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Fireworks and Champagne mark official opening of Fusion Contact Centre in Peterlee

Immediate release: 19 November 2007

Insurance giant Fusion Contact Centre Services has celebrated the official opening of its new contact centre in Peterlee.  Fusion is part of the BGL Group, one of the UK's leading personal lines insurance intermediaries, and handles customer calls concerning motor and home insurance for various well-known brands.

The opening comes hot on the heels of the Coventry Fusion operation relocating into new premises earlier this month. A host of local dignitaries, business leaders and members of the Fusion team were invited to a VIP reception and tour of the new site at the Bracken Hill Business Park in Peterlee. BGL Group Chief Executive Peter Winslow performed the official opening and unveiled a commemorative plaque on site to mark the occasion. Guests were treated to lunch in the new on-site restaurant afterwards. 

The Peterlee contact centre began trading in March this year after a rapid turnaround following the closure of a mobile phone contact centre in the same building. It is expected up to 600 new jobs will be created within Fusion Peterlee, which will  be phased over the next three years.

Following the VIP visit, Fusion's Managing Director David Thompson invited all employees to enjoy a complimentary lunch followed by fun and games which included a giant six-lane Scalextrix and racing car arcade games. The employee event was rounded off with a spectacular firework display based on the colours featured in the Fusion logo.

The expansion follows phenomenal business growth for the BGL Group, bringing the total number of jobs created in the North East to date to 900. Fusion has an existing site on Hylton Riverside in Sunderland where it employs 350 people. The success of the Sunderland operation was a major factor in the decision to open a second site in the region.

With more than two million customers the BGL Group has experienced significant year-on-year growth in the insurance market, particularly in the affinity area of the business, which provides sales and customer support for insurance customers of major high street names, including Post Office, M&S Money, the Bradford & Bingley and Debenhams. Fusion Contact Centres provide call handling for these brands as well as BUDGET insurance, ibuyeco and Bennetts motorcycle insurance.

BGL Group Chief Executive, Peter Winslow said, "The opening of a new contact centre in Peterlee is not just fantastic news for Fusion and the BGL Group, It also means great career opportunities for people locally. Many managers throughout the Group started out in our contact centres and their all-encompassing understanding of the business is invaluable, I'm sure Peterlee is harbouring some future stars for our business. Fusion has already seen huge success at its existing site in Sunderland, and as a result we were keen to invest further in the North East  I'm very confident that both Peterlee and Sunderland will play a central role in enabling us to achieve our ambitious future plans."

Dignitaries on the day included representatives from Durham County Council, the County Durham Development Company and City Business Investment. All these organisations were involved in the development of Fusion's Peterlee site as part of their remit to facilitate ongoing regeneration in the North East.