Plans to create a new car showroom at Lillyhall Industrial Estate have been submitted to Allerdale Borough Council.

In promising news for the local economy, the planning documents not only outline the retention of existing jobs but, crucially, state plans for the employment of more people.

The development, which is set to be built adjacent to the existing building that houses the SEAT car showroom is expected to create an estimated five new jobs adding to the current workforce of 20.

The dealership is owned by B & H Motors, which has been based at Unit 3 of the Lillyhall Industrial estate for about three years.

The Seat dealership, which previously operated out of rented premises in nearby Whitehaven, has been in business for more than 50 years and won Seat Dealer of the Year in 2007, 2008 and 2012.

The existing site in Lillyhall is three times larger than the previous dealership and can carry three times more used-car stock. It opened in 2017.

The new site will cover an area of about 1,000 square meters.

Owner Geoff Moore confirmed that the plans are in line with the growth of SEAT in recent times.

“It’s an expansion. The manufacturer is expanding, we need more space for new models and so we are going with it. It’s exciting for us as we still feel, despite the challenges of the past year, that we are still moving forward.

“We need more space. You have to always try and grow and since we moved to Lillyhall, the business has expanded ever year since 2016.”

Mr Moore stated his hope for a boom in trade once lockdown measures are finally reduced.

“We’ve been through it for a year now and no one’s lost their jobs here. We’ve kept our workshop open and we’re keeping people on a rota. We had a bit of a boom in June last year when things opened up more so.

“We’re building up our stock for this coming April as we’re hoping there will be a further boom them. We do think that, when the time comes for lockdown measures to be reduced, that people will be looking to treat themselves and so I’m feeling positive for the future of the business.”