Locate to Luton
Luton is a vibrant and multicultural town which has reinvented itself through regeneration and investment to become one of the top achieving areas in the UK for business growth.
Business and commerce
Luton is a key area for business and commerce in the South East. By meeting the changing face of industry and business it is becoming one of the leading areas for business growth in the UK.
In recent years more than 30 companies have relocated or stayed in Luton and brought in investments of over £60million. New and existing companies are thriving in the local economy with a number of major companies choosing Luton for their headquarters including:
- Astra Zeneca UK (pharmaceuticals)
- Selex Galileo (research headquarters)
- Ernst & Young
- Tui (formerly Thomson Holidays)
- easyJet
- Monarch
- SKF
- Hayward Tyler
- MTL (Cooper industries)
- InBev (formally Interbrew) the global brewers and drinks industry leaders
Luton is also home to Vauxhalls’ head office, the European customer care centre, the warehouse and GM Manufacturing Luton, the latter producing the Vivaro Van under the Vauxhall, Opel, Nissan and Renault brands.
Capability Green and the Butterfield Business Park, incorporating the award winning Innovation Centre and Business Base, offer state of the art, contemporary and sustainable buildings for a variety of end uses. These range from corporate headquarters and serviced offices through to bespoke buildings for R&D, manufacturing and technology.
Luton is receptive to change and takes every opportunity to draw in funds to support its infrastructure and its growing businesses. The strong and vibrant economy is sustained through very positive relationships with major strategic partners and businesses within its main business clusters. As a key partner in the Local Enterprise Partnerships we see a shared vision of growth for the whole of the South East Midlands economy
Skills and training
Luton is one of the largest towns in South East England, with a population of 200,000 residents and about 71,000 households. Vocational analysis shows clear advantages for Luton and the wider conurbation in air transport, motor vehicles, medical and precision instruments, ICT, aerospace and food and drink. Luton has a multi-lingual, highly skilled, local workforce. This is further enhanced by good transport links to a widespread catchment area, extending through Bedfordshire and the surrounding counties and down to north London. There is also a wide and active membership on the learning, skills and employment themes within the Local Strategic Partnership. Excellent education opportunities are on hand for everyone who lives, works or studies here - not only during school years but throughout life from early years and childcare, through to college and university.
Funding and business support
Growing, investing in or relocating your business is a key decision. Businesses in Luton have already benefitted from more than £8million of grant funding, generating £60million of private sector investment,
creating over 1000 jobs and supporting over 230 more. Luton Borough Council’s Regeneration Service is dedicated to increasing Luton’s economic growth by helping to improve the competitiveness of local business by working with partners. You can be assured of its support to:
- find business premises
- provide research and statistics
- offer business advice
- locate start-up premises
- help with networking
- supply information on wider issues.
Financing your investment decision is foremost. Currently there are a number of grant schemes your company can tap into including the Green grants for R&D, Regional Growth Loan, Low Carbon Venture Capital Fund to name but a few. The Business Growth Fund will establish a new source of help for growing companies. Businesses in the £10m to £100m turnover range can play an important role in leading the UK’s economic recovery, yet can often find themselves in the so called equity gap, falling between initiatives for small business support and those for larger companies. The Business Finance Taskforce will therefore launch a new Business Growth Fund to support these businesses. The Business Growth Fund will offer between £2m and £10m to these companies, in return for an equity stake in the business. The investment provided would be in the form of equity capital.
For guidance and information to companies seeking funding contact 01582 546970 or email regeneration@luton.gov.uk
