Charnwood District Council

Unlocking Investment Opportunities in Charnwood: A Prime Location for Business Growth

 Explore the vibrant business landscape of Charnwood, strategically located with easy access to the M1 motorway, mainline railway, and East Midlands Airport. Discover the benefits of investing in this dynamic region, from cutting-edge technologies in science parks to a diverse mix of shops and eateries in Loughborough town centre. The Charnwood team is dedicated to supporting investors, fostering business start-ups, and attracting new investments to strengthen the local economy.

Explore Enterprise Zone status for key sites like LUSEP and Charnwood Campus, positioning Charnwood among the top investment destinations in the UK. Uncover a wealth of development and regeneration opportunities that make Charnwood a premier choice for savvy investors.

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The Team

Chris Grace - Head of Economic Development and Regeneration at Charnwood District Council

Chris Grace has been at Charnwood Borough Council since 2016 and as Head of Economic Development and Regeneration is responsible for all economic development and regeneration matters, programme management of the Loughborough Town Deal and Charnwood’s UKSPF funding, town centre operations and events. He has a bachelor’s degree in politics awarded by the University of Leicester and a Masters in Town and Regional Planning awarded by the University of Sheffield. As Head of Service, Chris is keen to meet with major investors to help identify how Charnwood can be the ideal place for their operations.

Chris has worked in local government and consultancy in the fields of economic development, regeneration, town planning, tourism and corporate strategy since the 1990s. He worked for many years in Chelmsford in Essex, securing several inward investment successes, before moving to Plymouth City Council to be Head of Economy, Enterprise and Employment. At Plymouth, Chris led on several inward investment projects and major initiatives to create jobs and start-up businesses…..amongst many other areas of activity.

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Liz McCusker - Economic Development and Regeneration Manager at Charnwood District Council

Liz McCusker has over 10 years of experience in this field, working in the Midlands and Devon, for County, Unitary, Town and Borough Councils.

Having a degree in Education, Liz specialised in health and drug education working in Birmingham for ten years, then relocated to Devon and worked as a consultant delivering parenting standards across England from the Midlands to the Isle of Wight. Liz has also been a business advisor working for the private and public sector. After a break to set up a gin distillery, Liz returned to the public sector delivering broadband connectivity to rural areas of Devon and Somerset with BDUK. In recent years she returned to the Midlands working on regeneration projects.

Liz is passionate about seeing Charnwood prosper and would welcome working in partnership with organisations looking to do the same.

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Lorraine Farley - Business Relations and Economic Growth Officer at Charnwood District Council

Lorraine Farley has worked in Local Government for 19 years where she has spent the last 7 years working in Economic Development and Regeneration.

Lorraine has a wealth of experience creating and delivering several grant schemes aimed at start-up and growing businesses, as well as managing the delivery of various business support initiatives, and has formed strong working relationships with a wide range of partners which are essential for supporting the local economy.

The role of Business Relations and Economic Growth Officer will give Lorraine a focus on working with and supporting businesses to access support to start up and grow, as well as attracting inward investment into the area.

Charnwood is a great location for businesses and Lorraine is keen to open discussions with local businesses to understand their goals and aspirations, as well as looking to build on relationships with partners who have an impact on Economic Development and are looking to work in collaboration.