Bolton council is celebrating the seventh anniversary of the Economic Development Zone (EDZ), which has transformed 25 hectares of industrial land, creating 4,000 full-time jobs in the process.

The Bolton EDZ was established in 2001 when £9.6 million was made available by the European Regional Development Fund.

More than £213 million of private and public sector investment has now been ploughed into the western part of the Greater Manchester borough.

The creation of the zone has seen Bolton's business services sector grow by 185 per cent since 2001 thanks in part to the arrival of Royal Bank of Scotland and AXA.

Councillor Akhtar Zaman, Bolton council's executive member for regeneration, said the zone "has made a real difference in narrowing the gap between the most and least well off by increasing employment opportunities".

According to the Northwest Regional Development Agency, the EDZ provides an "enhanced environment" for investment and job creation along the M61 in Bolton.