Warrington certainly enjoyed its fair share of accolades in 2015, with the area consistently ranking highly across all manner of high profile reports including:

• A survey by UHY Hacker Young that recognising Warrington as the number one location outside of London for business start-ups
• Warrington’s recognition by Centre for Cities as 1st out of 64 U.K. cities for the highest percentage of employment per population
• Grant Thornton ranking Warrington as 2nd in the U.K. in their Economic Growth Index
• JLL ranked Warrington as 2nd in U.K. for employment growth
• Warrington’s mention within The Sunday Times as one of the 101 Best Places to Live in the U.K.

Now, commercial property expert Lambert Smith Hampton has listed Warrington within its U.K. Vitality Index as one of the key locations in the Northern Powerhouse.

Warrington’s continued success is also evident within its commercial property market with the area currently noted as a safe bet for investment for the commercial property sector, and a recent flurry of activity has further cemented Warrington’s reputation as an investment hotspot for commercial property, including:

• The sale by commercial property firm DTZ Investors to Griffin Logistics of a 375,000 sq. ft. warehouse for £21.4m. The price that was achieved for the site – that is situated next to Winwick Quay Industrial Estate in Warrington and occupied by Eddie Stobart – arguably demonstrates the strong investor appetite for high quality investment in what is a strategically important location.

• The inclusion of Warrington sites within a recently acquired £55.1m portfolio by Property investment group Custodian REIT.

• An investment by private equity house LDC who conducted one of the Norths standout private equity transactions of 2015 by supporting the management buyout of Warrington based company MiniCam.

The current buoyancy of Warrington’s commercial property market reflects the continuing strength in Warrington’s economy and demonstrates the confidence that major investors have in the area.

The continuing healthy performance of Warrington as a Borough is impressive, however there is still work to do and Warrington & Co.’s commitment to the regeneration of Warrington will play an integral part in providing the necessary investment opportunities, ensuring that Warrington’s commercial, industrial and retail property investment offer is the best that it can possible be.