The Economic Regeneration Section provides the focal point for Preston City Council's initiatives to improve the economy of the town. These are shown below and further information can be obtained by contacting the section or following the links provided.
Business Support & Finance
Business advice is available to assist those who wish to set up or expand their business. Business Link Northwest offers a free and impartial business support and information service, which can be used to appraise and evaluate your business idea; pursue sources of finance; assist with business plans and help solve legal, accounting and marketing problems.
Business Property
The Economic Regeneration Section maintains a sites and property register with up-to-date information on the availability of business accommodation. Free tailored listings can be provided to you or you can undertake on-line property searches.
Business Directory
The Central Lancashire Business Directory 2008/09 is now available for purchase and contains details of 3,300 industrial and commercial companies.
Business Initiatives
Schemes have been developed in support of local businesses or sectors:
- Preston Employment Partnership can offer recruitment support to expanding or relocating companies and links to local training providers. The project works jointly with key partners in Preston who are responsible for supporting local people into employment opportunities.
- Tourism initiatives are concentrated on management of the local Tourist Information Centre, together with conference and general marketing activities.
- Preston Arts & Design (PAD) consists of exhibition space and a shop featuring the work of local artists. The gallery stages a continuous programme of art exhibitions and the shop provides displays of local artists' work in a wide variety of media, including glass, ceramics, oils and photography.
- The Business Innovation Programme is supporting the growth of innovative new business and encouraging innovation within all Preston based business.
Economic Information
The section has access to a wide range of economic intelligence, including general statistics on population, labour supply, employment and other quality of life data for potential investors.
Contact: 01772 903423
European Funding
An intelligence service to advise the City Council on possible sources of EU funding and for the development of European trans-national projects.
Details are provided here of the recent 'Hubs for Growth' Conference in Preston.
Trading Standards
The Trading Standards service is operated by Lancashire County Council and is there to protect the interests of both consumers and businesses.
The link below is to their dedicated website, where there is a further 'About us' link to find out more about of the services on offer. For businesses these include advice on starting out, legal obligations, the credit crunch, and general advice sheets.
Lancashire Trading Standards
Document links
| Document downloads | File Size |
| Adobe Acrobat Reader is available FREE of charge. You can download it directly from Adobe's website by clicking the link to the right. Once on Adobe's website, follow the instructions on screen to install the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. |  |
| Preston Demographics - April 2009 (PDF) | 127KB |