The property agent this week named as Worcestershire Dealmaker of the Year 2020 has called on the local councils covering North East Worcestershire to free up more employment land or risk losing jobs forever.
Ian Parker, joint managing director of commercial property agency John Truslove, which was also named at Worcestershire’s most active commercial Agency, has been recognised in the Radius Data Exchange survey produced in conjunction with EG, the commercial property market magazine. He has also been named Warwickshire Dealmaker of the Year 2020.
The award comes after 12 months which saw John Truslove, which celebrates 40 years next year, experienced a 36% increase in deals negotiated.
He said: “I am delighted to be named Dealmaker of the Year in our industry for both Worcestershire and Warwickshire.
“North East Worcestershire is currently a hotbed for business and in great demand, due to good communication links, its central UK location and proximity to Birmingham and Birmingham International Airport.
“But Redditch, Bromsgrove and Worcestershire local authorities must act immediately to free up more employment land or we miss losing out on jobs for a generation.
“While Amazon at the Eastern Gateway is a welcome addition to Redditch, the development whose infrastructure was part funded by local authorities, has not provided the accommodation so desperately needed and promised at the outset and has been a wasted opportunity by the councils with the developers being allowed to pursue maximum profit over the requirements of the region.
“There is plenty of land on the fringes of current developments, for example at Ravensbank, that could be allocated for employment uses.
“The situation is critical and needs addressing in days, rather than years, otherwise companies looking to build a central UK base and create thousands of jobs will simply look elsewhere. There are areas, in the East Midlands for example, where they will be welcomed with open arms.”
The national survey of property deals by Radius Data Exchange runs from August to August, taking in as Ian Parker pointed out, a General Election, Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown.
He said: “It is an honour to be named Worcestershire Dealmaker of the year especially following on from recently being named Warwickshire Dealmaker and it is testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone at John Truslove.
“It has been a challenging 12 months but the amount of activity we have seen proves the strength and resilience of the economy and businesses in North East Worcestershire.
“It is essential that the local authorities find ways to unlock employment land to allow the region to continue to strengthen. The shortage of available accommodation is a perennial issue, and we must be ready for the anticipated migration of business out of the major conurbations.”
He added: “As a firm, John Truslove straddles the Warwickshire and Worcestershire border from our base in Redditch, and we are ideally placed to advise all businesses, local, regional, national and international, on the options and availability in our area.”
Established in 1981, John Truslove was built up by the founder until he handed over the reins to joint managing directors Ian Parker and Ben Truslove. The firm is one of the Midlands’ leading independent business property advisers, covering Warwickshire, Worcestershire and the wider West Midlands.
