Kingsway Business Park reflects on a year of remarkable achievements

Posted by on 9 Jan 2024

2023 has been another incredible year for Kingsway Business Park in Milnrow, Rochdale.

At the start of 2023 the 420 acre park was 63% occupied, fast forward to December, due to speculative developments alongside design and build plots, the park is now 80% complete.

New tenants on the site this year have brought with them 105 new roles with 57 safeguarded. These include Fire Mech Ltd who relocated from within Rochdale and Drac Distribution, 53 North Aviation, and Clearabee all moving onto the park due to growth. This saw all four speculative units occupied within 6 months of practical completion at the new 118,000 sq ft Urban Park scheme.

Danish Crown has invested £100m into a 330,000 sq ft. state-of-the-art processing facility on Kingsway Business Park, due to open its doors in early 2024. Danish Crown has been exporting pork products to the UK since 1887, Rochdale will now be a specialist site dedicated to the production of Danish bacon and gammons. Its primary purpose is to slice and pack products for Retail and Foodservice customers in the UK. The move from Danish Crown was the largest inward investment in food processing in the UK post Brexit.

Speculative developments at Kingsway this year include three units on Imperial, sized 47,000 sq ft, 75,000 sq ft and 164,000 sq ft, respectively which were completed in the summer of 2023. Funded by Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF) they are now available to lease. 

Planning Permission was granted for another speculative development of two warehouse units, plots J1 at 116,500 sq ft and J2 87,000 sq ft.

Henry Henson, Development Manager at Wilson Bowden Development: “We’re delighted to share our achievement of significant development milestones at Kingsway in the past year. This success highlights Kingsway’s reputation as a prime location for distribution and manufacturing in the North West. We anticipate building on this momentum throughout 2024 and are already in discussions with a number of occupiers and funders to deliver them new space at Kingsway.”

Rochdale is a hub for advanced manufacturing, machinery and materials. Kingsway Business Park is in the heart of Atom Valley which will be home to the Centre for Expertise in Advanced Materials and Sustainability (CEAMS) and Advanced Machinery & Productivity Institute (AMPI).

The Kingsway Partnership, a joint venture between Wilson Bowden, Rochdale Development Agency, Rochdale Borough Council and Homes England, is a strategic initiative that underscores Rochdale’s commitment to providing state-of-the-art facilities for businesses, fostering growth, and contributing to the economic vitality of the region.

As development progresses, Kingsway Business Park looks forward to welcoming businesses seeking prime manufacturing and industrial spaces, ushering in a new era of innovation and prosperity in the heart of the UK.

JLL and P3 are the marketing agents for Kingsway Business Park.