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Wychavon has three Local Strategic Partnership or LSP
areas. These are focused on the towns of Droitwich
Spa, Pershore and Evesham and support a range
of marketing and business support activity which is
co-ordinated by a Partnership Manager in each town.
The partnerships deliver a range of projects to support
community activities but the core of the work is to
support business. A lively events programme in each
town increases visitor footfall and spend, and promotes
the town centres and their retail offer. Each town has
its own locally distinctive brand. Evesham is famous
for its Asparagus Festival, Pershore its
Plum Fayre and Droitwich Spa its Salt
Festival. It means the towns are shown
in a positive light and money is spent
in local businesses, who appreciate the
increased footfall.
Some match funded grants are available via the
partnerships to assist new businesses as part of a
business support programme. The partnerships also
seek to promote the towns as destinations in which
businesses want to invest. Above all, the partnerships
seek to promote their towns and surrounding rural
areas as places in which to live, to visit, and as great
places in which to do business.
Evesham
Location:
An attractive riverside town situated on the
western edge of the Cotswolds, with good access to
the national motorway network at M5 junction 9, M40,
M42, M4 and M50.
Population:
23,428.
Economy:
Traditionally driven primarily by horticultural
production which is still prominent. It has diversified
to include tourism, leisure, retail, warehousing and
distribution, finance and manufacturing.
Major employers:
Karndean Flooring Ltd, Kanes Foods.
Growth:
New industrial and commercial opportunities
are available at Vale Park West. An above average
skills level at NVQ2 and above, and the availability of
suitable sites has seen a growth in inward investor
interest. The South Worcestershire Development Plan
(SWDP) currently allocates 1,290 dwellings (of which
there is already planning permission for 456) and 38
ha of employment land at Vale Park.
Retail:
Has recently benefited from a multi-million pound
investment in infrastructure including the reconstruction
of Abbey Road Bridge and a £2m refurbishment of its
high street. Its retail offer comprises the national brands,
to be found in the newly refurbished Riverside Shoppin
Centre, underpinned by a strong independent sector
that specialises in added value products such as
locally produced specialist foods, gifts and clothing.
Together, with the availability of flexible retail space, thi
is proving increasingly attractive to national retailers
wishing to access the area’s affluent catchment.
Tourism and leisure:
Home to the British Asparagus
Festival
e Vale
offers enjoyment for all ages and the packed events
programme ensures that both residents and visitors
are able to participate (in most cases free of charge).
The Vale of Evesham is certainly the place to be if
you enjoy festivals and outdoor pursuits, some of
which take place in the town’s award winning parks.
See
Droitwich Spa
Location:
Situated in the north of the District within
just over 1 mile from Junction 5 of the M5 motorway,
16 miles from Junction 3A of the M42/M40, 22 miles
from Junction 8 of the M6/M5, 61 miles from Junction
20 of the M4/M5 and 63 miles from Junction 16 of
the M1.
Population:
23,594.
Economy:
Many of the district’s largest manufacturin
and distribution employers are located on Droitwich
Spa business parks at Berry Hill and Stonebridge
Cross. Smaller sites can be found at Hampton Lovett
and North Street, which is near to the town centre.
Major employers:
Müller Wiseman Dairies and Koito
Europe Ltd.
Growth:
SWDP allocation of 226 housing units, and
10ha of B1, B2 and B8 employment land has been
proposed at Stonebridge Cross, subject to considera-
tion by the Planning Inspectorate. A further urban
extension of approximately 740 new homes at Copcut
Lane has been approved together with 3.5ha of B1
and B2 employment uses.
Retail:
Droitwich Spa offers a good choice of shops,
two supermarkets, pubs, restaurants and cafés rangin
from small independent businesses in the High Street
to the modern shopping centre in St. Andrews Squar
Tourism and leisure:
Droitwich Canals re-opened in
2011 following a £12m restoration programme. Thes
were an important part of the town’s industrial history
but abandoned more than 70 years ago. Today the
canals are once again a navigable waterway providin
a link between the Worcester-Birmingham Canal and
the River Severn to offer a 21 mile circular route for
Local partnerships
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