Local Plan Evidence Base: Retail and Leisure Study

The Retail and Leisure Study is an essential part of the evidence base for the Local Plan review.

The current Town Centre and Retail Study dates from 2016 (based on a 2014 consumer survey) and is an update to the 2010 study. It only addresses retail floorspace needs within the 6 main town centres in Newham. Government guidance is for such studies to be reviewed often (every 5 years) to ensure that the Local Authority has up to date information in the context of a retail market that is experiencing constant and sometimes fast change. In this context, alongside significant national and regional policy changes in recent years, it is important that the assumptions of the 2016 study are reconsidered.

Newham's Community Wealth Building Strategy and its related Towards a Better Newham - Re-orientation and Recovery Strategy and Action Plan seek to tackle historic problems of inequality and disparity by shaping a local economy that works for all of Newham's residents and delivers a place where communities share the benefits no matter their background. One pillar of the Strategy supports the delivery of the 15 minute neighbourhood concept in Newham.

The Retail and Leisure Study project can align with Corporate strategies and respond to national and regional policy changes, by: i. Helping to identify ways in which the '15min neighbourhood' concept could be applied to retail and leisure uses in Newham, in coordination with the Characterisation Study work. Health Checks, as well as a review of the boundaries of town centres and methodology to help review or adopt new local centres will be key aspects of the Retail and Leisure Study. ii. Provide advice on how development incorporating town centre uses can be distributed more widely throughout the borough to improve accessibility while protecting the vitality and viability of the designated network. iii. Provide advice on opportunities and challenges presented by current retail and leisure market trends and the national and regional policy position.