Building work starts in £28m business park scheme

A computer generated image of how Foundry Business Park could look

Building work has started to create a business park in a £28m scheme that a council says could create more than 300 jobs.

Construction is under way at Foundry Business Park in Wolverhampton to transform a derelict brownfield site into a 15-acre employment hub, the city council states.

The scheme off Brook Street in Bilston forms the final phase of development at Bilston Urban Village, in a town where hundreds of new affordable homes have been created for families.

The business park development is being supported by a £12.5m investment from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).

Units are expected to be available from the spring next year.

There will be 15 new units at the business park, which is next to the A463 Black Country Route, with access to Junction 10 of the M6.

West Midlands mayor and WMCA chair Richard Parker said: "Regenerating derelict urban land for new homes and jobs is a key part of my Growth Plan, which will help reignite our regional economy and drive a new era of prosperity."

The £28m scheme had the potential to create up to 330 new jobs when completed, the city council stated.

Its leader Stephen Simkins said: "With further investment on site or in the pipeline for the town, the future is bright for Bilston as we deliver the platform for businesses to grow and thrive."

Goold Estates, the city council's chosen developer, said the brownfield site had a "complex industrial legacy", including coal mining and steel making, which meant it remained vacant for more than 20 years.

The developer's managing director Dominic Goold added: "Progressing the site's development required extensive consultation, so reaching the construction phase is a significant step forward."