Will masterplan help transform West Bromwich town centre?

Some 19 per cent of units are vacant in another sign of the challenges being faced by the high street.

The continued rise of internet shopping has been blamed and officials said fresh ideas were needed to keep the town centre relevant for a changing society.

Council bosses are now looking at developing a "masterplan" for the future of West Bromwich, which will also consider where new homes can be built.

It came as West Bromwich was named as one of 20 in the country chosen for a Government pilot scheme to help reverse the fortunes of ailing town centres.

It means traders will get face-to-face support from experts, access to research, online training and footfall data to businesses in a bid to give them a “vital edge”.

It follows the town getting £25 million to revamp its high street as part of the £3.6 billion Towns Fund.

Key to the plan is a shake-up of planning laws to allow for more flexibility to what can be done with empty units, in a bid to ensure they are not left empty.

Poundland and Thomas Cook are among businesses which have left the town centre over the last couple of years.

The gloomy outlook continues a trend which has been experienced across the Black Country.

High street giant Debenhams quit Wolverhampton just two years after opening as the Mander Centre's anchor tenant, while Topshop will also leave the city.

Around one in 10 shops are empty on average nationally, while performance in West Bromwich is similar to Wolverhampton where around one in five are also empty.

An overhaul of the town's indoor market is also planned to try and address sliding footfall.

A Sandwell Council spokesman said: “A huge amount of investment has taken place in West Bromwich during the past decade, resulting in New Square, Sandwell College and the new West Bromwich Leisure Centre.

“But shopping habits have changed dramatically since the current plan for West Bromwich was approved. The number of vacancies, particular in the older units, is clear proof of this.

“We need to investigate other uses for town centre land and buildings such as housing and leisure facilities that will bring more vibrancy to the town, particularly in the evenings.

“But the Local Plan needs to provide flexibility for owners to consider these alternatives to retail to bring these vacant units back into use. This is why we are preparing this Interim Planning Statement as a framework for the further regeneration of the town.”

A new report on the issue said: "The retail industry continues to adapt and change, i.e. with the rise and relative decline of ‘big box’ supermarkets, the increasing market share of limited range, discount supermarkets and the increasing role of the internet. These have contributed to a significant level of vacant retail premises within the centre."

The report added a recent unexpected "upsurge" in manufacturing employment meant there was unlikely to be as many derelict factories and other brownfield sites to build on as previously thought.

It also said the "predicted rise of new-build office-based employment" had not materialised, with office usage actually falling in West Bromwich.