Organisers of the Brookside Business Expo hope tomorrow’s (Saturday Oct 26) exhibition to be held at Brookside Community Centre from 11am to 4pm will give the public a renewed sense of community and belonging.

Businesses in the area are already realising the advantages of the public exhibition by signing up to take part.

Pritpal Sandhu, owner of Brookside supermarket and the Codfather, also in Brookside said he was looking forward to “meeting other businesses and to working together”.

“I am looking forward to the growth of Brookside and seeing people come back into Brookside to use the new shops and community centre.

“We want to make Brookside a fun and loving environment for everyone to enjoy. We should all be proud of where we live,” he said.

Tina Rogers, chairman of Brookside Big Local, which is working with the Brookside Improvement Group to organise the event, said: “We’re in the final days of preparation for the Brookside Business Expo and we are getting really excited about Saturday.

“We have got some great companies getting involved including Woolly Snuggles, Credible Tattoos, C Vision and Telford Bike Recycle and are confident it will be a very important and useful day for all those involved.

“When we started discussing the event we were keen to ensure that the community were involved in what was happening and decision-making in the area.

“For us partnership working was very important as well as building relationships. We are also confident the expo will prove a useful tool for businesses owners to meet with others and share knowledge.

“People running companies don’t often get the chance to meet up and network so we thought this event was an ideal opportunity for them to do this.”

She said: “There will be an opportunity for firms to show the people of Brookside and further afield what they do and why they are such an asset to the area.

“We are also hoping to highlight job vacancies, apprentices, and training that is available.”

Steve Thayne, vice chairman of Brookside Improvement Group, said: “It is good that we can have such a focus on Brookside, which has suffered in the past from its image.

“Hopefully, we can change negative views of the estate and show everyone that Brookside does have something positive things to offer.

“For us it is also not just about what is in Brookside currently but the prospects for the future.

“We will have experts on hand to give advice to people who want to set up their own business or even do some volunteering in the community.

“We want people who live and work in Brookside to take pride in the area and want it to be as successful as possible.”

For more information contact Keith Whitton, priority action co-ordinator, on (01952) 382182 or email info@brooksidebiglocal.co.uk