Designer Wayne Hemingway believes a creative hub in Bognor Regis will be all the fashion…and MP Nick Gibb agrees.
Plans for the town’s new venture got the backing of Mr Gibb, MP for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, after he visited the site.
The hub’s aim is to create high value jobs in the creative digital sector by providing a shared workspace for businesses. It will provide a place where start-ups and freelancers can work side by side, share facilities and network and have access to training and support.
West Sussex County Council has developed the project in partnership with Arun District Council and with the support of Hemingway Design. And Mr Gibb MP said: “It was a pleasure to visit the rooms for the Creative Digital Hub at the Bognor Regis railway station and to see the opportunity for jobs and economic growth it will bring for the town. It’s an excellent step in the regeneration of the town and I look forward to seeing the finished product.”
Mr Hemingway believes modern, well-equipped creative and digital shared workspaces are having positive impacts for start-up entrepreneurs helping to grow businesses and the communities they serve. He added: “We aim to make the one in Bognor Regis a great place to work, collaborate and meet clients and serve the growing number of forward thinking businesses in the area, and back-up the facilities that are about to be developed at the Bognor Regis campus of the University of Chichester.”
Mr Gibb was shown around the proposed site for the hub, at the railway station, by West Sussex County Councillor David Edwards. And leader of West Sussex County Council, Louise Goldsmith, said: “The timing for this project is perfect – we know there is growth in the creative business sector across the coastal area and by basing the hub in Bognor Regis, we are linking in with the University of Chichester’s plans for a new Engineering and Digital Technology Park.
“I am delighted Nick Gibb was able to visit the proposed space at the railway station – it’s great to have his backing as the local MP. Our ambition for this project is to provide a range of economic benefits for Bognor Regis and the surrounding area such as job creation, business growth and skills development for young people.”