Whitehaven Bus Station

Comprising of managed workspace, Barclays Eagle lab, artisan food & beverage offerings as well as flexible workspace, the multi-use bus station aims to reflect the post-Covid evolving world of office space.

Together with other stakeholders, we have supported the delivery of a development that will be instrumental in meeting west Cumbria’s biggest challenge: economic diversification for job security and creation.

The Bus Station houses the 25th Eagle Lab (an incubator for start-up and scale-up businesses) in the UK and the first outside of a major city in the North. The Eagle Lab is the fastest growing and outperforming any others, currently priding itself with 87% occupancy with 58 office residents and 12 member residents.

The building is also home to The Peddler, delivered in partnership with Osprey Management Group. A 125-seat restaurant that has employed 40 people, of which 38 were new to the hospitality industry.

The Bus Station has received 3 awards at the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) North West Awards for Excellence in Planning for Heritage & Culture, Excellence in Planning for a Successful Economy and was proudly the Overall Winner, which enters the project into the national shortlist.

Sellafield Investment

£5.7m

Timeline

May 2021
Bus Station opened

Nov 2021
Bus Station awarded RTPI North West Award

Outcome

The Barclays Eagle Labs support entrepreneurs with business expertise, mentoring and coaching from scale-up specialists, as well as a full year-round events programme dedicated to promoting collaboration and innovation in the community.

Eagle Labs offer members the opportunity to connect with like-minded entrepreneurs, local organisations, universities, industry bodies and potential clients and investors. These resources provide more opportunities for local start-ups and scale-ups to grow, in turn strengthening the area’s established position in the energy and nuclear decommissioning sector.