Defining the way forward for the future of Maidenhead town centre

Maidenhead Town Centre has been identified within the emerging Borough Local Plan as a location to accommodate future growth and new development as a part of a wider spatial strategy for the area.

The council appointed JTP in 2019 to engage with stakeholders and the wider community to co-create the charter. The initial community workshops in late 2019 formed the starting point for the document with events taking place in the town centre and surrounding neighbourhoods to reach a wider population. The Community Planning Day included dialogue workshops, walkabouts and hand-on planning sessions, which helped to develop an in-depth understanding of the town’s needs and wants.

The key outcomes of the community engagement process have been used to describe, illustrate and develop the place RBWM, communities and partners wish to create, ultimately informing the creation of Charter Themes for the Maidenhead Vision.

The Vision Charter is an exciting aspiration for the future that aligns with people’s expectations and supports the delivery of a healthy, equitable and attractive town centre – one which will have a rich, balanced mix of uses, to support a vibrant day and evening economy and promote a collaborative community. It will also help guide a number of other future areas of work, including the future transport and parking strategies and public realm design standards.

The local community’s ambitions for the future of Maidenhead town centre are set out in 12 charter points which are signed by key stakeholders and future developers who will commit to contributing to the delivery of the overall vision.

A Maidenhead Town Team has been established to review, monitor and assess projects that come forward to ascertain whether they meet the Maidenhead Vision Charter’s key points. It is made up of eight individuals, including two local councillors, one executive director from the council, and five independent members. The council will be responsible for appointing the members of the group. The chair will be independent, and not be a councillor or an officer of the council. The team will have representations from a wide selection of groups, making it as inclusive as possible. It will co-ordinate with other key stakeholders and community groups and will seek to review and influence decision-making where possible.