THREE thousands jobs could be created at the site of a former colliery.

A developer has taken over the former Kellingley Colliery site and is looking at a number of options to bring it back into use.

Four hundred and fifty miners and staff lost their jobs in December last year when the site became the last remaining deep coal mine to cease production.

However, Harworth Group is working with businesses to help them bring ambitious plans to life.

Harworth took over the site when it finally closed in March and has since been supported by a range of consultants to come up with a plan.

The developers hope to have a planning application ready for the site at the end of this year or beginning of 2017, but are remaining tight-lipped on exactly what could be put in place.

The number of jobs created will depend on the type of business which moves in, but the company is confident anything between several hundred and 3,000 new jobs could be created.

Iain Thomson, partnership and communications manager for Harworth Group, said any business moving into the site would benefit from a number of existing features to help them succeed.

He said: “We haven’t marketed the site yet but the key thing about the Kellingley Colliery is that it is connected to rail and canal links, so they don’t have to bring things in from road.

“It has high-powered capabilities and a drainage system and road infrastructure already installed, which will be attractive to potential new occupants.”

Harworth Group has already held two public consultation meetings.

They say they will consider what has been raised at the gatherings when finalising plans for any planning application.

Mr Thomson added: “We are going to take into account what local people have had to say and we will amend our plans as a result.”

Known locally as the Big K, the largest deep pit in Europe was hailed as the new generation of coal mining and could bring up to 900 tonnes an hour to the surface.

It began production in 1965 and 17 miners lost their lives there between it opening and it ceasing production in December 2015.

A memorial dedicated to the 17 was transferred to the National Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield.