The future of Wakefield District will be the focus for the launch of the District's Community Strategy - Fast Forward on Friday 10 October.

Fast Forward sets out an ambitious long-term vision of the future of Wakefield District. It includes all the things that people feel are most important to their quality of life such as safety, health, employment, learning and the environment and it sets out a way different organisations and groups in the District will work together to improve on these.

The unveiling of Fast Forward marks a key step for the District - it is based on needs that local residents have identified and the vision and priorities in the document have been accepted by all the main organisations in the District as a basis for working together in the future.

The launch of the Strategy is the culmination of a process involving local people and other key stakeholders such as the young people of the District, voluntary groups, and businesses. All have been involved in saying what they want Wakefield District to be like in 25 years time.

The Launch will take place in Wood Street and will coincide with 'the Green' weekend which will see Wood Street being 'given over' to pedestrians as part of the Yorkshire Festival of Places event. This will mean the whole of Wood Street being closed to traffic and people will be given an opportunity to take a fresh look at this area as a public space.

The launch event will take place in a marquee, which will also be open for people to learn more about Fast Forward and other key developments taking place in the District including Wakefield Waterfront, Urban Renaissance and the Wakefield Youth Parliament.

Part of the street will become a 'grassed area' and there will also be entertainment and seated areas for people to enjoy the space being created.

Young people from across the District have been involved in Fast Forward and they have used video cameras to record what they feel about Wakefield District now and how they would like to see it change in the future. This footage has been made into a film that will also include contributions from a range of local and national personalities and civic leaders from Wakefield's across the world. The film will be shown at the launch and this will be distributed widely afterwards.

The launch will also involve the preparation of a time capsule that will hold a range of different objects of current interest in Wakefield District reflecting what life is like today. This will be sealed and buried at a city centre location at a future date not to be opened for 25 years - which is the lifespan of Fast Forward.

Cllr Peter Box, Wakefield Council Leader and Chair of the Wakefield District Partnership, which is responsible for Fast Forward said, "I am delighted to be able to launch the Fast Forward Community strategy which sets out our vision for the next 25 years. We know from the interviews what our top priorities are and we will be working with communities to turn the vision into reality.

"Our efforts will be directed towards feeling and being safer, looking after ourselves, investing in our people, developing a dynamic local economy and improving our places as part of a plan which will stand the test of time.

"The time capsule, containing elements of our current lifestyle, will form an interesting comparison for people twenty-five years form now to judge whether Fast Forward has succeeded.

"I would particularly like to congratulate the young people who have helped us make the Fast Forward dvd as they are the people at the end of the day who will see this vision through to completion."

Chloe Middleton, Member of Wakefield's Youth Parliament 2002, who took part in the Young People's Conference to contribute to Fast Forward said "the Young People's Conference was unique in that it demonstrated young people working alongside adult decision makers to achieve a common goal.

"It was a really valuable experience for the young people who contributed to Fast Forward to be able to voice their opinions on its content and to discuss their priorities with members of the Partnership".

Copies of Fast Forward are available from the Partnership and Neighbourhoods Team in the Town Hall, Wakefield or on this website : telephone 01924 305745 or email lsp@wakefieldlsp.org.uk