Preston: Right Time, Right Place Breakfast

Preston is a city with huge potential and is fast becoming the hottest ticket in the North West for regeneration and investment.

Business Insider alongside Invest Preston, Maple Grove Developments and Preston Partnership is hosting a special Preston Breakfast event to showcase why Preston is an exciting place to live and work and explore the opportunities for investors and businesses to become part of the success story.

About the Preston Breakfast event

• Date - Friday 15 September 2023
• Location - UCLan's Engineering and Innovation Centre
• Cost - free

Join us in the city centre to hear some great speakers provide an update on key schemes in the city's regeneration.

The panel of speakers will provide an update on some fantastic major developments such as:

• £200 million Harris Quarter Regeneration Programme, supported by £20.9 million of Towns Funding
• £45 million Animate Entertainment and Leisure complex
• £16 million refurbishment of the Harris Museum and Art Gallery
• Plans are also progressing for the £7.4 million transformation of Grade II listed Amounderness House into a managed work/office space hub, while Preston's residential offering is going through a transformation with a City Living Strategy that presents a huge opportunity for developers

Spotlight on Harris Quarter Towns Fund Investment

Driven primarily through the £200 million Harris Quarter Towns Fund Investment Programme, kickstarted by £20.9 million of Towns Fund investment, to support the following regeneration projects:

• Animate Entertainment and Leisure Complex- £45 million cinema, bowling alley, restaurants and public open spaces
• Harris Your Place - £16 million refurbishment of the Grade 1 Harris Museum and Art Gallery - one of the most ambitious cultural projects in the North
• Renewal of Harris Quarter Assets- supporting the redevelopment of publicly-owned buildings including the refurbishment of the historic Amounderness House into a managed work/office space hub
• Illuminate and Integrate- improving pedestrian and cycleway infrastructure, plus street lighting
• Preston Youth Zone - a multi-million pound new facility for Preston's young people.
• Educate Preston - support hub for schools/colleges providing career advice services
• Harris Quarter Pop-Ups Programme - £1 million investment in events, installations and visitor attractions - including the popular iconic Wallace and Gromit sculpture

Learn about more key projects and milestones

Our expert panel will reveal more about our current and future projects helping to shape our city and why Preston is consistently the best place to live and work in the North West according to the PWC 2023 Good Growth for Cities index.

Adrian Phillips, Chief Executive, Preston City Council

Adrian Phillips will outline the vision for the future of Preston and highlight the key projects and milestones in the regeneration of the city.

Sandy Livingstone, Executive Director of Property, Onward Homes

Housing association Onward Homes owns 35,000 homes across the North West, with major projects upcoming in Preston such as the transformation of Horrocks Mill into 380 homes.

John Chesworth, Chair, Preston Partnership

Preston Partnership works closely with Preston City Council to help inform and shape regeneration and placemaking strategy. A sub-committee of Preston Partnership - the Towns Fund Board - secured a £20.9 million Town Deal which will kickstart the Harris Quarter regeneration.

Karen Hirst, Managing Director, Maple Grove

Preston-based property developer Maple Grove, the city council's development partner, is delivering the £45 million Animate leisure scheme and the £7.4 million transformation of Amounderness House.

Andy Walmsley, Founder and Creative Director, Wash Studio

As the founder of the successful Preston-based creative studio, Wash Studio, Walmsley will share why Preston is a great place to set up and grow a business.

Guy Topping, Chair, Preston Youth Zone

National youth charity OnSide has secured £6 million to deliver the Preston Youth Zone. Topping will share details of the upcoming scheme, which has just been granted planning permission.

Claire Lowe, Regional Projects Lead, University of Central Lancashire

An active partner in Preston's regeneration, UCLan has been heavily involved in the Station Quarter Regeneration Framework. The university has also just finished a transformational £200 million masterplan, which includes the award winning Student Centre and University Square, and Engineering Centre.

Event programme

• 8:45am - Registration
• 9:15am - Panel Starts
• 10:30am - Approximate end

How to book

For more information and how to book visit Inside Media - Preston: Right Place, Right Time Breakfast.

Find out more about key city projects and developments

For more information about our projects and developments see Key projects, strategies and plans.