Aims for the town's future set out in Vision refresh
The vision is a document which sets out the long-term aims for the town and has previously been highly focused on retail.
Schemes such as Parkway, the pedestrianisation of Northbrook Street and the opening of a cinema were implemented under the 2003 vision, which also earmarked developments at the racecourse and Sandleford Park and the revamp of Market Street.
The chief executive of West Berkshire Council, Nick Carter, said the refresh was moving “beyond retail” and would focus more heavily on the residential aspects of the town.
“Newbury seems to have built itself a good stage [but] it doesn’t always have the actors to play on it,” he said. “We need to get people into the town, we have a strong base from which to launch the new vision.
“We are going to have significant housing and population growth over the next decade, that can only be a good thing for Newbury town centre and the surrounding area.”
The vision will run until 2026, one year later than initially proposed, so that it comes to completion at the same time as the council’s local plan and core strategy, a planning document which outlines proposals to build at least 10,500 new homes in the district.
The arts and leisure manager for West Berkshire Council, Chris Jones, said the refreshed vision would focus on encouraging young adults to stay in Newbury, following an ongoing loss of young people leaving the town to live, study and work, address empty office space and broaden the recreation and leisure facilities on offer to promote Newbury as a sporting venue.
Another priority was for improvements to transport, including upgrading the rail station and implementing a car club.
He added that the vision would also seek to actively promote Newbury as a weekend venue as well as encouraging more day visitors.
Mr Jones said: “In looking to make Newbury a place of vitality, we need to promote diversity and choice and through the consultation process keep up the same energy and drive that has been shown in delivering achievements to date.
“The heart of a successful town beats with a strong local economy - one of the main things is to create a more vibrant town centre, a place of retail, culture and business, so we reduce the amount of expenditure leaving the town centre to keep local spend within our economy.
“The refreshed vision maintains a sense of continuity... to give Newbury an identity, a function and an economic purpose.”
The public consultation will run until October 25.
For more information or to respond visit www.westberks.gov.uk/NewburyVision2026