New chief executive for Ipswich Central is revealed

Sophie Alexander-Parker is taking over as CEO from Paul Clement, who has been in the role since Ipswich Central and All About Ipswich were created.

Ipswich Central is responsible for management of the town centre, while All About Ipswich is the destination management organisation which promotes the area's visitor economy.

Ms Alexander-Parker started work as a street ranger in Ipswich in 2007, and had already risen through the ranks to become chief operating officer.

Mr Clement will become chief executive of Locus Management, the company behind Ipswich Central, concentrating on major new projects, strategic development, and the expansion of commercial activities.

On announcing the new structure, the chair of Locus and Ipswich Central, Terry Baxter, said: “Paul has fronted Ipswich Central and All About Ipswich since their formation and was instrumental in the creation of both.

"Together, they have generated over £10million of additional investment, with a further £6 million projected over the next 5 years.

"Amongst his achievements have been developing our strategy for the 'Connected Waterfront Town Centre', overseeing our Covid business response programme, and ensuring a fourth consecutive BID term with a landslide election majority in November.

"We now intend to capitalise on his national reputation for place-shaping, enabling us to further scale-up our investment in Ipswich and south-east Suffolk over the coming years."

Mr Baxter said he was delighted that Ms Alexander-Parker accepted her new, joint role.

He added: "As the town centre begins to recover from the economic shock of Covid, it remains a challenging time for many businesses.

"Sophie’s appointment, though, is timely in that it coincides with the development work towards a new Ipswich BID term in which will we plan further significant support to our business community and commit to helping kick-start a period of revival and regeneration.”