Council agrees to buy two more sites in Stafford town centre for regeneration

The two Stafford sites, which have not been publicly identified due to commercial sensitivity, are set to be snapped up in addition to the former Guildhall Shopping Centre and former Co-op Department Store which Stafford Borough Council has already purchased to enable redevelopment.

Demolition costs for the former shopping centre and department costs came in lower than estimated, a report to the council’s cabinet said. This means there is money available from the Future High Streets Fund (FHSF) to purchase the two additional sites.

Stafford Borough Council was awarded £14.3m by the Government in 2020 to help fund the town centre regeneration project. Work is ongoing to demolish part of the former shopping centre and department store, with the historic frontages set to be retained, and the sites are earmarked for future commercial, retail and residential use.

Cabinet members agreed to the purchase of the two additional sites during a private session at their meeting on Thursday (May 15). Speaking after the meeting Councillor Rob Kenney, deputy leader with responsibility for town centres, said: “It has been made possible to pursue these acquisitions through prudent finances that realised an underspend in the demolition costs of the Guildhall Shopping Centre and former Co-operative Department Store.

“The acquisitions perfectly fit into our commitment to transforming the town centre in Stafford and form part of the wider regeneration programme which seeks to deliver urban regeneration to Stafford town centre. Whilst it is not possible to identify the sites at this stage because of the confidentiality, I am positive that residents of the borough would also agree to their purchase using the remainder of the Future High Streets Fund grant.

“The Investment Prospectus paper is recently completed. It will assess the development potential of all the land holdings within the regeneration programme and will provide analysis of potential next steps in respect of each of the sites.

“This investment into all the acquisitions sites will generate not only further investment into those sites but wider investment into Stafford town centre generally, creating a place for people to visit, to live in, to work in and relax in – a town centre fit for a county town, a county town to be proud of.”

The proposals to acquire the two additional sites have been discussed and agreed with officers from the Delivery Team at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), a report to Thursday’s cabinet meeting said. It added: “(They) have subsequently agreed a further six months to the ‘contractual commitment’ deadline of September 2025 to enable the council to fully allocate all of the grant funding.

“Informal initial conversations have already taken place with the current landowners. Both have indicated their willingness to progress the acquisitions in a suitable timescale, and Heads of Terms are in place, subject to Cabinet approvals.”

The council is talking with investors about future development of the sites it has already acquired. Council leader Aidan Godfrey said: “We are meeting with a number of potential investors later this month and can easily demonstrate that ambition, and the progress we have already made, which I am sure will prove even more attractive to them.

“It is great to see how far work has progressed on the sites we have purchased – and that we have successfully negotiated prices for these works that have now allowed us to look at further acquisitions using the government funding. This would be great news for our ambitious vision of transforming Stafford town centre.”