Port of Dover can be reached in one
hour fifteen minutes.
There are two main industrial
estates which provide high quality
modern business premises at
affordable prices - High Brooms
Industrial Estate and North Farm
Industrial Estate. Both are ideally
located for easy access to roads and
railways. Paddock Wood has plenty
of office and industrial premises
which already hosts global storage
and distribution companies.
Other settlements of the borough
have a large number of small and
medium sized businesses, including
Cranbrook, Hawkhurst and
Goudhurst. In addition, other rural
areas and villages have superb
quality business units that cater for
a wide variety of business needs.
A beautiful location to
live, work and locate your
business just outside London
Royal Tunbridge Wells is one of the
most fashionable towns in the south
of England, attracting shoppers,
visitors and business people from
across the South East. Its modern,
stylish atmosphere has attracted
a number of businesses to the
town centre. Indeed, new office
space is always available for
businesses to relocate. The town
centre is located within easy access
to some of the most beautiful
countryside in Britain known as
‘The High Weald’. This attractive
area is host to some lovely rural
towns and villages with attractions
for visitor and residents alike. ≥
The town’s reputation as the place to
see and be seen amongst royalty and
the aristocracy over the years makes
the history of Royal Tunbridge Wells
one of the most colourful in England.
Businesses and enterprising people
have followed ever since. In Georgian
times, visitors from London and
elsewhere flocked to ‘The Wells’
to try the purported health giving
Chalybeate spring water. Coffee
houses, lodgings, shops, taverns and
gaming houses soon sprang up in
one continuous line near the Spring,
joined by a covered colonnaded
walkway which later became known
as the Pantiles. This pretty and wellknown
colonnade is still to be seen
today. Full of interesting boutiques
and antiques shops, open-air cafés,
bars and restaurants, the Pantiles
attracts visitors from all over the
UK and Europe.
Located in the lovely
county of Kent – the Garden
of England
The borough of Tunbridge Wells
is located in West Kent on the Kent
and Sussex border and is one of the
most successful, enterprising and
prosperous locations of Kent. Its town
centres including Royal Tunbridge
Wells, Cranbrook, Paddock Wood
and Hawkhurst, have been sought
after areas for enterprise and
business for over 50 years.
Lying 35 miles south of London,
Royal Tunbridge Wells is easily
accessible by both road and rail. The
borough is just one hour from the
capital by road, while the Channel
district
focus
135
Royal Tunbridge Wells has been attracting visitors for over 400
years, ever since the chance discovery of the Chalybeate Spring
by a young nobleman in 1606.
Tunbridge Wells Borough Council
Picture courtesy of Tunbridge Wells Borough Council,
Chris Parker
Hotel du Vin
The Pantiles
district
focus
• To enhance the attractiveness of
the towns and other centres in the
borough as places to work, visit,
shop and establish new and
enhance existing enterprises.
• To support the sustainable
development of the more
rural areas.
Tunbridge Wells Borough Council
works in partnership with Locate in
Kent and the South East Economic
Development Agency (SEEDA) to
attract investment into the borough.
There is a continual effort to
improve and regenerate the borough
of Tunbridge Wells and other towns
to meet the changing economic
needs and the planned growth.
Local villages, historic towns and
rural areas are adapting to high
demand for rural business space
but still retain that Kent character
and attractiveness which
businesses prefer.
Quality premises and
sites for your business
The borough of Tunbridge Wells
hosts a variety of good quality and
well located business premises in
both the towns and rural areas.
The Borough Council’s Local Plan
outlines a number of locations and
sites currently available for economic
development uses. The borough
hosts a number of small business
centres supplying small business
workspace and starter units that
are proving to be extremely popular
and are located in many parts of
the borough including town centres,
industrial estates and on farms.
Contact: Economic Development
& Tourism Team
Tel: 01892 554229
Email:
business@tunbridgewells.gov.uk
www.tunbridgewells.gov.uk
www.visittunbridgewells.com
www.shopintunbridgewells.com
There are numerous hotels and
award winning restaurants in the
town. There is also a wide range of
bars and coffee shops and hundreds
of high quality shops in the town
centre, including two quality
department stores (Fenwick and
Hoopers) and leading high street
retailers. It also hosts a number of
quality and interesting independent
shops for browsing and buying. The
historic Pantiles, one of the oldest
and finest pedestrian shopping areas
in the country, complements the
award-winning Royal Victoria Place,
a large and very popular shopping
mall in the centre of town.
Demography
There are just over 106,000 people
living in the Tunbridge Wells area,
with about 45,000 in Royal Tunbridge
Wells. There is almost full
employment (1% unemployed) and
the workforce is highly skilled. Over
the past few years the area has
experienced economic growth, with
an increase of 3,600 jobs between
1995 and 2006.
The borough of Tunbridge Wells
is also a favourite location for all
types of businesses, both in the
urban and rural areas. This reflects
the entrepreneurial culture of the
borough’s community and its high
level of business start-ups. Key
growth sectors include PR and
marketing, media, business services,
health and education.
Local people are highly educated and
almost one quarter of residents have
attained degree level or equivalent
qualifications, in comparison with
17% for Kent and 22% for the
South East.
The Council has three key economic
objectives for Tunbridge Wells:
• To encourage the continued
development of a wide range
of enterprise in the borough.
Windmill at Cranbrook
North Farm Industrial Estate,
Royal Tunbridge Wells
136
≥ Tunbridge Wells continued...