Proposed changes to Planning Policy Wales Chapter 10 and Technical Advice Note 4: Retail Centre Development

PPW promotes established retail centres as the most appropriate locations for retailing and other complementary functions.

The aim of the review is to update PPW Chapter 10 and TAN4 so that it is in line with a Welsh Government objective to enhance the vitality attractiveness and viability of established centres.

The principal areas of change in PPW are:

• revised objectives for retail planning policy including the need for flexibility in responding to market changes
• stronger emphasis on the need for retail policies to be framed by a retail strategy in Local Development Plans (LDPs) which is complemented by masterplans and place plans to assist in the delivery of the strategy
• the requirement for LDPs to set-out a locally-derived hierarchy of centres
• clearer guidance on uses subject to the sequential test
• revised policies for dealing with new uses and centres undergoing change and a consistent approach to terminology.

TAN4’s revision is comprehensive and in its draft form now reflects and supports the guidance set out in the updated draft of PPW Chapter 10.  TAN4 provides further technical advice on the following topic areas:

• retailing objectives
• centre hierarchies
• retail strategies  masterplans and place plans
• retail needs tests
• the sequential test
• retail frontages
• changes of use and development management
• Local Development Orders
• monitoring indicators.