Work on Cranbrook town centre have started and were marked with an official ground-breaking ceremony on Thursday (September 29).

Located at the junction of Tillhouse Road and Court Royal, the new town centre will include; a Morrisons supermarket, children’s day nursery, ribbon retail, residential apartments and a new market square.

Henry Davidson Developments Ltd (HDDL) are the company behind this important project and have partnered with local building contractor Acheson Construction Ltd who are delivering the construction works.

Scott Davidson, Managing Director at HDDL said: “We are delighted construction has begun on the Cranbrook Town Centre scheme, it is an important part of the wider Cranbrook development and with a great range of retail occupiers it will prove to be a real asset. There has been a lot of interest in its progress since the plans were announced, so it is very satisfying for construction to begin and deliver the much-needed town centre. It highlights HDD experience and our ability to deliver developments of this size and variety.”

Operations Director Colin Johnson from Acheson said: ‘’Acheson Construction are very proud to be delivering this important project in Cranbrook and look forward to marking further important milestones as the project progresses’’.

East Devon District Council Leader Cllr Paul Arnott broke ground with the ceremonial spade to mark the commencement, said: “My administration is thrilled to have broken the deadlock over the future of a new town centre in Cranbrook. This has taken dedicated negotiations by our officers and the political will to invest. I was delighted to meet the construction team on a very well-run site and can't wait to go shopping in Morrisons as soon as possible.”

Further representatives from Acheson Construction, HDDL and East Devon District Council along with Cranbrook Town Council, Cranbrook Education Campus, Devon County Council, Mono Project Management, Baker Ruff Hannon, SGP Architects, Brookbanks Consulting and LiveWest joined the celebrations to mark this important occasion.

Once complete, vital jobs, homes and facilities will be created all set within an exciting community ‘hub’ for the Cranbrook area.

Richard Harrison, Land & Planning Director at Taylor Wimpey Exeter was in attendance, who said: ‘’We're all very excited for what we're about to see here in Cranbrook. A lot of time and hard work has been put into the making of this new town and we can't wait for everyone to see what the Town centre has to offer’.”

Gareth Jones, Development Director for LiveWest added said: ‘’It’s fantastic to see the Town Centre being constructed and for LiveWest to play its part in supporting the delivery of the residential homes.  It is just what Cranbrook and its residents need and adds an essential element to the new community.”

The project is running to programme and will complete late 2023.