CHAPTER 17: Wednesfield Village Centre

17.1

Introduction

Wednesfield is the centre of a distinct community in the north east of the City which (along with Bilston and Tettenhall) remained administratively separate from Wolverhampton until the 1960s.  The village centre provides a range of shopping, office and community facilities for residents in this part of the city and some adjoining parts of Walsall, and also to some extent provides services for the major industrial areas to the south and the New Cross hospital complex to the west.

Recent Changes

Major proposals identified in the 1993 UDP have largely been implemented.  The opening of Wednesfield Way in 1999 created a bypass for through traffic along the A4124 corridor, removing the serious congestion in High Street and improving access to a number of vacant and derelict sites in the wider area.  The new road has provided the flexibility for major environmental improvements to be carried out in the village centre to extend the pedestrian area while retaining access for buses and service vehicles.

Bentley Bridge

To the west of Sainsbury’s, the former Black Country Development Corporation granted permission for further retail and leisure development (‘Bentley Bridge Park’).  The leisure component was implemented in the form of a multiplex cinema, health and fitness centre and bingo hall (now closed) together with fast food outlets.   The retail component (permission for 14,700m² on two sites) has been implemented and its relationship to Wednesfield is a further issue for planning in this part of the city.   The Council’s intention in defining the area for retail expansion in the 1993 UDP was that the food superstore and some adjoining and user-conditioned retail warehousing would be located in such a way as to complement Wednesfield village centre.   However the corporation’s permission was granted on an area which was both more extensive, and more remote from the village centre, than had been envisaged.  As a result the leisure complex, and the committed further retailing, is in an out of centre location.

Future Needs

Following the major changes that have taken place in recent years the context for the UDP period is therefore predominantly one of consolidation, building upon the potential created by the completion of the bypass, the introduction of the foodstore and other major developments in the vicinity.

A Strategy for the Centre

The strategy for Wednesfield must provide the framework, not only for physical development but also for wide ranging participation in the continuing process of regeneration, involving local residential and business interests and other organisations in strengthening the centre’s role and function.

The UDP’s general policy for ‘town centres’ (SH6) defines the role of Wednesfield (and Bilston) in the context of the network of centres in the city as a whole.  The following factors are important in developing a specific strategy for Wednesfield village centre.

The A4124 Wednesfield corridor is one of three strategic regeneration corridors identified in the overall UDP strategy.  Wednesfield village centre is at the core of this corridor and has a key role to play as a focus for regeneration and in providing services for the corridor as a whole.

The relationship to surrounding centres and to the Bentley Bridge development is crucial to the future role of Wednesfield.  The proximity to the major comparison shopping and sub-regional centre of Wolverhampton only 3 km to the west is clearly a major constraint on potential investment - and the wider strategy of the UDP would militate against any conflict of roles.  Wednesfield is part of a network of lower order Black Country town centres, providing principally convenience shopping facilities for a local catchment area.  Surrounding centres with a similar role (although not necessarily equivalent in retail floorspace terms) include Bilston to the south and Willenhall and Bloxwich, in Walsall Borough, to the east.  Wednesfield’s role within this network can be consolidated, providing convenience shopping, some leisure, public administration and local services for a catchment area broadly defined by competition from these surrounding centres.  In relation to Bentley Bridge Park there is some potential for complementary roles, with an element of spin off to Wednesfield from the wider population attracted to the leisure and potential comparison retail facilities at Bentley Bridge.

In order to achieve the above Wednesfield will need a strengthening of its primary shopping area, a closer integration with the food superstore, a more diversified range of other activities and an uplift in environmental quality.  In the longer term the centre will be able to build upon its position as a node on the new Metro line which will provide enhanced accessibility along the corridor.

In developing policies and proposals to advance this strategy, consideration has been given to whether it would be appropriate to focus upon discrete ‘Character Areas’, as is the case in Bilston.  To an extent distinct components of the centre do exist, as follows:

• The Primary Shopping Area embracing the High Street and including the conservation area around the church.
• The Alfred Squire Road area, characterised mainly by ‘civic’ uses.
• The Rookery Street / Sainsbury’s area.

However a crucial policy objective is to secure integration, in particular between Sainsbury’s and the Primary Shopping Area of the centre.  In these circumstances it seemed potentially counter-productive to seek to treat the areas separately.

The situation in respect of the Lichfield Road area north of the canal is rather different. This area is clearly separated from, and will remain separated from, the rest of the centre and has therefore been made the subject of a specific policy.

Key Objectives

In the light of the above strategy, the following are the principal policy objectives for Wednesfield:

• To maintain and enhance the role of Wednesfield as a ‘town centre’ serving the north eastern part of the city.
• To secure improved access by public transport, cycling and walking, and improvements to parking provision.
• To ensure that bulk convenience and other shopping needs are met.
• To secure full integration of the Sainsbury’s foodstore.
• To encouraging the provision of high quality health, community and other ancillary facilities,
• To improve pedestrian and other linkages between the village centre and Bentley Bridge Park and New Cross hospital,
• To maintain existing open space and amenity areas and encourage new provision as opportunities arise,
• To encourage residential use above existing units in Wednesfield High Street and in other suitable locations should opportunities arise,
• To encourage office uses in appropriate locations.

17.2

The High Street / Market Primary Shopping Area

As a shopping centre, Wednesfield’s role is primarily to meet the convenience shopping needs of residents in the north eastern part of the city.  These needs are currently met by the large superstore to the south-west of the High Street along with a supermarket and specialist units within the High Street, and the recently relocated retail market.   The recent relocation of the retail market to the High Street has added to the vitality and viability of the centre.

17.3

Improved Linkages and Connectivity

Environmental enhancement and the creation of new public space immediately west of the prime shopping core will extend the focus of the centre and secure the integration of the Sainsbury’s foodstore.   The Wolverhampton Shopping and Town Centres Study indicated a low level of interaction between the foodstore and the centre proper.  It is a key objective of the Council’s strategy for Wednesfield that this situation be changed.  It will be a major benefit to the vitality and viability of the centre if more visitors to the foodstore are encouraged to use the village centre, while the store itself widens the opportunities available to Wednesfield shoppers.

17.4

Midland Metro

Improved public transport access will be a major contribution to enhancing Wednesfield role as the main community focus in the north eastern part of the city.   Bus services along the Wolverhampton-Wednesfield-Ashmore Park and Bloxwich axis are already being upgraded to ‘showcase’ status and there is now a prospect of Wednesfield being served by a Midland Metro line.

It is vital that Metro be properly integrated with Wednesfield village centre so that it makes a positive contribution to environmental quality, and that stops are appropriately located and designed to encourage maximum usage.   There would appear to be the potential for bus-metro interchange and that in consequence Wednesfield can also be strengthened as a node in the bus network.

17.5

Short Stay Car Parking

Considerable improvements have been made to Wednesfield’s accessibility.  Wednesfield way has opened up sites in the Bentley Bridge and Neachells areas and has improved access to the motorway network and the marketability of a number of employment sites.  The new road has also enabled the removal of through traffic from Wednesfield High Street and permitted a major improvement to the pedestrian environment.

17.6

The Canal

The Wyrley and Essington canal runs east to west through Wednesfield but its contribution to the village centre environment is not yet developed to the full.   There is potential in particular to ‘open up’ the centre to the canal and to encourage its role as a corridor of pedestrian and cycle movement to, from and through the centre.

17.7

Frontage Use Policy

Retaining and improving a variety of Class A1 (shop) uses is important to the future vitality and viability of the village centre.  Controls over changes to frontage uses are therefore required to ensure that the number, type and range of retail (A1) shops is maintained and strengthened.  It is also recognised that other uses such as Class A2 (finance and professional services) and Class A3, A4 and A5 (food and drink) uses have a key role but their location must be controlled to maintain a healthy mix of uses.

17.8

Housing

The overall strategy of the UDP includes encouraging housing development within and close to centres and in other locations with good public transport access.  Wednesfield village centre will provide some opportunities for such development particularly through the increased use of accommodation above shops and other commercial uses in the high street.

17.9

Employment Uses

A number of employment sites are identified close to, but outside the inset area of, Wednesfield village centre.  These will contribute to meeting employment needs in the area and it will be important to ensure that good links are provided between these areas and the village centre.  There is limited scope for Class B uses within the inset area but small scale development of Class B1(a) office uses would be appropriate and would be encouraged should market demand arise.

17.10

Lichfield Road

An examination of retail and other uses within this area has revealed that they primarily fulfil a role complementary to the village centre rather than meeting local needs in the immediate vicinity.  This role will be recognised in the consideration of future development proposals.