AS one chapter closes, another is set to open at one of York's most vibrant office development sites.

The North East England Regional Office of Girlguiding UK, the country's largest voluntary organisation for girls and young women with 600,000 members, has set up its new headquarters at Alpha, the offices developed by the Monks Cross Partnership - in which local development company the Helmsley Group is a major participant - at the Monks Cross North business park, in Huntington.

Girlguiding North East England, which provides organisational back-up for Rainbows, Brownies and Guides in the region, has acquired 2,500sq ft of ground floor office space at the new business park.

The move completes the Alpha Project, whose seven offices have now been either sold or let.

The next phase at the £60 million business park is the £1.7 million Omega development of six offices, which completely sold off-plan last summer, before a brick had been laid.

The Helmsley Group itself, which is based in Pocklington, is among those businesses that will be moving to the scheme, once it is completed in July.

Jo Taylor, chief commissioner at Girlguiding North East England, said: "Girlguiding is approaching its 100th anniversary in 2010, but has always been a very modern, forward- thinking organisation.

"Our regional office, which manages the administrative and training functions that support our adult volunteers, needs premises that are modern, spacious and easily accessible.

"The accommodation at Monks Cross North meets all our requirements."

Girlguiding North East England, which employs seven staff and supports 60,000 members in the region, was previously located in a three-storey converted house at Heworth Green, in York, a property which was built in the mid-1800s.

As previously reported in The Press, the Heworth Green property has been bought from Girlguiding North East England for more than £400,000 by The Morrice Partnership Ltd, the expanding communications and design consultancy.

Updated: 09:53 Tuesday, May 09, 2006