Skills and Innovation Centre

Mid Suffolk District Council’s plans for an £18m Skills and Innovation Centre in Stowmarket have taken a major step forward.

The three-storey, state-of-the-art centre will sit at the heart of Gateway 14 – the business, innovation and logistics park that forms part of Freeport East, adjacent to Junction 50 of the A14.

Planning permission has just been granted, meaning work can now begin on the delivery stage of the 35,000 sq ft building, which will include office space for high growth start-ups, collaboration and innovation spaces, training and meeting rooms, and a café.

Designed following positive discussions with businesses and local skills providers, the centre aims to address skills gaps locally and within the Freeport area and seize opportunities around growing sectors such as the green economy and digital/AI technology.

Also included in the plans are a range of business support services which would see the facility become a hub for entrepreneurship, collaboration, green skills and innovation between occupiers in the building and across the wider Gateway 14 site and surrounding Freeport area.

Freeport East agreed £16.66m funding for the centre earlier this year, with Mid Suffolk District Council meeting the remaining cost.

Property developer Jaynic is delivering the project as the development partner of Gateway 14 Ltd – a wholly owned subsidiary of Mid Suffolk District Council.

The centre will be built to meet a minimum BREAAM standard of ‘excellent’ ensuring it is highly sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Mid Suffolk District Council is also now seeking a highly experienced provider to provide centre management and business/innovation support to SMEs.

Tender Opportunity

An invitation to tender is now open ⧉ with potential operators having until Monday 30 December to express their interest.

Subject to a final building opening date, the operator contract would commence in April 2026 for three years with an option to extend.

This week’s news is the latest in a series of recent developments at Gateway 14.  This year planning permission has been granted for two buildings to be occupied by manufacturers of sustainable and eco-friendly construction materials.

Construction has already started on one of these buildings, a 44,000 sq ft manufacturing facility for Bauder – a leading international manufacturer of flat roof building construction materials including solutions for green roofs and solar PV arrays.

Earlier this year, Mid Suffolk District Council’s planning committee gave reserved matters planning consent for a 164,796 sq ft manufacturing and distribution unit at the entrance to the park.

While Gateway 14’s first unit to have been completed – a 1.17million sq ft logistics and distribution centre for The Range – is now operational, and recruiting people to fill 1,650 jobs created on site.