A prominent industrial complex in Gateshead that for decades produced banknotes and passports is being offered for sale, signalling a further stage in the long wind‑down of operations on the Team Valley estate.
Background to the closure
The site on Kingsway South was until recently part of De La Rue's manufacturing network and provided a number of skilled roles in printing, engineering and quality control. Over a number of years the workforce was reduced step by step as banknote and passport activity was removed from Gateshead.
| Year | Notable staffing or operational change |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Around 170 posts were cut when a foreign currency printing line closed |
| Mid‑2020 | Unions warned that more than 250 roles were at risk as key operations faced closure |
| 2020/21 | Passport operations at Team Valley were stopped in the first half of the financial year |
| Following restructuring | About 85 roles remained at the site after closures |
What is being marketed
Agents are now advertising the former factory as a vacant complex available with immediate possession. The accommodation includes workshop and production space, first‑floor offices and external storage. The site also offers parking for roughly 250 cars and sits at the southern entrance to Team Valley, close to junction 67 of the A1.
"the premier industrial location in the North East"
Local context and potential consequences
The sale confirms a transfer in the site's role within the local economy from active high‑security manufacturing to a vacant asset. For Gateshead, the closure and subsequent disposal of the complex carries several practical implications:
- Loss of specialist local jobs in currency and document production that were once concentrated at Team Valley;
- Opportunity for redevelopment or new occupants, given the estate's size and transport links, which could reshape the use of the plot;
- Questions about how quickly any new investment could restore employment levels and the skill base previously associated with the site.
Where things stand now
De La Rue's own updates in recent years indicated that most activity at the Gateshead site had ceased and remaining equipment and functions were being moved to other locations "as soon as practicable." The current marketing of the Kingsway South complex therefore follows the company's earlier statements that the site would be scaled back and that functions would be relocated.
For residents and workers in Gateshead, the sale is the next visible development in a process that has reduced the site's footprint from a significant employer to a vacant industrial plot. How quickly a purchaser is found and what plans are put forward will determine whether the change represents the end of an industrial chapter or the start of a new phase for Team Valley.
