Royal Mail relocation 

Bosses reveal why Swindon was their choice for �20 million investment

 

Excellent logistical connections, available development land, and reasonably priced new-builds - all factors which fuelled a decision by The Royal Mail to invest �20 million in to Swindon's mail centre, it has been revealed.

 

The corporation, who plan to expand Swindon's sorting office from 400 to 900 by June 2009, aims to create a state-of-the-art Mail Centre to serve its customers in the Thames Valley area.

 

Boosting the Swindon economy: (l-r): Chris Griffiths, Royal Mail Relocation Project Team; Bill Cotton, SBC's Director of Economic & Cultural Development; Matthew Lawlor, Royal Mail Commercial Manager; Sinclair Brown, SBC Marketing & investment Manager

 

And Swindon was the clear number one choice over Reading and Oxford when the decision to re-structure was first announced in September 2007.

 

Better quality of life

 

Royal Mail's Commercial Manager, Matthew Lawlor, said: "Just as The Oracle at Reading lifted the town's reputation, Swindon's �1 billion town centre regeneration will make it a more attractive place to work and live."

 

"And if we need more staff, Swindon has a large workforce with compatible skills, in distribution for example."

 

"Once staff realise Swindon is set for growth and may be a good bet for investment, we think they�ll look more favourably upon relocation."

 

Expanding: the new Swindon sorting office is set to double in size to 20,000 m2 (3 to 4 football pitches)

 

Bill Cotton, SBC's Director of Economic and Cultural Development, said: "New employment opportunities are a real boost for the town and we are delighted that The Royal Mail recognises Swindon's importance as a logistical hub.

 

"A recent survey by international property agency, Knight Frank, concluded that Swindon is well-placed to weather the current economic climate because of its strategic location.

 

"Companies settling here make sound, long-term decisions to invest in an area earmarked for economic growth and we look forward to supporting new arrivals to the town in whatever way we can.�

 

Statistics

 

Average house prices for a post 1960 semi detached three bedroom:

Oxford - �280,000
Reading - �215,000
Swindon - �176,000
Source - Valuation Office Agency

Swindon�s Economic Performance Indicators:

� GVA - Highest gross value added per head of any UK town (the equivalent of gdp at town/regional level). Swindon�s GVA is more than 50% higher than the UK average. Third highest in terms of regions.

� Employment rate at 79% is higher than both the SW (77.7%) and the UK (74.2%)

� Swindon has a higher proportion of people in working age group (63.6%) compared to SW (59.9) and UK (62.1).

Swindon is located:

� one hour to London Paddington by train
� an hour�s drive to Heathrow and Bristol airports
� 90 minutes drive to Central London, Birmingham and Southampton
� 40 minutes to Reading, Bristol, Cheltenham, Oxford and Bath

 

Mel Turner-Wright