County Task Force in jobs aid bid

Cumbria County Council is sending a High Level Task Force to help try to minimise the effect of the Clarks Springers factory in Kendal, with the loss of 167 jobs. The task force is to meet senior representatives of Clarks International in Kendal on January 31. The two major items on the agenda will be: Firstly, what action can be taken to help the workers who will be made redundant; secondly, how to ensure the maximum economic benefit to the Kendal area by the future use of the site after the Springers factory closes in the summer. 

Councillor Kevan Wilkinson, county councillor with responsibility for economic development, said: 

"The county council's high level task force has been involved previously to try to minimise job cuts and their effect, and that we deeply regret that closure of the factory has now been deemed necessary. "The task force will now be doing its best to provide support for the people who are losing their jobs. "One positive note is that our discussions with Clarks will also focus on the future use of the site, which is a key employment site for the area." 

The task force will be led by representatives of the leader and the chief executive of Cumbria County Council. Also taking part will be Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Collins; the leader and chief executive of South Lakeland District Council or their representatives; representatives of Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency and Cumbria Inward Investment Agency, and senior management of Clarks International. The exact time and place of the meeting in Kendal is to be announced shortly.