ONE of Eastleigh's prime industrial sites has been sold in a multi-million-pound deal which will create a state-of-the-art car dealership and workshop for the motor giant Hendy Group.

After months of speculation, Manor Bakeries Limited has revealed that it has exchanged contracts for its 6.5-acre site with a consortium made up of Ringwood-based Dean & Dyball Developments Limited and the Hendy Group.

The deal will sever Hendy's long association with Chandler's Ford and could free up its Bournemouth Road site for housing.

It also dispels the question mark that has hung over the Leigh Road site since Manor Bakeries dropped the bombshell news that it was to close its Mr Kipling factory, with the loss of 423 jobs.

The cake-makers, whose name is synonymous with Eastleigh, are due to pull out at the end of the year, with Hendy likely to move in in 2007.

It is hoped that the new plans for the site will trigger a jobs bonanza, for the new owners will be seeking planning permission to develop a "mixed use" scheme, offering a wide range of job opportunities.

As well as a state-of-the-art dealership and workshop fronting Leigh Road, there will be an estate of industrial units.

By agreement with the new owners, Manor Bakeries will continue to occupy the site until April 30, 2006. However, it is intended that the manufacturing operations will have ceased by then.

Manor Bakeries' managing director, Gary Saunders, said: "This is a deal that enables a smooth transfer of ownership and fits the guidance we were given by the local authority about the desired future use of the site.

"We understand that a range of new employment opportunities will be created by the proposed developments.

"Over the next 12 months Manor Bakeries will continue to provide assistance to our employees as we scale down our operations."

Paul Hendy, group managing director of the Hendy Group, said: "We are delighted to have been able to secure the Manor Bakeries site, although our plans are still very much in the early stages of development.

"We do not anticipate opening our new facilities until 2007. We remain committed to continuing our investment in facilities and in offering valuable employment in the region, together with unrivalled levels of service to our customers."