Almost £3 million has been invested in the regeneration of a former industrial site in north Birmingham by the new West Midlands Combined Authority.

Its Combined Investment Fund (CIF) has provided £2.9m of loan funding to Barberry Developments to assist with the £5.5 million speculative development of the 46,000 sq ft industrial unit on the old Tucker Fastenings site in Walsall Road, Perry Barr.

Barberry has purchased the site, with construction expected to complete later this year which will resulted in the creation of around 75 new jobs.

Coun Izzi Seccombe, the authority's portfolio holder for finance and investments, said: "I am delighted the CIF is able to play a part in bringing this site back into industrial use.

"Projects such as this are why the CIF was established, to help create the right conditions for industry and the jobs that are key to ensuring a prosperous future for the West Midlands."

Tucker Fasteners had been at the Walsall Road site since 1903 where it produced rivets, fasteners and other metal products, as well as building fighter planes during World War II. It closed in 2013.

Barberry director Henry Bellfield said: "This development is well positioned to serve the local population and we expect it to be of interest from occupiers in the e-commerce, urban logistics fulfilment, retail, wholesale, and the trade and manufacturing sectors."

The CIF is a £70 million commercial development war-chest set up by the combined authority earlier this year to stimulate jobs, opportunity and growth.

It is aimed at unlocking a further £1 billion in private sector investment over the next ten years.

It is managed by Finance Birmingham and provides short-term loans to private sector developers to enable them to get schemes off the ground.