ROTHERHAM ROARS: £133m invested and McLaren seals record year

But the supercar company set the seal on the borough’s best period in business for 15 years.

A £50m carbon fibre chassis factory on the Advanced Manufacturing Park is set to open in November and the firm estimates it will pump £100m into the region’s economy over the first 10 years.

This story features in Rotherham Roars, The Star’s celebration of the borough’s booming economy published Wednesday March 28.

ROTHERHAM ROARS IS ONLINE HERE

Mike Flewitt, chief executive of McLaren Automotive, said: “The region is where we will innovate and manufacture the lightweight carbon fibre chassis that are at the heart of all McLaren’s cars.

“Our decision to choose Rotherham and the Sheffield region means we can readily tap into the area’s proud association of working with advanced materials, the academic institutions and a skilled, dedicated workforce.

“The £50m investment will mean up to 200 new jobs as well as a significant boost to the local supply chain.”

McLaren is one of 28 investments in 2017 the council says add up to £133m - with more in the pipeline.

Leader Chris Read, said: “The past year has been great for Rotherham. Everyone knows about McLaren, but we’ve also seen lots of other investments, ranging from companies newly locating in the borough to already-established firms expanding.

“The coming 12 months will bring lots of key developments – with work due to start on the Gulliver’s theme park in the south of the borough, investment in a new transport interchange and of course the Tram Train project moving forward.”

Waverley, a housing site near the Advanced Manufacturing Park, is set for a £50m town centre and hundreds more homes, while 2,500 new houses could be built at Bassingthorpe Farm to the north west.

University Centre Rotherham is under construction and Coun Read is “quietly confident” in the ‘Forge Island’ town centre redevelopment scheme after receiving interest from developers.

Speciality Steels, which employs 850 in the borough, is thriving after a £100m takeover by Liberty House Group in May 2017. It has hired 300, is investing £20m and has been re-starting mothballed equipment.

This story features in Rotherham Roars, The Star’s celebration of the borough’s booming economy published Wednesday March 28.

ROTHERHAM ROARS IS ONLINE HERE