Plans submitted for £30m expansion

The development of the West Midlands as one of the UK’s leading digital tech clusters has taken another step forward with the submission of a planning application for Enterprise Wharf, a new 120,000 sq ft building at the Innovation Birmingham campus.

Bruntwood SciTech has submitted the application to Birmingham City Council to support and encourage growth within the regional economy.

The digital tech sector is already the fifth largest sector in the West Midlands, with nearly 14,000 businesses, and the rapid advance of digital technologies is forecast to further drive inward investment, company formation and job creation in the area. In the West Midlands Combined Authority alone, digital and tech employment is expected to rise from just over 70,000 to 84,000 jobs in the next few years.

Enterprise Wharf will offer a total of 120,000 sq ft of flexible, smart workspace designed specifically with digital and tech businesses in mind.

The building is to feature a large, open plan reception and collaboration space, cycle storage, showers and a roof garden offering great views across the city. The Innovation Birmingham campus also offers a range of other amenities including meeting and event spaces, car parking and electric charging points to support sustainable travel.

The building will serve as a new £30m hub for the campus, providing companies with full access to a wide range of social events, business support programmes and Meet Up groups all designed to connect innovators and help them grow.

Located next to both Aston University and Birmingham City University, the thriving community at the Innovation Birmingham campus is already a magnet for digital tech entrepreneurs, start-ups, scale ups and large corporates. 

David Hardman, managing director of Bruntwood SciTech in Birmingham, said: “The West Midlands is home to an ever expanding digital tech ecosystem. Innovation Birmingham is at the heart of that with a proven track record of helping over 250 businesses start and scale and creating more than 500 jobs for the region. Connecting start-ups with corporates and the public sector is crucial to innovation, and Enterprise Wharf will expand our innovative community and help the sector flourish in our region.”

The Enterprise Wharf planning application also features proposals for new landscaping and public realm including improved access to the adjacent Birmingham and Fazeley canal. 

If the scheme is approved, work is expected to start on site early in 2020, with the building opening in late 2021.  Agents Avison Young and Savills UK have been appointed on the scheme. The development is designed by Associated Architects, with planning consultancy from Turley.