Newbury: ‘The potential is huge’

Continued from front page He added: “It is a beautiful market town and it has retained so much of what has made it.

“It has still got all of that.

“It also has lovely Market Square, which is perfect for outdoor dining and it hasn’t been spoilt in any way.

“It has got some fantastic architecture – all the little side streets are brilliant and really interesting.

“It has got surprises and any town that has got surprises is a town that should thrive.

“It has a train station a short distance from the town which you don’t have in a lot of places.

“You’ve got the waterway, the park, independent retailers – you’ve got a lot of things that a lot of towns would give their right arm for.

“Newbury is in a very good position.

“It has not shot itself in the foot like some other areas have done.

“The potential is huge.” Council leader Lynne Doherty said: “We’re really excited to be partnering with the HemingwayDesign-led team on this key strategic project.

“When we first decided to bring a partner on board to plan for Newbury’s future, we couldn’t have imagined that we’d be doing so in the midst of a pandemic.

“It’s clear that Covid has accelerated some of the changes we were already seeing on high streets across the country and we feel that now is precisely the right time to consider how we can sustain the vibrancy of our largest town.

“Newbury has a lot to offer already with its mix of green spaces, independent shops and strong cultural heritage.

“We want to build on this even further, ensuring that the town continues to be a great place to live and work and developing a plan of which the whole community can be proud.”

If you would like to have your say over the future of the town centre, complete the survey at www.newburytowncentremasterplan.co.uk

It will be open until 11.59pm on Sunday, January 17.

The team will then review the feedback, report back and outline the next steps in the process.