Chancellor opens new hub for SMEs in Hastings

Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, has officially opened Havelock Place – a £7 million regeneration project in Hastings and a new office location for businesses in the region funded by the government's Growing Places Fund.

He also met with local business leaders from across Sussex, discussing the economic redevelopment taking place in the region and how government funding has helped to support this.

The key partners of the project included; Sea Change Sussex, Vinci Construction UK, South East Local Enterprise Partnership and East Sussex County Council. The Chancellor discussed the success of the development and plans for other projects underway in East Sussex supported by the National Infrastructure Plan.

Following this, George Osbourne attended a roundtable where he met small businesses based in and around Hastings to discuss the local economy and government support for those looking to expand and grow.

George Osborne said:

"Today, I have seen first-hand the regeneration taking place in Hastings and seen the positive effect it is having on the local economy. Government support, through such things like the Growing Places Fund, has boosted projects like Havelock Place, providing much needed finance to get important developments going.

"The government's long term economic plan is to back business and support local economies which are vital for providing jobs and security for hardworking people.

"What I've seen today shows this plan is working and highlighted East Sussex as a great coastal business location."

As part of the government's National Infrastructure Plan, the Growing Places Fund provides up-front funding to help Local Authorities and developers drive projects forward and to unlock further development.

Havelock Place is an office development that has been built over the past 18 months, it's the latest office development to be constructed in the Priory Quarter central business district and is home to the University of Brighton's Hastings Campus and Sussex Coast College.