OFFICE workers at Monks Cross who are hoping to wet their whistle after work are going to be waiting for a long time - as a bar or restaurant is not planned for the site for over 18 months.

Hundreds of Norwich Union workers have already started work in their new £12 million office building in the new business park, and hundreds more are expected to follow as city centre businesses look for alternative out-of-town premises.

The area is very well served for shops, with the nearby shopping park housing big name stores such as Marks & Spencer, Asda and a host of retail outlets. Access to the ring road and Park&Ride facilities are also a bonus.

But concerns have been raised about the social aspect of hundreds of office workers together on one site without access to a social meeting place.

Gary Withers, chief executive of Norwich Union Life, said: "It is an unusual problem not having a pub on the doorstep, especially as York itself is very well served with them.

"It is one of the important social aspects of work for people who want to pop out of the office for lunch or go out after work with colleagues to either celebrate or just catch up with their friends.

"Pubs are an important part of the community."

Richard Peak, of The Helmsley Group and spokesman for the Monks Cross Partnership, which is running the business park development, said leisure facilities would soon follow on the business park.

He said: "We are hopeful that in six to eight months we will have a planning application ready to submit for a restaurant, pub, hotel operation which is similar to what we did at Clifton.

"Then other facilities such as a children's nursery will follow.

"First we need to get the critical mass that makes it an attractive offer to the leisure operators. We have started to do that and I would hope that by the end of next year all the details will be finalised."

Mr Peak said companies such as Whitbread would be very interested in operating from the site.

Updated: 10:55 Tuesday, September 23, 2003