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Thursday, November 27th, 2008 No. 6,382 news and views from the Centre of the Kingdom www.clitheroeadvertiser.co.uk Price 70p INSIDE THIS W


EEK


by Duncan Smith


FREEVAUET MAGAZINE


MORE “big name” shops, par­ tial pedestrianisation of the town centre and a complete regeneration of its struggling market site could hold the key to seciumg Glitheroe’s future as X a viable and sustainable retail centre.' ;


■ • Those are some of the key find-


ings of a report to Ribble Valley; Bofou^ Comicil which, if council-' lors accept it, could underpm its f


; main planning policies for the next decade. , .


; The couriciris drawing up'its “Local Developnient Framework”, :


, ;


- a kind ofTO-year masterplan: ; designed to ensure that the. area ~ thrives, lather than declines. Once


. in place, the LDF will provide the foundation for the council’s key | planning decisions, a blueprint for how the area should go forward in- crucial areas such'as retail use,


■ employment land and housing. ' As such a crucial document, it is vital to base the.LDF bn strong and •reliable evidence about the situa- •


• tioh today'and'how it is likely to ' develop in the future: To gather that,evidence, the council-working;


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! DEREKTUiKSOME .tUCMNG’ -SBEPAGES


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• ited - commissioned a firm of con­ sultants earher this y e a r^;.,'; Their brief was to produce an


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Tii parfriership with the Bibble Val­ ley Strategic Partnership and Laii- , cashire County Developments Lim-


“economic healthcheck’’ for the borough’s three.-maih centres, Clitheroe, Wbailey and Longridge, and a diagnosis of their treatment ' to ensure a healthy future^ The con­ sultants worked with local business- es,'residerits,landownereanddevel- - opers to compile their report and


recbmrnendations, which were pre­ sented to the council’s Planning and Development Committee on Tues- day night. Ah in-depth and thorough docu-


mehti it can be broken down into • two main areas - how the borough should develop for shopping, and how: it must provide land and opportunities for future employ­ ment: ,


RETAIL Looking first at retail, the con­


sultants found that only 29% of the cash which Ribble'Valley people have to spend oh goods is currently • spent within the,Ribble Valley, while the rest is spent in shopping centres in neighbouring areas such as Blackburn, Preston or Burnley. , Of the ttoee Ribble Valley towns,


Clitheroe fared best, retaining 24% of this “available spend”, while


Longridge retaihed just under 5 % •' and V a lley a.“negli^ble amburit”. Yet Whalley was identified as th e .


most vital and viable centre, with few vacant shops and high retailer confidence.


' ' This apparent contradiction is


. explained becaiise' Whalley stores are mainly selling'clothes, shoes, small electrical items and so on, but the bulk of “available'spend’’ goes on regular necessity items, such as food or larger electrical goods, and those are niostly bought elsewhere.


Clitheroe- lack of national shops


. Clitheroe has by far the largest


goods-based retail economy in the Ribble Valley at approximately


. £59m. per y ^ , but the report warns that it is shomng signs bf decline. Retailers report falling numbers ol


n i.


shoppers and, for its size, Clitheroe’s 24% share of available spend from its catchment area is very low com­ pared to neighbouring retail centres. According to the repbrt, local retail­ ers’ main concerns were “the poor


■ variety bf shops and lack of national retailer representation, which fml to draw more shoppers to the town”. : , In otherjwords, more “big name”


stores such as Mark and Spencer, Next, Argos, or even a full-blown superstore such as the Tescb stbres at Burnley and Haslingden, could retain niore local shoppers and attract more from outside. However, there is also a fear that


’ development scherne would need to be carefully done tb “enhance'the town centre’s character and protect


■ it from‘clone town’status”. • conlinUL'd on piiijc 2


FAMILY NOTICES... PAGES 16,17 B AT YOUR SERVICE... PAGES 6,7 B VILLAGE NEWS... PAGES 12,13,14


Clitheroe could become a .“clone, town” and lose its vmique identity. The report recommends that any


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