Wakefield reshuffles regen priorities

Bought by the council for £11m in May, the Ridings shopping centre was to be razed to enable wider regeneration. Now, a leisure-led revamp is preferred, with development partner Muse reassigned to tackle the Northern Gateway.

Wakefield Council’s cabinet will consider the proposals at its meeting on 17 November.

Wakefield’s long-established plan had been to bring down the Ridings along with four Vico-operated housing blocks, enabling delivery of the Cathedral Quarter.

Masterplanned by Muse, this project would bring around 1,000 homes, public space, a museum, cinema, and library to the city centre.

Should the council instead decide that a leisure-led redevelopment of the Ridings is the way forward, the Cathedral Quarter proposal, as agreed early this year after an initial development agreement in May 2025, would be consigned to the “might have been” pile.

As part of a new vision for the city centre, said the council, Muse will instead shift its focus to create a major new Northern Gateway development, located on and around the council-owned Borough Road surface car park, which sits between Northgate and Marsh Way.

Pending sign-off at next week’s meeting, the partnership would work up detailed proposals for the site.

Simon Dew, managing director – Yorkshire & North East at Muse, said: “We look forward to continuing to work with Wakefield Council on other key regeneration objectives in Wakefield city centre.

“We have great confidence in Wakefield and its future. Our partnership with the council is focused on creating more homes, supporting local businesses and making the city centre an even better place to live, work and spend time.

“This includes the plans already outlined for new homes at the Kirkgate Innovation Neighbourhood Gateway (KING), and we will commence masterplan works around other key areas of the city centre in the coming months, reinforcing our shared commitment to the future of Wakefield.

“We’re proud of what we’ve helped deliver at Merchant Gate and Wakefield One. We look forward to building on that work with the council, local businesses and communities to make a lasting difference to the city.”

Expanding further, Wakefield said that not pursuing the Cathedral Quarter scheme would mean that properties which are not part of The Ridings but were within the boundary of the original CQ plan will no longer be affected.

The plans by affordable homes provider Vico to decant residents from the four city centre towers, however, is already in motion. Vico said: “Our plans haven’t changed and we’re continuing to help customers move out of Manor, Trinity, Tudor and Warren House and into another home of their choice.

“Our priority is to provide certainty for our customers. Whilst the report to Council sets out plans to develop The Ridings, this is still subject to plans for the development being designed, costed, agreed and ultimately delivered. This will take time and doesn’t guarantee a long-term future for the apartment blocks

“Our focus now is making sure customers are properly supported. We understand that leaving a home is never easy, especially when it isn’t your choice. That’s why we’re committed to treating every customer with care, respect and openness throughout. Our customers in Greenwood House are unlikely to be affected and we’re not asking them to move.”

Work to build more than 200 affordable homes in Wakefield’s Kirkgate Gateway (the former Wilko and ABC cinema site) will continue, with a planning application expected in 2027 for homes to complement Vico’s affordable housing scheme at Chantry roundabout.

A drawn-out process saw Wakefield buy the Ridings from Zahid Iqbal in spring, taking ownership on 1 May. However, May’s local elections saw Reform sweep to power, promising a shake-up on spending. The party won almost every contested seat in removing Labour, which had controlled the council for 50 years.

Wakefield said that public consultation over the summer had seen it decide to pursue a future for the Ridings that will major on leisure, hospitality, entertainment, and cultural uses, alongside current retailers.

The centre is sdtrugglinmg. Primark is to open a new store at Trinity Walk this month, replacing its Ridings location. M&S is also on its way out of the CBD, confirming in September that it will start work on its new Wakefield store at City Fields in 2027.

Should cabinet acquiesce, the next step will be to appoint an advisory firm to develop a new commercial plan for the Ridings, setting out how to build on its strengths, attract new leisure and hospitality operators, and map out the scope of building work and the wider financial implications.

Cllr Karl Johnson, Leader of Wakefield Council, said: “We promised that before we made any decision about The Ridings, we would give residents and businesses the chance to have their say.

“Thousands of you did over summer. You’ve given us a clear direction – that we share – for a more vibrant city centre with more things to do, more places to visit, and more reasons to stay longer.

“Giving The Ridings a new purpose as a vibrant leisure destination will do just that. Our plan will inject a new lease of life into the centre and deliver the cafés, restaurants, bars, leisure attractions and cultural activities that complement retail.

“As we deliver this, we’ll be supporting our existing retailers in the centre along the way. As well as always making sure our plans complement the wider offer we’ve got right across our city.

“Anything we do has to work in the long-term. I’ve been very clear that we won’t spend money we can’t afford to. The plan needs to financially stack up and not put Council budgets at risk. I am confident that together we can build an exciting next chapter for The Ridings and deliver something that we can all get behind.”

Cabinet is being asked to approve the Northern Gateway to progress to the next stage. This will allow detailed plans, surveys, and assessments to be carried out before proposals for the project are brought forward for consideration in spring 2027.

The Leader continued: “The north of our city centre has incredible potential. These proposals look to capitalise on that, with a distinctive new neighbourhood with high-quality new homes, new public and community spaces, more commercial opportunities, and better transport links.

“We’ll always put local people first. Anything we do will be a proper partnership with residents and businesses. This will mean that any plans will be rooted in what you’ve told us you want to see.”

In other regeneration projects, Wakefield has recently allocated £8m to developing a hotel scheme close to Wakefield Westgate railway station with ION Property Developments.