PENARTH town centre could be rebranded as a “cultural and artistic hub” as part of a new town centre framework.

The Vale Council Cabinet recommended yesterday, February 24, that a town centre framework, which was designed by the consultants Nathaniel Litchfield and Partners (NLP), be adopted to provide a vision for Penarth town centre for the next five to 10 years.

The consultants, who also created frameworks for Barry, Llantwit Major and Cowbridge town centres, aim to “understand generic needs of the four town centres and to identify issues specific to each centre.”

The four main areas of the town centre framework for Penarth outlined in the report were:

“Imagine Penarth - Creating one brand for the town.

“Fostering connections - Exploiting Penarth's unique surroundings and other attractions to capture benefits for the centre by encouraging internal and sustainable connections.

“Widening Penarth's offer - Diversifying Penarth's daytime and night time offer so that it caters for visitors and supports the brand.

“Building upon the centre's heritage - Building upon Penarth's unique qualities stemming from its role as a historic seaside resort.”

Penarth Town Council has recently launched its own Town Plan, orchestrated by the consultants White Design, and encouraged local residents to submit their ideas about how the area could be improved. During that consultation period more than 200 people voted on issues including transport and tourism.

The Town Centre Framework also added that transport could be improved to boost tourism in the area: “A shuttle service with a simple fare and timetable between the Esplanade, Marina and the Town Centre may well be an effective mechanism for increasing footfall in the Town Centre”.

The Framework was created by a number of events, including a workshop evening attended by around 10 people, including councillors, Penarth History Society, Penarth Town Council and traders, a Citizen’s Panel Questionnaire with around 145 responses relating to Penarth, and meetings with various other local representatives.