Aylesbury Council Arts Development Officers worked with representatives from Town Centre Management (TCM) on a wide range of projects across different art forms in the town designed to support the growth of the local economy and promote the town centre. Both parties aim to enhance the built environment and bring people into the town centre, raising the profile of Aylesbury.

There is a strong track record of collaboration between TCM and the Arts and Entertainment section of Aylesbury Council. Aylesbury TCM has an annual budget for events and publicity and the council provides funding for arts projects and raises money from other sources including Arts Council England.

The type of events that the two partners have enabled include:

• A summer street festival with world music
• The annual Roald Dahl Festival, including a showcase of work created in local schools, in a grand parade through the town centre
• Public art created by professional artists commissioned for the regeneration of Kingsbury Square
• A Tudor fair and family fun days

The arts projects have been very successful; the TCM measures footfall in the retail centres which increased by an estimated 10,000 people on Festival days.

Following the success of these events, other projects are now in the pipeline. These include; a new theatre in the town centre to boost local regeneration and more arts and crafts based events with the help of a professional crafts market organiser.

Pictures:
Parade of schools included in the Roald Dahl Festival through town centre. Courtesy of Chris Harper.