Crewe should be the home of Great British Railways

Cheshire East Council has welcomed the launch of a competition to find the national headquarters of new public body Great British Railways and says it 'looks forward to developing a strong bid for Crewe'.

Councillor Sam Corcoran, leader of Cheshire East Council, said: “We welcome the news and the opportunity to demonstrate why Crewe should be the home of Great British Railways.

“Crewe has a proud rail heritage and has long been seen as the gateway to the north, making it the perfect location for GBR’s headquarters.

“Rail is in the blood of so many people in Crewe and bringing the Great British Railways headquarters to the town will create huge opportunities for levelling up and creating skilled jobs that will build on the town’s proud rail heritage.”

Councillor Craig Browne, deputy leader of Cheshire East Council and chair of its highways and transport committee, added: “While Crewe’s past and present sets it apart, so does its future, with Crewe serving as a key location on the HS2 network and the town even playing a key part in the building of HS2’s fleet of high-speed trains.

“This opportunity alongside our key role in the high-speed rail network will benefit not just people who live in Crewe but people across the area.  

“We look forward to developing a strong bid to bring GBR HQ to Crewe.”

Clare Hayward MBE, Chair of Cheshire and Warrington LEP, said: “We are keen to bring the Great British Railways Headquarters to Crewe and are also ideally placed, with a large existing rail industry in and around Crewe, as well as extensive local supply chains. 

“The GBR headquarters combined with HS2 will provide huge opportunities to drive investment not just in Crewe but across the whole of Cheshire and Warrington. 

“Driving innovation in areas such as net zero is key to growing our economy and this opportunity has the potential to ensure that we are at the forefront of the future of rail for the whole of the country.

“We look forward to working closely with Cheshire East to ensure we create a compelling and ultimately successful bid to secure the GBR headquarters for Crewe.”