St Helens Top Table for Inward Investment

St Helens has seen a rapid influx of new businesses over the last five years, keen on tapping the city's new support infrastructure.

There has been more than a 40 per cent rise in the number of companies in the city since the inception of a growth strategy in 2003.

Initially the plan outlined 70 business-generating projects, targeted for completion by 2013.

But as almost all have been finished, city authorities have revised this target to 90, with more than £1.1 billion of capital projects already approved.

The total spending on improving the Merseyside city's competitiveness now stands at £1.8 billion.

Chairman of the Enterprise Forum Steve Gange said: "If anything the new [city growth strategy] CGS is even more deliverable than the last, particularly if you look at how the funding stacks up."

St Helens, which is home of racetrack Haydock Park and the Saints' ground, was one of four areas in the UK selected by the government for special focus to boost facilities for the local economy.