BT boost for Suffolk

10 September 2007

BT has announced plans to further develop its Adastral Park R&D facility in Suffolk into a fully-fledged technology park which could create up to 1,000 new jobs.

The proposals include the creation of a Suffolk Innovation Park to attract other technology companies and provide facilities for industry to collaborate with universities. Around 2,000 new homes could also be built.

BT has occupied the 40-hectare site since 1969, but the plans would include developing an additional 100 hectares of land which formerly formed a quarry for aggregates.

According to BT, the multi-million pound development could be worth £1bn to the local economy. The site would also house a biomass-fuelled power plant, a new primary school and a health centre.

The development would involve the demolition of some of the buildings currently on the site, while others will be refurbished.

Around 4,000 people currently work at Adastral Park, of whom 3,000 are employed by BT. BT says there is potential for its proposals to lead to the creation of another 1,000 to 1,200 jobs over the next 10 to 15 years.