This Report, commissioned by the Government from Mary Portas, was published on 13 December 2011. It recommends a range of remedies for the perceived decline of many High Streets, and the businesses which traditionally populate them. 

Whilst she does not recommend a moratorium on out of town development, she does consider the option of forcing such sites to charge for parking, to help to level the planning field for town centre retailers.

On the planning front, she recommends much greater flexibility, allowing changes of use where retail is no longer viable to office, residential or other compatible uses, relaxing controls on the timing of deliveries and facilitating street markets and other similar uses, which might attract customers back to the High Street.

We will be assessing the implications of the report in greater detail over the next few weeks.

It is immediately apparent however that the draft National Planning Policy Framework published in July and now undergoing redrafting following the end of a consultation period, anticipated many of these recommendations in the following sections:

"Promote the vitality and viability of town centres
76. Planning policies should be positive, promote competitive town centre environments and set out policies for the management and growth of centres over the plan period.  Local planning authorities should:
" Recognise town centres as the heart of their communities and pursue policies to support the viability and vitality of town centres
" Define a network (the pattern of provision of centres) and hierarchy (the role and relationship of centres in the network) of centres that is resilient to anticipated future economic changes.
" Define the extent of the town centre and the primary shopping area, based on a clear definition of primary and secondary frontages in designated centres, and set policies that make clear which uses will be permitted in such locations.
" Recognise that residential development can play an important role in ensuring the vitality of centres and set out polices to encourage residential development on appropriate sites.
" Allocate a range of suitable sites to meet the scale and type of retail, leisure, commercial, community services and residential development needed in town centres.  It is important that retail and leisure needs are met in full and are not compromised by limited site availability. Local planning authorities should therefore undertake an assessment of the need to expand town centres to ensure a sufficient supply of suitable sites.
" Allocate appropriate edge of centre sites where suitable and viable town centre sites are not available, and if sufficient edge of centre sites cannot be identified, set policies for meeting the identified requirements in other accessible locations; and
" Set policies for the consideration of retail and leisure proposals which cannot be accommodated in or adjacent to town centres.

77.  Local planning authorities should apply a sequential approach to planning applications for retail and leisure uses that are not an existing centre and are not in accordance with an up to date Local Plan.

78.   Local planning authorities should prefer applications for retail and leisure uses to be located in town centres where practical, then the edge of centre locations and only if suitable suites are not available should out of centre sites be considered.  In applying this sequential approach, local planning authorities should ensure that potential site are assessed for their availability, suitability and for their ability to meet the full extent of assessed quantitative and qualitative needs.

79.  When assessing applications for retail and leisure development outside of town centres, which are not in accordance with an up to date Local Plan, local planning authorities should require an impact assessment if the development is over a proportionate, locally set floorspace threshold. If there is no locally set threshold, the default threshold is 2,500 sq m.

80.  Planning policies and decisions should assess the impact of retail and leisure proposals, including:
" The impact of the proposal on existing, committed and planned public and private investment in a centre or centres in the catchment area of the proposal; and
" The impact of the proposal on town centre vitality and viability, including local consumer choice and trade in the town centre and wider area, up to ten years from the time the application is made."

Whilst many local planning authorities have been reluctant to accept proposals for change of use of redundant retail units, it is to be hoped that this report, and the proposed policy shift will encourage them to adopt their own policies in similar terms and to approve applications based on these new policy criteria.

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