Minister for Social Development, Alex Attwood, was guest speaker in Banbridge recently for the official launch of a new strategic vision document setting out the objectives and key priorities for the future development of the town.

Over 50 representatives from the public and private sectors gathered at the Old Town Hall, Banbridge to learn more about the five-year plan for developing Banbridge - the largest town in the fastest growing council area in Northern Ireland.

Banbridge District Council, the main architect behind the 'Banbridge Development Strategy 2010-2015', worked closely with members of Banbridge Community Regeneration Limited and Banbridge Chamber of Commerce and Trade to ensure that the finished document not only represented a road map to further regeneration, but also adequately reflected the town's developmental needs.

Due to funding provided by the developers of Bridgewater Park - Murdock Group - the parameters for public consultations were extensively widened to ensure input from all major stakeholders.

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In presenting a summary of the strategy to the Minister, Council Director of Community and Enterprise, Catriona Regan, said: “The Council is committed to supporting the development of a thriving, enterprising and competitive local economy and revitalising our district’s town centres is central to this. We are confident that this new strategy, like the previous one, will bear fruit and put us on an even keel with neighbouring towns in the face of increased competition.

"The implementation of the strategy will bring increased investment from the private and public sectors and put us in a stronger position to build prosperity, promote creativity and innovation and encourage an entrepreneurial culture, ensuring there is a modern infrastructure in place to support the business sector and local people have the right skills to match employment opportunities"

As well as alluding to the key regeneration projects supported by the Council’s previous strategy, she highlighted the key challenges facing the town such as expanding and exploiting its potential, promoting it to new audiences and markets and supporting business growth and innovation – before identifying the key projects that must be delivered in order to overcome these.

The Minister congratulated the work done by the Council in preparing the strategy and for taking the initiative in creating such a document. He was particularly impressed by the analytical work contained in the document, as well as the careful and systematic links to regional strategies.

(GK/BMcC)