PEOPLE left jobless following the closure of Headland Foods could be offered a quick route back into work.

Recycling company CRT is vowing to create up to 20 new jobs if it receives planning permission for a new development on the Antelope Industrial Estate, Rhydymwyn.

The news comes in the wake of an announcement confirming 318 jobs are to be lost at Headland Foods plant in Flint, which will close in April. And managing director Carl Krüger insists opportunities will exist for staff laid off from Headland.

He said: “Once we have planning permission we will be interviewing and hope that people such as those made redundant from Headland Foods will have a great opportunity for furthering their careers.”

The company is already based at unit eight on the industrial estate, but is planning to expand into unit six with its work to include manually dismantling unwanted televisions and converting them into base materials.

They plan to work alongside the charity Refurbs Flintshire, which provides work refurbishing old electrical appliances, job training and placements with a view to developing more job opportunities in the county.

He added: “Currently there are no facilities in Flintshire for the recycling of old electrical appliances and we want to provide local solutions to local problems.”

Cheryl Nance, general manager of Refurbs, has expressed support for the initiative.

She said: “We welcome the potential development which will create additional opportunities for Refurbs Flintshire to have access to redundant electrical goods which we can refurbish and provide at affordable cost back into the local community, helping the environment and potentially providing low cost appliances.”

The proposal will go before Flintshire’s planning committee in the spring.