Former Ironbridge Power Station

The former Ironbridge Power Station forms the largest single redevelopment site in Shropshire. Its 142 hectare site located on the border of neighbouring Telford at the heart of Shropshire is in a rural environment with good road and rail connectivity to the Black Country and the wider West Midlands region.

Harworth Group plc had full planning approval granted in September 2021, from both Shropshire Council and Telford & Wrekin, which is subject to  agreements. The Group  also obtained planning consent  in September 2022 to extract up to 1.9 million tonnes of sand and gravel to Shropshire Council.

The outline planning permission  includes plans for 1,000 homes, a retirement village, a new local centre to contain a mix of leisure, commercial, retail and health uses, a primary school, nature corridors, public open space and the re-use of the site’s pump house to support either retail, community or river-based uses.

This site’s planning permission  includes for  circa 16,000m2 of commercial space alongside 2,200m2 of retail provision.

The application is supported by a number of key documents which explain how the plan has been arrived at, including a detailed Design & Access Statement which is being incorporated into a site wide Design Code, a full Transport Assessment and a series of environmental plans including flood risk and ecological assessments.

The application follows eighteen months of detailed consideration, including two public consultations held on-site in 2018 and 2019 which attracted nearly 1,000 people in total, establishing a detailed understanding of the site’s assets and constraints and considering the site’s role in supporting lronbridge’s leisure & tourism offer.

Why invest in Shropshire?

Exciting investment opportunities exist in Shropshire, a well-positioned location right in the geographical centre of the UK, and within easy reach of the markets of the West Midlands, the North, Mid-Wales and into Ireland.

The ability to tailor requirements to suit sector and business needs, both now and in the future, has created what can be best described as a mosaic approach to development. One size definitely does not fit all in Shropshire; it’s far too independent thinking for that – this is the birthplace of Charles Darwin after all!

What works in the county town or one market town is not necessarily mimicked in the next, resulting in key employment areas of Shrewsbury (the county town), Oswestry, Whitchurch, Market Drayton, Bridgnorth, Shifnal and Ludlow providing a truly interesting and varied place to live, work and invest. This approach is boosting an already established high quality independent retail, pub, restaurant and leisure offer that provides unique experiences often found in city-living locations.

An increase in the hospitality, tourism and leisure market, alongside growth in creative and knowledge sectors is evidence of a growing number of business owners, creatives and entrepreneurs attracted to town and more rural living. Many no longer feel the need to be city-based making our towns beacons for those wanting a high quality of life for them, their families and their businesses.

Insight for investors

• Type of Investment Sought: Future delivery and investment
• Value and cost info: £250m + GDV
• Site Size: 142Ha
• Jobs: 4,520 new jobs
• Timescale: 2022-2036
• Delivery Timescale: 1 – 5 years
• Planning Status: Full planning approval granted in September 2021