Invest Preston

Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) Rt Hon Angela Rayner MP, spoke to a packed conference hall today at the Convention Of The North event, which has been hosted in Preston by Lancashire County Council and the University of Central Lancashire over the past two days. Leader of Preston City Council, Councillor Matthew Brown said: “The Convention of the North event has been a great success, and we are proud to be able to put Preston on the map and welcome visitors from the world of politics, academia, and business to the city. For the first time it is being held in the North West’s third largest city and has presented an excellent opportunity for Preston to showcase what it has to offer, our exciting regeneration plans and ambitions for the future, accompanied by the progress we are making towards a fairer and more democratic local economy through Community Wealth Building. “Preston, as the leading commercial hub for Lancashire and the urban heart of a £35bn economy, is bursting with potential. Our key sector strengths including advanced manufacturing, aerospace, healthcare, cyber and digital offer many emerging new opportunities for our young people, in a well-connected, culturally vibrant, and green city, rich in opportunity. "As Lancashire continues its devolution journey, a thriving Preston city region is a prerequisite for a successful Lancashire economy, and we want to ensure all residents and local businesses benefit from the city’s economic development and regeneration.” https://lnkd.in/e4VHNsam #COTN25 #ConventionoftheNorth Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

🌮🔥 Taco Bell has officially landed in town! Franchisee Soul Foods Group officially opened the doors to Preston’s first Taco Bell on 20 February, within the brand-new Animate leisure and entertainment complex, bringing bold flavours, delicious tacos, and Mexican-inspired food to the city. 👉 https://lnkd.in/efNhc6bF #TacoBellPreston #AnimatePreston #LancashireBusiness

💡 Help shape the future of Central Lancashire! The Central Lancashire Authorities - Preston, South Ribble, and Chorley - are preparing a Joint Local Plan to guide future growth and development across the region. They are now consulting on the Publication (Regulation 19) draft, and this is your opportunity to provide feedback on the Plan before it moves forward. 📅 Consultation runs from Monday 24 February - Monday 14 April. 📥 Share your views online - it's the easiest way to have your say. 🔗 Have your say via this link here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eheJUwN9 #LocalPlan #Lancashire

📣 Just three days to go until the Convention Of The North 2025! The event will take place in Preston at the University of Central Lancashire, on 27 and 28 of February after Lancashire County Council successfully secured a bid to host the event. 🗣 This year's speakers include: Greg Jackson – founder and CEO of Octopus Energy; Katie Gallagher OBE – Chair of the UK Tech Cluster Group; Jude Kelly CBE – Chair of UK One Creative North; and Craig Boothby – Managing Director at Springfields Fuels Ltd. Joining a number of other Northern mayors this year will be Mayor of the North East, Kim McGuinness, and Mayor of York and North Yorkshire David Skaith, following their successful elections last summer. Preston Partnership will also be hosting a fringe event: 📅 Thursday, 27th February ⏰️ 5.30pm 📍 @Chew's Yard, 103-111 Market St, Preston PR1 2HB (Garden Entrance) You can find the full programme here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eKAiW-sK #COTN25 #InvestPreston #ProudPreston #UCLan Preston City Council

Wow Preston - What a Grand Day out we all had! It was truly a team effort as we all came together to give a very warm welcome to Honorary Freeman Nick Park CBE who helped us celebrate the opening of our new entertainment and leisure destination - Animate! Nick unveiled a new piece of art for the city - a bronze statue of the villainous mastermind Feathers McGraw, that complements our famous existing Wallace & Gromit bench at #PrestonMarkets (although we're not sure what Wallace & Gromit think about having his beady eyes on them from now on!) Thank you to everyone who came along, got involved, had fun, and to those who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make it a magical day! A big thank you also to the man of the moment Nick Park CBE, his lovely wife Mags, co-director of Wallace & Gromit Merlin Crossingham, and the rest of the teams at Aardman and Castle Fine Arts Foundry! Today after all the excitement of yesterday's big launch has died down, there is steady stream of people queuing to have their photo taken with our new celebrity penguin (or chicken?) which is fantastic to see, lots of people enjoying the food and drink offers at Argento Lounge Loungers ltd and Taco Bell and today The Arc Cinema Preston opens its doors to the public with their first shows this afternoon. We think Animate is a fantastic new destination in the city centre and we can't wait to welcome the rest of the new tenants over the coming weeks and months! #TownsFundBoard Limitless Public Relations Wash Studio Sanderson Weatherall | certified B Corp Eric Wright Group Martin Bostock Michael Porter #PrestonMarkets #ProudPreston #Animate #ExperiencesThatMoveEveryone

It was an incredible turnout yesterday for the grand opening of Animate - our new £45m+ entertainment and leisure development in the heart of Preston city centre. A big thank you to our special guests, all those proud Prestonians who came to cheer for Nick Park CBE and his amazing team, everyone who has been involved in making this project come to life, from inception right through to behind the scenes at the event yesterday! We've go lots more to come and more exciting new tenants to welcome to the scheme over the coming weeks and months and we can't wait!

📣 Nick Park CBE, Executive Director of Aardman an accredited Living Wage employer, is opening Animate today. As a Living Wage City, Preston is proud to work with likeminded employers who believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay The badge is proudly displayed on their website and they say: 🗣️ “Aardman is proud to be a Living Wage employer, joining many UK organisations, businesses and people who believe that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay.” #PrestonLivingWageCity #LivingWage #AnimatePreston

🎬 Lights, camera… ACTION, Preston! 🚀 We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome Nick Park CBE - the legendary, multi-award-winning creator of Wallace and Gromit, back to his hometown for a truly special occasion! Tomorrow, Thursday 20 February, Nick will officially open Animate - Preston’s brand-new £45m+ entertainment and leisure destination - a game-changer for the city’s social scene. To mark the occasion, Nick will join The Mayor of Preston, Councillor Phil Crowe and guests, to unveil a brand-new piece of artwork for the city centre. And as if that wasn’t exciting enough…Wallace and Gromit characters themselves will be making special guest appearances! It’s a day packed with fun, including: 🍿 Meet Wallace & Gromit at Animate & Preston Markets (from 1pm)  🎶 Live music from the Preston Concert Band (4pm-6pm)  🎥 The Arc Cinema handing out goodies  🍽️ Argento Lounge & Taco Bell serving up delicious bites And that’s just the start of this outstanding development. With Hollywood Bowl, Ask Italian, Mad Giant Food Hall, Cosmo and more opening over the coming weeks, Animate is set to become Preston’s go-to entertainment hub for residents and visitors. #AnimatePreston #WallaceAndGromit #NickPark #ProudPreston 👉 https://lnkd.in/eFdRS5JH Preston City Council Preston Partnership Marketing Lancashire Lancashire Business View Cotton Court Business Centre Preston Innovates

🤩 Amazing news for Preston’s own Nick Park, and the team behind Wallace and Gromit, for scooping two prestigious BAFTA wins in london 🏆 We’ll be welcoming Nick and his team to Preston on Thursday this week, to officially open the city's £45m+ Animate entertainment and leisure destination. Nick Park CBE is an Honorary Freeman of Preston, a multi award-winning filmmaker and Preston-born creator of the animated heroes Wallace and Gromit. A great week to celebrate! 🥳 👉 https://lnkd.in/gC4s3H8z #WallaceAndGromit #AnimatePreston #ProudPreston #NickPark

🎸 The Preston Weekender is on 3-4 May 2025...buy your tickets now! Legendary British DJ and music producer Pete Tong - best known for shaping the global electronic music scene and hosting BBC Radio 1’s iconic dance music shows - will headline on Saturday, 3 May 2025. Sunday's lineup is headed by indie sensation, Embrace, supported by Elvana and Ferocious Dog, on Sunday, 4 May 2025. 🎟 Find more information and tickets here 👉 https://lnkd.in/ethgFFtA #PrestonWeekender #ProudPreston #MusicFestival Preston Partnership Preston City Council