AN undergraduate has joined Colchester's new town centre improvement initiative.Panos Stylianou, 23, joins the Colchester Business Improvement District for eight weeks, during which time he will be assessing the extent of the support from the business community for the new scheme.

AN undergraduate has joined Colchester's new town centre improvement initiative.

Panos Stylianou, 23, joins the Colchester Business Improvement District for eight weeks, during which time he will be assessing the extent of the support from the business community for the new scheme.

Originally from Cyprus, Mr Stylianou is studying for a degree in computing and management at the University of Essex, and has chosen a work placement at the Colchester BID through the Shell Step scheme, which places over 1,000 undergraduates in small to medium-sized businesses across the UK.

Using his knowledge of e-commerce and database management and design, Mr Stylianou is in the process of creating and managing a database of BID stakeholders. He evaluates research findings and provides accurate feedback on the progress of the campaign.

Colchester BID manager Chris Kirvan said: “Panos is doing some very important work for us that will reveal whether our scheme will eventually be implemented. We need 51% of all businesses that vote in the November ballot to say 'yes' to the Colchester BID if we are to become a reality.

“Our scheme will be a way local companies can access local money to improve their environment, and ultimately, do more business.”