No. 002.15
9 January 2015
NEWS RELEASE
Minister visits space propulsion centre to sign Growth Deal Agreement
Buckinghamshire Thames Valley Local Enterprise Partnership (BTVLEP) was
delighted to welcome the Rt. Hon. Greg Clark MP, Minister of State for Cabinet
Office (Cities and Constitution) and Minister of State for Universities and Science, to
Buckinghamshire today (9th January) to sign our Local Growth Deal that will trigger
£44.2m worth of investment to increase prosperity and growth in the county.
The visit was also an opportunity for the Minister to see the exciting work being
undertaken at Westcott Venture Park in the area of space propulsion and to
experience a live demonstration of rocket propulsion from Airborne Engineering.
The development of Westcott Venture Park as a major space production hub was
highlighted in BTVLEP’s Buckinghamshire and Thames Valley Strategic Economic
Plan (March 2014). In addition, Moog is in a unique position as UK’s premier
manufacturer of rockets and thrusters for space applications and the Westcott site
has heritage in rocketry since 1946.
Richard Harrington, Chief Executive of Buckinghamshire Thames Valley Local
Enterprise Partnership, said: “We were delighted to welcome the Rt. Hon. Greg Clark
MP today to Westcott Venture Park for the official signing of our Local Growth Deal,
which marks a major milestone between Government and the BTVLEP to help
facilitate the delivery of growth and prosperity for Buckinghamshire. Todays visit also
allowed us to demonstrate some of the pioneering work taking place in the county in
the area of space propulsion, an industry which employs over 7,500 people in Bucks.”
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Minister visits space propulsion centre to sign Growth Deal Agreement: 2
Universities, Science and Cities Minister Greg Clark said: “It’s only right that the
people of Buckinghamshire and the Thames Valley should be the architects of their
own local growth. Through this Growth Deal we are ensuring that £73 million of
investment is targeted at the issues that matter to them the most, like improving
roads, skills training for young people and support for business.
“Devolving power from central government is a crucial element of our economic plan
and an important step in building stronger, more prosperous, regional economies.”
Rt. Hon. John Bercow, Member of Parliament for Buckingham and Speaker of the
House of Commons, said: "I am delighted that the signing of this significant growth
deal is made here at Westcott in my Buckingham constituency. I have been
enormously impressed by the drive and impact shown by world class businesses
here such as Moog and Airbourne Innovation who are leading the global innovation
in space propulsion. I hope that the space propulsion cluster here at Westott can be
supported through the Bucks and Thames Valley LEP to develop the exciting
international growth potential of this extraordinary work."
Todays visit follows the submission of our Strategic Economic Plan proposal last
March for a share of a £2bn pot of national money for the development of local jobs
and business growth, and subsequent Local Growth Deal allocation in July of
£44.2m.
The Buckinghamshire Growth Deal brings together local, national and private
funding as well as new freedoms and flexibilities to focus on five key priority areas as
identified in our Strategic Economic Plan, these are: improving north-south transport
connectivity to accelerate the delivery of key housing and employment sites;
improving the integration of transport links to CrossRail and East West Rail stations;
investing in skills infrastructure and programmes to tackle welfare dependency and
upskill young people; creating high quality private sector jobs by supporting
businesses to grow; and addressing housing affordability and supply.
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Minister visits space propulsion centre to sign Growth Deal Agreement: 3
In developing the Growth Deal, BTVLEP identified a significant number of key
deliverable projects in 2015-16. The projects which received Local Growth Fund
support for are:

Aylesbury Eastern Link Road and Stocklake Link Road scheme to
complete and enhance transport infrastructure both North-South and EastWest around Aylesbury, connecting new major development areas with the
town centre and main road network.

High Wycombe Town Centre Masterplan and Southern Quadrant
Transport Strategy to accelerate delivery of the transport components of a
masterplan to reconfigure the layout of High Wycombe town centre and to
open up an area of land for employment use which will act as a key gateway
to the town centre.

A355 Improvement Scheme to improve North South Connectivity and
connecting residual MOD land by developing the A355 Improvement Scheme.

Transforming Amersham and Wycombe College Estate to modernise the
buildings at the Amersham Centre to support curriculum development and
quality improvement.

5G Testbed to stimulate growth in Buckinghamshire electronics and
telecommunications sector through early access to 5G technologies.

CrossRail and East West Connectivity projects to improve sustainable
transport links to Crossrail stations in Taplow (linking Slough and
Maidenhead); improving sustainable transport links to Crossrail stations in Iver;
improving bus and cycle connections between Buckingham and the East West
Rail in Winslow Station.
To read the Strategic Economic Plan & Local Growth Deal executive summary
please go to http://www.buckstvlep.co.uk/strategic-economic-plan
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Minister visits space propulsion centre to sign Growth Deal Agreement: 4
Buckinghamshire is the Entrepreneurial Heart of Britain where, for well over a
decade, more businesses have started here than anywhere else in the UK. This is
borne of the heartbeat of enterprise, which is manifest in a propensity to act; and a
propensity to successfully exploit new ideas. It is no accident that we are the
Birthplace of the Paralympics at Stoke Mandeville, the creative film engine for James
Bond and Star Wars at Pinewood Studios, and the joint home of the Silverstone
Grand Prix Circuit.
Ends
Note to editors
Photo caption: (L-R) Rt. Hon. Greg Clark MP and Alex Pratt, OBE Chair of the
Buckinghamshire Thames Valley Local Enterprise Partnership signing the Local
Growth Deal for Buckinghamshire.
The Buckinghamshire Thames Valley Local Enterprise Partnership (BTVLEP) is
a business-led ‘partnership of equals’ between local government and the private
sector, building the conditions for sustainable economic growth in the County.
Buckinghamshire Business First (BBF), is the Growth Hub for Buckinghamshire
and is backed by Buckinghamshire based entrepreneurs, thousands of SMEs and
Local Authorities. BBF provides the link between public policy and the business
community in Buckinghamshire and works with partners to create a dynamic
business environment in the Entrepreneurial Heart of Britain.
For further information please contact:
Richard Burton
Communications Manager
T: 01494 568933
M: 07866 492292
E: richard.burton@btvlep.co.uk