(Left to right: Kevin Duffy - Centre Director, centre:mk, Cllr Pete Marland - Leader of MK City Council, Ed Sellick - Director of Investment Management, Federated Hermes and Sophie Lloyd - Strategic Lead, Economy and Policy, MK City Council)
Milton Keynes City Council and centre:mk have entered into the UK’s first formal council / retail partnership to create an even more welcoming and appealing city centre.
As part of the City Council’s wider work to support households and businesses, create local jobs across the whole city, it has signed an agreement called a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ (MoU) with centre:mk – the first of its kind between a local authority and a major shopping centre. It sets out how the council and centre will work together to:
- Provide greater support to cultural, community and entrepreneurial groups
- Create livelier vibrant public spaces in and around centre:mk
- Secure better integrated future transport links within Milton Keynes
The City Council and centre:mk are particularly keen to create and improve community spaces and are in early discussions about a number of areas that welcome visitors into the centre.
centre:mk is a key part of the city centre’s offer with over 21 million footfall every year and ranks among the top ten national retail and leisure destinations in the UK.
“We’re fortunate to have one of the UK’s best shopping offers in the heart of our city. Milton Keynes has a significant draw across the wider region and beyond, and it’s important that we capitalise on these opportunities and keep our city centre feeling fresh and interesting for visitors and residents alike. This partnership signals our wider ambitions for the city centre and will bring knock-on benefits far beyond high street retail, such as continuing to attract major investment in Milton Keynes, maintaining local jobs and connecting community groups to the public.”
“Since inception our ambition for centre:mk has been to go beyond the normal experience of a retail environment, creating a meaningful, vibrant and worthwhile city centre. At the heart of one of the fastest growing economies in the UK we believe that we can play a major role in attracting and showcasing initiatives that are unexpected and rarely experienced within traditional city centres. We are confident this initiative will help support that ambition.”