Page 5 - Redditch New Town Centre Success or Failure
P. 5

Redditch New Town, Success or Failure?                                             Redditch Heritage


        It  is  with  that  background  that  we  came  to  repeat  the  cycle.  Buildings  and
        infrastructure.  the  heritage  of  the  Industrial  Revolution,  much  outworn  and
        outdated, have now been cleared or improved.

        Despite the early restrictions of Industrial Development Certificates and Office
        Development  Permits  and  the  constraints  imposed  on  attracting  firms  from

        outside the region the Corporation has nevertheless promoted the advantages of
        Redditch abroad. These endeavours have succeeded in attracting foreign firms
        to the town though the number of firms migrating from the southern quadrant
        of Birmingham still predominate. The high incidence of entirely new firms and
        the growth of local firms suggest the significance of opportunities which have
        arisen  from  the  presence  in  the  town  of  the  Corporation.  Nevertheless,  an

        assessment of the growth at Redditch has shown that this has been achieved with
        an insignificant effect on Birmingham and its Inner Areas.

        When the new town was designated in 1964 the population was 32,000, with a
        small Urban District within the County of Worcester. At a population of 73,500,
        and rising fast and with an employee workforce of over 25,000, as a Borough,

        the town now holds second place to the City of Worcester in size, but now within
        the new County of Hereford and Worcester. With the dynamism already generat-
        ed within the town, Redditch is already recognised as having the largest growth
        potential in the Structure Plan which will make it the largest town in the County.
        The town is also well placed to harness an upturn in the national economy, both
        in its location relative to motorways under construction and in its potential for
        accommodating both industry and commerce.


        The town now has the social and physical infrastructure necessary to meet the
        second  industrial  revolution-The  Information  Technology  Revolution-and  gear
        itself for the twenty-first century.

        The Corporation supports the need for the appropriate Authorities to consider the

        longer term future of the town and the Secretary of State's request for such a
        joint  study  is  timely.  Indeed,  previously,  in  response  to  the  West  Midlands
        Regional Study Report of 1971 the Development Corporation, in association with
        Warwickshire  and  Worcestershire,  was  able  to  show  that  Redditch  could  be
        expanded in physical terms to a population of 150,000.


        The pressure groups and Local Authorities which are currently aligned to prevent
        further significant growth present a formidable force. It is to be hoped that the
        absence of the Corporation and the limited role of the Commission for the New
        Towns will not result in the lack of a driving force able to capitalise on the very
        considerable potential the town has to stimulate the flagging economy of the
        region.







                                                                                                        Page:  5
   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10