ARCHIVE
FEBRUARY 2006
LOCAL
ECONOMYAND LABOUR MARKET NEWS
PORTSMOUTH AND SOUTH EAST
HANTS
Defence
Industry
Job
Creation via Billion Pound Deal in Shipbuilding
The
shipbuilding industry in Portsmouth has
received a massive boost with the development
of two new projects for dockyard based
VT. Following a £30m deal,
the company IS ALREADY ENGAGED in building
HMS Clyde, the first warship to be constructed
entirely in Portsmouth for
over 40 years. Allied to this, the
Government have confirmed that VT will
also be at the heart of a new £3.5bn
project to design two aircraft carriers.
The design deal, which is worth £300m,
will involve 50 workers, with a possible
10,000 further jobs being created when
the metal cutting and construction starts.
Alongside the possible job creations through
building the ships, it is rumoured that
the maintenance of the vessels could last
for up to 50 years.
(Portsmouth News 8
December 2005)
Mine
System to Secure and Create Jobs
Hundreds
of jobs at Waterlooville based defence
firm BAE appear
to have been secured thanks to a new anti-mine
system which the company have been developing
for the US Navy. BAE,
have indicated that if the Americans adopt
the system, 15 more members of staff may
be required to work alongside the existing
500.
(Portsmouth News, 10 January
2006)
Bouncers
Required
Gosport based
security firm Guardit are looking to expand
their already 500 strong operation following
the introduction of new legislation. All
pubs with an entertainment licence are
now required by the Security Industry Authority
to have a licensed Door Supervisor, leading
to Guardit envisaging a recruitment drive
of between 40 and 50 people to satisfy
demand.
(Portsmouth News, 10
January 2006)
Construction
Industry
Super Hospital to
create 450 jobs
A
new ‘super hospital’is to be
built in Cosham. Portsmouth Hospitals
NHS Trust have agreed a deal with private
sector based The Hospital Company to build
the Queen Alexandra. Construction
of the building will create an estimated
450 jobs in the area, with employment estimated
to last for 42 months.
(Portsmouth News, 8
December 2005)
Housing
Development
Reports
suggest that 2,000 new homes could be built
in Port Solent. Alongside the housing developments,
new transport links between Port Solent
and Portsmouth would
be created, to allow the area to lose its ‘cul-de-sac’tag.
(Portsmouth
News, 20 December 2005)
Retail
Jobs
A
new look store by supermarket firm Somerfield
has been opened in Southsea. The store,
which is based on a large market style
area, has cost nearly £900,000 and
will lead to the creation of 10 new jobs.
(Portsmouth News, 8
December 2005 )
Possible
Job Losses
Cut-price
Discount Stores have gone into administration
leaving 81 employees awaiting their future. The
company have shops in Southsea, Portsmouth ,
Cosham, Fratton, Portchester and Waterlooville.
Nursing
and Care staff at Gosport War Memorial Hospital have
been informed that there are going to
be cut backs. The Primary Care
Trust indicated that the hospital is
overstaffed and 17 full time jobs will
be lost.
(The Journal Series, 5 January
2006 )
SOUTHAMPTON AND SOUTH
WEST HAMPSHIRE
Map
Makers Relocate
Ordnance
Surveys, one of the largest employers in Southampton with
1,200 staff, have unveiled plans to relocate
to a new £45m corporate centre on
the city’s western edge. The
current site in Maybush looks set to be
redeveloped into homes and offices. Originally
OS had hoped to sell the land for purely
residential development, but the city council
has insisted that any new developments
should include a mix of housing and job
creating businesses.
(Southern
Daily Echo, January)
70,000
needed for Construction Industry
The
construction industry in Hampshire and
the Isle of Wight is
set to receive a boost following the European
Social Fund and Learning Skills Council
awarding a £450,000 contract to IBP Training
and Employment of Eastleigh. IBP will
deliver a training and brokerage service
to increase skill levels in construction
and encourage more people to enter the
sector. The funding comes as the
indicators point towards the construction
industry growing within the locality, and
an estimated 70,000 new entrants are required
to satisfy demand. See next issue for our
focus on the Construction Industry
(Southern
Daily Echo, 5
January 2006 )
Street
Maintenance Work for Local Companies
French
construction firm Cloas are looking to
work alongside local small and medium sized
companies in a £41m project. Southampton
City Councils Whole Street Project will
see four of the areas’main roads
revamped with new paving, street signs
and furniture.
(Southern
Daily Echo, 5
January 2006 )
Potential
Reduction in Funding For Support Agency
Cut
backs from Southampton City Council could
result in the Wheatsheaf Trust losing its £50,000
grant. The Wheatsheaf Trust provides
training opportunities for disadvantaged
groups such as ex -offenders, single parents,
disabled, disaffected young people and
ethnic minorities.
(Southern
Daily Echo, 15
December 2005 )
Job
Losses
Southampton
County Council may have to make 40 posts
redundant due to a £3.9m deficit
in funding. Social Services, Refuse
Collection and Maintenance could be targeted.
(Southern
Daily Echo, 9
January 2006 )
170
employees of Manufacturer Wix Filtration,
who are based in Southampton Docks, were
made redundant in December. The
company who manufacture vehicle and air
and oil filters are looking to move most
of their work to Poland and
the United
States .
(Southern
Daily Echo, 14
December 2005
Southampton based
Spanish tapas bar Los Marinos have closed
down after 12 years in business. The
establishment employed upwards of 50
people.
(Southern
Daily Echo, 5
January 2006 )
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ISLE OF
WIGHT
Island
Games Bid
The Isle
of Wight has placed a bid
to host the 2011 Island Games for the first
time since 1993.
(www.iwcp.co.uk 11
January 2006 )
Construction
Industry Boost
The
construction industry in Hampshire and
the Isle of Wight is
set to receive a boost following the European
Social Fund and Learning Skills Council
awarding a £450,000 contract to IBP Training
and Employment of Eastleigh. IBP will
deliver a training and brokerage service
to increase skill levels in construction
and encourage more people to enter the
sector. The funding comes as the indicators
point towards the construction industry
growing within the locality, and an estimated
70,000 new entrants are required to satisfy
demand. See next issue for our focus on
the Construction Industry
(Southern
Daily Echo, 5
January 2006)
Cable
Company Take Over
Isle
of Wight Cable TV Company has been taken
over by Wight Cable in a multi million
pound deal. Wight Cable currently
employs 27 people and reports suggest it
may look to expand in the future.
(www.iwcp.co.uk, 23
January 2006 )
Cowes Youth
Council in Jeopardy
Cowes
Youth Council could be disbanded as early
as March this year if new members are not
found. The council will be meeting on the
16th of that month to determine
whether or not it is viable. Canvassing
at local schools will be undertaken. The
problems buck the trend of increased youth
consultation.
(Isle of Wight County Press , 31
January 2006 )
New
Clinic to Open
Sequence
Biotechnologies Ltd, a Liverpool based
organisation, is opening a DNA clinic
in Newport .
The private clinic, part of a planned chain
of 30, will offer paternity and maternity
testing. Although most testing of this
type has been undertaken through the post
or internet media, but linking the testing
to face to face counselling and support
is a positive move, according to the founders.
( Isle of Wight County Press , 31
January 2006 ).
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MID AND NORTH
HAMPSHIRE
Hi-Tech Business
Drive
Basingstoke and
Dean Borough Council has invested £1m
of developer’s contributions in a
venture capital fund to encourage hi- tech
businesses and job creation within the
area. Opportunities in the hi-tech
sector look promising with experts labelling Basingstoke as
the Silicon Valley of
the UK .
(Basingstoke Gazette, 3
January 2006 )
New
Hospital
Another
new hospital is set to open in Hampshire
in January 2006, this time it is the £36m Lymington New
Forest Hospital .
(Forest and
Waterside News, 30
December 2005 )
Job
Losses
The
Littlewoods store in Basingstoke ,
which has been trading in the town for
35 years has closed, making 19 members
of staff redundant.
(Basingstoke Gazette, 11
January 2006 )
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