Planning in the dark:

The latest White Paper from the spring meeting of the KPMG/SPSL Retail Think Tank (RTT) addresses the surprising lack of information on the composition of the retail sector in the public domain.

The White Paper, the group's eighth, available at www.retailthinktank.com, or on request (see below), reveals that planners, retailers, consumers and the city are completely in the dark as to the current make-up of the sector, its footprint and the affects of any planning applications on overall retail space, traffic flows or demand. In short, the lack of data, much of which dates back to 1971, has been holding back and seriously affecting the health of the sector, whilst also having a negative impact on planning and, in turn, the environment.

RTT member Mark Teale of CB Richard Ellis posed the question: "With green issues central to public debate, is it not more important than ever to inform planning decisions with hard facts rather than via guestimates and popular opinion? In the absence of regular censuses of distribution, it is difficult to see how future retail sector needs can be effectively planned for at all."

Key findings from the White Paper include:

• There is approximately 1.4bn sq ft of gross retail space in Great Britain, which makes every consumer in the UK individually responsible for the support of 23 sq ft.

• The last Census of Distribution, a decennial attempt to identify sales at local trading location level, was published in 1976 based on data collected over 37 years ago, in 1971. No spatial data linked with key local sales data has been published since then.

• The property stock has been growing at just 1% per annum since the early 1970s, well below the rate of sales growth.

• The Competition Commission's recent review of the UK grocery market must in itself be at least partly based on inadequate data.

• Many private sector bodies collect data, but this is neither publicly held nor used in public policy or regional and national planning decision-making.

• Information regarding shop floor space is available periodically for England & Wales from the Valuation Office but not for specific shopping areas.

• The Valuation Office figures also do not identify net sales areas or the usage of the space by shop type to calculate turnover per sq foot estimates. Without this information it is not possible to verifiably measure impact, a central concern in the planning field and one highlighted in the Competition Commission report.

• Over half the population now shops in less than 80 major non-food trading locations, mostly major town and city centres, down from over 200 in the early 1970s; a major market share shift.

• UK population censuses, unlike in other countries, do not include questions on household income; a key requirement for measuring and comparing prosperity at local level.

• It is not clear if the 'right' type of space exists or is being developed. The government is saying that the policy should be evidence-based, but does this lack of evidence mean Government planning policy and its implementation is flawed?

The RTT concludes that the lack of data detracts from the overall health of the sector. Better information would be beneficial to all key stakeholders; retailers, planners, consumers, the government, the economy and the City. The question remains as to whether there is the will to collect detailed national retail data, how it should be done and who should finance it.