Expert panel praise Chesterfield’s ‘great potential’ – and say regeneration is key to ‘meeting needs of the next generation’

Industry experts have lauded Chesterfield’s impressive potential and said that continued collaboration between the public and private sectors is critical in ensuring growth does not stop.

Speaking at national contractor Willmott Dixon’s second ‘Towns of the Future’ roundtable – hosted at the Tapton Park Innovation Centre – the 10-person panel discussed topics including the current building stock, skills, talent retention and investment.

It was agreed that identifying challenges in regeneration projects and collaborative working by the public and private sector can help overcome potential hurdles.

The panel agreed conversations taking place are very encouraging – something which is especially important at a time when regeneration projects amounting to a value of more than £1 billion are in progress.

Jerry Major, regional framework manager at Willmott Dixon, said: “Chesterfield has great potential and, because local authorities now understand what the private sector can offer more than ever before, the opportunity to make the most of different areas and create mixed-use developments is being unlocked.

“It’s vital that businesses in Chesterfield, both big and small, play an active role in promoting the careers available here and the opportunity to lead a fulfilling lifestyle.

“While we have been involved in projects in Chesterfield in the past, and we understand the importance of maintaining our relationship with the stakeholders here and offering an advisory role to the public sector organisations in need of regeneration expertise.”

Chesterfield Waterside and the Staveley Town Deal were discussed by the panel, although questions centred around what went right and wrong for Chesterfield in 2022, how more attention can be generated on developments in Chesterfield, and what the focus of growth should be in the town over the next decade.

Dominic Stevens, manager at Destination Chesterfield, said: “Chesterfield has a clear growth plan, place story and sense of identity. The vision for Chesterfield has been in place now for more than a decade and we continue to see the positive results of this plan.”

“Looking forward to the next 10 years, it was excellent to hear people from different areas of industry agree on the importance of meeting the needs and desires of the next generation. We must ensure that development and regeneration lead to inclusive sustainable growth and Chesterfield continues to be a great place to live, work, visit and invest.”