Darlington STEM centre gets the go-ahead
Cityheart will deliver the council’s flagship science, technology, engineering, and mathematics hub, to be located at the County Durham town’s Science Park.
Approval has now been granted and construction will start later this year.
The council has been working alongside the Department of Business and Trade since October to discuss the possibility of building a STEM Centre in Darlington, the need for which was identified at the Science Park steering group who were concerned about a local skills gap in these areas.
The development partner for the delivery of the project is the Cityheart partnership, which is also engaged in delivering regeneration projects across four key town centre sites.
The wider development team for this project includes Space Architects, Identity Consult, engineers BGP and TGA, ELG Planning and OOBE landscape architects.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a £16m allocation from the Growth Mission Fund to support the delivery of the project alongside £5m allocated from Darlington’s Pride in Place programme, subject to approval of the full business case.
The centre will be next to Teesside University and will focus on enabling access to high-value careers for local people, as well as allowing existing local businesses to upskill staff.
In September last year, Darlington Council assembled developer Cityheart, contractor Willmott Dixon, Space Architects, and Identity Consult to its regeneration team, with a remit to identify development opportunities and agree on a long-term regeneration scheme for the areas around East Street, Commercial Street, and Kendrew Street.
Cllr Chris McEwan, cabinet member for economy said: “It’s fantastic to see Darlington moving closer to securing a local STEM learning facility, which will ultimately lead to local people securing well-paid specialist roles in the science, technology, engineering
and mathematics sector in the future.
“This project is groundbreaking for Darlington in that it will deliver a real difference in term of education and skills options for our communities and demonstrates our commitment as a council to continuing to support our town.
“This project also further shows our commitment to the delivery of our council plan priority of securing a strong, sustainable economy and highly skilled workforce with opportunities for all.
“This project is the latest in several projects aimed at improving our town and economy. It’s an exciting time for Darlington with much work ongoing to ensure our town remains vibrant and thriving, now and in the future.”
James Litherland, development director, Cityheart, commented: “The STEM Centre will stand as a true centre of excellence, shaped in partnership with leading businesses and industry experts, and driving regeneration and investment across the town.
“Darlington’s future is bright, and this is just the beginning, as our partnership with the Council will continue to unlock even more exciting developments in the months ahead.”
David Gartland principal and chief executive from Darlington College said: “This project is a powerful example of what we can achieve when we work towards a common goal.
“Together, we are creating a worldclass, stateoftheart STEM facility for Darlington; one that will open doors for our community, connect learners with outstanding employers and lead to highly skilled, well-paid careers.”
