufacturing opportunities, more creativity, more entrepreneurship and more business growth in this county, and beyond, and this initiative by Cumberland Council will deliver all of this and more.”
The centre is part of the Workington Town Deal - £23.1 million in Government funding for ambitious projects in the area ranging from a new sports village to improvements to Workington Port.
Martin Kirkpatrick
Martin is an experienced architect who has successfully delivered projects across a broad range of sectors, most recently specialising in hotels, multi-residential, mixed-use, and masterplanning work.
Andy Balmer
Andy is an Associate Architect with fifteen years of experience working across a wide range of sectors, including commercial office, residential and hotels.
Justin Smallwood
Justin works within our commercial and residential teams, bringing a variety of experience across these sectors including hotel resorts, BTR mixed-use towers, modular housing schemes, innovation centres, and restaurants.