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The Portadown of today boasts one of the Province's most thriving shopping centres. The modern town centre and three shopping centres of Meadows, High Street Mall and Magowan West combine multi-national retailers with a wonderful mix of independent outlets, catering for everything from antiques and crafts to high fashion and household goods. In total, the town boasts over 300 retail outlets, including a plethora of coffee shops, bistros and restaurants. The town centre is situated just 5 minutes off the main motorway, with the railway station right in the heart of the town. |
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The Borough of Craigavon is home to the largest conurbation of industry outside Belfast and the main industrial employers are situated in the two industrial estates on the outskirts of Portadown. Once famous for textile manufacture, the area's manufacturing base now includes food processing, light engineering, pharmaceuticals and electronics. The world famous Ulster Carpet Mills is a major employer right on the edge of the town centre.
The spiritual needs of Portadown's population are serviced by 24 churches, spanning all faiths. St Mark's Church of Ireland is the focal point right in the centre of Portadown and local people often refer to it location simply as "The Church".
Portadown prides itself on its high standard of education. From the age of three years the educational development of the children is catered for in pre-school playgroups, 3 nursery schools (age 4-5), 16 primary schools (age 5 -11), 3 junior high schools (age 11-14), 3 senior high schools (age 14-18) and the Upper Bann Institute of Further and Higher Education catering for students from the age of 16 to mature years.
Within a radius of seven miles, the people of Portadown enjoy some of the highest quality leisure and recreational facilities in Northern Ireland. Virtually every indoor and outdoor sporting activity is catered for. The natural assets of Lough Neagh and the River Bann, and Portadown's location in the heart of the apple blossom county of Armagh, provide an environment of beauty and rural tranquillity to augment the thriving urban life of Portadown.
Like many towns in Northern Ireland, Portadown has had its share of disruption and difficulty. However, the maintenance of the strong economic core, both retail and manufacturing provides a strong foundation upon which the Town will build. To this end, the Portadown Development Framework has been prepared to assist and promote physical and economic regeneration over the next 10-15 years. Identifying 16 development zones in the heart of Portadown, the vision for future development, encapsulated in the Development Framework, will impact upon every aspect of the Town, preparing it to become the premier commercial centre of the 21st Century. |
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