A THRIVING Cumbrian business park has been hailed as one of the best developments of its kind after winning a national award.

Kingmoor Park, Carlisle, earned a coveted award in the Property Management Awards, organised by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, which are recognised as the industry's equivalent of the Oscars.

The business park, a former RAF maintenance unit which has generated more than 1,400 jobs, created a base for 150 businesses and let more than one million sq ft of office and industrial space, was identified as one of the best examples of a public/private sector partnership in the country. Kingmoor Park Properties is headed by businessman Brian Scowcroft, who lives in the Winster valley. The business park's joint partners include Carlisle City Council. Cumbria County Council, English Partnerships and Northwest Development Agency.