BUILDING work at High Wycombe's new shopping and leisure centre is well on its way to completion.

The outside of the 675,000 square foot Eden development is progressing well and work inside the building has now started in earnest.

Fitting teams have started to kit out the inside of the 12-screen cinema, which sits above the two-storey Marks and Spencer store.

Outside, building work is being started to the covered walkways that will protect shoppers from the rain as they browse round the stores. Once its opened the shopping centre will be a mixture of open and covered "streets".

The new public square, which will sit at the front of the site next to the Newlands Street roundabout, and the stretch of walkway between Marks and Spencer and House of Fraser will be uncovered.

The rest of the pathways through the site from House and Fraser to the entrance of the existing Octagon centre will be closed off to the elements with the new transparent roof.

Pedestrians and drivers can now see a steel structure rising from the ground near the Newlands Street roundabout. This is the bare bones of the new cafe which will be the epicentre of the public square area.

And while the majority of work is going on above ground, another project is getting ready to be launched underneath Eden's foundations.

In partnership with the Bucks Free Press Eden developers Multiplex is releasing its Time Capsule Challenge.

When the £135 million project finally opens its doors, Multiplex is keen to mark the event in High Wycombe's history by burying a time capsule in the shopping centre's grounds.

Children across the county are being encouraged to get involved with the competition by picking objects to be buried along with the capsule.

Daniel Tomkinson, Eden centre director, said: "We felt that this is a great opportunity to work together with the local community to capture the essence of what it means to live in Buckinghamshire in 2007.

"Eden will have such a positive impact on the town and its residents that we really wanted to get as many people as we can on board to inspire and engage children of all age groups, and instil a sense of local pride. "

More details about the competition will be revealed in next week's paper.