The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has pledged £7million for Cumbria’s Industrial Solutions Hub, a project designed to stimulate the local economy, creating jobs, skills and training opportunities.
iSH, based at Cleator Moor, in West Cumbria, is a new initiative developed by Copeland Borough Council with support from the NDA and Sellafield Ltd.
The NDA are committed to investing in those communities where it is progressing its nuclear decommissioning mission and this funding, which will be used to develop the new iSH campus, aims to unlock millions more from the Government as part of the £22.5million Cleator Moor Town Deal.
The campus will create around 700 new job opportunities and is set to generate an additional £40million per year of revenue for local businesses.
Sellafield Limited have also provided crucial funding from the inception of the project through the social impact multiplied programme. Funding of £4.2million has been invested to date with further financial support through the Cleator Moor Town Deal.
The campus will create a place where businesses and industry can come together to collaborate, problem solve and develop innovative solutions that bring benefits, both locally and across the UK.
NDA chief executive David Peattie, said: “We work with our communities to invest in projects that deliver a positive and long-lasting legacy, providing significant social and economic benefits.
“The iSH will create jobs and opportunities for generations to come and provide a space for organisations to collaborate and come up with solutions to global industry challenges.
“Working with Sellafield Ltd and Copeland Borough Council, our investment aims to leverage in millions more than we could provide alone, helping to maximise the benefit of our mission to the West Cumbrian community.”
John Maddison, managing director of iSH, said: “We thank those in the NDA, along with those in Copeland Borough Council and Sellafield, who have given our programme their support and this vital financial backing.
“iSH is an initiative of regional, national and international significance which will create jobs, enable collaboration, enhance skills, provide access to business support, and bring a range of economic, environmental and social benefits to the community.
“We will build on the industry excellence of the NDA, Sellafield and its supply chain and through collaboration will turn that into opportunities for businesses and organisations to grow and create more skills, training and employment, making a positive difference to people’s lives, the community and the environment.”
Working with and through its operating companies, the NDA has invested over £70 million in socio-economic initiatives in communities around its sites over the last five years, leveraging millions more of funding in the process.
The NDA socio-economic programme co-creates effective economic interventions with community stakeholders using independently produced economic assessments which guide where investments can achieve the greatest impact.
To date, this has seen the delivery of new schools, jobs, skills, and training facilities in the communities in which we operate.
