Norton Motorcycles has announced that it will manufacture its new V4 SS and V4 RR models in Derby, after securing £3 million in funding from Santander.

This investment will see the historic motorcycle manufacturer create 40 jobs in Derby and safeguard many more.

Chief executive Stuart Garner brought Norton back into production with a range of bikes in 2010, and Santander has funded the company ever since.

Based at Donington Hall, Norton currently manufactures around 500 bikes a year, based on models from its 961 Commando range; these are exported world-wide.

Mr Garner said: “Santander has been able to provide an incredibly flexible suite of banking facilities that fully suits our needs.

“Having developed and pre-sold a huge number of bikes, we needed the funding to be readily available to pay for tooling, stock and people, to allow production to move from 40 per month to over 130 with effect from summer 2017.”

All of Norton’s bikes are hand-built, using traditional techniques combined with cutting-edge technology. Over the last 18 months, the company has developed an all-new 200bhp 1200cc V4 engine and chassis to form the basis of the new Norton V4 SS and V4 RR models.

The firm is also planning to build a lightweight 650cc bike for 2017/2018. All 200 of the limited-edition V4 SS bikes have been pre-sold, as have over 250 of the V4 RR bikes. Production is due to commence this summer.

Steve Young, relationship director at Santander Corporate & Commercial, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be able to support the continued success of this iconic UK manufacturing brand.

“Norton is producing world-class bikes for a global customer base and stands as a great testament to the quality and renaissance of the UK manufacturing sector.”