Major award for Dublin shopping centre

Ireland's Blanchardstown Shopping Centre has been voted the best established retail centre in both Ireland and Britain.

Established in October 1996, the Blanchardstown Centre currently attracts over 300,000 visitors each week.

It becomes the first Irish retail centre to win the British Council of Shopping Centre (BCSC) Awards, which was held at the Grosvenor Hotel in London.

Aidan Grimes, general manager of The Blanchardstown Centre said: "There is no higher accolade than to be voted by our peers as the best established centre in Ireland and Britain.

"The centre has acted as an important catalyst for development in the entire West Dublin region," he added.

This is the 18th year of the BCSC awards which represents more than 1,400 retailers, developers, landlords, agents, architects, local authority representatives and industry executives.

The judging panel noted that Blanchardstown has seen an ambitious programme of growth over seven years with new restaurants, arts buildings, a department store and two retail parks.

They added that it had become a successful destination town centre in its own right.