Project Taunton Celebrates National Regeneration Award
Project Taunton, the regeneration of Taunton's town centre, was last night awarded one of the country's highest accolades for excellence in regeneration. At the British Urban Regeneration Association (BURA) Best Practice Awards ceremony, Project Taunton celebrated success in the Strategy and Masterplanning category of the Waterways Renaissance Awards, coming second out of four national finalists.
Presented by TV personality John Craven at a prestigious ceremony at the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester, the awards are well respected for their rigorous and independent assessment process. Fighting off stiff competition from regeneration schemes across the UK, Project Taunton was identified as making a positive contribution to the area's economic regeneration, acting as a catalyst for wider regeneration and creating a self-sustaining momentum with long term benefits for the local community.
Collecting the award on behalf of Project Taunton was project coordinator, Robbie Lowes. Talking about what the award means for Taunton, she said: "This is a marvellous boost for Project Taunton and the town; it amounts to a seal of approval for the town centre regeneration and offers people living and working in Taunton proof that the regeneration will not only be of the very best quality but innovative and thoroughly sustainable."
Recognised as a key social and economic development for the region, Project Taunton is promoted and supported by Taunton Deane Borough Council, the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA), Somerset County Council and the Environment Agency.
Carl Budden, Head of Operations for the South West RDA in Somerset, said: "Project Taunton is pivotal, not only to the future growth and development of Taunton itself, but to Somerset as a whole. We are delighted it has achieved national recognition."
"The Environment Agency is very pleased to be a partner in the delivery of Project Taunton. All the partners have worked closely and with a lot of commitment to achieving a successful outcome for Taunton. It is nice to see national recognition of the results of all this hard work," said Nick Gupta, Wessex Area Manager for the Environment Agency.
The BURA Awards are a celebration of imagination, innovation, inspiration and determination. Established in 1992, the awards are sponsored by English Partnerships, Scottish Enterprise, the Welsh Assembly Government and the Department for Social Development Northern Ireland.
To find out more about Project Taunton please contact Robbie Lowes on 01823 250 837, visit www.projecttaunton.co.uk or email robbie.lowes@projecttaunton.co.uk.
