Work to start on new £20m Cannock distribution centre

The sale of the 5.8 acre plot of land at the Cannock business park to First Choice Catering has been approved by council bosses, with the county council saying work will now begin 'in the next couple of weeks'.

Once complete, the new distribution centre is expected to create up to 130 jobs for Cannock.

Staffordshire County Council's economy leader Mark Winnington has praised the development.

He said: "Agreeing the land deal is a significant milestone for this development at Kingswood Lakeside as it means construction work can begin. We look forward to building work getting under way very soon. This is good news for Cannock and for Staffordshire as we're retaining a big company and enabling it to expand, with even more jobs set to be created. Kingswood Lakeside is one of the county's main business sites and one developed by the county council. It's therefore also pleasing to see another development there – Hellermann Tyton's new HQ – nearing completion."

First Choice Group's new building on the 100,000 square foot industrial unit at the Kingswood Lakeside business park will include a three-story office incorporating kitchens for catering and training purposes, all overlooking the lake.

First Choice director John Whitehouse said: "We have been established for 16 years now and First Choice has become a familiar name in both the commercial catering industry and the local area. The business has seen double digit growth every year, moving to larger and larger premises in the process and is still expanding."

The Kingswood Lakeside land has been bought by investment firm Opus Land who are delivering firms to the site.

With Hellermann Tyton's new HQ on the way, Opus has already delivered the Veolia HQ and APC regional distribution hub on adjoining plots.

Victoria Smith, partner at Opus Land, said: "Our business has a long standing track record of delivering market leading developments in the Kingswood Lakeside in partnership with occupiers. In the last five years, we have delivered Cannock's only BREEAM Excellent rated building in the shape of Veolia's HQ facility as well as APC's 138,000 sq.ft. national hub for next day parcel delivery. All of these projects are a culmination of a close working relationship with occupiers in order to deliver a bespoke product to suit the individual needs of tenants seeking new space in the Midlands."