Skip to content
Menu

Topping out ceremony marks £42 million investment in North Sheffield

Topping out ceremony marks £42 million investment in North Sheffield

Topping out ceremony marks £42 million investment in North Sheffield

24 June 2014

 
The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Dr Vince Cable took part in a special topping out ceremony today to mark a major milestone in the delivery of the £42 million Fox Valley development in Stocksbridge, north Sheffield.

Fox Valley is being brought forward by the Barnsley-based firm Dransfield Properties Ltd and will transform a 28 acre former industrial site off Manchester Road in Stocksbridge, into a vibrant mixed use development with an adjacent housing site.

This first phase of work is to build a new warehouse for Tata Steel; the company currently uses part of the Fox Valley development site for steel storage.

Today,a topping out ceremony was held on the warehouse site to mark the progress in the scheme and to celebrate the investment in a new commercial heart for Stocksbridge as well as in the new Tata facilities in the town.

Dr Cable marked the milestone by dropping a 6m x 4m flag down the completed steelwork of the new warehouse and welcomed the investment in this part of north Sheffield. 

He praised the Tata Steel team for their long term investment in the area and welcomed the new Fox Valley project.

Dr Cable said: “It is a privilege for me to be here today, this is a successful, ambitious development that I think will really transform the town. It will bring shops, facilities, leisure and housing in a comprehensive way and I have been quite overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the project.

“I like the way that the team behind Fox Valley have approached this new development in the area, they have really thought about this and what this development does is create new facilities and a mixture of jobs rich retail as well as the manufacturing in the Tata facilities.”

Managing Director of Dransfield Properties, Mark Dransfield, said: “Everyone involved with the project is extremely proud to have welcomed the Secretary of State Dr Cable to the development site and mark this important milestone in a project which our company has been working on for several years.

“This is a complex site with many different elements and we have worked closely with Tata Steel to ensure that the steel works can continue to flourish alongside our own plans.  We look forward to starting construction work on the main retail site later in the autumn and of course to seeing the development team’s hard work come to fruition when the scheme is completed early in 2016.”

Tor Farquhar, Tata Steel Executive Director of HR, said: "We were delighted to be able to host the Secretary of State for part of today's visit and show him some of the work Tata Steel is doing in Stocksbridge".

"He described Tata Steel as the 'backbone' of British manufacturing and here in Stocksbridge we are also the backbone of the community so we are glad to be able to work with Dransfield Properties on a project which will benefit both us and the wider area for years to come".

Once the new warehouse has been completed later this year, the main contractors Henry Boot Construction can then move onto the retail and commercial site which will bring up to 900 new jobs to the area.
The development, due to be completed early in 2016, also includes;
• A new link road to the A616 Sheffield to Manchester Road
• New high spec office space 
• A new 635 space car park
• Retail, restaurant and café units anchored by a 63,000 sq. ft. Tesco store
• High quality public realm area and landscaping as well as strong pedestrian links with Manchester Rd
• A new housing development neighbouring the main retail and commercial development
Dransfield Properties has received an investment of £8,111,040 from the Yorkshire and Humber ERDF Programme 2007- 2013, which is managed by the Department for Communities and Local Government to bring forward the Fox Valley project.
 
Pictures shows: Mark Dransfield, Dr Cable and Simon Carr (Henry Boot)

Dr Cable with the Fox Valley, Henry Boot & Tata team as well as local stakeholders at the topping out ceremony. 

Notes to editors
1.
Dransfield Properties is based in Tankersley, South Yorkshire. The company was formed in 1992 and specialises in market town and district centre retail led developments.
The plans for the Fox Valley scheme we first proposed in 2007 and approved by Sheffield City Council in 2009.  The Fox Valley development site is made up of several land ownerships including Outokumpu and Tata Steels.
For further information about Dransfield Properties and Fox Valley visit www.dransfield.co.uk
2.
The Department for Communities and Local Government is the managing authority for the European Regional Development Fund Programme which runs from 2007 to 2013. This is one of the funds established by the European Commission to help local areas stimulate their economic development.
• The Yorkshire and Humber competitiveness and employment programme has €583.6 million of ERDF to invest. It focuses on 4 main priorities:
o Priority 1: promoting innovation and research and development
o Priority 2: supporting and stimulating successful enterprise
o Priority 3: sustainable communities
o Priority 4: economic infrastructure and place based regeneration in South Yorkshire
• For more information visit:
https://www.gov.uk/browse/business/funding-debt/european-regional-development-funding

 

For further information, contact:

Public Relations Department, Dransfield Properties Ltd
Tel: 01226 360644
Email: pr@dransfield.co.uk