A groundbreaking ceremony in County Durham has marked the start of a £5 million project to build one of the North East’s largest conference centres.

Yorkshire-based York House Construction is building the 30,000 sq ft conference centre on behalf of Xcel Holdings, on the Newton Aycliffe Industrial Park. The development signifies substantial further investment and regeneration into the area and once complete will provide 40 jobs.

The Xcel conference centre will provide a 107 sq ft auditorium with a moveable stage, state-of-the-art sound and lighting and a capacity of up to 1200. The auditorium will be used for large corporate events, exhibitions, conferences and concerts. The scheme also includes, an exhibition hall with the capacity to seat up to 250 as well as several seminar rooms which will house the latest conference technology.

Other amenities at the Centre include a full service daycare facility for children up to 11 years and a Gloria Jeans Coffee Shop.

The building will incorporate a number of environmentally sustainable features including natural ventilation and ground source heating as well as low energy and sensor controlled lighting being used throughout.

York House Construction is on site with the project that is scheduled to complete August 2009.

The ceremony was attended by Councillor Neil Foster, cabinet member for economic regeneration, Stewart Watkins, managing director of County Durham Development Company and Phil Wilson MP for Sedgefield.

Kerina Clark, Manager for the Xcel Centre comments: “It's exciting to see the start of the construction phase. This new building will provide the region with a first class facility and I'm now looking forward to welcoming both corporate and personal clients to an outstanding venue and a great customer service experience”

Andy Bruce, managing director of York House Construction said: “This is going to be an immensely rewarding project. It is a complex build which will offer some fantastic facilities. I look forward to the handover next summer when the conference centre will start to play an integral role in the further regeneration of the North East.”

The development can be followed on the Centre’s own website www.xcelcentre.co.uk and blog www.xcellife.co.uk

Email: amy.c@watersidecomms.com