BT to create 300 Lancashire jobs
BT has announced plans to create 300 jobs in Lancashire at a new state-of-the-art call centre in Accrington town centre.
The company has concluded a deal with Lancashire County Council to occupy the new facility, which council leader Cllr Geoff Driver said “builds on the long term partnership” between the pair.
He said: “We’re obviously delighted that BT has recognised what Lancashire has to offer to businesses.
“We’ve helped it find suitable accommodation, but ultimately BT wants to come to Lancashire because of the skills and expertise we already have here.
Edwin Booth, chairman of Lancashire Enterprise Partnership, said: “A major global brand choosing to invest in Lancashire sends out very positive messages.
“For people in Hyndburn and the surrounding area it means lots of opportunities to work for a big-name company that takes customer service seriously. It’s great for the local economy in Accrington and it means that other businesses, thinking about where to base similar operations, will consider that Lancashire is worth a closer look.”
The move follows a £62.5m agreement last week between the county council and BT to roll-out fibre broadband to parts of the county not currently covered by the existing network. The deal means that 97% of businesses and households should have fibre broadband delivered to their premises by the end of 2014.
The company contributed £30m to the project, with £10.8m coming from central government founding, £16.5m from European funding and £5.2m from local councils. It is estimated that the roll-out of the network could lead to the creation of up to 2,500 jobs in the area.
Tony Chanmugam, BT’s chief finance officer, said: “BT is delighted to be bringing more jobs to Lancashire. We have a great relationship with the local authority, which is helping us set up a new contact centre in an area where we wanted to be with committed people who have the right skills to help our customers.”
