The Forum: Work begins on Gloucester's £107m 'cyber hub'

Gloucester MP Richard Graham was among those taking part in the ground breaking ceremony on Thursday

Work has begun on a £107m development in the centre of Gloucester.

The Forum, which is being built on the site of the former Bruton Way car park, will include a business hub, hotel, gym, restaurants, shops, bars, a multi-storey car park and apartments.

Planning permission for the "digital campus" was granted by Gloucester City Council in April.

A ground breaking ceremony marked the start of the first phase of construction earlier.

The Forum, which is being built at a cost of £85m, is part of the wider Kings Quarter redevelopment

Once complete, it will include 125,000 sq ft of office space, an innovation hub aimed at attracting cyber businesses to the city and a four-star hotel.

Work has begun on the £107m development in the centre of Gloucester

Peter Langly Smith, from developer Reef Group, said the first phase - which includes 19 apartments and retail space set to be occupied by Tesco - would be finished in 2022.

"Once that completes it enables us to start on site on the main build, which is the majority of the campus," he said.

"It's clear that the passion and strength of belief in Gloucester is very, very strong and we genuinely believe that this will be something they can be proud of."

An artist's impression shows how the development would look alongside Gloucester Cathedral in the city's skyline

The development is being built on land formerly occupied by a bus station. A multi-storey car park and Bentinck House which also stood on the site have been demolished, and the remaining building, Grosvenor House, will also be destroyed.

The University of Gloucestershire is redeveloping the old Debenhams building which it bought earlier this year and will open a new site there as part of the project.

Richard Graham, MP for Gloucester, said it was "another step forward" for the city centre's revival.

"When Tesco relocates in 2022 and Grosvenor House comes down, residents will see tangible progress on this key site," he said.

Councillor Richard Cook, leader of Gloucester City Council, said he was "delighted" to see the project "hit another milestone".

"The Forum will be a transformative scheme for Gloucester, helping to make it a fantastic, future ready place."