Publications

Although it is no longer possible to purchase paper copies of NRPF publications, we are working to provide free digital versions wherever possible. The full list is shown below for completeness; links will be added as material become available.


Publications

The Role and Vitality of Secondary Shopping – A New Direction
The report by CB Richard Ellis for NRPF is based on extensive case study and survey work, and calls for a radical re-think of current policy and practice. It sets out why secondary shopping areas are a vital part of the urban fabric, and remain important to the millions who choose to use them. The report points out that secondary shopping areas have been neglected by researchers and other analysts and policy makers; are not well understood; and have suffered as a result in their treatment by planners and other decision makers.
Download the report in pdf format (file size: 306 Kb)
 
A Tale of Three Cities – What Makes for a Successful City Centre?
A NRPF research study that sets out to compare three cities of similar size – Bristol, Bordeaux and Hanover. The report by Peter Shearman Associates reveals the particular strengths and weaknesses of cities in the UK relative to that in the other two countries, and lists some 40 key messages and recommendations.
 
Accessibility, Walking and Linked Trips
Report by Environment and Transport Planning for DETR and NRPF, the research reviews existing research, explores the linkages and relationships between accessibility, the distances people are prepared to walk, and the propensity to make linked trips in town centres. Examples are taken from the Netherlands, Germany and the UK and trends are compared. The report also identifies areas where additional research may be needed to provide a better information basis for town centre planning policies and land uses.
 
Trading Places
A joint publication by NRPF and TCPA. This volume brings together contributions by Professor Cliff Guy to the ‘Trading Places’ section of Town and Country Planning, with a foreword by Russell Schiller. It provides an accessible source of recent material on retail planning issues as well as combining these together to give a broader picture of how key ideas are developing.
 
The Sequential Approach to Retail Development
This research study by CB Hillier Parker for NRPF concludes that there have been substantial changes in local authority polices and decisions for retail development due to the sequential approach. The study concludes that problems still remain with definition of edge of centre, the availablity of town centre sites, retailer flexibility and town centre and edge of centre capacity to accomodate new retail development. The study involved interviews with local authorities, retailers and investors as well as extensive analysis of public inquiry decisions.
 
Download free of charge in pdf format: Summary Research Findings (file size 18.8Kb) Full Report (file size 235Kb)
 
Going to Town – Improving Town Centre Access
Part of ongoing work by NRPF on accessibility issues, this report by Llewelyn Davies was published in April 2002 under the DTLR banner as a companion guide to PPG6
Download the report  (file size 16Mb)
 
What Makes for a Successful Shopping Centre Scheme?
This research study by PMA for NRPF was commissioned to contribute to local authorities understanding of the issues which condition the investment behaviour of retailers and property owners with particular reference to managed shopping centre schemes. The study looks at schemes from; the shoppers, the retailers and the investors perspective and looks at the impact of new centres on the high street. The report contains information held by investors, property owners and retailers. It also contains a commentary by Professor John Dean.
 
Vitality and Viability: The Role of the Health Check
This research study by CASA/UCL for NRPF is a review of how local authorities are conducting Health Checks. The results of a series of interviews with both local authorities and investors and data covering 19 health checks is included. The report concludes that the full potential of health checks has yet to be realised, and sets out recommendations for further refining the health check
methodology.
Download free of charge in pdf format: Report (444 KB) Appendices (47.7 KB)

Occasional Papers

Occasional Paper No 1: Shopping Scheme Development Pipeline Validation Project
NRPF research study on the issue of the scale and relevance of outstanding permissions for retail provision. The report by Stephen Yeoman and Hillier Parker addresses the scale of the currently published figures, their reliability and the relevance of the survey methodology.
 
Occasional Paper No 2: The Impact of Out-of Centre Food Superstores on Local Retail Employment
A research project undertaken by Sam Porter and Paul Raistrick for Boots The Chemists. First reviewing the literature of the last 15 years concerned with employment effects of major shopping proposals, it reports the findings of a study based on a sample of out of town supermarkets which opened between October 1991 and February 1994.
 
Occasional Paper No 3: The Impact of Out-of-Centre Food Superstores on Local Retail Employment – A Critique of the Boots Study.
This study has re-examined the data, the methodology and significance of the earlier study on the same topic, and offers interesting and stimulating material for further debate. In particular it highlights the significance of part-time employment for local social policy as opposed to “full-time equivalent” figures in the Boots study.
 
Occasional Paper No 4: Superstores and Employment in Retailing – An overview by Dr David Thorpe, Head of Research at John Lewis Partnership.
This paper, the third in a sequence of papers on retailing and employment takes a critical look at the earlier papers before looking at problems in the available data sources.

Reports on NRPF Discussions

1. Structural Issues in Regional Retailing – Lessons From Brierley Hill?
2. Regional Decision Making
3. International City Centre Comparisons
4. Superstores and Employment – Myths & Realities

Research Group Scoping Papers