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Tesco Checks in to Tyneside
The largest supermarket bank in the UK is to create 1,000 new jobs in Tyneside – thanks to support from Tyne and Wear Development Company.
Tesco Bank has announced it will open a state-of-the-art contact centre at Quorum Business Park in North Tyneside as part of a major investment in its general insurances division which will be based there.
The announcement is a boost for the area’s vibrant contact centre industry and a major success for the regional investment team that worked with Tesco Bank and its advisors for several months to attract the jobs to Tyneside.
The investment team was made up of Tyne and Wear Development Company, North Tyneside Council and One North East, which also supported the project with a £2million Grant for Business Investment (GBI). This will be used to cover significant fit out costs to create a world-class headquarters.
Paul Buie, manager of Tyne and Wear Development Company, welcomed the news saying: “Tesco Bank is emerging as a major player in the financial market and we’re delighted that it will create 1,000 jobs on Tyneside. It’s fantastic news for the area and a great endorsement that we’ve been able to attract such a major investment here.”
The agency set the ball rolling on the project, putting together a package of support that included supplying detailed information outlining the region’s strengths, key demographic and workforce information. It also provided advice on property opportunities and funding.
Paul added: “It was a real team effort from partners across the region. We worked closely with One North East, North Tyneside Council and Quorum Business Park for many months to sell Tyne and Wear and make a strong case for the investment to be made here.
“Tyne and Wear has one of the strongest clusters of contact centres anywhere in the world. Tesco Bank is an excellent addition to an important sector and is a real vote of confidence in the region’s workforce.”
One North East Chief Executive, Alan Clarke, said: “This is an extremely exciting and important project, creating a state of the art financial contact centre and 1,000 jobs in North Tyneside. This is a real vote of confidence by Tesco Bank in the North East economy. They recognised the ability of the region’s workforce to deliver this important project as it would have been simple to outsource these jobs to its facility in India.
“I am delighted that One North East has been able to support this investment, which has been supported closely by public sector partners to ensure the firm has everything it needs to establish this facility on North Tyneside.”
Recruitment for the first 500 positions will begin soon with the centre expected to open in early 2010. North Tyneside Council is working alongside Tyne and Wear Development Company, One North East, JobCentre Plus, the Learning and Skills Council and Business Link to establish and co-ordinate a public sector ‘response group’. It will provide a single point of contact for recruitment and training tailored to meet the specific requirements of Tesco Bank.
Elected Mayor of North Tyneside, Linda Arkley said: “I am delighted that the strong partnership working in this region has once again helped us to secure high calibre investors, such as Tesco Bank. As a council our role has involved supporting Tyne and Wear Development Company and working with One North East and Quorum Business Park to secure an attractive locational offer and support package that ensured we could bring these jobs to the region.
Fergus Trim, development director at Quorum Development Partners concluded: “When we re-launched Quorum earlier this year on the back of the new £180m phase of development, a major focus was targeting major PLCs from outside the region.
“North Tyneside and Quorum have so much to offer these companies and I’m delighted that Tesco Bank is hopefully the first of many to look to invest in and bring new jobs to the North-East.”
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