Town centres

Gillingham is an important retail centre serving a substantial part of Medway. It is twinned with the cities of Ito and Yokosuka in Japan, a relationship founded on its proud identity as the birthplace of Elizabethan adventurer Will Adams.

The town has strong maritime and military connections with the nearby Historic Dockyard in Chatham, once one of the most important naval dockyards in the country. The Royal Engineers also have strong links with Gillingham. Today, visitors can discover the fascinating story of Britain’s soldier engineers from 1066 to the present day at the Royal Engineers’ Museum.

As one of Medway's popular shopping centres, with around 200 shops, Gillingham has an excellent choice of brand names to choose from, including Woolworths, New Look, Boots, WH Smith, Somerfield, Aldi, Bon Marché, Wilkinson and Iceland to name but a few.

These and many more specialist shops can be found in the pedestrianised High Street that offers shoppers an enjoyable experience in a traffic-free environment, complemented with closed-circuit television (CCTV) surveillance, making it a safe place to shop.

Shoppers can also enjoy traditional street markets that operate in the town centre every Saturday and Monday, offering a wide range of quality goods.

Leisure plays an important role in Gillingham's success and a number of excellent sport and leisure centres can be found in and around the town centre and of course, Gillingham is home to Kent’s only football league club, Gillingham FC.

Gillingham town centre is well served by buses and trains from the surrounding area.

Town centre profile:

• District shopping.
• Gross floorspace 27,000m².
• 230 units.
• Fully pedestrianised.
• Parking spaces 570

Market (Saturday and Monday).

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