Aylesbury Town Centre Partnership, the consortium that aims to grow, support and enhance business prosperity in the town, has recently invited a new member - The Junction, the company that owns and operates Cambridge Close retail park in Aylesbury.

The partnership is made up of town centre stakeholders including retailers, District and County Councils, management from the two shopping centres, and Town Centre Management, who discuss developments, prepare events to increase footfall and profile and share information to safeguard the future success of the town centre.

Lois Williams, Responsible Business Manager at The Junction explains: “We were delighted to be invited to join the Town Centre Partnership. It is imperative that businesses who invest in and operate from the town centre work together to ensure the ongoing success of the town as both a centre for its residents and an attractive destination for visitors. We hope that inclusion within this partnership will allow us to take an even more active role in Aylesbury life.”

The Junction will donate £3,000 on an annual basis in order to be involved with the Town Centre Partnership; funds which will support town-centre events and activities. Since joining the partnership, The Junction has sponsored flower-filled hangiing baskets to support Aylesbury in Bloom. Lining the frontage at Cambridge Street, the baskets are consistent with those hung in the town centre and provide a bright and colourful display for the public’s pleasure.

Lois Williams adds: “The Junction endeavours to work within the community, building bonds with residents and local businesses and supporting local initiatives. The Town Centre Partnership membership is another step in this ongoing process and we look forward to working with other businesses in promoting and supporting Aylesbury and all it has to offer.”

A new project being launched in the Bonymaen area is seeking to engage young people with technology and music. Following an enourmously successful pilot of the project, music@bonymaen is being launched thanks to a generous £5,500 donation from The Junction, the company that owns and operates the neighbouring Morfa Shopping Park. The funds will allow the government initiative to run for six months, employing a music tutor to teach more than 50 people the art of writing songs, producing digital recordings and making movies.

Members of the older community are also being invited to get involved in the scheme and it is hoped that the polar age groups will engage creatively with one another, build bonds, banish negative sentiment and gain confidence skills.

The Junction’s Morfa Retail Park POD will be hosting an introductory launch of the music@bonymaen project between 11am and 5pm on Wednesday, 16th July. Tele-visual installations and demonstrations of the music-creation software will allow the public to get a taster of the scheme. The team will be on hand to answer questions and those who benefited from the pilot of the scheme will also attend to provide an insight into the project and to showcase their musical creations.

Lois Williams, Responsible Business Manager at The Junction, comments: “The quality of the works produced in the first project and the enthusiasm and engagement levels of the young people was impressive. This music project is a valuable and powerful tool that provides Bonymaen’s residents with creative and technical skills as well as a better understanding of one another. We are delighted that we are able to offer our support so the project can continue.”

Shaz Abedean, Co-ordinator of Bonymaen Communities First Partnership, comments: “We are really looking forward to the project beginning on 21st July. The Junction’s support is greatly appreciated and we look forward to introducing our project at their Morfa Retail Park this Wednesday, 16th July; we welcome members of the public to visit us there to see the value and relevance of this initiative for the area.”

The project is a partnership between The Junction Morfa Shopping Park, Bonymaen Community Events Group, Bonymaen Achievers (a local youth forum), City and County of Swansea Community Regeneration Unit and Youth Service and Bonymaen Communities First Partnership. If you would like to find out more about the project please call the Bonymaen Communities First office on 01792 464 751.