M&S Foodhall proposal for Leamington Shopping Park

The redevelopment site is the hoarded-off area between Debenhams and New Look, which has been vacant since the Focus Store closed in June 2011.

The proposals are for a new M&S Foodhall with an in-store café (with a sales area similar in size to the food sales area of the Parade store in Leamington Town Centre), and two smaller shops for non-food retail.

The plans also include a reconfigured service yard and staff car parking area (20 spaces) to the rear of the new shops, increasing the number of overall parking spaces available at the Shopping Park.

A shopper survey carried out last December revealed that more than two thirds of customers questioned would welcome an M&S Foodhall at Leamington Shopping Park.

M&S has been seeking a site for an additional food offer in Leamington Spa for more than 10 years to complement its town centre stores.

The proposed M&S Foodhall at Leamington Shopping Park would be in addition to the Leamington and Warwick Town Centre stores, which would not be affected by the proposals.

Leamington Shopping Park is undertaking a public consultation before finalising the proposals and submitting a planning application later this summer.

A public exhibition will be held at the shopping park – in a trailer outside the site, between Debenhams and New Look – from midday to 7pm on Friday June 16 and 10am to 4pm on Saturday June 17.

A spokesperson from Leamington Shopping Park said: “The former Focus DIY store has been vacant for some time and we have been looking at ways to bring this part of the Shopping Park back into active use to enhance our customers’ shopping experience and provide a boost to the local economy.

“To help inform our final application, we are encouraging local residents and shoppers to participate in the consultation, as well as come along to the public exhibition to discuss the proposals with members of the project team, and to let us know what they think.”

You can find out more about the proposals and public consultation – and complete a comments form online - by visiting www.leamingtonshoppingpark.co.uk