You may be aware that myself and Cheshire East council, along with the Cheshire and Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership have been working hard to prepare a bid for Crewe to be the home of the new Great British Railway headquarters.

We recently found out the brilliant news that Crewe has made it into the final six shortlisted places, beating nearly 40 other applications.

We have done extremely well to make it onto the shortlist, and now the public have their say in where they would like to see the new headquarters based. I want to encourage everyone and anyone to vote for Crewe, so please vote via the link below and tell your friends and family to do so too.

The public vote is an important part of the bid, as it will show to the Department for Transport how passionate we are about getting this win for Crewe.

Crewe is at the heart of rail, and rail is at the heart of Crewe. There is so much history between Crewe and the railways, Crewe was born from the railways following a decision in 1837 to invest in a new connector station.

From speaking to constituents, I have met countless people who's families worked in the railway industry, often multiple generations of the same local families have done so, continuing to this day with the Crewe Works site still active. Having the headquarters based in Crewe would be a brilliant way to carry on the legacy. 

The headquarters will also help level up Crewe, bringing high-skilled, high-paid jobs to the area. We are already seeing benefits from the governments levelling up agenda.

We have a Crewe Town Deal, funding for an Institute of Technology and of course the HS2 Hub. Importantly, while all of these are positives, they would not replicate the investment GBR represents.

The area around the Station has been allocated as the 'HS2 Station Hub' strategic employment site, providing opportunity for new investment in high-grade office space with a hotel and amenities unlike anything else currently available in Crewe.

GBR has the opportunity to become the landmark occupier, helping cement the scheme and to shape the future regeneration of Crewe.

I want to encourage everyone and anyone to vote. It is a bid Crewe can be proud of, and it is a bid I know all of Crewe can get behind. Lets make sure that our ties to the railways continue and we can carry on our railway legacy.

Please use the following link to vote for Crewe and get this win for our town! 

https://consultations.gbrtt.co.uk/great-british-railways/gbr-hq-vote/consultation/intro/