WORK on the Soham masterplan is due to begin formally on Tuesday. The first public meeting to discuss the future of the town will be held at East Cambridgeshire District Council s headquarters in Ely. Issues outlined in the first document are the weak

WORK on the Soham masterplan is due to begin formally on Tuesday.

The first public meeting to discuss the future of the town will be held at East Cambridgeshire District Council's headquarters in Ely.

Issues outlined in the first document are the "weakness of the town centre," "static employment market" and "limited community facilities," but councillors and officers want the public's help in providing Soham with a brighter future.

To encourage feedback from local people, there will be an opportunity for the public to attend a 'visioning event' in the autumn, or they can contact Cllr Mark Duckworth, Cllr Derrick Beckett, or Cllr Peter Moakes with their ideas. Rosemary Aitchison will be representing Soham Town Council at the masterplan meetings.

Cllr Moakes said: "We need to put in place, via the Masterplan, the building blocks to help Soham prosper. For too long Soham has been a poor relation to the other market towns in the district but we want this to change."

He added: "Soham is one of the key towns in the district which has huge potential to grow and succeed."

Councillors say there are lessons to learn from the way the Ely Masterplan was developed, so all meetings will be held in public. Private company Cambridgeshire Horizons is also likely to be involved in an advisory role.

The Soham Masterplan process was begun as the Soham Vision by councillors Mark Duckworth and James Palmer in December last year, but the process stalled as the Ely Masterplan came under fire for holding meetings in private and not taking minutes. Some information has already been gathered from a six-month period of 'consensus building' among groups such as Soham Town Forum and Soham Town Council.

Among the ideas floated, were a business park opposite East Fen Common and better linkage between Downfields and the rest of the town.

Consultants will be employed to the tune of £40,000 to produce a masterplan for Soham and for Littleport.

n The Soham Masterplan meeting is at 4.30pm in the Grange, off Egremont Street, Ely, on August 1.