Welcome Break, one of the UK’s leading motorway service area operators, has reached a landmark agreement with National Highways and the Department for Transport to extend the leases on eight of its sites by an additional 75 years.
The eight sites are located on land owned by National Highways. Under the new agreement, Welcome Break will continue making substantial investments at each site, which collectively employ around 2,000 people.
The eight sites are Newport Pagnell, Corley on the M6, Woodall on the M1, Birchanger on the M11, Warwick on the M40, Membury on the M4, Keele on the M6 and Leicester Forest East on the M1.
“We are delighted to have concluded this long-term lease agreement with the Department for Transport and National Highways,” said Welcome Break Chief Executive John Diviney.
“With the certainty that this agreement gives us, we can now focus on our plans to enhance the customer experience across these eight locations,” Mr Diviney added. “We will be investing to expand our existing EV charging infrastructure across the Welcome Break network to over 1,000 charging bays by the end of 2026 and also upgrading a range of other facilities. Leicester Forest East for example is our only site without ultra rapid EV charging facilities and this agreement and the clarity that it brings will enable us to energise 32 new chargers at that location very shortly.”
Department for Transport Minister Keir Mather said: “Motorway service areas are key to keeping Britain moving – supporting drivers, boosting local economies, and helping us transition to cleaner transport.
“This landmark agreement with Welcome Break will secure thousands of new jobs, deliver major new investment, and expand EV charging across key sites.
“To deliver our Plan for Change, we’re backing the roads industry, to boost jobs and grow the economy.”
Elliot Shaw, Chief Customer and Strategy Officer at National Highways, commented: “We’re proud to have secured this long-term lease agreement with Welcome Break, enabling us to further enhance these vital services that help drivers rest, recharge, and stay safe.
“This deal shows our continued commitment to managing public assets wisely and making sure they benefit everyone.
“It also paves the way for important upgrades, such as expanded electric vehicle charging, supporting our vision for a cleaner, greener transport network.”
Welcome Break operates 60 service areas and 31 hotels across the UK, employing over 6,000 people. The company is currently undertaking a major capital investment programme in the country.
“We plan to invest about £400 million in our service area business over the next five years through building new facilities and upgrading our existing locations,” Mr Diviney said.
“We’re a long-term investor in the British economy and we see significant potential to add to our existing network of 60 sites and to also upgrade our existing portfolio on a regular basis,” he added. “We have a strong pipeline of new motorway and A road sites across Britain, and we are working to progress those.”
In January, Welcome Break opened a new £55 million state-of-the-art motorway service area just off the M1 at Rotherham. This was followed in July by the launch of a £12 million service area on the A46/A606 at Hickling, south of Nottingham. Together, the two developments have created 250 new jobs.
