BRITAIN'S first green enterprise business centre is being developed in York - as the city leads the way in eco-friendly workplaces.

Construction on the £3 million business centre has begun at Clifton Moor Business Park - which will offer low, subsidised rents and energy efficient accommodation to 60 businesses starting up.

Property company The Helmsley Group, with City of York Council and Ilchester Estates, have developed the business centre as an environmentally-friendly enterprise which will use green technologies and recycled building materials wherever possible.

City of York Council will let the property to provide space for the Young Business Project which helps and mentors York's young entrepreneurs and new business start ups.

Ian McAndrew, associate director at York-based The Helmsley Group, said: "This eco-friendly building is the first enterprise centre to be built in the UK by the private sector for the public sector, as far as we are aware. It is a fantastic example of how we believe buildings in the future will be developed.

"This is a first for York and the city is leading the way in environmentally- friendly construction. We are receiving interest from other local authorities, economic development units, inward investors and further education providers from throughout the UK."

Designed by York-based DSP Architects and being built by Lotus Construction Ltd, the building will use ground source heat pumps providing occupiers with "free heat" using energy from the earth to heat and cool the building, a wind turbine generating energy for communal areas, water saving devices, a green roof, lighting saving controls linked to daylight levels and rainwater harvesting for use within the building.

Council leader Steve Galloway said: "I am delighted that residents will now be able to see tangible progress on a building which will not only provide high-quality development space for our starter businesses, but will also do so in an environmentally friendly way.

"Design features incorporated into this building will be exemplars of design in the future, complementing the lead given by the council's own Eco Depot last year. We are very pleased with the direction that The Helmsley Group is giving on sustainability design features."