Legal & General Property has entered into an exclusivity agreement with The London Borough of Hounslow

Addington Capital has received planning approval for the circa £3m redevelopment of Charter Walk shopping centre in Burnley.

St. Modwen has secured consent for the final phase of its £90m Wembley Central regeneration scheme from the London Borough of Brent.

A House of Commons committee has backed BCSC’s calls for the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to protect town centres.

Capital & Regional has submitted a planning application to refurbish Leisure World, its 170,000 sq ft complex at Jarman Fields, Hemel Hempstead.

Darlington planners have given the thumbs up to the creation of a new Debenhams department store as part of the town centre’s Cornmill shopping centre.  

The long-awaited Portas Review includes 28 recommendations to save the high street

Capital Shopping Centres has submitted a planning application for a 325,000-sq ft extension to Lakeside

The Merrion Centre’s New Front leisure development in Leeds city centre has been given the go-ahead by Leeds City Council

Developer Bond City, in partnership with Laker Developments, has t submitted a new planning application for its St James’s Street site in Dover

Tesco subsidiary to transform town centre after plans approved

The owners of centre, Capital Shopping Centres has submitted a planning application to create five new restaurants at The Glades in Bromley

Application made for £200m new town centre development in South Wales

Spenhill, the regeneration subsidiary of Tesco, has been granted planning consent to regenerate a 7.2 acre site in the centre of Dartford

Lincolnshire Cooperative Society has submitted revised plans for the redevelopment of the Lindongate quarter in Lincoln

St. Modwen has submitted a planning application for the final phase of its £90m Wembley Central regeneration scheme to the London Borough of Brent

Planning application submitted for major mixed-use scheme at 1 Oxford Street by Derwent London

Royal London Asset Management has submitted plans for the 123,000-sq ft redevelopment of the Pennine Shopping Centre, Halifax

Capital Shopping Centres has started public consultation on its plans to extend Lakeside, Thurrock

Secretary of State decides not to call in ING's application for the £24m phase 2 at the North East’s biggest outlet centre

East Staffordshire Borough Council has resolved to grant planning permission for the proposed extension of Coopers Square in Burton-upon-Trent

The 10 acre site of the former Bowyers pork pie factory in Trowbridge is set to be transformed into a new leisure-led mixed-use development under plans unveiled by developer Prorsus.

Land Securities has submitted a planning application for redevelopment of the Bishop Centre in Taplow

Peel plans £60m investment to create a new leisure and shopping quarter – The Quayside – over the next year

Worthing Borough Council has given the go ahead for Hanson Capital Management’s £150m Worthing Gateway, the first major town centre commercial scheme in the region for over 20 years

Peel Land & Property has submitted a planning application for a new food superstore at The Peel Centre in Washington

Quintain has secured planning permission to change the 212,000-sq ft Wembley Retail Park from bulky goods to open A1 (non food)

The owners of Salford shopping centre, Salford Estates, have submitted a planning application to Salford City Council to extend the centre, delivering more shops and improving customers’ shopping experience. 

New plans for a cinema in Trowbridge town centre have been announced by Legal & General Property, owner of the St Stephens Place site and Castle Place Shopping Centre.

Hammerson is planning significant improvements to the 700,000-sq ft Centrale shopping centre in Croydon which it bought earlier in the year for £98m

Designs for the newSovereignHarbourRetailParkhave been released which will include a state-of-the-art nine-screen cinema, additional shops and new restaurants

Marks & Spencer has signed for a 60,000 sq ft anchor unit at Bradford city centre’s stalled Broadway shopping centre.

Eastbourne’s Arndale Centre could be in for a £65m extension

Designs for a new £200m town centre near Talbot Green in south Wales have been unveiled at a public exhibition

Leeds City Council’s City Centre Plans Panel has resolved to grant consent for Hammerson’s million-sq ft Eastgate Quarters scheme

CSC has been granted planning permission for its 15,000-sq ft MetrOasis catering development

Metric Property Investments buys ex-Focus site for £2.3m and plans 50,000-sq ft development

UK Commercial Property Trust to redevelop three centres to form 650,000-sq ft New Riverside

Westfield has started consultation on its planned mixed-use extension to Westfield London

Capital Shopping Centres has submitted a detailed planning application for an extension of the Victoria Centre in Nottingham to Nottingham City Council

Durham County Council’s planning committee has overturned officers’ advice and approved phase 2 of the Dalton Park outlet mall

Designs for the new £70m centre for Barnsley have been unveiled at a public exhibition

The two unsuccessful bidders for the casino at Westfield Stratford, City & Eastern and Apollo Genting, are launching Judicial Reviews against Newham Council for its decision to grant the casino licence to Aspers

New designs to revitalise Kingston’s Eden Walk shopping centre have been submitted to Kingston Council.  

Derby City Council approves Land Securities' plans for a new 100,000-sq ft food store.

Burnley Council will this week consider Henry Boot’s plans for the £40m redevelopment of the Curzon Street site, formerly known as the Oval

Hammerson has reached agreement with South Oxfordshire District Council for the £125m regeneration of Didcot town centre

Following an agreement in Wallsend, Tyne & Wear, NewRiver now has 500,000 sq ft of development in the pipeline on eight sites across the UK

A week after Capital Shopping Centres unveiled its plans to add 500,000 sq ft to Nottingham’s Victoria Centre, Westfield and LaSalle Investment Management have update their rival proposals for the £500m redevelopment of the Broadmarsh shopping centre

Southampton's East Street shopping centre is earmarked for redevelopment

The £240m expansion plan for Nottingham’s Victoria Centre will add 500,000 sq ft of new retail space.

Stratford-on-Avon District Council has instructed Colliers to conduct a study of comparison goods shopping

The £300m redevelopment of the Grosvenor Centre in Northampton is going out to public consultation

Oasis Development Company launched to develop new shopper pavilion to target ‘retail tourists’

A detailed planning application for the first phase of a new town centre for Longbridge has been submitted to Birmingham City Council

Capital Shopping Centres plans three major extensions in Nottingham, Glasgow and Thurrock

Metro Shopping Fund's plans to transform a long derelict site in Wandsworth town centre into a new wing of the Southside shopping centre have been approved.

John Lewis is to take a 250,000-sq ft store in Network Rail's redevelopment of New Street station

The redevelopment of Battersea Power Station has been given the go-ahead by the Department of Communities and Local Government

St Modwen Properties has submitted a detailed planning application to develop the town centre at Longbridge in the West Midlands

Outline planning approval has been granted by Medway Council to create an additional 70,000 sq ft of commercial space and carry out redevelopment work at Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre

Stanhope has been appointed for the retail-led regeneration of the Kings Quarter area of Gloucester city centre

Peterborough City Council’s planning committee has approved a £13m extension to Peterborough’s Queensgate shopping centre

Land Securities is preparing to add another 27,000 sq ft to its Trinity Leeds project

Council rejects Westfield's plans to revamp the Friary Centre in Guildford

Stanhope has submitted plans for 310,000 sq ft of retail and leisure at The Old Livestock Market in Hereford

Outline planning approval has been granted by Medway Council to create an additional 70,000 sq ft of commercial space and carry out redevelopment work at the Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre.

Lend Lease’s 1.5m-sq ft Tithebarn project given the go-ahead

Bracknell Regeneration Partnership lodges planning application for Princess Square refurb

Spenhill Regeneration, the regeneration subsidiary of Tesco, has submitted planning applications to Swale Borough Council for the transformation of Sittingbourne town centre with improvements to the Forum shopping centre, a cinema, additional retail and new restaurants.

A detailed planning application has been submitted to Birmingham City Council for a 20,000 sq ft extension at the Bullring.

Henderson Global Investors has made an outline planning application for a retail-led scheme in Old River Lane, Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire

The Tin Hat Regeneration Partnership - a joint venture between Wilson Bowden Developments and Centenary Ashcroft - have announced that Cineworld and Sainsbury’s will anchor The Crescent, an £80m redevelopment scheme in Hinckley town centre.

Plans have been unveiled for a £30m upgrade at Fort Kinnaird Retail Park at Craigmillar, in the south-east of Edinburgh

Simons has won planning permission for a major town centre redevelopment in Dorchester, Dorset.

Glasgow City Council has approved an 80,000-sq ft extension at Silverburn

New plans for the Essex town centre include 560,000 sq ft of new retail space

580,000-sq ft Northgate Project scheduled to commence Spring 2014

Proposals are taking shape to improve and revitalise Eden Walk shopping centre in Kingston-upon-Thames.

The £20m expansion of Silverburn shopping centre in Pollok, Glasgow will go ahead despite the takeover of the centre in December

Strathclyde Pension Fund has revealed a multimillion pound plan to extend the Octagon shopping centre in Burton Upon Trent.

The Bon Accord shopping centre in Aberdeen is to undergo a multi-million pound refurbishment.

Land Securities have submitted plans for a redevelopment of the Meteor Retail Park in Derby

Hammerson has announced it will bring forward amended plans for Eastgate Quarters in Leeds later this year.

The multi-million pound redevelopment plans for Langney shopping centre will go ahead after Eastbourne Borough Council granted planning permission to the developers Stockland Ventures.

The London Assembly Planning and Housing Committee has published its report on helping small shops, that could lead to reform of the planning system

The decision by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport to impose a Grade II listing on thecentre:mk, despite intensive lobbying by the centre’s owners and the wider retail and property industries, underlines the complex and at times uneasy role malls play in our towns.

thecentre:mk, Milton Keynes, was made a Grade II listed building on Friday after a controversial  decision by the DCMS.

A detailed planning application has now been submitted to the City of Edinburgh Council for a new flagship store on Princes Street.

Lend Lease Europe has finalised terms for a conditional Regeneration Agreement with the London Borough of Southwark, clearing the way for the £1.5bn regeneration of Elephant & Castle.

Sainsbury’s and St Modwen have overcome Tesco’s objections to their Project Jennifer regeneration scheme in Liverpool, following a decision at the High Court in Manchester

Henderson Global Investors has opened its pre-application consultation for its planned £105m retail-led regeneration scheme in Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire.

Miller Developments has submitted a planning application to The Highland Council to develop a £50m mixed use project in Fort William, Scotland.

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles chas announced that he will not call in the Brent Cross Cricklewood regeneration, giving the green light to the £4.5bn scheme to create a new town centre in North-West London.

Quintain is about to begin marketing its 280,000-sq ft Wembley City retail and leisure development beside Wembley stadium, prior to a start on site next year.

Citygrove's £65m WestGate leisure and retail scheme in Aldershot has been given the go-ahead in principle by Rushmoor Borough Council's development control committee.

The £180m Rathbone Market scheme, which forms a key part of redevelopment plans to Canning Town centre, has been given the go ahead.

The Royal Mail Pension Plan has submitted revised plans by for a £10m upgrade and extension of St Nicholas Gate Retail Park in Carlisle.

Threadneedle Property Investments has been granted outline planning consent for the redevelopment of Eccles Shopping Centre in Manchester. The scheme will provide a new foodstore and car park, improvements to the rest of the centre and new pedestrian links.

Land Securities has received planning consent for the redevelopment of the Peel Centre, in Bracknell town centre. The former MFI unit on the park will be reconfigured to provide a 20,000-sq ft unit pre-let to Next with additional retail units totalling 15,000 sq ft.

Blackpool Council has granted outline permission for the £220m Talbot Gateway scheme, targeted at regenerating north-east Blackpool.

Communities secretary John Denham has issues a stop notice against the controversial £4.5bn Brent Cross Cricklewood scheme.

Retailers planning global expansions for 2010 are opting for owner-operated stores, according to research from CB Richard Ellis (CBRE).

Simons Developments has been chosen to redevelop Hitchin's Churchgate shopping centre.

Coplan Estates and Denne Construction have been selected as preferred development partner by Canterbury City Council for the £50m mixed use redevelopment of a key site in the heart of Herne Bay on the north Kent coast.

City Site Estates, landlord of the Mercat shopping centre in Kirkcaldy, Fife, is preparing a 250,000-sq ft retail extension to existing shopping centre,

The £70m Bicester town centre regeneration scheme has been given the green light by Cherwell District Council, with construction scheduled to start later this year.

CABE has praised Treasury Holdings' designs for the massive redevelopment of the 38-acre Battersea Power Station site in south west London.

The Crown Estate continues to upgrade its Regent Street estate in London with plans for two new retail-led developments.

Multi Development's groundbreaking city-centre regeneration project has been awarded the Silver Jubilee Cup, the Royal Town Planning Institute’s top planning prize, in a ceremony celebrating the best planning projects across the UK and Ireland.

Northern Ireland's Environment Minister, Edwin Poots, has approved plans for a major redevelopment of the Dairy Farm Shopping Centre in Dunmurry, near Lisburn.

Gleniffer Estates has won planning permission for a new phase of its £30m Greenlaw Village neighbourhood centre in the Glasgow suburb of Newton Mearns.

Southwark Council's planning committee has resolved to grant outline planning permission for the redevelopment of the Surrey Quays Leisure Site in London’s Surrey Docks, including the creation of a new flagship store and UK headquarters for the sports retailer Decathlon.

Salford City Council planners have unanimously approved a muli-million pound scheme to regenerate a 17.4 ha area in the heart of the city centre.

Cardiff Airport has announced plans to extend its main terminal building, with added retail and restaurant space in a bit to improve the facility.

Land Securities has agreed construction contracts for three schemes as part of a £655m West End development programme, including a prominent development on Oxford Street.

Town centre retail in Maidenhead, Berkshire, will be in for a major revamp and extension under a new masterplan unveiled by the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead.

The Government released its long-awaited revisions to the Planning Policy Statement 4 (PPS4) planning guidance note between Christmas and the New Year, traditionally seen by civil servants as a time to bury bad news. But far from proving controversial, the new guidance has been broadly welcomed.

The Government released its long-awaited revisions to the Planning Policy Statement 4 (PPS4) planning guidance note between Christmas and the New Year, traditionally seen by civil servants as a time to bury bad news. But far from proving controversial, the new guidance has been broadly welcomed.
Firstly, the new guidance note – subtitled Planning for Sustainable Economic Growth – is simpler, running to just 32 pages against the previous 137. But in policy terms it reinforces the long-established preference for town centre development over out-of-town.
According to Housing and Planning Minister John Healey, it ties planning and economic development policies closer together in order to support sustainable economic growth while  protecting local markets and small shops.
The revised guidelines keep the existing ‘sequential test’ for town planners, which requires the most central town centre sites to be developed first, with edge-of-town seen as the next best option and out-of-town sites seen as a last resort. Under the test, an out-of-town site can only be developed if the applicants can prove that no suitable sites exist in-town..
But in addition to this, a tougher ‘impact test’ is also being introduced. This will replace the existing ‘needs test’, which the Government described as ‘dysfunctional’ because it could unintentionally stifle diversity and consumer choice in town. In some cases, new shops in town centres were ruled out because out-of-town stores, especially supermarkets, already provided that function.

protection
The change to an ‘impact test’ is designed to strengthen local authorities’ case in resisting new developments that threaten existing town centres on economic, social and environmental grounds.  It will test whether impact is positive or negative on climate change, town centre consumer choice and retail diversity, investment and town centre trade and gives councils powers to cap the size of new retail developments where this is justified.
However one widely-expected change does not appear in the new PPS4, and that is the competition test for supermarkets. As recently as October 2009 a Competition Commission investigation into the UK grocery market called for the test which would  require local authorities to assess planning applications for new grocery floorspace over 1,000 sq m for their impacts on competition, in consultation with the Office of Fair Trading.
The Government says it will formally respond to the Commission’s recommendations, including the competition test proposal shortly, but it claims the new PPS4 provides strong protection for town centres and will reassure town centre managers and independent retailers up and down the country.
Introducing the new policy, Healey said: “As the country moves towards economic recovery, the Government is putting in place new protections for local shops at the heart of communities as many high streets have been hit hard by a double whammy of the downturn and out-of-town retail parks.
“By strengthening the hand of local councils, we are giving them the expert tools they need to put the viability and vitality of town centres first in difficult market conditions. The new tools go further than ever before to protect town centres from the harm large out-of-town developments can have.”
Planning experts said the new policy is unlikely to make a substantial contribution to economic growth, but they conceded that it is likely to help smaller, independent retailers.
Mark Dodds, a partner at planning consultancy DPP, said: “The publication of PPS4 is very welcome and there are some very sensible changes, such as the removal of the needs test.
“However it is our opinion that it will do little to achieve the Government’s aims of stimulating sustainable economic development in any meaningful way.  Larger and multiple retailers will, if anything, find it harder to push proposed developments past committed local councillors, particularly for small format retailing in local centres or rural areas.”

confusion
But Dodds, who advises Tesco among others, also says PPS4 is riddled with errors that developers and local authorities will undoubtedly find confusing and frustrating. “We have noticed a number of errors in the guidance accompanying PPS4,” he said, “most notably an annex that states that PPS4 cancels provisions in PPS7, relating to major developments in areas of outstanding natural beauty.  The Department of Communities and Local Government has since confirmed that this is not the case.”
And he warned that while PPS4 may be a consolidation of policy relating to economic development and town centres, it will not simplify the process of getting planning consent.  
“Developers will be well advised to make representations to the local development framework process as new limits and thresholds are set for retail development,” said Dodds.  “They may also wish to influence assessments of need and capacity that are now set only at strategic level.  Impact assessments will as a result become more complex.”
And David Jones, director at the planning division of Evans Jones, warned that the new policy could add to the workload of hard-pressed local authorities. “The PPS requires local authorities to maintain up-to-date survey data to assist in the identification of economic and property challenges to be considered in plan making, review and development control decisions,” he said. “The requirement for local authorities to prepare and subsequently maintain the survey data will place greater strain upon already stretched planning departments.”
According to Jones the Government clearly wishes to strengthen local authorities’ armoury to enable them to resist inappropriate out-of-town developments. But he cautioned: “The effectiveness of polices of restraint may be questionable in cases where local authorities fail to either collate or subsequently maintain accurate and robust data upon existing retail centres.
And he concluded: “Time will tell whether in the current climate the PPS will actually have any discernable impact. While retailing remains depressed and many town centre retail outlets remain vacant local authorities will seek to protect and improve the viability of existing centres. However, if local authorities fail to collect appropriate data, then it could prove difficult for them to defend appeals for new out-of-town retailing.