Around 250 new jobs on way at massive new DPD hub in County Durham

The parcel delivery firm has signed up for a warehouse at a new £100m business park and construction will start soon

Around 250 new North East jobs will be created and 150 jobs safeguarded at DPD after the parcel delivery firm signed up for a major distribution centre at a new £100m business park.

Joint venture developer and investor Richardson Barberry has agreed a 25-year lease with DPD for a 63,000 sq ft warehouse unit on an eight-acre site at Forrest Park, next to Junction 59 of the A1(M) at Newton Aycliffe, Durham. The new parcel hub is expected to safeguard 125 jobs for County Durham and generate a further 250 jobs as part of the new warehouse being built to suit DPD at Forrest Park.

The deal comes two years after Richardson Barberry secured planning consent for eight warehouses at Forrest Park, amid moves to provide 1.8 million sq ft of industrial space and create more than 3,000 jobs over the next 10 years, boosting County Durham’s economy by almost half a billion pounds. The partnership has already secured reserve matters planning consent and intends to submit a minor amendment, specific to DPD’s building, with a view to starting construction on site at the start of next year.

Jon Robinson, development director for Barberry, said: “This is a major pre-let to DPD, an internationally recognised occupier, demonstrates the quality of our proposed development at Forrest Park, it’s connectivity and proximity to the motorway junction and nearby demographic and availability of labour. The pre-let will allow us to open up the site and create additional estate infrastructure and development plateaus. This is an exciting moment for the North East, Richardson Barberry and Forrest Park .

“We are thrilled to have agreed a 25-year lease with DPD, this deal has already prompted other potential occupiers who have shown interest in Forrest Park. We can deliver building opportunities on both Freehold and Leasehold terms from 30,000 sq ft up to 1m sq ft. Newton Aycliffe is a highly attractive location for a range of major businesses due to its access to a skilled labour demographic and it is testament to the quality of Forrest Park that we have agreed pre-let terms with such a major occupier as DPD.”

Louise Ferguson, head of property for DPD Group UK Ltd, said: “We are absolutely delighted to agree terms for a new, purpose-built DPD distribution centre at Forrest Park. It is a great location for us. The new facility is part of DPD’s aim to be the most sustainable delivery company in the UK and a leader in the move to electric delivery vehicles.

We have invested heavily in our regional network in the last 10 years to meet the huge increase in demand for our services and this new facility will allow us to offer an even better service to the area, with more efficient fleet, shorter journeys and lower emissions.”

Richardson Barberry has so far invested £14m on preparing the site for development. Forrest Park (Newton Aycliffe) Limited, a joint venture between Durham County Council and local landowners the Forrest family, signed a development agreement with Richardson Barberry.

In all, the development will extend Aycliffe Business Park to become the largest in the region, accommodating a range of business, industrial, warehouse and trade units, roadside restaurants and retail space next to the A1(M).

As part of Geopost, DPD UK has a Net Zero target of 2040, which is fully validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). DPD UK recently confirmed that the UK operation is on track with the trajectory required to meet the group target.